The problem with keeping a blog....

is if you forget you are keeping it and get busy with life, then the blog fizzles out and dies a slow, and boring death.

I'm so sorry I haven't kept this up. Once fair season hit for me, I got side tracked and out of habit. Then it became fall, and I was busy selling Usborne Books...  No more excuses.

They say writing needs to be a habit, you should do it every day. It's true. When my blogging fell, my daily writing fell. And that's no good for a future great writer! Or a starting out writer! Or a professional writer.

So my apologies to those of you who do read my blog, I know there are at least two. :-D 

I am making a new year's resolution now to start the new year with better writing habits and in better shape. See, not only has my daily writing sucked, my exercise habits have too!  I plan to start the year with a bang, and make 2013 the luckiest year so far.  Granted, I am not a lucky person. However, I do create my own luck. And my success is not where I'm used to seeing it. Funny, it correlates with my effort.

I am already starting out the year with numerous author visits on my schedule, and totally excited! I love working with the students.

So here is to an amazing hump day! Put on a smile and get to work,

Debbie

How to write a Novel

I started to write this, then put it on hold because I wanted to spend more time sharing Jan's amazing workshop. So sorry it took me so long to get back to it. :-) I'm learning to balance life and writing with the kids home from summer and family visiting.... Is it time for school to start yet? ;-)

So let's go back in time to the awesome Iowa SCBWI Conference......

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One of the best parts about the conference was hearing from Jan Blazanin, a published author and former teacher. She was GOOD!!! AND, even better, I walked away with concrete ideas and tools to work with.

Here are my top tips from Jan, in no particular order:

1. You want BIG problems. The bigger, the better. And the problem needs to get worse as the charcter looks for the solution.
2. Better have a hook! This will tell what your story is about, where it fits in the current market, and what's fresh about it. Your protagonist and conflict need to be stated first. And your story needs to be unique.
3. You need to know what it is that your Protagonist wants more then anything else in the world. This needs to be something that he will take risks for.
4. Know your character, inside and out. Interview him. What does he look like? Go shopping with them. Who are his friends? What does he eat? What is his hygiene? You also need to know your secondary characters, though not as in depth.
5. The first 5 pages are the most important. In this time you need to introduce the protagonist, let the audience get to know her (but in the moment, like you just met someone, not in a 20 pages of history sort of way), show what traits set her apart, identify the time and place of the sotry, set the tone, and introduce the catalyst. Whew.
6. Introduce characters gradually. It is easy to confuse your reader. Be kind.
7. The end should be brisk and answer the reader's questions. It does NOT have to tie it up nicely with a bow. She says "Be brisk, be brief, and be gone."
8. When brainstorming, there is no right or wrong way to come up with a story. Some come up with a character, and build a story. Some come up with a plot or conflict, and then find a character who fits.

Jan was a fabulous teacher. Make sure you know what your book is about, who your characters are, and where you are going.

Happy Writing!

Debbie

Author visits in Montana

Last week was the most amazing experience. I was asked to visit Poplar and Wolf Point, MT. While there, I taught some writing workshops, read to the students and answered questions. I felt right at home working with the students, grades Kind through 5th grade. Shawn (my hostess) had me scheduled back to back with negative 30 seconds between classroom visits. We did 11 different location visits in 3 and 1/2 days! Monday I had 6 visits at two schools, plus the library. And Tuesday I did 5 classroom visits, then a college talk, and a reading.

The kids all thought I was there age, so I think they connected with me in a way they don't with adults. It was fun to see how they all couldn't wait to hear what I had to say, and realized that they to can follow their dreams.

At one school, each teacher wanted me to teach on a different writing program, so I was literally pulling out my notes as I ran. The kids were great though. I didn't feel like I lost any of them.  I could really see the wheels in their head turning, watching them think "I can do that!".

 

They had great questions including:

• Do you make a lot of money (answer, no.)
• How long have you been writing (answer, since I was your age.)
• How did I write the words (answer, I let them come to me, wrote them down, then read them aloud over and over and over.)
• Where do I get my ideas (answer, everywhere.)
• Do my kids help me (answer, I test my books on them to see if they need to be sacrificed to the delete God's or polished for potential future literacy)
• What is my favorite book (answer, Anne of Green Gables)
• How old I am (answer, how old do you think I am? To which I was guessed from 4th grade to age 50)

The visit was special because I got to stay with a dear friend, Shawn. She and her family were great, and her husband was open to all of my thousands of questions about life on the reservation.

I also got to speak at the college about tools to teach future writers, which I shall blog about in the future.

One of the perks was eating lunch with the kids. At Poplar Elementary, I was sitting there eating when Shawn looked at me and said, "You have a blue tray."
I answered, "yes, I do."
She said, "I have a red tray."
I looked at her puzzled until she pointed out all the students had blue trays, while the staff got red trays. They thought I was one of the students!

We had a great time at recess!

At the Headstart visits, I learned how to count to 10 in Dakota and my colors, though I don't remember much. It was intriguing how long the words are.

My last day, we added a school visit since a teacher found out I was going to be in there area. They are working on a book, and thought I'd make a great addition. The kids were all prepped with questions for my whirlwind 20 minute squeeze in. I was so impressed with all they had done to prep for my visit.

And as a bonus, I got to visit the Badlands and do some Sand Ball hunting, which my boys loved.

I will work on writing more about my visits! There was so many wonderful things happening as we connected, and I learned more about their environment. But in the meantime, I have some manuscripts I need to finish up. There is nothing more motivating then kids asking you when they can get your next book!


If you are interested in having me speak with your school, daycare, or group, let me know. I do everything from a simple reading with questions, to writing workshops, to playing with the kids on the playground. :-) You can email me by clicking here for more information.

Author Visits in Montana!

I just wanted to give you a heads up that I am in Montana visiting schools and libraries! Look for fun updates about my journey and the great people I'm meeting next week. :-)

Happy writing!

The Agent

What conference is complete without an agent? We were fortunate enough to have Ty King, from Writer's House. The first thing she did was take off her shoes.

So tip #1:
Public speaking is best done when barefoot.

Then she began with her great tips:
She talked about becoming a working writer. A working writer is what all writer's strive for (someone who is getting paid for writing!) She recommends you be professional, responsive, and communicative (communication is very important).

She also said you need to understand your role (what is expected from you by your agent) and your rights (so you don't get taken advantage of).

She recommended that if you have a Blog, you need to be professional. Actually, this was mentioned a few times: Don't write anything negative about someone else, it will come back to haunt you and never ends well.

Let's talk RIGHTS:

*Print and publication (what countries will you give them?) If they publish in another country, it may be beneficial. But don't sign away rights just to sign.

*Audio rights.

*Electronic, such as ebooks and aps. (You don't have to grant these).

*Dramatic (plays, movies)

QUERY LETTER tips:

Keep your letter brief, and let them know your project. They get a lot of submissions straight off the first draft. That is a no-no.

When looking for an agent, you want someone who will be able to represent everything you write, or who has other agents in house who can represent your other writing.

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Biggest Mistakes New Writer's Make:

They do not edit their work enough. They send it in way too early. Most agents or editors do not have the time to take on a project that will take a lot of time and energy. So be submitting too early, even if you have potential, you will be rejected.

They do not research where they are submitting. Editors and agents get a lot of paper to go through. If the project does not fit their house, you are wasting their time no matter how great it is.

Example: They only publish picture books 0 - 5 (Applesauce). You send a picture book geared for 6 - 9 year olds, or even worse, a chapter book. Even if they love it, they can not publish it.

How do you avoid that? Before submitting, research the books they sell. Then go to the library and read them. If their whole line is about animals, don't submit a book about diggers.


Hope you learned something today! Stop back later this week to learn about writing a chapter book, tips from Jan Blazanin.

The W's of Writing, I guest blogged

Come on over to Rena Traxel's blog and enjoy learning all about the "W's" of Writing!

http://www.renajtraxelblog.com/2012/04/w-is-for-ws_26.html

She has a great month of blog posts from guest bloggers, working their way throught the alphabet! Enjoy.

More from the conference!

SCBWI-IA packed us with great editors, authors, and an agent.

Kari Pearson from Abrams was full of color, literally! She had on this amazing yellow top that sang energy. She edits picture books for ages 0 - 5, at the Appleseed division. She also helps with Comic Arts.

So, on to the notes:

When querying, make sure you let the editor know that you know that they know their stuff. Research them. Tell them how much you loved what they edited. Congratulate them on the book that won an award. Let them know you are learning to wind-surf too! It's OK to stalk, just don't over stalk.

Have some sort of online presence. Facebook is good. Twitter is good. Author website once you are published is a must (not necessary before). Blogs are nice, but not necessary. Keep it managable. You don't have to do everything.

Don't be afraid to keep in touch. If she invites you to submit, send an email asking if she's had a chance to look at it. She recommends every few weeks. Be respectful (don't email daily. Every few weeks, is once every 2 or 3 weeks.) Editors get busy and do appreciate a reminder here and there.

Editor's Considerations:

1.) Quality of Work
2.) Marketability
3.) Who are you? (And yes, sometimes being a debut author can be marvelous!)

Quality:
"Quality is always paramount."
She gets excited about good work, and loves to be excited.
Being new can be an asset! They love to discover you.

Marketability
This is close to quality in importance
Books are a business
Editor looks at context, where does your book fit in?

Context:
What books are similar?
How did those books sell?
Does it fit their list?
What category does it go in to?

Who are you?
Introduce yourself with your work!
Follow-up
Don't take it personally. A "no" is not about you.

If they are INTERESTED, what happens?
It goes to an editorial meeting and they ask:
     Does it work?
     Does it fit our line?

Then it goes to a business meeting, where they look at marketability?
     Does it fit?
     Can we sell it?

If the answer is "yes" they will make an offer!

An advance is based off of what they feel the projected sales will be.

A REVIEW OF MY WORK:

I was fortunate enough to have Kari review my work. My picture book I sent is for an older age then she buys, but it was great hearing from her.  I wrote for 6 - 8, she busy 0 - 5. (Another reminder to do all your research before going to conferences. I saw picture book, but didn't think to look deeper.) But I enjoyed having her review it.

What I learned:

*Sometimes a picture book is a chapter book! She loved my character and smiled and laughed, but told me she wanted more from him, and more from each experience. She thought it would translate beautifully to a chapter book.

*She noticed it was still RAW. This had gone through 3 critiques and was written in February. I never send anything out that is this young, but loved the MS and wanted feedback, so I did dedicate time. However, the fact is, it didn't have time to bake, and was still showing. This was a good reminder that you can not RUSH the process.
So if you write something great, don't send it out, yet. Wait a month, revisit it. Then, put it away a few weeks, edit it again. THEN, put it away a few weeks more. Do this until you can not find anything else wrong with it. Do NOT look at it the day after, or a week after. You need to forget about it, so when you look at it, it is like looking at someone else's work.

*Do not write your query letter in third person. Let you shine through.

Here are some of her notes on my MS:
*Not sure about format. Seems like a picture book, but the language is older. Mismatch.Wow! Such an eye opener. Who are you writing too? And yes, my audience is 6 - 8, so it's on the line. I was hoping for an older kid PB, but was a little off on my judgement.

*HOOK:  Lots of funny things! I liked it. Good characterization.
This is huge for me. I challenged myself last year to begin writing character driven stories.

*WRITING: Lots of great details/ingredients! A little undercooked.
Oh-oh, can't rush art! Even when other things are in place.




Remember, publishing is about people! Make sure they know you, and make sure you know them!