What I Have In Common with a Big, Green Ogre

Goldi is not the only thing giving me a Great Big Headache lately. My kids are doing a pretty good job of that themselves. Jordan can't put away more than two things in her room, without asking "Can I take a break now?" (Yes, the apple doesn't fall far from the tree.) And Josh wakes up every morning and says, "I hope the lice are back so I can stay home from school!" Did I mention we had lice a few weeks ago. N-I-G-H-T-M-A-R-E.

Maybe that's why I've been too exhausted to blog. I even have Guest Posts ready to go and I can't manage to get them up. (Did I mention the tree?) My laziness knows no bounds.

But then, this past weekend, I saw Shrek. Shrek has it all. A nice home. A beautiful, loving supportive wife. Three precious little baby ogres. And you know what? He isn't happy! He misses his carefree days when he didn't have all the responsibility of a family. So, he makes a deal with the devil (Rumpelstiltskin) and he almost loses it all. It is only then that he comes to appreciate what he had.

Not sure my kids even understood the film, but boy... did it hit home with me.

My kids are ADORABLE.

Who else would say, "Mommy, today we are going to a burrito farm." (arboretum?)

OR "Mommy, I have a new system. If I back up when I pee, I don't hit the wall."

Gosh, I love those two!

Procrastination Post- and a Picture Book Update

I need to take a speed pill today. I have done nothing all week. By "nothing," I do not mean "no things." I mean, no things that I needed to do. I did watch Lee Dewyze singing Hallelujah 150,00 times on You Tube. I also spent several hours composing emails in my head that I will never send and debating whether or not I should go to the gym. But as for laundry, shopping, and general housekeeping... nada! So, now I have to run around like a lunatic and get ready for my in-laws who are coming tomorrow.

But first, what's new and exciting in picture book land?

Well, Tiffany has an illustrator for Ollie and Claire! Matthew Cordell will be bringing her charming characters to life. I can't wait to see what he does with them. The interesting thing about picture books is that sometimes authors don't even specify what kind of critters their characters are! Will they be a hare and a mongoose? A porcupine and a prairie dog? Anything is possible!!!

Ame Dyckman landed Dan Yaccarino for her picture book, Boy and Bot (Knopf, 2012). This is another one to watch out for! This sweet, adorable story is on my very short list of "Picture books I wish I had written." Hurray, Ame!

And, last, rumor has it that the talented Aaron Reynolds, of Chicks and Salsa fame, just sold a PB called Evil Carrots! Ha! The title alone cracks me up!

Okay, off to slave away. Or maybe I'll just play one game of Scramble on Facebook first?

I Should Have Been an Agent

I'd probably suck at negotiating contracts, but I sure can pick a winning manuscript!

My friend Tara wrote a manuscript last year called The Monstore. "It's a winner!" I said immediately. "It's cute and clever and high concept." She was excited, but when she didn't get into the Rutgers conference with it, she started to have doubts. "Maybe it isn't that good after all?" she said. "TRUST ME, it will sell," I told her. And it did! Last week, her newly acquired agent, Ammi-Joan Paquette, sold it to Simon and Schuster. Look for it in the Summer of 2012!

My friend Tiffany (who I sometimes refer to as T or S or F) wrote a picture book called Ollie and Claire. This story is essentially The Pina Colada Song for kids. I love it so much that I may have to have another kid just so that I have someone to read it to every day! "I have NO DOUBT it will sell," I told her. She subbed it out to editors and agents. Everyone loved the concept, but some had issues with the execution. "Don't change a thing. The execution is brilliant!" I insisted. Well, Tamra Tuller at Philomel agreed! She fell in love with it and will be releasing it in the Spring of 2013.

What's my point? I don't have one. No, actually, I guess my point is... if you have a PB manuscript and you want to know if its got a good chance of selling, just send it to me.

But only if you can handle the truth.

One Sentence- Plummet

There are no greater highs and lows than the ones on the writing roller-coaster.

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