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It’s my 2nd MOST FAVORITE time of year. Well, nothing beats spring – but – a harvest moon, flocks of wild turkeys and vivid autumn landscapes make my imagination howl.

This season, though, I’m not sure I can manage an abundance of creativity. Hard to stir up a new story when my newly published book turned up damaged last week. First out of the box. FLAWED. Second out of the box. DEFECTIVE. What happened? What mistakes did I make? How can months of tedious planning and obsessing over every detail end up a nightmare? It did. It CAN.

Continue reading 5 Scary Mistakes Every Indie Author Can Avoid at Story Quest.

I love this article by Lee and Low Books. The list of 10 reasons makes me smile like the child in the image because I always loved picture books. But the only kids of color in those books were cartoon figures or animal representations of multicultural kids. My family grew to be large and diverse, with many young voracious readers. Finding books with children that look like them has been a challenge. I’m happy to see the the trend changing over the past few years — thanks in part to publishers like Lee and Low.

“When we talk about reading diversely, the conversation often focuses on representation and social justice: making sure that our books don’t reinforce inequality by stereotyping, marginalizing, or erasing groups of people. 

Continue reading 10 Reasons to Read Diversely at Story Quest.

Have you seen stats about the diversity gap in children’s books? They caught my attention while illustrating my new picture book featuring multicultural children – I Want Cake! Because the kids are part of my nuclear family, I didn’t give much thought to cultural identity issues, but focused on creating a fun story that could be […]

The post Diversity in Children’s Books – Missing in Plain Sight 8 Key Facts for Authors, Illustrators, Publishers, Parents, Teachers and Librarians appeared first on Story Quest.

CISS is the Canadian ISBN Service System that’s f […]

The post Step-by-step Guide to Assigning Free ISBNs for ebooks through CISS appeared first on aksomitis.com.

This month I read one of the best reports on e-publishi […]

12 – Being famous – worked for Whoopi Goldberg, Julie Andrew, Madonna, etc. 11 – Playing for Chelsea - worked for Frank Lampard. 10 - Posting your manuscript through J.K. Rowling’s front door.  She probably has a bin under the letter box … Continue reading →

Many authors new to the publishing industry don't know the first thing about how the publishing process actually works. To demystify the whole thing, I've put together this quick list of how a story generally becomes a published picture book.

1. Author writes a story.
2. Author probably gets a literary agent* (many publishers don't accept unsolicited or unagented manuscripts).
3. Author/author's agent submits manuscript to appropriate publishing companies (one at a time--publishers don't like it when they aren't looking at a manuscript exclusively).
4. Editor at publishing company reads the manuscript.
5. If both the editor and the editorial director like the manuscript, it goes into an acquisitions meeting where its sales and marketing potential is discussed.  (If the publisher is interested enough, the editor might request revisions to the manuscript prior to the acquisitions meeting. If not, it gets rejected and returned to the agent to be passed along to the next publisher.)
6. The publisher will then either turn down or approve the manuscript and offer the author a contract. 
7. The manuscript will then be finalized by the author and editors, and go into book development.
8. The editor and art director will select an appropriate illustrator.
9. The illustrator will have a pre-determined length of time to complete the book art. (Usually 4 months to a year for a 32-page picture book, less under usual circumstances).
10. The art department finalizes the look and layout of the book, and it goes to print.

From start to finish, this process can take months if not years before seeing the finished book on the self at the bookstore.

*In the case that the author and illustrator are the same person, the illustrator does not always need to have a separate literary specific agent to submit their picture book. If an illustrator has previously been published, that publisher may automatically wish to see any of that illustrators future manuscripts. Publishers know and welcome the benefit of the same author/illustrator combination. Not only is it easier to work with one person than two, it also typically results in a very cohesive story and successful final product.

In an effort to provide useful, new, and interesting content for my readers, I will occasionally use other writers' articles - with their permission of course!

Please remember that when using another writer's article you should always include the author's entire byline.

Now on to the article:

Five Tips to Get Published - ASAP!
By Beth Ann Erickson

There are hundreds of variables that can determine how quickly you’ll get published. The economy and financial condition of a publication can determine how many freelance articles they purchase. Maybe you can hit an editor on a bad day and he/she hates everything he/she reads, even your manuscript.

As you can see, many of these variables are out of your control.

That’s the bad news. But here’s the good news. There are variables you control, and how you treat these variables will have a direct influence on how often you get published.

Here are five basic tips you can use on a daily basis that will enhance your chances of hitting pay dirt. Here they are:

1. Learn everything you can about your craft.

Attend classes. Read writing books. Subscribe to e-mags that will help your career. Just like a carpenter who must purchase tools so he can practice his craft, you must invest in the tools that will make you a better writer than your competition.

2. Read everything you can get your hands on.

Read fiction, nonfiction, direct mail, read everything you can find. When you become a voracious reader, you become a better writer. There are no short cuts. So turn off the television. Crack open a book. And have a ball.

3. Target the publications you want to write for – then become familiar with them.

Subscribe to the magazines you want to write for. Purchase books in your genre. Get on GOOD direct mail mailing lists. If you’re short on cash, visit your library on a regular basis and read books and magazines there.

When you’re paging through your target magazines or books from a publisher you’re planning on contacting, try to visualize their ideal reader. Then as you write, write directly to that reader. An editor who knows you’ve taken the time to research their company will be FAR more willing to give your manuscript a read-through.

4. Read EVERYTHING you send out aloud.

You’ll catch typos, grammos, and generally dumb sentences when you read EVERYTHING you write aloud. I read The Almach aloud at least three times. Jumpstart went through the same process. Reading your manuscripts aloud will not guarantee that they’ll be perfect, but you’ll discover that your writing is much easier to read after this exercise. It takes time but it’s worth it. Just purchase some throat lozenges (I use Jolly Ranchers) and get going.

5. Never give up, never give up, never give up.

Write on a daily basis. It’s easy to get discouraged when a rejection letter flows in. But having a number of queries floating around in cyberspace keeps that little flame of hope burning bright. I’m thoroughly convinced that the only way we can fail as writers is if we give up. As long as you don’t give up, you’ll definitely be published. Eventually.

If these tips sound like a lot of work, they are. But the work you put into honing your writing and researching your target publications will be reflected in the number of acceptance letters you receive.

These simple tips will make your writing absolutely sparkle when the editor reads your words. You’ll outshine your competition. And when you outshine your competition, you’ve just enhanced your chances of getting published.

~~~
Beth Ann Erickson is Queen Bee of Filbert Publishing and the only writing ezine that'll make your writing sparkle, help you write killer queries, and get you on the road to publication fast. Better yet, you'll receive the e-booklet "Power Queries" when you sign up for your free subscription. Subscribe today at http://FilbertPublishing.com

I hope you enjoyed this article.

Talk to you soon,
Karen

I was in Seattle over the weekend. Sorry I didn’t call you. I went to a wedding and then got a terrible cold and spent the last day and a half on my friend’s couch reading comic books until flying home on a red eye the day before yesterday. I am recovered now, mostly. The one thing on my to do list was to see the new library. When I left Seattle four years ago, it was just a hole in the ground and a loose frame but not yet open to the public. I had really liked the old library — though understood why it needed updating — and I even liked the temporary library. I can’t say the same for the new library.

Now, there are many great things about the new library. I connected to the wifi/internet no problem. All the people I asked for advice and directions were super friendly and helpful. I liked having the option to get a cup of coffee and have a dozen interesting places to hang out with it. The place is fun to look at and explore. I enjoyed getting to pore through bound volumes of old periodicals that were right there on the shelves. The online catalog has finally improved to the point where it’s easy to use and makes a fair amount of sense; at SPL in particular that was not always true.

However, I saw a real disconnect beween the lovely outside and grand entry spaces to the library, plus a few other very design-y areas, and the rest of the building. Materials were hard to find. VERY hard to find. Signage was abysmal, often just laserprinted pieces of paper, sometimes laminated and sometimes not. Doors to areas that may have been public were forbidding and unwelcoming. There weren’t enough elevators. There weren’t enough bathrooms. There wasn’t a comfortable place to sit in the entire building. There were lots of “dead spaces” that, because of architecture, couldn’t really be used for anything and they were collecting dust. The lighting was bad. Stack areas were dim and narrow. The teen area seemed like an afterthought. Bizarre display areas with a table and some books on it were in the middle of vast open areas. Most of the place felt like it was too big and then the stacks felt too crowded and I had to climb around people working to find things. Shelvers shut down the entire “spiral” concept with booktrucks. The writer’s area in this library is a shadow of the glorious writers room in the old downtown building where I had a desk briefly.

Did I think it was going to be different? Maybe a little. I left Seattle specifically because its idea of progress and mine were fundamentally at odds and I didn’t enjoy the destabilizing effect of a city always under construction and didn’t get enough from the things that were eventually constructed. This library looks like it was built for a bookless future where we get all of our information from the internet and the digital realm. For now, we’ll just keep the books on hand because people will bitch if they don’t get to read them, but they’re no longer the reason for the library, and they’re no longer honored and appreciated as the things we love and build libraries to house.

My small photoset of the Seattle Public Library is here.

update: I was pointed to a PUBLIB posting by a librarian who was at SPL quite recently who makes many of the same points that I do in different ways.