May 2016 1

This issue’s contributors

Laura Backes is the publisher of Children's Book Insider, and co-creator of KidLit Planet (http://www.cbiclubhouse.com) and http://writeforkids.orgHilari Bell writes science fiction and fantasy for kids and teens, including the critically acclaimed Farsala Trilogy. Her most recent book is Scholar’s Plot, Book 5 in the Knight & Rogue series. Visit her website at http://www.HilariBell.comJane McBride is the author of 34 novels, numerous short stories and articles including pieces in 16 Chicken Soup for the Soul anthologies, and the CBI Managing Editor. Follow her writing blog at http://www.janemchoate.blog-spot.comPJ McIlvaine is a published writer/produced screenwriter/kid lit author/blogger/-journalist. In a former life she was a great baker of Europe. PJ’s websites are http://www.pjmcilvaine.com and https://talesfromtheothersideofoblivion.word-press.comAnne Tews Schwab is a CBI Contributing Editor and the author of the young adult verse novel, Capsized. She earned her MFA in Creative Writing for Children and Young Adults from Hamline University and teaches reading and writing classes around Minneapolis and St.Paul. Visit Anne on her at http://www.piratepo-ems.com, where she posts a new pirate poem every day.

May 2016

Table of contentsAt Presstime: New Market Listings, Conferences and Contests...................................................

Check Your Assumptions Before You Start to Write by Jane McBride..................................

Editor Spotlight: Joëlle Dujardin, Highlights for Children, interview by Anne Tews Schwab...........

What’s New on KidLit Planet.......................................................................................................................................

The Art of the Pitch by Hilari Bell...........................................................................................................................

Featured Interview: Nonfiction Author’s Publishing Dreams Come True, interview by PJ McIlvaine....................................

Seeing Your Work Like an Editor by Laura Backes..................................................................................

How to Launch a Book on Social Media, interview by Jane McBride.....................................

Published 12 times/year by Children's Book Insider, LLC, 901 Columbia Road, Ft. Collins, CO 80525-1838. 970/495-0056. ISSN 1073-7596mail@CBIClubhouse.comhttp://www.writeforkids.org

Publisher: Laura BackesManaging Editor: Jane McBride ChoateChief Operations Officer: Jon BardContributing Editor: Anne Tews Schwab

Children's Book Insider, The Children's Writing Monthly is an electronic monthly newsletter that is included in the paid member-ship to the Children's Writing Knowledge Base (http://www.CBIClubhouse.com). The cost of membership is $49.95 per year, or $5.49 per month if billed monthly. For more information, go to http://writeforkids.org/come-join-the-insiders/

Text copyright © 2016 Children's Book Insider, LLC. Subscribers may reprint up to 300 words with credit to Children's Book Insider, www.writeforkids.org. For longer reprints, email Laura Backes at Laura@ CBIClubhouse.com.

Children's Book Insider makes every effort to verify the legitimacy of small and new presses and literary agents before printing informa-tion in "At Presstime." However, authors and illustrators should always proceed with caution when approaching publishers or agents with whom they are unfamiliar, and read contracts carefully. All "At Presstime" listings are current at the time of initial publication. Members are urged to verify listings past the month of publication.

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May 2016 2

New Markets

Literary Nonfiction Publisher Accepting Submissions

At Presstime:

Agent Accepting Submissions for All Ages

Agents

The WOW Picture Book Writing Retreat will be held July 17-23, 2016 at the Unicoi Lodge in Helen, GA (two hours from Atlanta). The retreat features lectures, small-group sessions, writing time, and optional individual critiques with picture book authors, author/illus-trators, agents and editors. Cost is $1499 for a shared room, which includes airport shuttle, lodging, meals, the workshop and all activi-ties. Private rooms are $1799. Individual critiques are $45 extra. For more information, go to http://www.wowretreat.net/

Robert Quackenbush, a legendary author/illustrator with over 200 books to his credit, will hold his Children's Book Writing and Illustra-tion Workshop July 11-14, 2016 in his Manhattan studio. The focus is on picture books and middle grade readers from concept to finish, with the goal of having the project ready to submit by the end of the workshop. Workshop size is limited to 10 participants. The fee is $750, with a $100 non-refundable deposit due upon registration to hold your spot. For more information, contact Robert Quackenbush by phone at (212) 744-3822, by email at Rqstudios@aol.com, or visit: http://www. rquackenbush.com.

Chicago Review Press Children's publishes an award-winning line of children's and young adult nonfiction books that cover a wide range of subjects about history, science, math, music, literature, and art. Most of the children's books feature hands-on activities and projects that extend learning for children ages 7 & up. Among these are the bestselling For Kids series of illustrated biographies for ages 9 & up in the areas of science, history and art; the build-it-yourself Science in Motion series of activity books for ages 9 & up; and the multicultural A Kid's Guide series for ages 7 & up that explores the different cultures in the United States. Chicago Review Press also publishes a young adult nonfiction biography series Women of Action that introduces young adults to women and girls of courage and conviction throughout the ages, and the Musicians in Their Own Words series. For more titles, go to http://www.chicagoreviewpress.com/

Interested in publishing high-quality nonfiction that will sell year after year. Looks for books with a well-defined, passionate target audience. Before sending a proposal, email a brief query describing the project and age group to the appropriate editor below. If the editor asks for a proposal, it should include the following:

A one sentence summary of your book, a brief synopsis of your book in 1–2 paragraphs, the estimated word count of the final manuscript, and the estimated completion date. Also include a complete table of contents and/or a complete outline of the proposed chapters along with the first three chapters in their entirety, and a few sample activities in detail, with a list of addition-al activities that match the subject of the book. Attach a an author biography specifying credentials and past publications credit, where appropriate; approximate sales of previous books published, if any; a description of the target audience and any informa-tion about the market; and a list of competing and comparable titles and how your book differs—be sure to say what makes your book unique. Any information regarding photographs or artwork for the book is also useful.

Email queries and proposals to Cynthia Sherry, Publisher, csherry@chicagoreviewpress.com (history, science and activity books); Jerome Pohlen, Senior Editor, jpohlen@chicagoreviewpress.com (science, history, YA biographies); Lisa Reardon, Senior Editor, lreardon@chicagoreviewpress.com (history, art, music, YA biographies)

Two Workshops for Writers & Illustrators

Laura Biagi has been with the Jean V. Naggar Literary Agency, Inc. (http://jvnla.com/) since 2009. She is actively seeking all categories of children's books. In the YA and middle grade realms she is particularly on the lookout for magical realism, contemporary stories, fantasy with high-concept plots, literary writing, psychological twists, cultural themes, social issues, thrillers that break the genre mold, and literary science fiction. Picture books especially attractive to her are quirky and humorous, full of heart with unforgettable characters, or beautifully told conceptual stories. She also represents adult literary/upmarket fiction and select nonfiction. To query Laura, send a synopsis of your work and the first page via email through the agencies submission form at http://jvnla.com/submissions.php.

At Presstime

SHINE brightly is a magazine for girls ages 9 to 14 published by GEMS Girls’ Clubs, an international ministry that starts Bible-based club programs in churches and Christian organizations. Looking for stories, articles, interviews, quizzes, games, puzzles, and crafts that are fresh, that present a realistic look at Christian life, and that cause young readers to see how their faith can play out in their daily lives. Fiction: Seeking stories with adventure, fantasy, and mystery, and situations readers can relate to in their daily interaction with family and friends. Length: 700-900 words. Nonfiction: Articles of interest include: animals, sports, music, movies, musicians, personal care, fashion, famous people, interaction with family/friends/siblings, cross-cultural experiences, international issues, exciting service projects, dealing with schoolwork, and crafts. Length: 200-800 words.

The magazine has two annual themes, God's Love Overflows, and Body Image, and will be accepting submissions related to these themes until January 2017. Additional monthly themes with submissions deadlines can be found at http://gems-gc.org/shine-brightly-writers-guideline/. Email entire manuscript to shinebrightly@gemsgc.org. Paste manuscript into the body of the email. Pays upon publication. Writers receive 3-5¢ per word up to $35.00 depending on length, quality, and rights. Poetry receives $5.00 to $15.00. Games and puzzles are paid from $5.00 to $15.00. All published writers receive two copies of the issue in which their piece is published. For more information, go to http://gemsgc.org/shine-brightly-writers-guideline/

Publisher Seeks Teen Romance

Entangled Teen, the young adult imprint of romance publisher Entangled, utilizes both digital-first and tradi-tional publishing models. Seeking fresh voices in teen romance with interesting twists in the following popu-lar sub-genres: contemporary, upper YA (16-19 year old protagonists) that will appeal to crossover audienc-es, historical, romantic thrillers, science fiction, para-normal and urban fantasy, fantasy.

All submissions must have strong romantic elements. YA novels should be 50k to 100k words in length. In addition to traditional male/female romance, Entan-gled is open to gay and lesbian category romance. Multicultural characters are welcome. Recent titles include Romancing the Nerd by Leah Rae Miller (con-temporary), Amid Wind and Stone by Nicole Luiken (fantasy), Nexis by A.L. Davroe (sci-fi). For more titles, go to http://www.entangledpublishing.com/.

All submissions should be made through the Submitta-ble link on the publisher's website: https://entangled-publishing.submittable.com/submit/19015.

Sky Pony Press is the children's division of Skyhorse Publishing. Currently considering picture books, early readers, middle grade novels, novelty books, activity and informational books for all ages. Mainly publishing single titles but also open to series ideas. Accepting quirky, unusual fiction, and books with strong educational themes that help inform children of the world in which they live. Especially interested in special needs themes (autism, ADHD, food allergies, etc.), and books on green topics such as recycling, the environment and nature. While Sky Pony is not publishing YA fiction at this time, the publish-er will consider YA nonfiction on the above topics. Recent titles include Hypno-sis Harry by Catherine Bailey, illustrated by Sarita Rich (picture book); Bella Donna: Too Many Spells by Ruth Symes (chapter book, ages 7-10); The McVen-tures of Me, Morgan McFactoid: Hair Today, Gone Tomorrow by Mark S. Waxman (middle grade); Pack of Dorks by Beth Vrabel (middle grade); Gettys-burg: The True Account of Two Young Heroes in the Greatest Battle of the Civil War by Iain C. Martin (ages 9-14). For more titles, go to http://www.skypony-press.com/. Email a manuscript or proposal to Sky Pony with a cover letter (include some relevant information about yourself, including your publishing history, any institutional associations you have, your occupation, a website link if relevant, and, for informational books, your qualifications as an expert in your subject area). Attach the full proposal or manuscript as a Word document. Send any art as jpeg attachments. Address to Submissions Editor at skypony-submissions@skyhorsepublishing.com.

Independent Publisher Accepting Fiction, Nonfiction for All Ages

Christian Magazine for Girls Seeks Fiction, Nonfiction

Penguin Young Readers, in association with We Need Diverse Books, is holding the first Roll of Thunder Fiction Contest for ethni-cally diverse fiction for ages 8-14. The Contest is open to people of color (or those who self-identify as other than white) who are residents of the United States, the District of Columbia and U.S. territories and possessions, 18 years of age or older at time of entry and who have not had any works of fiction published in any medium prior to entering the Contest. Manuscripts must be a complete original fictional story aimed at readers ages 8-14. The submission must be in English, between 25,000-75,000 words and must not have been previously published in any medium. To enter, go to http://www.rollofthunderbook.com and complete the entire entry form, attach your manuscript and biography as Word or PDF files and click “submit.” All submissions must be received by 11:59 PM Eastern Time on June 21, 2016. A winner will be announced in January, 2017.

The winner will receive a book publishing contract with Penguin Random House with an advance of $35,000, plus royalties. For more information, go to http://www.rollofthunderbook.com/

New Writing Contest for Unpublished Middle Grade Authors of Color

Publisher Seeks Teen Romance

4

Writing Workshop

by Jane McBride

riters often assume that they and their characters will share the same assumptions. If this is the case, that's

great. But we do our characters an injustice if we auto-matically assume that without asking them how they feel.

Why is it important to differentiate between your own assumptions and those of your character? If your assumptions about the protagonist are correct, then you will supply the proper details in your story to make it come alive and to make sense. If, however, your assump-tions are false, your details will also be false, and the story will suffer.

Suppose you are writing a story about a nine-year-old boy Ryan who has been taken from his home and parents and placed in a foster home. He didn’t ask for this, but the court-ordered decision is final until his parents can demonstrate their fitness.

Assumption Number One: You (the author) assume Ryan is angry at being ripped from his home and all that is familiar.

Assumption Number Two: You may assume that the foster home is a pit where the parents take in children in order to collect big checks.

Assumption Number Three: You also assume that Ryan’s parents are physically abusive and cruel.

But what if all three assumptions are false? What if, instead of basing Ryan’s story on your general impres-sions of typical foster children, you instead allow Ryan to take on a life of his own. How might the above assumptions morph into Ryan’s truths? Let’s address them one by one.

First truth: Ryan is happy to be removed from his parents and home. Ryan can’t read. He doesn’t know how to interact with others and, in fact, can barely

speak. He knows that there is a big world outside his house, and he wants to learn but they didn’t let him go to school.

Second truth: The foster parents are kind and loving, the home cluttered but clean. Ryan is welcomed into the foster home and instantly has brothers and sisters. He now goes to school and is quickly catching up with his classmates. The world has been opened to him and he eagerly embraces it.

Third truth: The parents were not physically abusive, but they did not teach him to read or allow him to play with friends or to do any of the normal things that nine-year-old boys do. They kept him locked inside the house twenty-four seven except for Sundays where they took him to an underground church where the preacher warned against the sins of the world and urged parents to keep their children at home with no contact with the outside. Ryan’s parents love him, but their love is colored by an unhealthy desire to keep him safe from a world they view as full of danger, evil, and sin. They are not evil. Like the rest of us, their world view has made them what they are. Ryan came to the attention of social services because someone discovered that he had never been to school. Truant officers, social services, and police then become involved.

Ryan needs a family who will love him. He needs friends. He needs to learn about the world. For Ryan, being placed in a foster home with other children and parents who love him in a healthy fashion and pay atten-tion to his needs is a dream come true.

If you have truly multi-dimensional characters who take on a life of their own, they will have experiences and motivations different from yours. However, if you start with a flat, quickly-sketched character who hangs from a stereotype (“typical foster child”, for example), you will assume that character thinks and acts according to

type, and those assumptions will spread to the other characters in your book as well. You’ll end up with a predictable, run-of-the-mill story.

So how do you keep your own assumptions in check and allow your character to authentically spring to life?Start by asking yourself some questions regarding why you have those assumptions. For this exercise, let’s assume you’re the author of Ryan’s story.

Have you seen television shows about children hating their foster homes and running away at every opportuni-ty or living on the streets and becoming prey to preda-tors there? Or you may have viewed shows where the foster parents were just as horrible as the biological parents?

Have you personally known a child who resented being taken away from his biological parents and does every-thing he can to return to them despite their abuse? He may believe he deserved their ill treatment. He may feel that they need him because they are not able to take care of themselves. The pull between biological children and their parents is a powerful one, even if it is based on a sick relationship.

Have you heard of cases of children being taken away from their parents because the parents were physically abusive? Your outrage was triggered at the idea of an innocent child suffering at the hands of a powerful adult.

Whatever your reasons for making the false assump-tions, if you understand that you came to the story with preconceived ideas, you can start plotting the story and drawing the characters with the “facts.” You are doing a mind re-set and can write Ryan’s story as he tells you. You are listening to him rather than yourself. Any time you take author intrusion out of a story, you come closer to writing a book with genuine feeling and insight.

Is making assumptions about characters and situations always wrong? No. It can be convenient, allowing you to eliminate long and tedious scenes of obvious things and get on with the meat of the story. But those assump-tions must be shared by the character. In the case above, the author’s view and the character’s view are vastly different. Because of that, the book will never achieve the goal of showing Ryan’s genuine story.

There’s another component to assumption-making and that is the readers. What assumptions will they bring to a story? Will they make the same faulty ones about Ryan’s situation as you did? If so, how can you persuade them to understand what you have learned about Ryan? Remember, if you build your characters on stereotypes and commonly-held beliefs, your readers will start seeing the world the same way. One of the jobs of children‘s book authors is to open up readers’ minds to all the infinite variations of life.

Much of the answer lies in the details. What details you reveal, how you reveal them, and the timing of the reve-lations will change the readers’ views. What details can you include to show Ryan’s desperate need for a family who will allow him to develop and grow in a normal way?

Ryan’s delight in playing a video game with his new brothers and sisters.

His fight with a brother and then making peace.

His wonderment in learning to read a sentence in a simple book.

His sadness over the narrow life he lived for the first nine years of his life and his sorrow for his parents who continue to live that life.

His shyness at going to school for the first time.

His fear of possible ridicule when his new family and classmates discover that he doesn’t know how to read.

His gratitude to his foster parents for giving him a home.

His terror at attending church with his new family for the first time. He fears it will be like the church his parents took him to.

His gradual acceptance that the world is neither all evil as his biological parents painted it nor all good.

We all approach a new story with assumptions. Some may be correct. Some may be false. Don’t be afraid to challenge yours and ask the hard questions about why you hold them. You may discover things about yourself as well as your characters.

Check Your Assumptions Before You Start to Write

May 2016

W

5

Writing WorkshopAssumptions continued

riters often assume that they and their characters will share the same assumptions. If this is the case, that's

great. But we do our characters an injustice if we auto-matically assume that without asking them how they feel.

Why is it important to differentiate between your own assumptions and those of your character? If your assumptions about the protagonist are correct, then you will supply the proper details in your story to make it come alive and to make sense. If, however, your assump-tions are false, your details will also be false, and the story will suffer.

Suppose you are writing a story about a nine-year-old boy Ryan who has been taken from his home and parents and placed in a foster home. He didn’t ask for this, but the court-ordered decision is final until his parents can demonstrate their fitness.

Assumption Number One: You (the author) assume Ryan is angry at being ripped from his home and all that is familiar.

Assumption Number Two: You may assume that the foster home is a pit where the parents take in children in order to collect big checks.

Assumption Number Three: You also assume that Ryan’s parents are physically abusive and cruel.

But what if all three assumptions are false? What if, instead of basing Ryan’s story on your general impres-sions of typical foster children, you instead allow Ryan to take on a life of his own. How might the above assumptions morph into Ryan’s truths? Let’s address them one by one.

First truth: Ryan is happy to be removed from his parents and home. Ryan can’t read. He doesn’t know how to interact with others and, in fact, can barely

speak. He knows that there is a big world outside his house, and he wants to learn but they didn’t let him go to school.

Second truth: The foster parents are kind and loving, the home cluttered but clean. Ryan is welcomed into the foster home and instantly has brothers and sisters. He now goes to school and is quickly catching up with his classmates. The world has been opened to him and he eagerly embraces it.

Third truth: The parents were not physically abusive, but they did not teach him to read or allow him to play with friends or to do any of the normal things that nine-year-old boys do. They kept him locked inside the house twenty-four seven except for Sundays where they took him to an underground church where the preacher warned against the sins of the world and urged parents to keep their children at home with no contact with the outside. Ryan’s parents love him, but their love is colored by an unhealthy desire to keep him safe from a world they view as full of danger, evil, and sin. They are not evil. Like the rest of us, their world view has made them what they are. Ryan came to the attention of social services because someone discovered that he had never been to school. Truant officers, social services, and police then become involved.

Ryan needs a family who will love him. He needs friends. He needs to learn about the world. For Ryan, being placed in a foster home with other children and parents who love him in a healthy fashion and pay atten-tion to his needs is a dream come true.

If you have truly multi-dimensional characters who take on a life of their own, they will have experiences and motivations different from yours. However, if you start with a flat, quickly-sketched character who hangs from a stereotype (“typical foster child”, for example), you will assume that character thinks and acts according to

type, and those assumptions will spread to the other characters in your book as well. You’ll end up with a predictable, run-of-the-mill story.

So how do you keep your own assumptions in check and allow your character to authentically spring to life?Start by asking yourself some questions regarding why you have those assumptions. For this exercise, let’s assume you’re the author of Ryan’s story.

Have you seen television shows about children hating their foster homes and running away at every opportuni-ty or living on the streets and becoming prey to preda-tors there? Or you may have viewed shows where the foster parents were just as horrible as the biological parents?

Have you personally known a child who resented being taken away from his biological parents and does every-thing he can to return to them despite their abuse? He may believe he deserved their ill treatment. He may feel that they need him because they are not able to take care of themselves. The pull between biological children and their parents is a powerful one, even if it is based on a sick relationship.

Have you heard of cases of children being taken away from their parents because the parents were physically abusive? Your outrage was triggered at the idea of an innocent child suffering at the hands of a powerful adult.

Whatever your reasons for making the false assump-tions, if you understand that you came to the story with preconceived ideas, you can start plotting the story and drawing the characters with the “facts.” You are doing a mind re-set and can write Ryan’s story as he tells you. You are listening to him rather than yourself. Any time you take author intrusion out of a story, you come closer to writing a book with genuine feeling and insight.

Is making assumptions about characters and situations always wrong? No. It can be convenient, allowing you to eliminate long and tedious scenes of obvious things and get on with the meat of the story. But those assump-tions must be shared by the character. In the case above, the author’s view and the character’s view are vastly different. Because of that, the book will never achieve the goal of showing Ryan’s genuine story.

There’s another component to assumption-making and that is the readers. What assumptions will they bring to a story? Will they make the same faulty ones about Ryan’s situation as you did? If so, how can you persuade them to understand what you have learned about Ryan? Remember, if you build your characters on stereotypes and commonly-held beliefs, your readers will start seeing the world the same way. One of the jobs of children‘s book authors is to open up readers’ minds to all the infinite variations of life.

Much of the answer lies in the details. What details you reveal, how you reveal them, and the timing of the reve-lations will change the readers’ views. What details can you include to show Ryan’s desperate need for a family who will allow him to develop and grow in a normal way?

Ryan’s delight in playing a video game with his new brothers and sisters.

His fight with a brother and then making peace.

His wonderment in learning to read a sentence in a simple book.

His sadness over the narrow life he lived for the first nine years of his life and his sorrow for his parents who continue to live that life.

His shyness at going to school for the first time.

His fear of possible ridicule when his new family and classmates discover that he doesn’t know how to read.

His gratitude to his foster parents for giving him a home.

His terror at attending church with his new family for the first time. He fears it will be like the church his parents took him to.

His gradual acceptance that the world is neither all evil as his biological parents painted it nor all good.

We all approach a new story with assumptions. Some may be correct. Some may be false. Don’t be afraid to challenge yours and ask the hard questions about why you hold them. You may discover things about yourself as well as your characters.

May 2016

6

theme (pirates were big for a while), and I’ve noticed more sassy protagonists, but in general I think writers tend to send us their more classic stories. We don’t adopt trends for the sake of it, but if a popu-lar presentation style works well, fits our mission, and is appealing to kids, we’re happy to try it. We’ve been publishing some stories in graphic (comic-strip) format and receiving great feedback from kids. ATS: Highlights publishes wonderful pieces of short fiction, some of which are approximately the same length as a picture book, but there are differences between the two forms. Could you please share some tips on how short stories for magazines differ from picture books?    JD: A large portion of a picture book’s story is told through illustra-tion, so the text tends to be spare and the plot highly visual. Short stories, on the other hand, must convey an entire story through words since the illustrations will be few. Because short stories are usually intended for a slightly older audience, the storyline is often subtler, the language is more sophisticated, and the characters (who are slightly older) can deal with more internal struggle. ATS: We would love to give our readers a quick peek into what you are currently seeking and how to submit to you. Could you please share that information with us?

JD: Highlights is now using the online submission portal Submittable and encourages all writers to submit through the system. You can find us at http://www.highlights.submittable.com. We’re especially looking for historical fiction and humorous stories, but we’re open to all genres appropriate for kids.

Highlights is a general-interest magazine for children ages 6-12 and includes stories, puzzles, articles, and activities. Full submission guidelines can be found at the Submittable link above.

ou’re never too old to realize your dreams. Vivian Kirkfield is living proof as her Sweet Dreams, Sarah, a

nonfiction picture book about Sarah Goode, a former slave who became the first African-American woman to be awarded a US patent, is slated for publication in 2017 by Creston Books. Vivian’s enthusiasm and passion for kid lit shines on the page and at her charming website, Picture Books Help Kids Soar (http://www.vivi-ankirkfield.com).

PJ McIlvaine: You have quite an eclectic background: a Master’s Degree in Early Childhood Education, you once taught Kindergarten and you operated a day care center. How did all this translate into writing kid lit?

Vivian Kirkfield: I remember sitting on my mother’s lap, turning the pages of The Little House by Virginia Lee Burton. At the tender age of two, I fell in love with picture books. Many years later, as a kindergarten teacher and daycare provider, I used them to build literacy skills and encourage children to become lovers of books and reading. When my own children were growing up, I read to them on a daily basis and wrote little stories to entertain them. But it wasn’t until I retired and hopped into blogging to promote a parent-teacher resource guide I had written, that I got serious about writing for children. In 2012, I joined Julie Hedlund’s 12x12 Picture Book Writing Challenge, Tara Lazar’s PiBoIdMo, and Susanna Leon-ard Hill’s many contests and writing prompts. Every day I looked forward to writing—I knew I had found my bliss.

PJ: Tell us where the inspiration for your debut non-fic-tion picture book, Sweet Dreams, Sarah (Creston Books, Spring 2017), came from. How many drafts did it take until you felt it was ready for the world? Is writing a biography picture say, more difficult  or different than writing a fiction one? Did you have any input on what 

illustrator the publisher chose?

VK: Until I took Kristen Fulton’s Nonfiction Archeolo-gy course in June 2014, I had never written a nonfiction picture book. Her class was a life-changing experience for me. I had fallen in love with picture books as a toddler. Now I fell in love with writing nonfiction picture books. Kristen encouraged us to find golden nugget moments in history…I discovered that Sarah

Goode, a former slave, had received one of the first patents ever issued to a black woman. WOW! At a time when most women stayed home, when most women couldn’t even own property, here was a black woman who created a cabinet bed to answer the needs of her customers. More than that, she was determined to get credit for it…she dreamt it, she built it…and then she claimed it!

I’m a big fan of critique. I’ve learned that having many eyes on my work helps me

create the strongest story possible. I have an insane number of critique partners…fabulous writers, fabulous friends…each has had a hand in making Sweet Dreams, Sarah ready for the world. You ask how many drafts—dozens of critique rounds…hundreds of revisions. I embrace revision with my whole heart. The only thing that didn’t change was the very begin-ning…that is pretty much identical to my original draft.

I still love writing fiction picture books. But for me, writing nonfiction is my opportunity to bring history to life for young readers. And there seems to be a certain strategy that makes it flow more easily. I pick a topic. Research it. Write a rough draft. And then revise the heck out of it!

Regarding the illustrator for Sweet Dreams, Sarah, I did not have any input on that. However, I’ve seen some of Chris Ewald’s work and it is fantastic! I am excited to see how he will interpret the story.

Editor Spotlight

know then what I know now about the importance of social media presence and platform building. I was shy and had to step out of my comfort zone to walk into local bookstores to ask if they would carry the book. I connected with mom bloggers who reviewed the book on their blogs. After doing those things for a year, I got involved in writing picture books and found that I wanted to focus my energies on that. I congratulate anyone who self-publishes and markets their books successfully…it is a massive undertaking and not for the faint of heart. It can be done…and there are many advantages…but it takes a concerted effort, a lot of energy, patience, and perseverance. PJ: You maintain a very active website and social media presence. How has that impacted your career? And please, who is the adorable little boy pictured on the site.

VK: I should be the poster child for people who are afraid of blogging or getting active on social media. When I started at the end of 2010, I knew nothing about social media, thought a tweet was something a bird said, was afraid to turn on the computer by myself (I thought I might break it or make the entire internet disappear). I still have a lot to learn, but I absolutely LOVE the ability to connect with writers and parents and teachers and librarians…and family and friends, of course. I do believe that the connection, the encourage-ment, the accountability that comes with being active in various online groups has kept me on track with my writing. Life often gets in the way of our plans and I think it would have been easy for me to get busy doing other things.

And the little boy is my grandson, Jeremy, who is now seven years old. We moved back to the east coast three years ago so we could be closer and, although I miss the Rocky Mountains of Colorado, I wouldn’t trade anything for the close bond we’ve developed. He says our Monopoly games are ‘epic’ and he often asks to come for a ‘Grammy sleepover’…probably because he knows he’ll get to stay up really late, eat peanut butter on toast for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and hear picture book stories whenever he wants.

PJ:  What was your funniest rejection? (Mine was that my pregnant character drank too many cups of coffee.)

VK: Oh, PJ, this is a great question! I wrote a story

about a little girl who didn’t want her noisy pesky little brother to ruin her birthday party…she said he acted like a monkey. And monkeys belong in the zoo. So she mailed him there. The agent worried that a child might try to do that and we shouldn’t write about anything that would be dangerous for children to do. I guess she hadn’t read Stuck by Oliver Jeffers. And the Flat Stanley books have been around forever. For those who don’t know the series, a bookcase falls on Stanley and flattens him. Oops! And he never regains his shape. Oh dear! When his parents take him on a trip, there isn’t enough room in the car, so they slip him into an envelope (with some crackers in case he gets hungry and a deck of cards in case he gets bored) and they mail him home. Ha! But I do understand that we all have our own opin-ions on what constitutes a great story and I think it is very important to keep that in mind when you get rejec-tions or critiques. If five different people point out the same issue with a story, I definitely sit up and take notice.

PJ: How has your family embraced your writing?

VK: I am very fortunate…my family is thrilled that I’ve found great happiness as I’ve turned the page to this next chapter of my life. My husband is extremely supportive and is often my go-to set of ears to listen to a revision, not so much for advice on how I should change it, but so I can read it out loud the way a parent would be reading it to a child. I think that is really important…you’d be surprised how much better it is than reading it to yourself. You’ll feel when you are tripping up on a word or a phrase, whereas if you just read it to yourself, you might gloss over those spots. As I mentioned before, my sister often comes up with an interesting topic for me…she is a great reader and presi-dent of her community’s book club. And my children so proud of my success.

PJ: Where do you see yourself five years from now?

VK: Five years from now? Writing! Revising! And hopefully, with several books to my credit. I’d also like to offer critique/editing services sometime down the road to help augment my income so I can attend confer-ences without breaking the budget. It’s a joy to read picture book stories, whether they are from famous authors or newbie writers.

Joëlle Dujardin, Senior Editor with Highlights for Children

oday, we are excited to introduce to you Ms. Joëlle Dujardin, a Senior Editor with Highlights for

Children magazine.

Ms. Dujardin is a font of wisdom in the world of children’s publishing, thanks in large part to her wealth of experience. Since her early days in the busi-ness, Ms. Dujardin has held a variety of positions with different publishers including Henry Holt and Company, the Cricket Magazine Group, and Cricket Books. She was brought aboard the Highlights crew in 2004, and is now a senior editor at Highlights.

We had the pleasure of chatting with Ms. Dujardin about the state of the children’s magazine market today and of gathering her insights about publishing for children. We are delighted to share her thoughts with you today. Anne Tews Schwab: So many of us grew up reading Highlights, devouring the contents as children, and later sharing the stories, craft, activities, articles and more with children of our own. Could you please share with our writing readers a few details of your journey towards becoming an editor with Highlights?

Joëlle Dujardin: I was a voracious reader as a child, and Highlights was some my favorite reading materi-al. As much as I enjoyed the magazine, though, I honestly never gave much thought to the people who made it. (That’s probably why I’m so impressed by kids who write to Highlights with an appreciation for us as real people.) It wasn’t until I was much older—in my senior year of college and finally considering my options as an English major—that I looked at editing as a profession. Evaluating stories all day? I could do that! After graduating, I was lucky enough to land a job at Henry Holt in New York working as an editorial assistant for an editor of

young adult books and then, later, at Carus Publish-ing in Chicago, where I learned a lot about the children’s magazine market. After my time at Carus, I came to Highlights and have been here for more than 10 years.

ATS: Could you please share with our writing read-ers a few general observations about the submissions you see on both the positive and negative sides? Common mistakes? Exceptional submissions? Other observations?            JD: Short stories for kids tend to be a bit formulaic by

nature. A short story must have a main character, a conflict, and a resolution. So we’re looking for stories that achieve a traditional, satisfying arc while remaining fresh and “real.” The most common mistakes I see tend to be the result of either following a formula too closely or of not following any formula at all. It’s hard to get into a story if we know exactly where it’s going from the start; on the other hand, we don’t feel vested if a story’s plot elements seem so random that we don’t know what’s at stake. A strong

submission is one in which the characters are unique and likable, the problem is original but relatable, and the resolution is clever but organic to the storyline. ATS: As an editor with a well respected and widely beloved magazine such as Highlights, you are in a unique position to observe style, tone, and content trends in the world of writing for the children’s market. How do these trends affect your decision- making process when reading through the floods of submissions that must certainly cross your desk on a regular basis?            JD: Most of the stories we receive aren’t especially trendy. I sometimes see stories playing with form (told entirely in text message, say) or on a “hot”

interview by Anne Tews Schwab

May 2016

T

PJ: Since the book isn't coming out until 2017, where are you in the publishing process right now? VK: After the contract was signed, Marissa Moss, the editor at Creston Books, sent me the manuscript with a few revision requests. She is amazing to work with and by February, I had completed all the changes to her satisfaction. Now the story is with the illustrator and I can’t wait to see what he does with it.

PJ: You’re represented by Essie White of Storm Liter-ary Agency. How did that come about? How long did it take you to secure representation?

VK: As I mentioned, I joined the online 12x12 Chal-lenge in 2012…writing a picture book draft every month. The next year, Julie Hedlund arranged for agents to accept submissions from members. I had never submitted my work before, so this was scary…but being part of the group helped so much, especially with all of the information and resources Julie provided to us. By the end of 2014, I was getting some great feedback from agents. And in 2015, I had several agents who were interested in my work. When I read the About page on Storm Literary Agency’s website, I fell in love with Essie White. I submitted Sweet Dreams, Sarah to her and she emailed me an hour later. In order to be an effective salesperson for you, an agent must be passionate about your work. And Essie was. Then I spoke with her current clients—she possessed the communication skills, the business savvy, and the compassionate nature I had been searching for. Two weeks after I signed with her, my story was on its way to a dozen editors. And two weeks after that, we had a book contract. What a wild ride! I know I was very lucky! PJ: Where do you get your ideas from? How many projects do you work on at a time? Do you have any other nonfiction books in the works?  What are you working on now?

VK: I get my ideas from so many places…internet, TV, books I read, even my sister is on the lookout for inter-esting topics for me. In fact, my February 12x12 draft is a story my sister suggested. One of her best friends is an acquaintance of the granddaughter of the man who founded the Greyhound Bus company. She put me in touch with that friend and the family is thrilled to have a story about this amazing individual who came to this

country in 1905, speaking no English and with only 60 dollars in his pocket, but he created an industry that changed the way Americans travel.

I tend to work on several projects at the same time. I research a new story, write another, revise another, and continue to polish finished stories. I’ve learned that a manuscript is never done…even after the publisher buys it, there will often be more changes made. Right now, I have several stories on submission and one in acquisi-tions that we are still waiting to hear about.

PJ: What is your writing routine? Are you a day person or a night owl?

VK: I know that I am pretty darn lucky. Because I am retired, I can write in the morning, in the afternoon, and in the evening. My routine (and I would NOT recom-mend this) is to check my emails and Facebook when I get up. If I have manuscripts to critique for friends, I’ll work on those. Then I do some research or work on one of my stories. And then I check my emails and Face-book again…and repeat the whole process until my eyelids begin to droop and my vision gets blurry.

I always chuckle when people ask if I am a night owl. I used to be a day person…but as anyone who sees me on Facebook will tell you, I am up till all hours of the night. My husband loves to be up all night…and goes to sleep at 8 in the morning. He is a very bad influence on me and I often stay up till 3am. Of course, since I am retired, I can sleep later in the morning. For 65 years I had to be up early every day…as a student, as a teacher, as a mom…so perhaps I’ve earned the right to sleep in a bit.

PJ: I gather you’ve self-published as well. How easy—or difficult—was that?

VK: In 2010, we self-published my parent-teacher resource book, Show Me How! Build Your Child’s Self-Es-teem Through Reading, Crafting, and Cooking. It gives 100 picture book summaries and provides a cooking activity and craft project for each recommended title…kind of like a pumped up version of the Read-Aloud Handbook by Jim Trelease. The actual publishing of the book includ-ed the process of finding a small press printer and making sure the content was well edited. But the most difficult part was the marketing and promotion. I didn’t

This issue’s contributors

Laura Backes is the publisher of Children's Book Insider, and co-creator of KidLit Planet (http://www.cbiclubhouse.com) and http://writeforkids.orgHilari Bell writes science fiction and fantasy for kids and teens, including the critically acclaimed Farsala Trilogy. Her most recent book is Scholar’s Plot, Book 5 in the Knight & Rogue series. Visit her website at http://www.HilariBell.comJane McBride is the author of 34 novels, numerous short stories and articles including pieces in 16 Chicken Soup for the Soul anthologies, and the CBI Managing Editor. Follow her writing blog at http://www.janemchoate.blog-spot.comPJ McIlvaine is a published writer/produced screenwriter/kid lit author/blogger/-journalist. In a former life she was a great baker of Europe. PJ’s websites are http://www.pjmcilvaine.com and https://talesfromtheothersideofoblivion.word-press.comAnne Tews Schwab is a CBI Contributing Editor and the author of the young adult verse novel, Capsized. She earned her MFA in Creative Writing for Children and Young Adults from Hamline University and teaches reading and writing classes around Minneapolis and St.Paul. Visit Anne on her at http://www.piratepo-ems.com, where she posts a new pirate poem every day.

7

theme (pirates were big for a while), and I’ve noticed more sassy protagonists, but in general I think writers tend to send us their more classic stories. We don’t adopt trends for the sake of it, but if a popu-lar presentation style works well, fits our mission, and is appealing to kids, we’re happy to try it. We’ve been publishing some stories in graphic (comic-strip) format and receiving great feedback from kids. ATS: Highlights publishes wonderful pieces of short fiction, some of which are approximately the same length as a picture book, but there are differences between the two forms. Could you please share some tips on how short stories for magazines differ from picture books?    JD: A large portion of a picture book’s story is told through illustra-tion, so the text tends to be spare and the plot highly visual. Short stories, on the other hand, must convey an entire story through words since the illustrations will be few. Because short stories are usually intended for a slightly older audience, the storyline is often subtler, the language is more sophisticated, and the characters (who are slightly older) can deal with more internal struggle. ATS: We would love to give our readers a quick peek into what you are currently seeking and how to submit to you. Could you please share that information with us?

JD: Highlights is now using the online submission portal Submittable and encourages all writers to submit through the system. You can find us at http://www.highlights.submittable.com. We’re especially looking for historical fiction and humorous stories, but we’re open to all genres appropriate for kids.

Highlights is a general-interest magazine for children ages 6-12 and includes stories, puzzles, articles, and activities. Full submission guidelines can be found at the Submittable link above.

ou’re never too old to realize your dreams. Vivian Kirkfield is living proof as her Sweet Dreams, Sarah, a

nonfiction picture book about Sarah Goode, a former slave who became the first African-American woman to be awarded a US patent, is slated for publication in 2017 by Creston Books. Vivian’s enthusiasm and passion for kid lit shines on the page and at her charming website, Picture Books Help Kids Soar (http://www.vivi-ankirkfield.com).

PJ McIlvaine: You have quite an eclectic background: a Master’s Degree in Early Childhood Education, you once taught Kindergarten and you operated a day care center. How did all this translate into writing kid lit?

Vivian Kirkfield: I remember sitting on my mother’s lap, turning the pages of The Little House by Virginia Lee Burton. At the tender age of two, I fell in love with picture books. Many years later, as a kindergarten teacher and daycare provider, I used them to build literacy skills and encourage children to become lovers of books and reading. When my own children were growing up, I read to them on a daily basis and wrote little stories to entertain them. But it wasn’t until I retired and hopped into blogging to promote a parent-teacher resource guide I had written, that I got serious about writing for children. In 2012, I joined Julie Hedlund’s 12x12 Picture Book Writing Challenge, Tara Lazar’s PiBoIdMo, and Susanna Leon-ard Hill’s many contests and writing prompts. Every day I looked forward to writing—I knew I had found my bliss.

PJ: Tell us where the inspiration for your debut non-fic-tion picture book, Sweet Dreams, Sarah (Creston Books, Spring 2017), came from. How many drafts did it take until you felt it was ready for the world? Is writing a biography picture say, more difficult  or different than writing a fiction one? Did you have any input on what 

illustrator the publisher chose?

VK: Until I took Kristen Fulton’s Nonfiction Archeolo-gy course in June 2014, I had never written a nonfiction picture book. Her class was a life-changing experience for me. I had fallen in love with picture books as a toddler. Now I fell in love with writing nonfiction picture books. Kristen encouraged us to find golden nugget moments in history…I discovered that Sarah

Goode, a former slave, had received one of the first patents ever issued to a black woman. WOW! At a time when most women stayed home, when most women couldn’t even own property, here was a black woman who created a cabinet bed to answer the needs of her customers. More than that, she was determined to get credit for it…she dreamt it, she built it…and then she claimed it!

I’m a big fan of critique. I’ve learned that having many eyes on my work helps me

create the strongest story possible. I have an insane number of critique partners…fabulous writers, fabulous friends…each has had a hand in making Sweet Dreams, Sarah ready for the world. You ask how many drafts—dozens of critique rounds…hundreds of revisions. I embrace revision with my whole heart. The only thing that didn’t change was the very begin-ning…that is pretty much identical to my original draft.

I still love writing fiction picture books. But for me, writing nonfiction is my opportunity to bring history to life for young readers. And there seems to be a certain strategy that makes it flow more easily. I pick a topic. Research it. Write a rough draft. And then revise the heck out of it!

Regarding the illustrator for Sweet Dreams, Sarah, I did not have any input on that. However, I’ve seen some of Chris Ewald’s work and it is fantastic! I am excited to see how he will interpret the story.

Editor Spotlight

know then what I know now about the importance of social media presence and platform building. I was shy and had to step out of my comfort zone to walk into local bookstores to ask if they would carry the book. I connected with mom bloggers who reviewed the book on their blogs. After doing those things for a year, I got involved in writing picture books and found that I wanted to focus my energies on that. I congratulate anyone who self-publishes and markets their books successfully…it is a massive undertaking and not for the faint of heart. It can be done…and there are many advantages…but it takes a concerted effort, a lot of energy, patience, and perseverance. PJ: You maintain a very active website and social media presence. How has that impacted your career? And please, who is the adorable little boy pictured on the site.

VK: I should be the poster child for people who are afraid of blogging or getting active on social media. When I started at the end of 2010, I knew nothing about social media, thought a tweet was something a bird said, was afraid to turn on the computer by myself (I thought I might break it or make the entire internet disappear). I still have a lot to learn, but I absolutely LOVE the ability to connect with writers and parents and teachers and librarians…and family and friends, of course. I do believe that the connection, the encourage-ment, the accountability that comes with being active in various online groups has kept me on track with my writing. Life often gets in the way of our plans and I think it would have been easy for me to get busy doing other things.

And the little boy is my grandson, Jeremy, who is now seven years old. We moved back to the east coast three years ago so we could be closer and, although I miss the Rocky Mountains of Colorado, I wouldn’t trade anything for the close bond we’ve developed. He says our Monopoly games are ‘epic’ and he often asks to come for a ‘Grammy sleepover’…probably because he knows he’ll get to stay up really late, eat peanut butter on toast for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and hear picture book stories whenever he wants.

PJ:  What was your funniest rejection? (Mine was that my pregnant character drank too many cups of coffee.)

VK: Oh, PJ, this is a great question! I wrote a story

about a little girl who didn’t want her noisy pesky little brother to ruin her birthday party…she said he acted like a monkey. And monkeys belong in the zoo. So she mailed him there. The agent worried that a child might try to do that and we shouldn’t write about anything that would be dangerous for children to do. I guess she hadn’t read Stuck by Oliver Jeffers. And the Flat Stanley books have been around forever. For those who don’t know the series, a bookcase falls on Stanley and flattens him. Oops! And he never regains his shape. Oh dear! When his parents take him on a trip, there isn’t enough room in the car, so they slip him into an envelope (with some crackers in case he gets hungry and a deck of cards in case he gets bored) and they mail him home. Ha! But I do understand that we all have our own opin-ions on what constitutes a great story and I think it is very important to keep that in mind when you get rejec-tions or critiques. If five different people point out the same issue with a story, I definitely sit up and take notice.

PJ: How has your family embraced your writing?

VK: I am very fortunate…my family is thrilled that I’ve found great happiness as I’ve turned the page to this next chapter of my life. My husband is extremely supportive and is often my go-to set of ears to listen to a revision, not so much for advice on how I should change it, but so I can read it out loud the way a parent would be reading it to a child. I think that is really important…you’d be surprised how much better it is than reading it to yourself. You’ll feel when you are tripping up on a word or a phrase, whereas if you just read it to yourself, you might gloss over those spots. As I mentioned before, my sister often comes up with an interesting topic for me…she is a great reader and presi-dent of her community’s book club. And my children so proud of my success.

PJ: Where do you see yourself five years from now?

VK: Five years from now? Writing! Revising! And hopefully, with several books to my credit. I’d also like to offer critique/editing services sometime down the road to help augment my income so I can attend confer-ences without breaking the budget. It’s a joy to read picture book stories, whether they are from famous authors or newbie writers.

oday, we are excited to introduce to you Ms. Joëlle Dujardin, a Senior Editor with Highlights for

Children magazine.

Ms. Dujardin is a font of wisdom in the world of children’s publishing, thanks in large part to her wealth of experience. Since her early days in the busi-ness, Ms. Dujardin has held a variety of positions with different publishers including Henry Holt and Company, the Cricket Magazine Group, and Cricket Books. She was brought aboard the Highlights crew in 2004, and is now a senior editor at Highlights.

We had the pleasure of chatting with Ms. Dujardin about the state of the children’s magazine market today and of gathering her insights about publishing for children. We are delighted to share her thoughts with you today. Anne Tews Schwab: So many of us grew up reading Highlights, devouring the contents as children, and later sharing the stories, craft, activities, articles and more with children of our own. Could you please share with our writing readers a few details of your journey towards becoming an editor with Highlights?

Joëlle Dujardin: I was a voracious reader as a child, and Highlights was some my favorite reading materi-al. As much as I enjoyed the magazine, though, I honestly never gave much thought to the people who made it. (That’s probably why I’m so impressed by kids who write to Highlights with an appreciation for us as real people.) It wasn’t until I was much older—in my senior year of college and finally considering my options as an English major—that I looked at editing as a profession. Evaluating stories all day? I could do that! After graduating, I was lucky enough to land a job at Henry Holt in New York working as an editorial assistant for an editor of

young adult books and then, later, at Carus Publish-ing in Chicago, where I learned a lot about the children’s magazine market. After my time at Carus, I came to Highlights and have been here for more than 10 years.

ATS: Could you please share with our writing read-ers a few general observations about the submissions you see on both the positive and negative sides? Common mistakes? Exceptional submissions? Other observations?            JD: Short stories for kids tend to be a bit formulaic by

nature. A short story must have a main character, a conflict, and a resolution. So we’re looking for stories that achieve a traditional, satisfying arc while remaining fresh and “real.” The most common mistakes I see tend to be the result of either following a formula too closely or of not following any formula at all. It’s hard to get into a story if we know exactly where it’s going from the start; on the other hand, we don’t feel vested if a story’s plot elements seem so random that we don’t know what’s at stake. A strong

submission is one in which the characters are unique and likable, the problem is original but relatable, and the resolution is clever but organic to the storyline. ATS: As an editor with a well respected and widely beloved magazine such as Highlights, you are in a unique position to observe style, tone, and content trends in the world of writing for the children’s market. How do these trends affect your decision- making process when reading through the floods of submissions that must certainly cross your desk on a regular basis?            JD: Most of the stories we receive aren’t especially trendy. I sometimes see stories playing with form (told entirely in text message, say) or on a “hot”

Featured Last Month on KidLit Planet

In case you haven't perused the Children’s Writing Knowledge Base on KidLit Planet lately (and you really should--it's part of your membership!) here is a list featured posts from last month. You need to be logged in with your username

and password to access the posts at http://cbiclubhouse.com.

Building Your Brand as a Writer by Jane McBride http://cbiclubhouse.com/clubhouse/building-your-brand-as-a-writer/

Pull a Character and Plot from Your Idea by Laura Backes http://cbiclubhouse.com/clubhouse/cbi-challenge-module-4-pull-a-character-and-plot-from-your-idea/

Writing Prompt: Who’s the Antagonist Here? http://cbiclubhouse.com/clubhouse/whos-the-antagonist-here-a-little-something-to-discuss/

May 2016

Joëlle Dujardin continued

PJ: Since the book isn't coming out until 2017, where are you in the publishing process right now? VK: After the contract was signed, Marissa Moss, the editor at Creston Books, sent me the manuscript with a few revision requests. She is amazing to work with and by February, I had completed all the changes to her satisfaction. Now the story is with the illustrator and I can’t wait to see what he does with it.

PJ: You’re represented by Essie White of Storm Liter-ary Agency. How did that come about? How long did it take you to secure representation?

VK: As I mentioned, I joined the online 12x12 Chal-lenge in 2012…writing a picture book draft every month. The next year, Julie Hedlund arranged for agents to accept submissions from members. I had never submitted my work before, so this was scary…but being part of the group helped so much, especially with all of the information and resources Julie provided to us. By the end of 2014, I was getting some great feedback from agents. And in 2015, I had several agents who were interested in my work. When I read the About page on Storm Literary Agency’s website, I fell in love with Essie White. I submitted Sweet Dreams, Sarah to her and she emailed me an hour later. In order to be an effective salesperson for you, an agent must be passionate about your work. And Essie was. Then I spoke with her current clients—she possessed the communication skills, the business savvy, and the compassionate nature I had been searching for. Two weeks after I signed with her, my story was on its way to a dozen editors. And two weeks after that, we had a book contract. What a wild ride! I know I was very lucky! PJ: Where do you get your ideas from? How many projects do you work on at a time? Do you have any other nonfiction books in the works?  What are you working on now?

VK: I get my ideas from so many places…internet, TV, books I read, even my sister is on the lookout for inter-esting topics for me. In fact, my February 12x12 draft is a story my sister suggested. One of her best friends is an acquaintance of the granddaughter of the man who founded the Greyhound Bus company. She put me in touch with that friend and the family is thrilled to have a story about this amazing individual who came to this

country in 1905, speaking no English and with only 60 dollars in his pocket, but he created an industry that changed the way Americans travel.

I tend to work on several projects at the same time. I research a new story, write another, revise another, and continue to polish finished stories. I’ve learned that a manuscript is never done…even after the publisher buys it, there will often be more changes made. Right now, I have several stories on submission and one in acquisi-tions that we are still waiting to hear about.

PJ: What is your writing routine? Are you a day person or a night owl?

VK: I know that I am pretty darn lucky. Because I am retired, I can write in the morning, in the afternoon, and in the evening. My routine (and I would NOT recom-mend this) is to check my emails and Facebook when I get up. If I have manuscripts to critique for friends, I’ll work on those. Then I do some research or work on one of my stories. And then I check my emails and Face-book again…and repeat the whole process until my eyelids begin to droop and my vision gets blurry.

I always chuckle when people ask if I am a night owl. I used to be a day person…but as anyone who sees me on Facebook will tell you, I am up till all hours of the night. My husband loves to be up all night…and goes to sleep at 8 in the morning. He is a very bad influence on me and I often stay up till 3am. Of course, since I am retired, I can sleep later in the morning. For 65 years I had to be up early every day…as a student, as a teacher, as a mom…so perhaps I’ve earned the right to sleep in a bit.

PJ: I gather you’ve self-published as well. How easy—or difficult—was that?

VK: In 2010, we self-published my parent-teacher resource book, Show Me How! Build Your Child’s Self-Es-teem Through Reading, Crafting, and Cooking. It gives 100 picture book summaries and provides a cooking activity and craft project for each recommended title…kind of like a pumped up version of the Read-Aloud Handbook by Jim Trelease. The actual publishing of the book includ-ed the process of finding a small press printer and making sure the content was well edited. But the most difficult part was the marketing and promotion. I didn’t

8

Submission Tips

What’s your log line?Give me a synopsis.  Tell me a bit about your story in your cover letter. 

All these are requests for pretty much the same thing—these people want to know more about your story.  In short, a pitch or synopsis.  But each of them is asking for a different length pitch, one that’s neither too long nor too short, but juuust right.  In fact, there are four different lengths of pitch/synopsis you’ll be asked for when you’re trying to sell a novel, and each of them is designed to be sent to different people, to be used in different ways.

The Log Line Pitch:  The shortest of the four pitches is the log line pitch.  It’s also known as an elevator pitch, because if someone asks you “What’s your story about?” as the elevator door closes, you need to have given her a good answer before she gets off at the next floor. This pitch consists of one or two not very complex sentences, that convey the primary conflict of your story—and nothing more. 

A classic example is the pitch for the movie Splash.  “Boy meets girl.  Girl fish.”  For stories in which the conflict isn’t so obvious, you usually set up what I think of as a one-two punch, with the first beat telling about the protagonist, and the second describing the single most interesting aspect of his conflict.  “A woman goes to Kansas as a mail order bride—and discovers she was ‘ordered’ by her future husband’s mother, because he’s been deaf from birth and can’t communicate.”  Or “A teenage girl who goes to a top-secret school for super-spies falls in love with a normal boy.”  These examples are less colorful than the pitch for Splash, but see how clear the central conflict of the story is?  And they sound interesting, don’t they?  Please note that no part of the middle action of the story or the climax appears in these pitches. Who is the protagonist, and what’s his prob-lem. Period. Keeping your log line pitch to those two

beats is what makes it comprehensible, without further explanation, even to someone who’s about tep off an elevator.

The log line pitch is one you’ll use a lot, because it’s what you say when someone asks you, “What’s your story about?”  That’s another reason to keep it short and without too many flourishes, because it’s a spoken pitch. You need to be able say it easily, instead of sounding like it’s something you wrote down and worked hard to memorize. If it’s really compelling it might find its way into the first line of your query letter—but not often. If for no other reason than that you’re about to give a longer, more detailed pitch in your query letter that would make this shorter pitch redundant.

The Query Letter Pitch:  I don’t know if this length has an official name—it might be called simply a pitch, a long pitch, or a very short synopsis.  But what-ever it’s called, it should be one or two, at most three paragraphs in length, and you probably want to keep it to two. This isn’t merely a “hook ‘em in” style pitch, but actually a very short description of your story.  It will cover not only the basic conflict, but will also focus more on who the protagonist is, and his person-al conflict and character arc.  It will often include a major and interesting twist in the story, and it might even reveal how the major conflict is resolved. 

One of my favorite examples of a good query letter pitch is one that Anna-Maria Crum wrote for Power-Force Kids: Attack of the Dinomatrons.

Eleven-year-old Ari Wu thought she was one armhole away from a straightjacket when she discovered she could talk to birds—she could literally carry on a conversation with them. But then she met other PowerForce Kids with differ-ent powers through an internet chat room and found out her brain wasn’t scrambled eggs after all. Now she’s on a mission to save her birds from

pigeon Armageddon from the school janitor. To do that she must first help Tony, another PFK who has the ability to spot fakes, save his mother’s job, stop a thief, and protect the natural history museum from dinosaur robots run amuck. 

The query letter pitch, as the name suggests, is the one you put in the email you send to agents and editors to convince them to take a look at your story—so it really needs to be snappy and compelling. Because it’s a written pitch, you can be clever and literary, and work with style as well as substance. And this pitch’s use won’t end with your email. If it’s a good pitch, an agent who takes you on might tweak it a bit and use it in her query to editors. An editor may tweak it a bit more, and use it at the marketing meeting. Parts of this pitch could even find their way into your jacket copy. So this is a pitch that counts.

The Short Synopsis:  If your query has done its work, an agent or editor will ask to see some part of your manuscript, and they’ll often ask for “a short synop-sis” or just “a synopsis” to accompany it. This can be tricky, because “a synopsis” can mean anything from one or two pages, to five pages or more—and the short and long synopses are two different beasts.  Most often when people ask for a synopsis they’re looking for the shorter length.  Some even specify a “one page” synopsis—but, particularly in email format, they probably won’t care if your “one page” is actually one and a half or even two.  I don’t recom-mend running over two pages, unless it’s absolutely necessary to tell the story.  Because in the short synop-sis they want a brief summation of your entire story. 

This short synopsis is the one that will most likely accompany the partial manuscript you send to an agent or editor, to convince them that you can not only write, but produce a coherent exciting plot.  It will include not only the major plot points, but also the protagonist’s arc—and it also includes how the protagonist solves the main story problem in the climax. This isn’t a teaser, where you’re trying to lure someone into reading the rest of the book. In a synop-sis you reveal the whole story, including all your won-derful surprises, without holding anything back.  In fact, ending your synopsis at a critical point with some version of "and if you want to find out how this ends, you’ll need to read the book"  is a red-flag auto-reject for most agents and editors.

The Long Synopsis:  A synopsis that runs for five pages or more is a long synopsis. When you first start submitting novels, you probably won’t be asked to send this to agents or editors. If your short synopsis and partial manuscript interest them, they’ll ask for the rest of the manuscript and read the whole book.  The only time you’ll send a long synopsis to an editor is after you’ve sold so many books they’re willing to buy a book you haven’t yet written, on the strength of a synopsis and a few chapters.  When an editor asks you for a long synopsis, to sell an unwritten book, there’s no length limit—it’s as long as it needs to be to completely summarize your story.  This is also the only synopsis where you can, and should, include sub-plots, major secondary characters and their arcs, and even the protagonist’s backstory and relevant details of the setting. 

But the primary use beginning and intermediate writers will have for a long synopsis is to enter your novel in writing contests. Some contests only ask for a short synopsis, but many will ask for longer synop-ses—sometimes as much as eight pages—and contests are very particular about length. If they tell you they want to see a synopsis between four and seven pages, it had better be between four and seven pages, in the spacing and font they request.  Some contests have gotten so fed up with people cheating on the length that they give you a word count range instead of page count—but whatever the limits are, if you don’t respect them most contests will disqualify you, no matter how good your synopsis is.

Summarizing your story in four different lengths sounds like a lot of work—because it is. But once you’ve completed these four pitch/synopses you’ll be ready to sell your novel to practically anyone, under any circumstances you’re likely to encounter—and you now have a good idea of what length to use for which purpose.

ou’re never too old to realize your dreams. Vivian Kirkfield is living proof as her Sweet Dreams, Sarah, a

nonfiction picture book about Sarah Goode, a former slave who became the first African-American woman to be awarded a US patent, is slated for publication in 2017 by Creston Books. Vivian’s enthusiasm and passion for kid lit shines on the page and at her charming website, Picture Books Help Kids Soar (http://www.vivi-ankirkfield.com).

PJ McIlvaine: You have quite an eclectic background: a Master’s Degree in Early Childhood Education, you once taught Kindergarten and you operated a day care center. How did all this translate into writing kid lit?

Vivian Kirkfield: I remember sitting on my mother’s lap, turning the pages of The Little House by Virginia Lee Burton. At the tender age of two, I fell in love with picture books. Many years later, as a kindergarten teacher and daycare provider, I used them to build literacy skills and encourage children to become lovers of books and reading. When my own children were growing up, I read to them on a daily basis and wrote little stories to entertain them. But it wasn’t until I retired and hopped into blogging to promote a parent-teacher resource guide I had written, that I got serious about writing for children. In 2012, I joined Julie Hedlund’s 12x12 Picture Book Writing Challenge, Tara Lazar’s PiBoIdMo, and Susanna Leon-ard Hill’s many contests and writing prompts. Every day I looked forward to writing—I knew I had found my bliss.

PJ: Tell us where the inspiration for your debut non-fic-tion picture book, Sweet Dreams, Sarah (Creston Books, Spring 2017), came from. How many drafts did it take until you felt it was ready for the world? Is writing a biography picture say, more difficult  or different than writing a fiction one? Did you have any input on what 

illustrator the publisher chose?

VK: Until I took Kristen Fulton’s Nonfiction Archeolo-gy course in June 2014, I had never written a nonfiction picture book. Her class was a life-changing experience for me. I had fallen in love with picture books as a toddler. Now I fell in love with writing nonfiction picture books. Kristen encouraged us to find golden nugget moments in history…I discovered that Sarah

Goode, a former slave, had received one of the first patents ever issued to a black woman. WOW! At a time when most women stayed home, when most women couldn’t even own property, here was a black woman who created a cabinet bed to answer the needs of her customers. More than that, she was determined to get credit for it…she dreamt it, she built it…and then she claimed it!

I’m a big fan of critique. I’ve learned that having many eyes on my work helps me

create the strongest story possible. I have an insane number of critique partners…fabulous writers, fabulous friends…each has had a hand in making Sweet Dreams, Sarah ready for the world. You ask how many drafts—dozens of critique rounds…hundreds of revisions. I embrace revision with my whole heart. The only thing that didn’t change was the very begin-ning…that is pretty much identical to my original draft.

I still love writing fiction picture books. But for me, writing nonfiction is my opportunity to bring history to life for young readers. And there seems to be a certain strategy that makes it flow more easily. I pick a topic. Research it. Write a rough draft. And then revise the heck out of it!

Regarding the illustrator for Sweet Dreams, Sarah, I did not have any input on that. However, I’ve seen some of Chris Ewald’s work and it is fantastic! I am excited to see how he will interpret the story.

know then what I know now about the importance of social media presence and platform building. I was shy and had to step out of my comfort zone to walk into local bookstores to ask if they would carry the book. I connected with mom bloggers who reviewed the book on their blogs. After doing those things for a year, I got involved in writing picture books and found that I wanted to focus my energies on that. I congratulate anyone who self-publishes and markets their books successfully…it is a massive undertaking and not for the faint of heart. It can be done…and there are many advantages…but it takes a concerted effort, a lot of energy, patience, and perseverance. PJ: You maintain a very active website and social media presence. How has that impacted your career? And please, who is the adorable little boy pictured on the site.

VK: I should be the poster child for people who are afraid of blogging or getting active on social media. When I started at the end of 2010, I knew nothing about social media, thought a tweet was something a bird said, was afraid to turn on the computer by myself (I thought I might break it or make the entire internet disappear). I still have a lot to learn, but I absolutely LOVE the ability to connect with writers and parents and teachers and librarians…and family and friends, of course. I do believe that the connection, the encourage-ment, the accountability that comes with being active in various online groups has kept me on track with my writing. Life often gets in the way of our plans and I think it would have been easy for me to get busy doing other things.

And the little boy is my grandson, Jeremy, who is now seven years old. We moved back to the east coast three years ago so we could be closer and, although I miss the Rocky Mountains of Colorado, I wouldn’t trade anything for the close bond we’ve developed. He says our Monopoly games are ‘epic’ and he often asks to come for a ‘Grammy sleepover’…probably because he knows he’ll get to stay up really late, eat peanut butter on toast for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and hear picture book stories whenever he wants.

PJ:  What was your funniest rejection? (Mine was that my pregnant character drank too many cups of coffee.)

VK: Oh, PJ, this is a great question! I wrote a story

about a little girl who didn’t want her noisy pesky little brother to ruin her birthday party…she said he acted like a monkey. And monkeys belong in the zoo. So she mailed him there. The agent worried that a child might try to do that and we shouldn’t write about anything that would be dangerous for children to do. I guess she hadn’t read Stuck by Oliver Jeffers. And the Flat Stanley books have been around forever. For those who don’t know the series, a bookcase falls on Stanley and flattens him. Oops! And he never regains his shape. Oh dear! When his parents take him on a trip, there isn’t enough room in the car, so they slip him into an envelope (with some crackers in case he gets hungry and a deck of cards in case he gets bored) and they mail him home. Ha! But I do understand that we all have our own opin-ions on what constitutes a great story and I think it is very important to keep that in mind when you get rejec-tions or critiques. If five different people point out the same issue with a story, I definitely sit up and take notice.

PJ: How has your family embraced your writing?

VK: I am very fortunate…my family is thrilled that I’ve found great happiness as I’ve turned the page to this next chapter of my life. My husband is extremely supportive and is often my go-to set of ears to listen to a revision, not so much for advice on how I should change it, but so I can read it out loud the way a parent would be reading it to a child. I think that is really important…you’d be surprised how much better it is than reading it to yourself. You’ll feel when you are tripping up on a word or a phrase, whereas if you just read it to yourself, you might gloss over those spots. As I mentioned before, my sister often comes up with an interesting topic for me…she is a great reader and presi-dent of her community’s book club. And my children so proud of my success.

PJ: Where do you see yourself five years from now?

VK: Five years from now? Writing! Revising! And hopefully, with several books to my credit. I’d also like to offer critique/editing services sometime down the road to help augment my income so I can attend confer-ences without breaking the budget. It’s a joy to read picture book stories, whether they are from famous authors or newbie writers.

Featured Last Month on KidLit Planet

In case you haven't perused the Children’s Writing Knowledge Base on KidLit Planet lately (and you really should--it's part of your membership!) here is a list featured posts from last month. You need to be logged in with your username

and password to access the posts at http://cbiclubhouse.com.

Building Your Brand as a Writer by Jane McBride http://cbiclubhouse.com/clubhouse/building-your-brand-as-a-writer/

Pull a Character and Plot from Your Idea by Laura Backes http://cbiclubhouse.com/clubhouse/cbi-challenge-module-4-pull-a-character-and-plot-from-your-idea/

Writing Prompt: Who’s the Antagonist Here? http://cbiclubhouse.com/clubhouse/whos-the-antagonist-here-a-little-something-to-discuss/

May 2016

The Art of the Pitch: Four Ways to Get an Editor or Agent to Read Your Work

by Hilari Bell

PJ: Since the book isn't coming out until 2017, where are you in the publishing process right now? VK: After the contract was signed, Marissa Moss, the editor at Creston Books, sent me the manuscript with a few revision requests. She is amazing to work with and by February, I had completed all the changes to her satisfaction. Now the story is with the illustrator and I can’t wait to see what he does with it.

PJ: You’re represented by Essie White of Storm Liter-ary Agency. How did that come about? How long did it take you to secure representation?

VK: As I mentioned, I joined the online 12x12 Chal-lenge in 2012…writing a picture book draft every month. The next year, Julie Hedlund arranged for agents to accept submissions from members. I had never submitted my work before, so this was scary…but being part of the group helped so much, especially with all of the information and resources Julie provided to us. By the end of 2014, I was getting some great feedback from agents. And in 2015, I had several agents who were interested in my work. When I read the About page on Storm Literary Agency’s website, I fell in love with Essie White. I submitted Sweet Dreams, Sarah to her and she emailed me an hour later. In order to be an effective salesperson for you, an agent must be passionate about your work. And Essie was. Then I spoke with her current clients—she possessed the communication skills, the business savvy, and the compassionate nature I had been searching for. Two weeks after I signed with her, my story was on its way to a dozen editors. And two weeks after that, we had a book contract. What a wild ride! I know I was very lucky! PJ: Where do you get your ideas from? How many projects do you work on at a time? Do you have any other nonfiction books in the works?  What are you working on now?

VK: I get my ideas from so many places…internet, TV, books I read, even my sister is on the lookout for inter-esting topics for me. In fact, my February 12x12 draft is a story my sister suggested. One of her best friends is an acquaintance of the granddaughter of the man who founded the Greyhound Bus company. She put me in touch with that friend and the family is thrilled to have a story about this amazing individual who came to this

country in 1905, speaking no English and with only 60 dollars in his pocket, but he created an industry that changed the way Americans travel.

I tend to work on several projects at the same time. I research a new story, write another, revise another, and continue to polish finished stories. I’ve learned that a manuscript is never done…even after the publisher buys it, there will often be more changes made. Right now, I have several stories on submission and one in acquisi-tions that we are still waiting to hear about.

PJ: What is your writing routine? Are you a day person or a night owl?

VK: I know that I am pretty darn lucky. Because I am retired, I can write in the morning, in the afternoon, and in the evening. My routine (and I would NOT recom-mend this) is to check my emails and Facebook when I get up. If I have manuscripts to critique for friends, I’ll work on those. Then I do some research or work on one of my stories. And then I check my emails and Face-book again…and repeat the whole process until my eyelids begin to droop and my vision gets blurry.

I always chuckle when people ask if I am a night owl. I used to be a day person…but as anyone who sees me on Facebook will tell you, I am up till all hours of the night. My husband loves to be up all night…and goes to sleep at 8 in the morning. He is a very bad influence on me and I often stay up till 3am. Of course, since I am retired, I can sleep later in the morning. For 65 years I had to be up early every day…as a student, as a teacher, as a mom…so perhaps I’ve earned the right to sleep in a bit.

PJ: I gather you’ve self-published as well. How easy—or difficult—was that?

VK: In 2010, we self-published my parent-teacher resource book, Show Me How! Build Your Child’s Self-Es-teem Through Reading, Crafting, and Cooking. It gives 100 picture book summaries and provides a cooking activity and craft project for each recommended title…kind of like a pumped up version of the Read-Aloud Handbook by Jim Trelease. The actual publishing of the book includ-ed the process of finding a small press printer and making sure the content was well edited. But the most difficult part was the marketing and promotion. I didn’t

9

Submission Tips

What’s your log line?Give me a synopsis.  Tell me a bit about your story in your cover letter. 

All these are requests for pretty much the same thing—these people want to know more about your story.  In short, a pitch or synopsis.  But each of them is asking for a different length pitch, one that’s neither too long nor too short, but juuust right.  In fact, there are four different lengths of pitch/synopsis you’ll be asked for when you’re trying to sell a novel, and each of them is designed to be sent to different people, to be used in different ways.

The Log Line Pitch:  The shortest of the four pitches is the log line pitch.  It’s also known as an elevator pitch, because if someone asks you “What’s your story about?” as the elevator door closes, you need to have given her a good answer before she gets off at the next floor. This pitch consists of one or two not very complex sentences, that convey the primary conflict of your story—and nothing more. 

A classic example is the pitch for the movie Splash.  “Boy meets girl.  Girl fish.”  For stories in which the conflict isn’t so obvious, you usually set up what I think of as a one-two punch, with the first beat telling about the protagonist, and the second describing the single most interesting aspect of his conflict.  “A woman goes to Kansas as a mail order bride—and discovers she was ‘ordered’ by her future husband’s mother, because he’s been deaf from birth and can’t communicate.”  Or “A teenage girl who goes to a top-secret school for super-spies falls in love with a normal boy.”  These examples are less colorful than the pitch for Splash, but see how clear the central conflict of the story is?  And they sound interesting, don’t they?  Please note that no part of the middle action of the story or the climax appears in these pitches. Who is the protagonist, and what’s his prob-lem. Period. Keeping your log line pitch to those two

beats is what makes it comprehensible, without further explanation, even to someone who’s about tep off an elevator.

The log line pitch is one you’ll use a lot, because it’s what you say when someone asks you, “What’s your story about?”  That’s another reason to keep it short and without too many flourishes, because it’s a spoken pitch. You need to be able say it easily, instead of sounding like it’s something you wrote down and worked hard to memorize. If it’s really compelling it might find its way into the first line of your query letter—but not often. If for no other reason than that you’re about to give a longer, more detailed pitch in your query letter that would make this shorter pitch redundant.

The Query Letter Pitch:  I don’t know if this length has an official name—it might be called simply a pitch, a long pitch, or a very short synopsis.  But what-ever it’s called, it should be one or two, at most three paragraphs in length, and you probably want to keep it to two. This isn’t merely a “hook ‘em in” style pitch, but actually a very short description of your story.  It will cover not only the basic conflict, but will also focus more on who the protagonist is, and his person-al conflict and character arc.  It will often include a major and interesting twist in the story, and it might even reveal how the major conflict is resolved. 

One of my favorite examples of a good query letter pitch is one that Anna-Maria Crum wrote for Power-Force Kids: Attack of the Dinomatrons.

Eleven-year-old Ari Wu thought she was one armhole away from a straightjacket when she discovered she could talk to birds—she could literally carry on a conversation with them. But then she met other PowerForce Kids with differ-ent powers through an internet chat room and found out her brain wasn’t scrambled eggs after all. Now she’s on a mission to save her birds from

pigeon Armageddon from the school janitor. To do that she must first help Tony, another PFK who has the ability to spot fakes, save his mother’s job, stop a thief, and protect the natural history museum from dinosaur robots run amuck. 

The query letter pitch, as the name suggests, is the one you put in the email you send to agents and editors to convince them to take a look at your story—so it really needs to be snappy and compelling. Because it’s a written pitch, you can be clever and literary, and work with style as well as substance. And this pitch’s use won’t end with your email. If it’s a good pitch, an agent who takes you on might tweak it a bit and use it in her query to editors. An editor may tweak it a bit more, and use it at the marketing meeting. Parts of this pitch could even find their way into your jacket copy. So this is a pitch that counts.

The Short Synopsis:  If your query has done its work, an agent or editor will ask to see some part of your manuscript, and they’ll often ask for “a short synop-sis” or just “a synopsis” to accompany it. This can be tricky, because “a synopsis” can mean anything from one or two pages, to five pages or more—and the short and long synopses are two different beasts.  Most often when people ask for a synopsis they’re looking for the shorter length.  Some even specify a “one page” synopsis—but, particularly in email format, they probably won’t care if your “one page” is actually one and a half or even two.  I don’t recom-mend running over two pages, unless it’s absolutely necessary to tell the story.  Because in the short synop-sis they want a brief summation of your entire story. 

This short synopsis is the one that will most likely accompany the partial manuscript you send to an agent or editor, to convince them that you can not only write, but produce a coherent exciting plot.  It will include not only the major plot points, but also the protagonist’s arc—and it also includes how the protagonist solves the main story problem in the climax. This isn’t a teaser, where you’re trying to lure someone into reading the rest of the book. In a synop-sis you reveal the whole story, including all your won-derful surprises, without holding anything back.  In fact, ending your synopsis at a critical point with some version of "and if you want to find out how this ends, you’ll need to read the book"  is a red-flag auto-reject for most agents and editors.

The Long Synopsis:  A synopsis that runs for five pages or more is a long synopsis. When you first start submitting novels, you probably won’t be asked to send this to agents or editors. If your short synopsis and partial manuscript interest them, they’ll ask for the rest of the manuscript and read the whole book.  The only time you’ll send a long synopsis to an editor is after you’ve sold so many books they’re willing to buy a book you haven’t yet written, on the strength of a synopsis and a few chapters.  When an editor asks you for a long synopsis, to sell an unwritten book, there’s no length limit—it’s as long as it needs to be to completely summarize your story.  This is also the only synopsis where you can, and should, include sub-plots, major secondary characters and their arcs, and even the protagonist’s backstory and relevant details of the setting. 

But the primary use beginning and intermediate writers will have for a long synopsis is to enter your novel in writing contests. Some contests only ask for a short synopsis, but many will ask for longer synop-ses—sometimes as much as eight pages—and contests are very particular about length. If they tell you they want to see a synopsis between four and seven pages, it had better be between four and seven pages, in the spacing and font they request.  Some contests have gotten so fed up with people cheating on the length that they give you a word count range instead of page count—but whatever the limits are, if you don’t respect them most contests will disqualify you, no matter how good your synopsis is.

Summarizing your story in four different lengths sounds like a lot of work—because it is. But once you’ve completed these four pitch/synopses you’ll be ready to sell your novel to practically anyone, under any circumstances you’re likely to encounter—and you now have a good idea of what length to use for which purpose.

ou’re never too old to realize your dreams. Vivian Kirkfield is living proof as her Sweet Dreams, Sarah, a

nonfiction picture book about Sarah Goode, a former slave who became the first African-American woman to be awarded a US patent, is slated for publication in 2017 by Creston Books. Vivian’s enthusiasm and passion for kid lit shines on the page and at her charming website, Picture Books Help Kids Soar (http://www.vivi-ankirkfield.com).

PJ McIlvaine: You have quite an eclectic background: a Master’s Degree in Early Childhood Education, you once taught Kindergarten and you operated a day care center. How did all this translate into writing kid lit?

Vivian Kirkfield: I remember sitting on my mother’s lap, turning the pages of The Little House by Virginia Lee Burton. At the tender age of two, I fell in love with picture books. Many years later, as a kindergarten teacher and daycare provider, I used them to build literacy skills and encourage children to become lovers of books and reading. When my own children were growing up, I read to them on a daily basis and wrote little stories to entertain them. But it wasn’t until I retired and hopped into blogging to promote a parent-teacher resource guide I had written, that I got serious about writing for children. In 2012, I joined Julie Hedlund’s 12x12 Picture Book Writing Challenge, Tara Lazar’s PiBoIdMo, and Susanna Leon-ard Hill’s many contests and writing prompts. Every day I looked forward to writing—I knew I had found my bliss.

PJ: Tell us where the inspiration for your debut non-fic-tion picture book, Sweet Dreams, Sarah (Creston Books, Spring 2017), came from. How many drafts did it take until you felt it was ready for the world? Is writing a biography picture say, more difficult  or different than writing a fiction one? Did you have any input on what 

illustrator the publisher chose?

VK: Until I took Kristen Fulton’s Nonfiction Archeolo-gy course in June 2014, I had never written a nonfiction picture book. Her class was a life-changing experience for me. I had fallen in love with picture books as a toddler. Now I fell in love with writing nonfiction picture books. Kristen encouraged us to find golden nugget moments in history…I discovered that Sarah

Goode, a former slave, had received one of the first patents ever issued to a black woman. WOW! At a time when most women stayed home, when most women couldn’t even own property, here was a black woman who created a cabinet bed to answer the needs of her customers. More than that, she was determined to get credit for it…she dreamt it, she built it…and then she claimed it!

I’m a big fan of critique. I’ve learned that having many eyes on my work helps me

create the strongest story possible. I have an insane number of critique partners…fabulous writers, fabulous friends…each has had a hand in making Sweet Dreams, Sarah ready for the world. You ask how many drafts—dozens of critique rounds…hundreds of revisions. I embrace revision with my whole heart. The only thing that didn’t change was the very begin-ning…that is pretty much identical to my original draft.

I still love writing fiction picture books. But for me, writing nonfiction is my opportunity to bring history to life for young readers. And there seems to be a certain strategy that makes it flow more easily. I pick a topic. Research it. Write a rough draft. And then revise the heck out of it!

Regarding the illustrator for Sweet Dreams, Sarah, I did not have any input on that. However, I’ve seen some of Chris Ewald’s work and it is fantastic! I am excited to see how he will interpret the story.

Hilari Bell highly recommends Pam McCutcheon’s book, Writing the Fiction Synopsis : A Step by Step Approach, avail-able at Amazon.com. Instead of summarizing your book chapter by chapter, McCutcheon believes a synopsis only has to cover five specific plot points. Hilari advises starting with the short synopsis format, and then expanding on it for the long synopsis. “[McCutcheon’s] techniques have proven invaluable for me and other writers of my acquaintance, and I think they’d work for you as well.”

know then what I know now about the importance of social media presence and platform building. I was shy and had to step out of my comfort zone to walk into local bookstores to ask if they would carry the book. I connected with mom bloggers who reviewed the book on their blogs. After doing those things for a year, I got involved in writing picture books and found that I wanted to focus my energies on that. I congratulate anyone who self-publishes and markets their books successfully…it is a massive undertaking and not for the faint of heart. It can be done…and there are many advantages…but it takes a concerted effort, a lot of energy, patience, and perseverance. PJ: You maintain a very active website and social media presence. How has that impacted your career? And please, who is the adorable little boy pictured on the site.

VK: I should be the poster child for people who are afraid of blogging or getting active on social media. When I started at the end of 2010, I knew nothing about social media, thought a tweet was something a bird said, was afraid to turn on the computer by myself (I thought I might break it or make the entire internet disappear). I still have a lot to learn, but I absolutely LOVE the ability to connect with writers and parents and teachers and librarians…and family and friends, of course. I do believe that the connection, the encourage-ment, the accountability that comes with being active in various online groups has kept me on track with my writing. Life often gets in the way of our plans and I think it would have been easy for me to get busy doing other things.

And the little boy is my grandson, Jeremy, who is now seven years old. We moved back to the east coast three years ago so we could be closer and, although I miss the Rocky Mountains of Colorado, I wouldn’t trade anything for the close bond we’ve developed. He says our Monopoly games are ‘epic’ and he often asks to come for a ‘Grammy sleepover’…probably because he knows he’ll get to stay up really late, eat peanut butter on toast for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and hear picture book stories whenever he wants.

PJ:  What was your funniest rejection? (Mine was that my pregnant character drank too many cups of coffee.)

VK: Oh, PJ, this is a great question! I wrote a story

about a little girl who didn’t want her noisy pesky little brother to ruin her birthday party…she said he acted like a monkey. And monkeys belong in the zoo. So she mailed him there. The agent worried that a child might try to do that and we shouldn’t write about anything that would be dangerous for children to do. I guess she hadn’t read Stuck by Oliver Jeffers. And the Flat Stanley books have been around forever. For those who don’t know the series, a bookcase falls on Stanley and flattens him. Oops! And he never regains his shape. Oh dear! When his parents take him on a trip, there isn’t enough room in the car, so they slip him into an envelope (with some crackers in case he gets hungry and a deck of cards in case he gets bored) and they mail him home. Ha! But I do understand that we all have our own opin-ions on what constitutes a great story and I think it is very important to keep that in mind when you get rejec-tions or critiques. If five different people point out the same issue with a story, I definitely sit up and take notice.

PJ: How has your family embraced your writing?

VK: I am very fortunate…my family is thrilled that I’ve found great happiness as I’ve turned the page to this next chapter of my life. My husband is extremely supportive and is often my go-to set of ears to listen to a revision, not so much for advice on how I should change it, but so I can read it out loud the way a parent would be reading it to a child. I think that is really important…you’d be surprised how much better it is than reading it to yourself. You’ll feel when you are tripping up on a word or a phrase, whereas if you just read it to yourself, you might gloss over those spots. As I mentioned before, my sister often comes up with an interesting topic for me…she is a great reader and presi-dent of her community’s book club. And my children so proud of my success.

PJ: Where do you see yourself five years from now?

VK: Five years from now? Writing! Revising! And hopefully, with several books to my credit. I’d also like to offer critique/editing services sometime down the road to help augment my income so I can attend confer-ences without breaking the budget. It’s a joy to read picture book stories, whether they are from famous authors or newbie writers.

May 2016

Pitching Your Book continued

PJ: Since the book isn't coming out until 2017, where are you in the publishing process right now? VK: After the contract was signed, Marissa Moss, the editor at Creston Books, sent me the manuscript with a few revision requests. She is amazing to work with and by February, I had completed all the changes to her satisfaction. Now the story is with the illustrator and I can’t wait to see what he does with it.

PJ: You’re represented by Essie White of Storm Liter-ary Agency. How did that come about? How long did it take you to secure representation?

VK: As I mentioned, I joined the online 12x12 Chal-lenge in 2012…writing a picture book draft every month. The next year, Julie Hedlund arranged for agents to accept submissions from members. I had never submitted my work before, so this was scary…but being part of the group helped so much, especially with all of the information and resources Julie provided to us. By the end of 2014, I was getting some great feedback from agents. And in 2015, I had several agents who were interested in my work. When I read the About page on Storm Literary Agency’s website, I fell in love with Essie White. I submitted Sweet Dreams, Sarah to her and she emailed me an hour later. In order to be an effective salesperson for you, an agent must be passionate about your work. And Essie was. Then I spoke with her current clients—she possessed the communication skills, the business savvy, and the compassionate nature I had been searching for. Two weeks after I signed with her, my story was on its way to a dozen editors. And two weeks after that, we had a book contract. What a wild ride! I know I was very lucky! PJ: Where do you get your ideas from? How many projects do you work on at a time? Do you have any other nonfiction books in the works?  What are you working on now?

VK: I get my ideas from so many places…internet, TV, books I read, even my sister is on the lookout for inter-esting topics for me. In fact, my February 12x12 draft is a story my sister suggested. One of her best friends is an acquaintance of the granddaughter of the man who founded the Greyhound Bus company. She put me in touch with that friend and the family is thrilled to have a story about this amazing individual who came to this

country in 1905, speaking no English and with only 60 dollars in his pocket, but he created an industry that changed the way Americans travel.

I tend to work on several projects at the same time. I research a new story, write another, revise another, and continue to polish finished stories. I’ve learned that a manuscript is never done…even after the publisher buys it, there will often be more changes made. Right now, I have several stories on submission and one in acquisi-tions that we are still waiting to hear about.

PJ: What is your writing routine? Are you a day person or a night owl?

VK: I know that I am pretty darn lucky. Because I am retired, I can write in the morning, in the afternoon, and in the evening. My routine (and I would NOT recom-mend this) is to check my emails and Facebook when I get up. If I have manuscripts to critique for friends, I’ll work on those. Then I do some research or work on one of my stories. And then I check my emails and Face-book again…and repeat the whole process until my eyelids begin to droop and my vision gets blurry.

I always chuckle when people ask if I am a night owl. I used to be a day person…but as anyone who sees me on Facebook will tell you, I am up till all hours of the night. My husband loves to be up all night…and goes to sleep at 8 in the morning. He is a very bad influence on me and I often stay up till 3am. Of course, since I am retired, I can sleep later in the morning. For 65 years I had to be up early every day…as a student, as a teacher, as a mom…so perhaps I’ve earned the right to sleep in a bit.

PJ: I gather you’ve self-published as well. How easy—or difficult—was that?

VK: In 2010, we self-published my parent-teacher resource book, Show Me How! Build Your Child’s Self-Es-teem Through Reading, Crafting, and Cooking. It gives 100 picture book summaries and provides a cooking activity and craft project for each recommended title…kind of like a pumped up version of the Read-Aloud Handbook by Jim Trelease. The actual publishing of the book includ-ed the process of finding a small press printer and making sure the content was well edited. But the most difficult part was the marketing and promotion. I didn’t

Penguin Young Readers, in association with We Need Diverse Books, is holding the first Roll of Thunder Fiction Contest for ethni-cally diverse fiction for ages 8-14. The Contest is open to people of color (or those who self-identify as other than white) who are residents of the United States, the District of Columbia and U.S. territories and possessions, 18 years of age or older at time of entry and who have not had any works of fiction published in any medium prior to entering the Contest. Manuscripts must be a complete original fictional story aimed at readers ages 8-14. The submission must be in English, between 25,000-75,000 words and must not have been previously published in any medium. To enter, go to http://www.rollofthunderbook.com and complete the entire entry form, attach your manuscript and biography as Word or PDF files and click “submit.” All submissions must be received by 11:59 PM Eastern Time on June 21, 2016. A winner will be announced in January, 2017.

The winner will receive a book publishing contract with Penguin Random House with an advance of $35,000, plus royalties. For more information, go to http://www.rollofthunderbook.com/

10

Featured Interview

Nonfiction Author’s Publishing Dreams Come True interview by PJ McIlvaine

ou’re never too old to realize your dreams. Vivian Kirkfield is living proof as her Sweet Dreams, Sarah, a

nonfiction picture book about Sarah Goode, a former slave who became the first African-American woman to be awarded a US patent, is slated for publication in 2017 by Creston Books. Vivian’s enthusiasm and passion for kid lit shines on the page and at her charming website, Picture Books Help Kids Soar (http://www.vivi-ankirkfield.com).

PJ McIlvaine: You have quite an eclectic background: a Master’s Degree in Early Childhood Education, you once taught Kindergarten and you operated a day care center. How did all this translate into writing kid lit?

Vivian Kirkfield: I remember sitting on my mother’s lap, turning the pages of The Little House by Virginia Lee Burton. At the tender age of two, I fell in love with picture books. Many years later, as a kindergarten teacher and daycare provider, I used them to build literacy skills and encourage children to become lovers of books and reading. When my own children were growing up, I read to them on a daily basis and wrote little stories to entertain them. But it wasn’t until I retired and hopped into blogging to promote a parent-teacher resource guide I had written, that I got serious about writing for children. In 2012, I joined Julie Hedlund’s 12x12 Picture Book Writing Challenge, Tara Lazar’s PiBoIdMo, and Susanna Leon-ard Hill’s many contests and writing prompts. Every day I looked forward to writing—I knew I had found my bliss.

PJ: Tell us where the inspiration for your debut non-fic-tion picture book, Sweet Dreams, Sarah (Creston Books, Spring 2017), came from. How many drafts did it take until you felt it was ready for the world? Is writing a biography picture say, more difficult  or different than writing a fiction one? Did you have any input on what 

illustrator the publisher chose?

VK: Until I took Kristen Fulton’s Nonfiction Archeolo-gy course in June 2014, I had never written a nonfiction picture book. Her class was a life-changing experience for me. I had fallen in love with picture books as a toddler. Now I fell in love with writing nonfiction picture books. Kristen encouraged us to find golden nugget moments in history…I discovered that Sarah

Goode, a former slave, had received one of the first patents ever issued to a black woman. WOW! At a time when most women stayed home, when most women couldn’t even own property, here was a black woman who created a cabinet bed to answer the needs of her customers. More than that, she was determined to get credit for it…she dreamt it, she built it…and then she claimed it!

I’m a big fan of critique. I’ve learned that having many eyes on my work helps me

create the strongest story possible. I have an insane number of critique partners…fabulous writers, fabulous friends…each has had a hand in making Sweet Dreams, Sarah ready for the world. You ask how many drafts—dozens of critique rounds…hundreds of revisions. I embrace revision with my whole heart. The only thing that didn’t change was the very begin-ning…that is pretty much identical to my original draft.

I still love writing fiction picture books. But for me, writing nonfiction is my opportunity to bring history to life for young readers. And there seems to be a certain strategy that makes it flow more easily. I pick a topic. Research it. Write a rough draft. And then revise the heck out of it!

Regarding the illustrator for Sweet Dreams, Sarah, I did not have any input on that. However, I’ve seen some of Chris Ewald’s work and it is fantastic! I am excited to see how he will interpret the story.

know then what I know now about the importance of social media presence and platform building. I was shy and had to step out of my comfort zone to walk into local bookstores to ask if they would carry the book. I connected with mom bloggers who reviewed the book on their blogs. After doing those things for a year, I got involved in writing picture books and found that I wanted to focus my energies on that. I congratulate anyone who self-publishes and markets their books successfully…it is a massive undertaking and not for the faint of heart. It can be done…and there are many advantages…but it takes a concerted effort, a lot of energy, patience, and perseverance. PJ: You maintain a very active website and social media presence. How has that impacted your career? And please, who is the adorable little boy pictured on the site.

VK: I should be the poster child for people who are afraid of blogging or getting active on social media. When I started at the end of 2010, I knew nothing about social media, thought a tweet was something a bird said, was afraid to turn on the computer by myself (I thought I might break it or make the entire internet disappear). I still have a lot to learn, but I absolutely LOVE the ability to connect with writers and parents and teachers and librarians…and family and friends, of course. I do believe that the connection, the encourage-ment, the accountability that comes with being active in various online groups has kept me on track with my writing. Life often gets in the way of our plans and I think it would have been easy for me to get busy doing other things.

And the little boy is my grandson, Jeremy, who is now seven years old. We moved back to the east coast three years ago so we could be closer and, although I miss the Rocky Mountains of Colorado, I wouldn’t trade anything for the close bond we’ve developed. He says our Monopoly games are ‘epic’ and he often asks to come for a ‘Grammy sleepover’…probably because he knows he’ll get to stay up really late, eat peanut butter on toast for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and hear picture book stories whenever he wants.

PJ:  What was your funniest rejection? (Mine was that my pregnant character drank too many cups of coffee.)

VK: Oh, PJ, this is a great question! I wrote a story

about a little girl who didn’t want her noisy pesky little brother to ruin her birthday party…she said he acted like a monkey. And monkeys belong in the zoo. So she mailed him there. The agent worried that a child might try to do that and we shouldn’t write about anything that would be dangerous for children to do. I guess she hadn’t read Stuck by Oliver Jeffers. And the Flat Stanley books have been around forever. For those who don’t know the series, a bookcase falls on Stanley and flattens him. Oops! And he never regains his shape. Oh dear! When his parents take him on a trip, there isn’t enough room in the car, so they slip him into an envelope (with some crackers in case he gets hungry and a deck of cards in case he gets bored) and they mail him home. Ha! But I do understand that we all have our own opin-ions on what constitutes a great story and I think it is very important to keep that in mind when you get rejec-tions or critiques. If five different people point out the same issue with a story, I definitely sit up and take notice.

PJ: How has your family embraced your writing?

VK: I am very fortunate…my family is thrilled that I’ve found great happiness as I’ve turned the page to this next chapter of my life. My husband is extremely supportive and is often my go-to set of ears to listen to a revision, not so much for advice on how I should change it, but so I can read it out loud the way a parent would be reading it to a child. I think that is really important…you’d be surprised how much better it is than reading it to yourself. You’ll feel when you are tripping up on a word or a phrase, whereas if you just read it to yourself, you might gloss over those spots. As I mentioned before, my sister often comes up with an interesting topic for me…she is a great reader and presi-dent of her community’s book club. And my children so proud of my success.

PJ: Where do you see yourself five years from now?

VK: Five years from now? Writing! Revising! And hopefully, with several books to my credit. I’d also like to offer critique/editing services sometime down the road to help augment my income so I can attend confer-ences without breaking the budget. It’s a joy to read picture book stories, whether they are from famous authors or newbie writers.

May 2016

PJ: Since the book isn't coming out until 2017, where are you in the publishing process right now? VK: After the contract was signed, Marissa Moss, the editor at Creston Books, sent me the manuscript with a few revision requests. She is amazing to work with and by February, I had completed all the changes to her satisfaction. Now the story is with the illustrator and I can’t wait to see what he does with it.

PJ: You’re represented by Essie White of Storm Liter-ary Agency. How did that come about? How long did it take you to secure representation?

VK: As I mentioned, I joined the online 12x12 Chal-lenge in 2012…writing a picture book draft every month. The next year, Julie Hedlund arranged for agents to accept submissions from members. I had never submitted my work before, so this was scary…but being part of the group helped so much, especially with all of the information and resources Julie provided to us. By the end of 2014, I was getting some great feedback from agents. And in 2015, I had several agents who were interested in my work. When I read the About page on Storm Literary Agency’s website, I fell in love with Essie White. I submitted Sweet Dreams, Sarah to her and she emailed me an hour later. In order to be an effective salesperson for you, an agent must be passionate about your work. And Essie was. Then I spoke with her current clients—she possessed the communication skills, the business savvy, and the compassionate nature I had been searching for. Two weeks after I signed with her, my story was on its way to a dozen editors. And two weeks after that, we had a book contract. What a wild ride! I know I was very lucky! PJ: Where do you get your ideas from? How many projects do you work on at a time? Do you have any other nonfiction books in the works?  What are you working on now?

VK: I get my ideas from so many places…internet, TV, books I read, even my sister is on the lookout for inter-esting topics for me. In fact, my February 12x12 draft is a story my sister suggested. One of her best friends is an acquaintance of the granddaughter of the man who founded the Greyhound Bus company. She put me in touch with that friend and the family is thrilled to have a story about this amazing individual who came to this

country in 1905, speaking no English and with only 60 dollars in his pocket, but he created an industry that changed the way Americans travel.

I tend to work on several projects at the same time. I research a new story, write another, revise another, and continue to polish finished stories. I’ve learned that a manuscript is never done…even after the publisher buys it, there will often be more changes made. Right now, I have several stories on submission and one in acquisi-tions that we are still waiting to hear about.

PJ: What is your writing routine? Are you a day person or a night owl?

VK: I know that I am pretty darn lucky. Because I am retired, I can write in the morning, in the afternoon, and in the evening. My routine (and I would NOT recom-mend this) is to check my emails and Facebook when I get up. If I have manuscripts to critique for friends, I’ll work on those. Then I do some research or work on one of my stories. And then I check my emails and Face-book again…and repeat the whole process until my eyelids begin to droop and my vision gets blurry.

I always chuckle when people ask if I am a night owl. I used to be a day person…but as anyone who sees me on Facebook will tell you, I am up till all hours of the night. My husband loves to be up all night…and goes to sleep at 8 in the morning. He is a very bad influence on me and I often stay up till 3am. Of course, since I am retired, I can sleep later in the morning. For 65 years I had to be up early every day…as a student, as a teacher, as a mom…so perhaps I’ve earned the right to sleep in a bit.

PJ: I gather you’ve self-published as well. How easy—or difficult—was that?

VK: In 2010, we self-published my parent-teacher resource book, Show Me How! Build Your Child’s Self-Es-teem Through Reading, Crafting, and Cooking. It gives 100 picture book summaries and provides a cooking activity and craft project for each recommended title…kind of like a pumped up version of the Read-Aloud Handbook by Jim Trelease. The actual publishing of the book includ-ed the process of finding a small press printer and making sure the content was well edited. But the most difficult part was the marketing and promotion. I didn’t

Y

11

Featured Interview

ou’re never too old to realize your dreams. Vivian Kirkfield is living proof as her Sweet Dreams, Sarah, a

nonfiction picture book about Sarah Goode, a former slave who became the first African-American woman to be awarded a US patent, is slated for publication in 2017 by Creston Books. Vivian’s enthusiasm and passion for kid lit shines on the page and at her charming website, Picture Books Help Kids Soar (http://www.vivi-ankirkfield.com).

PJ McIlvaine: You have quite an eclectic background: a Master’s Degree in Early Childhood Education, you once taught Kindergarten and you operated a day care center. How did all this translate into writing kid lit?

Vivian Kirkfield: I remember sitting on my mother’s lap, turning the pages of The Little House by Virginia Lee Burton. At the tender age of two, I fell in love with picture books. Many years later, as a kindergarten teacher and daycare provider, I used them to build literacy skills and encourage children to become lovers of books and reading. When my own children were growing up, I read to them on a daily basis and wrote little stories to entertain them. But it wasn’t until I retired and hopped into blogging to promote a parent-teacher resource guide I had written, that I got serious about writing for children. In 2012, I joined Julie Hedlund’s 12x12 Picture Book Writing Challenge, Tara Lazar’s PiBoIdMo, and Susanna Leon-ard Hill’s many contests and writing prompts. Every day I looked forward to writing—I knew I had found my bliss.

PJ: Tell us where the inspiration for your debut non-fic-tion picture book, Sweet Dreams, Sarah (Creston Books, Spring 2017), came from. How many drafts did it take until you felt it was ready for the world? Is writing a biography picture say, more difficult  or different than writing a fiction one? Did you have any input on what 

illustrator the publisher chose?

VK: Until I took Kristen Fulton’s Nonfiction Archeolo-gy course in June 2014, I had never written a nonfiction picture book. Her class was a life-changing experience for me. I had fallen in love with picture books as a toddler. Now I fell in love with writing nonfiction picture books. Kristen encouraged us to find golden nugget moments in history…I discovered that Sarah

Goode, a former slave, had received one of the first patents ever issued to a black woman. WOW! At a time when most women stayed home, when most women couldn’t even own property, here was a black woman who created a cabinet bed to answer the needs of her customers. More than that, she was determined to get credit for it…she dreamt it, she built it…and then she claimed it!

I’m a big fan of critique. I’ve learned that having many eyes on my work helps me

create the strongest story possible. I have an insane number of critique partners…fabulous writers, fabulous friends…each has had a hand in making Sweet Dreams, Sarah ready for the world. You ask how many drafts—dozens of critique rounds…hundreds of revisions. I embrace revision with my whole heart. The only thing that didn’t change was the very begin-ning…that is pretty much identical to my original draft.

I still love writing fiction picture books. But for me, writing nonfiction is my opportunity to bring history to life for young readers. And there seems to be a certain strategy that makes it flow more easily. I pick a topic. Research it. Write a rough draft. And then revise the heck out of it!

Regarding the illustrator for Sweet Dreams, Sarah, I did not have any input on that. However, I’ve seen some of Chris Ewald’s work and it is fantastic! I am excited to see how he will interpret the story.

know then what I know now about the importance of social media presence and platform building. I was shy and had to step out of my comfort zone to walk into local bookstores to ask if they would carry the book. I connected with mom bloggers who reviewed the book on their blogs. After doing those things for a year, I got involved in writing picture books and found that I wanted to focus my energies on that. I congratulate anyone who self-publishes and markets their books successfully…it is a massive undertaking and not for the faint of heart. It can be done…and there are many advantages…but it takes a concerted effort, a lot of energy, patience, and perseverance. PJ: You maintain a very active website and social media presence. How has that impacted your career? And please, who is the adorable little boy pictured on the site.

VK: I should be the poster child for people who are afraid of blogging or getting active on social media. When I started at the end of 2010, I knew nothing about social media, thought a tweet was something a bird said, was afraid to turn on the computer by myself (I thought I might break it or make the entire internet disappear). I still have a lot to learn, but I absolutely LOVE the ability to connect with writers and parents and teachers and librarians…and family and friends, of course. I do believe that the connection, the encourage-ment, the accountability that comes with being active in various online groups has kept me on track with my writing. Life often gets in the way of our plans and I think it would have been easy for me to get busy doing other things.

And the little boy is my grandson, Jeremy, who is now seven years old. We moved back to the east coast three years ago so we could be closer and, although I miss the Rocky Mountains of Colorado, I wouldn’t trade anything for the close bond we’ve developed. He says our Monopoly games are ‘epic’ and he often asks to come for a ‘Grammy sleepover’…probably because he knows he’ll get to stay up really late, eat peanut butter on toast for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and hear picture book stories whenever he wants.

PJ:  What was your funniest rejection? (Mine was that my pregnant character drank too many cups of coffee.)

VK: Oh, PJ, this is a great question! I wrote a story

about a little girl who didn’t want her noisy pesky little brother to ruin her birthday party…she said he acted like a monkey. And monkeys belong in the zoo. So she mailed him there. The agent worried that a child might try to do that and we shouldn’t write about anything that would be dangerous for children to do. I guess she hadn’t read Stuck by Oliver Jeffers. And the Flat Stanley books have been around forever. For those who don’t know the series, a bookcase falls on Stanley and flattens him. Oops! And he never regains his shape. Oh dear! When his parents take him on a trip, there isn’t enough room in the car, so they slip him into an envelope (with some crackers in case he gets hungry and a deck of cards in case he gets bored) and they mail him home. Ha! But I do understand that we all have our own opin-ions on what constitutes a great story and I think it is very important to keep that in mind when you get rejec-tions or critiques. If five different people point out the same issue with a story, I definitely sit up and take notice.

PJ: How has your family embraced your writing?

VK: I am very fortunate…my family is thrilled that I’ve found great happiness as I’ve turned the page to this next chapter of my life. My husband is extremely supportive and is often my go-to set of ears to listen to a revision, not so much for advice on how I should change it, but so I can read it out loud the way a parent would be reading it to a child. I think that is really important…you’d be surprised how much better it is than reading it to yourself. You’ll feel when you are tripping up on a word or a phrase, whereas if you just read it to yourself, you might gloss over those spots. As I mentioned before, my sister often comes up with an interesting topic for me…she is a great reader and presi-dent of her community’s book club. And my children so proud of my success.

PJ: Where do you see yourself five years from now?

VK: Five years from now? Writing! Revising! And hopefully, with several books to my credit. I’d also like to offer critique/editing services sometime down the road to help augment my income so I can attend confer-ences without breaking the budget. It’s a joy to read picture book stories, whether they are from famous authors or newbie writers.

May 2016

PJ: Since the book isn't coming out until 2017, where are you in the publishing process right now? VK: After the contract was signed, Marissa Moss, the editor at Creston Books, sent me the manuscript with a few revision requests. She is amazing to work with and by February, I had completed all the changes to her satisfaction. Now the story is with the illustrator and I can’t wait to see what he does with it.

PJ: You’re represented by Essie White of Storm Liter-ary Agency. How did that come about? How long did it take you to secure representation?

VK: As I mentioned, I joined the online 12x12 Chal-lenge in 2012…writing a picture book draft every month. The next year, Julie Hedlund arranged for agents to accept submissions from members. I had never submitted my work before, so this was scary…but being part of the group helped so much, especially with all of the information and resources Julie provided to us. By the end of 2014, I was getting some great feedback from agents. And in 2015, I had several agents who were interested in my work. When I read the About page on Storm Literary Agency’s website, I fell in love with Essie White. I submitted Sweet Dreams, Sarah to her and she emailed me an hour later. In order to be an effective salesperson for you, an agent must be passionate about your work. And Essie was. Then I spoke with her current clients—she possessed the communication skills, the business savvy, and the compassionate nature I had been searching for. Two weeks after I signed with her, my story was on its way to a dozen editors. And two weeks after that, we had a book contract. What a wild ride! I know I was very lucky! PJ: Where do you get your ideas from? How many projects do you work on at a time? Do you have any other nonfiction books in the works?  What are you working on now?

VK: I get my ideas from so many places…internet, TV, books I read, even my sister is on the lookout for inter-esting topics for me. In fact, my February 12x12 draft is a story my sister suggested. One of her best friends is an acquaintance of the granddaughter of the man who founded the Greyhound Bus company. She put me in touch with that friend and the family is thrilled to have a story about this amazing individual who came to this

country in 1905, speaking no English and with only 60 dollars in his pocket, but he created an industry that changed the way Americans travel.

I tend to work on several projects at the same time. I research a new story, write another, revise another, and continue to polish finished stories. I’ve learned that a manuscript is never done…even after the publisher buys it, there will often be more changes made. Right now, I have several stories on submission and one in acquisi-tions that we are still waiting to hear about.

PJ: What is your writing routine? Are you a day person or a night owl?

VK: I know that I am pretty darn lucky. Because I am retired, I can write in the morning, in the afternoon, and in the evening. My routine (and I would NOT recom-mend this) is to check my emails and Facebook when I get up. If I have manuscripts to critique for friends, I’ll work on those. Then I do some research or work on one of my stories. And then I check my emails and Face-book again…and repeat the whole process until my eyelids begin to droop and my vision gets blurry.

I always chuckle when people ask if I am a night owl. I used to be a day person…but as anyone who sees me on Facebook will tell you, I am up till all hours of the night. My husband loves to be up all night…and goes to sleep at 8 in the morning. He is a very bad influence on me and I often stay up till 3am. Of course, since I am retired, I can sleep later in the morning. For 65 years I had to be up early every day…as a student, as a teacher, as a mom…so perhaps I’ve earned the right to sleep in a bit.

PJ: I gather you’ve self-published as well. How easy—or difficult—was that?

VK: In 2010, we self-published my parent-teacher resource book, Show Me How! Build Your Child’s Self-Es-teem Through Reading, Crafting, and Cooking. It gives 100 picture book summaries and provides a cooking activity and craft project for each recommended title…kind of like a pumped up version of the Read-Aloud Handbook by Jim Trelease. The actual publishing of the book includ-ed the process of finding a small press printer and making sure the content was well edited. But the most difficult part was the marketing and promotion. I didn’t

Kirkfield continued

12

Featured Interview

ou’re never too old to realize your dreams. Vivian Kirkfield is living proof as her Sweet Dreams, Sarah, a

nonfiction picture book about Sarah Goode, a former slave who became the first African-American woman to be awarded a US patent, is slated for publication in 2017 by Creston Books. Vivian’s enthusiasm and passion for kid lit shines on the page and at her charming website, Picture Books Help Kids Soar (http://www.vivi-ankirkfield.com).

PJ McIlvaine: You have quite an eclectic background: a Master’s Degree in Early Childhood Education, you once taught Kindergarten and you operated a day care center. How did all this translate into writing kid lit?

Vivian Kirkfield: I remember sitting on my mother’s lap, turning the pages of The Little House by Virginia Lee Burton. At the tender age of two, I fell in love with picture books. Many years later, as a kindergarten teacher and daycare provider, I used them to build literacy skills and encourage children to become lovers of books and reading. When my own children were growing up, I read to them on a daily basis and wrote little stories to entertain them. But it wasn’t until I retired and hopped into blogging to promote a parent-teacher resource guide I had written, that I got serious about writing for children. In 2012, I joined Julie Hedlund’s 12x12 Picture Book Writing Challenge, Tara Lazar’s PiBoIdMo, and Susanna Leon-ard Hill’s many contests and writing prompts. Every day I looked forward to writing—I knew I had found my bliss.

PJ: Tell us where the inspiration for your debut non-fic-tion picture book, Sweet Dreams, Sarah (Creston Books, Spring 2017), came from. How many drafts did it take until you felt it was ready for the world? Is writing a biography picture say, more difficult  or different than writing a fiction one? Did you have any input on what 

illustrator the publisher chose?

VK: Until I took Kristen Fulton’s Nonfiction Archeolo-gy course in June 2014, I had never written a nonfiction picture book. Her class was a life-changing experience for me. I had fallen in love with picture books as a toddler. Now I fell in love with writing nonfiction picture books. Kristen encouraged us to find golden nugget moments in history…I discovered that Sarah

Goode, a former slave, had received one of the first patents ever issued to a black woman. WOW! At a time when most women stayed home, when most women couldn’t even own property, here was a black woman who created a cabinet bed to answer the needs of her customers. More than that, she was determined to get credit for it…she dreamt it, she built it…and then she claimed it!

I’m a big fan of critique. I’ve learned that having many eyes on my work helps me

create the strongest story possible. I have an insane number of critique partners…fabulous writers, fabulous friends…each has had a hand in making Sweet Dreams, Sarah ready for the world. You ask how many drafts—dozens of critique rounds…hundreds of revisions. I embrace revision with my whole heart. The only thing that didn’t change was the very begin-ning…that is pretty much identical to my original draft.

I still love writing fiction picture books. But for me, writing nonfiction is my opportunity to bring history to life for young readers. And there seems to be a certain strategy that makes it flow more easily. I pick a topic. Research it. Write a rough draft. And then revise the heck out of it!

Regarding the illustrator for Sweet Dreams, Sarah, I did not have any input on that. However, I’ve seen some of Chris Ewald’s work and it is fantastic! I am excited to see how he will interpret the story.

know then what I know now about the importance of social media presence and platform building. I was shy and had to step out of my comfort zone to walk into local bookstores to ask if they would carry the book. I connected with mom bloggers who reviewed the book on their blogs. After doing those things for a year, I got involved in writing picture books and found that I wanted to focus my energies on that. I congratulate anyone who self-publishes and markets their books successfully…it is a massive undertaking and not for the faint of heart. It can be done…and there are many advantages…but it takes a concerted effort, a lot of energy, patience, and perseverance. PJ: You maintain a very active website and social media presence. How has that impacted your career? And please, who is the adorable little boy pictured on the site.

VK: I should be the poster child for people who are afraid of blogging or getting active on social media. When I started at the end of 2010, I knew nothing about social media, thought a tweet was something a bird said, was afraid to turn on the computer by myself (I thought I might break it or make the entire internet disappear). I still have a lot to learn, but I absolutely LOVE the ability to connect with writers and parents and teachers and librarians…and family and friends, of course. I do believe that the connection, the encourage-ment, the accountability that comes with being active in various online groups has kept me on track with my writing. Life often gets in the way of our plans and I think it would have been easy for me to get busy doing other things.

And the little boy is my grandson, Jeremy, who is now seven years old. We moved back to the east coast three years ago so we could be closer and, although I miss the Rocky Mountains of Colorado, I wouldn’t trade anything for the close bond we’ve developed. He says our Monopoly games are ‘epic’ and he often asks to come for a ‘Grammy sleepover’…probably because he knows he’ll get to stay up really late, eat peanut butter on toast for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and hear picture book stories whenever he wants.

PJ:  What was your funniest rejection? (Mine was that my pregnant character drank too many cups of coffee.)

VK: Oh, PJ, this is a great question! I wrote a story

about a little girl who didn’t want her noisy pesky little brother to ruin her birthday party…she said he acted like a monkey. And monkeys belong in the zoo. So she mailed him there. The agent worried that a child might try to do that and we shouldn’t write about anything that would be dangerous for children to do. I guess she hadn’t read Stuck by Oliver Jeffers. And the Flat Stanley books have been around forever. For those who don’t know the series, a bookcase falls on Stanley and flattens him. Oops! And he never regains his shape. Oh dear! When his parents take him on a trip, there isn’t enough room in the car, so they slip him into an envelope (with some crackers in case he gets hungry and a deck of cards in case he gets bored) and they mail him home. Ha! But I do understand that we all have our own opin-ions on what constitutes a great story and I think it is very important to keep that in mind when you get rejec-tions or critiques. If five different people point out the same issue with a story, I definitely sit up and take notice.

PJ: How has your family embraced your writing?

VK: I am very fortunate…my family is thrilled that I’ve found great happiness as I’ve turned the page to this next chapter of my life. My husband is extremely supportive and is often my go-to set of ears to listen to a revision, not so much for advice on how I should change it, but so I can read it out loud the way a parent would be reading it to a child. I think that is really important…you’d be surprised how much better it is than reading it to yourself. You’ll feel when you are tripping up on a word or a phrase, whereas if you just read it to yourself, you might gloss over those spots. As I mentioned before, my sister often comes up with an interesting topic for me…she is a great reader and presi-dent of her community’s book club. And my children so proud of my success.

PJ: Where do you see yourself five years from now?

VK: Five years from now? Writing! Revising! And hopefully, with several books to my credit. I’d also like to offer critique/editing services sometime down the road to help augment my income so I can attend confer-ences without breaking the budget. It’s a joy to read picture book stories, whether they are from famous authors or newbie writers.

May 2016

PJ: Since the book isn't coming out until 2017, where are you in the publishing process right now? VK: After the contract was signed, Marissa Moss, the editor at Creston Books, sent me the manuscript with a few revision requests. She is amazing to work with and by February, I had completed all the changes to her satisfaction. Now the story is with the illustrator and I can’t wait to see what he does with it.

PJ: You’re represented by Essie White of Storm Liter-ary Agency. How did that come about? How long did it take you to secure representation?

VK: As I mentioned, I joined the online 12x12 Chal-lenge in 2012…writing a picture book draft every month. The next year, Julie Hedlund arranged for agents to accept submissions from members. I had never submitted my work before, so this was scary…but being part of the group helped so much, especially with all of the information and resources Julie provided to us. By the end of 2014, I was getting some great feedback from agents. And in 2015, I had several agents who were interested in my work. When I read the About page on Storm Literary Agency’s website, I fell in love with Essie White. I submitted Sweet Dreams, Sarah to her and she emailed me an hour later. In order to be an effective salesperson for you, an agent must be passionate about your work. And Essie was. Then I spoke with her current clients—she possessed the communication skills, the business savvy, and the compassionate nature I had been searching for. Two weeks after I signed with her, my story was on its way to a dozen editors. And two weeks after that, we had a book contract. What a wild ride! I know I was very lucky! PJ: Where do you get your ideas from? How many projects do you work on at a time? Do you have any other nonfiction books in the works?  What are you working on now?

VK: I get my ideas from so many places…internet, TV, books I read, even my sister is on the lookout for inter-esting topics for me. In fact, my February 12x12 draft is a story my sister suggested. One of her best friends is an acquaintance of the granddaughter of the man who founded the Greyhound Bus company. She put me in touch with that friend and the family is thrilled to have a story about this amazing individual who came to this

country in 1905, speaking no English and with only 60 dollars in his pocket, but he created an industry that changed the way Americans travel.

I tend to work on several projects at the same time. I research a new story, write another, revise another, and continue to polish finished stories. I’ve learned that a manuscript is never done…even after the publisher buys it, there will often be more changes made. Right now, I have several stories on submission and one in acquisi-tions that we are still waiting to hear about.

PJ: What is your writing routine? Are you a day person or a night owl?

VK: I know that I am pretty darn lucky. Because I am retired, I can write in the morning, in the afternoon, and in the evening. My routine (and I would NOT recom-mend this) is to check my emails and Facebook when I get up. If I have manuscripts to critique for friends, I’ll work on those. Then I do some research or work on one of my stories. And then I check my emails and Face-book again…and repeat the whole process until my eyelids begin to droop and my vision gets blurry.

I always chuckle when people ask if I am a night owl. I used to be a day person…but as anyone who sees me on Facebook will tell you, I am up till all hours of the night. My husband loves to be up all night…and goes to sleep at 8 in the morning. He is a very bad influence on me and I often stay up till 3am. Of course, since I am retired, I can sleep later in the morning. For 65 years I had to be up early every day…as a student, as a teacher, as a mom…so perhaps I’ve earned the right to sleep in a bit.

PJ: I gather you’ve self-published as well. How easy—or difficult—was that?

VK: In 2010, we self-published my parent-teacher resource book, Show Me How! Build Your Child’s Self-Es-teem Through Reading, Crafting, and Cooking. It gives 100 picture book summaries and provides a cooking activity and craft project for each recommended title…kind of like a pumped up version of the Read-Aloud Handbook by Jim Trelease. The actual publishing of the book includ-ed the process of finding a small press printer and making sure the content was well edited. But the most difficult part was the marketing and promotion. I didn’t

Kirkfield continued

13

The Big Picture

ou’re never too old to realize your dreams. Vivian Kirkfield is living proof as her Sweet Dreams, Sarah, a

nonfiction picture book about Sarah Goode, a former slave who became the first African-American woman to be awarded a US patent, is slated for publication in 2017 by Creston Books. Vivian’s enthusiasm and passion for kid lit shines on the page and at her charming website, Picture Books Help Kids Soar (http://www.vivi-ankirkfield.com).

PJ McIlvaine: You have quite an eclectic background: a Master’s Degree in Early Childhood Education, you once taught Kindergarten and you operated a day care center. How did all this translate into writing kid lit?

Vivian Kirkfield: I remember sitting on my mother’s lap, turning the pages of The Little House by Virginia Lee Burton. At the tender age of two, I fell in love with picture books. Many years later, as a kindergarten teacher and daycare provider, I used them to build literacy skills and encourage children to become lovers of books and reading. When my own children were growing up, I read to them on a daily basis and wrote little stories to entertain them. But it wasn’t until I retired and hopped into blogging to promote a parent-teacher resource guide I had written, that I got serious about writing for children. In 2012, I joined Julie Hedlund’s 12x12 Picture Book Writing Challenge, Tara Lazar’s PiBoIdMo, and Susanna Leon-ard Hill’s many contests and writing prompts. Every day I looked forward to writing—I knew I had found my bliss.

PJ: Tell us where the inspiration for your debut non-fic-tion picture book, Sweet Dreams, Sarah (Creston Books, Spring 2017), came from. How many drafts did it take until you felt it was ready for the world? Is writing a biography picture say, more difficult  or different than writing a fiction one? Did you have any input on what 

illustrator the publisher chose?

VK: Until I took Kristen Fulton’s Nonfiction Archeolo-gy course in June 2014, I had never written a nonfiction picture book. Her class was a life-changing experience for me. I had fallen in love with picture books as a toddler. Now I fell in love with writing nonfiction picture books. Kristen encouraged us to find golden nugget moments in history…I discovered that Sarah

Goode, a former slave, had received one of the first patents ever issued to a black woman. WOW! At a time when most women stayed home, when most women couldn’t even own property, here was a black woman who created a cabinet bed to answer the needs of her customers. More than that, she was determined to get credit for it…she dreamt it, she built it…and then she claimed it!

I’m a big fan of critique. I’ve learned that having many eyes on my work helps me

create the strongest story possible. I have an insane number of critique partners…fabulous writers, fabulous friends…each has had a hand in making Sweet Dreams, Sarah ready for the world. You ask how many drafts—dozens of critique rounds…hundreds of revisions. I embrace revision with my whole heart. The only thing that didn’t change was the very begin-ning…that is pretty much identical to my original draft.

I still love writing fiction picture books. But for me, writing nonfiction is my opportunity to bring history to life for young readers. And there seems to be a certain strategy that makes it flow more easily. I pick a topic. Research it. Write a rough draft. And then revise the heck out of it!

Regarding the illustrator for Sweet Dreams, Sarah, I did not have any input on that. However, I’ve seen some of Chris Ewald’s work and it is fantastic! I am excited to see how he will interpret the story.

know then what I know now about the importance of social media presence and platform building. I was shy and had to step out of my comfort zone to walk into local bookstores to ask if they would carry the book. I connected with mom bloggers who reviewed the book on their blogs. After doing those things for a year, I got involved in writing picture books and found that I wanted to focus my energies on that. I congratulate anyone who self-publishes and markets their books successfully…it is a massive undertaking and not for the faint of heart. It can be done…and there are many advantages…but it takes a concerted effort, a lot of energy, patience, and perseverance. PJ: You maintain a very active website and social media presence. How has that impacted your career? And please, who is the adorable little boy pictured on the site.

VK: I should be the poster child for people who are afraid of blogging or getting active on social media. When I started at the end of 2010, I knew nothing about social media, thought a tweet was something a bird said, was afraid to turn on the computer by myself (I thought I might break it or make the entire internet disappear). I still have a lot to learn, but I absolutely LOVE the ability to connect with writers and parents and teachers and librarians…and family and friends, of course. I do believe that the connection, the encourage-ment, the accountability that comes with being active in various online groups has kept me on track with my writing. Life often gets in the way of our plans and I think it would have been easy for me to get busy doing other things.

And the little boy is my grandson, Jeremy, who is now seven years old. We moved back to the east coast three years ago so we could be closer and, although I miss the Rocky Mountains of Colorado, I wouldn’t trade anything for the close bond we’ve developed. He says our Monopoly games are ‘epic’ and he often asks to come for a ‘Grammy sleepover’…probably because he knows he’ll get to stay up really late, eat peanut butter on toast for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and hear picture book stories whenever he wants.

PJ:  What was your funniest rejection? (Mine was that my pregnant character drank too many cups of coffee.)

VK: Oh, PJ, this is a great question! I wrote a story

about a little girl who didn’t want her noisy pesky little brother to ruin her birthday party…she said he acted like a monkey. And monkeys belong in the zoo. So she mailed him there. The agent worried that a child might try to do that and we shouldn’t write about anything that would be dangerous for children to do. I guess she hadn’t read Stuck by Oliver Jeffers. And the Flat Stanley books have been around forever. For those who don’t know the series, a bookcase falls on Stanley and flattens him. Oops! And he never regains his shape. Oh dear! When his parents take him on a trip, there isn’t enough room in the car, so they slip him into an envelope (with some crackers in case he gets hungry and a deck of cards in case he gets bored) and they mail him home. Ha! But I do understand that we all have our own opin-ions on what constitutes a great story and I think it is very important to keep that in mind when you get rejec-tions or critiques. If five different people point out the same issue with a story, I definitely sit up and take notice.

PJ: How has your family embraced your writing?

VK: I am very fortunate…my family is thrilled that I’ve found great happiness as I’ve turned the page to this next chapter of my life. My husband is extremely supportive and is often my go-to set of ears to listen to a revision, not so much for advice on how I should change it, but so I can read it out loud the way a parent would be reading it to a child. I think that is really important…you’d be surprised how much better it is than reading it to yourself. You’ll feel when you are tripping up on a word or a phrase, whereas if you just read it to yourself, you might gloss over those spots. As I mentioned before, my sister often comes up with an interesting topic for me…she is a great reader and presi-dent of her community’s book club. And my children so proud of my success.

PJ: Where do you see yourself five years from now?

VK: Five years from now? Writing! Revising! And hopefully, with several books to my credit. I’d also like to offer critique/editing services sometime down the road to help augment my income so I can attend confer-ences without breaking the budget. It’s a joy to read picture book stories, whether they are from famous authors or newbie writers.

e've often run articles in CBI about how to be your own editor. Those articles tend to focus on the actual

words in your manuscript and how to make them better. Obviously, editing a writer's words is a big part of the editor's job. But editors also rely on their guts and experi-ence to judge if the work is ready to become a book.

Wouldn't it be great if you could develop that same gut-check as a writer? Here's a secret: donning an editor's glasses is completely doable. All it takes is some objectiv-ity, brutal honesty, and the willingness to shape-shift. One of most important parts of an editor's job is to look at the project through eyes other than her own. She does this by stepping into the mindset of the reader, the art director and the bookseller. Do this yourself, and you'll be miles ahead of the competition.

Through the Eyes of the Reader

When I'm editing a manuscript, one of the first things I do is to mentally go back in time to when I was the age of the reader. I have touchstone memories from when I was five, or nine, or thirteen, that I use to recall the worl-dview and emotions of that age. As I'm reading the man-uscript, I ask myself these questions:

Would I have cared about this character if I had read this book when I was [age of reader]? Why would I have cared?

Would this character's conflict/goal/problem have been meaningful to me? In what way?

Would this story have entertained and captivated me?

Would I have sensed the author behind the words, or would I have felt the story rose effortlessly on its own from the page?

If I had read this story at the age of the target audience, would I have understood it? If not, is there a way the same concepts and themes could be rewritten to better speak how my mind worked at that age?

Now, simply using myself (or yourself, if you're doing this exercise) as the litmus test isn't entirely fair. We each have our own unique experiences growing up, but if that's all we use to judge a work, we're limiting our think-ing. So use yourself as the starting point, but then also look at your work through the eyes of other kids the

same age. This sounds hard to do, because it is. You need to imagine what it would be like to read your story as a child other than yourself, someone who carries different experiences and expectations. Read a lot (A LOT) of published books and envision the readers who love each kind of story. Learn what's important to modern kids (tip: read blogs by moms, teachers and librarians if you write picture books, easy readers and chapter books; read blogs by and for tweens and teens for older books). Talk to teachers, librarians and others who spend a lot of time with children. If you don't have kids of your own, volunteer at your local school, church youth group, Boys and Girls Club, etc. It helps to relive childhood through the children in your life. You'll hit the same milestones, but in a different way than you remember. It will broad-en your perspective.

If you're asking the above questions of your own work, and you answer "No" to any of them, that's a big red flag. Stop immediately and start revising. If you can't find a reason to feel passionate about your work, no one else will.

Through the Eyes of an Art Director

At many publishing houses, the editor who acquires and edits the text for a picture book also plays a big role in choosing the illustrator. This same editor will certainly be the first reader of a submission from an author/illus-trator, who provides both the text and illustrations for a story. If you are an author/illustrator yourself, or if you are in the process of hiring an artist to illustrate your self-published picture book, you need to see as the editor would in this role.

An artist's portfolio should include spreads illustrating some sort of narrative (even if it's public domain text) that depict the same characters in consecutive scenes. If you're an author/illustrator submitting a manuscript and book dummy, the rough sketches of each illustration would show the editor how you develop a character and convey action in a visual way.

Now ask these questions of your own artwork, or of an artist you might hire for a self-publishing project:

May 2016

PJ: Since the book isn't coming out until 2017, where are you in the publishing process right now? VK: After the contract was signed, Marissa Moss, the editor at Creston Books, sent me the manuscript with a few revision requests. She is amazing to work with and by February, I had completed all the changes to her satisfaction. Now the story is with the illustrator and I can’t wait to see what he does with it.

PJ: You’re represented by Essie White of Storm Liter-ary Agency. How did that come about? How long did it take you to secure representation?

VK: As I mentioned, I joined the online 12x12 Chal-lenge in 2012…writing a picture book draft every month. The next year, Julie Hedlund arranged for agents to accept submissions from members. I had never submitted my work before, so this was scary…but being part of the group helped so much, especially with all of the information and resources Julie provided to us. By the end of 2014, I was getting some great feedback from agents. And in 2015, I had several agents who were interested in my work. When I read the About page on Storm Literary Agency’s website, I fell in love with Essie White. I submitted Sweet Dreams, Sarah to her and she emailed me an hour later. In order to be an effective salesperson for you, an agent must be passionate about your work. And Essie was. Then I spoke with her current clients—she possessed the communication skills, the business savvy, and the compassionate nature I had been searching for. Two weeks after I signed with her, my story was on its way to a dozen editors. And two weeks after that, we had a book contract. What a wild ride! I know I was very lucky! PJ: Where do you get your ideas from? How many projects do you work on at a time? Do you have any other nonfiction books in the works?  What are you working on now?

VK: I get my ideas from so many places…internet, TV, books I read, even my sister is on the lookout for inter-esting topics for me. In fact, my February 12x12 draft is a story my sister suggested. One of her best friends is an acquaintance of the granddaughter of the man who founded the Greyhound Bus company. She put me in touch with that friend and the family is thrilled to have a story about this amazing individual who came to this

country in 1905, speaking no English and with only 60 dollars in his pocket, but he created an industry that changed the way Americans travel.

I tend to work on several projects at the same time. I research a new story, write another, revise another, and continue to polish finished stories. I’ve learned that a manuscript is never done…even after the publisher buys it, there will often be more changes made. Right now, I have several stories on submission and one in acquisi-tions that we are still waiting to hear about.

PJ: What is your writing routine? Are you a day person or a night owl?

VK: I know that I am pretty darn lucky. Because I am retired, I can write in the morning, in the afternoon, and in the evening. My routine (and I would NOT recom-mend this) is to check my emails and Facebook when I get up. If I have manuscripts to critique for friends, I’ll work on those. Then I do some research or work on one of my stories. And then I check my emails and Face-book again…and repeat the whole process until my eyelids begin to droop and my vision gets blurry.

I always chuckle when people ask if I am a night owl. I used to be a day person…but as anyone who sees me on Facebook will tell you, I am up till all hours of the night. My husband loves to be up all night…and goes to sleep at 8 in the morning. He is a very bad influence on me and I often stay up till 3am. Of course, since I am retired, I can sleep later in the morning. For 65 years I had to be up early every day…as a student, as a teacher, as a mom…so perhaps I’ve earned the right to sleep in a bit.

PJ: I gather you’ve self-published as well. How easy—or difficult—was that?

VK: In 2010, we self-published my parent-teacher resource book, Show Me How! Build Your Child’s Self-Es-teem Through Reading, Crafting, and Cooking. It gives 100 picture book summaries and provides a cooking activity and craft project for each recommended title…kind of like a pumped up version of the Read-Aloud Handbook by Jim Trelease. The actual publishing of the book includ-ed the process of finding a small press printer and making sure the content was well edited. But the most difficult part was the marketing and promotion. I didn’t

Seeing Your Work Like an Editorby Laura Backes

Can this illustrator make the leap from creating a wonderful picture to creating a scene? Is there evidence of this in the portfolio or dummy?

Does the tone of the illustrations match the tone of the text?

Are the illustrations composed to have the appropriate emotional impact for each scene?

Is there enough variety in the illustrations?

Does the action in two-page spreads move the eye from left to right?

Do the characters express personality and different emotions by how they look and move?

Is the illustrator able to see the unwritten details of the story and add these details to the pictures?

Will a child want to linger over these illustrations, and look at them again and again?

Is this illustrator good enough to compete side-by-side with current published illustrators?

The illustrations in a picture book are vital to the book's success. The title and cover image are often the only reason someone first picks up the book in a store (or clicks on the book on Amazon). Editors don't underesti-mate their importance, or how much amateur illustra-tions can damage a book's sales. You shouldn't either.

Through the Eyes of a Bookseller

An editor knows that no matter how much she personal-ly loves a manuscript, if the book won't sell in stores it's never going to make back the publisher's investment, much less make a profit. In order for a new title to earn a spot on a store's shelf, the bookseller must be able to move it off that shelf and into the hands of customers. In order to do that, your book must have a strong selling point. And if you're planning on using Amazon as your primary "shelf", that selling point is even more import-ant because you'll be competing with far more titles than in a brick-and-mortar store.

Bottom line: publishing is a business. The publisher and bookseller must make money from your book for it to stay in print. If you're self-publishing, you need to make back your cash outlay, at the very least, and ideally turn a profit so you can publish another book. The best way to do this is to create a book that absolutely must exist. Start by asking these questions:

Is the book special enough? "Special" takes on many forms.

It means the book (fiction or nonfiction) has a hook. You should be able to sum up the core of your book and what makes its concept unique in one or two sentences. This "hook" allows the editor to champion your book to the rest of the publishing staff, and the bookseller to pitch your book easily to a potential buyer. If your bedtime story can't be differentiated in a quick and significant way from other bedtime stories, it's not special.

Special also applies to the illustrations. Are they appeal-ing to parents and kids? Do they enhance the story? Will the cover make someone stop and open the book?

Is the book different enough from what's already out there? Here's where research comes in. Before you send your book off to an editor, before you self-publish, and, in the case of nonfiction, before you even write the book, look at what's already published on similar topics for the same age group. Start by using Amazon as your search engine and type in key words that fit your story or idea. Go to a bookstore or library and actually look at titles that seem similar to yours. Make yours different. Here's another way of phrasing this question: Is there a good reason for this book to exist?

Will this book earn back the publisher's investment, and then some? If your book is indeed special, if it has a hook, and it's different from anything else out there, then it has a good shot at making money. But if you answer no to any of the above, it probably won't make back the publisher's substantial investment. If an editor realizes this, she won't offer you a contract. If you self-publish without identifying these problems and fixing them, it's your money that's at risk.

It's always easier to answer these questions about work created by someone else. That's why editors are so good at it. But you can learn to be objective about your own writing. A good place to start is in a critique group. Ask your critique partners to honestly answer these questions for you (you may have to convince them that you do indeed want honesty--tell them they're doing you a favor). If you have a good relationship with a teacher, librarian or bookseller, ask them as well. Keep getting feedback until you're confident your work provides satis-factory answers.

Then you'll be ready to take that leap to submitting or self-publishing. You'll know it in your gut.

W

14

The Big Picture

ou’re never too old to realize your dreams. Vivian Kirkfield is living proof as her Sweet Dreams, Sarah, a

nonfiction picture book about Sarah Goode, a former slave who became the first African-American woman to be awarded a US patent, is slated for publication in 2017 by Creston Books. Vivian’s enthusiasm and passion for kid lit shines on the page and at her charming website, Picture Books Help Kids Soar (http://www.vivi-ankirkfield.com).

PJ McIlvaine: You have quite an eclectic background: a Master’s Degree in Early Childhood Education, you once taught Kindergarten and you operated a day care center. How did all this translate into writing kid lit?

Vivian Kirkfield: I remember sitting on my mother’s lap, turning the pages of The Little House by Virginia Lee Burton. At the tender age of two, I fell in love with picture books. Many years later, as a kindergarten teacher and daycare provider, I used them to build literacy skills and encourage children to become lovers of books and reading. When my own children were growing up, I read to them on a daily basis and wrote little stories to entertain them. But it wasn’t until I retired and hopped into blogging to promote a parent-teacher resource guide I had written, that I got serious about writing for children. In 2012, I joined Julie Hedlund’s 12x12 Picture Book Writing Challenge, Tara Lazar’s PiBoIdMo, and Susanna Leon-ard Hill’s many contests and writing prompts. Every day I looked forward to writing—I knew I had found my bliss.

PJ: Tell us where the inspiration for your debut non-fic-tion picture book, Sweet Dreams, Sarah (Creston Books, Spring 2017), came from. How many drafts did it take until you felt it was ready for the world? Is writing a biography picture say, more difficult  or different than writing a fiction one? Did you have any input on what 

illustrator the publisher chose?

VK: Until I took Kristen Fulton’s Nonfiction Archeolo-gy course in June 2014, I had never written a nonfiction picture book. Her class was a life-changing experience for me. I had fallen in love with picture books as a toddler. Now I fell in love with writing nonfiction picture books. Kristen encouraged us to find golden nugget moments in history…I discovered that Sarah

Goode, a former slave, had received one of the first patents ever issued to a black woman. WOW! At a time when most women stayed home, when most women couldn’t even own property, here was a black woman who created a cabinet bed to answer the needs of her customers. More than that, she was determined to get credit for it…she dreamt it, she built it…and then she claimed it!

I’m a big fan of critique. I’ve learned that having many eyes on my work helps me

create the strongest story possible. I have an insane number of critique partners…fabulous writers, fabulous friends…each has had a hand in making Sweet Dreams, Sarah ready for the world. You ask how many drafts—dozens of critique rounds…hundreds of revisions. I embrace revision with my whole heart. The only thing that didn’t change was the very begin-ning…that is pretty much identical to my original draft.

I still love writing fiction picture books. But for me, writing nonfiction is my opportunity to bring history to life for young readers. And there seems to be a certain strategy that makes it flow more easily. I pick a topic. Research it. Write a rough draft. And then revise the heck out of it!

Regarding the illustrator for Sweet Dreams, Sarah, I did not have any input on that. However, I’ve seen some of Chris Ewald’s work and it is fantastic! I am excited to see how he will interpret the story.

know then what I know now about the importance of social media presence and platform building. I was shy and had to step out of my comfort zone to walk into local bookstores to ask if they would carry the book. I connected with mom bloggers who reviewed the book on their blogs. After doing those things for a year, I got involved in writing picture books and found that I wanted to focus my energies on that. I congratulate anyone who self-publishes and markets their books successfully…it is a massive undertaking and not for the faint of heart. It can be done…and there are many advantages…but it takes a concerted effort, a lot of energy, patience, and perseverance. PJ: You maintain a very active website and social media presence. How has that impacted your career? And please, who is the adorable little boy pictured on the site.

VK: I should be the poster child for people who are afraid of blogging or getting active on social media. When I started at the end of 2010, I knew nothing about social media, thought a tweet was something a bird said, was afraid to turn on the computer by myself (I thought I might break it or make the entire internet disappear). I still have a lot to learn, but I absolutely LOVE the ability to connect with writers and parents and teachers and librarians…and family and friends, of course. I do believe that the connection, the encourage-ment, the accountability that comes with being active in various online groups has kept me on track with my writing. Life often gets in the way of our plans and I think it would have been easy for me to get busy doing other things.

And the little boy is my grandson, Jeremy, who is now seven years old. We moved back to the east coast three years ago so we could be closer and, although I miss the Rocky Mountains of Colorado, I wouldn’t trade anything for the close bond we’ve developed. He says our Monopoly games are ‘epic’ and he often asks to come for a ‘Grammy sleepover’…probably because he knows he’ll get to stay up really late, eat peanut butter on toast for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and hear picture book stories whenever he wants.

PJ:  What was your funniest rejection? (Mine was that my pregnant character drank too many cups of coffee.)

VK: Oh, PJ, this is a great question! I wrote a story

about a little girl who didn’t want her noisy pesky little brother to ruin her birthday party…she said he acted like a monkey. And monkeys belong in the zoo. So she mailed him there. The agent worried that a child might try to do that and we shouldn’t write about anything that would be dangerous for children to do. I guess she hadn’t read Stuck by Oliver Jeffers. And the Flat Stanley books have been around forever. For those who don’t know the series, a bookcase falls on Stanley and flattens him. Oops! And he never regains his shape. Oh dear! When his parents take him on a trip, there isn’t enough room in the car, so they slip him into an envelope (with some crackers in case he gets hungry and a deck of cards in case he gets bored) and they mail him home. Ha! But I do understand that we all have our own opin-ions on what constitutes a great story and I think it is very important to keep that in mind when you get rejec-tions or critiques. If five different people point out the same issue with a story, I definitely sit up and take notice.

PJ: How has your family embraced your writing?

VK: I am very fortunate…my family is thrilled that I’ve found great happiness as I’ve turned the page to this next chapter of my life. My husband is extremely supportive and is often my go-to set of ears to listen to a revision, not so much for advice on how I should change it, but so I can read it out loud the way a parent would be reading it to a child. I think that is really important…you’d be surprised how much better it is than reading it to yourself. You’ll feel when you are tripping up on a word or a phrase, whereas if you just read it to yourself, you might gloss over those spots. As I mentioned before, my sister often comes up with an interesting topic for me…she is a great reader and presi-dent of her community’s book club. And my children so proud of my success.

PJ: Where do you see yourself five years from now?

VK: Five years from now? Writing! Revising! And hopefully, with several books to my credit. I’d also like to offer critique/editing services sometime down the road to help augment my income so I can attend confer-ences without breaking the budget. It’s a joy to read picture book stories, whether they are from famous authors or newbie writers.

e've often run articles in CBI about how to be your own editor. Those articles tend to focus on the actual

words in your manuscript and how to make them better. Obviously, editing a writer's words is a big part of the editor's job. But editors also rely on their guts and experi-ence to judge if the work is ready to become a book.

Wouldn't it be great if you could develop that same gut-check as a writer? Here's a secret: donning an editor's glasses is completely doable. All it takes is some objectiv-ity, brutal honesty, and the willingness to shape-shift. One of most important parts of an editor's job is to look at the project through eyes other than her own. She does this by stepping into the mindset of the reader, the art director and the bookseller. Do this yourself, and you'll be miles ahead of the competition.

Through the Eyes of the Reader

When I'm editing a manuscript, one of the first things I do is to mentally go back in time to when I was the age of the reader. I have touchstone memories from when I was five, or nine, or thirteen, that I use to recall the worl-dview and emotions of that age. As I'm reading the man-uscript, I ask myself these questions:

Would I have cared about this character if I had read this book when I was [age of reader]? Why would I have cared?

Would this character's conflict/goal/problem have been meaningful to me? In what way?

Would this story have entertained and captivated me?

Would I have sensed the author behind the words, or would I have felt the story rose effortlessly on its own from the page?

If I had read this story at the age of the target audience, would I have understood it? If not, is there a way the same concepts and themes could be rewritten to better speak how my mind worked at that age?

Now, simply using myself (or yourself, if you're doing this exercise) as the litmus test isn't entirely fair. We each have our own unique experiences growing up, but if that's all we use to judge a work, we're limiting our think-ing. So use yourself as the starting point, but then also look at your work through the eyes of other kids the

same age. This sounds hard to do, because it is. You need to imagine what it would be like to read your story as a child other than yourself, someone who carries different experiences and expectations. Read a lot (A LOT) of published books and envision the readers who love each kind of story. Learn what's important to modern kids (tip: read blogs by moms, teachers and librarians if you write picture books, easy readers and chapter books; read blogs by and for tweens and teens for older books). Talk to teachers, librarians and others who spend a lot of time with children. If you don't have kids of your own, volunteer at your local school, church youth group, Boys and Girls Club, etc. It helps to relive childhood through the children in your life. You'll hit the same milestones, but in a different way than you remember. It will broad-en your perspective.

If you're asking the above questions of your own work, and you answer "No" to any of them, that's a big red flag. Stop immediately and start revising. If you can't find a reason to feel passionate about your work, no one else will.

Through the Eyes of an Art Director

At many publishing houses, the editor who acquires and edits the text for a picture book also plays a big role in choosing the illustrator. This same editor will certainly be the first reader of a submission from an author/illus-trator, who provides both the text and illustrations for a story. If you are an author/illustrator yourself, or if you are in the process of hiring an artist to illustrate your self-published picture book, you need to see as the editor would in this role.

An artist's portfolio should include spreads illustrating some sort of narrative (even if it's public domain text) that depict the same characters in consecutive scenes. If you're an author/illustrator submitting a manuscript and book dummy, the rough sketches of each illustration would show the editor how you develop a character and convey action in a visual way.

Now ask these questions of your own artwork, or of an artist you might hire for a self-publishing project:

Seeing Like an Editor continued

May 2016

PJ: Since the book isn't coming out until 2017, where are you in the publishing process right now? VK: After the contract was signed, Marissa Moss, the editor at Creston Books, sent me the manuscript with a few revision requests. She is amazing to work with and by February, I had completed all the changes to her satisfaction. Now the story is with the illustrator and I can’t wait to see what he does with it.

PJ: You’re represented by Essie White of Storm Liter-ary Agency. How did that come about? How long did it take you to secure representation?

VK: As I mentioned, I joined the online 12x12 Chal-lenge in 2012…writing a picture book draft every month. The next year, Julie Hedlund arranged for agents to accept submissions from members. I had never submitted my work before, so this was scary…but being part of the group helped so much, especially with all of the information and resources Julie provided to us. By the end of 2014, I was getting some great feedback from agents. And in 2015, I had several agents who were interested in my work. When I read the About page on Storm Literary Agency’s website, I fell in love with Essie White. I submitted Sweet Dreams, Sarah to her and she emailed me an hour later. In order to be an effective salesperson for you, an agent must be passionate about your work. And Essie was. Then I spoke with her current clients—she possessed the communication skills, the business savvy, and the compassionate nature I had been searching for. Two weeks after I signed with her, my story was on its way to a dozen editors. And two weeks after that, we had a book contract. What a wild ride! I know I was very lucky! PJ: Where do you get your ideas from? How many projects do you work on at a time? Do you have any other nonfiction books in the works?  What are you working on now?

VK: I get my ideas from so many places…internet, TV, books I read, even my sister is on the lookout for inter-esting topics for me. In fact, my February 12x12 draft is a story my sister suggested. One of her best friends is an acquaintance of the granddaughter of the man who founded the Greyhound Bus company. She put me in touch with that friend and the family is thrilled to have a story about this amazing individual who came to this

country in 1905, speaking no English and with only 60 dollars in his pocket, but he created an industry that changed the way Americans travel.

I tend to work on several projects at the same time. I research a new story, write another, revise another, and continue to polish finished stories. I’ve learned that a manuscript is never done…even after the publisher buys it, there will often be more changes made. Right now, I have several stories on submission and one in acquisi-tions that we are still waiting to hear about.

PJ: What is your writing routine? Are you a day person or a night owl?

VK: I know that I am pretty darn lucky. Because I am retired, I can write in the morning, in the afternoon, and in the evening. My routine (and I would NOT recom-mend this) is to check my emails and Facebook when I get up. If I have manuscripts to critique for friends, I’ll work on those. Then I do some research or work on one of my stories. And then I check my emails and Face-book again…and repeat the whole process until my eyelids begin to droop and my vision gets blurry.

I always chuckle when people ask if I am a night owl. I used to be a day person…but as anyone who sees me on Facebook will tell you, I am up till all hours of the night. My husband loves to be up all night…and goes to sleep at 8 in the morning. He is a very bad influence on me and I often stay up till 3am. Of course, since I am retired, I can sleep later in the morning. For 65 years I had to be up early every day…as a student, as a teacher, as a mom…so perhaps I’ve earned the right to sleep in a bit.

PJ: I gather you’ve self-published as well. How easy—or difficult—was that?

VK: In 2010, we self-published my parent-teacher resource book, Show Me How! Build Your Child’s Self-Es-teem Through Reading, Crafting, and Cooking. It gives 100 picture book summaries and provides a cooking activity and craft project for each recommended title…kind of like a pumped up version of the Read-Aloud Handbook by Jim Trelease. The actual publishing of the book includ-ed the process of finding a small press printer and making sure the content was well edited. But the most difficult part was the marketing and promotion. I didn’t

Can this illustrator make the leap from creating a wonderful picture to creating a scene? Is there evidence of this in the portfolio or dummy?

Does the tone of the illustrations match the tone of the text?

Are the illustrations composed to have the appropriate emotional impact for each scene?

Is there enough variety in the illustrations?

Does the action in two-page spreads move the eye from left to right?

Do the characters express personality and different emotions by how they look and move?

Is the illustrator able to see the unwritten details of the story and add these details to the pictures?

Will a child want to linger over these illustrations, and look at them again and again?

Is this illustrator good enough to compete side-by-side with current published illustrators?

The illustrations in a picture book are vital to the book's success. The title and cover image are often the only reason someone first picks up the book in a store (or clicks on the book on Amazon). Editors don't underesti-mate their importance, or how much amateur illustra-tions can damage a book's sales. You shouldn't either.

Through the Eyes of a Bookseller

An editor knows that no matter how much she personal-ly loves a manuscript, if the book won't sell in stores it's never going to make back the publisher's investment, much less make a profit. In order for a new title to earn a spot on a store's shelf, the bookseller must be able to move it off that shelf and into the hands of customers. In order to do that, your book must have a strong selling point. And if you're planning on using Amazon as your primary "shelf", that selling point is even more import-ant because you'll be competing with far more titles than in a brick-and-mortar store.

Bottom line: publishing is a business. The publisher and bookseller must make money from your book for it to stay in print. If you're self-publishing, you need to make back your cash outlay, at the very least, and ideally turn a profit so you can publish another book. The best way to do this is to create a book that absolutely must exist. Start by asking these questions:

Is the book special enough? "Special" takes on many forms.

It means the book (fiction or nonfiction) has a hook. You should be able to sum up the core of your book and what makes its concept unique in one or two sentences. This "hook" allows the editor to champion your book to the rest of the publishing staff, and the bookseller to pitch your book easily to a potential buyer. If your bedtime story can't be differentiated in a quick and significant way from other bedtime stories, it's not special.

Special also applies to the illustrations. Are they appeal-ing to parents and kids? Do they enhance the story? Will the cover make someone stop and open the book?

Is the book different enough from what's already out there? Here's where research comes in. Before you send your book off to an editor, before you self-publish, and, in the case of nonfiction, before you even write the book, look at what's already published on similar topics for the same age group. Start by using Amazon as your search engine and type in key words that fit your story or idea. Go to a bookstore or library and actually look at titles that seem similar to yours. Make yours different. Here's another way of phrasing this question: Is there a good reason for this book to exist?

Will this book earn back the publisher's investment, and then some? If your book is indeed special, if it has a hook, and it's different from anything else out there, then it has a good shot at making money. But if you answer no to any of the above, it probably won't make back the publisher's substantial investment. If an editor realizes this, she won't offer you a contract. If you self-publish without identifying these problems and fixing them, it's your money that's at risk.

It's always easier to answer these questions about work created by someone else. That's why editors are so good at it. But you can learn to be objective about your own writing. A good place to start is in a critique group. Ask your critique partners to honestly answer these questions for you (you may have to convince them that you do indeed want honesty--tell them they're doing you a favor). If you have a good relationship with a teacher, librarian or bookseller, ask them as well. Keep getting feedback until you're confident your work provides satis-factory answers.

Then you'll be ready to take that leap to submitting or self-publishing. You'll know it in your gut.

ou’re never too old to realize your dreams. Vivian Kirkfield is living proof as her Sweet Dreams, Sarah, a

nonfiction picture book about Sarah Goode, a former slave who became the first African-American woman to be awarded a US patent, is slated for publication in 2017 by Creston Books. Vivian’s enthusiasm and passion for kid lit shines on the page and at her charming website, Picture Books Help Kids Soar (http://www.vivi-ankirkfield.com).

PJ McIlvaine: You have quite an eclectic background: a Master’s Degree in Early Childhood Education, you once taught Kindergarten and you operated a day care center. How did all this translate into writing kid lit?

Vivian Kirkfield: I remember sitting on my mother’s lap, turning the pages of The Little House by Virginia Lee Burton. At the tender age of two, I fell in love with picture books. Many years later, as a kindergarten teacher and daycare provider, I used them to build literacy skills and encourage children to become lovers of books and reading. When my own children were growing up, I read to them on a daily basis and wrote little stories to entertain them. But it wasn’t until I retired and hopped into blogging to promote a parent-teacher resource guide I had written, that I got serious about writing for children. In 2012, I joined Julie Hedlund’s 12x12 Picture Book Writing Challenge, Tara Lazar’s PiBoIdMo, and Susanna Leon-ard Hill’s many contests and writing prompts. Every day I looked forward to writing—I knew I had found my bliss.

PJ: Tell us where the inspiration for your debut non-fic-tion picture book, Sweet Dreams, Sarah (Creston Books, Spring 2017), came from. How many drafts did it take until you felt it was ready for the world? Is writing a biography picture say, more difficult  or different than writing a fiction one? Did you have any input on what 

illustrator the publisher chose?

VK: Until I took Kristen Fulton’s Nonfiction Archeolo-gy course in June 2014, I had never written a nonfiction picture book. Her class was a life-changing experience for me. I had fallen in love with picture books as a toddler. Now I fell in love with writing nonfiction picture books. Kristen encouraged us to find golden nugget moments in history…I discovered that Sarah

Goode, a former slave, had received one of the first patents ever issued to a black woman. WOW! At a time when most women stayed home, when most women couldn’t even own property, here was a black woman who created a cabinet bed to answer the needs of her customers. More than that, she was determined to get credit for it…she dreamt it, she built it…and then she claimed it!

I’m a big fan of critique. I’ve learned that having many eyes on my work helps me

create the strongest story possible. I have an insane number of critique partners…fabulous writers, fabulous friends…each has had a hand in making Sweet Dreams, Sarah ready for the world. You ask how many drafts—dozens of critique rounds…hundreds of revisions. I embrace revision with my whole heart. The only thing that didn’t change was the very begin-ning…that is pretty much identical to my original draft.

I still love writing fiction picture books. But for me, writing nonfiction is my opportunity to bring history to life for young readers. And there seems to be a certain strategy that makes it flow more easily. I pick a topic. Research it. Write a rough draft. And then revise the heck out of it!

Regarding the illustrator for Sweet Dreams, Sarah, I did not have any input on that. However, I’ve seen some of Chris Ewald’s work and it is fantastic! I am excited to see how he will interpret the story.

know then what I know now about the importance of social media presence and platform building. I was shy and had to step out of my comfort zone to walk into local bookstores to ask if they would carry the book. I connected with mom bloggers who reviewed the book on their blogs. After doing those things for a year, I got involved in writing picture books and found that I wanted to focus my energies on that. I congratulate anyone who self-publishes and markets their books successfully…it is a massive undertaking and not for the faint of heart. It can be done…and there are many advantages…but it takes a concerted effort, a lot of energy, patience, and perseverance. PJ: You maintain a very active website and social media presence. How has that impacted your career? And please, who is the adorable little boy pictured on the site.

VK: I should be the poster child for people who are afraid of blogging or getting active on social media. When I started at the end of 2010, I knew nothing about social media, thought a tweet was something a bird said, was afraid to turn on the computer by myself (I thought I might break it or make the entire internet disappear). I still have a lot to learn, but I absolutely LOVE the ability to connect with writers and parents and teachers and librarians…and family and friends, of course. I do believe that the connection, the encourage-ment, the accountability that comes with being active in various online groups has kept me on track with my writing. Life often gets in the way of our plans and I think it would have been easy for me to get busy doing other things.

And the little boy is my grandson, Jeremy, who is now seven years old. We moved back to the east coast three years ago so we could be closer and, although I miss the Rocky Mountains of Colorado, I wouldn’t trade anything for the close bond we’ve developed. He says our Monopoly games are ‘epic’ and he often asks to come for a ‘Grammy sleepover’…probably because he knows he’ll get to stay up really late, eat peanut butter on toast for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and hear picture book stories whenever he wants.

PJ:  What was your funniest rejection? (Mine was that my pregnant character drank too many cups of coffee.)

VK: Oh, PJ, this is a great question! I wrote a story

about a little girl who didn’t want her noisy pesky little brother to ruin her birthday party…she said he acted like a monkey. And monkeys belong in the zoo. So she mailed him there. The agent worried that a child might try to do that and we shouldn’t write about anything that would be dangerous for children to do. I guess she hadn’t read Stuck by Oliver Jeffers. And the Flat Stanley books have been around forever. For those who don’t know the series, a bookcase falls on Stanley and flattens him. Oops! And he never regains his shape. Oh dear! When his parents take him on a trip, there isn’t enough room in the car, so they slip him into an envelope (with some crackers in case he gets hungry and a deck of cards in case he gets bored) and they mail him home. Ha! But I do understand that we all have our own opin-ions on what constitutes a great story and I think it is very important to keep that in mind when you get rejec-tions or critiques. If five different people point out the same issue with a story, I definitely sit up and take notice.

PJ: How has your family embraced your writing?

VK: I am very fortunate…my family is thrilled that I’ve found great happiness as I’ve turned the page to this next chapter of my life. My husband is extremely supportive and is often my go-to set of ears to listen to a revision, not so much for advice on how I should change it, but so I can read it out loud the way a parent would be reading it to a child. I think that is really important…you’d be surprised how much better it is than reading it to yourself. You’ll feel when you are tripping up on a word or a phrase, whereas if you just read it to yourself, you might gloss over those spots. As I mentioned before, my sister often comes up with an interesting topic for me…she is a great reader and presi-dent of her community’s book club. And my children so proud of my success.

PJ: Where do you see yourself five years from now?

VK: Five years from now? Writing! Revising! And hopefully, with several books to my credit. I’d also like to offer critique/editing services sometime down the road to help augment my income so I can attend confer-ences without breaking the budget. It’s a joy to read picture book stories, whether they are from famous authors or newbie writers.

15

Marketing Tips

interview by Jane McBride

ou’ve sold a book. Now comes the hard part: launch-ing it. Self-published authors know they’ll have to handle their own marketing, but the lion’s share of marketing traditionally-published books often falls on the author’s shoulders as well, especially early in their careers. Here, Candee Flick kindly shares her experience in launching her new adult novel, Catch of a Lifetime, published by Bling! Romance. Whether you are launch-ing your first book or your twenty-first, whether your book is for children, young adults, new adults, or old adults (like me), these tips can help.

Jane McBride: First, would you tell us something about your website, about your countdown to the book's publication?

Candee Flick: When it comes to an online presence, my website (http://w-ww.CandeeFick.com) is the one piece of real estate that I fully control and is therefore the central piece to my market-ing. Other social media outlets fluctuate in popularity and can also change their news feed algorithms or rules whenever they wish. So, rather than put all my marketing eggs into one unreliable social media basket, I use a variety of social media outposts to raise awareness of my name and build relationships with readers while consistently linking back to my home base website.

I’ve made it a priority to keep my website up-to-date and loaded with information about my book projects, order-ing links, weekly blog posts, biographical information, an email subscription option, links to social media accounts, and other contact information. In the middle of a project, I’ve sometimes put a word counter in the sidebar to let visitors know how close I am to reaching “The End.” Recently, while preparing for the release of my first novel, I found a countdown widget that ticked off the seconds until my book was available for sale.

JM: What have you found the most helpful hints and tips from other authors about preparing for publication?

CF: I’d been dreaming of the day when my own novel would be in print for years. While I spent the majority of that time developing my craft, I also took notes on other book launches and discovered things I wanted to dupli-cate. The most helpful tip for me was to develop a time-line for tasks within the pre-launch, launch, and post-launch windows and then work to get things done ahead of time. In addition to the organization tips, I was reminded that the best marketing is designed to reach one reader at a time.

JM: What steps have you taken?  

CF: First, I printed out blank calendar pages for the months leading up to and three months after my novel’s release date. Of course, I circled the celebration day in red ink! I then put out a plea to a couple writer’s groups I am a member of and asked for volunteer “influencers.” Influ-encers are those who are willing to use their influence within their own circles to help spread the news about me and my book including posting book reviews, host-ing a guest blog, and promoting on social media. As I scheduled guest blog appear-ances and other events, I added them to my calendar pages and then backtracked to the previous month to pencil in due dates to submit the materials.

Almost immediately, I saw the natural progression of marketing that other authors had talked about, especial-ly when faced with a month of deadlines right before launch. I had to get started early to meet those dates! I also saw gaps that needed to be filled and kept my eyes and ears open for additional opportunities. However, not all opportunities are created equal, and with a limit-ed marketing budget, I had to evaluate each in terms of the potential return on my investment, even if that investment was only time because time spent marketing took away from time writing.

For example, there are promotion companies that charge up to $1500 to schedule a blog tour, but I reached

How to Launch a Book on Social Media

May 2016

PJ: Since the book isn't coming out until 2017, where are you in the publishing process right now? VK: After the contract was signed, Marissa Moss, the editor at Creston Books, sent me the manuscript with a few revision requests. She is amazing to work with and by February, I had completed all the changes to her satisfaction. Now the story is with the illustrator and I can’t wait to see what he does with it.

PJ: You’re represented by Essie White of Storm Liter-ary Agency. How did that come about? How long did it take you to secure representation?

VK: As I mentioned, I joined the online 12x12 Chal-lenge in 2012…writing a picture book draft every month. The next year, Julie Hedlund arranged for agents to accept submissions from members. I had never submitted my work before, so this was scary…but being part of the group helped so much, especially with all of the information and resources Julie provided to us. By the end of 2014, I was getting some great feedback from agents. And in 2015, I had several agents who were interested in my work. When I read the About page on Storm Literary Agency’s website, I fell in love with Essie White. I submitted Sweet Dreams, Sarah to her and she emailed me an hour later. In order to be an effective salesperson for you, an agent must be passionate about your work. And Essie was. Then I spoke with her current clients—she possessed the communication skills, the business savvy, and the compassionate nature I had been searching for. Two weeks after I signed with her, my story was on its way to a dozen editors. And two weeks after that, we had a book contract. What a wild ride! I know I was very lucky! PJ: Where do you get your ideas from? How many projects do you work on at a time? Do you have any other nonfiction books in the works?  What are you working on now?

VK: I get my ideas from so many places…internet, TV, books I read, even my sister is on the lookout for inter-esting topics for me. In fact, my February 12x12 draft is a story my sister suggested. One of her best friends is an acquaintance of the granddaughter of the man who founded the Greyhound Bus company. She put me in touch with that friend and the family is thrilled to have a story about this amazing individual who came to this

country in 1905, speaking no English and with only 60 dollars in his pocket, but he created an industry that changed the way Americans travel.

I tend to work on several projects at the same time. I research a new story, write another, revise another, and continue to polish finished stories. I’ve learned that a manuscript is never done…even after the publisher buys it, there will often be more changes made. Right now, I have several stories on submission and one in acquisi-tions that we are still waiting to hear about.

PJ: What is your writing routine? Are you a day person or a night owl?

VK: I know that I am pretty darn lucky. Because I am retired, I can write in the morning, in the afternoon, and in the evening. My routine (and I would NOT recom-mend this) is to check my emails and Facebook when I get up. If I have manuscripts to critique for friends, I’ll work on those. Then I do some research or work on one of my stories. And then I check my emails and Face-book again…and repeat the whole process until my eyelids begin to droop and my vision gets blurry.

I always chuckle when people ask if I am a night owl. I used to be a day person…but as anyone who sees me on Facebook will tell you, I am up till all hours of the night. My husband loves to be up all night…and goes to sleep at 8 in the morning. He is a very bad influence on me and I often stay up till 3am. Of course, since I am retired, I can sleep later in the morning. For 65 years I had to be up early every day…as a student, as a teacher, as a mom…so perhaps I’ve earned the right to sleep in a bit.

PJ: I gather you’ve self-published as well. How easy—or difficult—was that?

VK: In 2010, we self-published my parent-teacher resource book, Show Me How! Build Your Child’s Self-Es-teem Through Reading, Crafting, and Cooking. It gives 100 picture book summaries and provides a cooking activity and craft project for each recommended title…kind of like a pumped up version of the Read-Aloud Handbook by Jim Trelease. The actual publishing of the book includ-ed the process of finding a small press printer and making sure the content was well edited. But the most difficult part was the marketing and promotion. I didn’t

out to bloggers I knew through writer’s groups and set one up myself. Some sites charged $10 a day for tweets on their network while another (AskDavid.com) charged $10 for a batch of 30 individually scheduled tweets. By saving money on some things, I was able to invest in the Book Club Network (BookFun.org) for an article and full-page ad in three consecutive issues of their digital magazine reaching almost 500,000 readers each month in addition to accessing reviewers gleaned from book club leaders. That opportunity reminded me to find places where readers congregate including Goodreads and Facebook avid reader groups.

During the months leading up to the launch, I scheduled and wrote guest blog posts, recruited reviewers, sent out review copies, wrote and scheduled promotional tweets counting down to the launch, and designed graphics with the goal to get most of the content ready ahead of time. I also set up a special page on my website with multiple tools in one location to make it easy for my launch team to help out.

As launch day approached, I planned what to post each day to build excitement and drive pre-sales, scripted the week-long launch party in a Facebook group, and made sure thank you notes and gifts were ready to send. Once the book went live, I reminded reviewers to post their reviews, promoted the first blog tour stops, sent out giveaway prizes as winners were announced, and shared snippets of reviews online to keep the buzz building.

For the weeks following the release, I have ongoing lists of guest blogs to promote plus other opportunities including a video chat with a book club and a book sign-ing with other authors to kick off the holiday shopping season. When sales start to slump, my publisher will likely offer a sale or free day and I’ll need to be ready to jump onto social media channels to help spread the word.

Yet in the middle of it all, I have to remember those personal connections with readers. That includes responding to emails, replying to comments online, and maintaining a relationship using my email newsletter, because this first book is not my last and too soon I’ll be shifting my marketing focus to the next title releasing in the fall of 2016.

JM: What steps have you enjoyed the most?  What steps, if any, have you least enjoyed?

CF: Other than a slight feeling of panic when I had 18 initial blogs to complete in just a few weeks, I enjoyed the guest blogging as a chance to connect on a personal level with readers through the post and then later in the comments thread. My least favorite was when my publisher’s marketing representative challenged me to create a video of myself talking about football. I can edit my words on paper, but on camera was intimidating, even if it turned out better than I thought.

JM: How will you evaluate your promotional/market-ing efforts after publication?  Do you have trackers to see what things are bringing in readers and sales?

CF: I have used unique link shorteners (like bit.ly) for specific tweets and checked to see how many clicks resulted, but that doesn’t tell me if someone purchased as a result or not. I hate to say it, but I’ll be checking on sales rankings. If I had a guest blog appearance with an active comment section and my book jumped in the rankings that day, then I’ll know that it helped. If I spent a lot of time on posts in Facebook groups with no up-tick in sales, that reveals something too. Someone once said only half of marketing works. The problem is figuring out which half.

JM: Can you tell us more about your "launch team"?

CF: Some call them influencers or a street team, but they’re all essentially the same. My team consists of those who have and will be helping me launch my book into the world. They include endorsers, beta readers, reviewers, blog stop hosts, and others who are active in social media and said they would help spread the word. I started with a separate email list, but transitioned over to a closed Facebook group where I could easily com-municate, past topics were still visible, and team mem-bers could interact with each other.

Catch of a Lifetime by Candee Fick is available on Ama-zon.com. Follow Candee at https://twitter.com/Can-deeFick and https://www.facebook.com/Author.-Candee.Fick/

You can also see her book’s YouTube trailer at http://bit.ly/CandeeFick

Y

ou’re never too old to realize your dreams. Vivian Kirkfield is living proof as her Sweet Dreams, Sarah, a

nonfiction picture book about Sarah Goode, a former slave who became the first African-American woman to be awarded a US patent, is slated for publication in 2017 by Creston Books. Vivian’s enthusiasm and passion for kid lit shines on the page and at her charming website, Picture Books Help Kids Soar (http://www.vivi-ankirkfield.com).

PJ McIlvaine: You have quite an eclectic background: a Master’s Degree in Early Childhood Education, you once taught Kindergarten and you operated a day care center. How did all this translate into writing kid lit?

Vivian Kirkfield: I remember sitting on my mother’s lap, turning the pages of The Little House by Virginia Lee Burton. At the tender age of two, I fell in love with picture books. Many years later, as a kindergarten teacher and daycare provider, I used them to build literacy skills and encourage children to become lovers of books and reading. When my own children were growing up, I read to them on a daily basis and wrote little stories to entertain them. But it wasn’t until I retired and hopped into blogging to promote a parent-teacher resource guide I had written, that I got serious about writing for children. In 2012, I joined Julie Hedlund’s 12x12 Picture Book Writing Challenge, Tara Lazar’s PiBoIdMo, and Susanna Leon-ard Hill’s many contests and writing prompts. Every day I looked forward to writing—I knew I had found my bliss.

PJ: Tell us where the inspiration for your debut non-fic-tion picture book, Sweet Dreams, Sarah (Creston Books, Spring 2017), came from. How many drafts did it take until you felt it was ready for the world? Is writing a biography picture say, more difficult  or different than writing a fiction one? Did you have any input on what 

illustrator the publisher chose?

VK: Until I took Kristen Fulton’s Nonfiction Archeolo-gy course in June 2014, I had never written a nonfiction picture book. Her class was a life-changing experience for me. I had fallen in love with picture books as a toddler. Now I fell in love with writing nonfiction picture books. Kristen encouraged us to find golden nugget moments in history…I discovered that Sarah

Goode, a former slave, had received one of the first patents ever issued to a black woman. WOW! At a time when most women stayed home, when most women couldn’t even own property, here was a black woman who created a cabinet bed to answer the needs of her customers. More than that, she was determined to get credit for it…she dreamt it, she built it…and then she claimed it!

I’m a big fan of critique. I’ve learned that having many eyes on my work helps me

create the strongest story possible. I have an insane number of critique partners…fabulous writers, fabulous friends…each has had a hand in making Sweet Dreams, Sarah ready for the world. You ask how many drafts—dozens of critique rounds…hundreds of revisions. I embrace revision with my whole heart. The only thing that didn’t change was the very begin-ning…that is pretty much identical to my original draft.

I still love writing fiction picture books. But for me, writing nonfiction is my opportunity to bring history to life for young readers. And there seems to be a certain strategy that makes it flow more easily. I pick a topic. Research it. Write a rough draft. And then revise the heck out of it!

Regarding the illustrator for Sweet Dreams, Sarah, I did not have any input on that. However, I’ve seen some of Chris Ewald’s work and it is fantastic! I am excited to see how he will interpret the story.

know then what I know now about the importance of social media presence and platform building. I was shy and had to step out of my comfort zone to walk into local bookstores to ask if they would carry the book. I connected with mom bloggers who reviewed the book on their blogs. After doing those things for a year, I got involved in writing picture books and found that I wanted to focus my energies on that. I congratulate anyone who self-publishes and markets their books successfully…it is a massive undertaking and not for the faint of heart. It can be done…and there are many advantages…but it takes a concerted effort, a lot of energy, patience, and perseverance. PJ: You maintain a very active website and social media presence. How has that impacted your career? And please, who is the adorable little boy pictured on the site.

VK: I should be the poster child for people who are afraid of blogging or getting active on social media. When I started at the end of 2010, I knew nothing about social media, thought a tweet was something a bird said, was afraid to turn on the computer by myself (I thought I might break it or make the entire internet disappear). I still have a lot to learn, but I absolutely LOVE the ability to connect with writers and parents and teachers and librarians…and family and friends, of course. I do believe that the connection, the encourage-ment, the accountability that comes with being active in various online groups has kept me on track with my writing. Life often gets in the way of our plans and I think it would have been easy for me to get busy doing other things.

And the little boy is my grandson, Jeremy, who is now seven years old. We moved back to the east coast three years ago so we could be closer and, although I miss the Rocky Mountains of Colorado, I wouldn’t trade anything for the close bond we’ve developed. He says our Monopoly games are ‘epic’ and he often asks to come for a ‘Grammy sleepover’…probably because he knows he’ll get to stay up really late, eat peanut butter on toast for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and hear picture book stories whenever he wants.

PJ:  What was your funniest rejection? (Mine was that my pregnant character drank too many cups of coffee.)

VK: Oh, PJ, this is a great question! I wrote a story

about a little girl who didn’t want her noisy pesky little brother to ruin her birthday party…she said he acted like a monkey. And monkeys belong in the zoo. So she mailed him there. The agent worried that a child might try to do that and we shouldn’t write about anything that would be dangerous for children to do. I guess she hadn’t read Stuck by Oliver Jeffers. And the Flat Stanley books have been around forever. For those who don’t know the series, a bookcase falls on Stanley and flattens him. Oops! And he never regains his shape. Oh dear! When his parents take him on a trip, there isn’t enough room in the car, so they slip him into an envelope (with some crackers in case he gets hungry and a deck of cards in case he gets bored) and they mail him home. Ha! But I do understand that we all have our own opin-ions on what constitutes a great story and I think it is very important to keep that in mind when you get rejec-tions or critiques. If five different people point out the same issue with a story, I definitely sit up and take notice.

PJ: How has your family embraced your writing?

VK: I am very fortunate…my family is thrilled that I’ve found great happiness as I’ve turned the page to this next chapter of my life. My husband is extremely supportive and is often my go-to set of ears to listen to a revision, not so much for advice on how I should change it, but so I can read it out loud the way a parent would be reading it to a child. I think that is really important…you’d be surprised how much better it is than reading it to yourself. You’ll feel when you are tripping up on a word or a phrase, whereas if you just read it to yourself, you might gloss over those spots. As I mentioned before, my sister often comes up with an interesting topic for me…she is a great reader and presi-dent of her community’s book club. And my children so proud of my success.

PJ: Where do you see yourself five years from now?

VK: Five years from now? Writing! Revising! And hopefully, with several books to my credit. I’d also like to offer critique/editing services sometime down the road to help augment my income so I can attend confer-ences without breaking the budget. It’s a joy to read picture book stories, whether they are from famous authors or newbie writers.

ou’ve sold a book. Now comes the hard part: launch-ing it. Self-published authors know they’ll have to handle their own marketing, but the lion’s share of marketing traditionally-published books often falls on the author’s shoulders as well, especially early in their careers. Here, Candee Flick kindly shares her experience in launching her new adult novel, Catch of a Lifetime, published by Bling! Romance. Whether you are launch-ing your first book or your twenty-first, whether your book is for children, young adults, new adults, or old adults (like me), these tips can help.

Jane McBride: First, would you tell us something about your website, about your countdown to the book's publication?

Candee Flick: When it comes to an online presence, my website (http://w-ww.CandeeFick.com) is the one piece of real estate that I fully control and is therefore the central piece to my market-ing. Other social media outlets fluctuate in popularity and can also change their news feed algorithms or rules whenever they wish. So, rather than put all my marketing eggs into one unreliable social media basket, I use a variety of social media outposts to raise awareness of my name and build relationships with readers while consistently linking back to my home base website.

I’ve made it a priority to keep my website up-to-date and loaded with information about my book projects, order-ing links, weekly blog posts, biographical information, an email subscription option, links to social media accounts, and other contact information. In the middle of a project, I’ve sometimes put a word counter in the sidebar to let visitors know how close I am to reaching “The End.” Recently, while preparing for the release of my first novel, I found a countdown widget that ticked off the seconds until my book was available for sale.

JM: What have you found the most helpful hints and tips from other authors about preparing for publication?

CF: I’d been dreaming of the day when my own novel would be in print for years. While I spent the majority of that time developing my craft, I also took notes on other book launches and discovered things I wanted to dupli-cate. The most helpful tip for me was to develop a time-line for tasks within the pre-launch, launch, and post-launch windows and then work to get things done ahead of time. In addition to the organization tips, I was reminded that the best marketing is designed to reach one reader at a time.

JM: What steps have you taken?  

CF: First, I printed out blank calendar pages for the months leading up to and three months after my novel’s release date. Of course, I circled the celebration day in red ink! I then put out a plea to a couple writer’s groups I am a member of and asked for volunteer “influencers.” Influ-encers are those who are willing to use their influence within their own circles to help spread the news about me and my book including posting book reviews, host-ing a guest blog, and promoting on social media. As I scheduled guest blog appear-ances and other events, I added them to my calendar pages and then backtracked to the previous month to pencil in due dates to submit the materials.

Almost immediately, I saw the natural progression of marketing that other authors had talked about, especial-ly when faced with a month of deadlines right before launch. I had to get started early to meet those dates! I also saw gaps that needed to be filled and kept my eyes and ears open for additional opportunities. However, not all opportunities are created equal, and with a limit-ed marketing budget, I had to evaluate each in terms of the potential return on my investment, even if that investment was only time because time spent marketing took away from time writing.

For example, there are promotion companies that charge up to $1500 to schedule a blog tour, but I reached

16

Marketing Tips

May 2016

PJ: Since the book isn't coming out until 2017, where are you in the publishing process right now? VK: After the contract was signed, Marissa Moss, the editor at Creston Books, sent me the manuscript with a few revision requests. She is amazing to work with and by February, I had completed all the changes to her satisfaction. Now the story is with the illustrator and I can’t wait to see what he does with it.

PJ: You’re represented by Essie White of Storm Liter-ary Agency. How did that come about? How long did it take you to secure representation?

VK: As I mentioned, I joined the online 12x12 Chal-lenge in 2012…writing a picture book draft every month. The next year, Julie Hedlund arranged for agents to accept submissions from members. I had never submitted my work before, so this was scary…but being part of the group helped so much, especially with all of the information and resources Julie provided to us. By the end of 2014, I was getting some great feedback from agents. And in 2015, I had several agents who were interested in my work. When I read the About page on Storm Literary Agency’s website, I fell in love with Essie White. I submitted Sweet Dreams, Sarah to her and she emailed me an hour later. In order to be an effective salesperson for you, an agent must be passionate about your work. And Essie was. Then I spoke with her current clients—she possessed the communication skills, the business savvy, and the compassionate nature I had been searching for. Two weeks after I signed with her, my story was on its way to a dozen editors. And two weeks after that, we had a book contract. What a wild ride! I know I was very lucky! PJ: Where do you get your ideas from? How many projects do you work on at a time? Do you have any other nonfiction books in the works?  What are you working on now?

VK: I get my ideas from so many places…internet, TV, books I read, even my sister is on the lookout for inter-esting topics for me. In fact, my February 12x12 draft is a story my sister suggested. One of her best friends is an acquaintance of the granddaughter of the man who founded the Greyhound Bus company. She put me in touch with that friend and the family is thrilled to have a story about this amazing individual who came to this

country in 1905, speaking no English and with only 60 dollars in his pocket, but he created an industry that changed the way Americans travel.

I tend to work on several projects at the same time. I research a new story, write another, revise another, and continue to polish finished stories. I’ve learned that a manuscript is never done…even after the publisher buys it, there will often be more changes made. Right now, I have several stories on submission and one in acquisi-tions that we are still waiting to hear about.

PJ: What is your writing routine? Are you a day person or a night owl?

VK: I know that I am pretty darn lucky. Because I am retired, I can write in the morning, in the afternoon, and in the evening. My routine (and I would NOT recom-mend this) is to check my emails and Facebook when I get up. If I have manuscripts to critique for friends, I’ll work on those. Then I do some research or work on one of my stories. And then I check my emails and Face-book again…and repeat the whole process until my eyelids begin to droop and my vision gets blurry.

I always chuckle when people ask if I am a night owl. I used to be a day person…but as anyone who sees me on Facebook will tell you, I am up till all hours of the night. My husband loves to be up all night…and goes to sleep at 8 in the morning. He is a very bad influence on me and I often stay up till 3am. Of course, since I am retired, I can sleep later in the morning. For 65 years I had to be up early every day…as a student, as a teacher, as a mom…so perhaps I’ve earned the right to sleep in a bit.

PJ: I gather you’ve self-published as well. How easy—or difficult—was that?

VK: In 2010, we self-published my parent-teacher resource book, Show Me How! Build Your Child’s Self-Es-teem Through Reading, Crafting, and Cooking. It gives 100 picture book summaries and provides a cooking activity and craft project for each recommended title…kind of like a pumped up version of the Read-Aloud Handbook by Jim Trelease. The actual publishing of the book includ-ed the process of finding a small press printer and making sure the content was well edited. But the most difficult part was the marketing and promotion. I didn’t

out to bloggers I knew through writer’s groups and set one up myself. Some sites charged $10 a day for tweets on their network while another (AskDavid.com) charged $10 for a batch of 30 individually scheduled tweets. By saving money on some things, I was able to invest in the Book Club Network (BookFun.org) for an article and full-page ad in three consecutive issues of their digital magazine reaching almost 500,000 readers each month in addition to accessing reviewers gleaned from book club leaders. That opportunity reminded me to find places where readers congregate including Goodreads and Facebook avid reader groups.

During the months leading up to the launch, I scheduled and wrote guest blog posts, recruited reviewers, sent out review copies, wrote and scheduled promotional tweets counting down to the launch, and designed graphics with the goal to get most of the content ready ahead of time. I also set up a special page on my website with multiple tools in one location to make it easy for my launch team to help out.

As launch day approached, I planned what to post each day to build excitement and drive pre-sales, scripted the week-long launch party in a Facebook group, and made sure thank you notes and gifts were ready to send. Once the book went live, I reminded reviewers to post their reviews, promoted the first blog tour stops, sent out giveaway prizes as winners were announced, and shared snippets of reviews online to keep the buzz building.

For the weeks following the release, I have ongoing lists of guest blogs to promote plus other opportunities including a video chat with a book club and a book sign-ing with other authors to kick off the holiday shopping season. When sales start to slump, my publisher will likely offer a sale or free day and I’ll need to be ready to jump onto social media channels to help spread the word.

Yet in the middle of it all, I have to remember those personal connections with readers. That includes responding to emails, replying to comments online, and maintaining a relationship using my email newsletter, because this first book is not my last and too soon I’ll be shifting my marketing focus to the next title releasing in the fall of 2016.

JM: What steps have you enjoyed the most?  What steps, if any, have you least enjoyed?

CF: Other than a slight feeling of panic when I had 18 initial blogs to complete in just a few weeks, I enjoyed the guest blogging as a chance to connect on a personal level with readers through the post and then later in the comments thread. My least favorite was when my publisher’s marketing representative challenged me to create a video of myself talking about football. I can edit my words on paper, but on camera was intimidating, even if it turned out better than I thought.

JM: How will you evaluate your promotional/market-ing efforts after publication?  Do you have trackers to see what things are bringing in readers and sales?

CF: I have used unique link shorteners (like bit.ly) for specific tweets and checked to see how many clicks resulted, but that doesn’t tell me if someone purchased as a result or not. I hate to say it, but I’ll be checking on sales rankings. If I had a guest blog appearance with an active comment section and my book jumped in the rankings that day, then I’ll know that it helped. If I spent a lot of time on posts in Facebook groups with no up-tick in sales, that reveals something too. Someone once said only half of marketing works. The problem is figuring out which half.

JM: Can you tell us more about your "launch team"?

CF: Some call them influencers or a street team, but they’re all essentially the same. My team consists of those who have and will be helping me launch my book into the world. They include endorsers, beta readers, reviewers, blog stop hosts, and others who are active in social media and said they would help spread the word. I started with a separate email list, but transitioned over to a closed Facebook group where I could easily com-municate, past topics were still visible, and team mem-bers could interact with each other.

Catch of a Lifetime by Candee Fick is available on Ama-zon.com. Follow Candee at https://twitter.com/Can-deeFick and https://www.facebook.com/Author.-Candee.Fick/

You can also see her book’s YouTube trailer at http://bit.ly/CandeeFick

Note: When scheduling a blog tour, target bloggers who speak to your book’s potential audience. Picture book authors would reach out to parenting and teacher blogs, for example, while young adult authors would target blogs read by teens.

Launch continued