Messages In This Digest (1 Message)

1.: Writing Children's Books: No More Excuses! From: Laura Backes

Message

1.: Writing Children's Books: No More Excuses!

Posted by: "Laura Backes" submissions@isnare.net isnare_distribution

Fri Feb 8, 2008 3:55 pm (PST)

*****************************************************************

Message delivered directly to members of the group:
Announce_It_Write@yahoogroups.com

*****************************************************************

Please consider this free-reprint article written by:
Laura Backes

==================
IMPORTANT - Publication/Reprint Terms

- You have permission to publish this article electronically in
free-only publications such as a website or an ezine as long as
the bylines are included.

- You are not allowed to use this article for commercial
purposes. The article should only be reprinted in a publicly
accessible website and not in a members-only commercial site.

- You are not allowed to post/reprint this article in any
sites/publications that contains or supports hate, violence,
porn and warez or any indecent and illegal sites/publications.

- You are not allowed to use this article in UCE (Unsolicited
Commercial Email) or SPAM. This article MUST be distributed in
an opt-in email list only.

- If you distribute this article in an ezine or newsletter, we
ask that you send a copy of the newsletter or ezine that
contains the article to http://www.isnare.com/eta.php?aid=223010

- If you post this article in a website/forum/blog, ALL links
MUST be set to hyperlinks and we ask that you send a copy of the
URL where the article is posted to
http://www.isnare.com/eta.php?aid=223010

- We request that you ask permission from the author if you
want to publish this article in print.

The role of iSnare.com is only to distribute this article as
part of its Article Distribution feature (
http://www.isnare.com/distribution.php ). iSnare.com does NOT
own this article, please respect the author's copyright and this
publication/reprint terms. If you do not agree to any of these
terms, please do not reprint or publish this article.
==================

Article Title: Writing Children's Books: No More Excuses!
Author: Laura Backes
Word Count: 1176
Article URL: http://www.isnare.com/?aid=223010&ca=Writing
Format: 64cpl
Contact The Author: http://www.isnare.com/eta.php?aid=223010

Easy Publish Tool: http://www.isnare.com/html.php?aid=223010

================== ARTICLE START ==================
Rejection is never easy. But some authors can't separate
themselves from their work, and take rejection letters very
personally. I get many emails from disgruntled writers who can't
get past their anger to figure out why their work was turned
down in the first place. So before you spend hours sticking pins
in your editor voodoo doll, see if you recognize yourself below:

The complaint: "Editors practice age discrimination. I'm over
50 and editors believe only young authors can write for
children."

The truth: Editors are interested in finding good books,
period. It doesn't matter how old the author is. Take a look at
the lists of award winners (ask your librarian, or do an
Internet search for Caldecott or Newbery Awards) and note the
ages of the authors. Many didn't start writing until their kids
were in school full time, or took up writing as a second career.
Editors also know that the best stories come from years of life
experience, and older writers have more to draw from. Yes,
occasionally a book written by a teenager will make the news,
but more often than not it's the novelty of the author's age
that gets the publicity, not the quality of the writing. And why
does the editor know your age in the first place? There's no
reason to mention it in your cover or query letter, unless it
has direct bearing on the story. If you're writing historical
fiction and you actually lived through the events in the plot,
or your nonfiction book is based on years of study in the
subject, then your age is a plus.

The complaint: "I'm a man, and editors think only women can
write children's books."

The truth: Sorry guys, but this one's a little ridiculous.
Again, look at that list of award winners. Men are
well-represented. Glance through the names of editors in
Children's Writer's & Illustrator's Market published by Writer's
Digest Books. Lots of men there too. The only time your gender
might be an issue is with the readers themselves. For example,
teenage boys might not buy a science fiction/adventure story
written by a woman, or middle grade girls may think a man can't
possibly pen a series featuring four adolescent girls at summer
camp. They're wrong, but you can always use your first initial
instead of your name to fool your audience.

The complaint: "They're just wrong about my writing! All
editors want these days are famous names, not quality books."

The truth: Yes, many editors (especially those at larger
houses) have to be concerned with making money for the
publisher, and so rely on a certain number of established
authors each year to pay the bills. But they also know they need
to find new writers, because those standbys aren't going to be
writing forever.

Sometimes it's almost impossible to interpret a rejection
letter, and one or two form rejections does not mean you're a
failure. Editors are people too, with personal tastes and the
need to balance each list by subject matter and age group.
However, several rejections in a row deserve a closer look. Are
you submitting to appropriate publishers, who actually publish
the kind of book you've written? Have any of the houses on your
list recently published a book very similar to yours? Is your
manuscript riddled with typos or grammatical errors? Even though
a copy editor will fix these before the book's published, sloppy
presentation can give an editor reason to reject a manuscript
when she's got 50 others sitting on her desk waiting for her
attention.

In most cases, though, it's the writing that gets the
manuscript rejected. And since it's the editor's job to
recognize good writing and help those authors make their books
even better, there is a chance (admit it!) that the rejection is
deserved. How can you tell? First of all, if you get personal
comments about your manuscript in the rejection letter, take
those to heart. Play devil's advocate and assume the editor's
right, and see if those changes improve the work. Secondly, get
objective input. Join a writer's group, get a professional
manuscript critique, or pay for a personal critique session at a
writer's conference (most Society of Children's Book Writers &
Illustrators workshops--www.scbwi.org--have optional one-on-one
critiques). Take writing classes, read books on writing. Do
whatever you can to learn how to judge your work and make it
better.

The complaint: "Publishers aren't interested in publishing
books that will help kids."

The truth: Whoa! If children's book publishers didn't produce
books that benefit kids, they'd go out of business in a
heartbeat. Of course, we can all walk into a book store and find
books that aren't worth the paper they're printed on, but that's
true of any product. (Have you ever bought a T-shirt that
disintegrated in the first wash, or a DVD player that
self-destructed in a week?) I'm not saying that's a good thing,
but our society seems to tolerate a certain amount of drivel in
the marketplace. However, all publishers prefer
commercially-appealing books that also have substance. This
complaint consistently comes from writers whose goal is to "help
kids," or teach them how to grow into solid, caring citizens
through their books. This is admirable and even desirable, but
very often the message is heavy-handed and preachy. The message
smothers the story, and the book ends up sounded like a lecture.
It's simply not good writing. Try reading several popular books
wit h a message embedded in the plot (ask a teacher or librarian
for recommendations) and work on the writing-improvement
suggestions above.

The complaint: "I'm disabled/poor/have had a hard life and want
to share my story, but no one will listen."

The truth: I imagine it's difficult for an editor to reject a
manuscript that comes from someone who has struggled with
adversity and is still determined to follow their lifelong dream
of becoming a published author. The tough circumstances
themselves don't work against the writer (very often they
contribute to powerful stories) but an author's unique situation
cannot outweigh less-than-stellar writing. What's on the page is
what matters the most. If your story is too personal (it's about
your life as an adult, or you haven't extracted the universal
feelings and crafted them into a story that will be relevant to
a wide audience), the book simply won't sell in the children's
market. Again, learn what makes a quality children's book and
get objective feedback on your manuscript. Remember, no one owes
you a publishing credit just because you took the time to write
a book. Writing is hard work, and requires self-education,
practice, and persistence. There's no shame in p utting aside a
manuscript that simply won't sell and writing something new.
Every published author has a drawer full of those, and enough
rejection letters to wallpaper an office. So join the club– it's
worth the price of membership.

About The Author: Laura Backes publishes Children's Book
Insider, the Newsletter for Children's Writers. For info about
writing children's books, free articles, market tips, insider
secrets & more, visit http://Write4kids.com. For a free 3 month
mini-subscription to CBI, go to
http://write4kids.com/minisub.html

Please use the HTML version of this article at:
http://www.isnare.com/html.php?aid=223010
================== ARTICLE END ==================

For more free-reprint articles by Laura Backes please visit:
http://www.isnare.com/?s=author&a=Laura+Backes

Back to top
Reply to sender | Reply to group | Reply via web post
Messages in this topic (1)