Award-Winning Author Ellen Jackson

SECRETS OF SUCCESS

Mara Rockliff is a talented and versatile writer who has made a living for fifteen years writing for educational publishers and periodicals ranging from Highlights for Children magazine to The Washington Post. Recently, she has branched out in other directions, authoring two picture books and an easy reader. Her first picture book, PIECES OF ANOTHER WORLD, was described in a review as "a heartwarming story that will educate and excite children to watch the sky and encourage parents to observe with their children."

Mara's second picture book, THE BUSIEST STREET IN TOWN, is forthcoming from Knopf.
Her speaking engagements include school and library visits as well as appearances at bookstores, writing classes and workshops, conferences, and literary festivals.

How did you begin writing for the educational market?

I needed a job! After college graduation, I moved to New York and started looking for a job in publishing. I soon discovered that trade publishers and magazines were paying editorial assistants as little as $12,000 a year. Now, even fifteen years ago this was not enough to live on in New York City. Fortunately, I'd grown up in the business--my dad's a sales rep and as
a kid I got to meet lots of well-known authors--so I wasn't particularly interested in the "glamour" side.


When an opening came up at one of the big textbook publishers, Holt, Rinehart & Winston, I jumped at it. Having read all the experts' job-seeking advice, I showed up for my interview with a little notepad (purple, to match my atrocious purple polyester suit with the giant white plastic buttons), on which I assiduously scribbled notes the whole time we were
talking. My interviewer, the legendary Kathleen
Daniel, was so amused she hired me.

I stayed at Holt five years, becoming an obnoxiously young senior editor before I left in 1996 to move down to Virginia. At first, I freelanced exclusively for Holt, but since then I've worked for all the major publishers (preK-12) and many smaller ones.

One of the topics you've spoken on is "Landing Your First Children's Book Deal." What made you decide to move into the trade market, and how did you make the transition?

I guess I'd just been writing on assignment for so long, it seemed like time to put some of that energy into writing my own stories. I wrote my first picture book manuscript in 1999. It was 1,700 words, and oddly enough, it never sold! Obviously, I had a lot to learn about trade publishing.

My next move was a better one--I signed up for a week-long children's writing workshop at the Wildacres retreat center in North Carolina, where I went to classes led by Cheryl Zach and Marcia Thornton Jones and met a bunch of fantastic writing friends, including Rebecca Kraft Rector (TRIA AND THE GREAT STAR RESCUE), Susan Rosson Spain (THE DEEP CUT), and Martha Peaslee Levine (STOP THAT NOSE!).

I learned a lot at Wildacres, including that I needed to join the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators. Two years later, thanks to a listing in the SCBWI newsletter, I made my first trade sale with my easy reader NEXT TO AN ANT.

You've also spoken on "Turning Your Own Experiences into a Children's Book." Can you tell us how your life has inspired your books?

PIECES OF ANOTHER WORLD began with something that happened when I was seven or eight. Late one night, my parents got my sister and me out of bed and took us out in our pajamas for an ice cream. Since their usual
tendency was heavily pro-bedtime and anti-ice cream, this struck me as pretty much the most fantastic thing they'd ever done. (That was, admittedly, before the $80,000 Ivy League education.)

Later, when I was brainstorming ideas for picture books, this incident came back to me. I wanted to write a story that conveyed the thrill of a child's first trip out into the unfamiliar nighttime world. As an adult, I'd dabbled in natural history and astronomy, so that went into the mix. Ultimately, it became the story of Jody, whose father wakes her late at night and takes her out on a mysterious journey ending in her first meteor shower. Of course, they
stop for ice cream on the way!

The book's dedication reads: "For my parents, who once took us out for ice cream in the middle of the night." When I showed it to my mom and dad, they thanked me nicely and said by the way, they had no memory of this
ever happening . . .

Easy readers can be difficult to write and sell. But you've managed to do it. What inspired you and do you have any advice for other writers who would like to try this genre?

In educational publishing, it's essential to be able to write "to spec" (specifications). That is, a
typical piece needs to be a specific number of words, written for a specific purpose, at a reading level which is often so specific as to be beyond mortal comprehension. ("We ran your story through the software and it's coming out as level 'P' . . . can you make it more 'Q', somehow?") It's also important to be able to pick up house style from a sample, so your overall diction, tone, etc. fit in with the rest of the series. I think these skills helped me write a Rookie Reader that worked for Scholastic/Children's Press.

My advice would be to get the company's guidelines, then go to the library or bookstore and study some recent examples from that particular series. If you're interested in writing "leveled readers" for educational publishers, I'd recommend starting with an online-only publisher such as Reading A-Z, which pays somewhat less than print publishers and might be more open to new writers.

Have your public speaking appearances been successful? Do you enjoy them?

For pure fun, my favorite so far was being on a couple of panels at last year's Virginia Festival of the Book. I like panels--if your mind goes blank, there's always someone else to talk!

My most useful appearance, though, was a session at a regional school librarians' conference. Up till then, I'd always done okay just speaking off the cuff, but this time I was even more sleep-deprived than usual (in my spare time, I'm the mother of a small child)
and I absolutely bombed. I can't say I enjoyed the experience, but it taught me that I needed to be more prepared!

How do you prepare for school visits?

A couple of stiff belts of Scotch . . . no, just
kidding. I've created several Powerpoint slide shows on various topics such as "The Secret Life of a Writer" and "The Meteor and Me." These are fun for kids, and good memory aids for me, letting me talk without a script. Another activity that's popular with younger kids is reading them the manuscript of my next picture book and then giving them a "book cover" coloring sheet to illustrate--a great way for them to practice making their own mental images from words, and learn about the way a book gets put together.

Of course, the best way to prepare for a school visit is to be ready for surprises! I've planned a
presentation for fourth graders and ended up speaking to kindergarteners. I've had not one but TWO microphones die in the middle of a 250-kid assembly.


At a rural school in Jamaica, my presentation was cut off abruptly by the arrival of a "gospel van" bearing shoeboxes of Christmas gifts . . . in February. A sense of humor helps.

Have you found other ways to promote your books?

My website, I hope! I was a longtime holdout, but I finally went to the library and checked out a few web-design books of the "for dummies" variety (not a title I much care for, but in this case it was entirely accurate), then rolled up my sleeves and got started. I could have hired someone, but I wanted to be able to update it frequently and easily myself.

Also, learning new skills is supposed to pep up your brain cells and stave off Alzheimer's. Also, I'm cheap.

In the first two days, my website got several hundred hits. I'm fairly sure not more than 87 were my mom, so I think it was a worthwhile investment.

What future projects are you working on?

Right now, my agent and I are excited about MY HEART WILL NOT SIT DOWN, a Depression-era story that takes place in Cameroon, West Africa. I'm also working on a picture book about the Mughal emperor Akbar the Great, and one based on an incident in the life of George
Washington.

What advice or tips do you have for new writers who are trying to get their first book published?

The most common thing I hear is, "I've been working on a picture book story, but I need to find an illustrator." DON'T! Unless you're an illustrator yourself, you stand a much better chance of selling your manuscript on its own. Your publisher will choose the illustrator.

Writers should familiarize themselves with the
business. There is a wealth of resources out there: newsletters, how-to books, workshops, all kinds of stuff. You'll find a pretty comprehensive list on the "For Writers" page of my website
(www.mararockliff.com/write.html).

On the other hand, remember that the most important thing is to improve your writing. I've met writers who knew absolutely everything about the market, down to the color and pattern of Editor X's favorite socks, but their work just wasn't publishable yet.

To learn more about Mara and her books, visit her website at www.mararockliff.com.

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This month Secrets of Success features Marni McGee, author of picture books, easy readers, historical fiction and nonfiction. Marni's critically acclaimed work has been published in the United States, the UK, and Korea. Her next book, WHILE ANGELS WATCH, will be published simultaneously in the United Kingdom, Germany, France, Greece and Australia--as well as the United States (in May). Recently, she co-authored two books in an eight-volume series on ancient civilizations published by Oxford University Press. In November 2005, this series was adopted for use in California schools by the California State Board of Education.


How did you become interested in writing for children?

I began by writing for my own children, never dreaming that it would become a passion, much less a career. The word "never" has become something of a mantra for me - or maybe it's a magic trick! A sleight of. . . mouth? Almost everything I've said I would never do professionally, I've done. And if I said it would never happen, it has. I was sure, for example, that I would never write poetry.

But you have written quite a lot of poetry, haven't you?

Yes, and I love it! My poems have been published in Cricket and in the anthologies of the late-great poet and anthologist Myra Cohn Livingston. Poetry grounds most of my writing, in fact. Strange that I thought, for the first 12 years of my career, that I had no aptitude for it. In fall of 1986, writer/poet Julia Cunningham convinced me to join her at a poetry workshop through Adult Ed in Santa Barbara, where we both live. I agreed, just for the pleasure of Judy's company, and discovered that poetry was and is the most natural "place" in the world for me - my favorite river for floating, dreaming, exploring . . . creating. Two years later, at a summer conference with Jane Yolen, Jane saw some of my poems for children and suggested that I rework a "finished" picture book, turning its prose into rhythmic lines of poetry. She liked the results and invited me to use her name and recommendation in marketing this manuscript. This led to my first professional YES, and it came after 15 years of writing and submitting. Long time! That why I always advise persistence. Imagine Winston Churchill sitting in your work room, saying to you, as he said to the embattled Brits: "Never give up. Never!"


Your picture books have a poetic, spiritual quality that I very much admire. Can you say something about your creative process?

I can say something about it, yes, but it remains a mystery to me, in many ways. I find my subjects all over the place - in childhood memories, in history, and in day-to-day events that strike me as strange, interesting, touching or funny. But once the writing begins, I become immersed in that river I spoke of. The rhythm takes over, I think, and the words flow . . . Or not. I mean: sometimes nothing happens! It's not an Add-Hot-Water sort of miracle. Sometimes I have to wait. Float. Or perhaps swim to a different cove and hope for better luck, trusting in the mystery.

Those moments when words, rhythm and meaning converge and take over - these are the moments that I treasure the most dearly. When I am out of my own way. . . when the words, especially poetry, come not so much from me or even to me, but through me. There are very few joys to compare with this experience. It makes me know that I am alive, creatively - yet not in charge. I can't be vain or possessive about the product when this happens. Just grateful.


You've worked with co-authors on your books for Oxford University Press. Has that been a good experience for you? How do the two of you work together?

I find nonfiction collaboration very exciting. I would avoid it absolutely for fiction, though I love critique and brain-storming with writing colleagues. I'd recommend that potential collaborators be very sure of one another before beginning. Only work with someone who is truly congenial, someone who hopes for the same end product. Investigate before you commit - especially before you sign anything or accept money! Second: make sure that each partner has a clear role and there's a need for the collaboration to take place. If so, be ready to compromise but not play dead! You'll want to give in sometimes, but also prepare to hold your ground when it truly matters.

What OUP (Oxford University Press) did in its ancient civilizations series was to create "little marriages" between 8 scholars of ancient civilizations and children's book writers. This was brilliant: each author had expertise. I, for example, didn't argue about historical "facts" though I often questioned their place in a book for 11- and 12-year-old readers. I was responsible for the style and tone of the work, for the emphases, and the overall feel of my volumes. The writing is basically mine, but the "buck" stops at the scholar's desk when it comes to historical accuracy. It was a strong combining of skills and sensitivities.

I worked with Professor Amanda Podany of Cal Poly Pomona on THE ANCIENT NEAR EASTERN WORLD and with Professor Ronald Mellor from UCLA on THE ANCIENT ROMAN WORLD. With each of these scholars, I wrote, using the topics and the raw materials that they either provided or suggested, then sent the chapters to them for corrections, additions, and deletions. I was always free to add new material if I wished. I was safe, knowing that my scholar would tell me if my "discovery" was outdated, skewed, or simply wrong. Each chapter flew through cyberspace about 20 times even before it ever hit our editors' desks - and then the whole thing went to outside scholars and critics. These books have been thoroughly vetted, but we believe their appeal to students lies in their conversational, story-telling style. That's what Oxford wanted. "No fiction at all," my editors commanded, "but make it read like a novel." I laughed, of course - but then set to work.


The impossible makes me smile. "Impossible" is rather like "never," isn't it? A challenge lurks inside those words! Once I heard that an editor wanted Easy Readers complete with characters, action, humor, lively plot with a humdinger climax and a 40-word vocabulary. That time too, I laughed - all that on a 40-word menu? - and set to work. It was way more fun than a crossword puzzle and kept me going for days! Wouldn't you know? The editor changed her mind after I accomplished "the impossible." Years later, I sold a revision of the manuscript to another editor. It's now called Silly Goose and will be published by Little Tiger in 2007.

You've been extremely successful in selling interesting projects in recent years. How have you managed to do this?

My career path changed - very happily - during a sabbatical stay in England. (My husband is a history professor at the University of California, Santa Barbara, and we "had to" live in London for two years, beginning in 1999.) I met my current agent during that time, and that has greatly widened the doors of international publication. UK publishers work very hard to line up foreign co-publications. With a far smaller publication base at home, they have to.


Do you have any new projects that you'd like to tell us about?

I've mentioned WHILE ANGELS WATCH (2006) and SILLY GOOSE (2007), both to be published by Little Tiger, UK. There are three more in the works. Also in 2006, Bloomsbury UK and Walker/Bloomsbury US will publish my picture book, WINSTON THE BOOK WOLF with a fabulous British illustrator, Ian Beck. Winston is a wolf who loves words and books so much that he EATS them! Then in November, National Geographic will publish NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC INVESTIGATES ANCIENT GREEK ARCHAEOLOGY. I was asked to write the National Geographics book because of conversations among the editors at NG and OUP.

My second book for 2007 is one I'm very excited about: NAOMI'S GIFT. It's a Christmas story about a beggar girl who meets the Holy Family in the stable near Bethlehem. What happens is a secret. All I'll say is that it means a great deal to me and I have yet to read it aloud without choking up. This is a problem that I mean to solve before December of 2007.


Do you have any advice for new writers trying to break into this field? In addition from Mr. Churchill's advice to never give up?


Yes. Three things more: Embrace the revision process. Don't settle for an early draft. The market is way too tough for that, and you are worth more than that, if you care about your readers. You want to offer the very best you're capable of. Always. Go back to old ideas. Sniff out new ones. Be a writer at least 25 hours a day, maybe more.


Second: Never believe in Never - or, putting it another way: tempt fate. Try new things. Buck the odds. If you want to write novels but are having no luck, do it. If it truly matters to you, become a student of the elusive craft. I've had only one novel published but I've written four of them. With 14 of my 15 books in other genres, isn't it obvious that I should give up on middle-grade? Maybe. But guess what - I won't.


Third: Write for the love of it, for the joy of creating something uniquely your own. Seek and trust your own voice. Write with the hope that, through your writing, you can matter to a child. Perhaps you will change or guide a life; give comfort, inspiration, focus - or you could write the funniest book some kid ever read and start her out on a lifetime of reading, reading, reading. Fight for publication, sure - but don't let it control you. Publication and writing are separate joys. Both take concentration, effort, and luck - but writing is what writers are about. That's what they do; that's what gives them joy.

To learn more about Marni and her books, visit her website at: http://www.marnimcgee.com/

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Children's author Elizabeth Koehler-Pentacoff is versatile as well as talented. In addition to teaching elementary school and directing children's plays for a theater group, Liz is the author of a number of notable children's books, including HELP! MY LIFE IS GOING TO THE DOGS, LOUISE THE ONE AND ONLY, and JOHN MUIR AND STICKEEN: AN ALASKAN ADVENTURE.

In her book the ABC's OF WRITING FOR CHILDREN, Liz interviewed 114 children's authors and illustrators about the writing process, techniques, and humorous anecdotes about the writing life.

As if that weren't enough, Liz is Byline Magazine's 'Writing for Children' columnist and has written over 300 articles for newspapers and magazines such as Parent's Magazine, the San Francisco Chronicle, Instructor, Children's Writer, the SCBWI Bulletin and Writer's Digest. Her humor and opinion columns have appeared in the San Francisco Examiner.

What made you decide to try your hand at writing for children?


It's been my secret desire to write for children ever since I was a child, addicted to reading. But I never acted on that desire until my son was in preschool and he told his teacher his mommy was a typist. I showed him my books for teachers and my newspaper and magazine articles, but that didn't mean anything to him at all. I realized I needed to write stories for him.

How did you discover you talent for writing humorous chapter books? What do you like about this type of writing?

I volunteered in my son's kindergarten classroom and when I walked into the door, I actually felt myself become a kindergartner. It was very weird. I saw the whole room and reacted to the scene as if I were five. It was cool!

Louise of Louise the One and Only just started talking in my head and wouldn't let me alone. Finally, it started creeping me out a little so I wrote other chapter books just in case I was losing it. Later I discovered that this is EXACTLY what writers want to happen. And it doesn't always occur this way.

I like this type of writing because I think this is who I am inside. Part of me is a little kid - part of me is 12 years-old. It's fun bouncing back and forth! All of us children's authors are really just little kids, aren't we?

Any tips for writers who want to write humor?

Yes.

1. Look for humor in your own daily life. Keep a journal of small anecdotes.

2. Play what if. In Help! My Life is Going to the Dogs, I used incidents in my own life and just
placed various characters in them to make the very real situations that did happen to me, even more embarrassing for the character in the book.

3. Remember incongruity. Put the unexpected, or two different things together. Like the fussy and messy guy in "The Odd Couple." Louise and Sandra.

4. Character flaws will make the reader feel superior. Think of The Stupids.

5. Read your writing aloud for comic timing. You've got to feel the rhythm.

6. Take my class in comedy, through UC Santa Cruz Extension at the Cupertino Campus on August 5, 2006. Like the way I worked that in there?

What inspired you to write John Muir and Stickeen: An Alaskan Adventure?

I admire John Muir immensely, and as I was reading a biography about him, he said he thought the most exciting adventure he had was with a terrier named Stickeen. Terriers have always been a major love of my life, so I knew I had to research this. Combine two passions and what do you have? A book!

What inspired you to write THE ABC's OF WRITING FOR CHILDREN?

A bunch of children's authors and I had just given talks at a writer's conference. It was at the end of the day, and as we sat around the hotel room, eating chocolate and having wine, we talked about the nitty gritty stuff of our careers: how we fight writer's block, deal with school visits, booksignings, create character and plot.
When suddenly it hit me - -what we were discussing then was even MORE valuable than what we had said in our talks during the day. "Someone ought to write a book about this!" I said. Everyone looked at me.

How did you get your column? What topics do you cover?

I got my column in Byline Magazine by sending in some articles to the editor. She asked me if I
might like to do a column. We discovered we were speaking at the same conference, so we met and clicked and it all came together. I cover craft, marketing, and just about anything that has to do with writing for children. A couple of times a year I'll interview an agent, and/or editor.

Do you enjoy giving workshops and presentations? What kind of presentations
do you give?

One of my degrees is in Theater Arts so I love giving presentations. I used to be a teacher so I also enjoy teaching, which is part of my problem! Sometimes I get so involved with teaching and school visits, that I neglect my writing time. My talks and workshops are either for kids or adults. Some are on how to write comedy, how to do creative drama and improvisation, how to direct plays, and most are on how to write for children. In schools it's about my books and writing workshops.

Do you have any advice for new writers?

At one conference, I critiqued a well-written first chapter about a girl who loved horses. There was nothing technically wrong with it. But it wouldn't grab a reader or an editor either. I would recommend really getting into the passion of your character. If your character loves horses, research the heck out of horses! Know the lingo. Hang out with horse people. Make sure the voice sounds like it's one that belongs to a horse person.

Don't be afraid of backstory. Sinclair Lewis used to write 10,000 words about his major characters before he started writing his books. You might not use all of your backstory, but it's important you know your character, before you start writing.

And while you're writing books, try your hand at articles. You'll gain confidence, experience, perfect your craft and increase your credits. I write for adult magazines and newspapers because I like to mix smaller assignments with larger projects. When you're exhausted with fiction, it might help you to take a break and write an essay. Don't be afraid of new genres! Take classes all the time!

Above all, remember that life has cycles. The whole earth and planet has cycles. So will your career. A lull in your career is okay. Just keep busy and don't stop writing and creating. Nurture yourself with good reading. If you fill the well with good books, you'll produce good books.

Visit Liz's website here.

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This month, SECRETS OF SUCCESS, features Barbara Kanninen. For six years, Barbara has sold children’s stories to magazines such as Highlights for Children, Ladybug, Guideposts for Kids, and many more. More recently, Barbara, the mother of two young children, has made the transition to books. She’s published an emergent reader, MR. MILLER’S OLD CAR, with Seedling Publications and has sold a rhyming concept book, CIRCLE ROLLS, to Henry Holt. She also published a YA anthology, ATOMIC ENERGY, and is working on another anthology about nanotechnology–both for Greenhaven Press. Barbara has a Ph.D. in natural resource economics and is currently working on a book (for adults) for an academic publisher (Springer). She likes to say she writes for people ages 1 to 99!

You can visit her website at www.barbarakanninen.com

I’m impressed with the number of projects you’re working on. Can you tell us how you manage to balance writing and family time?

Well, I’m going to make this sound easy, but it’s not. The simple answer is, I work during work time and play during play time. My kids are in full-time school now, so I drop them off and then rush home to make coffee and work. I don’t answer the phone; I don’t run errands; I don’t even do the dishes. When my kids are out of the house, I work. That means when they’re with me, we or I do all that household stuff, like grocery shopping, cleaning and cooking. But, hey, I want my boys to know how to do these things, so I’m fine with that.

The key for me is that I minimize the third category in my life – “all other stuff.” Everyone will find their own way to do this, but here are some things I do. We live a fairly simple life – live in a small house, own one car, eat simple food, rarely shop. I try to steer clear of gossip because it sucks up a lot of energy. I do volunteer at my children’s school, but I’ve reduced my activities to only those I’m passionate about. Oh, and I get a lot of sleep. I just don’t understand how people can be productive if they’re yawning during the day.

I know you’ve taken some online writing courses. Was this experience helpful, and if so, why?

Very helpful. I took two courses from Anastasia Suen. She has an interesting approach: her courses are mostly reading courses. Each student read 5 books a day and then shared thoughts over e-mail. One of the most important outcomes of her course for me was that our group stuck together afterward and continues today as an on-line critique group. One of the things that really works about our group is that we all have a grounding in the same set of principles – the ones Anastasia taught. We also live in different parts of the country and have attended conferences and workshops and grown in different ways since. So, we have lot of insights to share with each other.

I will always be a student of writing (though I’d love to teach someday, too). Sometimes I hear writers express skepticism about courses, wondering if they’ll learn anything new from them. But the way I see it, if a course adds one new layer of sheen to my writing, it has been worth it.

How did you begin writing for children?

I was not a born writer. In fact, most people think of me as a math-brained type. Okay, I am a math-brained type. When my children were small, I found that I was disappointed with children’s math books – both the lack of them and the lack of diverse topics – I mean, counting books are not terribly inspirational math books. So, I started with the goal of writing nifty math-oriented books, but I ended up falling in love with writing!

What made you decide to focus on magazines?

I’m so glad you asked this because I think it is one of the most important writing career moves I’ve made. Basically, I figured out early on that I wasn’t going to sell a picture book right off the bat. I probably thought at the time it was because I didn’t have an “in” with a publisher, but looking back, it was because my stories weren’t good enough! I learned how to write stories by working with magazines.

The best part about submitting to magazines is that the editors are more likely to respond to a less-than stellar manuscript – if it’s at least pretty darn good. So, you get help early on. In my case, Marileta Robinson at Highlights and Rosanne Tolin at GP4K.com wrote me personal rejections that changed me as a writer. For example, Marileta asked me to revise a manuscript twice, both times pushing me to make it funnier. I was so resistant, thinking I didn’t know how to be funny, but you know what? I learned how to be funny. Now I get compliments all the time about my great sense of humor! Thanks, Marileta! Rosanne pushed me on the character issue. My characters didn’t change enough. No change, no story. How did I ever think I was going to sell a picture book if I hadn’t fully absorbed those fundamental lessons? I will always feel indebted to Marileta and Rosanne and will continue to submit stories to them for the rest of my career.

How did you get the ideas for MR. MILLER’S OLD CAR and CIRCLE ROLLS?

I wrote Mr. Miller’s Old Car the year I was a kindergarten reading volunteer. Kids got to pick their own books and I noticed that the boys always went for the one about the haunted house. There weren’t many others that intrigued them. So, I had in mind that I wanted to write something that boys would especially like. One day, I saw an antique car on the road and it dawned on me that old cars are just very cool.

As for Circle Rolls (Henry Holt, 2007), I don’t think I ever really got the idea! It’s funny because if you read it now, you’ll think I had a complete idea at the start and just implemented it. But the truth is, the manuscript (which is less than 120 words!) evolved over the course of three years.

It started as a four-line poem that just sort of came to me: “Circle rolls, square sits, triangle tips and breaks to bits.” I submitted it to Babybug and got an “almost.” I think this was the first hand-written note Babybug had ever sent me, so I figured maybe I was on to something. As you know, though, there aren’t many other venues for toddler poems, so I just set the thing aside. Then, the Children’s Writer announced a contest for preschool concept manuscripts at less than 200 words. I pulled out my poem and expanded it into a full-length piece. At first, I just wrote a bunch of stanzas about different shapes, but then I realized that would never win: it was too list-like. So, I decided to try having the circle keep rolling and rolling throughout the manuscript and causing havoc – kind of a metaphor for a toddler.

It didn’t win or place. I half-heartedly submitted it to a few publishers and was surprised to get responses back that said the rhyme was terrific and the approach to the topic was unique. Finally, about three years after I’d first penned the four-line poem, I submitted the piece to my critique group. They had differing opinions about the actual idea, but one thing they all agreed upon was that my ending fell flat. I didn’t think there was much I could do about it, but I pulled the manuscript up and stared at it for a while, and then it dawned on me that there was one shape I’d neglected to include in the story: heart. That brought a second metaphor into the story. The ending made all the difference.

How did you find your publishers?

So far, I’ve found my publishers the old-fashioned way: by reading newsletters and studying the CWIM. I sent Circle Rolls to Christy Ottaviano at Henry Holt after I saw her quoted in a SCBWI newsletter expressing interest in preschool manuscripts. I got an e-mail from her two weeks after I submitted the manuscript.

I found my work for hire through a notice in the Children’s Book Insider. I e-mailed a resume and got a quick response offering me an assignment. I think this is where my magazine work paid off. Though I hadn’t sold any books at the time I submitted my resume, I had a healthy listing of magazine sales to demonstrate my professionalism and ability.

What advice would you give to new writers trying to break in at this challenging time?

Two things. First, know your strengths and weaknesses. These aren’t hard to figure out if you get critiques. People always mention your strengths first. It could be that you have a wonderful sense of humor or an ability to develop intriguing, unique characters. In my case, my strengths are realistic dialogue and a good sense of rhythm (in picture books). You must use your strengths to best advantage. They will give you the sparkle you need to wow an editor. But you must also work on your weaknesses. Again, if you get critiques, these come after the “but…” If you don’t beef up your weaknesses, they will kill your chances at getting published. When I first started writing, I had no sense of pacing. I’m an impatient person and I wrote that way. Instead of stretching out the climax, I just – bang -- got to it. Needless to say, my stories weren’t really “stories.” I got a lot of form rejections. I still have weaknesses. I tend to neglect setting in my first drafts, but I know this and I work to develop and use the setting when I revise.

Second, until your story is extraordinary, it's not good enough. Remember that a picture book costs the publisher about $100,000 to produce. You must ask yourself what makes your story special. If you don't have a $100,000 answer to that question, then you have to keep working.

Are you working on any new projects for children? Can you tell us something about them?

I have a rather strange, mathematical middle grade novel that’s sitting on the back burner as I try to resolve some consistency issues with it. I’ve also been playing with one of my short stories, trying to expand the concept into a chapter book. And I have several picture book manuscripts that I’m still trying to market. Until they’re published, they’re always up for potential revision.



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This month, SECRETS OF SUCCESS features Rebecca Hogue Wojahn a librarian by day and children's writer by night (well, actually very early mornings). She has recently sold a picture book, EVAN EARLY, to Woodbine House and has recently acquired an agent for her YA mystery novel, A RICHNESS OF MARTENS. For the past two years, Rebecca has sold articles to Highlights for Children, Faces, Cobblestone, and Appleseeds, but she is now focusing on the middle grade and young adult book market.

How did you begin writing for children? What drew you to writing for magazines?

I decided I wanted to write for children the summer after I graduated from high school. That summer I decided to reread all of my all-time favorite books from childhood as a "vacation" after a year of AP English rigors like Silas Marner and The Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man. And as I read through A Wrinkle in Time, Watership Down, Ramona, Anne of Green Gables, and many more, I was struck by how I still really loved those books and how much they still mattered to me. So I decided that someday I wanted to try to be a part of that.

However, it wasn't until about ten years later, when I was working full-time, going to grad school, and pregnant, that I decided it was time to start writing. (And if that isn't a testament to how pregnancy can addle your brain, I don't know what is!) But just as that manuscript was starting to garner some personal rejections, my son, who was by that time almost two, contracted a very serious illness that left him almost completely deaf. I ended up taking a 2 1/2 year hiatus.

The second time around, I decided to start small and try out some magazine writing. I liked how you could pitch an idea before you even wrote it, and I liked the relatively quick turnaround time. The very first article I wrote and sold touched on my experiences with my son: I interviewed an eleven-year-old girl who uses a cochlear implant to help her to hear and communicate. (Of course, she's now almost fourteen and Highlights still hasn’t run it. So much for that quick turnaround part!)

How do you go about researching the magazine market?

My background is in teaching middle school and K-12 libraries, which has helped enormously with my writing. As a teacher and school librarian, I am very familiar with children's magazines and know which ones match my interests and style. As a librarian, I know how to research and find all the "good stuff" in the library--the online databases, the reference materials and resources. In May, I presented at the Minnesota SCBWI conference on this topic and I created a webpage of some of the resources I use. What I would stress to all writers doing research is to check with the public and university libraries near you. There may be all sorts of material you can tap into from your home for free.

What got you interested in writing for children with disabilities?

It's probably obvious after my earlier answer, but, my son. After he lost his hearing, I saw how, beyond the "issue" type books, there really aren't very many books that have characters with disabilities in them. I wanted to see if I could add to that body of literature.

How did you find your publisher Woodbine House?

Woodbine House only does books on disabilities, so I knew about them as a parent and as a librarian. However, I still wasn't very confident that Woodbine House would be right for it because they don't do a lot of children's books. But, happily, I got a lovely e-mail a few weeks after I sent it saying that they loved it!

EVAN EARLY will be out in the spring of 2006. An interesting aside in this story is that when Woodbine House offered me the contract, they asked if I had any illustrators I wanted to recommend. I gave them three names of friends who are just starting out. I just found out that they ended up picking one of them, Ned Gannon, to illustrate it! It'll be his first book, too.

How did you get the idea for your YA mystery novel?

My YA mystery novel is the second one I've written (that first one never made it back out of the file cabinet drawer), and its seeds come from a couple of different sources. I started with a character: Will Berenger is a fifteen-year-old who has recently lost his hearing from an illness. Hmmm...no mystery as to where that idea came from. :-)

I came across the mystery/conflict while I was on vacation at my parents’ cabin in northern Wisconsin. I read how two Ojibwe bands in Wisconsin were left homeless when they were left out of treaty negotiations for reservations in 1854. Further reading was even better: supposedly one band met later with an Indian agent and a treaty was drawn up, but one copy of it went down in a shipwreck in the Great Lakes and the other was swindled from the band. My mind started whirring. What if that swindled copy turned up today? What would happen? It just seemed like a great premise for a story. It was also a promise for a lot more research!

I understand that your YA novel generated offers from three agents. How did that come about?

Networking, researching, listening, and sheer luck. When I say networking, I don't mean that I got a great referral from some famous author. I mean that I "listen" in on listservs and message boards, and I've got a great group of mostly unpublished writer friends who do the same and share. Then I researched and compiled a list of agents from all of this. As soon as I got one offer, I e-mailed the other four agents that had my full manuscript and told them. It was amazing how fast they perked up and read it--within the day! I interviewed all three and took a week or two to think it over. Then I signed with the one that not only was the easiest to talk to, but ironically, was also the only one who pointed out some weak points in my manuscript. But his suggestions hit home and I knew they were spot-on.

What advice would you give to new writers trying to break in at this challenging time?

Hmmm. I'm afraid I'm not going to come up with anything too original.

Know your audience. If you haven't been around kids in a while, get to know some. Find out what they like or don't like to read and WHY. Kids are a lot different than they were five, ten, or fifteen years ago.

Read. One of the best things I've done for my writing was to start a children's book discussion group for grown-ups. Our members include writers, public librarians, school librarians, teachers, and university professors. It's very informal, but the discussions that come out of that group always have me taking a second look at my writing.

And lastly, persevere. You've got to keep writing if you want to be a writer. Everything you may be writing for the next few years may only turn out to be practice. But that's valuable, too.

Visit Becky’s blog at: http://www.livejournal.com/users/beckwoho

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This month’s SECRETS OF SUCCESS column features the multi-talented Greg Leitich Smith. Greg has a background in law and engineering, and is currently the author of two humorous children’s novels, Ninjas, Piranhas, and Galileo and a sequel, Tofu And T.rex. In addition, Greg has recently co-authored a picture book with his talented wife, Cynthia Leitich Smith to be published by Dutton in 2006 or 2007.

What made you decide to try your hand at writing for children?

It's all my wife's fault. Mostly.

As a kid, I read a great deal. I remember going to the library and bookstores and coming home with shopping bags filled with books. I always thought that maybe someday I could write one of those (and I did write short stories). When it came time for college, I figured it would be prudent to do something at which I could earn a living, so I became a patent lawyer. I still thought, though, that maybe someday I'd like to write.

Then, when Cynthia started writing, she also started re-reading her childhood favorites, and discovering new favorites. I would also pick them up and (re)discovered that I too loved the freshness and energy of them. That's when I decided, "why wait?" and began to write myself.

How do you think up ideas for novels?

Funny you should ask. Right now, I'm in the middle of preliminary research for a new novel. The idea came to me in the middle of the night when one of my cats woke me up by stepping on my head. While this idea "worked," I generally go through several ideas before one pans out sufficiently that I can build a plot around it. My current work-in-progress, in fact, is about the fourth or fifth idea I've had since TOFU; the others just didn't really work enough to build a plot around.

Beyond that, I have absolutely no idea. When I hear the question, I have this vision of some writer out there who just happens to sit down at the computer one day and comes up with a dozen brilliant ideas for a novel in less time than it takes to delete that annoying paper clip guy.

Sadly, I don't work that way. I'll usually come up with something when I'm not trying to force it. In addition to those resulting from cat-induced trauma, I've had ideas come to me while driving cross-country, at the gym, while out running, etc. But once I come up with an idea I like, I still have to come up with a plot - to me, that's the hard part.

The idea and plot for NINJAS came about because I was toying with the idea of exploring the Galileo story (science on trial, etc.). The idea for TOFU came about because I was playing with juxtapositions of extremes (aka, the "fish out of water" concept), and thought that veganism and sausage-making were about as opposite as you can get.

Can you tell us something about your search for a publisher? Do you have an agent or did you send the manuscript out yourself?

I initially submitted the first two pages of a manuscript (that eventually became NINJAS) to an editorial conference jointly sponsored by the Brazos Valley and Austin chapters of SCBWI. The editor liked the pages, so I ended up sending her the completed manuscript. While she did not ultimately take the manuscript, she did offer some excellent suggestions and encouragement. I sent it out to a couple other editors, who also did not buy it, but in the interim, I also acquired an agent. The first house she sent it out to bought it.

Any tips for writers who want to write humor?

First and foremost, a humor novel must work as a novel; it must have all the elements of a novel: a character who changes and grows, rising action, consistent theme, compelling plot, etc.

After that, it must be funny. And it must be what the author finds to be funny. It can't be what the author thinks an "ordinary reader" (if such a creature exists) thinks is funny. If the humor does not evolve from the author's own sense of humor, it won't work. (A writer who does not understand the appeal of the Three Stooges will not be able to write them compellingly for someone who does like them).

The humor must work also topically and/or thematically and/or strategically. What do I mean by this? Ideally, it should rise naturally from the situation or the character, and help illuminate plot. It can also be used to relieve tension, leaven the seriousness of a situation.

What made you decide to try a picture book? How did you come up with the idea? How did you and Cynthia work together on this book?

Let me briefly say that the picture book is a humorous Christmas picture book featuring Santa Claus and a somewhat grinch-y child. The initial idea was Cynthia's. She wrote the initial draft, and then we worked on it together (while listening to Christmas music, of course). After that, we sent it in to our agent, who submitted it to publishers. We received an editorial letter back from Mark McVeigh at Dutton (which was actually several times longer than the manuscript itself). I took the editorial letter and generated the new complete draft of the manuscript. Than, again, Cyn and I worked on it while listening to Christmas music.

What advice would you give to new writers trying to break into publishing in today?

I would say, first and foremost, you must write. You must work on craft. If you do not actually put words on the page, then regardless of the number of critique group or conference meetings you attend, you're not a writer.

Next, you must read, not just for pure enjoyment, but to learn who publishes what, and what's been done.

Finally, you must cultivate patience. The latter is difficult for me, since I tend to regard patience as a virtue only for people with too much free time. That said, there is generally a long lag between submission and hearing back, and then between final edits and actual publication.

Visit Greg's website at: http://www.gregleitichsmith.com/