Writing Words for Nerds #AtoZChallenge--I is for Ideas

It only takes two words to inspire an infinite number of story ideas. 

“Where do stories come from?” It’s the question writers get asked most. “Where did you get the idea for your book? What inspired you?”

I think the idea for all fictional stories starts with two short but incredibly powerful words: “What if?” 

There are what-ifs everywhere you look. Every person you meet, every story you read or see or hear, and just about everything you experience or have experienced is full of what-ifs. This is why I completely agree with something that Neil Simon wrote in his autobiographical book Rewrites (I’m paraphrasing), “Writer’s block isn’t when a writer has no ideas. It’s when a writer has so many ideas and doesn’t trust himself to choose the right one.”

There are so many ideas—so many what-ifs—everywhere you look that it seems impossible to me that a writer could ever have no idea what to write about. Why, I write at least a dozen story ideas in my head every day. At least. And I throw them out, because I don’t even have enough time to write the stories I’m already working on, never mind a dozen new ones every day.

A little imagination and two words are all you need to create infinite story ideas.

Here’s an example. Recently I was sitting with my husband in a courtroom, because he had a couple of unfair traffic tickets we wanted to contest. (We reached a compromise with the court, because the police officer who issued the tickets wasn’t available and taking it all the way would have meant my husband taking another day off work, which wasn’t worth the $58 cost of the remaining ticket.) We had to spend about three hours in the courtroom waiting for our turn. My husband thought I might get in trouble for using my cellphone, but even the bailiff was using hers. The first cases brought before the judge were those where defendants had lawyers, as well as drug-related cases that involved already incarcerated defendants. Instead of being brought in, those defendants appeared in the courtroom via some sort of teleconferencing arrangement on a large flat-screen TV.

I leaned in toward my husband and whispered, “I can imagine a story about a woman who comes into court because of a traffic violation and is shocked to see her missing husband on that screen.” My husband loved the idea and continued it. What if the husband was in jail pretending to be someone else? What if he married her while pretending to be someone else? What if he had other wives who had no idea where he was or who he really was? What if after she screamed in court, “that’s my missing husband,” he pretended not to know her? What if he really didn’t know her? What if the husband but had lost his memory in the same accident that led to his incarceration, and while the system believed and had been telling him for a year that he was someone else, she was the only person who could reveal the truth and that he was innocent? What if after his experiences even he isn’t sure she’s telling the truth?

By asking one what-if, I came up with a story idea. And by continuing to ask one what-if after another, my husband was able to hone it into a very interesting story idea. I’m probably never going to use it, because, like I said, I think of and then abandon at least a dozen of these a day. But this little event gave my husband a glimpse into how my mind works when I write a story—and how much fun it is.

And asking what-ifs really is!

Yes, hearing or reading or seeing stories is fun, but it’s even more fun when you’re the one who’s telling yourself the story and you can make it go anywhere you want.

Infinite story ideas are everywhere. All you have to do is ask yourself, “What if?” and then let your imagination do the rest. 

Why I'm Quitting the SCBWI (Even Though I Think It's Great)

I'm planning to quit the SCBWI when my annual membership runs out in February.

I've loved the organization. At one time I had over 10,000 posts and comments on the SCBWI boards. I've written for the SCBWI Bulletin, illustrated for it, too. I've won a monthly SCBWI writing competition. I even put together the SCBWI Illustrator's Market Guide under Harold Underdown​, which was difficult but rewarding. I've enjoyed attending SCBWI conferences and workshops, particularly in New Jersey, and I love the critique group I helped assemble through the SCBWI boards. In the past, the SCBWI was great for me.

The SCBWI (Society of Children's Book Writers & Illustrators) holds conferences and workshops throughout the year and around the country, as well as many countries outside the USA.

Over the last couple of years, though, I feel like everything SCBWI related has been moving me backward, instead of forward, and like all of us, I need to keep moving forward.

When the SCBWI boards changed hosts, all my old posts and comments--all the help and encouragement I'd provided to other SCBWI members over the years--pretty much vanished, and I started again from zero.

The new boards weren't easy to use, and fewer people used them, mostly to try to promote their own work. The sense of camaraderie--of fellow writers and illustrators supporting each other on this journey--vanished. I no longer felt like I belonged there.

Then the SCBWI started PAL (Published And Listed) membership, which I applied for. Twice. However, since my traditional credits are for illustrations, articles, stories, and other works in newspapers and magazines, I apparently don't qualify, although no one from the SCBWI thought to inform me of that. I put in my request and received no response at all. It now says that PAL status is only awarded to those who have published books with traditional publishers. Over 12 years of publishing history and all the work I've done for the SCBWI doesn't count for beans.

I've been building sandcastles, and they've been washed away. I've seen this happen to others, too. I've seen a SCBWI RA (Regional Advisor) pretty much work her butt off for the organization, and while I can't speak for her, I do feel she hasn't been rewarded for all that she's done.

All of this makes me sad.

I don't feel that my time has been wasted. I've learned a lot, things I'm putting into practice now as an indie publisher. I've made some great friends. But the truth is I probably should have left the SCBWI a few years ago.

I make it a rule in life to occasionally stop and ask myself, "Why am I doing this? Why did I start this, and am I getting what I thought I would out of this? Is there a better use of my time and energy?" When it comes to the SCBWI right now, the answers are "I don't know why I'm doing this anymore. I started this because I wanted to find an agent and a publisher, but I don't want to do either of those things anymore. My time, energy and other resources would be better spent elsewhere."

I still think the SCBWI is a great organization for anyone new to writing and illustrating for children, or for anyone who has already had a book traditionally published. Unfortunately (or perhaps fortunately), that's not me.

Everything You Wanted to Know about Publishing a Picture Book (But Didn't Know Who to Ask): part 2 of 4—Writing

After publishing four novels for kids, teens, and adults who love YA books, I decided to publish a picture book: Fay Fairy’s Very BIG Problem. I ran into a few problems of my own, and so I decided to write this series of articles to remind me how to avoid or overcome those problems next time, and so others can do the same.

In the first part of this series, I showed you some of the right and wrong reasons to indie publish a picture book, the skills necessary to do it right, and why I choose to indie publish with CreateSpace. Now we're going to look at the first stage of creating a picture book—writing.

Write It

If you're reading this, you probably already have something written down or you at least have a good idea of what it is you want to write. I have, however, noticed a few basic mistakes that picture-book writers often make when they're starting out.

First, a picture book should be under 1,000 words—and under 500 words is even better. Little kids have short attention spans. Make a picture book too wordy, and your book will probably lose their attention. So make it as short as you can, and make every word count.

Second, a picture book isn't just a story with pretty pictures added to it. A picture book needs pictures to tell the story. So if your story contains any words that can simply be shown in the illustrations . . . Cut. Them. Out. For example, if your story says, “Abigail had red hair,” or even “Abigail’s red curls bounced as she walked,” cut out the part about how her hair looks. Let the illustrations simply show what Abigail's hair looks like. If you're not an illustrator, don’t even mention it in the illustration notes unless it’s vital to telling the story. You might feel inclined to tell the illustrator, for example, that Abigail has red hair because your daughter has red hair, and you want the character to look like your daughter. But if it's not really vital to the story, leave it out. Let the illustrator best tell his or her part of the story the best way that the illustrator knows how. Maybe that’s drawing Abigail with red hair, but maybe it's drawing her with black hair. Maybe it’s by drawing Abigail as a bunny rabbit. The important thing is to give the illustrator the freedom to make your story the best that it can be.

The manuscript for Fay Fairy’s Very BIG Problem. Notice that the illustration notes only explain things that are necessary to the story and that are not easy to infer from the story itself. Also note that the words are in the font and format that will be used in the finished book to make it easier to copy and paste the words directly from Microsoft Word into the artwork.

Third, make your story kid, parent, teacher and librarian friendly. You’d think this goes without saying, but you wouldn't believe how many writers insist on writing stories that are meant to appeal just to kids or just to parents. Of course, you want kids to shout, “Again!” But that’s not going to happen if an adult doesn't buy the book first. Of course, you want an adult to buy the book. But that’s not going to happen if the kid isn't going to want to hear it.

You should also consider what your picture book offers a parent, teacher, or librarian that can't be found in another book. A parent, for example, might need a picture book about blended families or living with a developmentally disabled sibling or a bunch of other stuff that Dr. Seuss never considered writing about. A teacher might need a book about dinosaurs or rivers or a recent historical event or how to deal with a bully. And librarians are constantly being asked for books on topics they don’t have. Having a book on a needed topic can be a great way to land those paid classroom and library visits that—as we saw in part one of this series—can be a picture-book writer’s or illustrator’s bread and butter. Obviously, this is true for nonfiction, but it can also be true for fiction. So ask yourself what your book might offer its potential buyers, not just the kids that make up the intended audience.

One way to do this is to imagine offering your services as a visiting author to an elementary school teacher. That teacher is going to want you to do more than just read your book. What are you going to teach kids in connection with your book? Are you going to make your author visit interactive? If so, how?

Fay Fairy’s Very BIG Problem, for example, has a page in the back explaining how I created the story by taking an ancient Indian parable—”The Blind Men and the Elephant”—and changing it by asking, “What if the story were told from the elephant’s point of view?” I would start my author visit by telling the kids the original parable and how it gave me the idea for my book. Then after reading my book to the children, I would ask them to pick a story they all knew, like Cinderella, and I would ask them to see how many different stories they could create by changing parts of it, like the point of view character or the setting. It would be a creative exercise, and it would also teach them a bit about writing and the parts of a story. So how can you turn an author visit into something more for a teacher and her class? It’s something you should think about before you've even published your book.

The story behind your book—whether if it’s the story of how you came up with the idea or how you got it published—can often be a great topic for an author visit. This page at the back of Fay Fairy’s Very BIG Problem explains the simple method I used to come up with idea for it—and how the reader can use the same method to come up with his or her own story ideas.

Fourth, know the difference between a picture book that a parent reads to a child and a picture book that a child reads on his or her own. The first can have longer and more complicated words and sentence structure, but the second has to have short and easy to read words and simple sentence structure. I Love You the Purplest by Barbara M. Joosse is a good example of a book that was meant to be read to a child. Green Eggs and Ham by Dr. Seuss is a good example of a book that a child is meant to read on his or her own.

Fifth, map out your book so that you’ve worked out what text goes on what page. CreateSpace prefers picture-books that have exactly 40 pages. Subtract the interior title page and the copyright page, and that means ideally your story should fill 34-38 pages. Pay attention to the rhythm between odd and even pages. Unless your book is made up entirely of double-page spreads, odd pages should go on the right, and even pages should go on the left after the reader has flipped the page. This means that odd pages are great places to ask questions, and even pages are great places to answer them. For example, on an odd page it could say, “What should Gloria Gorilla wear to the ball?”  The child thinks about it for a moment, picturing a ball gown. The page is flipped, and . . . The child giggles as she sees that Gloria Gorilla is wearing a swimsuit, or pajamas, or a spacesuit, or pretty much anything that seems a silly answer to that question.

This is the storyboard I made for my still to be published picture book, Click the Dog. While a writer who isn't an illustrator probably won't make a storyboard, writers should map out their picture books in a similar way, using text instead of illustrations.

Study hundreds and hundreds of modern picture books. Pay attention to what goes into them, how many words they have, how the pictures tell the story, how they appeal to both the adults that buy them and the kids the adults buy them for, the length and complexity of the words and sentences they use, and how the story is mapped out. Also ask yourself if this is a story that has been told before. If so, what does your story offer that’s new? If not, why hasn’t a book like yours been written before?

And finally, when you’re sure you've written the story you wanted to write in the best way possible, edit and edit and edit it some more. Get other people to look it over for you. If you can, join a critique group for picture-book writers, get your manuscript critiqued at a SCBWI (Society of Children’s Book Writers & Illustrators) conference, or find someone nice enough to critique it on Verla Kay’s Blue Boards, which are now the official SCBWI boards. Picture books are very short, and every word has to be exactly right. There’s no room for errors. And it helps to get a second pair of eyes to look it over. Of course, you need to be open to honest feedback. Just remember it’s not about you; it’s about making your story the best that it can be.

Once you're done, put the text in the size and font choice that you want. I asked my Facebook friends, who are mostly writers and illustrators, about recommended font size. The consensus was that a 16-point font is best for picture books. However, I found that was too small for the size I was planning to print the finished book, which was 8.5” x 11”. I chose a 20-point font instead. I also discovered that nowadays sans-serif fonts are considered the norm for picture books, because they're easier to read in short passages, particularly for young children. Helvetica is considered the best, but because I work on a PC, I chose Arial, which is similar. And I chose Arial Rounded because that fit better with the soft, rounded, and elephantine look I was going for in the book. I chose a 1.5 line spacing, because more distance between lines makes it easier to read; and I chose not to paragraph indent, because there were too many paragraphs that were made up of just one line. I also made sure that the final line of each paragraph with more than one line had at least two words on it, so it wouldn't look strange. I find it’s easier to format paragraph text in Word than in a graphics program, like CorelDraw, so I did all of this in a Word file with extra-wide margins. That way I could just copy and paste the text for each page from Word directly into CorelDraw without having to make too many adjustments.

 

The inside title page and the first two pages of Fay Fairy's Very BIG Problem. Notice how the title page can also be used to tell a part of the story.

Of course, this is only the part of the writing that involves the story. You’ll also need to write a great title, the blurb (both for CreateSpace and the back of the book), your author bio (at least for CreateSpace, if not for the last page of the book), the copyright information (look at other books for ideas on how to do this), and a dedication or a whatever extra materials you might want to include. Having all these bits of writing done in advance can help make the final parts of creating a picture book and publishing it with CreateSpace a lot easier.

The copyright page from Fay Fairy’s Very BIG Problem. You can go to Copyright.Gov to get an official copyright, but don’t worry if you don’t have one: anything original you write belongs you the moment you write it down, whether you've purchased an official copyright or not. CreateSpace will provide you with the ISBN for your book, so it’s not necessary to purchase one if you publish with them.

For more information on writing picture books, I highly recommend Writing with Pictures: How to Write and Illustrate Children’s Books by Uri Shulevitz. Picture Writing: A New Approach to Writing for Kids and Teens by Anastasia Suen and The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Publishing Children’s Book by Harold Underdown are also great books that deal with the topic. I also highly recommend Underdown’s fantastic website, The Purple Crayon, for all things related to children’s book publishing. It’s just overflowing with useful information.

That takes care of writing your picture book. In the next article in this series, we're going to look at illustrating it. Hope to see you then!

Everything You Wanted to Know about Publishing a Picture Book (But Didn't Know Who to Ask):

Part 1—Introduction

Part 2—Writing

Part 3—Illustrating

Part 4—Publishing

Everything You Wanted to Know About Publishing a Picture Book (But Didn’t Know Who to Ask): part 1 of 4

So I recently published my first picture book, Fay Fairy’s Very BIG Problem, and I learned a few things (or to put it another way, I ran into a few big problems myself and was able to find out how to fix them).

I figured it would be a good idea to put together a series of articles about the experience, since it doesn't seem anyone else has really done that. There are a million and one blog posts about how to indie publish in general, but when it comes to publishing picture books, the information seems to be scattered in little answers to little questions all over the 'Net. This post will hopefully help me get it right from the start next time, and hopefully it will also help anyone else interested in indie publishing a picture book avoid some of the problems I ran into. 

First, why would you want to publish a picture book?

There are so many good reasons not to publish a picture book. Picture books are the most expensive books to create, because full-color books cost more to print (and most picture books have to be full color). If you’re not an illustrator, hiring a good one should cost you minimally a hundred dollars per page. Minimally. Per page. It can cost a lot more than that for good art, and you want good art. There are just too many picture books out there with bad art, and no one needs that.

So if you're thinking of publishing a picture book because you think they're easy to write and you can get your six-year-old to supply the illustrations, well . . .   

I'm not saying you shouldn't, but don't do it thinking you're going to sell a thousand or even ten copies. Do it because it sounds like a fun family project. Otherwise, don’t do it unless you’re an illustrator yourself.

Okay, so let’s say you're a writer-illustrator, like me. I was an editorial cartoonist, a newspaper illustrator, a layout artist, an arts-and-entertainment writer, and even a consumer columnist. Of course, you don’t have to have been all of that. You just have to have some talent in writing and especially illustrating, and you have to enjoy putting words together with illustrations. Illustrations are more important to a picture book than writing, because you there are lots of picture books that don’t have words or that have very few words; but there’s no such thing as a picture book without illustrations or some sort. Let’s say you're going at this with a realistic understanding of the rewards. You know you're not going to sell a lot of copies. Sure, it might happen, but that's not your expectation or your goal. You know your book will be competing against The Cat in the Hat, and Winnie the Pooh, and whoever Disney’s latest princess is for a book buyer’s dollars. And you can’t expect to win against that sort of competition.

So why are we doing this?

We're doing this because professional picture-book writers and illustrators know that the real money that’s to be made in picture books doesn't come from selling copies of books; it comes from paid school and library visits. Professional picture-book writers and illustrators also know that one leads to the other. Do a reading at a library, and chances are that some of the parents will be interested in buying copies of your book. Yes, there are author visits in middle schools, and sometimes even in high schools, but it’s generally easier to get gigs like this with picture books. It's also fun.

That was my reason for deciding to publish a picture book after having published four novels for kids, teens, and adults who like books for kids and teens. I wanted something for a younger age group; I wanted something for library visits, school visits, and parents with small children at street fairs. And I understand I’m still not finished, because during the last street fair I participated in, I met some kids and parents who were looking for early chapter books, the kind of thing suitable for third grade. I actually have one of those I started to work on, Gloria Turkey: Biggest Bird on Broadway, a funny tall tale about the creation of the first Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. It’s on the backburner (along with several other books), because it will require a hundred or so more illustrations than I've already put into it (about 50 or 60). But at least I've now expanded my potential audience with my first picture book.  

Getting back on topic, let’s say you have what it takes to make a picture book, and you’re going into this with reasonable expectations. Since youve decided to go it on your own, the first thing you’re going to want to do is find a service that will print and distribute your books.

I picked CreateSpace for Fay Fairy’s Very BIG Problem.

Why CreateSpace?

CreateSpace and Lightning Source are the two most popular printers for indie published books. CreateSpace belongs to Amazon, which makes it super easy to get your book published with them available on Amazon. Lightning Source belongs to Ingram, which is one of the world’s largest distributors of books to schools, libraries, and brick-and-mortar bookstores, which means that using Lightning Source makes it easier to get your books into schools, libraries, and brick-and-mortar bookstores. I use Lightning Source for my hard cover books, because CreateSpace has yet to offer hardcovers as an option; but I use CreateSpace for everything else because it’s just easier to work with—and it’s free.

“Easier,” however, doesn't mean trouble-free, hence the problems I ran into and the need for this series.

Okay, so now you know the why, who, and where. The next article in this series will deal with the most important question: how? The next article will be all about writing a picture book for publication. Don’t miss it!

Everything You Wanted to Know about Publishing a Picture Book (But Didn't Know Who to Ask):

Part 1—Introduction

Part 2—Writing

Part 3—Illustrating

Part 4—Publishing

Have a character but no plot? Three easy steps you can use to make one

If you have an idea for a character but don't know what to do with it, here are three easy steps that will help you create a great story:

1. find out what your main character wants most and make him/her want it or need it more and more.

2. find something that prevents him/her from getting that thing and make the obstacle bigger and more urgent (it can be internal, another character, or the world your character is in). 

3. bring the conflict to a head until the character resolves it by getting what he/she wants, letting go of what he/she wants (and possibly getting something better in return), or coming to accept being without the thing he/she originally wanted. 

A plot can have several steps, so your main character can start out wanting one thing, get it, and then want something else.  For example, in The Cat in the Hat, the main characters ("me and Sally") want something to relieve their boredom until they get it; then they want to avoid getting in trouble. 

These three steps have infinite possibilities depending on the main character(s), other characters, setting, style, and want/need.

If you have an idea for a plot but not a main character, you can easily turn that plot into a main character, too: whatever the objective of the main character in a plot is supposed to be, create a character who is strongly motivated to achieve that objective. Create other characters who are strongly motivated to stop the main character from achieving that objective. For example, some of the people who are motivated to solve a crime are a detective, a reporter, the accused, the victim, and the likely next target. Notice that the more motivated the character is to achieve the objective, the more compelling the story becomes. 

Guerilla Market Your Book! A Guest Post by Peter Adler

Today I'm delighted to present a guest post by Peter Adler, author of Wyndano's Cloak. I asked Peter to share his tips on getting your book into bookstores and face-to-face sales.

Guerilla Market Your Book!

by Peter Adler

Author Peter Adler

In this era of online book marketing, it’s easy to forget the tried and true sales techniques of the past. That would be a shame. The old ways are not only effective but are immensely satisfying. 

Today, I’ll focus on the direct approach, where you engage face to face with potential customers. The ways this can happen are virtually infinite, and are only limited by your creativity and reluctance. 

The more conventional direct approaches include making a presentation at a bookstore, setting up a table at a convention, fair, or outdoor market; or appearing at a library show. Less conventional direct sales techniques utilize guerilla marketing. Let’s look at both conventional and less conventional approaches, emphasizing the latter.

Bookstore presentations fall into two categories:

1) A formal talk, which can include reading an excerpt, showing a video or slide show, and even having a party. One author I know pulls in two hundred or more children to do face painting. She gets donations from local businesses for the food, drinks, and raffle. The events are so well received in her community that she gets media coverage. Talk about bringing attention to your book!

2) Setting up a table and greeting customers as they walk into the store.

I’ve done both types. The most successful for me was the second approach, which I describe in depth in these two posts: Art of the Meet and Greet Part I and Art of the Meet and Greet Part II. 

If you decide to pursue a convention, fair, or outdoor market, but not a bookstore event, take a look at Part II anyway. The techniques I describe will be helpful. Hands down, I’ve sold more books with meet and greets than any other method. They’re fun, and I’ve made lasting contacts. 

For example, I’ve met librarians, teachers, and book-club members interested in having me do a presentation. I met a book blogger who bought and reviewed my novel, Wyndano’s Cloak. I admit, I was a bit terrified of what he’d say; he’d told me in no uncertain terms that he only reads adult suspense thrillers and mysteries, and he would tell me exactly what he thought of my book. Fortunately, he loved it. Not only did he post his review on his blog, Amazon, and Goodreads, but he approached me later for an interview. Then he came back a month ago and asked me to appear at a new indie bookstore, where he coordinates events.

The best part of meet and greets is the interaction with the customers, particularly children. Their excitement at reading books, their excitement at meeting an author, these are priceless. Several have written to me afterward, and as a writer, you know there is nothing better than touching the heart of a reader. Yes, readers who find me online can write to me too, but trust me, that live connection is deeper, more meaningful.

Which brings me to Guerilla Marketing. 

Listen up, folks. You’ve got to walk around with your Kindle! It’s a serious conversation starter.

While waiting for a concert to start, I was reading on my Kindle.  People who haven’t seen them are curious. I ended up demonstrating how it worked and showed the guy next to me what my book looked like. He took down my book info. At the very least, it was exposure. 

One day, I walked into my bank with my Kindle, housed in a green velvet cover my wife made. The teller asked if it was a Kindle, and we got to talking. I asked her what kind of books she likes. Don’t bypass that question. It’s your way of gauging if this person might like your book. With a bashful expression, she confessed she liked young adult fiction and Harry Potter. Bingo! That was my opening. I told her I wrote in that genre and showed her Wyndano’s Cloak on my Kindle. She said that it was exactly what she loved to read. The next time I came in, I brought a copy of the hardback. I ended up at a different window from hers, but I held up the book. She came over and asked if she could look at it. Her eyes were aglow when I left. Long story short, she bought it for her Kindle, loved the book, posted a review on Amazon, and loaned it to another teller. Every time I see her, we talk books and she asks when my next book will come out.

This being my first year in our new house, I had no idea whether children would show up for Halloween. In the past, they never did, but a hunch told me I better ask my neighbor. He said I could expect three bags worth of kids. It was an hour from sundown. I high-tailed it to the store, snagged candy, dashed back home, and started setting up. I already had the new book cover on our wall, so people would see it when I opened the door. I joked with my wife that it was free marketing as I handed out treats. All of sudden she cried, “You’ve got to print copies of the new cover and first chapter! And wear your Renaissance costume.” 

Our dining room window looks out on the front doorstep, so I set up the hardback and new cover on bookstands there. When children and parents came to the door, they saw the display. Free exposure! I gave out the chapter sample to the older kids, who seemed dazzled. They asked me what I was dressed up as. I replied, “The Mage of Aerdem,” referencing the fantasyland in the book. Everywhere else they got a few pieces of candy. Here they got a signed chapter from an author.

If you try any of the above, be polite, and never hard sell. Have fun. Enjoy making connections. Imagination is our stock-in-trade. Put it to use in your marketing. The possibilities are endless!

* * *

  

About the Author: A. R. Silverberry has won a dozen awards, including Gold Medal Winner in the 2011 Benjamin Franklin Awards for Juvenile/Young Adult Fiction; Gold Medal Winner in the 2010 Readers Favorite Awards for Preteen Fiction; and Silver Medal Winner 2011 in the Bill Fisher Award for Best First Book, Children’s/Young Adult. He lives in California, where the majestic coastline, trees, and mountains inspire his writing. Wyndano's Cloak is his first novel. Follow him at the links below!

A. R. Silverberry’s Website
Facebook
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Jen has settled into a peaceful life when a terrifying event awakens old fears—of being homeless and alone, of a danger horrible enough to destroy her family and shatter her world forever. She is certain that Naryfel, a shadowy figure from her past, has returned and is concentrating the full force of her hate on Jen's family. But how will she strike? A knife in the dark? An attack from her legions? Or with the dark arts and twisted creatures she commands with sinister cunning. Wyndano's Cloak may be Jen's only hope. If she’s got what it takes to use it . . . 

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An interview with a grown-up teen novelist: Michelle Izmaylov

What advice would you give to a teenager who wants to be a published author? 

This is complicated. On one hand, you have to be realistic about the challenges facing you in the future and realize that you’re not going to get famous in a single day. Thinking otherwise sets up unrealistic expectations that may cause writers to get disillusioned with the publishing process as a whole. On the other hand, it’s important to remember that you will improve and people will begin to take notice of your writing in the long run. My best advice is to try your very hardest and keep on trucking no matter who tries to get you down, but also be realistic about how difficult getting published can be. Also, don’t count on writing to be your primary career. Even published author almost always have an alternative job that pays the bills. Writing isn’t all that financially lucrative, though it’s good for your spiritual health.

Do you think entering contests is a good idea? If so, is there a contest you would particularly recommend that young writers enter? 

Yes and no. The trouble with contests is that on one hand you definitely increase opportunities for exposure of your writing. On the other hand, it’s easy to lose self-esteem if you lose at a young age. The best thing is to enter contests with realistic expectations and to keep striving to get better even if things don't work out.

What’s the hardest part of writing and publishing a book?

The most challenging aspect is two-fold. First, procrastination and getting easily distracted while writing is a major issue (especially with how readily available the Internet is these days). Second, and more seriously, is the issue of revision. It’s one thing to write a first draft. It’s an entirely different story to have the perseverance in editing your own work, going over and over until you iron out problems that may have cropped up along the way. It’s even harder to get halfway through a novel and realize you didn’t actually write what you wanted to write. At that point it’s important to step back and understand when it’s better to start over, not to mention having the willpower to do so.

To what do you attribute your success? 

There’s a general rule of thumb that says it takes 10,000 hours of practice to get good at any given thing. I'm still nowhere near as good as I hope to be another five or ten years down the road, but I've spend a good amount of time working on various writing projects over the years that have helped refine my abilities. I also feel like it’s important to be more than just “an author.” Writing is for me a hobby, not a job. It’s something I turn to when I have inspiration rather than something I force out of myself. 

What are the advantages and disadvantages of publishing at your age? 

One of the easiest advantages to pinpoint is that the younger you are, the more unusual it is for you to have actually completed a book. Therefore it’s easier to get public and media attention, which will in turn help get word out about your writing. On the other hand, younger writers (including myself at my present age) still have a lot to learn about the world as we refine our philosophical perspectives and have new experiences to add to our existing repertoire. The younger you are, the more challenging it is to write an unusual and well-crafted work honestly worthy of public attention.

What’s the single best piece of advice you've received? 

One of the things that’s always stuck with me is put your nose to the grindstone and work hard. Fairytales can come true, but not from wishing. You have to work hard every single day to make them reality, which is what I’ve tried to do these past years of my life.

Thanks, Michelle!

Michelle Izmaylov's latest novel, Ricochet, is available from Amazon. 

Writers, looking for inspiration? Have you tried a random photo generator?

Do a Google search for "random photo generator" and you'll find several. Here's a link to one: http://www.pbase.com/photos/random.html

Looking at the photos can give you places, characters, actions, and moods. If you don't feel inspired by what you see, click again to get new photos.

When I tried it, I got a little girl picking up a turtle in a garden. That could be the start of a story. Just ask yourself, "What happened after that?"

I also got a backpack on a kayak. That could also be the start of a story.  Just ask yourself, "Who does that backpack belong to? Why is that person in the kayak? Who else is there? What's their relationship? What kind of conflict could evolve on their adventure?"

Clicking "more" gave me a wistful bride looking out a window and a race car. Put the two together, and you can probably come up with a great story. Maybe the bride is giving up racing. Maybe she wants to race away. Maybe she's marrying a race car driver, and maybe he was killed in an accident on the way to the wedding.

Give it a try. It's a lot of fun, and you never know what you're going to come up with.

Here are some random photos of mine to get you started.

Have fun writing!

Writers, where do you get story ideas? Here's a simple method.

This is the presentation I'll be delivering at the book launch for Why My Love Life Sucks at the Highland Park, New Jersey library this Thursday. Kids will learn how to break a story down to its parts and use those parts to write new stories.

This presentation will be followed by a fun, story-generating craft, book-launch party favors, love-and-vampire themed sweets, and a book signing. It should be great!

I hope you can come; but if you can't, I hope you enjoy this presentation. If the event goes well, I might do the same thing at author visits at libraries and schools in the area.

What do you think? Could this method work for you? 

Please feel free to share it with your kids, teens, students, friends, and fellow writers. 

Thanks, and I look forward to reading your comments!

Shevi Arnold

Interview with Simon Rose for the Children's Authors and Illustrators Facebook group

Simon Rose interviewed me for his Facebook group: Children's Authors and Illustrators. Hope you'll check it out:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/childrensauthorsandillustrators/permalink/484056924957178/

A Mug for Writers: Stories Are Magic...

"Stories are magic...and you're a wizard!" I bought a mug at the local dollar store and used Sharpie brush markers to write and draw on it.

Do you like it?

The Pros and Cons of Cons for Writers

Today is the first day of ComicCon in San Diego, and many of my writing and illustrating, online friends will be there, including Lisa Yee, Heather Brewer and Dan Santat. If you're there, and you love books for kids and teens, make sure you attend the "What's Hot in Young Adult Fiction" panel on Sunday, July 15 at noon and the "Heroes for the Middle-Grade Reader (And You, Too!): Middle Grade Books That Will Rock Your Socks Off" panel on the same day at 2:45PM. You will not regret it.

ComicCon is the big one: the biggest of of the various conventions for fans of much more than comic books. You'll find everything to make the geek inside of you happy--from blockbuster movies and awesome video games to, yes, awesome books for kids and teens.

It's been a dream of mine for quite some time to attend ComicCon in San Diego, and I've always been interested in what goes on behind the scenes. How are the panelists chosen? What goes into setting up a stall to sell your books at one? How much does it cost, and is it worth it?

Recently, I got to know Robert Collins, who has attended many smaller cons in various capacities as a science-fiction writer and indie publisher, and he agreed to answer my questions. Here is his guest post.

Enjoy!

SCIENCE FICTION CONVENTIONS FOR WRITERS

by Robert Collins 

If you write science fiction, fantasy, or horror, you probably know about “Science Fiction Conventions,” or “Cons.”

Throughout the 1980s I went to cons, as a fan. I met people, I bought stuff, and occasionally I got things signed by famous actors. I aspired to be a writer, and dreamed about the day I’d be a con guest.

About five years ago I went to my first con as a guest. I was a published author, looking to promote my shiny new SF novel. For my first con as a guest, I ended up on several panels, and was designated the moderator of all of them. Somehow I survived.

I’ve been to several more since then. Cons offer opportunities for authors to promote their books, and they're a great way to meet fellow fans and authors. What I’ve learned is that, when it comes to plugging your books, you have two choices. You can be a program participant or a vendor. For the first, you’d be one of the guests and attend panels. For the other, you’d buy a table and sell your books.

Being a program participant means you’ll ask to take part in panels and readings. Start by going to the con website and contact the programming person. Contact them well in advance of the con, and include a link to a website where they can see what you write. Mention topics that might interest you, like the sub-genres you write in, related genre interests (gaming, TV shows, etc.), and aspects of publishing that you know fairly well.

Taking part in panels is fun. But you might not sell very many books that way. Panels don’t always attract the most con-goers. I’ve done at least one panel where the only ones in the room were me and the other panelist. Sometimes attendees are going from panel to panel, and don’t have time to buy your book, much less hear your sales pitch.

On the other hand, you’ll get opportunities to meet other authors, as well as editors and publishers. Being on a panel allows you to share information and experience. If you do enough panels at enough cons you stand a chance of making friends with your fellows.

If you want to sell books, you need to be a vendor. Every con has a “dealers’ room” where con-goers can buy everything from books to collectables. Being a vendor requires you to buy at least one dealer room table. A few cons have tables for as low as $50; $75-$100 is more common; but at some cons prices will be higher.

You can take part in programming and be a vendor. You need to let the programming person know that you’ve bought a table. If you feel that you can’t take part in everything you’re asked, just say so; they’ll understand.

There are two significant downsides to choosing to be a vendor: time and money. As a vendor you’re expected to set up before the con officially starts. Most cons open to the public sometime on a Friday afternoon, with any opening ceremony set for Friday night. You’re also expected to remain until the dealer’s room closes, usually Sunday afternoon.

You will also have to spend the money. That doesn’t just mean money for your table. Cons are in hotels, so unless you’re a local you’ll have to get a room for Friday and Saturday. Travel considerations may force you to get a room for Sunday, too. Your table commitment means you can’t leave the con to get lunch; hotel restaurants can be pricey. (That said, most cons will have a “con suite” with snacks; some will have more substantial food, too.)

Not every con will be right for you. There are many media cons, which are devoted to movies and TV shows in general, to specific shows, or to anime. Not all media fans are book readers. If the con is local, though, contact them and ask about taking part.

There are cons devoted to specifically to either science fiction, fantasy, or horror. They’re more likely to occur in the largest cities. If you don’t live within driving distance of one, you’ll have to consider if what you’ll spend on travel will be a wise investment.

Most cons are more general in nature. There might be media guests, author guests, and artist guests. Programming will cover all sub-genres and a variety of media. Aside from literary cons, these are the best for an author.

Is going to any cons worth the effort and expense? Yes! You go not to make money, but to make connections with readers. You go to network with other authors. You go to have a good time with people who share your interests. It’s those things that make going to cons worth your time and money.

~Robert Collins





Bio: I've had three SF novels published: Monitor, Lisa's Way, and Expert Assistance. I've also had a coming of age novel published called True Friends. I've had stories and articles appear in periodicals such as Marion Zimmer Bradley's Fantasy Magazine; Tales of the Talisman; Space Westerns; Sorcerous Signals; Wild West; and Model Railroader. I've had two biographies published, one of "Bleeding Kansas" leader Jim Lane, and the other of a Kansas Civil War general, and I've had six Kansas railroad books published by South Platte Press.

Blog: http://robertlcollins.blogspot.com/

FB Author page: https://www.facebook.com/RobertLCollinsAuthor

Twitter:  https://twitter.com/robertlcollins

Amazon Author Page: http://www.amazon.com/Robert-L-Collins/e/B002SZCUI0/

Smashwords Author Page: http://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/rlckansas

Ride of Your Life blog tour starts today!

I'm so excited: I'm doing a Bewitching Book Tour with Roxanne Rhoads for Ride of Your Life, and it starts today!

 I hope you'll follow along. This is my second Bewitching Blog Tour, so you can tell I was happy with the first.

Here's the schedule:

July 2 Guest blog

The Creatively Green Write at Home Mom

www.creativelygreen.blogspot.com 

July 2 Interview

Mary’s Garden 

http://marysbooksblogger.blogspot.com/ 

July 3 review and guest blog

For The Love Of Film And Novels

http://www.fortheloveoffilmandnovels.com/

July 3 Promo

Cover2CoverBlog

www.cover2coverblog.blogspot.com

July 3 Review and Guest blog

My Guilty Obsession

http://myguiltyobsession.blogspot.com/ 

July 3 Promo

Read 2 Review 

http://read2review.com 

July 4 Promo and review

Waiting on Sunday to Drown

 http://engelsigh.blogspot.com/

July 5 Promo

Sapphyria's Book Reviews  

www.saphsbookblog.blogspot.com

July 5 Interview

Books, Books The Magical Fruit

http://booksbooksthemagicalfruit.blogspot.com

July 6 Interview

Simply Infatuated

http://simplyinfatuated.wordpress.com/ 

July 7 Promo

A Dream Within A Dream

http://adreamwithindream.blogspot.com

July 8 Guest blog

A Bibliophile's Thoughts on Books

http://bibliophilesthoughtsonbooks.blogspot.com/ 

Thanks, Roxanne!

The Fine Art of Talking to People Who Aren’t There: Drawing Fictional Characters to Life

 I’m delighted to have a wonderful, multi-talented writer as a guest on my blog today, Jeff Davis. Jeff is the author of a new YA fantasy novel, The Seeds.  

I was surprised to discover that, like me, Jeff likes to draw his characters and put them somewhere he can see them when he writes.

For at least 20 years, I’ve had a drawing of Toren taped under the hutch that goes over my desk. The look on her face tells me that she has a story that needs to be told. More recently I’ve had a drawing of Gilbert Garfinkle taped there too. Unlike Toren, the look on his face says, “Oh, no. What are you going to do to me this time?” Sorry, Gilbert, but I have to follow what I call Murphy’s Law for fiction writers: namely, if anything can go wrong for your main character, it should.

Jeff shared with me his thoughts about drawing characters and how this helps in the writing process. Even if you can’t draw, just having a visual representation of your character—perhaps an illustration or a photo you found online—can help you in the same way. I know some writers who collect photos on Pinterest that they use for inspiration.

So what exactly can a drawing of your character do for you?

Here’s Jeff with the answer to that question:

__________

There’s a demon on my screen giving me attitude.

Matra from The Seeds by Jeff Davis

As a kid, I was always drawing. Usually heroes and dragons. Facing them, riding them, conjuring them, my characters were always captured within an action. Something was going on. I would sit and stare at them, waiting to find out how their stories played out in my mind’s eye. The stories were always so much more intriguing than my meager talents could portray. It was as if each drawing was seen through a window into whatever world I was dreaming up.

Fast forward to the present.

 Writing blog posts, web copy and promotional materials doesn’t leave much room for fantastic characters or muscle-bound heroes, even though that kind of writing does weave a narrative that’s suppose to whisk you off to a more utopian world. But fantasy fiction? Ah! 

That’s the thing.

When I started writing my first fantasy novel, “The Seeds”, it was written in my head far longer than it has existed in print. I would watch the characters move through scenarios in my mind’s eye, just like when I was a kid.  But, where a budding artist can draw a sword in a hand if the situation calls for it, a writer must make having that sword consistent, it must make sense.

 As an exercise in continuity, I decided to create a more complex set of designs for my first major effort. Each of the main characters was created in full color that I could pull up when necessary. Does he carry a sword? I might want to mention that fact somewhere before he whips it out. Physical descriptions? To avoid the characters from becoming perfect in every way, some boundaries are needed.

But, the most surprising and most frequent use of these visual references came when writing dialogue.

Witty banter is fun to write, and usually rolls right across my keyboard. For Varia and Dartura of “The Seeds”, being twins makes their conversations appear pointed and clipped. They know what the other is going to say almost before it's said, so only what is needed is expressed. It’s almost like the lossy compression of video for the web; only the pixels that change from the last keyframe are rendered. (If that makes sense to you, Yay! You’re a geek like me!)

But, it was the shadowy antagonist that vexed me.

How many times can one rely on writing “Bah!” to express contempt? I had to really convey a personality that I didn’t have in me--that of a conniving trickster old enough to be bored with her world, yet sinister enough to care little for the damage she does. So, I created Matra in graphic form.

Her eyes would stare malevolently at me as I posed questions to her. I would form dialogue, out loud, and actually ask if that was what she would say in that scenario. She didn’t really answer. (Thankfully, or I might be writing this from a padded cell.) But the disdain in her expression was enough for me to interpret when something worked (I hope), or when it didn’t.

I usually write whenever I get the chance, but most frequently at night, when the house is quiet. Often, my wife would open the door to my office, only to quietly close it again as I sat arguing with Matra. (“But, you hate this guy! Why would you be cordial?”) More than once my wife searched my eyes for some physical sign of the madness that was surely creeping over me. When I announced that “The Seeds” was complete, I was unsure which of us was more relieved.

Still, not only sketching but fully realizing my characters is a practice that I will continue to use as my writing improves. The illustrations take on a new life when complete, and for me at least, really form the basis of the inner workings of a character. The downside for the reader may be that they interpret the character differently, but that’s okay. I would like nothing more than for a reader to tell me, “I saw this character like this…”

If you are reading my work enough to form such opinions, it can only help me become a better writer.

Jeff Davis

____

Author bio:

Jeff Davis has worked with some of the finest high technology teams in the business and has delivered to some of the world's most recognizable companies the high quality graphics, multimedia and print materials they demand, all over the world. He majored in art and design, and he continues to regard himself as a student of the history and reinvention of popular culture. As an author, Jeff hopes to bring his unique ideas to life in this medium. A visitor to his studio office will be treated to the sounds of Led Zeppelin, Sheryl Crow, Kate Bush and traditional Celtic music. Jeff resides an hour north of Manhattan, N.Y. with his wife and two children. www.jdsavage.com/theseeds.htm

THE SEEDS 

This is not your grandmother's fairy tale. A fantasy novel that turns the genre on its head, "The Seeds" follows Trooper Angus Mayweather as he is thrust into the conflict faced by twin sisters Dartura & Varia, Generals of the Tarol Nation. As the sisters uncover a new threat from an old enemy, Angus must do what he can to help as the Tarol Nation faces all-out war.

Click here to check out drawings of Characters from“The Seeds”.

Order "The Seeds" from Smashwords. 

Find Jeff Davis on Google+, Facebook, or Twitter @JDSavageTV

  

Do you find drawing from other mediums helps you with writing?  If so, what medium, and how does it help? Do you have a picture of your main character or a place in your story? Does listening to a certain kind of music put you in the right mood? If you haven't thought of using pictures this way before, how do you think they might help  you? What would you ask your main character, and how do you think your main character would respond? 

Please leave your answers in the comments below. Thanks!