Getting an Agent Makes You Do Stupid Things

Okay, I shouldn't generalize. But getting an agent makes me do stupid things for sure. Yesterday, my kids asked if they could stay home from camp, and in a moment of absolute insanity, I said, "Yes." It was a HUGE mistake. Spent the whole day yelling and breaking up fights, instead of polishing PIGS so it would be ready for submission. "Why, oh why?" I asked myself for eight hours. I guess I was giddy from my call with Kendra the previous day.

To make matters worse, they convinced me to let them play with flour with their play-dough. They are out on the deck. What harm can it do? I thought. Well, apparently, I need to get myself a better imagination, because they decided it would be fun to cover themselves head to toe in it. And my brain-functioning had clearly not returned when I put them in the bath to wash it out. Know what happens to flour when it gets wet? It turns into paper-mache! So after two shampoos, a swim in the pool, a shower, and another swim, their hair still felt hard and crunchy.

Ah, good thing my husband is home today to save me from myself.

P.S. If you want anything from me, now is the time to ask. Apparently, I now say "yes" to everything.

The Big Announcement

Not sure why I made the big announcement on a little comment at Lisa and Laura Writes.

Is it because it hadn't really sunk in yet? Or could it be that I don't want to celebrate until I have an offer from an editor? (I have had representation before and I've learned that it does not always translate into getting a contract.)

For those of you who don't know what I am talking about, I signed with an agent yesterday.

I am being represented by Kendra Marcus of BookStop Literary Agency.

Many people compare the process of finding an agent to dating. I certainly see the parallels.

I sent Kendra THREE NINJA PIGS in May. She got back to me in June saying that she loved the premise, but the execution needed a little work. She gave me some very specific feedback and said, "Feel free to call to discuss." I did not call.

She then called me in July to discuss the story and said to call her back anytime. My husband told me, CALL HER. I did not call.

Instead, I emailed her with some revisions.

That may sound very weird.

But David still jokes that when we were dating, he would kiss me goodnight and say, "Bye, I'll call you." and I would reply, "Nah, that's okay. Just shoot me an email."

I guess it was the same concern. Lack of phone chemistry. If someone is interested in me, why risk ruining it by an awkward call?

But yesterday, Kendra and I finally spoke. She said she loved PIGS and thought the revisions were fantastic.

I felt like she really got the story's humor and that she had a great sense of which publishers would be interested.

At the very end of the conversation, I said, "Okay, I'm going to call my husband and tell him the great news." And, she said, "Don't call, email." (Kidding!) She said, "There's no great news yet."

So, it looks like I have found a good fit.

Double Ooops!

Late night queries may not be a good idea. But neither are late night internet purchases.

Last November, my husband and I started collecting picture book art. Well, we haven't made a purchase in a while, so when I stumbled upon the blog of Ian Sands and saw his cool art, I decided to order some. I went to Etsy and ordered DinoCow which is from the book, How to Milk a Dinosaur. I then went to Amazon and ordered the picture book, or so I thought. This was my mistake #1. How to Milk a Dinosaur is not actually a PB. It is a chapter book with no illustrations except for the cover art. This is no big deal. I have a five year old, so I can still read it to her. (and I still want the art!)

I then became a bit obsessed with Etsy. While I am here, let me see what else I can find, I thought to myself. I browsed a bit and found this beautiful mixed media collage. It was on a 6 by 6 canvas and I thought it would look spectacular in our great room. And it was very affordable! (Much too affordable) So, I ordered it. I was so excited. I was slightly suspicious about the price. It was awfully inexpensive for such a large piece of art, but what do I know about art? Well, mistake #2. It was not 6 feet by 6 feet. It was six inches square. So, now I am the proud owner of a lovely postage stamp.

Tooth Fairy's Here

The Tooth Fairy made her first visit to our house tonight. Makes me want to write a Tooth Fairy story. But that's on the list of 12 Picture Book Topics to Avoid. Uh-oh! And so is barnyard tales. There goes our new "outsmarted" story.

Outsmarted!

If you've never read The Gruffalo, it is an extremely clever rhyming PB by Julia Donaldson. A little mouse outsmarts everyone who wants to eat him. The fox. The owl. The snake. Even the big hungry Gruffalo with his knobbly knees and turned out toes, and poisonous wart at the end of his nose. It is bloody brilliant. Americans are a little slow to appreciate the genius of Donaldson, but in England, she is a household name.

Anyway, I love when characters get outsmarted. So, Becky and I decided to give this theme a try.

Not sure we are clever enough to pull it off though. It is a slight clue that I am no Julia Donaldson when it takes me three days to figure out how to get my son to take his medicine. He is only four. I should have been able to outwit the little guy sooner, don't you think? But no. We tried putting it in lemonade. He said, "Yuck!" We tried colored yogurt. He said, "Yuck!" After wasting like half a bottle, we realized on the third day that if we put it in gatorade and DON'T TELL him its in there, he will drink it. So, now we give it to him after camp, and at bed time when he says, "What about my medicine?" we say, "Oh, that? Um, you're better. You don't need it anymore."

Yup, not a genius.

SCBWI Dinner

So, the dinner was great. I had a glass of wine and (almost) totally forgot that I was networking with agents & editors and just felt like I was hanging out with some new friends. Stephen Barbara was super easy to talk to. We discussed books- what we like, dislike, etc. He is a HUGE Mo Willems fan. (Who isn't?) His other favorite picture books include How I Became a Pirate by Melinda Long and King Bidgood's in the Bathtub by Audrey Wood (which I will be ordering today!)

Unfortunately, just when the conversation started getting really good (in other words, it turned from the industry in general to my specific career!) they made Stephen Barbara move to the other end of the table. They wanted to make sure all the guests got an equal opportunity to schmooze. This is why I was so bummed that dinner for five turned into dinner for fourteen!

But on the whole it was a really fun night and I am so glad I went.

BTW, Tina Wexler is super cool! She is NOT inclined to take on PB authors, but if you write middle grade or YA, try her!

I did not get much of a chance to speak to Maureen Sullivan, but she seemed lovely.

I did not get much of a chance to speak to Steve Metzer either, but I did hear him give this tip to my friend, Tiffany:

If you want to write a PB in rhyme, I suggest you write your entire story out in prose first. Otherwise, rhyme ends up driving the story.

I've Got to Relax!

Too distracted to blog. I have my SCBWI dinner tonight with Stephen Barbara. It's not just with him. It's with Tina Wexler, Steve Meltzer, and Maureen Sullivan. I didn't mean to downplay the importance of any of these people. It's just that when I signed up, I didn't even realize they would all be there. It was originally a small, intimate group, but somehow dinners got combined. Now, there will be fourteen at the table, which should make me even more tongue-tied than usual. YIKES! I'll just have to have a glass of wine and remind myself of my new mantra.