What I Heard at the NJ-SCBWI March Mentoring Workshop

Well, apparently. I am not such a good listener. Tara went to an NJ-SCBWI Mentoring Workshop in February and she heard all sorts of things.

What did I hear?

Mostly, STAY AWAY FROM RHYME. An agent from Sheldon Fogelman Agency had this advice:

I would caution against using rhyme, which can lead to using words that are a better fit for the rhyme scheme as opposed to the narrative. It only takes one false rhyme to unravel all of the magic and rhythm of your story.

On this front, I am not at all deterred. I am quite confident in my ability to write in rhyme.

Another thing I heard from at least two sources is that it is getting harder to sell a PB manuscript unless the author happens to also be an illustrator.

This I found rather depressing. (No amount of confidence in the world is going to suddenly make me able to draw!)

The last comment that I heard repeatedly during the first page session was to "up the stakes". Take it up a notch. Go overboard even.

That one I will keep in mind as I work on new picture book manuscripts.

A Ten Critique Week!

Phew! Just finished my tenth and final critique of the week. Yes, tenth. That is too many as far as I am concerned.

I am reading 1-2-3 Magic to learn how to better handle my bratty five year old and I find myself thinking, "Oh, this section should really come after the next paragraph!"

UGHHH! I can't turn it off.

Anyway, here are a few tips that I have compiled after reading so many PB manuscripts this week:

1) Ask yourself if you are sure you want to be writing picture books.
I've read 2600 word PB manuscripts! I've read clever, sophisticated stories that are WAY over the heads of PB audiences. Is this definitely the right genre for you? You may be better suited to chapter books.

2) If you are going to repeat a line several times, it had better be a good one.
I am one who loves repetition and The Rule of Three. But if you are going to say a line over and over it has to be something that people will enjoy hearing. Something fun, something catchy, something memorable. Something like "Hundreds of cats, thousands of cats, millions and billions and trillions of cats. "

3) Make sure your ending is satisfying.
Okay, this is something I struggle with at times too. Eve Heidi Bine-stock, from the post below, discusses this in that same interview. For those of who haven't read it, she says one way to make your reader feel satisfied is to use a technique called the "Echo." This strategy entails repeating a central idea that is introduced at the beginning of the story. She uses the example of Harry the Dirty Dog which begins with Harry stealing the scrubbing brush and ends with the echo: Harry slept so soundly, he didnt even feel the scrubbing brush he'd hidden under his pillow. Gene Zion is a master at utilizing the echo. He begins and ends No Roses for Harry with a sweater that comes in the mail from Grandma. And he begins and ends Harry by the Sea with a big beach umbrella.

I'm going to revisit some of my picture book manuscripts and see if my endings can be improved. Then I am going to go finish reading 1-2-3 Magic!

A Great Read for All Picture Book Writers

On Sunday, I am attending a NJ SCBWI Mentoring Workshop. We each get 20 minutes with an editor or an agent. (I can't wait to see what my mentor says about my Pigs story!) We also get placed in a group with seven others writers. All participants email their stories to their group beforehand so we can read and critique each manuscript. My group contains quite a range of writers, from those who I would publish on the spot to those who don't seem to have any understanding of story structure.

In an effort to help those who seem clueless, I went searching for a good article on picture book structure. And I came across this interesting interview of Eve Heidi Bine-Stock. I found it particularly valuable when Eve diagrams basic PB structure or what she refers to as the Symmetrical Paradigm.



Take a look at the whole interview for a lot more useful information!

Help! I Need a Spark.

As I've said before, I generally get one decent picture book idea a year. 2009's came in January! I wrote it in February, polished it in March, and now it is almost ready to go out. So, I'm either going to have a very dull, uneventful nine months. Or... I am going to break my record and come up with multiple PB plots this year! I am hoping for the latter.

But, so far... nothing. I've been thinking, listening intently to my kids, brainstorming with Becky, and I don't even have any inklings of an idea.

I so envy those people who get like an idea a minute.

Help! Anyone have an idea for sale? :)

I Want My Two Year Old Back!

I miss the two-year-old Jordan. I know most people talk about terrible twos and tantrums and tears, but my daughter was a delightful toddler. The two year-old Jordan dressed herself and even put herself to sleep. The five-year-old Jordan wants me to do everything for her! The independent streak is gone. She is needy and demanding and whiny and obnoxious! My adorable, feisty little girl has been replaced by a brat. I want my sweet little cutie back!

Consulting the Experts- Kids!

Home at last. Lost my Knucklehead status. Things are returning to normal. Phew!

Now, I can once again focus on writing and blogging. Trouble is... I forgot what it is I like to blog about! Maybe since it's my first day back, I'll just "borrow" an idea from another blogger. One of my new favorite blogs is Zook's Book Nook.

Kimberly has lots of interesting posts, but the one that really grabbed my attention was The Rhyme and Reason of a Child's Choice of Books.

Wouldn't we all love to get inside the head of a child to understand what attracts him/her to a particular story?

Kimberly's daughter is only nineteen months, so she can't just "ask her" why she finds some books appealing, but not others. My preschoolers are just getting to an age where they can start articulating what they like and dislike about certain stories. (Of course, Jordan did tell me when she was only two and a half that she didn't like Hop! Plop! because it "didn't have enough characters." But I think she was just being contrary to exert her power :)

Becky's kids are older and she's been consulting them for years while we are in the midst of collaborating. Jordan just turned five, and I read her one of my manuscripts for the first time in the hopes of getting some genuine feedback. (it's hard to read a kid a picture book with no pictures!) She listened carefully to my Pigs story and when I was done, she actually had something helpful to contribute that no one else in my critique group mentioned. Mommy, I think Pig 3 should be a girl.

I took her advice. Kids are, after all, our target audience.

So, here is my question. Do you seek feedback from your children and if so, how much weight do you give it?

Knuckleheads in Disney- Part II

I'm exhausted. When I get home, I am going to need a vacation! Am I the only person on Earth who doesn't love Disney? I am not a fan of crowds and lines. I feel like the Grinch saying this, but I would so much rather be scuba diving in Turks and Caicos.

Knuckleheads 1 and 2 are having a ball... when they aren't hot or cold or tired or hungry or thirsty or bored or fighting with each other. "It's Tough to be a Bug" scared the living daylights out of them. (Don't miss this 3D movie at Animal Kingdom if your kids are older) and the littlest Knucklehead had a great nap at Magic Kingdom from 7:30-9:30 PM. (I wanted to shoot myself.) It didn't occur to us that if we stayed for the fireworks, there would be like 50 million people headed for the monorail at the exact same time.

Thank goodness we are taking today off from the parks and spending it at the pool. I need to relax. Tomorrow is Epcot. And my final day as a Knucklehead.