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Here are some literary events to pencil in your calendar this week.

To get your event posted on our calendar, visit our Facebook Your Literary Event page. Please post your event at least one week prior to its date.

The launch party for Sona Charaipotra and Dhonielle Clayton’s Tiny Pretty Things will take place at Books of Wonder. Meet them on Thursday, June 4th from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. (New York, NY)

Paper Lantern Lit co-founder Lexa Hillyer will talk about her debut young adult novel, Proof of Forever, at McNally Jackson. Join in on Saturday, June 6th starting 6 p.m. (New York, NY)

The Vernon Area Public Library and Lake Forest Book Store have organized a signing with author Nelson DeMille (pictured, via) at Adlai E. Stevenson High School. Check it out on Sunday, June 7th starting 1 p.m. (Lincolnshire, IL)

Lexa Hillyer has landed a deal for her debut young adult novel.

HarperCollins will release Proof of Forever on June 2nd. Hillyer has become well-known in the publishing industry as the co-founder of a literary incubator company called Paper Lantern Lit.

In the past, Hillyer served as a young adult editor at both HarperCollins and Penguin Young Readers Group. She published a collection of poetry entitled Acquainted with the Cold back in November 2012.

CALL FOR ILLUSTRATIONS: Please email to me any illustrations (at least 500 pixels wide) you think I could use with November and December posts. It is a nice way to keep your name out in the public. Please make sure you include a short blurb about yourself with your website link.

DO YOU HAVE A HALLOWEEN POEM? I will be posting an Halloween poem from Eileen Spinelli on Thursday this week and will post a few other Halloween poems that same day, if I receive any. I need them by 5 pm on Wednesday in order to post for Thursday.

Hallee Adelman and Gayle Aanensen

Hallee Adelman is represented by Jill Corcorcan.

Gayle Aanensen has a new book coming out next month for the holidays.

Lexa Hillyer reveals the cover of PROOF ABOUT FOREVER that is coming out June 2, 2015.

At Harper Children’s, Karen Chaplin has been promoted to senior editor, In addition, Alex Arnold has been promoted to assistant editor, Katherine Tegen Books.

At Carina Press, Kerri Buckley has been promoted to senior editor.

At HarperCollins Children’s, Christopher Hernandez and Stephanie Stein have been promoted to associate editor, while Alice Jerman moves up to assistant editor.

Talk tomorrow,

Kathy

Talk tomorrow,

Kathy

The exciting news this week was that I got to host a couple panels regarding Banned Books (it being the week of ‘em and all).  The first was at the Brooklyn Book Festival with David Levithan, Francesca Lia Block, and Lauren Myracle.  I then cannibalized my own questions and used them in this, a Google+ Hangout alongside Lauren Oliver, Lev Grossman, and Lexa Hillyer.  My sole objection: You cannot see my awesome shoes.

And yes.  The Google offices do have free food, copious couches, and massage rooms hither and thither.

Speaking of the Brooklyn Book Festival, I was pleased as punch to see Catherine Jinks speaking there, live and in person.  She mentioned this video which, through utter and total coincidence, I’d seen on my own a couple days before.  Alfred. Is. Perfect.  Look at his fingernails!

And speaking of awesome book trailers . . .

And yeah.  Your book trailer might be awesome.  But did yours ever have a snappy theme song?  I’m just so pleased that our own Gregory K. (he of Gotta Book and The Happy Accident) is debuting his middle grade this year.  Spoiler Alert: It’s good.

And…. okay.  So, maybe I’m a pushover.  Obviously this isn’t my usual video.  But I just sorta liked the feel of this little paper studio and the kiddos who help out.  The narrator I can live without (would that Mimi had narrated the whole thing herself) but I like the kids and I like the product.  So sue.

And for the off-topic video of the day . . . was there any question what I’d go with?  This video works better when you know beforehand that the father is trying to distract his daughter from the “scary” fireworks outside.

I also like the fact that he clearly did her hair that night.

Former HarperCollins Children’s Books and Razorbill editor Lexa Hillyer has inked a two-book deal. HarperCollins Children’s Books will publish the poet’s debut novel in 2015.

The book was described as “a lyrical, heart-wrenching novel about four girls who miraculously relive the summer they were fifteen, discovering friendships, second chances, and one devastating secret.”

Foundry Literary + Media agent Stephen Barbara negotiated the deal with Kate Jackson. Rosemary Brosnan will edit both books.

continued…

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.

Back in April I had two posts Titled What is a Story Architect’s at Paper Lantern, followed by an article from their writing toolbox about building chapters. Today I bring you another terrific article from Paper Lantern’s Toolbox. You know the information has to be good, when Lexa Hillyer and Lauren Oliver are the ones behind the scenes.

Here are the two links, in case you missed them in April.

http://kathytemean.wordpress.com/2013/04/22/what-is-a-story-architect/
http://kathytemean.wordpress.com/2013/04/23/building-chapters-tips/

In life, most of us avoid conflict. We want to get along and we want everything to go smoothly. However we also know that other people’s conflicts are fantastically interesting. We watch shows called “Desperate Housewives, not “Happy Functional Women.”

This doesn’t make us sadists… it makes us story-lovers. We don’t go to brunch on Sunday to hear about how calm everyone’s Saturday night was—we go to find out about scandals, secrets, surprises, and spectacles. Conflict requires action, and inspires triumph.

Pin this over your desk: NO PAIN, NO GAIN. Both in life and in narrative.

As a fiction-writer, CONFLICT IS YOUR BEST FRIEND. Does this mean your characters should always be throwing half-finished martinis on each other’s dresses, staging battles, or balling their fists and shouting to the heavens? No, of course not.

The whole notion of conflict is to give characters an issue to resolve, aka, to give them a trajectory, a goal, a forward motion of some kind.

CONFLICT => TENSION => ENERGY => DIRECTION => NARRATIVE.

Why is this such a big deal? Too often, our early drafts of novels are boring !!!!

Ever secretly worry that your story is only interesting to YOU? Well conflict is your cure. As readers, we’re compulsive about conflict—we love it, and the more we get, the more we hungrily read along. “How the heck is she going to get out of this one?!” we exclaim, eagerly flipping the pages.

Though of course there are always exceptions to a rule, most people would prefer to read a completely unoriginal story with great narrative drive than read a fantastically inventive, beautifully written book with no direction or point. How do you ensure your novel is the conflict-filled, compulsively readable kind?

First, examine your novel chapter by chapter. How many beats make things harder for the main character? More specifically, does it get more difficult for the character to achieve her established goal? If not, try out PLL’s five tried and true conflict tricks:

 1) ADD STRANGE FRUIT TO FRUITLESS SEARCHES. First draft: Character A asks around for information but comes up with no answers. Change to: Character A does a search and comes up with utterly surprising results that set her on a new course.

(Throw in a curveball that even YOU weren’t expecting!) For instance, a girl searches files for information on her adoptive family. She discovers—gasp—her parents were part of a magical circus. OR she discovers—gasp—her parents are the parents of the boy she loves. She’s in love with her own brother! As you can see, these reveals can pull the plot in extremely different directions

2) ESCAPE ISN’T SO EASY. First draft: Character A narrowly escapes harm. Change to: Character A gets injured, captured, or forced down an unexpected path.

-How can this lead to new plot potential? How will the character get better, what will the injury require him to do next or prevent him from being able to do next? How will he break out of captivity or what will he learn from being held? Where will the unexpected route lead him? Who will he run into there

3) HOLD GRUDGES! First draft: Two characters argue, but come to reconcile their views or agree to disagree. Change to: two characters argue. The disagreement becomes explosive, leading to violence, a drastic measure, or swearing allegiance to a third party.

-How can this open new possibilities for the story? Force the characters to work through the conflict by making more mistakes and truly grappling through the book rather than resolving quickly and cleanly.

4) WE LIKE BIG BUTS AND WE CANNOT LIE. When in doubt, insert a BUT. She tried to sneak in undetected, BUT… She planned to kill him, BUT… She asked him to the dance, BUT.

5) MAKE MISTAKES. Are all the character’s difficulties coming from external forces (bad timing, storms, coincidences, society, other characters’ evil machinations/ villainy) or internal forces/ character-agency (making mistakes, overreacting, wanting something too much, essentially making a dangerous, risky or bad choice)?

-When in doubt, try to use more character-agency to create hurdles. The most interesting problems to solve are the ones we’ve in some way created ourselves!

-A few storms and bad guys are often necessary for good story-telling too, though.

So go ahead, awaken the Inner Demon/Diva/Desperate housewife. Don’t worry—you’ll get to save your characters in the end… Just don’t let them off the hook before then!

If you are attending the New Jersey SCBWI Conference this weekend, make sure you look for both Lexa and Lauren. They will be there. Since I will be there too, I will report back next week hoping to share some of the information so no one feels left out.

Talk tomorrow,

Kathy

Yesterday we talked about Paper Lantern Lit, Lexa Hillyer, Lauren Oliver, who are part of this  years NJSCBWI conference and what they were doing with authors, editors, and Stephen Barbara. Today, I thought I would share a great article they wrote to help authors improve their writing. Here it is below:

Chapters are kind of like socks—something we writers and editors use ALL the time, but hardly ever think about. We all know that most novels are anywhere from 40,000 words to 140,000 words long, and we all know they’re broken up into units called “chapters.” But how often do we stop to ask why? How do you know you’re getting the most from a chapter?

We see this challenge in two parts: WHAT goes in the chapter, and HOW it goes in.

Let’s start with the juicy WHAT, first.

Chapters must give good, purposeful content that moves the story forward, that’s what! Unlike socks (ew), a chapter is something you should be able to sink your teeth into and get some real nutrients from it. Let’s consult the magic 8-ball of chapter content questions:

1) What is the main character’s goal in this chapter? How does that goal evolve? (I.e., is the main character thwarted, or does her goal get more urgent?) If there’s no goal, what would make a good goal for the chapter? It should be based on the character’s overall goal in the book! If her goal in the story is to find missing treasure, then perhaps the goal in this chapter is to first dig up the map, or confront the pirate who buried it.

2) What happens in this chapter? Is there action, and does it naturally lead to more action? If not, what new actions might lead to consequences that increase the urgency or difficulty of the goal? (Here’s the thing about goals: we should be making it more and more difficult to get to while simultaneously more and more seemingly necessary.) For instance, perhaps the pirate who buried the treasure has mysteriously vanished, and now your main character must solve the mystery of his disappearance! Or maybe the character’s mother plans to sell her home, and now she needs that treasure more than ever.

3) What new information is learned? (And why now?) If not much is learned, what “clue” might be inserted into this chapter to help set us up for the actions and reveals of future chapters?

4) Does the chapter seem urgent? Does it have tension? If not, what would make everything more pressing, more dire? What might be causing the tension to deflate? Watch out for moments where things are getting easier for the characters, where they seem to be fed the answers. Instead, there can be clues leading them forward, but there should also be obstacles keeping us interested! Remember that you are supposed to be making things more complex and challenging—that’s good narrative!

5) Unity of action. Is the action contained to one location? Does it focus on a single event? Is there a logic to where and why it comes to an end? If you close your eyes, can you easily picture this chapter? Can you describe the action in a sentence? (Think: It was Mrs. White, with the wrench, in the drawing room).

6) Is there causality from one chapter to the next? Remember that the goal in chapter A should lead directly to the goal in chapter B, either linearly (“I had to talk to character M and he told me to go talk to character N”) or because some obstacle encountered in Chapter A redefines the goal in Chapter B (“I got shot at while talking to character M and now I need to go to the hospital, which has replaced talking to character N as my immediate goal.”)

7) Where have we come from? Have the actions, revelations, and emotions of the chapter been properly “seeded” in previous chapters? If not, what would be a few specific places earlier in the book where we might get enough information or “clues” to prepare us for what happens now?

8) Where are we going? What are the elements of this chapter that you’d like to see “pay off” later in the book? In novels, unlike in life, everything must serve a purpose. Even small developments should have some impact on the plot—a.k.a. that development should cause something important to happen later, throw a wrench into the narrative making the goal harder to get to, or aid in a significant reveal later on. Otherwise, it’s simply filler!

Now on to the HOW!

That is, how are we building this baby? What’s the appropriate structure of a chapter? Get ready… we’re about to tell you how to win a game of writing Jenga.

1) Importance of Innies. Is the chapter “in” strong? Does the opening “hook” you from the beginning with a surprising or vivid first sentence/paragraph? Are you peeking around the doorframe or leaping right into the middle of the room? Variety is the key. Experiment with the three A’s of openers: Action, Atmosphere, or Attribution (i.e. dialogue that is quickly attributed to a character). Either start in the middle of a scene with a sound (Splat! The burger hit him in the face), or with vivid description and mood (A dark, feathery form swooped across the fading skyline like a streak of black ink across the gray) or in the midst of a conversation (“How dare you call me selfish! I’m only trying to help you,” Cindy said, raising an eyebrow at me.)

Read the Rest

Talk tomorrow,

Kathy

I was going over my New Jersey SCBWI Conference Registration and noticed Lexa Hillyer co-founder of Paper Lantern on the faculty. I was not familiar with Lexa, so I read her bio. Here it is:

Lexa Hillyer received her BA in English from Vassar College and her MFA in Poetry from Stonecoast at the University of Southern Maine. She has received various poetry awards, including the 2011 Melissa Lanitis Gregory Poetry Prize for her first book of poems, Acquainted with the Cold. She was named one of the Best New Poets of 2012 by Matthew Dickman. Lexa worked as an editor at both Harper Collins and Penguin, and is co-founder of boutique literary incubator Paper Lantern Lit.

This still didn’t tell me enough, so I visited Paper Lantern Lit to see what additional information I could discover. I found out Paper Lantern Lit is a “book incubator” that creates hits for publishers–and careers for undiscovered writers. Lexa Hillyer and co-founder Lauren Oliver are story architects. I still needed more information so Lexa and I talked and she answered my questions in this interview. I think you will find what they are doing, very interesting.

What is Paper Lantern Lit?

We come up with story ideas, we plot them using our knowledge and experience with narrative structure, and we coach authors through the writing process. Like architects, we envision, design and layout all the basics of a book, but it’s our writers who inhabit them and bring them to life.

How did you and Lauren Oliver decide to start Paper Lantern Lit?

We met when we both worked as editors at Penguin, before Lauren decided to pursue a career in writing. After a few years, we had stayed friends, and realized we both had pieces missing from our lives. She missed editing, and often found she had more ideas than she could possibly write herself. I longed for more creative flexibility for my ideas, and the freedom to make stronger connections with writers. We discovered that we both possess creativity and passion for storytelling alongside a pretty unusual obsession with structure and form. We know that a great novel has both, and while the elusive power of an original, emotive voice may not be teachable, the a-to-z of plotting a book is. So why not build incredibly fun book concepts, offer to help new writers, and get the thrill of discovering them ourselves?

Once we had that all figured out, we just started having meetings. We took it one step at a time and taught ourselves what it would mean to really own a business. We made sure we had a lot of different projects we felt confident pursuing, so that our company would have longevity. Then we reached out to Stephen Barbara of Foundry Media, to ensure that we would have strong representation. Finally, we hired the most amazing interns ever, two of whom now work for the company full time!

Was this before she wrote the Delirium Series?

Yes, though I believe she was already working on it. It was right after her first book, BEFORE I FALL, came out. 

How does Paper Lantern Lit differ from a traditional Publisher?

We are not a publisher or an agency, though our company does have certain similarities to an agency: we seek out excellent writers, work with them on a project, and then typically sell the project to a publisher. However, at Paper Lantern Lit, we develop many of our book ideas in-house. So while a traditional agency looks for finished manuscripts, we are far more focused on finding the best new writers out there and fostering their voices. We pride ourselves on cultivating emergent authors, and providing them a context in which to further learn their craft.

So you could say you are a book packager?

Our business model is certainly similar, but we feel our approach is unique in that we put a major emphasis on the author and on our relationships within the industry. We’re not about making a product, package or sale. We’re about creating an experience that is hopefully lasting and has universal appeal. We attach writers and projects together much the way a matchmaker might: it’s all about finding the perfect pairing.

Since Paper Lantern gets the advance for the books they sell, how does the writer get paid?

We pay the writer directly per project. You can consider it as doing Freelance or Work-for-Hire. Some of our deals offer sub rights and other financial participation—we want our authors to enjoy success as the book’s audience grows, and for them to feel invested in its future and their own!

Does the writer get their name on the books they write?
Sometimes yes, though many times we mutually agree to move forward under a pseudonym. Often that feels like the best way to give both parties the most freedom and most protection at the same time. We understand that many of our writers may be concurrently pursuing other work, and this allows for greater flexibility to do so.

Do you accept full manuscripts?

We are looking for writers, typically, not manuscripts, because our focus is on building story from the ground up. We are the story architects, after all! You might say we prefer to work on new designs rather than renovations: this way we can always vouch for the end result—we can guarantee a sound structure. However, there’s an exception to every rule. If you love what we do, we encourage you to reach out. You never know what opportunities will arise, especially as we turn our focus with more and more interest toward the digital publishing sphere.

How long have you been in business?

We officially launched PLL in May of 2010, so we’re at the three year mark.

How many books have you gotten published?

We have 25 domestic titles (this includes multiple book deals for each author). We’ve also sold our books in dozens of foreign countries. Of these, we have 9 that have hit shelves so far, and our 10th, TRUTH OR DARE by Jacqueline Green, comes out May 14, 2013!

Do you run your book ideas past editors before you look for an author?

Not often, but we certainly have many editor friends and are always discussing what they’re excited about and where we all feel the market may be headed. Further, we do ALWAYS share our ideas with our agent, Stephen Barbara, before taking on a writer. We consider him the third partner and take his objective reactions very seriously—it’s important to have some checks and balances!

So I would image that you work closely with the author to develop the book. Is that right?

Oh absolutely. It’s a very hands-on process. We check in with our authors weekly and provide very consistent notes and feedback. They constantly work to adapt the story so that it is truly theirs—in the end, sometimes they depart wildly from the original concept, but we communicate and work together the whole way through to be sure at all times that the structure is solid and that their voice is being heard.

I see you have a group of teens called Trendsetters who read pre-published YA books from you. Have you changed books due to this feedback?
Definitely! It’s fascinating to get a peek into what teens are really thinking, what their experiences are like, what they most care about. We take their input very seriously and we just love all of the awesome ways they get involved in our projects, from coming up with soundtracks to the books to creating character collages and inspiration boards. These teens are very savvy, very articulate, and love books—so of course, we love THEM!

Do you feel that an unknown author benefits from working with you, other than the freelance money they receive?

I very much believe and hope so, yes. Some of our authors have gone so far as to refer to us as a “paid MFA in writing.” Others call it novel-writing boot camp.  We offer a lot of insight and structure regarding the craft and the writing process, in addition to offering serious access to new contacts in the industry and help them reach their fans directly.

If the authors get school visits from librarian who come to you, do they get the full amount of money for the visit?
Yes!

I read that Paper Lantern has a Fellowship Program for a MFA student enrolled at Queens College’s MFA Program in Creative Writing and Literary Translation. What do they get if they are chosen?

The recipient receives full tuition remission for the spring semester in addition to a $1,000 internship stipend.

What do authors do to get you interested in working with them?

Send us your resume, a brief bio, and a ten-page sample of your best writing (preferably fiction.) Please submit all of the above in the body of your email (no attachments), and include your name and sample title in the subject heading. Also please let us know where you heard about us!

Show off their voice. Knowing your own individual strengths, rather than trying to prove you can be malleable, is key. Also show us that you are savvy with the interwebs and not afraid to have a presence there. If you fear your own audience or seem like a ghost when we google you, that can be concerning. Writing for young people these days means having confidence in your voice, what you have to say, AND your ability to interact with your audience.

You can still register for the New Jersey SCBWI Conference in June and get a critique with Lexa. Don’t miss this opportunity. Here is the link: www.regonline.com/njscbwi2013conference

Talk tomorrow,

Kathy