Teaching at the Loft

On Saturday, April 10, I will be teaching my first class for the Loft Literary Center at Open Book in downtown Minneapolis. I'm really looking forward to it. It's a one-day workshop called The Nuts and Bolts of Writing for Children. The class is geared for beginning children's writers and anyone interested in learning about writing for children.

This workshop is not a craft class. In other words, we will not be discussing plot, setting and characters. We will be discussing basically everything else. We will tackle the big, important questions (and the little ones too) about the business of writing for kids. This will include everything from the different categories of children's books to finding a publisher to writing a cover letter.

If you, or anyone you know, might be interested in learning more about the nuts and bolts of writing for children, there's still time to sign up.

You can call the Loft at 612-379-8999 or register online.

Here is a link to the class description: http://www.loft.org/classes/adult-classes/childrens-and-young-adult-literature page=shop.product_details&flypage=flypageLoft.tpl&product_id=57&category_id=10

The workshop should be a lot of fun. And I'll have some cool giveaways!

Spotlight on Books

This coming April, I will be a featured author at the 22nd Annual Spotlight on Books conference. This conference is for anyone interested in Youth Literature. It's being held April 23 and 24, 2010 at Ruttger's Sugar Lake Lodge Resort near Grand Rapids, Minnesota.

Not only will the setting be beautiful, but the presenters will be very interesting. The Friday afternoon workshop focuses on challenges that today's librarians face. Saturday is Author Day with three featured Children's Authors:

• Ben Mikaelsen, GHOST OF SPIRIT BEAR

• Henry Cole, A NEST FOR CELESTE

• Dara Dokas, MURIEL'S RED SWEATER

• plus, a round table with Regional Authors.

If you are interested in finding out more about the conference, go to http://nlln.org/spotlight.html OR call 1-800-450-1032.

It would be fun to see you there!

To learn more about Henry Cole's new book, A NEST FOR CELESTE, visit my Bookshop Gal Blog at: http://bookshopgal.blogspot.com/.

A visit to Alcatraz

Welcome back everyone! I apparently took January and most of February off from blogging, but I'm back.

In January, I had the great opportunity to visit San Francisco and Alcatraz island, infamous prison home to many well-known criminals including Machine Gun Kelly and Al Capone.

Before leaving for our trip, I asked my daughter (age 11) what she wanted to do most. She answered, "Visit Alcatraz." So we did. And it was so worth it! We took the Self-Guided Audio Tour, which was fascinating. The tour is completely narrated by former prison guards and inmates! The audio tour directs you around the prison with stories of daily life, infamous inmates, and escape attempts. You really get a sense of what it was like.

Upon arriving home, the first thing my daughter did was read AL CAPONE DOES MY SHIRTS by Gennifer Choldenko. The she quickly followed it up with the sequel AL CAPONE SHINES MY SHOES by Gennifer Choldenko. Now, AL CAPONE DOES MY SHIRTS is on my bedside table with a directive from my daughter to read it ASAP! So now I am.

Choldenko, who lives in the Bay Area, was a volunteer on Alcatraz. She really did her research before writing her two books. Both Al CAPONE books incorporate history of the people and the place. AL CAPONE DOES MY SHIRTS is set in 1935 and told by fictional character "Moose" Flanagan who is one of the children living on the island. Yes, there were children on Alcatraz! Many prison workers lived with their families on the island. What a way to grow up!

I have always loved historical fiction. And Choldenko has done a superb job of keeping the story funny and fresh while infusing it with history. And the Newbery folks agreed because AL CAPONE DOES MY SHIRTS received a Newbery Honor Award.

So, now I've got to get reading. My daughter keeps asking me how far I am. Don't you love that kind of enthusiasm? I had better live up to it and finish reading quickly. Then we can really talk about it.

A Kick-in-the-Pants!

If you're a writer, you already know this. But I want to say it again. A Writer's Group (Critique Group) is very, very important! A good group will offer excellent feedback on your writing, will share industry information, and provide a consistent outlet for your work.

This last one is what I needed most recently. What I needed was a Kick-in-the-Pants! Winter hit me hard this year, plus I got very busy. So busy, in fact, that I hadn't written any new material in weeks! (I apologize to my blog followers for being so LAME lately. This will change as of now.)

I didn't bring anything to our November Pita meeting. I didn't want to show up to our December meeting empty handed either. I saw the date getting closer and felt the pressure to produce. This is self-imposed pressure, but very motivating. I didn't want two whole months to slip away without some useful feedback from my fellow writers!

I bet the reason the Nanowrimo (National Novel Writing Month) takes place in November is because November sucks! (You can see my obvious bias here. I live in a state where November comes early and hard and makes me want to hibernate like the bears.) But, seriously, a significant outside motivator like Nanowrimo gets people writing more when they might be writing less.

So, I dug out the chapter book I was working on and re-looked at the Hermit Crab chapter. Thank God for Hermit Crabs and the Flaming Pitas! I feel like I'm back on track.

Writing Retreat

Recently, I had the wonderful opportunity to go on a three-day writing retreat with 3 of the 4 women in my writer's group. This was actually the first time I had ever gone on an official writing retreat, and it was well worth it!

We stayed at "The Sequel", a beautiful, cozy cabin on a lake. It was cold and rainy, then snowy. But, frankly, that was fine with me. I was less inclined to go exploring outside and more inclined to happily write away the afternoon.

Before the retreat we planned out a schedule for each day. Our day looked something like this:

8:00 am - Breakfast

9:00 am - Writing Exercise, then Free Writing Time

Noon - Lunch

1:00 pm - Hike and Write

3:00 pm - Free Writing Time

6:00 pm - Dinner

7:00 pm - Free Writing Time

8:00 pm - Games

We each came prepared to lead one writing exercise. These included exercises on character, setting, plot, and story starters. Writing exercises were kept fairly short so that we could optimize free writing time.

The other, extremely wonderful thing we did that helped optimize our writing time, was that we hired a great chef (and friend) to cook for us on the retreat. We were all so happy to have her with us!

All in all, I got a lot of writing done and had a great time. In fact, all of us had such a good time that we plan to go on a writing retreat twice a year.

If you (alone or with your writing group) can put together some kind of organized writing retreat, I highly recommend it. What a great way to get some concentrated writing accomplished and have fun along the way!

Rejection Quotes

Here is a list of some of the comments I have received in rejection letters. Some are generic, some confusing, some helpful, and some seem to reflect the current, tricky picture book market.

Please feel free to share some of your rejection letter comments - the silly and the serious! It will be interesting to see our collection all together.

• "your book would (not) be a comfortable fit for our current list"

• "there needs to be more plot"

• "too quiet"

• "Ultimately, I did not fall in love"

• "(not) distinct enough to withstand the current tough picture book climate"

• "I just didn't feel enthusiastic about this particular project."

• "(It) did not tickle the funny bone of our editor."

• "Not right for me."

• "this project would work best if you yourself were also the artist" (I wish!)

• "I'm not connecting with them."

• "Does not fit our needs."

• "(the) ending needed . . . something more unique and funny."

What are some of your rejection quotes? Were they helpful? Confusing? Bizarre? Let's compare notes.

The Hierarchy of Rejection

In the children's publishing world there is a definite Hierarchy of Rejection. This is very important to keep in mind as you start submitting work for consideration. Not all rejections are created equal!

1. The bottom of the Hierarchy is, of course, no rejection notification at all. It is simply being ignored, passed aside, recycled. This type of rejection is happening more and more these days. For example, the manuscript submission policy on the Charlesbridge website states:

Please do not include a self-addressed stamped envelope. Due to high volume of submissions we respond only to manuscripts of interest. All other manuscripts will be recycled.

Where in the past, no news could be possibly good news, not so anymore. No news - after a significant amount of time - means "No thank you."

To Charlesbridge's credit, they clearly state their policy online so you know what to expect. It's the publishers that just never get back to you, without telling you they won't, that really stinks.

2. Next on the Hierarchy of Rejection scale is the 1/2 slip of photocopied form rejection. I have received a fair number of these over the years. They usually have one sentence that states, "Sorry. Your manuscript does not fit our editorial needs." Or something like that. Blah!

3. A step up is a full sheet of paper, standard rejection. It's a little kinder and usually states, "Not everyone will feel the same way I feel." In other words, "Good luck finding another publisher. Not!"

4. Another step up the Hierarchy - and an important one - is if the editor actually signed the letter and added a note at the bottom. This is a good sign. If the editor wrote something like, "I enjoyed your writing, but it wasn't right for me," then for heaven's sake, if you write something in the future that may be more to her/his tastes, send it! The editor will remember you if they liked your writing the first time around.

Caveat - do not rush and resubmit the next thing on your pile. Wait. Really think about what she likes to publish. Look at their recent catalog. Look online. If in 6 months, a year, you have something new that might fit the bill, send it. Don't worry that it's somehow "too late." I think editors will appreciate that you really thought about what you would re-submit vs. rushing to submit anything.

5. Next up the Hierarchy of Rejection is the fabulous personal rejection letter! You might be thinking what in the world is fabulous about any rejection letter? But, if the editor actually took the time to write a personal letter, then you, my friend, need to keep this editor at the top of your list. They not only liked your writing, they obviously felt you had potential to write something they might like in the future. Even if the letter does not directly ask you to submit new work, do so. But make sure you put your best foot forward. This editor is hopeful that you could be the one! So don't mess it up and send something half done. You might not get the personal rejection letter next time.

6. At the tippy-top of the Hierarchy is the rejection letter that isn't really a rejection letter, but a letter requesting that you re-write your story and resubmit it. This doesn't happen every day, so if you get this kind of letter - pounce. Once again, don't resubmit the very next day. The editor might not think you took the editing very seriously if you whipped it off overnight. Take the time to re-write. Re-read the letter to see what the editor is suggesting. How was it close, but not close enough?

When I submitted my manuscript, REMEMBERING MAMA, to Augsburg Press, I received a top of the hierarchy rejection letter that was two pages long! At first I was bummed out. (I hadn't been submitting long enough to realize how good this rejection was.) Then, after a few days, I re-read the letter and realized the editor basically wanted me to add some minimal things to the story. I re-wrote REMEMBERING MAMA, re-submitted it, and it became my first published book. If I had ignored her rejection letter and simply moved on to another editor, I would not have that book published today.

So, if you get a 1/2 slip for rejection in the mail, forget about it and definitely MOVE ON. But, if you get a "good" rejection where the editor took the time to write a note, or better yet a whole letter, then keep that person's name handy. Don't feel bad. (Well, OK, feel bad for one day.) But then, feel happy that you got such a good rejection. In the Hierarchy of Rejections, any personal note is excellent! It could possibly lead to a future publishing relationship.