Look at this!
A friend went to our local library and spotted my book, PRAIRIE STORMS, on display.
A happy day!

Oh. Or is it bad that it hasn’t been checked out?

Goodreads Book Giveaway

Wisdom, the Midway Albatross

by Darcy Pattison

Giveaway ends March 11, 2012.

See the giveaway details at Goodreads.

Enter to win

Sometimes I write for other places or other places talk about my books. Here are some links for your reading pleasure.

2012 Writer’s Market

This year’s market guide–the best in the industry–includes my article on Book Trailers. Based on my experience writing The Book Trailer Manual, the article talks about the pros/cons of book trailers, how to create them and options for the content of your trailers. You can see my book trailers on my YouTube Darcy Pattison channel.

Voice: A Conversation of Many

Author Bobbi Miller has put together a great conversation on Voice in this presentation: A Conversation of Many: What is Voice Anyway?
Besides my take on voice, read what these authors, editors and professionals have to say: Cheryl Klein, Kathi Appelt, Adam Gidwitz, Eric Kimmel, Nathan Brandsford, Emma Dryden and many more.

Reviews of Prairie Storms

Order NOW!

• Taking Time for Mommy
• Just Another New Blog
• Mom of 3 Dolls: And One More
• Heck of a Bunch
• Just Our Thoughts
• Peace, Love and Rainbows
• Feathered Quill
• Elizabeth O. Dulemba
• Simply Science

Have you seen the Prairie Storms September Coloring Page?

Goodreads Book Giveaway

Wisdom, the Midway Albatross

by Darcy Pattison

Giveaway ends March 11, 2012.

See the giveaway details at Goodreads.

Enter to win

Connect with Authors Through Skype

One site that quickly gained popularity this year is the Skype an Author, a Wetpaint site, billed at the key to Virtual Author Visits in Your Library or Classroom. Set up by Sarah Chauncey of the Grandview Elementary School Library in Rockland County, NY schools and author Mona Kirby, it is getting attention from many sources, including the School Library Journal.

The site allows authors to set up pages describing their books and how they might do a Skype visit. Skype is the online audio/video free phone service; a Skype visits allows an author to see students and students to see the author.

Authors are asked to do one of two types of Skype visits:

• No Charge – Meet the Author Visit – 10 to 15 minutes
• In-Depth Visit – 30-60 Minutes – Charge to be determined by author

Why Should you Want to Skype?

(See what Catherine Balkin said in yesterday’s post. )

Set Up Your Page

I recently updated the Darcy Pattison page on the Skype an Author site.

Here are some tips:

Set up your Webcam

One final thing you’ll want to do before going live with the Skype an Author site is to test out your Skype/Webcam set up. I discovered, for example, that the lighting in my office is great for doing work on the computer, but awful for doubling as a video studio. Here is one videos to get you started on simple lighting. Look for other tutorials.

How to Apply Simple 3-Point Lighting to Amateur Film Making

Goodreads Book Giveaway

Wisdom, the Midway Albatross

by Darcy Pattison

Giveaway ends March 11, 2012.

See the giveaway details at Goodreads.

Enter to win

Mysteries in a Picture Book

Picture book mysteries are rarely for the pre-school set; instead, the audience is the early grades, K-3. For these kids, the core of the mystery needs to be something gentle, non-threatening. No murders here. But strange situations, natural disasters and chase scenes work well.

• Puzzles or Strange Situations. In The Mystery of Eatum Hall, by John Kelly and Cathy Tincknell, Glenda and Horace Pork-Fowler, a goose and hog of “large proportions” are invited to a weekend of free gourmet food at Eatum Hall. In spite of great feasting, it’s a strange place and an even stranger pie-eating festival is planned for the last day. Will they eat their way out of this Hall? Lots of visual puns and fun.
• Natural Disasters. Author/illustrator Ellen Stohl Walsh has a great series of picture book mysteries about two mice, Dot and Jabber, who must solve mysteries dealing with nature. In the Mystery of the Missing Stream, a storm knocks limbs and leaves into the stream, drying it up. Dot and Jabber must travel upstream to find and dislodge this dam. Though it’s a gentle mystery, it still have the appeal of clues for kids to follow.
• Chase Scene. In my book, Searching for Oliver K. Woodman, a wooden woman detective, Imogene Poplar, P.I. chases the wooden man, Oliver K. Woodman across the United States. Clues are provided in newspapers, by glimpses of the missing hero, and stories told in letters or postcards. It’s essentially a chase scene, one of the major components in a mystery. Again, the clues are easy to follow, but provide variety to keep a reader’s interest.

Because they require more complicated thinking skills, mysteries really take off when kids reach the easy-reader level. But picture book mysteries are still successful in introducing the genre to kids.

ACTION POINTS

Read a selection of mystery picture books. What kind of mystery is presented? What age range is the book for?
Locate information on several publisher who might publish picture book mysteries.

How to Write a Children’s Picture Book A Fiction Notes Ebook 110 pages packed with information. Everything in one, easy-to-read format. Instant access!

Goodreads Book Giveaway

Wisdom, the Midway Albatross

by Darcy Pattison

Giveaway ends March 11, 2012.

See the giveaway details at Goodreads.

Enter to win

Within the picture book genre, there are certain sub-genres and I’ll cover some of these in the next few days.

Creative Non-fiction Picture Books

Non-fiction is about the facts. But those facts cannot be trite, boring, or presented in a cliched way. Not the for the picture book audience. Instead, you must find creative ways to present the material to the kids. Here are some examples of how writers have solved the problem.

• 
  Poetry To start, look at Wordsong’s poetry books. For example, The Seldom Ever Shady Glades, by Sue Van Wassenhove, evokes the Florida Everglades in poetry. Or, look at the World Snacks series by Amy Wilson Sanger, which began with The First Book of Sushi.
• 
  Creative Language Language play doesn’t have to be pure poetry, but can just evoke a poetic feel. Or it can evoke a certain place or time period. Or, use a concept that kids are just learning. Laura Vaccaro Seeger, in First the Egg, uses the pair of concepts, First – Then. First the egg, then. . .
• 
  
  Illustrations Of course, illustrations can add to the effectiveness of a story. Nic Bishop’s amazing photography was the starting point for the Red-Eyed Tree Frog, with text by Joy Cowley. Whether the illustrations/photography comes first or last, think about how to integrate the text and words.

Find creative ways to make non-fiction fun for kids and you’ll have a winner!

How to Write a Children’s Picture Book A Fiction Notes Ebook 110 pages packed with information. Everything in one, easy-to-read format. Instant access!

Goodreads Book Giveaway

Wisdom, the Midway Albatross

by Darcy Pattison

Giveaway ends March 11, 2012.

See the giveaway details at Goodreads.

Enter to win

Within the picture book genre, there are certain sub-genres and I’ll cover some of these in the next few days. Picture book biographies are hot commodities these days, but are very hard to get right.

How to Write a Picture Book Biography

Remember that picture books are 32 pages and are usually written for kids below ten years old. The problem is how to cover an entire lifetime in just 32 pages. Well, you can’t. Besides that, kids less than ten years old have lived most of their lives in the Twenty-first Century and won’t know that famous person you want to write about. Both topic and genre are against you.

Still, there are successful picture book biographies and they usually focus on the narrative arc and/or the emotional core of the person.

Narrative Arc

Wilma Unlimited: How Wilma Rudolph Became the World’s Fastest Woman by Kathleen Krull is the story of how the Olympic champion overcame childhood illness and became a world class athlete. The narrative arc here is strong: obstacle, obstacle, obstacle, success. It’s a classic plot line of a character who wants something, but faces obstacles, until there’s a resolution.

When considering a person as the topic of a picture book, look at the person’s life to find a narrative arc. Remember that picture books are a visual medium and think in terms of strong verbs and illustration possibilities.

Emotional Core

If you can’t find a narrative arc in the person’s life, then look for the emotional core of the person.

Frida, by Jonah Winter is organized around the idea that this artist turned her pain into art. It’s not so much the narrative arc that carries the book, as the build up of emotional impact on the reader. Again, look for the core of the person, illustration possibilities and a way to build the emotions.

Unsatisfying to Some Non-fiction Fans

Many picture book biographies are unsatisfying to those who often write non-fiction. “Just the facts, ma’am” doesn’t come through, especially for a biography that emphasizes the emotional core of the person. But really – how can you get a kid interested in someone who’s been dead for a long time? Especially, when you only have 32 pages. The audience for a picture book biography affects what you emphasize, even as you make sure you have the facts straight. Kids don’t care what the person DID; instead, you must engage kids with the person’s character and personality.

Jonah Winter’s picture book biography of jazz musician Dizzy Gillespie is a good example of a story that is lighter on the facts than some might like; yet, it received six starred reviews and connects with kids in a special way.

How to Write a Children’s Picture Book A Fiction Notes Ebook 110 pages packed with information. Everything in one, easy-to-read format. Instant access!

Goodreads Book Giveaway

Wisdom, the Midway Albatross

by Darcy Pattison

Giveaway ends March 11, 2012.

See the giveaway details at Goodreads.

Enter to win

Within the picture book genre, there are certain sub-genres and I’ll cover some of these in the next few days. First, the ABC books.

How to Write a Good ABC Book

Story Oriented Alphabet Books.
If you want to write an ABC book, you should first read Chicka Chicka Boom Boom, a rollicking story with the alphabet chasing around and having fun. It’s a great example of what you can do with those staid letters if you want.

TOPICAL ALPHABET PICTURE BOOKS

But usually, people think of an ABC book about a certain topic, like Dori Butler’s F is for Firefighting book. This type ABC book uses the alphabet as a way to discuss different aspects of a topic, almost as a way to organize a non-fiction topic. Remember that your audience is pre-school up to maybe second grade, or ages 3-7. Look for topics that will interest them, or can be used in classrooms to introduce a topic. To write a topical book like this, you should first apply the QXZ test. Usually, Q, X and Z are difficult letters to fill for your topic. No fair sticking X in the middle of a word: eXciting. No fair using Queen for every single topic. The words should be natural, not forced, and should be totally on-topic.

Actually, it’s not just the QXZ test. For any given topic, those may be the easy letters, but there will be some letter that is difficult to find an appropriate key word. Before you get into the exact wording too far, think of the key words for each letter. If you do find a topic and have great keywords for each letter, then it’s time to play around with the language. Again – look at Chicka Chicka Boom Boom for an example of just how far you can push it.

ALPHABET PICTURE BOOKS MARKET

ABC books are hard. The market is glutted with them and in order to stand out in “today’s crowded market” your manuscript must really shine. It’s a bit easier for illustrators, who use the ABCs as a vehicle for their artwork. But for everyone, the competition is stiff — but not impossible. Most publishers will have one or two ABC picture books a year; Sleeping Bear Press and Pelican Books both have series of ABC books that you could research and see if you can write something to fit. (Be sure to check current submission guidelines of a publisher before you write something targeted specifically for them. 2011 update: Sleeping Bear Press says they’ve done just about every topic, so they are acquiring very few ABC books now.)

ACTION POINTS

Read a selection of ABC picture books, both topical and story kinds.
Locate information on several publisher who might publish an ABC picture book.

How to Write a Children’s Picture Book A Fiction Notes Ebook 110 pages packed with information. Everything in one, easy-to-read format. Instant access!

Goodreads Book Giveaway

Wisdom, the Midway Albatross

by Darcy Pattison

Giveaway ends March 11, 2012.

See the giveaway details at Goodreads.

Enter to win

The illustrator doesn’t tell YOU what to do, so don’t tell the illustrator what to do!

Professional Respect

You do your professional job with the text and the illustrator does his/her professional job with the art. Respect is the key here.

If you want to dictate some of the art to the illustrator, please put it in the text. Otherwise, let the illustrator choose.

Notes to Illustrator: when, why?

Is there any time you can send a note to the illustrator? Yes. When the text and art must conflict someway. For example, in Katy Duffield’s picture book, Farmer McPeeper and the Missing Milk Cows, the almost-blind-farmer-because-the-cows-stole-his-glasses keeps making statements about what he sees that are wrong. The story’s humor comes partly from the disconnect between what Farmer McPeeper sees and what the reader sees — we know he’s wrong!

In this type story, you do need to provide notes to the illustrator. But really, you don’t need much and maybe even just a note in the cover letter could be enough: “Because Farmer McPeeper is virtually blind without his glasses, he won’t understand that he’s really seeing the cows as they cavort and play.”
Then, let the illustrator take it from there.

WHAT IF YOU HATE THE ART? GET BEHIND THE BOOK

If there’s a mistake, point it out to the editor immediately and they will ask the illustrator to correct it. For my picture book, Searching for Oliver K. Woodman, it was a sequel to The Journey of Oliver K. Woodman, so the details had to be consistent between books. The illustrator, Joe Cepeda accidently changed a character from left-handed to right-handed; when it was pointed out, he immediately made the change.

If the art is simply — in your opinion — awful, you can again talk to the editor and ask them to reject the art or ask for it to be redone. But, most contracts don’t give you veto power and you must accept the editor’s opinion.

In the end, you must find a way to reconcile yourself to the illustrator’s vision. You can’t go around trashing the art, because that means you are trashing YOUR BOOK! You should resolve to never mention it outside your family and then, get behind the book and help promote it.

ACTION POINTS

Write notes to the illustrator for your manuscript. The, try to put everything absolutely necessary into the text itself. Read it over: do you really need that note to the illustrator to make the story work? Try to do without it, unless the art should contradict something in the text.

How to Write a Children’s Picture Book A Fiction Notes Ebook 110 pages packed with information. Everything in one, easy-to-read format. Instant access!

Goodreads Book Giveaway

Wisdom, the Midway Albatross

by Darcy Pattison

Giveaway ends March 11, 2012.

See the giveaway details at Goodreads.

Enter to win

UPDATE: See the 2009 List of Picture Book Topics to Avoid

Dial editor, Liz Waniewski (ONE–es-key) spoke at the Arkansas SCBWI 2007 conference. For a couple months before the conference, she kept track of her slush pile pb submissions by category. Here are the top 12 picturebook topics that she received–thus, the top 12 to avoid!

It’s not that these topics are taboo. Instead, they are so common that you must really rise above the competition to be accepted. Good examples of these topics are given, because we need to know our competition.

12 Picture Book Topics to Avoid

1. First Day at School 19 Girls and Me by Darcy Pattison. (Obviously–my book!)
2. Cleaning up your room Clean Your Room, Harvey Moon by Pat Cummings.
3. Tooth fairy The Bear’s Toothache by David McPhail. A Little Brown editor once commented that this book has been in print continuously for 20 years and is still a steady seller for them. She said she’d love to see books that address kid-friendly topics in such a unique way. NOT strictly a tooth fairy book, because the fairy is just implied at the end. Still–it’s a book about losing teeth and it’s competition if you write this kind of story.
4. Christmas/Halloween
5. Wanting a pet
6. Dealing with a disability (thus, message-driven)
7. “Hi! My name is. . . and I am (seven) years old!”
8. Visiting Grandma and Grandpa
9. New baby Favorites.
10. Barnyard stories (! She wasn’t sure why she was getting barnyard stories, but there they were! Rural nostalgia?) Farmer McPeeper and his Missing Milk Cows by Katy Duffield
11. Bedtime stories. Goodnight Moon by Margaret Wise Brown.
12. Personal hygiene. Everyone Poops (My Body Science Series) by Taro Gomi

NEW TOPICS ADDED IN 2009

1. Monsters acting un-monster-like
2. Going Green
3. “I Love You” stories. You are My I Love You by Maryann Cusimano
4. Boredom
5. Baby Bird Learning to Fly

ACTION POINTS

Look for books that would compete with the topic you want to write about. Compare your idea with what’s already out there: How does your book differ? What makes it unique? Why should someone choose your book over those on your competition list?

Order the Ebook

Now available:
A Fiction Notes Ebook, How to Write a Children’s Picture Book.

• 110 pages packed with information.
• Everything in one, easy-to-read format.
• Instant access!

Goodreads Book Giveaway

Wisdom, the Midway Albatross

by Darcy Pattison

Giveaway ends March 11, 2012.

See the giveaway details at Goodreads.

Enter to win

Page 32, the last page in a picture book is a chance to give the reader a twist, or emphasize an emotion.

Page 32

The last page of a picture book is a left-hand single page. Consider ways to use this last chance to connect with the readers.

1. Emphasize the emotional connection.
   In Officer Buckle and Gloria, by Peggy Rathman, the last page of this story about friendship between a safety officer and his police dog reads, “Safety Tip #101 ‘Always Stick with Your Buddy.’”
2. Begin the cycle again. My Friend Rabbit by Eric Rohmann is a story about friends who face a potential disaster together. On the last page, they start a new potential disaster.
3. Fulfillment. Sometimes a last page is simply the climax of the story, the fulfillment of the character’s desire. In When Marion Sang, by Pam Munoz Ryan, the last page of the story reads, “. . .and Marian sang.” In this story of opera singer, Marian Anderson, she not allowed to sing on many American stages because she was African American. In the end, though, “Marian sang.”
4. Leave it to the Illustrator. Often the last page is a single-spread illustration with no words. It’s a hug, a child sleeping, or the sun setting. These last images are a place for the adult and the child in the lap to have a moment of silence, or give each other that special hug.

Nonfiction Last Pages

Nonfiction picture books tend to end with back matter: the author’s note, the sources, maps, etc. In this case, refer to the last page of the text for the above. But also think about ways to cut down on back matter so the story carries itself

Dizzy, by Jonah Winter, a story about the jazz musician, Dizzy Gillespie, (a book which received six starred reviews!), there’s only one page of Author’s Notes. It allows the reader to be fully in the story for almost the whole book. (Of course, sometimes a book needs more back matter, but cut when you can.)

ACTION POINTS

If needed, revise the last page of your story.

How to Write a Children’s Picture Book A Fiction Notes Ebook 110 pages packed with information. Everything in one, easy-to-read format. Instant access!

Goodreads Book Giveaway

Wisdom, the Midway Albatross

by Darcy Pattison

Giveaway ends March 11, 2012.

See the giveaway details at Goodreads.

Enter to win