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Today is the release day for BUGLETTE, THE MESSY SLEEPER by author/illustrator Bethanie Murguia. It’s out for Tricycle Press/Random House, and Bethanie has a contest going on over on her blog to celebrate, here!
Everyone go pick up a copy of BUGLETTE, and watch for the companion picture book, SNIPPET, THE EARLY RISER, coming from Knopf/Random House in 2013!
Congratulations Bethanie!
Tags: Picturebook, Release Day
I’m surprised by the number of times I’ve gotten this one recently. But everyone learns new things at different times and new readers are always showing up, so I am happy to repeat more basic information.
When you’re a debut writer looking to publish in children’s books, you will need a complete manuscript 99% of the time (especially in the case of my readers, who are primarily fiction writers). That means that you’ll need a complete manuscript for:
The only exception to this rule is if you’re writing older non-fiction, like something for the middle grade or teen age rage or a reference book/textbook. And picture books from author/illustrators will, of course, need to have a dummy attached with some art sketches.
(Picture book dummy: A sketch version of what the book might look like in real life, with the art and text blocked out on 17 spreads/32 pages. Two or three of the spreads should be rendered as if finished…this is called a “mock finish.” The dummy should convey quickly, with the sketches, and in more detail, with the mock finishes, what the book will ideally look like. If you’re curious about dummies, this explanation is a great resource.)
I bet you’ve heard about a lot of authors selling something “on proposal.” That’s a lot more common with adult non-fiction, a business or diet book, for example, or a cookbook, than it is with children’s books. And in fiction, writers only sell on proposal if:
If none of this applies to you or you’re just starting out with some fiction ideas, I’d urge you to forget the word “proposal” and work on your full manuscript. A large part of the writing craft is reaching the end and starting the revision process. There’s nothing like it. You learn more from finish and revising than you did from just writing the thing out.
If you haven’t had this experience once or several times before trying to approach agents or editors, you most likely will not have all the skills necessary to get edited and published. So plug away and finish. Besides, a strong, complete manuscript is a much more convincing sales piece than just a partial that could potentially fall apart in the execution. Having a full manuscript works to your best advantage and is a huge learning experience.
Tags: First Draft Goggles, Picturebook, Slush
At last, another good picture book querying question! Plus, this one is useful to novel writers, too (if only a bit less relevant). Read on, everyone! Megan asks:
How often is too often to query an agent with different projects? For example, I’m in the process of sending queries for project A and writing project B. By the time I wait for agent responses to trickle in, I may be ready to query project B. Is it crazy to send another project to an agent who rejected me within 3 or 4 months? Am I just being annoying? Or, since picture book manuscripts can be written, revised, revised, revised, and polished faster than other genres, maybe this frequency for queries is expected?
I tell my picture book writer clients — AND THESE ARE CLIENTS…people who’ve already cleared the “hurdle” — that one out of every ten of their picture book ideas/manuscripts is going to be saleable. Picture books are “easy” to write and generate and revise and get 700 or whatever words into shape, sure, but it’s infinitely harder to hit upon a winner idea. GOODNIGHT MOON was first published in 1947 and parents still read it to their kids every night, all over the world. Publishers are tightening their lists and, ideally, would love a book with that much power and longevity. In other words, everyone wants something that will backlist for eternity. It’s not easy. I would even argue that’s it just as hard to hit upon such a picture book idea as it is to write a publishable novel, especially in this current marketplace.
Personally, I balk a little when writers hit me up with picture book after picture book, even if some time lapses between attempts. The point is to evolve and go to the next level between picture book manuscripts. Every submission round to agents will bring you valuable feedback and insight. (If you get absolutely no personalized feedback, that’s feedback in and of itself.) Keep writing while you’re on submission, of course, but you should also, in my opinion, wait to see how a submission round goes before you jump back into the querying game. You don’t want to give off the idea that you’re just churning projects out without stopping to learn and grow in between attempts.
Look at it from my angle. I have, oh, six picture book clients. They can all, in a good year, give me 10 manuscripts. That’s 60 manuscripts. Say I decide to just go out with them all (which I would never do). For each submission, I go out to about 8-10 editors at various houses. That would be between 480 and 600 picture book projects that I would send out. About 10 submissions a week. There are about 300 editors actively acquiring in children’s books these days (at the major, mid-size houses, and smaller houses), so even if I cast my net as wide as possible, I would still hit up every editor at least once, sometimes twice, regardless of whether they’re a good fit or even looking for picture books (if you want to know, that particular number of PB-hungry editors is at about 70-100). You also have to consider that, if an editor and I have a good relationship, existing projects together, or similar tastes, I will send to that group of particular editors more frequently over the course of the year. Those editors — the ones I really love and want to work with — would probably get more like five or ten projects each.
Do you think all those editors are going to see my email or get my phone call and think, “Wow, I haven’t heard from Mary in a while, and I know she only goes out with projects she thinks are really top notch, so I am really excited to hear all about this one!” Absolutely not. They will most likely think, “Yikes, another call/email from Mary. What does she have for me this month and how quickly can I get it off my desk?”
I don’t go out with everything my clients give me. I have to be selective and keep my currency with editors high, so that if they see something from me, they don’t roll their eyes. The worst position you can be in, I think, is if someone gets an email from you and groans. So I’m selective. And I have extremely high standards for the work that I pitch to publishers (just ask some of my impatient clients…and we all know how I feel about patience). You should strive to be this way, too, so I don’t groan when I get your second or third or fourth query for the year.
Tags: Picturebook, Redundancy, Slush
Whether you buy these books for others or for yourself, here are my favorites from the last four or five months in picture books, middle grade, and young adult. I’ll also recommend my favorite writing resources! Happy holidays, and make sure to support your local independent bookstore with these purchases. By voting for indies with your book-buying dollar, you’re supporting the industry that you want to be a part of. You’re also supporting those hard-working booksellers who could one day be hand selling and building buzz for your work. It’s never too early to start making smart buying choices!
Picture Books
CHILDREN MAKE TERRIBLE PETS
by Peter Brown
Picture book (40 pages), Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, 2010.
ISBN: 978-0316015486
This delightful author/illustrator book is so cute that I want to squeeze the hell out of it and make it go “Squeak!” (You’ll get it if you read the book.) The premise is frightfully clever and Brown really comes into his sense of humor with a cohesive, delightful idea. The bear works perfectly with the woodsy textures and colors of the art and, well, basically, I’m in love with the whole thing. So whether you buy this for some kid (I guess) or yourself, it’s a treat that will have you smiling from ear to ear!
THE BOSS BABY
by Marla Frazee
Picture book (40 pages), Beach Lane Books, 2010.
ISBN: 978-1442401679
Now, I don’t know if y’all have heard, but I am obsessed with this book. It takes a universal experience — new baby — and puts an irresistible spin on it. With gentle humor, this will get an appreciative nod from all new parents (or maybe that’s just them nodding off to sleep from getting pushed around by their brand new boss, er, baby). Do you have any pregnant or new parent friends or relatives? Bam! I just did your holiday/shower/congratulations present shopping for you.
SWIM! SWIM!
by Lerch
Picture book (32 pages), Scholastic Press, 2010.
ISBN: 978-0545094191
This one is a bit of an oddball choice and it’s from the summer but I first heard about it this fall so, whatever, it’s going in my holiday guide. Because this is my holiday guide and I do what I want. 
Just looking at this, you may not imagine that this fish’s cartoony mug would inspire unexpected sympathy and love. That’s where you’re wrong. Lerch (alias for author/illustrator James Proimos) weaves a fishy tale of loneliness, despair, a hungry cat, and, finally, friendship. It is lovely and much deeper than you’d think by looking at the goofy, simple art style (which, by the way, is fantastic).
BINK AND GOLLIE
by Kate DiCamillo and Allison McGhee, illustrated by Tony Fucile
Early reader (96 pages), Candlewick Press, 2010.
ISBN: 978-0763632663
Kidlit heavyweights DiCamillo and McGhee team up with Fucile (LET’S DO NOTHING) to create, I think, the most refreshing, surprising, and downright hilarious book of the year for younger readers (and me!). Bink and Gollie are characters that you get immediately, from your gut to your heart. They star in three vignettes that echo one another and are about sisters, love, and those quirks that we can’t help but adore (sometimes begrudgingly) in those closest to us. This type of voice — and you’ll see what I mean when you read it — isn’t for beginning writers. It’s something to aspire to and dream about. In fact, this whole book seems deceptively simple. But there is brilliance at work here. I won’t say any more, lest I deprive you of the sheer joy of reading BINK AND GOLLIE for the first time.
GUYKU: A YEAR OF HAIKU FOR BOYS
by Bob Raczka, illustrated by Peter H. Reynolds
Picture book (48 pages), Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2010.
ISBN: 978-0547240039
This book is haiku:
Seemingly simple and then…
An epiphany.
Not only do I love that this is a picture book of haiku for the four seasons, I love that it’s for boys. The charming illustrations here — done with a unifying accent color for each of the four times of year — are full of boys playing and getting into trouble. And yet, in every verse, on every page, there is the wonder, the stillness, that only great haiku can capture. Some verses are really funny and down to earth. Others, downright poetic. Without giving too much away, here is one of my favorites, from summer:
With the ember end
Of my long marshmallow stick,
I draw on the dark.
IT’S A BOOK
by Lane Smith
Picture book (32 pages), Roaring Brook Press, 2010.
ISBN: 978-1596436060
Now, you’ll notice that I’ve added a lot of concept books to my list. What’s a concept book? Well, like THE BOSS BABY and GUYKU, IT’S A BOOK isn’t really narrative-driven or character-driven. Instead, it takes an idea and runs with it to make a great statement or collection. Writers: this is a tough row to hoe. Marla Frazee and Lane Smith can do it. If you’re a debut writer, I wouldn’t follow the example of these books, I would just appreciate them for what they are. That said, I think IT’S A BOOK is a perfect comment on the digital revolution in publishing and the world at large! Get it for your blogger friends. (Ahem, ahem…)
BEAVER IS LOST
by Elisha Cooper
Picture book (40 pages), Schwartz & Wade, 2010.
ISBN: 978-0375857652
This one also came out over the summer, but I love it so much that I want you to buy it for everyone you know this holiday season. It is truly a treasure. While SWIM! SWIM!, above, reaches emotional heights with some rather funny art, this story achieves the same effect with gorgeous art and few words (four, in fact). As opposed to the concept books on this list, this is very much a narrative-driven picture book by a very talented visual storyteller.
Middle Grade
CLARA LEE AND THE APPLE PIE DREAM
by Jenny Han, illustrated by Julia Kuo
Chapter book (160 pages), Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, 2011.
ISBN: 978-0316070386
Okay, so this book comes out in a few weeks, and it’s not really middle grade, it’s more of a chapter book, but I sure did enjoy it! The art is charming and works really well with Jenny Han’s voice, which I became smitten with in MG books like SHUG and teen reads like THE SUMMER I TURNED PRETTY. If you’re new to chapter books or unsure of the genre, please do check this one out. It’s full of humor and heart and just right for this in-between age group!
SUGAR AND ICE
by Kate Messner
Middle grade (288 pages), Walker Books for Young Readers, 2010.
ISBN: 978-0802720818
Kate Messner is a MG rock star. She has a smart, literary voice that manages to blend emotional resonance and great, unique plots. Messner is a client of my colleague, Jenn Laughran, and has a long career ahead of her. For all of those writers aspiring to the MG shelves, this latest installment and her previous MG, THE BRILLIANT FALL OF GIANNA Z, should be at the top of your “To Read” list. SUGAR AND ICE has a frosty, seasonal setting, too, so it’s perfect for cozying up with, as long as you have a cup of cocoa on hand.
A TALE DARK AND GRIMM
by Adam Gidwitz
Middle grade (192 pages), Dutton, 2010.
ISBN: 978-0525423348
This is an example of what’s possible with MG, and how dark and funny you can really get. Adam Gidwitz certainly knows his Brothers Grimm, and he’s not afraid to take unsuspecting readers on a twisty and, at times, hilarious-even-though-you’re-totally-grossed-out look at the “fairy tales” we all think we know. And the scenes of carnage are described with such…well…good cheer! Just perfect for the holidays! For all those writers who have very active narrative voices — where the narrator is part of the tale, a la Lemony Snicket — this should be an especially exciting read. I devoured this book in one sitting and loved the voice.
PLAIN KATE
by Erin Bow
Middle grade/YA (336 pages), Arthur A. Levine Books, 2010.
ISBN: 978-0545166645
A lot of people say that PLAIN KATE is YA, but I think this skews more toward MG. Even though there are very dark elements to this story (and poignantly so, not like the rollicking darkness of GRIMM, above), I think this type of fantasy adventure is more at home on MG shelves. Either way, MG or YA, PLAIN KATE is one of the most jaw-droppingly gorgeous books I’ve read all year. As you may know, I, uh, read a lot in my line of work. With most books, I’m sad to say, I tend to skim and hurry, anxious to get on to the next book in my teetering “To Read” pile. With this one, I savored each page, anxious, again, but for a very different reason: I didn’t want it to end. Erin Bow’s prose is breathtaking. Sublime. There’s a word choice on every page that made me sit back and pause. I can’t recommend this book enough.
Young Adult
THE THINGS A BROTHER KNOWS
by Dana Reinhardt
Young adult (256 pages), Wendy Lamb Books, 2010.
ISBN: 978-0375844553
This book is, to sound like a cheap action movie reviewer, an “emotional tour de force.” While I can’t find the right words to describe Levi and Boaz’s fractured, fragile brotherly relationship after Boaz returns from war, we’re all lucky that Dana Reinhardt has fared a little better and written a whole book of not only words, but thoughts, images, and vitally important scenes on the subject. Reinhardt probes this relationship without once flinching…she portrays a sobering, lonely truth that could be happening in houses all across the country as veterans return to their families.
THE MOCKINGBIRDS
by Daisy Whitney
Young adult (352 pages), Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, 2010.
ISBN: 978-0316090537
Daisy Whitney tackles the difficult subject of date rape and its aftermath with courage and an intellectual rigor that is refreshing to see on the YA shelves. What I loved about this book is that Whitney, as a writer, didn’t take the easy way out. What would’ve been the easy plot? Girl wakes up bleary-eyed and realizes that she’s been raped. For MOCKINGBIRDS, that’s just the first chapter. Then Whitney takes off to explore a whole other story that’s there. What happens to Alex is only the beginning to a story that explores justice, truth, and empowerment in a very interesting way. A well-written, meaty read, and an inspiration for YA writers to think past the obvious plot.
GIRL, STOLEN
by April Henry
Young adult (224 pages), Henry Holt Books for Young Readers, 2010.
ISBN: 978-0805090055
I’m a huge fan of April Henry’s writing. In this gripping, thrilling YA, she takes on a challenge that most writers would easily shy away from: her narrator is a blind girl. What does that mean? It means that there’s some masterful, unexpected description in this book. What else? It’s really easy to ratchet up the stakes and tension. What happens to our dear blind girl? Does she enjoy a nice sit, safe on a couch somewhere? Bad news: she’s kidnapped. Worse yet: she’s sick. And did I mention she’s blind? Reading GIRL, STOLEN is like a three-hour-long anxiety attack, and I loved every minute of it. Read this for a very elegant lesson in pacing and tension…and to see how a writer fares when her powers of visual description are taken away.
THE REPLACEMENT
by Brenna Yovanoff
Young adult (352 pages), Razorbill, 2010.
ISBN: 978-1595143372
When you pick up THE REPLACEMENT, you won’t get the usual faerie/changeling story that you’ve gotten used to elsewhere on YA shelves. What I especially loved about this well-written, dark debut is its atmospheric quality. Can’t you tell from the Edward Scissorhands/Tim Burton-inspired cover? From word choice to descriptions to imagery and plot, Yovanoff weaves a cohesive, eerie, engrossing read. This has the whiff of dystopian about it, but not in the way that’s already becoming boring in the marketplace. This is a unique, fresh take, and I will remember certain twisted, macabre scenes from this book for a very long time to come. Plus, the cover rocks. (I’m easily amused by shiny objects…)
Books that I also loved but that are buzzed about enough elsewhere: THE DUFF by Kody Keplinger, CONFESSIONS OF THE SULLIVAN SISTERS by Natalie Standiford (I adore her voice, as always!), and ANNA AND THE FRENCH KISS by Stephanie Perkins (Yes, it is as delightful and smart and romantic as everyone says it is, go read it right now!).
Writing Resources
Earlier this year I wrote up reviews for SPILLING INK and WRITING GREAT BOOKS FOR YOUNG ADULTS. If you haven’t given yourself the gift of both of these, what are you waiting for?! I’ll also recommend two writing books that are a must for every writer’s shelf. These two are not new, by any means. But they are the books I’ve been recommending for years. If you don’t have these, you owe it to yourself this holiday season to correct that mistake
WRITING THE BREAKOUT NOVEL
by Donald Maass
Writer’s Digest Books, 2002.
ISBN: 978-1582971827
Hands down, one of the best fiction craft books I’ve ever read. In fact, I read and reread this about every six months to make sure I’m being as comprehensive as possible in my revision notes to clients. Each time I read it, I am reminded of important novel-writing elements, and I never fail to learn something new or see something in a new way. If you haven’t read this yet, that’s okay. I forgive you, and I hope you can forgive yourself. Don’t just buy this for yourself, buy it for everyone in your critique group or writing workshop. Then use it to guide revision or shape your thinking about any new projects in your pipeline. You’re welcome!
BIRD BY BIRD: SOME INSTRUCTIONS ON WRITING AND LIFE
by Anne Lamott
Anchor Books, 1995.
ISBN: 978-0385480017
I know I won’t be blowing anyone’s mind when I say that writers sometimes have issues. Jealousy, insecurity, blocks, procrastination, rejection angst…it can get pretty ugly at the keyboard sometimes. When I’m feeling overwhelmed or like I’ve lost perspective, I like to sit with BIRD BY BIRD for a while. Anne Lamott has a nearly hypnotic writing style — warm, wise, filled with gentle faith that never preaches or hits you over the head (Much like a good picture book text! I digress…). These personal essays, musings, and reflections, as the tag line says, “on writing and life” are a joy to read, especially after you’ve pushed yourself too hard or gone through a particularly difficult period in your writing journey. While, on a craft level, there’s nothing revolutionary here, it’s still worth a read. And it’s highly inspirational. A great gift for any aspiring writer.
***
Whew! I hope you like these recommendations, as this is probably the longest and most time-consuming article I’ve ever written for the blog. What can I say, though? There’s a lot to love out there! For the purposes of this post, I’ve either purchased all of these books or received advance review copies for free from the publishers. Happy holidays, dear readers, and happy shopping!
Tags: Highly Recommended, Middle Grade, Picturebook, Young Adult
This post is for all the author/illustrators out there, and the question comes from Siski:
I’d like to know more about agents and how they go about repping author/illustrators. I read an awful lot about query letters for authors but how does an author/illustrator query?
As we do with our authors, agents help author/illustrators develop their projects, work up a submission plan, and connect our clients with potential editors. The nature of the editorial work is a bit different, though. I’ll be the first to tell you that I am not an artist. (Despite a very promising banana still life at age three that remains framed in my mother’s…closet. Ouch.) But my mom is actually a rather well-known fine art painter. I’ve spent my entire life around art and almost every fall, I go on tour with her and hang out in even more galleries. I may not know how to pull what’s in my mind and get it down on paper visually, but I do know what I like (and what’s good) when I see it.
With author/illustrators, I comment on issues of composition, image choice, character, expression, color, etc., but the art mastery has to be there before I sign an author/illustrator or illustrator. All of my illustrators came to books from being artists first, writers second. It is much easier to hone the picture book writing side of a creator’s craft (though it’s still very difficult to write a timeless, smash hit picture book) than it is to teach them art. That’s why I don’t recommend writers take up art and try to become illustrators. Unless you are gifted visually, it will be very difficult to compete with all the illustrators on shelves today or in BFA or MFA programs. Aspiring illustrators should spend a few hours in the picture book section of a bookstore and see what the professionals are doing. Even the most deceptively simple styles have a lot of artistry going on behind the scenes. Adding writing to an illustrator’s toolbox is a lot easier (and more feasible) than adding illustration to a writer’s.
So for me to take on an illustrator, I need to be wild about their illustration style and talent. They also need to have at least one really fun or commercial story idea that we can work with. If the writing isn’t stellar (yet), I know I can work with them just like I would my author clients in order to get things into shape.
Submissions work similarly with author/illustrators, except I’m often sending out a full sketch dummy, anywhere from two to five mock finishes (full color renderings of sketches), and the manuscript text. I will either send this in the form of a physical, mail submission, if the art works better when you can spread it out in front of you and really dive in, or as a digital PDF file.
The other part of how I work with an author/illustrator is trying to rustle up illustration work. This is very tough going for most agents, and most illustrators, because a lot of illustrator-project pairing is a matter of luck and timing. Not all editors are equally patient or talented when it comes to stretching their imaginations for either a text or an art sample. This isn’t a slam on editors…far from it. Matching text to art is quite a skill, and that’s why some children’s editors don’t even have a lot of picture books on their list, because working with art isn’t something they love to do.
Some will see an artist’s sample postcard and, if it features a dog, think of their text that also needs a great dog character. A match is made! Some editors will leave a text sitting unmatched until the last possible moment, then see a great postcard that crosses their desk and…again, art alchemy! Others will fall in love with an artist, keep their postcards on hand or a link to their online portfolio in their favorites, and hunt tirelessly for the right text.
Most illustrators and editors swear that it’s all about when an art sample crosses their eyes. The right sample at the right time will get hired. Others think it’s about consistency…if they see an artist a certain number of times, they will start to think about them for jobs.
My job is to work with my artists to create the perfect sample image, portfolio, and postcards and then get them out there. For some clients, my colleagues and I do postcard mailings. I also do digital art mailings, the ABLA Artists of the Month email blasts that go out every month and feature two artists the agency’s client lists. Editors love having both hard copy postcards and links to online portfolios, so we try to do everything we can to get illustration jobs as well as sell the client as an author/illustrator (get them a book deal where they do both and there’s no other name on the cover).
As far as query letters for author/illustrators go — and remember, we only accept online submissions — I prefer having a query, a link to your online portfolio mentioned in your query letter, then the text of the picture book copied and pasted in the body of an email.
Yes, you do need an online portfolio, absolutely. It can be simple and you can pay someone to do it, but make sure you can update it easily with new images. I’d say you need about ten to twenty really strong examples of your characters, some micro scenes that focus really closely on one or two things, some macro that get a wide scope of action in one picture, some setting, some animals…really show off your range.
If you have a physical dummy blocked out, mention that in your query. If I like what I see electronically, I’ll give you the mailing address to send it my way.
Tags: Illustration, Picturebook
Sorry for the absence on Monday! I was in Chicago with my new MacBook Air and they didn’t have wifi at the hotel (what the French?!), only an ethernet connection. The problem is…the MacBook Air has no ethernet port (there’s a USB attachment, but I didn’t have it and wasn’t close to an Apple store)! Sure, I could’ve updated from my iPhone, but I have almost no patience for typing anything on that tiny keyboard. I let my Twitter and Facebook know but didn’t update it on here.
This easily answered question comes from longtime reader Siski (or is it Franz these days?):
I’ve got a story that absolutely requires them but I feel amateurish including them because I’ve read you shouldn’t. Should I try to rewrite the story without them?
Just so we’re immediately clear, I’ll talk a little bit about picture book manuscript formatting. When you write a picture book manuscript, you’ll typically have your text on the page, with line breaks or white space to indicate page breaks as you envision them. Like this:
I am writing a picture book story.
I think it’s very fun.
I’ll include a page break in it,
So the lines don’t start to run.
You can even dictate page breaks in parentheses, like this:
(Page 1)
I am writing a picture book story.
I think it’s very fun.
(Page 2)
I’ll include a page break in it,
So the lines don’t start to run.
Well, when you’re writing and you want to convey something about how you see the page illustrated, you include an illustration note, usually in parentheses and italics. This is what we’re talking about when we say illustration note:
I am writing a picture book story.
I think it’s very fun.
(Illo: Mary cradling her new MacBook Air, beating out the meter of her story with her fingers.)
If you write picture books, you’ll hear a lot of opinions about illustration notes. Some people say they’re a no-no, others say to add them in. I’m in the middle of the debate on this one. The reason so many people advise against illustration notes is this: too many writers use illustration notes to micromanage.
For example, you’ll see illustration notes like:
(Illo: Sally has brown hair, glasses, and a blue skirt. She is skipping down the street with a red backpack in one hand, a lunch sack in the other, by a house with a green mailbox, while her braid swings to the left.)
Or the note will be too detailed in other ways. Or the writer will include an illustration note for every page. The list of illustration note misuses goes on and on.
The point of an illustration note isn’t to jot down every single thing that’s in your imagination. It’s also not to micromanage the potential illustrator. The point of an illustration note is to convey something to the manuscript reader that is not obvious from the text.
Only use illustration notes in your picture book manuscript if there is something integral to the plot that you want the illustrations to convey, but it’s not described or alluded to anywhere in the text. In other words, if I will be blind to something from just reading the text, use an illustration note to describe it, but really do keep them simple, spare, and few in number. The average picture book text will only need one or two, tops. An example of an effective picture book note:
I am writing a picture book story.
I think it’s very fun.
(Illo: Mary typing, blithely unaware that a monster is sneaking up behind her, claws bared.)
Tags: Formatting, Picturebook
This comment came in from Priscilla via the blog:
I have heard that an author/illustrator needs to first “prove herself” as an author or an illustrator before being published as an author/illustrator. Is this the case? What is your advice for an author/illustrator on submitting a picture book when the text and images are dependent upon one another for meaning? As the Andrea Brown Literary Agency does not accept attachments with queries, a mock-up or dummy would be out of the question. But would an agent be interested in receiving written illustration ideas alongside a text query, or should the illustrations come later, only after an agent expresses interest in the project?
This is a great question, and one that might have a controversial answer. I am in the school of thought that picture books sell a bit more successfully these days, at least in my experience, if they come from an author/illustrator: one person trained to do both text and illustration.
Furthermore, most of my author/illustrator clients are trained illustrators first, then writers. I’ve done a lot more work with them on improving storytelling, structure, and writing. Because if the illustration quality isn’t there to begin with, there’s not a lot that I’ll be able to do, since my expertise is primarily in text.
A lot of the editors I talk to express interest in author/illustrators simply because the whole package is there: the text, the art, the interplay of word and image, the design of it. Some agents and editors are more talented than others at imagining what kind of illustrations to marry to text and vice versa. Picture book texts that sell (and many text-only sales are still made, every day) and illustration portfolios that land on an editor’s desk are incomplete. They need their mate in order to become a book. It’s up to the right editor and to chance to make the match between an author and an illustrator. Sometimes this alchemy doesn’t work. Sometimes texts or art bought separately take longer to get into production. It can get complicated. So if an editor buys a project from an author/illustrator, they have a tantalizing snapshot of what the finished book will be — right there in the dummy — and they know they’ll only have to work with and juggle one creator for the project instead of two.
This simplicity is, frankly, why I love working with a talented author/illustrator. They also tend to have the best understanding of how text and image can combine to become greater than the sum of their parts, how word and illustration enhance each other. For me, opening a dummy from a fantastic author/illustrator is like diving into a miraculous treasure trove. And that’s how it should feel. I’m extremely picky about author/illustrators, and do prefer to work with them over just illustrators or just authors, though I have those clients on my roster as well. This, of course, is just my personal preference.
Does, however, an author/illustrator need to get their start as an author illustrator? That depends. If they have a fantastic author/illustrator project that is very commercial, it will probably sell, even though they are a debut talent. If they extend themselves to land a text or an illustration deal (the latter being more common) first, then they can enter the marketplace with some illustration credits, then move on to an author/illustration combo. But I don’t think prior illustration credits are necessary to land an author/illustrator book.
One of my clients, Bethanie Murguia, was an experienced illustrator but had no book credits to her name until she landed BUGLETTE, THE MESSY SLEEPER (out from Tricycle Press in May, 2011). That was her first book deal and her author/illustrator debut. As it happens, I have sold two more books for Bethanie, and both of them will be author/illustrator projects. One other client of mine is on the cusp of becoming an author/illustrator debut with a medium-sized publisher (more details after we finalize the deal!). He is an experienced illustrator, and we finessed the text and story.
Another client, Lindsay Ward, was a trained illustrator who got her start on her own by sending out postcards to editors and art directors. From there, she landed a cover and interior spot illustration project for Doubleday Canada, and two illustration projects: THE YELLOW BUTTERFLY from Bright Sky Press (2010) and A GARDEN FOR PIG from Kane/Miller (2010). I was on board at this point and we were able to work up to an author/illustrator project with a smaller house (PELLY AND MR. HARRISON VISIT THE MOON, out Spring 2011 from Kane/Miller), and then land her an author/illustrator deal with a larger house, the newly retitled WHEN BLUE MET EGG, out from Dutton/Penguin in Spring 2012.
So, you can break in to author/illustrator-hood either way. And I don’t think it’s out of the question to land an author/illustrator debut deal…at all.
Now, a lot of folks do have questions about our submission guidelines. We don’t accept attachments, so how do you send a dummy of your author/illustrator work? Simple. You copy and paste your query and the text of your picture book project (even if the text is dependent on illustration, we understand how that goes) and mention that you’re an author/illustrator. Then include a link to your online portfolio (every illustrator should have one, even those who are technically illiterate but could easily hire or ask someone, there’s really no excuse and you will get steamrolled by your competition if you don’t) where, ideally, we can see a few sample illustrations. If I like your art style, I will ask for the dummy, and then you can send the attachment!
Tags: Illustration, Picturebook, Slush
This question about a little-explored market on the blog comes from Mary:
I have a PB manuscript that I’m thinking of turning into a chapter book. I’ve noticed that I haven’t seen many agents listing chapter books as their interest. Do agents represent CBs or is it best to approach editors directly? Also, is it difficult to sell a CB as a single title, or are editors mostly interested in series?
I’m going to expand this question to include another little-discussed market, the early reader. The reason I don’t usually talk about early readers or chapter books on the blog is because I don’t really represent them, and neither do a lot of my colleagues. As Mary has noticed, there aren’t a lot of agents hanging out their shingles and asking to see early reader or chapter book submissions.
Before I talk about why that is, I’ll define both markets so we’re on the same page.
Early readers are the earliest “chapter” stories that a kid can get. They’re very short in terms of manuscript length (1,500 words max) but are broken up into either chapters or vignettes that will give the reader the feeling of reading a book with real chapters in it. Your target audience for these is kids ages 4 to 8. Early readers feature a smaller trim size, some the size of or slightly bigger than a paperback novel, and can go from about 32 to 60 pages. The font size is smaller and they feature spot illustrations in either color or black and white instead of full color throughout, like a picture book. Some examples of early readers: LING AND TING: NOT EXACTLY THE SAME by Grace Lin (Little, Brown, 2010), the HarperCollins I Can Read! books, and the Random House Step Into Reading books. You can usually find them on spinner racks in the children’s section of your local independent bookstore. If you’re at all curious, go and get your hands on some. As you’ll see, early readers have strict guidelines for vocabulary and sentence structure and are graded so that kids can develop their reading skills and move up a ladder to more independent reading. Even if you think you have a great early reader idea, it has to be a very precise fit for a publisher’s established vocab/sentence/word count guidelines.
Chapter books are for more independent readers who are making the bridge between picture books and early readers and middle grade. Some bookstores designate these as for kids 9-12 but I would say readers are mostly 6-8. Manuscripts can range from about 5,000 words to about 15,000 words, max. Since your audience is still developing its reading skills, you have more of a wide berth in terms of vocabulary and sentence structure, story and character. Younger chapter books will be simpler, but you can get pretty sophisticated for older chapter books. Trim size resembles paperback books and finished books tend to go from 100 to 160 pages, with black and white spot illustrations throughout. Some of my favorite chapter books are CLEMENTINE by Sarah Pennypacker and illustrated by Marla Frazee, the IVY AND BEAN series, written by Anne Barrows and illustrated by Sophie Blackall from Chronicle Books, and the fun GERONIMO STILTON and THEA STILTON books from Scholastic (in full color!). If you’re at all curious about chapter books, do pick some up and take a look. They’re a very quick read!
Now, the reason I don’t talk about them a lot is because early readers and chapter books are a really tough market right now. Writers have some luck doing I Can Reads or Step Into Reading as work-for-hire for the big publishers, but writers and agents haven’t had a lot of recent success with pitching independent creations and getting an early reader or chapter book series going.
One reason for this? The word I just used: series. If you look at an early reader or even a chapter book, you’ll see that their spines are tiny. When you’re fighting for space on early reader or chapter book shelves with DORA THE EXPLORER licensed early reader #798 and 30 of its closest friends, your tiny spine isn’t going to stand out. It’s been proven that series sell better than stand-alones, so that’s where publishers are turning for these markets.
So why don’t publishers give new writers a series? Well, a debut writer is untested and they won’t have a lot of sales power to their name yet. And, truth be told, early readers and chapter books are not lucrative for publishers. These books have very low price points: about $3.99 to $6.99, unless, of course, they’re published in hardcover. Most are published on cheap paper, about the same quality as a mass market paperback (what you’d find in the grocery store checkout aisle). They’re not big profit-turners. And why would a house spend a lot of money and marketing launching a new series from a debut writer when they won’t really stand to gain from it? Cynical, yes, but this sector of the market is very cynical right now.
While early readers and chapter books are a down market right now, they’re not an absolutely closed door. However, writers hoping to tap this market need to be very familiar with language, vocabulary, sentence structure, reading levels, and all the other strict guidelines in effect for these books.
For my money, I think it would be easier to make a debut as a picture book writer in this market. And that’s saying a lot, since picture books aren’t exactly selling like hotcakes, either. I don’t look at submissions for early readers or chapter books unles, of course, someone has the next CLEMENTINE character. As it happens, one of my clients is developing a potential idea for this market (the only way I would really touch it right now), and so I’ve been doing a lot of research lately. These tricky little books are certainly on my mind, but I don’t recommend that they be on yours.
Tags: Middle Grade, Picturebook
Last night, I had the pleasure of attending a children’s publishing panel with some real industry heavyweights, pictured here from left to right: Rosemary Stimola, literary agent to the stars, Neal Porter, publisher of children’s books for Neal Porter Books and Roaring Brook Press, Meg Cabot, YA author, and Lisa Holton, multimedia publisher of Fourth Story Media. The whole thing was moderated by the delightful Rachel Vail, another YA author.
The topic of discussion was supposed to be “trends in children’s publishing 2010″ but the hour and a half boiled down to two ideas. First, don’t follow trends in writing or publishing because the moment is gone by the time anything becomes a trend (they spent 5 minutes on this). Second, holy-s&*$-the-publishing-world-is-ending-and-wtf-is-with-ebooks-and-we’re-all-gonna-dieeeeeeee!!!!!!!! This sentiment reached a fever pitch, in part, because of the disastrously misguided NYT article a few weeks ago about the death of the picture book. Even though the panelists claimed to be feeling more and more optimistic about the industry after the recession, the audience questions made it clear that most laypeople watching publishing from the sidelines weren’t seeing the silver lining.
Are we right to be optimistic in the times of ebooks and declining literacy? Or are publishing people just in deep denial? To be totally honest, I don’t know. I wrestle with these questions sometimes. And I’m not the only one, clearly. Out of the ten or so questions from the audience, two had to do with whether or not publishing, children’s included, was going up in flames.
ETA: I’d love to echo Cynthia Leitich Smith in the comments, below. Every time I start to freak out for a minute, Andrea just gives me one of her signature stares, smiles, and reminds us all that people were saying all of these things about publishing back in the 70s. As editor Lisa Yoskowitz reminded the audience in Wisconsin this past weekend, the NYT, as a primarily print newspaper, isn’t doing so hot, either, so they could be in, in part, picking on other kids to get the heat off themselves.
In terms of the ebook “threat,” Rosemary made sure to point out — and some writers disagree with this, but I completely enforce this idea — that publishers aren’t printers. They’re purveyors of content. And no matter the platform, whether ebook or printed book or app, people will always need stories, art, and content. “Platforms don’t change the storytelling soul of publishing,” she said. (Read an earlier post of mine about ebooks that deals with some of these issues.)
Neal Porter believes that picture books are a sustainable art form. He says he’s tried to acquire books for purely commercial reasons and always finds it a bit of a disaster. That’s not to say he hasn’t been affected by market changes, though. He now publishes smaller lists and is involved in more marketing and sales meetings with his staff, to make sure he has a hand in the retail/commercial process.
Lisa Holton, formerly of Scholastic and other big publishers, now runs a multi-platform company that is responsible for THE AMANDA PROJECT, an eight-book series for HarperCollins and also an interactive website. It turns out she was the perfect person for this panel, as she had a lot of interesting things to say about ebooks. She says there are two reasons to be excited. First, ebooks and digital platforms give writers and publishers an opportunity to connect directly to readers. Second, everyone has a chance to learn how to market better. (As is, publishers market to their customers. No, a publisher’s customer isn’t the reader, it’s the bookstore or library that will stock and then resell the book.)
Lisa doesn’t think the printed picture book will ever go away. On the one hand, it is a beautiful, pristine thing. On the other, though, new platforms mean new opportunities for illustrators, designers, animators, and developers to take the picture book into new territory. And the two can work in tandem.
But that doesn’t mean we know what we’re talking about or just what those opportunities are yet. Rachel described ebooks and enhanced ebooks (animated, talking, singing etc. books and apps) as the “wild west” of publishing. Funny, I used the exact same phrase at a panel on Sunday in Wisconsin. We don’t 100% know what’s coming or what shape it will take, we just know that we have to be ready for it.
Neal mentioned some concerns about apps. They’re expensive, and so not every book gets one. There are also decisions to be made. Will the app be an advertisement or marketing vehicle for the book, a version of the book, or simply the book itself? Maybe none of these things. Maybe all of them. After all, as Rachel, pictured here, said, kids want a multi-sensory experience. They want to read their book, and then they want to play it, interact with it, take an imaginative leap. The book and the play are all part of how kids meet and interpret a story.
All this uncertainty about ebooks is, of course, daunting. So, is there any truth to the NYT article? Yes, Neal says. There are a lot of mediocre picture books in terms of design, production, and content. Picture books were a heavily published area (as those of you who’ve heard my market overview talk know), and now publishers are scaling back. I’d argue, though, that focus on quality, not quantity, is a good thing for the long run.
Meg dove into the discussion with author’s perspective on marketing in today’s web 2.0 world. Even though it takes a lot of time, she keeps a great blog and interacts with readers via Twitter and Facebook. She says the point of online marketing is to give your readers access and your authentic voice. The worst way to market, she says, and I agree, is to just push your book all the time. Nobody will tune in to that marketing message, especially not kids and teens, who want a more authentic connection to their audience. (As I said in a post about blogging, people want Internet content that’s valuable to them, and self-serving advertisements aren’t usually it…)
Overall, I think the panel delved well into some recent publishing developments. I spend a lot of time thinking about these issues and how they’ll affect the futures of creators, agents, editors, publishers, and readers, past, present, and future. And while the panel itself was short on concrete answers to all these questions about where everything is headed, there is one thing I can say for certain: the people who create and publish children’s books have forged an incredible community, and it was great to come out and feel part of it.
Tags: Ebooks, Picturebook
Hey all, sorry to be late with my post this morning. I’m trying to tie some last minute things up before I take off to Boston for a few days to visit publishers. Here’s a question that came up during my webinar and also from Melanie:
I am wondering about picture book queries in slush piles. Due to the extremely short nature of the manuscripts do you always read the entire manuscript for picture books or do you base it on the letter with them? It’s my impression that since whole manuscripts are sent for picture book queries the letter is more of a cover letter, rather than trying to hook interest with a bit of the plot because the entire thing is there with the letter.
Melanie is completely right. Since most agents ask that the picture book manuscript be included in the submission, writing a really meaty query for that short a manuscript seems a bit silly. When I see picture book queries — and when I write my own picture book pitches, in fact — I keep it very simple.
I’ve had a book by Katie Van Camp and illustrated by Lincoln Agnew called HARRY AND HORSIE in my sidebar for a while as an example of a great picture book with an outside-the-box friendship hook. If you haven’t picked it up yet, I’m sorry for you, because you’re missing out.
If I were writing a query for HARRY AND HORSIE, it would read something like this:
Harry and plush toy, Horsie, are the best of friends. One night, Harry is trying out his bubble-making machine when one of his bubbles swallows Horsie and hoists him into outer space! Harry has to rescue his best friend — and go on a wild space adventure — before returning safely home.
A quirky picture book with a great friendship hook, spare text and retro-style illustration, HARRY AND HORSIE is sure blast your imagination into the stratosphere! This is a simultaneous submission and you will find the full manuscript of XXX words pasted below. I look forward to hearing from you and can be found at the contact information listed below my signature.
Easy peasy. No need to write an elaborate letter. Just present the main characters, the main problem, and the resolution, then work in a hook (“great friendship hook,” above), and sign off like you normally would with a novel query.
After that, just paste the picture book manuscript. If you are an author/illustrator, include a link to an online portfolio where the agent or editor can browse your illustrations. Do not include attachments unless the agent requests to see more illustrations or to see a dummy.
I’ve had requests to write more about picture books, so I will try and fold more posts along these lines into the rotation.
Tags: Picturebook, Slush
PELLY AND MR. HARRISON VISIT THE MOON by Lindsay Ward (March 2011, Kane/Miller)
BUGLETTE, THE MESSY SLEEPER by Bethanie Murguia (May 2011, Tricycle Press)
WHEN BLUE MET EGG by Lindsay Ward (February 2012, Dial/Penguin)
ZOE GETS READY by Bethanie Murguia (May 2012, Arthur A. Levine Books/Scholastic)
A SMIDGEN OF SKY by Dianna Winget (Fall 2012, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt)
WILDEFIRE by Karsten Knight (July 2011, Simon & Schuster)
MERCY LILY by Lisa Albert (Fall 2011, Flux)
THROUGH TO YOU by Emily Hainsworth (October 2012, Balzer+Bray/HarperCollins)