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QUACKITY QUACK Q - U- A - C - K!!

Shhhhhhhhhhhhhhh! 

Even though we'd love to stir up a virtual earthquack to celebrate the official release of a cool new picture book called Mr. Duck Means Business  by Tammi Sauer and Jeff Mack, we MUST REMAIN QUIET.

Yes, quiet -- because that's exactly how Mr. Duck would want it.

(In order to help you in this endeavor, please put these on for the duration of this post. You may waddle at will):


smurf_au/flickr

*tiptoes*

Our friend Mr. Duck, who's been called "dour," "disciplined," and a "fuddy-duddy" (gasp!) by literary critics, loves his strict daily routine, which is marked by blissful solitude and heavenly peace and quiet. "From 6:00 in the morning until 7:00, he would stretch his wings. From 7:00 until 8:00, he would fluff his feathers. At precisely 8:01, he would glide across the perfectly still water."

      
      

This went on day after day, week after week, year after year, and Mr. Duck was perfectly happy -- until one hot summer day, when a careening, cannonballing, presupposing PIG splashed right into his pond by mistake! Holy porkchops! No amount of Mr. Duck's sputtering and muttering seemed to faze that pond-happy pig. In fact, the acrobatic oinker even invited Cow to jump in and join him. 


(click to enlarge)

Gah! The nerve of those two -- gleefully splishing and splashing no matter how much Mr. Duck "grumbled," "mumbled," and "flip-flop-fumbled."

They even did synchronized swimming, for CRYING OUT LOUD!!

Shhhh! (Oops, sorry.)

To make matters worse, it was just a matter of time before the entire farmyard stampeded down the dock, each furry and feathered creature diving in for a little water ballet and a raucous game of Marco Polo! It was WILD! LOUD! QUAZY and QUOWDED! Anything but PEACE AND QUIET!


(click to enlarge)

Mr. Duck SNAPPED! Finally, finally, somebody got the message, and they all apologized profusely, leaving Mr. Duck to resume his peaceful life. But was complete solit

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Mostly Monsterly
By Tammi Sauer
Illustrated by Scott Magoon
Simon & Schuster (A Paula Wiseman book)
$14.99
ISBN: 978-1-4169-6110-9
Ages 4-8
On shelves now.

After a certain point the sheer number of princess and fairy books a children’s librarian has to handle begins to feel oppressive. The crushing weight of all that pink and all that glitter and all those bows . . . you begin to feel great waves of pity for those little girls who AREN’T into all those things. The kinds of little girls you might find in books like Miss Brooks Loves Books (And I Don’t). Where are the books for the little girl monsters of the world? Enter Mostly Monsterly a book that contains no princesses. No fairies. No glitter or bows or pink (excepting the occasional pig-tailed monster). That said, I’d bet your bottom dollar that you could hand this book to a princess-obsessed little girl OR a little boy who obsesses over single subject picture books, and still manage to capture their attention and win their hearts. It’s cute, this book, but never makes even the slightest attempts to cloy.

Look, no one’s saying that Bernadette is not a monster. She looks the part (two toes, creepy necklace, etc.) and does the requisite amount of lurching, growling, and mayhem. However, Bernadette harbors what you might call a “deep… dark… secret.” She has a penchant for sweetness. Whether it’s petting kittens or baking muffins, she is only “mostly” monsterly. So when Bernadette starts school with the other monsters you might think she’d try to reign in her cutesy qualities. Not so much. Her classmates, in fact, are horrified as one when they see her attempt a group hug or croon into a microphone. Her cupcakes don’t go over any better, and Bernadette comes to realize that though she is only mostly monsterly, sometimes you have to meet others halfway. So she’ll make everyone in the class cards… but they’ll be gross. And she’ll get a group hug…. Underneath a monster pile-on. Sometimes she’s monsterly and sometimes she’s sweet and both are perfectly a-okay when doled out carefully.

Some folks see this as a parable about learning to be true to yourself, and I suppose that’s one way of looking at it. I’m more interested in the fact that this story is about how Bernadette doesn’t continue to pig-headedly act against the will of the crowd, but rather she realizes that compromise is key. She could have just decided all other monsters were wrong and that she was right and continued to bake cupcakes with sprinkles. Instead, she finds a kind of middle ground with the other monsters. That monsterish instincts do not

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How could I not grab this off the shelf of new books at the library? Mostly Monsterly is an awesome pick for most young readers, especially so close to Halloween - what you haven't bought pumpkins yet?
Scott Magoon's characters, crisp ink work, and flat colors remind me of comic books (Like Lenore - dark but cute). Bernadette will win you over, picking flowers and baking treats.
I love the subtle lesson from Tammi Sauer that we are often more complex than just monsters or sweet girls. And that we can find ways to live in both worlds.

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MOSTLY MONSTERLY, by Tammi Sauer, ill. by Scott Magoon (Paula Wiseman/Simon & Shuster 2010)(ages 4-8). Bernadette is a monster, but she's secretly very, very nice. On her first day of monster school, this doesn't go over very well. Will Bernadette ever be able to reconcile her inner self with societal expectations?

MOSTLY MONSTERLY is a terrifically fun, funny, and fanciful story of a little monster who just wants to be herself. With cupcakes.

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Hey hey!

Are you in the mood for a little Monster Mayhem?

You've come to the right place. Today, we're celebrating the official release of Mostly Monsterly (Simon & Schuster, 2010) by Tammi Sauer and Scott Magoon! You know what that means, don't you? 

We can growl, and lurch, and create major league havoc to our heart's content, a.k.a, be ourselves! For those of you who happen to look a little too sweet and respectable on the outside, feel free to don any one of these monster-friendly masks for the duration of the party:


In this, the third of Tammi's picture books (following the hugely successful Cowboy Camp and Chicken Dance), we have a bug-eyed, pointy-earred, furry fanged little monster called Bernadette.


(click to enlarge)

She certainly looks monsterly, but inside, she's harboring a deep, dark secret: a sweet streak. 

   

Sometimes, she likes to pick flowers (gasp!), or pet kittens (oh, the horror), or even bake (nothing wrong with that). 

    
So when she goes to Monster Academy, she has a little trouble fitting in.


(click to enlarge)

While everyone else is growling, lurching, and focusing on destruction, Bernadette sings and calls for a group hug. Of course, the other monsters are appalled, so Bernadette must pull out her Secret Weapon: *treats* -- more specifically, cupcakes with sprinkles!!


(click to enlarge)

Eeeeee! Yes, yes yes! Brilliant Bernadette!

But no, it doesn't work. The other monsters think cupcakes are gross (sacrilege)! Can Bernadette come up with another plan to win her classmates over, and still remain true to herself?

This simply told, perfectly paced, quirky social acceptance tale with a beastly twist will delight young readers who march to the tune of their own drummers, suggesting that with a little ingenuity, they can make their differences work to their advantage. Bernadette doesn't have to compromise her "niceness" or quash her giving spirit. She just tweaks her final gesture a little to conform to expected behavior.

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I spend a lot of time here at First Book in Washington D.C. talking with our Recipient Groups about how to receive books, but last week I was able to experience the thrill of providing books to the children that need them most first-hand! Early Sunday morning, I packed up my laptop and left the humid heat of Washington, D.C. for the humid heat of Oklahoma City to distribute 330,000books as part of National Summer Learning Day with the help of our fantastic partners at Disney Publishing Worldwide and Feed the Children!

Upon landing in Oklahoma, Erin Carlstrom from Feed the Children met, Larry, Mitali, Rachael and myself and whisked us off to local Oklahoma City schools to help prepare for reading events which took place on June 21st, National Summer Learning Day.

The next day we had a busy schedule driving throughout Oklahoma City hosting events at three local schools. These events went off without a hitch thanks to help from the Oklahoma City Fire Department, Sheriff’s office, staff from the Lieutenant Governor’s office, Feed the Children, and local Reach out and Read employees.  We spent the day discussing the importance of summer reading, our favorite places to read in the hot summer, our favorite books to read over and over by the pool – and then surprised the kids with books for them to take home and read all summer long!  We even got to host a very special reading event featuring Oklahoma 2010 Book Award winner Tammi Sauer, who read, danced, and sang her book Chicken Dance to a group of elementary school children – all of whom then received a signed copy!

The next few days were spent in the warehouse, where we labeled, sorted, and shipped the rest of the 330,000 books that our partners donated to us. Groups that picked up books were ecstatic and some had driven as far as Colorado and Texas!  The days were long, and hot, with temperatures reaching as high as 110 degrees in the warehouse, but we had high spirits, great help from our volunteers at Pi Beta Phi and the Junior League of Oklahoma, and a great mission – providing books to the kids who need them most to enjoy all summer, and for many summers to come.  The experience went by quickly, and while it was nice to get back into the air conditioned office, the impact we felt we had made in Oklahoma and beyond made the heat worthwhile.

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I'll never forget my cave-writing years. I learned everything I could through SCBWI materials and every writing book I could get my hands on. Then, I heard about the NY Winter Conference and thought it sounded great. But scary. At the time, I only wrote picture books, and felt like I needed to have more than the five I had been working on. I needed months. Maybe a year. And then Hubby looked at me and said I should go. Thanks Hubby! It was the absolute best thing I ever could have done for myself and my writing career. I was so inspired that in the weeks before attending the conference, I wrote the first draft of a chapter book and started to write a second as well (both of them are now middle grade novels). I never even considered writing a novel before the conference...and came home so inspired that I started typing away, and realized when I hit 10,000 words that I was actually writing my first novel. Now, I've written at least a first draft of six middle grade novels and two young adult novels...and I can't even count how many picture books I've written--I'm guessing in the thirty range.

I love going to my local conferences--our RA, Linda Bernfeld, always does an amazing job. And I've been to the Poconos Retreat four times, Rutgers One-on-One Plus twice, and Chautauqua. The faculty for the Orlando Workshop is amazing--I hope you'll be able to join me there! Here's the link to our website: http://www.scbwiflorida.com/details.htm. The hotel is on Disney property, so it's the perfect excuse for a family vacation. :)

I had such a hard time choosing, but decided to take the Novel Intensive with the incredible Kathleen Duey (who gave me so many helpful gems at the Novel Intensive in Miami), and editors Alvina Ling and Stephanie Owens Lurie. I can't wait to take the Picture Book Track with Tammi Sauer, Dan Santat, and their editor, Frances Gilbert. I'd love to take the marketing track with Cynthia Leitich Smith--her blog and website are filled with a wealth of information and I really hope I'll be able to take a workshop with her once I have books to promote. I also love Danielle Joseph's novels, and know she'll do an amazing job with the YA track. Wow--what a hard choice!

Here's a peek at the amazing line up.

Picture Book Track
with author Tammi Sauer, illustrator Dan Santat and Frances Gilbert, Vice President and Editorial Director of children’s publishing at Sterling Publishing.

Middle Grade Track
with author Kathleen Duey and Alvina Ling, Senior Editor, Little Brown.

Young Adult Track
with author Danielle Joseph and
Brian Farrey, Editor, Flux.

Series Track
with author Terri Farley and
Stephanie Owens Lurie, Editorial Director, Disney – Hyperion.

Marketing Track
with author/blogger Cynthia Leitich Smith, author/social media consultant Greg Pincus and Ed Masessa, author and Senior Manager Product Development, Scholastic Book Fairs.

I hope to see you there!

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Hi Tammi. Thanks for stopping by today! We appreciate you taking time out of your Chicken Dancing. :) Before we dive into your marketing advice, can you tell us a little about yourself?

I’m the author of the picture books Cowboy Camp and Chicken Dance as well as the forthcoming titles Mostly Monsterly, Mr. Duck Means Business, Princess-in-Training, and Oh, Nuts! There are two additional titles I’d love to add to the list, but I’m still waiting to sign The Official Paperwork.

Although I thoroughly enjoy what I do, I never planned on being a children’s book writer. I had always assumed I’d grow up to be a third grade teacher, but two sentences from my favorite college professor at Kansas State University—Dr. Marjorie Hancock--changed my life: “Tammi, you have a gift with words. You should pursue publication.” Knowing she believed in me made me believe in myself. Marge, one of the chickens in Chicken Dance, is named in her honor.


I this it's amazing how some of us writers never actually set out to be a writer. We just followed a whim and a passion. How have you gotten yourself out into the writing world?

Online presence has been important. I have two websites and a blog.

The first website is my author site. This site is managed by me which consequently means it’s very basic.

The second website is a site devoted to Chicken Dance. Dan Santat, the book’s illustrator, did a remarkable job putting it together. I sometimes come up with content for that site, but Dan holds the well-deserved title Webmaster. He merits a crown. And maybe a cape.

I also maintain a blog pretty regularly.


I can see you think having an online presence is a good thing :). Given that, what three marketing channels - would you say - are most important to an author or illustrator?

1. A web presence is crucial. At the very minimum authors should have a website. It’s an easy way to let people know who you are, what you write, and how to contact you.

2. The idea of promotions shouldn’t make people want to curl up under their desks with a Dr. Pepper and some frozen Milky Ways. Even the most introverted authors can find ways to promote that fit within their comfort zone. Shrinking Violets offers a goldmine of suggestions that can help the shyest of authors navigate their way into well-maybe-I-can-do-that promotion.

3. Don’t evolve into such a shameless self-promoter that you turn people off. Yes, it’s great to get the word out. Yes, it’s exciting to share your news/joy/every-written-word with the world. But do it in doses people can swallow.


How do you feel about social networking as part of a marketing plan?

I'm on Facebook, LiveJournal, Twitter, Kidlit Book Trailers, and the Verla Kay Blueboards and greatly value these social networks. I’m involved in these networks not because I feel I need to be a Super Serious Promoter but because I enjoy connecting with other readers and writers. Being a children’s book writer can, at times, get a little lonely. It’s wonderful to have these online water coolers. Have I sold copies of my books because of social networking? Yes--and I am grateful for it!--but that is icing. Interacting with others who 'get it'? That’s the cake.


Besides being online as well as involved in social networking, what other advice do you have for authors/writers regarding marketing?

Strive to do something unique. Put a new spin on what others are doing. Make yourself stand out.

Keep your online content fresh. Give your readers a reason to go back to your website, Facebook Fan Page, etc. An easy-to-do example: add a What’s New? section to your website and regularly update it.


What creative things have you done to promote Chicken Dance?

Let’s see…I’ve been known to wear a chicken hat on occasion.

The Chicken Dance website offers freebies, dance lessons, and much, much more. The dance lessons portion is one of my favorites. Dan came up with the idea to post brief videos of us teaching new moves. Currently, Dan’s move “The Bellyache” is available. Every so often, we’ll be adding a new move to keep our readers (and dancers!) coming back for more.

Dan and I have a Chicken Dance Video Contest that offers faaaaabulous prizes. The link to the page and the commercial.

We also have a Chicken Dance Fan Page on Facebook that offers occasional contests, fun videos, and an "On the Road with Elvis Poultry" photo album.

In addition to my own Twitter account, I twitter from the perspective of Elvis Poultry. Always wanted to know about the life and times of a rock and roll rooster? What does he read? What does he eat? What goes on behind the scenes of the Final Doodle Doo Tour? Then follow Elvis Poultry. It’ll have you all shook up.


Did you market yourself to agents/editors before you got published?

I didn’t market myself to agents/editors before I got published. I was so new, it never occurred to me to try. Instead, I studied the craft. I readreadreadreadread. I wrote a really awful manuscript about a grandma and banana bread. But I pushed myself to get better. And better.

I joined SCBWI and attended conferences. I researched publishing houses. I researched agents. And I tried to find the perfect matches for me and for my work. Eventually, those efforts paid off. Not only am I working with some wonderful houses--Sterling, Simon & Schuster, Houghton Mifflin/Harcourt, and Bloomsbury--but I have the amazing Laura Rennert for an agent.


Thanks for sharing your marketing advice with us today!

Thanks for having me, Shelli. Thanks, too, for this wonderful site. I've learned so much from my pit stops at Market My Words!

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Bawk-Ba-Gawk!

Eggs-tra, Eggs-tra, Feed All About It!

Curl your lips (or beaks, as the case may be), wiggle your wattles,  shake your tail feathers. It's time to bawk and roll! WooHoo! 

 
Rawkin' album covers featuring author and illustrator.

About a week ago, I announced that Elvis Poultry was in the building. Today, his creators, author Tammi Sauer (Cowboy Camp), and illustrator Dan Santat (Guild of Geniuses, Secret Life of Walter Kitty), have got plenty to crow about, because CHICKEN DANCE (Sterling, 2009) has officially hatched!


Picture Book for ages 4-8, 36 pages.

True, this heeeelarious, rollicking barnyard romp of a story snuck into a few hen houses a little early. But now, it's obvious that the world was mighty hungry for a good cluck with pluck, because the first print run has already sold out!

 

For those of you who were hittin' the hay, Chicken Dance chronicles Marge and Lola's attempts to win tickets for the Elvis Poultry concert. All they have to do is win the Barnyard Talent Contest. This would be far easier if they didn't have to outscore a flock of heckling ducks, who are quick to quack, "All a chicken can do is bawk, flap, and shake."



Have no fear! Marge and Lola are bent on swooping the coop with their indomitable talent. All they have to do is find it -- bowling? juggling? tightrope walking? flying? swimming? "Get some floaties, chickens!" Oh, those taunting ducks! In the end, Marge and Lola are forced to "wing it."  Can they best tractor-eating goats, pyramid building pigs, udderly high jumping cows, and those snotty surfing ducks? Holy haystack, they're all shook up! But this can be a good thing, no? Especially if the Top Bird is into that sort of thing.



Cock-a-doodle-doo! Tammi really struts her storytelling stuff in this book: tight structure, snappy dialogue, droll humor, a superior spoof and spin. Dan has totally channeled his inner Elvis with energy that flies off the page. From the dance-step endpapers, to the full range of fowl emotions pulling the reader deeper into the dramatic highjinks with every page turn, to the mock-serious album cover author photos, this book rawks hard. But don't take my word for it.

Chicken Dance has already earned bales of glowing reviews. About Tammi's brilliant chicken scratch, Kirkus said, "The zippy narrative features punchy dialogue and witty interactions; creative wordplay abounds ("Let's bawk and roll!"). Droll delivery soars high, advancing the storyline to its playful conclusion." Publisher's Weekly praised Dan's riotous explosion of warm, vibrant, knock-your-feathers-off illos like this: "Totally in sync with his collaborator, Santat's (Always Lots of Heinies at the Zoo) sculptural, mixed media pictures exude an old-fashioned, theatrical drama that lifts the many jokes -- visual and textual -- into sublime silliness."



Tammi and Dan have shaken up the book world with their online promotional efforts: A Chicken Dance Facebook Fan Page, Elvis Poultry website and Twitter Feed, and a special YouTube Video Contest. They are just having too much fun (I admit being partial to illustrators who wear t-shirts that say,"Real Men Eat Cupcakes"). I mean, right?

So, are you ready to bawk and roll? Just dip your beaks into today's celebration trough (no chickens were hurt, no eggs were used during the making of this soup), and crow your loudest in honor of Tammi and Dan. Eggs-a-lent job, guys!


Today's Special: Elvis Poultry Soup de Coop (sprinkled with feed and guaranteed to make you bawk, flap and shake).

And here's the perfect sandwich to go with your soup: the Elvis Poultry Special -- fried banana, peanut butter, and chicken feed:

photo by SarahNYC.

Now, my little chickies, fancy step your way over to your nearest indie or fave online bookseller to score a copy or two of Chicken Dance. Just for fun, flap your wings at the salesclerk, and don't forget to keep an eye out for Elvis Poultry himself, who's currently on his Final Doodle Doo Tour! ☺

  

Some Eggs-tra Feed:

Tammi Sauer Official Website and Live Journal blog.
Dan Santat Official Website and blog.
ElvisPoultryBooks.com.
Special interview with Elvis Poultry and Tammi Sauer at Sterling Children's Books.
Dan at 7-Imp.

Your homework:

from Cheryl Huntley's photostream.

More Soup of the Day posts here!

*Spreads posted by permission, text copyright © 2009 Tammi Sauer, illustrations copyright © 2009 Dan Santat, published by Sterling Publishing. All rights reserved.

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Awesome!  Inspiring!  So many books, so many authors, so little time!



Neil Gaiman (!) and me.  The highlight of the weekend was meeting him, getting my copy of The Graveyard Book signed and hearing his Newbery speech in person.  Wow.



Me and Tammi Sauer with her new picture book, Chicken Dance.  Check out this youtube

link www.youtube.com/watch of her publisher (Sterling) having fun with her book.  I wish all publishers were like this!  Tammi's coming to Wisconsin's SCBWI Fall Retreat in October.  We'll be bawkin' n rollin'!



Me, Kashmira Sheth, gbeaverson , and Ann Bausum.  Kashmira, and Ann are in critique groups of mine and Georgia's, though not the same one, if that makes any sense.  If not, oh well, it's not important.  :)  Kashmira received the Asian/Pacific American Award for Literature for her beautiful picture book, Monsoon Afternoon.



This is Ann Bausum and Kashmira Sheth, who both had signings of their awsome books!




The illustrious Richard Peck so graciously signed two books for me, Newbery Honor A Long Way From Chicago and and an arc (advanced reading copy) of his newest, A Season of Gifts!



Mo Willems.  Love him!



I couldn't decide which copies of Sarah Dessen's books to get for my daughters (I read them, too!) so I bought six, and she signed every one! 



Lisa Albert, a fellow Wisconsin SCBWI-er, whose Enslow biography of Stephenie Meyer just came out!



Me and Georgia with Janet Halfmann, another fellow Wisconsin SCBWI-er, signing her wonderful book, Seven Miles To Freedom.



The SCBWI booth fantastically decked out by the Illinois chapter.  That's Esther Hershenhorn on the right, the fabulous Illinois Regional Advisor.



Talk about BONUS!  I had my copy of The Calder Game signed by author Blue Balliett and her editor, David Levithan, was there!  Squeeee!  I loved Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist!  (He wrote the boy parts)  :)



Georgia, Holly Black and me.  I got my copy of Geektastic signed AND got the coveted Geektastic pocket protector.  Does that make me a geek?  Hell, yeah, and proud of it!



Gennifer Choldenko signed both my copies of Al Capone Does My Shirts and Al Capone Shines My Shoes.  Saweet!



You may know her asthatgirlygirl , Tanya Seale was in my very first critique group when we were greenhorns, waaay before we even knew what SCBWI was!



Jon Scieskza and Lane Smith



Laurie Halse Anderson



Judy Blume.  Love her!  I grew up with her books.



Georgia, Ingrid Law, me



Libba Bray



 Libba Bray sat in the loooooooong line for her signing (before it started) and chatted with fans.  How cool is that? Had my copy of A Great And Terrible Beauty signed AND got an arc signed of Going Bovine!

That's the great thing about ALA, you're surrounded by people who love books as much as you do.  Publishers give away tons of arcs, I scored bags full!  Bags people!  Can you say a little piece of heaven?  I just wish I could hole up for weeks and read, read, read. 



Isn't that a beautiful sight!  :)

For now, don't be surprised if you happen to run in to me at one of my son's baseball games and I seem to be engrossed in the player's list.  It's hiding a book.  :)

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A couple o' clucks have escaped the hen house!

The other day, Cornelius spotted Tammi Sauer's brand new picture book, Chicken Dance, at the local Barnes & Noble (Fairfax, VA), even though it's not officially out until August 1, 2009.

Be warned, people. Elvis Poultry is in the building!!

Chicken Dance is published by Sterling, with fowl color illos by Dan Santat. (Is that chicken soup I smell?) I'm beyond egg-cited! Thank you, thank you very much. 

More fowl play at elvispoultrybooks.com.

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