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I have met authors who have spent over $25,000 to self-publish their own book in print. Not counting the content of the book, the quality of the illustrations, paper, cover was beautiful. This was before print on demand, so that same person now could self-publish the same book for less than half that amount.  But still that book had problems. Two many pages, too young of story for the writing and format.  This is something many new authors make and the reason I tell you not to rush your book out the door.

To have a good selling enjoyable picture book the illustrations and design has to go along with the text. Many times a new author will go with a Vanity/Subsidy publisher who offers to publish their book, because they can forego an agent, graphic and interior layout designers, editors, printers, advertising, distribution,  marketing specialists, and book publicists. But buyer beware, what type of artwork will they provide? The books I have seen have used low level artists or the pay so low, that an illustrator can’t give the book the time it needs to shine and the results are awful. I don’t know about you, but I buy most of my picture books because I love the artwork. Of course I have an art degree, so illustration is a big part of my life, but in my opinion a picture book must have enjoyable art or it will fall flat on its face. So spend a lot of time making sure you hire someone who can make it happen. But don’t be a control freak. You will stiffle the artist and not get the best out of them.

So hear I am preaching about the steps you need to take to help lift up the reputation and quality of Self-Published books. These are the steps you need to take even if you want to snag an agent or pique the interest of a mainstream publisher.

The First draft – just the beginning. This is where you write your story and then get your critique group to read it and give you their thoughts. They should be able to point out if they see any holes in your story. Whether they like your main character. Is he/she sympathetic? Too mean? Too dumb? Are there places in the manuscript where they were pulled out of the story?
Are their holes in your plot? Here is a list of questions you can ask them to answer:

Is the conflict strong, or is it contrived and something a conversation could resolve?

Setting? Does it seem real?

Are the senses involved? (description of smell, touch, taste, etc.)

Does the story hold your interest? If not, where did you lose interest?

Accuracy and consistency: Do the facts seem accurate, (no cell phones in the 1700s, for example) and are they consistent (blue eyes don’t turn green somewhere along the way.)

Were you able to suspend disbelief?

Does the story work? Do you want to read more?

With characters, ask yourself: Are the main characters three-dimensional? Sympathetic? Are other characters well drawn? Are motivations strong and clear?

Writing Style

Voice: Strong? Too passive?

Any problems with point of view? If there are multiple points of view, are the POV changes handled well?

Does the dialogue sound natural? Is the dialogue of each character distinct, or does everyone sound the same?

Does the dialogue move the story forward?

Were there too many “he said” dialogue tags, or awkward substitutes for “said?” (snarled, hissed.)

As to back story: Is it woven into the story, or are there any info dumps or “As you know, Bob”s (use of dialogue to dump information into the story.)

Is there too much narrative? Too many flashbacks?

Are the sentences clear, or do they need to be reworded to improve clarity?

Is the story well-paced, or does it slow in places?

Is there plenty of white space, or is the writing dense? (In other words, are the paragraphs short and interspersed with dialogue, or are they long blocks of type running a half page—or more.)

Second Draft – This is where you go back and correct the problems that rang true from your critiques.
Then you get your critique group and if possible, a few different people to read your story to see if you improved the story. Just because you rewrite doesn’t mean you have made the manuscript better. If you have, then it is on to the third draft.

You could also hire a consultant to read and critique your story to help you through this process, but that is additional money you will have to spend. This can run you $150 – $5000, according to the amount of pages, the amount of time, and the amount of expertise.

Third Draft – This is where you read every line and decide if each line is written to the best of your ability. Can the sentence be tighten? Have you repeated the same basic thought in more than one sentence? Have you repeated the same word a number of times? Have you overwritten a scene? Do you need every word? If you are writing in first person. Have you avoided starting your sentences with “I” as much as possible? Have you avoided the use of dialog tags where you can? Do your characters act age appropriate? Does your first page hook your reader? Do you have a sagging middle? Do you have a subplot? Do you have tension that builds to the climax? Are there words that can be changed to be more interesting word?  After making these changes, it is on to the 4th draft.

Fourth Draft – This is where you read the book aloud. How do the sentences sound? Do you hear anything that breaks the tension. Do you hear anything that takes you in another direction?

There are many roads to take to get to this point. Now you should be ready to submit your manuscript to publishers or decide on the plan you are going to follow to Self-Publish. Next week we will talk about your plan of action.

Talk tomorrow,

Kathy

While at the SCBWI Winter Conference in NYC, my roommate Liza Parfomak started talking about all the research she had done in the short time she had been focusing on children’s books.  I said, “Why don’t you write up something for my blog,” and Liza agreed.  I met Liza last year at our NJSCBWI Summer Conference in June.  Again another example how one thing leads to another.  Liza reads my blog and e-mailed to ask if I knew anyone who could share a room in New York and I offered to share my room with her.  She went to dinner on Saturday night with the group I had put together and she was so happy that she joined us, because she made a number of new friends at dinner.  Here is a picture of Liza with Henry Winkler.  Looks like Henry enjoyed Liza’s hugs.  Anyway, Liza is out there trying to learn as much as she can and giving her a chance to make things happen.

Here is Liza on doing her homework:

Research by Liza Parfomak

Writing is an art.  It is inspiration.   It comes with homework.

My story is that I am an almost PhD, who found she didn’t know the first thing about writing.   What a terrible discovery!  Seriously, all those years of school and you would think I could just whip something up and everyone would melt into goo.  I can thank the NJ SCBWI for this knowledge.

I showed up to my first ever NJ SCBWI with two stories.  I signed up for a number of critiques.  My stories were great, after all. Why shy away from feedback?  I scored a critique with a really good editor named Krista Marino.  I knew what type of book she liked and I thought she would be a good fit for my manuscript.  I was right, because when she was done with her pencil, there wasn’t a white spot of paper available on that manuscript.  I felt sorry for her; she really got the short end of the stick with all the labor she put into pointing out where I went wrong.   The critique was just part of the package for attending the conference, but she did a REALLY good job critiquing my stories.

I understood almost immediately that I held gold in my hands…and an assignment.      

[Kathy:  Sorry to jump in here, but this is something many authors don't see right away.  They walk into a critique and expect the editor or agent to love what they wrote.  If the editor/agent is not interested in what they read and don't want to buy it, then you need them to pick it apart.  You don't have to agree with everything they say, but you do want them to say it.  So no tears, keep your composure, and pull as much as you can out of the critiquer.  The feedback will help you revise your manuscript - just be willing to revise.  I know people who have been writing for many years, who fight the revision process.

Come prepared to your one-on-one critique with all of your nagging questions.  Get them answered.  Sometimes editors/agents will say, "So tell me about the book.  How did you come up with this idea."  This might be a legitimate question, but fifteen minutes go fast and authors could talk for hours about their book. You don't have the luxury, answer quickly and redirect the editor or agent back to what they thought when they read your manuscript.  Find out what they think you need to do to improve your book.  

I don't want to hear, "Well, she didn't tell me very much" or "I don't know what she was talking about," after your critique.  It is your job to question and find out what the editor/agent means.  If you feel they are not giving you enough, it is your job to drag all out of them   So be prepared going in to your critique to get the answers you need