Tell the Truth Tuesday

1.  I have a dentist appt at 10:00 and an agent call at 2:00.  Not sure which one I am more nervous about.

2. If you ask me to do a critique, sometimes I will have fantastic suggestions and other times I will have absolutely nothing helpful to say whatsoever.

3.  My husband blows a gasket because every night a half an hour after dinner, my kids say "I'm hungry."  I'm scared to tell him, but...  I'm hungry too. 

4.  Though I am extremely camera shy, I got caught on film Sunday night doing the Cruz Dance with Joshy after the Giants beat San Francisco.

What Are Little Boys Afraid of?

My son has seen every scary movie ever made. By the time he was four, my husband had shown him the entire Lord of the Rings trilogy. Is he scared of Orks? (like his mom) No. Is he scared of Golem? (like his big sister) No.

These are some of the things that keep him up at night.

He is scared he will get "out" in baseball.

He is scared that none of his friends will be able to make it to his birthday party.

He is scared that one the papers he glued onto his homework sheet will fall off and the teacher will get mad at him

He is scared to take his "smock" off in art class because someone might see his stomach when he pulls it over his head.

He is scared to go to school because he can't find his library books.

He is scared to go to camp. What if he and Jordan are not on the same bus? (Ha, ha... as if the camp would send two buses to the same house!)

And my all time favorite...

He is scared that when he gets older he might "accidentally" do drugs.

One Word

2011,  I can't say I am sorry to see you go!   You were a sucky year career-wise, filled with a lot of frustration and  disappointment.  You took all the joy out of the publication process for me.

But 2012 is going to be different.  I can feel it.  If I have to pick one word to encapsulate my vision for 2012 it is PSYCHED.

I am feeling very optimistic about 2012 sales and super pumped up about my upcoming Fall release!

For a sneak peek at THE THREE NINJA PIGS and several other amazing 2012 picture books, check out this trailer:




2012, the adventure begins!!!

All I Want for Hanukkah

My husband has this friend, Grant. He is young (relative to us), smart, and incredibly ambitious. David had lunch with him recently and they came up with an idea for a new medical product that they are going to try to pursue.

Then I saw him at a birthday party.

ME: We'd like to do blah blah blah, but we can't right now cause we just did our basement which was very expensive.

HIM:  Well, when our new product comes out...

ME:   Oh, you mean, when we make our millions?

Grant just looked at me.

HIM:  "Why are you thinking so small?"

Ha!   Apparently, I need a better attitude!  

The Year of the Monster- and Some Post PiBo Tips

PiBo 2009 was the year of Goldilocks for me.  2010 was the year of the dinosaur.  (I had at least a dozen dinosaur titles, though I didn't end up writing any of them!)  This year, nearly half the items on my PiBo list are in some way connected to monsters.

Is it because I am dying to write a monster story?  Well, monster stories are certainly fun and appealing.  But it's more than that.   It helps me move my list along if I brainstorm one specific area- whether it's a character, a topic, or a theme.  I was able to hit 30 ideas way before Nov 30th, by narrowing my focus.

So PiBoIdMo is over for 2011, now what?

MAKING YOUR LIST.  Don't stop just because November is over.   I find once I am in idea-generating mode, the ideas continue to flow effortlessly for at least a few more weeks.  Keep your list in a handy place so you will have easy access when an idea pops into your head.

CHECKING IT TWICE.  Check your list.  Twice.  Three times.  Forty times.  Check last year's list (if you made one)  Are there ideas that can be combined?   Sometimes an idea by itself it too slight but when used in conjunction with something else on your list it's the perfect premise for a PB!

In 2009, I had the following two ideas on my list:

25. Golidlocks has a twin sister- Tawnylocks?
34.  Use fairy tale to teach fractions. Goldilocks and the three and a half bears? How can you have half a bear? Bear in Mommy’s tummy? Could mama bear deliver right in the middle of the story?

See? I wasn't kidding about the Goldilocks theme.

Neither idea went anywhere, but those two concepts nagged at me.  twins... fractions....twins... fractions... Both seemed like premises I wanted to pursue.

And then during PiBo 2010, it hit me!

TWINDERELLA

The perfect way to combine the two.

Cinderella and her twin sister share everything. Each does half the chores, half the washing, half the ironing, and each takes half the fairy godmother’s goodies. But when they each spend half the night dancing with the prince, and they both fall in love, they have a problem.

PiBoIdMo- The Pressure is On!

Okay, so.. during PiBoIdMo 2009, I came up with the title GOLDI ROCKS AND THE THREE BEARS.  I wrote it with Beth Coulton and it sold to Putnam.

During PiBoIdMo 2010, I came up with another title for a fractured fairy tale. I wrote it and though I don't have a contract yet, I am convinced that ultimately... it will sell.

Now, it's PiBoIdMo 2011 and the pressure is on!  I am off to a very late start due to six days with no power!    Our electricity was restored late on Nov 3rd, but I am only just now getting into the PiBoIdMo mindset. 

It's Nov 6th and I am staring at a blank list!

But I am not going to panic.  It takes time to get into an idea-generating groove. If I incubate every day, ideas will hatch and multiply!

Success

We all know the road to publication can be rough.  Long and winding.  Bumpy and bouncy.   Puddly and potholed.  I have hit roadblock after roadblock this year, and to be honest... I have been very down about it.

But I saw this graphic on Facebook today and it made me feel a little better:



It's all about managing expectations.