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Princeton Theological Seminary
Stuart Hall and Mackay Campus Center
Princeton, NJ

Event kicks off at noon on Saturday November 1, 2914 and parts run through Sunday, finishing at 5 p.m.

Editors/agents include: Amy Cloud (editor, S&S), Janine Le (agent, Sheldon Fogelman Agency), Leon Husock (agent, L. Perkins Agency), Brooks Sherman (agent, The Bent Agency), Connie Hsu (editor, Roaring Brook Press), Shauna Rossano (editor, G.P. Putnam’s Sons), Patrick Collins (creative director, Henry Holt). Author/illustrators include: Joyce Wan (author/illustrator), Darlene Jacobson (author), Kit Grindstaff (author), Laurie Calkhoven (author), Yvonne Ventresca (author), Ame Dyckman (author),  … plus more to be announced!

Saturday, Nov. 1, 2014 ~ Craft Afternoon

(FREE SCBWI Members / $45 Non-SCBWI Members)
Noon to 5 p.m. (Stuart Hall)
Enjoy an afternoon of craft-related workshops with editors, agents and author/illustrator presenters, to help you further your writing/illustrating skills in the world of children’s books. Afternoon includes editor/agent panel, picture book, MG/YA workshops, and more! Bring a bag lunch.

*Registration is required, even for SCBWI members. 

Saturday, Nov. 1, 2013 ~ Dinner with the faculty

($65 SCBWI members / $85 Non-SCBWI Members)
Relax for dinner with our Saturday guest editors and agents.
6:30 p.m. to 9 p.m. (The Lounge, Mackay Center)

I met Erika Wassall at the end of February at a NJSCBWI get-together in Cherry Hill, NJ. I let the writers there know how open I am to writers sending me articles I could use on my blog. Erika sent me this interesting article below for today’s post. I think you will enjoy it.

More Showing, Less Telling

Really? I mean, what’s the difference? If I say, Billy was sick, then we all know that Billy is sick, right? Isn’t that what’s important?

Why do I have to worry so much about SHOWING as opposed to TELLING the reader what my characters are doing? What difference does it REALLY make?

The best way I’ve learned it is that the difference largely comes down to… all right, so Billy is sick…. But why should I CARE??

We all know we want our readers to care about our characters. Max from Where the Wild Things Are, Harold with his Purple Crayon, all the way up to Katniss and down to Christopher Robin, these characters were tugging at our heartstrings even when they were just picking up a jug of honey.

One of the many ways that we do this is through the special little nuances of the way they do things. Anyone can pick up a jug of honey. But the way Winnie the Pooh does it, now THAT’s special.

We read about his sticky paws and the giant drop of honey dripping down his check. And ultimately, isn’t that why we love him?

It’s all about creating images. Ideally images that are burned into the readers brain so much that it links right to their heart.

For me, the next question was… okay, so how, exactly, do I do that?

How do I really know for sure if I’m showing rather than telling?

Via brainstorming with a few other fabulous writers over at Julie Hedlund’s 12×12 extravaganza, we came up with what is not only a great way to test if you’re showing, but is also a wonderful writing exercise.

It’s fantastically simple too. You say to yourself:

How Can I PROVE It?

So Billy is sick. But if no one TOLD me Bill was sick, how do I KNOW?

Is there snot dripping from his nose? Is there a river of sweat pouring from his temples? Is he frighteningly feverish, maddeningly mopey or curled in a cocoon under his covers?

I know personally, I FEEL more for a child curled up in bed with a snotty nose and his arms crossed in mopey madness than I do for a child who is just… sick.

I use this trick in two ways.

1) When I read over my manuscripts, I ask myself… if I wasn’t the omnipotent narrator… how would I KNOW this was true? How can I create a vivid image where I don’t even have to say the words themselves, instead the reader can SEE it.

2) As an exercise my 12×12 friends and I exchange phrases, and basically say PROVE IT!!! to each other.

Here’s an example:

Johnny hurt his knee.

If I’m looking through a window, watching Johnny play, what happens that proves to me that he hurt his knee?

Johnny crashed to the ground and rolled onto his back, clutching his knee.

Or depending on who I’m trying to portray Johnny as, maybe…

The pain shot up Johnny’s knee and filled his eyes to the brim with tears. But he gritted his teeth and picked up his hockey stick. He wasn’t going to let the other boys know he wanted to quit.

Showing and not telling is a challenge for all writers. But it can also provide some fantastic opportunities to add depth to our characters, and build that emotional connection with the reader that we all strive for.

Here’s a few for you to try. Ask yourself, how can I PROVE this? And see what you can come up with!!

Bobby hated school. 

Theresa wanted to go home. 

Puddles the Poodle couldn’t wait for his boy to get home.

Erika Wassall is a writer, a farmer and a liver of life. She is a member of SCBWI and a proud Mad Scientist, bringing science experiments right into children’s classrooms, and hearts. She has a small farm in New Jersey with sheep, chickens, pigs and vegetables. Check out her new website at www.TheJerseyFarmScribe.com where as a first generation farmer, she often takes the long way, learning the tricks of the trade on The Farm. On her website is also The Shop page with tips and a free Q/A from her husband’s mechanic shop, and The Writer page where she shares stories, experiences and characters from the heart. Follow her on Twitter at @NJFarmScribe. She’d love to hear from you!

Thank you Erika and tanks for offering to do regular posts here on Writing and Illustrating.

Talk tomorrow,

Kathy

JILL CORCORAN is a children’s book agent with Herman Agency.
Her current interests include: high concept Young Adult and Middle Grade Thrillers, Mystery, Romance, Romantic Comedies, and Adventure manuscripts.

With an English degree  from Stanford University and an MBA in Finance and Marketing from the  University of Chicago, Jill has marketed everything from sneakers to  cereal at Leo Burnett Advertising, LA Gear, Mattel, and at her own  consulting company, LAUNCH! New Product Marketing.

That marketing background seems to have helped her become a successful agent, because the books and amount of books she has sold is quite impressive.  Here is the link to take a look.  http://jillcorcoran.blogspot.com/p/recent-deals.html

What Jill is looking for New Adult authors/manuscripts.

So, what is New Adult? School Library Journal has a fabulous roundup of articles to give many but the same definition of New Adult and Goodreads has a list of popular New Adult books.

Please email your query plus the first 10 pages of your ms pasted into your email to [email protected]

Jill reps Picture Books, Chapter Books, Middle Grade, Young Adult and Crossover Young Adult (New Adult)

Here is a complete description of what Jill is looking for as of Feb 2013

Please read because Jill is being very strict to my vision of what type of books she will be agenting.

To put it bluntly, I want books, actually characters, that have legs. If you haven’t heard the term “has legs” that is marketing shorthand to mean the characters can live outside the confines of your book. They can spark a series, be transformed to the big or small screen (Herman Agency is based in NYC but I live in LA and have close ties to the Film and TV industry.), possibly go outside the library/bookstore market to gift stores, grocery stores, etc, become a genre leader rather than just another book competing in a market where discoverability is becoming the most challenging obstacle to sales and sadly some of the best writing is not rising to the top of readers’ buy lists.

All books must have excellent commercial plus literary writing. What I mean by this is an utter command of the language that is accessible to most readers–not just the brainy kids. The concept must be fresh, organic, break-through. Just another one is not going to cut it. Yes, lots of copycat books make the hit list, but I am an agent, a talent scout. I am not looking to sell copycats. I am looking to discover the next big thing.

I want complexity of character, multi-level plot and theme, believability even in the fantastic, and pacing that blinds me to time and space. I am a fan of the underdog, but the underdog doesn’t always need to be the nerd, the foster kid, the kid from the broken home. It is irritating when the popular kids are bad and the outcasts are heros. I think most kids are average. Some are more popular than others but being popular often takes a lot of work and that work spurs a host of insecurity.  Many kids define popular in different ways. Some cherish their inner and outer geek. I want “normal” teens in extraordinary circumstances (I leave the definition of normal to you:) ).

Regarding romance, I want authentic vulnerability and innocence as well as hot, steamy yearning, and in some cases, more than yearning. I want to love your characters so I understand why your characters love each other. I want to be so enmeshed with your character that when his/her heart breaks, so does mine. When your characters are kissing, or doing more than kissing, I want to feel that pull in my body too.

Please send queries to [email protected]   All emails sent to my Herman Agency email will be deleted.

Talk tomorrow,

Kathy

The above June illustration was created and sent in by Roberta Baird. Roberta is a full time illustrator from Texas. She specializes in whimsical artwork for children’s picture books and related industries. When not illustrating, she paints murals and sets for the theater and writes her own poetry. Her first book I See the Animals Sleeping: a Bedtime Story, was published in June of 2011. You may remember Roberta, she kicked off 2012 on Illustrator Saturday: http://kathytemean.wordpress.com/2012/01/07/illustrator-saturday-roberta-baird/

Reading as a Writer Workshop taught by Ann de Forest

by Yvonne Ventresca

Ann de Forest provided a session on “Reading as a Writer” during NJ SCBWI’s June conference.  “Books that we read can be our teachers,” Ann explained. Part inspiration and part hands-on workshop, she noted that as writers, we should “read with an eye to craft.” She mentioned that author Laurie Halse Anderson recommends that for (approximately) every ten hours spent writing, five hours should be spent reading, with only an hour on the Internet.  To achieve that ratio, writers can cut their time online, and experiment with reading on a schedule.

Ann suggested creating a separate notebook with sections to maximize our learning from reading and she handed out tabs we could label and use in a blank notebook for that purpose. Section one is a Reading Log to track titles and authors of books read. (The Goodreads site can also be used to track goals, books finished, and books to read in the future.) Section two, about one-third of the notebook pages, is for Responses. These reactions can be written while reading or as a book review at the end, summarizing what the book taught you about writing. Section three is for Craft/Technique and is used to analyze how something works. For example, you could examine how an author handles action scenes or dialogue in a story. You can study the entire book, outlining it on a macro level, or can dissect it on the micro level, analyzing certain sentences. Section four is for Quotes. This section is less analytical and more about immersion in the prose through copying it down in the notebook.

During the workshop, we did two exercises. First, we individually copied a passage from a book (either a paragraph we liked or chosen at random), rewriting it by hand. Workshop participants found this interesting because it brought a new element to the act of reading. Some of the phrases seemed almost magical the first time through, but through the act of copying, were boiled down to regular words (nouns, verbs, etc). Next, we broke into small groups and looked for passages that might help with a specific writing challenge, such as how to write effective description. In a brief time, many of the participants were able to find concrete and instructive examples of how to approach the writing element they focused on.

Overall, Ann’s workshop provided useful techniques to improve writing through the act of reading. Even if you didn’t attend her session, you can try these at home. Her ideas elevate the dynamic of reading to a new level for writers.

Thank you Yvonne for taking the time to share Ann’s workshop with us.

Talk tomorrow,

Kathy

Our Charlotte Bennardo & Natalie Zaman sold their BLONDE OPS, pitched as The Devil Wears Prada meets James Bond for teens, featuring a fashion magazine intern in Rome who uncovers a plot to kidnap the First Lady, to Kat Brzozowski and Peter Joseph at Thomas Dunne Books, for publication in 2014, by Natalie Fischer Lakosil at the Bradford Literary Agency (World).  Congratulations Nat and Char!

Liza Royce Agency just sold two picture books written by Tori Corn.  I wonder which one will be considered her debut book?  Way to go, Tori!

At Simon & Schuster Children’s, Angela Zurlo has been promoted to production manager for the Books for Young Readers and Paul Wiseman imprints, effective June 1. Navah Wolfe and Julia Maguire have been promoted to associate editor, BFYR. In addition, Richard Ackoon moves up to executive coordinator, Laura Roode has been promoted to associate art director, and Krista Olsen moves up to design associate.

Today’s the last day to send in your first page inspired by Kathleen Kemly’s May’s Picture Prompt. You will find Agent Melissa Sarver critiques of four submissions on next Friday’s post. Kathleen’s art work was featured on Illustrator Saturday a few weeks ago. http://kathytemean.wordpress.com/2012/04/07/illustrator-saturday-kathleen-kemly/

Please attach your double spaced, 12 point font, 23 line first page to an e-mail and send it to kathy(dot)temean(at)gmail(dot)com. Also cut and paste it into the body of the e-mail. Put “May 26th First Page Prompt” in the subject line.

ILLUSTRATORS: Here is your chance to show off a little. I am looking any subject matter as long as it has a few flowers in the illustration. I will post some as they come in during the month, but I will definitely post all by May 31st, so I need to receive your illustrations no later than May 25th. Please make sure the illustration is at least 500 pixels wide and includes a blurb about you and a link to see more of your work. Please send it to kathy(dot)temean(at)gmail(dot)com and put “May Illustration” in the subject box.

Talk tomorrow,

Kathy

0 Comments on Free Fall Friday – May – Kudos as of 1/1/1900

I am happy to announce that Agent John Cusick of the Scott Treimel NY Literary Agency has agreed to critique four first pages that are submitted for the First Page Picture Prompt for the month of April.

Besides being a great agent, John is also a great author.  If you haven’t read Girl Parts, you should.  I know everyone’s taste are different, but I totally loved it.  I thought it was well-written, very creative, clever, dramatic, and fun.

Want to meet John? He is part of this year’s New Jersey SCBWI June 8 -9 Conference in Princeton, NJ.

He is doing critiques and conducting two popular workshops:

Bad Guys Have More Fun: Villians, Antagonists, Anti-heroes

There’s a Whole Universe Out There: World Building 

 www.regonline.com/njscbwi2012conference  Don’t miss out!

Here is the picture prompt you should use to inspire your first page.

It is by illustrator Joanne Friar: http://www.joannefriar.blogspot.com/ I think her illustration gives you lots of room to let your imagination soar.

WRITERS: Deadline to submit is April 22nd.

Please attach your double spaced, 12 point font, 23 line first page to an e-mail and send it to kathy(dot)temean(at)gmail(dot)com. Also cut and paste it into the body of the e-mail. Put “April 22nd First Page Prompt” in the subject line.

ILLUSTRATORS: Here is your chance to show off a little. I am looking for illustrations that celebrtes the month of April. This gives you a lot of leeway. I may post some as they come in during the, but I will definitely post all on April 30th, so I need to receive your illustrations no later than April 24th. Please make sure the illustration is at least 500 pixels wide and includes a blurb about you and a link to see more of your work. Please send it to kathy(dot)temean(at)gmail(dot)com and put “April Illustration” in the subject box.

Talk tomorrow,

Kathy

2 Comments on Free Fall Friday – John Cusick, last added: 4/14/2012

Moonrat says, “Assume whoever is reading your submission is going to be in a terrible mood when they look at page 1.  You just don’t have until page 2.”

Who’s Moonrat?  Well, she says, “I’m a recovering editorial assistant. I’m like most of my kind: impoverished coffee-and-gin survivalists, underpaid but ambitious, bitter but hopeful. Painfully self-conscious, woefully self-congratulatory, willfully self-indulgent. Yes, I’m white, but I’m trying to get over it. Accurate spelling (to the dismay of my boss) is not among my interests. So read forgivingly.”

I’m posting what she (I’m assuming Moonrat is a female, because the blog is called Editorial Lass) had to say about the subject back in June 2010, so you can get a feeling of what editors’ go through.  I’m hoping to convince you on why working on your first page is important.  Particiapting in first page prompts can help strengthen your writing muscle.  Here’s Moonrat:

Heaps and heaps and heaps of manuscripts. At the moment, all of them fiction. 90% of them debut novels. All of their authors hoping desperately for a book deal, for a home for their beloved novel.

When I read submission after submission after submission–which, let’s face it, is everyday–my mind starts to dull. My eyes begin to glaze from all the white on black. My butt begins to hurt from sitting. I’m pretty hungry (because I’m always pretty hungry), and this is making me cranky. As the day wears on, I get irritable. The reading gets faster, and the disappointments stack up more quickly.

I don’t want to reject books–I want to buy them! But I can’t buy something that I’m not passionate about. So many of these manuscripts are only 60% of a book I’d want to read. There are different reasons they don’t fit the bill–maybe the content doesn’t interest me personally; maybe I don’t like the writer’s style; maybe there’s nothing special about the book, it’s just adequate. Maybe the agent didn’t do a great job of pitching it, and I was expecting something other than what I got.

Or maybe it’s a beautiful, perfect, exquisite book, exactly the book I’ve always dreamed of publishing. But I’ll never know, because the first page was CRAP.

There are different ways to create a crappy first page. Boringness. Cliche. Too many fancy schmancy words. Immersing your audience too quickly into the action. Immersing them too slowly.

Yeah, I know, it’s basically impossible to win at this game. But YOU MUST TRY.

Above all things, YOU MUST BE SPECIAL.

You can read more on her blog Editorial Lass:

http://editorialass.blogspot.com/2010/06/why-first-page-of-your-manuscript-is-so.html

You still have a few days to send in your December First Page Prompt.  Editor Heather Alexander from Dial Books for Young Readers is our guest critiquer. 

Please attach your double spaced, 12 point font, 23 line first age to an e-mail and send it to kathy(dot)temean(at)gmail(dot)com. Also cut and paste it into the body of the e-mail. Put “December 20th First Page Prompt” in the subject line.

ILLUSTRATORS:  Still hoping a few illustrators will step up and send something for their word prompt, “Celebrate.”  I am sure some of you migh