Write It Now! Competitions
For Teachers and Librarians
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Writing for Children
"Talent is *way* down on the list of things you need to write; it comes in a distant fourth, after persistance, motivation, and discipline. And the reason is that "talent" is as common as mud; what's rare is the motivation to sit down and actually *do* something with it, the discipline to do it regularly, and the persistance to stick with it until it's finished."
- Patricia Wrede, Children's Writer |
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HOW DO I WRITE A QUERY LETTER?
Query letters are those sent to editors ahead of the manuscript asking them if they might be interested in your idea. These letters should be short, usually no longer than one page, and should only include information germaine to the article or story submission. Make sure you mention any professional expertise that you have that might give you an edge. For instance, maybe you want to write an article on the mysterious life of the giant squid, but this is your first foray into writing and you have no publishing credits. You have, however, been a docent at the local aquarium for ten years and have acquired a certain level of expertise on all things aquatic. Say so.
Be aware that an editor reading this will likely ask you to submit the completed article on spec, which means basically, "no promises, but your idea intrigues me."As you get more publishing credits, update your query letter accordingly.
Soon, you'll be condensing the information into a paragraph that might read like, "My work has appeared in Amicus Journal, Cat Fancy, American Baby, and more...."
Some markets are accepting electronic queries now via email, which sure cuts down on postage, but make sure that your query target is specific and well chosen. Do not abuse this convenience.
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WHAT IS A SASE/SASP?
SASE stands for Self-Addressed Stamped Envelope and SASP stands for Self-Addressed Stamped Postcard. One or the other, and sometimes both, should be included anytime you send any type of correspondence to an editor through the regular mail, assuming you want to get some kind of response.
Envelopes are standard, but you can use a postcard if you're only looking or a quick "please send back the SASP to let me know my manuscript arrived safely" kind of message. Anything more than that, use a SASE, and be sure to use enough postage.
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HOW ABOUT A COVER LETTER?
Cover letters are sent along with a complete manuscript, either already requested by an editor, or "over the transom", but only send these to publishing houses who specifically allow unsolicited manuscripts.
Like a query letter, keep the cover letter short. If the editor is expecting the work, just a quick hello and brief note about the manuscript, looking forward to working with you, and thanks for your time is all you need. For an unsolicited manuscript, you need a hook that will get the editor to read on. Here's where a cover letter can sound an awful lot like a query. You're writing about the story or article with the specific intent of garnering editorial interest, but keep it short. Let the work stand for itself. It's right there, after all starting on the very next page.
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WHAT IS THE PROPER MANUSCRIPT FORMAT?
Submit your article, story and novel manuscripts typed, double-spaced on only one side of the paper, on standard white printer-friendly paper, and in a 12 point clean font. By that I mean one that is easy to read. I use Times New Roman. Also, use 1" - 1 1/2" margins on all your pages. (White space is your friend.)
On the first page in the top left corner, include your name and all of your contact information, including your email and web address if you have one. Put the word count or stanza count in the top right corner.
The title goes about a third of the way down the page and the first paragraph about ten lines after that. Center your title and put "by Your Name" if you like. No need to number the first page, but be sure to number the rest, and include a header with your last name and the title of the piece.
If you're including sidebars with a magazine piece, do so on a separate sheet following the first page format given above, except under the title, write SIDEBARS in capital letters, then list each in turn along with their word count.
Some editors are now accepting manuscripts in electronic format. This means you can send them your story or article on disk or via email. Make sure you've got permission to send an editor email before you do this, though, and never, ever send a query via email unless you've got experss permission to do so.
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HOW DO YOU HANDLE REJECTION?
You take it in stride and understand that publishing is a very subjective business, in general, and just because one editor didn't buy your work for whatever reason, that doesn't mean another one won't. As you send out your story and article ideas and perfect your query letters, you'll notice that you will receive more and more personal responses from editors and even if these are rejections, they can give you valuable feedback on your work.
Be sure to send editors who take the time to write you a personal rejection like that a thank you note. Just a quick little card saying that you appreciate their time and attention to your work and that you look forward to trying them again later.
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WHAT IS A CRITIQUE GROUP?
Critique groups are made up of people with similar levels of writing expertise who gather regularly to share their works-in-progress, compare notes on markets, talk about the industry, all with the goal of helping each other improve their writing. The main object is constructive criticism, emphasis on constructive. If you glance through the acknowledgements pages of any new novel on the shelf at Barnes and Noble, you'll likely see an author's thank you to her critique group members.
How do you find a critique group? Check at your library to see if they have any writers groups, or see if there is a local chapter of professional organization that specializes in your chosen genre. These include, but are in no way limited to: the Society for Children's Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI), Sisters in Crime (women who write mysteries), Romance Writers of America, and many, many more. If you have trouble locating these folks, you can always start your own group by putting an ad in the paper or posting a notice on the bulletin board at the library or local rec center. There might be lots of other writers in your area looking for a group, too!
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WHAT IS THE "RULE OF 12"?
I learned this from prolific author Jane Yolen, who said she got it from somewhere else (sorry, can't remember the source). The idea is to greatly improve your chances of getting published by having at least twelve titles making the submission rounds at all times. This doesn't mean using the shotgun approach and hoping one of your manuscripts hits the right target. This means studying your markets and making qualified submissions to these editors with the full knowledge that they do indeed publish the type of piece you're sending them. Keep careful track of your submissions using a spreadsheet if you like, or a ledger of some kind, or a great big white board on your office wall. Whatever works for you. Note the title, the publisher you've sent it to, their estimated time of response, and the date sent. This will help you track what's out there, what's come back, and how many times. If you've sent a manuscript out to five targeted markets (people most likely to buy it) and it hasn't sold yet, you might consider revising it.
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INCLUDING PHOTOS AND ILLUSTRATIONS
If you are writing an article and can include photographs, you've got a lot better chance of selling it. This includes any kind of accompanying graphics, be it maps, line drawings, or schematics. Make sure to check the publisher's preferences for submitting these graphics and photos -- they might prefer slides, or transparencies, over prints, or they might accept the information on disk or via email, along with your manuscript. Be sure to ask, and be specific about what you can offer and what format they need, especially in regard to electronic transmission (file sizes, image resolution, etc.).
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FINDING MARKETS
One of the hardest things about breaking into writing is finding the right market for your work. Lots of new writers get in such a hurry that they tend to use the shot gun approach -- just send that ink-still-wet manuscript out to as many publishers as they can afford stamps for. This is a mistake. A big one.
It's extremely important for writers of all levels of experience to research their markets regularly. You don't send picturebook manuscripts to houses that only publish encyclopedic non-fiction, or a fictional story about a girl football player to a magazine that focuses on non-fiction about animals, for instance. I know that seems obvious, but you'd be surprised at how little some writers check this before mailing a manuscript.
So how do you do it? You'll hear this over and over, but it's true. Study the different publishers and the styles of books and magazines they put out. Write and request their new catalogs, or go to the bookstore and look at all the magazines. Take notes. Lots of them. Look at the titles, the masthead with current editorial contact information, and pay close attention to the focus of the stories. If you go to the library, you'll be able to read several back issues as well, but go to a larger library with a better collection of magazines.
The more time you spend in this preliminary research, the more likely you'll be to find the right publisher for your work, and you'll spend a lot less on stamps.
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SELF-PUBLISHING
A lot of people who get frustrated with the traditional publishing routes consider self-publishing, but having gone down that route, I can tell you that it's not easy. It's expensive, for one thing, to produce a book. Even a small one. And then trying to sell it is really hard to do if you don't have a target market in mind. I've heard of people who created works of fiction that were then successful s-p projects, but typically these have niche markets waiting for them. For example, if it's a story about a young woman who learns to fly an airplane, the author might market this book at community airport gift shops or through any number of women's organizations whose focus is empowering girls.
In general, fiction is hard to do if you're self-publishing. Non-fiction, however, is a whole 'nother ball game. Look at Chicken Soup for the Soul. Non-fiction markets are usually much easier to target and if it's not a large chain bookstore, they might be much more receptive to giving over shelf space. Got a great idea for a cookbook? Target restaurant gift shops. Is your book about gardening? Try garden shops. You can even start small if you want, at your local home garden center. You get the idea.
First, though, you need to produce the very best book you can. Hire a professional graphics artist to do your cover. Hire a professional freelance editor to proofread your manuscript before you send it to the publisher, and for heaven's sake, work with a reputable printer to produce this book for you. Avoid vanity presses. These places are notorious for taking advantage of people.
Also, consider a print-on-demand electronic publisher. This is a huge growth industry and deserves a whole section to itself, but there are some good articles available in The Writer and Writer's Digest, and probably a lot more writing venues, both in print and online. Try iUniverse.com and 1stBooks.com. They're two of the biggest.Good luck! |
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HOW TO CREATE A DUMMY BOOK
For a standard 32-page picture book, use 16 pieces of paper laid out horizontally and draw lines down the middle of each. This creates double page spreads. Number each side starting with the first sheet, right hand side as page 1. Sheet two is pages two and three. Sheet three is pages four and five, and so on.
Pick up any picture book and check the page layout. The first two or three pages are all administrative/title page stuff. The story usually doesn't start until page four or five, although there can be art on the beginning pages that hints at the story to come.
Fill in the story on each of the subsequent pages, leaving room for both the pictures and the text. Note that text in picturebooks is usually very short. Use the pictures to tell the story, too, not just to illustrate the words.
The last pages are often used as a last little wink of artwork to tie up the story. Look at THE MAGIC HAT by Mem Fox, for instance. Brilliantly illustrated by Tricia Tusa. The pictures tell the story as much as the text does. Take the text by itself and it's really imcomplete. It NEEDS the images for the story to work.
Chapter books don't really use story boards as the illustrations in these are usually just little clips at the beginnings of the chapters and the occasional page-sized line art illustration.
If your doing a graphic novel, however, that process works very much the same as the picturebook, only with more pages. Always work in multiples of four when laying out your pages because that's how many book pages they put on a printer sheet when they're publishing the final book. If you're self-publishing this at home, you can work with two pages to each side of a sheet of paper. You might want to glue two sheets back to back so the artwork doesn't bleed through. |
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