bloomabilities

Today Show and Two Tidbits

2009-12-07T18:52:00.001-05:00

Reposted from the Blue Rose Girls.

****

Here are a few pictures from Grace's appearance on The Today Show last Friday.

When I showed up at the studio, Grace was getting her makeup done in the green room. I took this short video by mistake before someone told me that photos weren't allowed in the area:

Grace met the book club kids beforehand--but they were under strict orders to not talk about the book (although signing books was allowed):
Lining up to go up to the taping:
I watched the show from the green room (there was a nice spread of food and coffee for all of us):Afterwards we took a group picture:

And here are Ames O'Neill (Grace's publicist at L,B), me, Grace, and her agent Rebecca Sherman:
Grace was great, wasn't she? I imagine she will have more to share on Wednesday.

****

Two more tidbits. I'd like to direct you to a thorough and insightful post by agent Michael Sterns over at the Upstart Crow Literary Agency blog. Food for thought for picture book authors.

And finally, this video kind of blew my mind. Will this be the future of magazines and books?

NCTE 2009 wrap-up

2009-11-30T08:30:00.001-05:00

Re-posted (belatedly) from the Blue Rose Girls.

*****

As I mentioned last week, I was in Philadelphia for the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) conference. I took the train to Philadelphia and met Grace at the hotel, then we walked over to the conference center to meet Jarrett Krosockza and his wife Gina for a quick lunch at the Hard Rock Cafe.

I had the mac and cheese, of course!

Good, but not the best.

Then Grace and I ran off for her session on "The Art of Story" with author Carmen Agra Deedy. We had a few technical difficulties at first, but then her talk went smoothly and I think the audience was impressed by her talk. I know I was!

Carmen was a fantastic speaker/storyteller as well--her final story about her mother in a mall parking lot brought me to tears.

Afterwards, we headed to the convention center for Grace's signing:

at the Little, Brown booth:

That evening we hosted a children's book dinner with special guests Grace Lin (Where the Mountain Meets the Moon), Jerry Pinkney (The Lion and the Mouse), and Suzanne Selfors (Smells Like Dog, pubbing May 2010) at the restaurant Fork. Delicious food (not pictured), delicious company:

The next day I'm sorely lacking in pictures, but it started with booth duty for me in the morning, when Jerry Spinelli and Chris Lincoln had signings back-to-back. Then Jerry and I escaped for a nice lunch, and in the afternoon I walked the floor for a bit saying hi to authors such as Lisa Yee, G. Neri, Scott Westerfeld, Justine Larbalestier, E.B. Lewis, and more.

I helped out for our Jerry Pinkney signing in the afternoon, then escaped to the hotel for a quick nap.

That night Assistant Editor Connie Hsu and I took "our" authors to dinner at another amazing restaurant called Supper. Once again, I'm sad that I neglected to get any pictures of authors Matthew Quick (Sorta Like a Rock Star, pubbing in May 2010) and his wife Alicia Bessette, Grace, or Stephen Emond (Happyface, Connie's first acquisition, pubbing in March 2010), but I did manage two photos of the food. Here's the farmer's plate we ordered for the table:

And my duck and waffles. Yum.

The next afternoon I had coffee (and cheese--odd combination, I know) with the incredible Janet Wong, and then that evening was the cocktail party that kicks off the ALAN Workshops where Sarah Ockler and Sara Zarr vamped it up:

And then it was off to our YA fiction dinner where Matthew Quick joined the two Sara(h)s at Portofino. And yes, once again, we had amazing food (spinach ravioli! tiramisu!), conversation, and this time we had the added wonderment of readings from 20 Boy Summer (Ockler), Sorta Like a Rock Star (Quick), and Once Was Lost (Zarr).

And that, my friends, sums it all up. Thank you Philly, NCTE, ALAN, all our authors and illustrators, and of course our amazing school and library marketing team of Victoria Stapleton and Zoe Luderitz.

Till next year!

I'm ba-ack! Japan and Hong Kong trip

2009-11-23T08:30:00.000-05:00

Re-posted (belatedly) from the Blue Rose Girls.

Sorry I've been neglecting the blog for the last few weeks--as some of you know, I was traveling internationally in Japan and Hong Kong. I had hoped to try to post from abroad, but the spotty internet access at hotels and the time difference made it difficult.

Right now, I'm in Philadelphia for the NCTE conference (National Council of Teachers of English). But that will be a post for another day. Today, I'd like to share my Asia trip in photos, focusing on everything children's book-related.

First up, Japan. I was there for the wedding of Little, Brown senior designer Saho Fujii--Saho is the designer of Wabi Sabi and Year of the Dog, to name just two of her amazing book designs. She is originally from Kyoto, and that was where the beautiful wedding was held:
In the two days after the wedding, Saho organized sightseeing in the area, including to Mt. Hiei, where the cat Wabi Sabi traveled:
We also checked out a bookstore, and found some of the books we publish, included Vampirates, which Senior Designer Alison Impey designed:

And of course we found Twilight, which they divide into parts so as to keep each individual book small, compact, and cute:
We also found Gossip Girl and Eggs:

Back in Tokyo, Alison Impey (of Where the Mountain Meets the Moon and When the Moon Forgot design fame) and I visited Japanese children's book publisher Tokuma Shoten's offices, and had lunch with their editor-in-chief and senior editor, as well as SCBWI regional advisor for Japan, Holly Thompson.
And then the SCBWI Japan conference, which took place all day Saturday the 14th in Yokohama. I gave three talks solo:
And the Alison joined me to talk about how illustrators are chosen, as well as a Q&A:
Here are two group pictures with some of the attendees!
The next day I was off to Hong Kong for a whirlwind three days. On Monday, Regional Adviser Mio Debnam took me to lunch and then sightseeing to the Peak:
And then I gave my first of two evening talks:
And then a lovely dinner at the China Club with a great group of people!
The next day, I wandered around the city, and randomly came across an elaborate and beautiful Jimmy Liao exhibit in Hong Kong's Times Square!
(from Sound of Colors, with moons from When the Moon Forgot in the background...)

So beautiful.

I gave another talk Tuesday evening, and we went to another delicious dinner at the Quarterdeck Club:
Yum:
As usual, I was all about the food on my trip. For fun, here's an animoto video of some of my food highlights:

(If you can't view the video, try this link.)

I need to give a special thank you to Kathleen Ahrens, the SCBWI International Regional Advisor who extended the initial invitation to me to come to Asia, and also to Holly Thompson and Mio Debnan who were such gracious hosts, tour guides, and organizers. I had a wonderful time meeting everyone, and, of course, eating. ;)

And a special congratulations to Saho and Bob! May they have a wonderful marriage full of love.

Beyond the Book: Freaks and Revelations by Davida Wills Hurwin

2009-11-02T08:30:00.000-05:00

Cross-posted (belatedly) from the Blue Rose Girls.

Beyond the Book: Freaks and Revelations by Davida Wills Hurwin

What if a stranger hated you?

This raw, moving novel follows two teenagers—one a Mohawk-wearing, Punk-rocking seventeen-year-old Neo-Nazi; the other a gay thirteen-year-old cast out by his family, hustling on the streets and trying to survive. Told in alternating perspectives, this book tells the story of the boys’ lives before and after the violent hate crime that changes both their futures. This is a tragic but ultimately inspirational journey of two very polarized teens, their violent first meeting, and then their peaceful reunion years later. It is an unforgettable story of survival and forgiveness.

Acclaimed author Davida Wills Hurwin weaves a compelling and powerful story, inspired by the real lives of Timothy Zaal and Matthew Boger. Theirs is a journey from fear and hate to tolerance and hope. And it is proof that people can truly change.

This book has had an interesting genesis—it started when a film agent approached a literary agent asking her if she knew anyone who could write the story of two men, Matthew Zaal and Timothy Boger, in book form. The literary agent really saw this as powerful material for a young adult novel, and approached her client Davida Wills Hurwin about taking it on.

When I met with with the agent over two years ago, I was initially interested because of Davida’s involvement—her first novel, A Time for Dancing, had been published by Little, Brown and was the first YA book I read after starting work there. It was handed to me by another assistant (Amy!) who told me that although Little, Brown did not publish much young adult fiction, A Time for Dancing was a perfect example of the type of YA we did publish. I absolutely loved it—I thought her writing was beautiful, and that she perfectly captured the raw emotion of the story. And, of course, it made me cry. And then, when the agent went on to tell me the incredible story of these two men (whose story has been shared on NPR, the Oprah Winfrey Show, and more) I thought, this is exactly the kind of book I love to read. Edgy but authentic, and ultimately uplifting and inspirational. In fact, after the meeting my assistant Connie kept saying, "Are you excited? This is your kind of book!"

The book was in the process of being written when the agent pitched it, and so it wasn't until over six months later that I finally was able to read it. And it delivers. Davida has done a brilliant, sensitive job of bringing their story to life. She interviewed both men at length, going back to meet with Tim again and again after realizing that his story was more challenging to tell. It’s such a powerful story even as fiction, and the fact that it’s based on truth takes it to that next level. She also wrote a very thoughtful author's note at the end of the book explaining her process, and we also include a brief Q&A with Tim and Matthew. I've had the opportunity to meet Davida twice so far, and she is such a warm, loving soul. It has been such a pleasure working with her.

The book's official publication date was yesterday. Happy book birthday! As always, I love the design of this book, this time by the amazing Ben Mautner who told me that he couldn't stop thinking about the book after he read it. He put so much thought and care into the design. Here's the cover...

If you take off the jacket, a stark white case cover is revealed with just the word "Revelations" that shows through a die-cut in the front of the jacket:

And here is the full jacket:

On the back cover, we had some wonderful advanced praise--I was so pleased to discover how strongly others responded to the book:

"In the lively voices of the separate narrators, two antagonists survive a hate-crime collision. Their entwining paths point a new way forward. Hurry to read this book; time is still of the essence."
-Gregory Maguire, author of Wicked and Matchless
"In addition to being impossible to put down, Freaks and Revelations is that rare book with the power to change the world. Lots of books shine a light on the humanity of the oppressed victim. This book grants humanity to everyone. Freaks and Revelations should be required reading for all humans. We need what it provides, and we'll be better for it."
-Catherine Ryan Hyde, author of Diary of a Witness, Pay it Forward, and Becoming Chloe
"Your heart will break as you follow these two scared, scarred boys toward the night both will regret forever. A compelling and essential book for teens."
-Ellen Wittlinger, author of Love & Lies, Parrotfish, and Printz Honor Book Hard Love
“Freaks and Revelations proves that the power of forgiveness and understanding will always triumph over hate. A brutally realistic story, told with gut-wrenching authenticity.”
--Julie Anne Peters, author of Keeping You a Secret and National Book Award finalist Luna

In Freaks and Revelations, Davida Wills Hurwin exquisitely illuminates a dark, haunting story of pain and redemption so that it stays in the reader's heart long after the last page is turned.
--Alex Sanchez, author of Rainbow Boys and Bait

“Freaks and Revelations is a must-read, and should find a conspicuous place on bookshelves in every high school in the US. The book offers amazing insight into the nature of hate, and the crimes it perpetrates. Davida Wills Hurwin should be very proud!”
--Ellen Hopkins, author of Crank, Impulse and National Book Award finalist Burned

“Freaks and Revelations is a painfully-honest journey through the collision-course lives of two adolescents…one a homeless gay kid hustling the streets of West Hollywood the other an increasingly violent white supremacist desperate to find himself in LA’s punk rock scene. Through misfortune and serendipity both boys learn the meaning of pain and forgiveness.”
--J. Dallas Dishman, Ph.D., hate crimes researcher and author of “Anti-Gay Violence in the City of West Hollywood”

We also received the strongest response from our teen Hip Scouts that I've ever experienced. Here's just a taste of a few of the reviews:

"Freaks and Revelations by Davida Wilis Hurwin was a rare novel that showed the truth behind human nature. Hurwin captures people in their most vulnerable state, being faced with something completely different from your own views, and self discovery....Overall this novel is a beacon of hope and a step closer to coexistence and acceptance of any lifestyle. This doesn't rank as a 'must read.' It is ranked as an 'absolutely need to read!'"
-Jeff, 17

"Through Freaks and Revelations, Ms. Hurwin has opened not only my eyes but the eyes of everyone worldwide to hatred and misguidance that could and can be prevented. I am in awe. This story could not be told any better if not by the real people themselves. I couldn't put it down. I loved it; every single word of it. There is hope for a better world, where people understand and respect each other rather than the hate that engulfs us now."
-Michelle, 18

"Freaks and Revelations was one of the best books I have ever read. Profiling the two main characters years before the incident gives readers a chance to get to know the characters and gives them an insight as to why they act the way they do and how they got to that point. It also allows the readers to sympathize with the characters and go through their hardships with them. All of this makes the book more touching and a better read. Each hardship a character went through, I felt as well. It also raises awareness for those who have to suffer in this way. I think that this story is so important to have out there and it was done in a brilliant way which paints a picture impossible to ignore."
-Julia, 15

"Freaks and Revelations is the sort of book that strikes its readers as completely different, new and gripping. The two main characters, Jason and Doug, are from extremely diverse backgrounds, but it's easy to relate to them both in many ways. Their story is a story about the struggle to survive in a world where no one else understands the way you are, the struggle to grow up when you don't know if anyone even cares whether you do, the struggle every teenager faces in deciding if it's okay to be unique. The reality of this tale is powerfully intense, and its message is one that everyone should take to heart. Freaks and Revelations definitely gives its readers a deeper understanding of what it means to hate, to love, and to respect one another. It is truly a masterpiece."
-Melissa, 17

"Freaks and Revelations by Davida Wills Hurwin is a raw and poignant book about two young boys ostracized from their families and left to fend on their own. This novel is told through dual perspectives, and the readers are captivated by the raw emotion each of the characters experience. They cross paths in the most unusual way and in the end, everyone learns about how everyone should be treated with respect. I recommend this book to anyone who is willing to gain a new awareness and want to read an amazing book."
-Tynisha, 16

And finally, a glowing review from School Library Journal:

"Freaks and Revelations is based on a true story so emotionally detailed that it could easily be a memoir....Hurwin gets inside her characters’ pain without sentiment; she present each home and its horrors soberly...The author’s prose is clear and incisive, and many chapters resonate like good short stories. Jason’s narrative stands with Kathleen Jeffrie Johnson’s Target and Laurie Halse Anderson’s Speak as a survivor’s story. Doug’s equally layered story—of coming full circle out of hate—sets it apart." --School Library Journal

I absolutely love this book. It's raw, and there are parts that are certainly tough to read, but above all it is honest, authentic, and as many of the quotes say, I think this should be required reading for all. It is a look into lives most likely very different from your own, it is a book about tolerance, acceptance, empathy, and change. I hope you'll all read it. It is a book that gives me hope.

Good news!

2009-10-27T07:29:00.001-04:00

Cross-posted from the Blue Rose Girls:

As Grace announced last week, her beautiful novel Where the Mountain Meets the Moon was selected by Al Roker as the December selection for the Today Show Book Club, aka Al's Book Club for Kids. I thought I'd share a little behind-the-scenes look into how this type of good news is shared in the publishing house.

It was Thursday morning around 10:30 am, and I had just gotten out of our weekly editorial meeting. I was in my office chatting with our Library Marketing Director when I heard the sound of running footsteps down the hall. Running footsteps is a sure sign of news--although sometimes bad (for example, something printed incorrectly, what are we going to do?!). Our Publicity Director and Grace's in-house Publicist burst into my office holding a copy of Where the Mountain Meets the Moon with huge smiles on their faces. (Whew, it's good news. But what?) "Today Show book club selection! Today Show Book Club selection!"

Excitement, shock, disbelief, happiness.
"Wait...what? What? Really?!"
Laughter, cheering, yay yay yay! I could hear the news spread down the hall.
What happened?
Where the Mountain Meets the Moon is going to be on the Today Show!
No way! Awesome!
"You should tell Grace!" I was told.
"This is Al Roker's Book Club, right?" I asked--I wanted to make sure I told Grace the right thing.
I IMed Grace on Gchat.
me: hey, are you there?

grace: yep

me: are you at home? I have good news for you! Should I call your cell?

grace: ok

I got Grace on the line. Our Publicity Director and I told her the news together. I think the first words out of Grace's mouth were, "Oh my gosh! Oh my gosh! Really?! Oh my gosh!" as the news sunk in. "I have to tell my mom!" and then later..."What am I going to wear!?" and "How did this happen?!"

This is generally how it works when we hear good news. For example, when we receive the bestseller lists and see that we have a new title make it on, the news spreads down the hall, and people cheer and clap and yell and come out of their offices and cubes to celebrate for a little while. When The Curious Garden hit the list for the first time back in April, our Publisher's Assistant started calling my name while running down the hall. "Alvina! Alvina!" It's especially exciting when it's the first time an author has made it on the list. In the case of Peter Brown, a group of us crowded into my office to hear Peter react to the news. He had been on tour in CA at the time.

I love good news in the office, obviously. Keep it coming!!

And congratulations again, Grace!

One-on-one

2009-10-19T09:34:00.000-04:00

Cross-posted from Blue Rose Girls. Of course!

****

On cold, rainy Saturday I participated in the Rutgers One-on-One conference out in New Jersey. I believe I had gone to this conference twice before, but not for a few years. It really is a great conference, and the set-up is unique from any other I've been to. Each mentor (editor, agent, or published author or illustrator) is paired with one mentee. The mentees are all carefully screened, and I've found that across the board, the quality of writing is much higher at this conference than any other. My mentee from my first year, Marie Lamba, is now published, and at the conference I was informed that another mentee's first novel is coming out next year.

Five of us from Little, Brown were attending, and so we piled into a Zipcar and caravaned over. The morning was kicked off with breakfast (agent Barry Goldblatt made fun of my choice of a blueberry bagel. I like blueberry bagels, bright purple color and all!), and the mentors and mentees are in different rooms. This is to give the mentor time to review the mentee's work in advance, and to also network and chat with our fellow mentors. We then came together for opening remarks, and then mentors and mentees broke off to meet for 45 minutes one-on-one. This time can be used to critique the work, but can also just be to chat, talk about the business, answer questions, etc. This year, I was matched with a talented author/illustrator. I was especially enthralled by the maps she creates--she called illustrating maps her "day job." The 45 minutes flew by.

A panel discussion followed. This year, the topic was "Staying Power in Children's Literature" moderated by agent Rachel Orr. The panelists were author/illustrator Peter Catalanotto, Publisher of Marshall Cavendish Margery Cuyler, Digital Books Coordinator at Disney Publishing Worldwide Colin Hosten, and Emily Sylvan Kim, Agent at Prospect Agency. They discussed what is necessary to have both a lasting career, and to create a lasting book. They discussed how to last through this economic downtrend, and the effect of new technology on the industry. Margery stated that she's been through two economic downturns already in her career, and that this one too would end. She said that publishers are being more selective about buying books, and there may be more revising before contract than usual. (I've certainly found this to be the case at L,B.) Many felt that eBooks were the future, although to varying degrees. And everyone said that good stories are lasting.

Lunch was followed by the five-on-five meetings--five pairs of mentor-mentees join together in a group that is led by a facilitator. Again, it's mainly Q&A. In my case, all of the mentees were illustrators, so at the end of our time they put out their portfolios, and we went around and reviewed them all. I always love looking at art, and everyone was quite skilled.

And finally comes the keynote. This year, the keynote was Judy Freeman, children's literature consultant. Judy is a former children's school librarian, and served on the Newbery Committee in 1990. I've met Judy many times throughout the years--she does fabulous book talks, and is known to be a "big mouth" in the industry--if you're lucky enough to have written or edited a book that she gets excited about, your book will no doubt find an audience. She travels all over the country talking to kids, educators, writers, etc. Her presentations are lively, interactive, funny, and informative.

In this case, I was shocked when one of her slides featured my personal blog with the post Decline Letters 101! I must say, it was odd, but fun, to see my blog on the big screen. Later she book talked Where the Mountain Meets the Moon by Grace Lin (yay!), saying that she adored it and hoped it would have a medal on the cover come next year. She also mentioned Wabi Sabi by Mark Reibstein, illustrated by Ed Young--she showed some gorgeous collages and haikus that students of a class had created in honor of Wabi Sabi. Amazing. After the talk, people came up to me to ask how much I had paid Judy to include my books and blog--ha.

It was also lovely to have many people (including many mentors) come up to me to say that they follow me on Twitter or read my blogs. Hello, everyone, nice to meet you and chat!

And then the day was over. I have to say, I felt quite drained after the conference--last week had probably been the busiest week of the year for me, and this week is looking to be the second-most busy. But still, it was a great day, and I'm glad I went. Next up for me will be SCBWI conferences in Tokyo (Yokohama) and Hong Kong in November! Stay tuned...

Decline letters 101

2009-10-12T21:19:00.002-04:00

As always, re-posted from the Blue Rose Girls. I really need to post something original here, soon!

***

Oh, decline letters. How we all hate them. I hate writing them, authors and agents hate receiving them.

I thought I'd demystify decline letters a bit--I would say that there are 6 basic types of decline letters I send:

1) Form letter: This is a generic letter that it not personalized to the sender at all. This letter used to be reserved for slush (unsolicited) manuscripts that I knew immediately I was going to decline. However, because we no longer accept slush, I don't use this letter much. We do have a form letter we send to unsolicited manuscripts that simply states our policy of not reviewing those manuscripts. In case you're curious, this is the basic wording of our form letter:

Thank you for submitting your manuscript to me for my consideration. I've now read it with interest but am sorry to say my enthusiasm for this project is not strong enough to suggest we could take it on and publish it successfully on our list.

Your materials are returned herewith. I do appreciate the opportunity to consider your work and wish you the best of luck in finding a good publishing home for it.

2) Personalized form letter: This is the form letter, but with your name and title of the manuscript put into the letter. I actually send very few of these--like form letters, they're reserved for the projects that I know from the first few lines that my answer is going to be no, but the difference is that this letter is for solicited projects. I only use this letter for those authors or agents that I have no personal connection to, and don't care to necessarily have future contact with--for example, authors from a writer's conference who had queried me, but for whom I have no recollection of meeting (didn't have a critique with, didn't ask me a question at my talk, etc.), or agents who I suspect are "fake" agents due to the quality of work they submit. I think my basic form letters are very nice, but if you receive one, you can be fairly certain that I did not personally like your project.

3) Nice decline: This is the personalized form letter, but with one or two lines that are specific to the work. For example, I may have a line that says something like, "Although I found your novel to be fun and compelling, I'm sorry to say that your characters felt too one-dimensional, and overall I just didn't love this enough to want to take on my list..." etc. etc. This is the decline I use most often--I use this for almost all agents, and also those authors who I have some personal connection to. The more I write, the more promise I saw in the work.

4) Nice decline with invitation to submit future work: This is the letter I use if I saw true talent in the writing, and feel that it was more of a matter of not liking the subject matter or plot of a book, but had confidence that the author's grasp of the craft of writing was strong.

5) Nice decline with editorial notes: I write this type of decline if I see real potential in both the concept and the writing, but yet do not have the time or willingness to give more feedback than I already have in the letter. But this decline is generally accompanied with an expression of my being open to review the project again if it is revised along the lines of my notes.

6) Nice decline with detailed comments, plus an offer to provide a full editorial letter and/or have a phone call regarding a revision with the author: If I write this type of letter, I not only see promise in the project, but am also excited to work with the author on a revision if given the opportunity.

If you receive letters 1-3, I'm not expecting or hoping to see more work by you/the author in the future. If you receive 4-6, then I do hope to read more from you in the future. If you receive letter 6, I'm willing to commit to revising with you just as I would a project that is already under contract, and am welcome to making the process an ongoing conversation.

Any questions? Ask away! But I also have a few questions for you:

If you're an author or agent, which would you prefer:

A) getting a decline letter within a week of submitting the project, with little or no personalization to the letter
B) waiting 4-6 months (or longer) for a decline letter with more detailed, constructive comments

Also, I'm curious--do you hold on to your decline letters? Burn them? Post them to your blog?

Wouldn't it be a nicer world if nobody had to write OR receive these letters? Alas. But if you think of decline letters as a stepping stone to publication, that may make receiving them that much easier.

Video Monday

2009-10-05T07:58:00.001-04:00

For today's post, I thought I'd take a page from Fuse #8's Video Sunday and recommend some videos for your entertainment. The first is an absolutely joyful student-made one-camera video to the Black Eyed Peas "I Gotta Feeling":

The second is the first of three pitch videos for Sesame Street, made back in 1968. I love how Kermit is such a hippie. Groovy!

(Thanks to Gothamist for the link, you can see links to the other parts here.)

The last two videos are from me.

Two weekends ago I went on a long bike ride around Manhattan, and randomly came upon what appeared to be a unicycle meet-up of some sort. What was great is that the riders all seemed to be teens:

And finally, some of you know that I rode the MS Ride yesterday. I did this ride in 2005 and loved going through the Lincoln Tunnel. Yesterday I went through the tunnel again and took this video. Warning: I wasn't very good about keeping the camera steady, so for those of you who get motion sickness (Grace), you may not want to watch:

Have a great week, all!

Observations about mainstream publishing

2009-09-29T06:59:00.000-04:00

Reposted from the Blue Rose Girls.

***

Last week I read this insightful, sobering insider look at publishing here by Daniel Menaker, former Executive Editor-in-Chief of Random House. His experience is with adult publishing, and I do view children's book publishing as a happier world, but his is still an authentic view of publishing in general. Especially true is how negative a culture it can be. For example:

You're more likely to be "right" if you express doubts about a proposal's or a manuscript's prospects than if you support it with enthusiasm.

I'm often disappointed that our acquisitions team doesn't get more excited about projects. Sometimes it seems that the best praise we can get is "I liked it fine" or "I would be okay if we published it." Hardly glowing endorsements. True, when those rare moments come along where everyone gets excited about a project, it's wonderful, but people seem to be more critical than ever. It's a tough business.

More negativity:

And this is only the beginning of the negativities that editors must face. Barnes & Noble doesn't like the title. Borders doesn't like the jacket. The author's uncle Joe doesn't like the jacket. The writer doesn't like the page layout and design. Your boss tells you the flap copy for a book about a serial killer is too "down." The hardcover didn't sell well enough for the company to put out a paperback. The book has to wait a list or two to be published. Kirkus hates the book. Another writer gets angry at you for even asking for a quote. The Times isn't going to review the book. And so on.

*Sigh.* So true. And the following observation is something I particularly agree with:

It's my strong impression that most of the really profitable books for most publishers still come from the mid-list -- "surprise" big hits with small or medium advances, such as that memoir by a self-described racial "mutt" of a junior senator from Chicago. Somehow, by luck or word of mouth, these books navigate around the rocks and reefs upon which most of their fleet -- even sturdy vessels -- founder.

Anyway, read the column. It's fascinating. And I'm glad I'm not as jaded so far in my career--I still see many more pros than cons. But it's good to recognize the challenges in the hopes that maybe aspects of the business can change.

Take a break!

2009-09-21T08:30:00.001-04:00

Re-posted from the Blue Rose Girls.

As I mentioned in a past post, it's been a particularly hectic summer, and as a reward for/respite from the stress, the editorial group took off a few hours early last Friday for an outing. And where did we go? I'll give you five clues:

Perhaps you've guessed it? We went to the High Line! Faithful readers of this blog, and fans of Peter Brown's The Curious Garden, will recognize this amazing public space. This was only my second trip to the High Line--my first was at night, and it was just as lovely, and a much different feel:

If you're in the New York area, be sure to check it out.

After our stroll on the High Line, we made our way to the roof deck of the bar Brass Monkey for drinks and work gossip. And now it's back to the grind. But no matter how busy one is, a break is always necessary and can do wonders to the spirits. I was talking to an author friend at brunch yesterday about what we do to relax--she records a ton of TV shows and takes a chunk of time to watch them all at once. I love reading my Entertainment Weekly and watching reality television. How do you all veg out when you're stressed and need a break?

The Brooklyn Book Festival

2009-09-14T08:30:00.001-04:00

Re-posted (belatedly) from the Blue Rose Girls.

This weekend, Grace and I attended the wedding of our former roommate, Jon. Grace, Jon, and I lived together for three years in Somerville, MA--in fact, this was where I was living ten years ago when I got my start in Publishing. Jon and his now-wife Loretta had their wedding ceremony on a train. A moving train, in fact! They made their grand entrance on the front of the train:
And then there was a lunch reception on a lovely, scenic (if at times a bit shaky), old-timey train ride:
Long-time readers of my personal blog may remember the creative way Jon and Loretta got engaged last year, which I posted about here. So adorable. They are the bestest couple.

And then yesterday Grace and I booked it (pun intended) down from Boston to New York for the Brooklyn Book Festival. I was moderating a panel titled "Love and Longing." The official description: How far will you go for love and how far will love go for you? Ned Vizzini (Be More Chill), Aimee Friedman (Sea Change) and Anna Godbersen (The Luxe) reveal very different approaches to succeeding in love as they read and discuss their books.
I thought it was a pretty fun panel, and loved the insights and perspectives of the three authors, who answered questions such as, "How do you think the dynamics of teen relationships have changed since your teen years, if at all?" (Ned: they haven't changed; Aimee and Anna: except for social networking!) and "Who are your favorite literary couples?" Ned: Edward and Bella!; Aimee: Romeo and Juliet; Anna: Elizabeth and Darcy). They discussed how their first loves and past relationships creep into their writing, and talked about the theme of forbidden love and why it's so popular with teens. And of course they all said so much more which I'm too exhausted to record here.

The panel ended on a bit of an odd note, with the last question from the audience asking them to define love. "What is love?" I wanted to break out in song but resisted. What is love? Baby don't hurt me, don't hurt me, no more...

They signed books after the talk:

At 3:30 Grace was at the Target Children's area reading both The Ugly Vegetables, and then an excerpt from Where the Mountain Meets the Moon.
Despite all of the distractions going on during the fair, the kids were actually very attentive to both, and even asked extremely smart questions that showed that they had actually been listening! Impressive.

All in all, it was a beautiful day, lovely weather, and I saw a lot of familiar and friendly faces and made new friends. It was my first time there, and I think I'll have to make it an annual event. Hope to see you all there next year!

Tweet!

2009-08-31T14:45:00.000-04:00

Re-posted from the Blue Rose Girls.

No time for a real post today--just got back last night from a lovely Blue Rose Girl meet-up at Libby's place in Mystic. Anna and I drove back to NY together so that Anna could meet with her publisher about Disappearing Desmond.

One thing I wanted to mention is that two weeks ago, I finally folded and joined Twitter. I had been resisting, not because I didn't think I would like it, and not because I didn't think it would be worth it, but rather because I knew I would probably become addicted to it, and did I really want to add another internet addiction to my life? But I joined anyway, and sure enough, I'm hooked. If you would like to follow me, I'm @planetalvina. Grace, Anna, and Libby are all on Twitter, too: @pacylin, @annaalter, @blowoutthemoon. Follow us!

I'll leave you with these links that started from a conversation on Twitter. Scholastic editor Cheryl Klein posted an open letter and a modest proposal to agents about the timing of submissions here. Agent Michael Bourret posted a response here. Cheryl responded again here, and Michael responded to her response to his response of her blog post here. You following? I have a few thoughts in the comments section of some of the posts. At any rate, it was an interesting discussion, and it was pretty cool to see everything unfold on Twitter, although I haven't fully gotten the hang of it. But I do see the value of it so far. Do any of you Twitter? (or should I say "tweet"?) Do you find it worthwhile?

Beyond the book: GEEKTASTIC edited by Holly Black and Cecil Castellucci

2009-08-24T10:43:00.001-04:00

Beyond the Book: GEEKTASTIC: Stories from the Nerd Herd edited by Holly Black and Cecil Castellucci
Oh boy, there's so much beyond-the-book geeky goodness to share. First of all, here's the skinny on the book itself:

Haven't you heard? Geek is the new cool! Acclaimed authors Holly Black (Ironside) and Cecil Castellucci (Boy Proof) have united in geekdom to edit short stories from some of the best selling and most promising geeks in young adult literature: M.T. Anderson, Libba Bray, Cassandra Clare, John Green, Tracy Lynn, David Levithan, Kelly Link, Barry Lyga, Wendy Mass, Garth Nix, Cynthia and Greg Leitich Smith, Scott Westerfield, Lisa Yee, and Sara Zarr.

With illustrated interstitials from comic book artists Hope Larson and Bryan Lee O'Malley, Geektastic covers all things geeky, from Klingons and Jedi Knights to fan fiction, theater geeks, and cosplayers. Whether you're a former, current, or future geek, or if you just want to get in touch with your inner geek, Geektastic will help you get your geek on!

This is the book that I've acquired based on the least amount of material. I've acquired books based on partial manuscripts, but I have never acquired a book based on basically one paragraph:

Description: From Dungeon Masters to cosplaying Klingons, Science Fair winners to the Drama club stage crew and band geeks to comic book collectors searching for that pristine back issue, GEEKTASTIC explores the subculture of geekery, letting those who are often the supporting cast become the stars. The inner sanctum of geekdom will be penetrated and demystified. In this book all will be revealed, from the convention hook-ups and fanfiction rivalries to the civil wars between lovers of original Star Trek and those on the side of the next generation, and the unfortunate incidents when the bacchanalia of the chess club goes just a little too far. Hang on to your laptop and chug some Jolt cola, because once and for all, you'll see that there's very little difference between the most popular and the least.

GEEKTASTIC promises to make you cringe with recognition and embrace your inner geek.

But what the pitch also came with was the incredible team of Holly Black and Cecil Castellucci, and five fantastic contributors already attached: John Green, MT Anderson, Libba Bray, Scott Westerfeld, and Kelly Link. And what it came with was a fantastic idea that, to borrow the words of Holly and Cecil, sang to my geek heart, and sang to the geek hearts of my colleagues.

The project went to auction, and in my offer letter, I included some of the geek qualifications of my colleages (names deleted to protect the...er, geeks):

“I saw Star Wars seven times when it first came out and even saw it twice on the same day. I also made a Star Wars scrapbook and had a huge crush on Mark Hamill (what a geek! Everyone knows Harrison Ford was the cute/smart/cool one.)” –former neck-gear-wearing geek

"I seem to always love TV shows about misfits and geeks or else I watch shows that only misfits and geeks would watch: 1970s Favorite TV Show: Mork and Mindy; 1980s Favorite TV Show: Square Pegs; 1990s Favorite TV Show: Daria; 2000s Favorite TV Show: Antiques Roadshow UK" --geeky watcher of the entire Lord of the Rings Director's Cut DVD collection (in one sitting)

“In high school I truly believed you had to do paperwork to join the apathy club.” –recovering Zappa addict geek

“I used to have crushes on anime characters, like Spike from Cowboy Bebop. I would download the Japanese theme songs from these anime series and pine for my unrequited, animated love.”–cartoon fetishist geek

"Sometimes I look at my friends and wonder what our superpowers would be if we were a crime-fighting squad." –resident fantasy/sci-fi loving geek

“I was a band geek - part of the colorguard to be exact. We'd march around the band at football games waving our flags in our skirts & boots thinking we were cooler than the cheerleaders - oh, definitely not...” –former wannabe cheerleader geek

"One Halloween I dressed up as the Ebola virus--I even included symptoms written in blood-like red pen on my back. The other kids thought I was dressed as puke." –former infectious diseases geek turned adult hypochondriac

"I recently went to a competitive cat show and took a class on puppet making." –former Moon Boot-wearing geek

“I feel like my geek qualifications are far too numerous to list, whether it was collecting comic books as a kid (and buying two copies--one to put away and never touch--and one to read) or collecting action figures in my 20s... Or it could be getting braces for the first time when I was 30 (alas, no headgear)! But perhaps my geekiest moment is the level of excitement I feel over the possibility of having this book to work on--lot's of very geeky marketing ideas come to mind that would help readers from coast to coast celebrate their inner geek!” –all-around geek

As for me? Well, I included my geek qualifications, too--in resume form, no less (click to enlarge): According to the agent, the incredible Barry Goldblatt, every other interested party also included their geek qualifications, but I'm proud to say that I was the only editor to include hers in resume form.

We got the book, and team Holly and Cecil were on board. I've never worked on a short story collection before, so this was a bit of a challenge. We came up with our dream list of contributors, and asked for rough topics from our existing contributors, and then chose contributors to fill in the blanks. We wanted to cover all kinds of geeks: book geeks, sci fi geeks, band geeks, comic book geeks, theater geeks, science geeks, and more. The final book as everything from a baton twirling geek (story by Lisa Yee), astronomy geeks (Wendy Mass), LARPers (Garth Nix), Quiz Bowl geeks (David Levithan), Buffy the Vampire Slayer geeks (Cynthia and Greg Leitich Smith), Rocky Horror Picture Show fanatics (Libba Bray), and it's kicked off by a story by Holly and Cecil, about a Klingon and a Jedi hooking up at a ComicCon. Geek categories that didn't get a full story were covered in the comic interstitials between each story, illustrated by Hope Larson and Bryan Lee O'Malley, including this one:
There's truly something here for everyone. I've really loved how a story that one reviewer may not have cared for was the favorite of another reviewer. Sure, some of the stories speak mainly to hard-core geeks, and non-geeks might not get all the references. But that's kind of the point. This is a book for geeks, by geeks; but it's also a book for past geeks and future geeks.

Other challenges:
-contracts details were a headache--we had to negotiate with many different agents and coordinate payment for 19 different contributors.
-How would the editing process work? We decided that Holly and Cecil would edit the short stories until they were happy with them, and then pass them along to me.
-How to determine the order? At one ALA, Holly, Cecil, and I sat outside in a courtyard and each made our own order--it was like making a mix tape. Then we compared lists and worked out the order together.
-Keeping track of all the stories and all the deadlines was a juggling act for me and my assistant Connie. And yes, I may have once sent queries for the wrong story to the wrong contributor... whoops!
-The subtitle: we went through so many different possibilities, from "Stories of geeks by geeks," "Stories of geeks and the geeks observed," "Stories for your inner geek," "Stories of the Awesomely Uncool," "Stories from the Nerdishly Obsessed," and so on. In the end, it was assistant editor T.S. Ferguson who came up with the final subtitle, "Stories from the Nerd Herd." And yes, we debated the difference between geeks and nerds, but in the end, we felt that this was a book for geeks and nerds alike to relish in. This is a picture we took of Holly right after we settled on the subtitle:

Working on the package for this book was so much fun. The designer Ben Mautner had the genius idea of approaching Design collective eBoy for the cover avatars. Our brilliant marketing team came up with the idea of having eBoy make avatars of each contributor, which we also used throughout with each author's bios. (Read more about the cover design in the PW Cover of the Week article here.) We even made a wink at the whole "All Your Base are Belong to Us" thing on the back jacket flap ("All Your Stories are Belong to Us."). Viva the nerd herd!

The book has been greating great reviews, including from trade reviewers:
“Throughout, this all-inclusive love fest plays homage to the classics of D&D and Star Trek, but there’s plenty of room for fans of new faves such as the re-imagined Battlestar Galactica and Joss Whedon-verse as well…Geeks, old and new school, will appreciate this collection written by their own.”--Booklist

"Geektastic explores universal themes in original settings, and its talented authors bring transparent, infectious enthusiasm to what is obviously a cherished topic."--The Horn Book

Blogs: "Holly Black and Cecil Castellucci's wonderful anthology of nerdy fiction and comics, Geektastic: Stories from the Nerd Herd was a great read: the short fiction ran the gamut from soul-searing angst to high comedy and all the territory in between....All told, Geektastic is a cliche-busting, smart, and funny book about celebrating your inner mutant. Highly recommended." --boingboing.com

But my favorite review is from one of our teen Hip Scouts: "I’m not sure that I can describe how much I loved this book, but I’ll do my best. Imagine kittens sneezing adorable kitten sneezes whilst dancing on a rainbow. That’s how great Geektastic was."--Meg, 16Read more about GEEKTASTIC here, and play a game featuring the avatars, the Great Geek Escape!

Read a recent interview with Cecil and Holly here. Check out pics from our Geektastic bowling party at BEA here. And check out the fantastic Lego avatars our resident Lego expert Jonathan Lopes created for ALA:
I LOVE this book. Love it.

So, how geektastic are you?

10 Years: a look back

2009-08-17T08:38:00.000-04:00

Yesterday, August 16 was my ten-year anniversary of starting at Little, Brown and Company. (I mentioned this last week to a former coworker who said, "The 16th is a Sunday. That's kind of sad that they made you start work on a Sunday. Those slave drivers." Ha!)

To commemorate the day, I decided to look back in my journals from the time I interviewed and started work. They're a little embarrassing, but I couldn't resist sharing. (And reading back on the diaries made me wish I still kept a journal--that seemed to go by the wayside once I started blogging, even though how I blog and how I used to write in a diary are completely different.)

So, back in June of 1999, my internships at the Horn Book and Charlesbridge had come to an end, and my former supervisor at the Horn Book, Jen, told me about a job at Little, Brown.

My entry for June 28, 1999:

I sent off my cover letter and resume to Little, Brown. I really really want this job. It's exactly what I want.
I want it I want it I want it!
Please please please.

I will get this job.
I am confident.
I will get this job.
I will get this job.
If I say it enough, it will happen.
I believe!

And then on 7/1, after I had an interview scheduled, I practiced a few potential interview questions, including:

Why do you want this position?
I think this question is basically asking, Why do I want to work in children's book publishing?
On a basic level: I love children's books. I want to have a career doing something I love, creating something that I have a passion for. But not only do I just love children's books, but I think they are extremely important. Just like other forms of mass media, I feel that books have a potential to have a huge impact on children, both negative and positive. Books can open children up to endless possibilities, different points of view, but they can limit children as well. It's important to ensure the quality of the books that are published.

(Wow, I sound like I'm in a HS debate or in a beauty pageant or something--but I thought it was cute that I was practicing interview questions. I had totally forgotten that. I was so diligent!)

And here's the entry from 7/14/99, two days before my birthday. This was the best birthday gift ever:

"Hi Alvina, it's Megan XX of Little, Brown and Company. I'm calling around 3:20 on Tuesday. Sorry I couldn't talk to you more yesterday, but anyway, I have good news and I'm looking forward to talking to you..."

So goes the beginning of the answering machine message Megan left me...I couldn't believe it. My heart was beating so fast...I felt dizzy and dazed. I called back, and she offered me the job.

I GOT THE JOB!!!!

I GOT THE JOB!!!

YAY YAY YAY YAY YAY YAY

How quickly your life can change...

I was so depressed Monday and most of Tuesday because I was convinced I didn't get it.

My interview went well, but not fantastic. I was so excited, because it turns out Megan had edited several books featuring Asian Americans, because she felt that Asians weren't depicted enough in children's books.
...
Then on Thursday I went into the Horn Book to interview with Karen [the Horn Book was hiring a Marketing/Administrative Assistant], and Jen said "So I talked to Megan...she really liked you!" and I got all excited again.

Megan had said she'd either have a decision by the end of the week or call for second interviews at the end of the week.

I didn't hear anything on Friday. It was torture all weekend. I majorly ground my teeth.

Monday morning, I called.
"Hi Megan, this is Alvina Ling, I interviewed with you last week."
"Oh, yes, hi Alvina."
"I was wondering if you've come to any kind of decision yet."
"I...I...uh, I'll definitely know by the end of the day tomorrow."
"You'll have a decision by the end of the day tomorrow?"
"Yes. I'll definitely call you then."

I didn't take that as a good sign. I thought she had basically decided, and it wasn't me, but wasn't prepared to reject me on the spot.

On top of it all, about an hour later, standing in the kid's section with Jeannine [she was the children's section supervisor at B&N and had also interviewed for the Horn Book job], she received a phone call from the Horn Book offering her the job. [read more about this moment here.]
I was pretty depressed. She was so happy, and she felt so bad for being so happy, and why should she feel bad?

...

A real job.
I have my first real job.
I'm so excited.
And I don't even know what I'm going to get paid. [ha!]
And I don't care, even.

On 8/16:

My first day at Little, Brown was today.
It went pretty well.
I think I'll like it. I'm sorta scared, thought. There's so much to remember. So many thing to do and keep track of.

But I think I'll enjoy it all.

On 8/26:

So I've been at L,B for almost two weeks now. This was my first week solo (as in, without the former assistant Scott to show me what to do).
I feel like I'm getting the hang of things. I'm getting to know people there. They're cool.
...
I feel like I've been making some silly mistakes. No attention to detail. I should be more careful.
But I really think I'm going to do well there.
I guess it's really all up to me.
As my mom likes to say,
If it is to be, it's up to me.

Why, yes it is, Young Alvina, yes it is.

I'm glad to see that after ten years, I'm not completely jaded, although I'm certainly not as wide-eyed and innocent as I was back then. But as I say every year when I look back, I'm still in a job that a love, and I still feel that there's a great responsibility that comes with creating children's books. As I noted in my last post, I live my job a lot of the time, and believe me, I certainly DO care what I get paid nowadays! But all in all, I especially love that I am constantly learning and growing in my job, that each year brings new challenges with all the new books I edit. And this is what will keep me happy and satisfied for another ten, heck, another fifty years! Happy Anniversary to me!

A day in the life of an editor

2009-08-11T08:35:00.001-04:00

Cross-posted from Blue Rose Girls

****

I'm a little bit stressed these days--it's been a busy summer that is just going to get busier. I've now had two consecutive weekends where I've had to come into work, and three weekdays where I've been in the office past 11 pm.* What have I been doing? Well, it's performance review time for one, so I've been busy preparing my assistant's review, and also my own. And as for everything else? I thought I'd share with you an excerpt from one of my talks from Chautauqua, "Thinking Like You Editor," in which I started by sharing a typical work day in the life of an editor:

So, here’s my typical work day: I get into the office around 9 AM every morning…okay, it’s usually more like 9:15. I turn on my computer and check any voicemail messages. While my computer is booting up I get my morning coffee and breakfast—I have a whole shelf and drawer full of cereal and oatmeal, soup, and snacks. An editor needs her energy!

I check email while I eat my breakfast—email is a daily struggle for me, with my inbox containing between 200 and 300 emails at any given moment. And now that we receive most of our submissions electronically, the memory of my inbox is filled up quickly unless I’m constantly sorting and filing and deleting my email. So really, any free minute I have, I’m sorting through emails trying to cut the number down. This is why sending unsolicited email queries and submissions is not a good idea. I’m looking for reasons to delete email.

Speaking of unsolicited email queries, I recently received an anonymous emailed query. It was addressed to me, an editor at Bloomsbury, and two agents that I know, one here in the U.S., the other in the UK. I'd like to first point out that we are all female, and the letter was addressed: “Dear Sir.” It was a rambling, badly-written letter, and one line referred to the novel as: “It is properly typed, and most of the spelling mistakes have been corrected.” I love how she or he specified most, not all. And I'll also point out that the only reason why I actually read some of the email is because one of the agents replied to the rest of us making fun of it. So...don't send unsolicited queries.

Okay, so really, that first half hour or so of breakfast and email is as typical as my days gets. From there, they vary wildly, which is part of the reason I love my job so much—every day is different, and it’s almost never boring!

So now I’ll continue telling you about my NOT-so-typical work days. On Tuesdays and Thursdays I have 9:30 am meetings—jacket committee on Tuesday and editorial meeting on Thursdays. On Mondays I have an update meeting with my assistant at 10 am where we go over a submissions list of what each of us have—trying to manage the submissions pile is also an ongoing battle that I’m always losing. We talk about what’s happening that week, if we have deadlines to meet, what we’re both working on. On every other Wednesday morning I have Production meeting where we go over each title with our design, copyediting, and production departments to make sure everything is going according to schedule.

If I’m not in a meeting, I’m mainly either responding to emails (including responding to authors and agents about submissions) or reviewing various materials in my inbox that are circulating, such as picture book mechanicals, proof, marketing materials, and so on.

At lunch, some days I’ll eat at my desk and work through lunch, and other days I’ll have lunch with an agent or an author or a colleague. I actually love going on to these lunches, because I’m a bit of a foodie, and also, I like meeting and getting to know the people I work with. But these expensed lunches are one of the perks of publishing.

In the afternoons, it’s back to meetings. I might meet with an illustrator who’s coming to show his or her portfolio. I might have a meeting with a designer to go over cover ideas, or to review sketches for a picture book. I might have a meeting with other editors to discuss a project one of us wants to acquire. I might have a conference call with an agent and/or an author. I might have an informational interview with someone trying to break into publishing. I might be meeting with a foreign publisher or a packager, or in a meeting with marketing and publicity to discuss plans for a book. Or, I may have our acquisitions meeting, which we call Pub Comm. I also have biweekly update meetings with MY boss, to go over my projects or give updates and/or ask questions. And my assistant and I have monthly meetings with our senior managing editor to make sure we’re on schedule and aware of deadlines.

Because of all these meetings, and of course the preparing for meetings, it’s rare that I get to either edit or read during the work day. I take things home to read or edit at night and on weekends. And some days I’ll take a work-at-home day and edit at my kitchen table, checking email every few hours. I work at home once or twice a month, or more often when our deadline for getting final manuscripts into copyediting is coming up. I’ll also work late to have some quiet time to edit. Some days I’ll leave between 5:30 and 7 if I have something going on after work, but if not I’ll work until 8 or 9. The latest I’ve ever stayed is probably 11 pm.

**end of first section of talk**

(Okay, make that 11:30 pm. I refuse to stay past midnight. It's just not right.)

At any rate, that's pretty much how my days go. In terms of the editing part of my job, here's a paragraph from later in the talk, when I'm talking about editing (I included much of my How I Edit post in my talk, which you can read here):

Another thing that I’d like authors to remember during this process, is that at the same time I’m editing your novel over and over, I’m also editing all of the other novels on that same list. I may have up to six novels on one list, and so it’s a real juggling act. Edit, send letter, get in revision, edit, send letter, get in revision of other novel, edit, send editorial notes, etc. etc. Final manuscripts are due copyediting in May for Spring books, and October for Fall books, so the two-three months or so leading up to those key months are especially hectic.

Right now, I'm midst of my juggling act for our Fall 2010 list. I'm on the second revision for some novels, and am waiting to get in the first draft for other novels, am waiting for revisions of still more. I sent an editorial letter for one novel a week and a half ago, was in the office today finishing up another one to send tomorrow, and then will dive into the editing of a third novel. And I already have a fourth novel lined up in the queue.

And while all this is going on, I feel a huge amount of guilt because I haven't been able to keep up with my submissions pile. Grrr. I know, I know. Enough whining...back to work!

*but don't worry--it hasn't been all work and no play!

Beyond the Book: Fade to Blue by Sean Beaudoin

2009-08-05T08:30:00.000-04:00

Cross-posted from the Blue Rose Girls.

Beyond the Book: Fade to Blue by Sean Beaudoin*

Looking back, I was disappointed to discover that I had never written a post dedicated to Sean Beaudoin's debut novel, Going Nowhere Faster, which came out in April 2007. Going Nowhere Faster was a novel about an unmotivated genius, Stan, who has just graduated from high school and is working a dead-end job at a video store. I called it Good Will Hunting meets Clerks. It was hilarious, with a sharp voice and memorable characters, and from the moment I read the proposal, I knew that Sean was a special writer, someone with a bright future.

His second book, Fade to Blue, does not disappoint. In fact, in my mind it changed Sean from "just" a contemporary, humorous, smart writer, to a writer where there are no limits. A writer who can do anything, a writer who will keep surprising.

Fade to Blue is what I call Donnie Darko meets the Matrix. Or maybe it's Charlie Kaufman meets I Am the Cheese. Or perhaps it's Feed meets Be More Chill. However you describe it, this book is crazy. It's crazy good.

Speaking of crazy, the book starts out from the point of view of Sophie, a goth girl who thinks she just might be going crazy. Her father disappeared mysteriously almost a year earlier, on her 17th birthday. And now her 18th birthday is approaching, and she's having these crazy dreams. And did I mention that there's a weird Popsicle Truck stalking her?

Kenny Fade is the opposite of Sophie. He's the big man on campus, basketball star who has everything. But it's not all perfect with him, either, because, like Sophie, he thinks he may be going crazy.

The book alternates chapters between Sophie and Kenny, with some chapters from Sophie's brother O.S. and some other mysterious figures thrown in. It's a mind trip, and above all, it'll take you on a ride. It's innovative, funny, smart, and a little bit scary and sad, too. And it will make you think.

In terms of how this book came to be, this was not one of those books that came to me almost done. This one needed work. Because there were so many twists and turns, and because the mystery element was crucial to the overall success of this book, I needed help--I needed that invaluable "fresh read" several times throughout the revision process. In addition to my assistant, I had to recruit the help of three other editors along the way to give me that fresh read. This was truly a group effort, and a fun one at that. The revision process was as crazy a ride as the book is.

The book's title was also a challenge. The proposal came in called Sour White, which never felt right to me or the acquisitions committee. In the book, Sour White is the name of a soda that plays a key role in the plot. But most of the people we polled, and for some reason mostly women, had a negative reaction to the name. So, the author came up with a long list of other possibilities, including: Scatterblue, Standing Without Permission, Black Kite Blue, Splickity Lit, Sky Blue, Code Blue, Neon Blue Panic, and more. (BTW, Sophie's last name is "Blue")

What do you think? Do any of these appeal more than Fade to Blue? Maybe one will work as the title to a future book.

In terms of the design of this book, a lot came from the idea of having a comic book artist illustrate the cover, as a comic book plays an important part in the plot. But Sean took it a step further and asked if it would be possible to include an actual comic in the book. Now, when he asked this, I think my first thought was "Cool," and I think my second thought was, "How the heck do we do that?" Luckily, the amazing designer, Kirk Benshoff, who at the time had started to work mainly with our graphic novel imprint, Yen Press, was up for the task of figuring this out with me. We started by coming up with a list of possible artists. I believe it was Sean's agent who suggested Wilfred Santiago, who ended up being the artist we chose. And from there, it was working out the budget for the interior comic, having Sean write the text and description, and then Wilfred worked his magic.

Here are some shots of the 12-page interior comic. Does this mean that I can now say that I've edited a comic book?

And finally, check out this fantastic blogger review. Perhaps we'll put a blurb from it on the paperback edition: "This book is nine different level[s] of F*CKING AWESOME!"

I concur.

Sean is hard at work on his third YA novel, tentatively titled You Killed Wesley Payne which is due to pub next Fall. It's a slick, noir-ish mystery set in a high school where the cliques are battling for power. So: What do you think of that title?

*pronounced something like "bo-DWAH"

Lying covers, and the importance of diversity

2009-08-02T19:50:00.002-04:00

Re-posted from the Blue Rose Girls (from last week):

If you haven't heard yet, there's quite the controversy going on regarding the U.S. cover image of Justine Larbalestier's new YA book Liar, coming out in October. Basically, Justine's protagonist is described in the book as being black with short hair. The girl on the cover is fairly obviously white with long hair that covers her mouth. Publisher's Weekly has an excellent article about the debate here, and read Justine's very thoughtful response here.

In a past post about book design, I talked about how difficult a task it is to design novel covers. There are SO MANY people to try to make happy. Working for a publisher, I know how a cover can change and morph and get watered down and/or far away from the original vision. And I know that the author rarely gets approval, let alone official consultation. So, on the surface, I can understand how the Liar cover could come to be--and on it's own, I find it to be a striking cover. I would pick up a book with that cover.

However, I do think it's disappointing and disheartening that the cover girl does not match the descriptions of the heroine in the interior, especially because of what's been said about the reasoning behind it. And on a surface level, too--as a kid, it always drove me batty when the cover didn't match the interior. Then, it generally had to do with hair color, not race, but as a reader, I think the cover should match the interior. And it saddens me what this particular discrepancy potentially says about the book market.

I can't comment on what happened behind the closed doors of the publishing house. I don't want to point fingers. And I have no idea either what the ethnicity of all of the key players involved was, but I feel confident in saying that something like this would have never happened at our publishing house, because we have such a commitment to the diversity both of our staff, and the books that we publish. I can't imagine someone even suggesting to me that to we put a white person on the cover of a book with an Asian protagonist. However, I can see NOT putting a face on the cover at all.

I have no idea if books with non-white characters on the cover have lower sales than covers with white characters. I don't doubt it, but I'm sure there is a huge array of reasons why it would or would not be the case. But if it is the case, then it's something that we should all work towards changing. Author Sarah Ockler had a great blog post earlier this year about looking at how diverse your bookshelf is. It's something we should all think about. Do you buy books featuring characters of a race other than your own? A lot or a little? Why or why not?

I have been successful in acquiring books by authors of many different backgrounds, featuring characters of the same. Some of the covers feature the faces of the characters, others do not. For example, Justina Chen Headley's first novel, Nothing But the Truth (and a few white lies) features a hapa (half Asian, half white) protagonist in the book and on the cover. Her second book, Girl Overboard, features an Asian protagonist but the cover image shows the back of a snowboarder (a beautiful stock photo). Her third book, North of Beautiful features a blond heroine in the interior and on the cover. It's her third book that has "broken out. " And although I can also argue that it's the best book she's written so far, and we've been able to build on the success of her first two novels, who knows. Things to ponder.

My favorite picture book as a child was The Snowy Day by Ezra Jack Keats. I always use that as evidence that race doesn't matter, that if a little Asian girl could have a favorite book with a black boy on the cover, then it is possible that gender and race barriers in book choices could not exist. A friend once commented, however, that because I, too, am a "person of color," I am possibly more open to reading books about other people of color. I suppose that could be right, although I have to think that plenty of little white children called the book their favorite, too, right?

I believe in the importance of diversity. This post about bias from a while ago talks about a study that I feel proves that the more people see TV shows and movies and read books with positive depictions of people not like themselves, the more accepting we will be of all types of people. I laugh when someone says "but I have black friends" or "gay friends" or "Asian friends" to prove that they aren't racist or biased. That is no proof at all. But you know, at least it's a start. Because the more contact we have with people of other races, the less biased we'll all eventually become (I hope!).

Regardless of how all of this works out, I have to think that this is a "teachable moment"--just as President Obama referred to the incident where Harvard Professor Henry Louis Gates was arrested in his own home. This article in the NYTimes was eye-opening as well. Let's learn from this, and all try to make sure that this type of thing doesn't happen in the future.

Chautauqua, Part Two

2009-07-20T14:08:00.001-04:00

Cross posted, once again, from the Blue Rose Girls.

***

As I mentioned last week, I've been at the Highlights Foundation Writer's Workshop at Chautauqua.

Chautauqua. Ah, Chautauqua. How do I love thee? Let me count the ways.

1) The Athenaeum Hotel, my home for a week. This was the first hotel in the world to have electric lights, thanks mainly to the fact that Thomas Edison's father co-founded the Chautauqua Institution.

2) My lovely hotel room and lake view. The sun rose over the lake in the morning, bringing a lovely light to the room.

3) Great outings, like the chicken cookout where Jerry and Eileen Spinelli interviewed each other (this is where I found out the interesting tidbits about Jerry that I mentioned last week. Another interesting fact: his favorite movie is Anne of Green Gables!).

4) Speaking of outings, one evening we took a fascinating visit to the Roger Tory Peterson Institute, the highlight of which was seeing a drawer of bird specimens, including extinct birds, such as the passenger pigeon and the ivory-billed woodpecker, aka the "Lord God Bird" (the latter perhaps not extinct after all...).

5) Inspiring and informational speakers throughout (myself included, I hope!). The morning keynote sessions were held in the Hall of Christ Sanctuary. Peter Jacobi (let your words take flight and soar), Patricia Lee Gauch (who urged writers to "Be a little crazy! Be a LOT crazy!"), Stephen Roxburgh (who talked about technology and called books and e-Books "word buckets," saying that "Readers are readers. They seek words that mean something."), and more.

6) The art and culture infused all throughout Chautauqua. Walking around, you couldn't help but run into a concert, a lecture, or perhaps the circus...

7) The last night surprise tribute to Highlights Foundation co-founder Kent Brown, who is the visionary behind the Writers Workshop, which celebrated its 25th Anniversary this past weekend. Several of the faculty, including Peter Jacobi and Larry Pringle, had been there at the very first conference. They, along with others like Jerry Spinelli:

and Patty Lee Gauch:

gave heartfelt and funny tributes to Kent. It was like a roast without the insults.

8) The auction Thursday night that funded a brand-new scholarship in Patricia Lee Gauch's honor (she retired from Philomel a few weeks ago). One of my favorite auction items was this cuddly bear from the Spinelli's, complete with inspiring poem:

9) Lovely gifts from authors (aside from their writing, of course!) Here's a bouquet of flower pens that one author made for me! And given to me on my birthday, too. It was one of two birthday gifts I received from authors at the conference. Not a bad way to spend my birthday.

10) The people. The faculty, the writers, and especially the staff and volunteers, all combined to make it a warm, supportive, friendly, and inspiring week.

As you can tell, I'm a Chautauqua convert. I thought the schedule and set-up was the perfect balance of practical information and inspiration. Being in such a magical setting was inspiration in itself. Who knows, maybe someday I'll be able to buy a summer home there...we all need to dream, right?

Chautauqua, Part One

2009-07-13T22:36:00.002-04:00

Cross-posted from the Blue Rose Girls.

First things first: Anna is now married! Her wedding on Saturday was absolutely beautiful, so touching, perfect. She and Bruno wrote their own vows, and I swear--there wasn't a dry eye in the place. So romantic and joyous. I'm sure there will be pictures later...(I have yet to upload mine).

I apologize for the late post, but after a travel day on Sunday that started at 2:30 in the morning and ended with a 12:30 pm arrival (10 hours!), I'm now in Chautauqua, NY for the Highlights Writers Workshop. It's a week-long program at the Chautauqua Institute, and even though I've only been here a day an a half so far, I absolutely love it. It's such a idyllic setting. My hotel room overlooks the lake, and this morning I woke up early enough to see the sun rising over the water. It's a gated, walking community with lots of amphitheaters and parks and gardens. There are little brown bats flying around eating all the bugs (as opposed to Little, Brown editors), and most of all, there are passionate, friendly, and excited children's book enthusiasts.

Sunday afternoon Jerry and Eileen Spinelli gave a fun, playful talk at a chicken cook-out--they basically interviewed each other. Some little tidbits I learned was that Eileen consistently beats Jerry in Scrabble, and that Jerry's slippers at home are 20-years-old. These are things about authors that we need to know!

This morning Peter Jacobi gave a detailed informative speech about how our work need to soar. His mantra that we repeated after him at the end:

Fly, Oh Thought of Mine, on Golden Wings.

I met with four authors one-on-one for 30 minutes, going over pages I had read and critiqued ahead of time, and in the afternoon, after sitting in on Patricia Lee Gauch's workshop on Conflict and Tension, and then Stephen Roxburgh's on Plot, I gave my first of two talks, From Slush to Contract. It's a talk I've given several times before, but as usual I tweaked and specialized it for the audience. I think it was well-received...

And tonight I've just returned from a lovely dinner where Candace Fleming told her own Chautauqua success story. She first came as an attendee 16 years ago, and has now published 22 books with more on the way.

I'm absolutely loving this conference, and so far, would highly recommend it to authors. I believe it's pricey, but they do offer scholarships and grants. And people come from all over the world--so far I've met writers from Ecuador, Turkey, Japan, and Israel.

Tomorrow morning the legendary Patricia Lee Gauch is giving a keynote, and then I meet with my remaining three authors. Everyone meets with their faculty member twice during the week, which I think is a great format.

And so, with that, I bid you all good night. More next week!

Sneak Peek at Spring 2010

2009-07-06T10:34:00.001-04:00

Cross-posted from the Blue Rose Girls.

We had our Focus meeting a few weeks ago where we presented to our Sales, Marketing, and Publicity teams our Spring/Summer 2010 list for the first time. I thought I'd give you all a sneak peek of my (and Connie's) titles:

picture books:
Sit-In: How Four Friends Stood Up by Sitting Down by Andrea Pinkney, illustrated by Brian Pinkney.
This is a title that I'm handling for our editor-in-chief during her maternity leave, and it's been a real honor to work on this beautiful book with such an amazing team. This is a nonfiction picture book about the momentous Greensboro, North Carolina Woolworth's lunch counter sit-ins that started on February 1, 1960. Next year will be the 50th Anniversary of this historic moment that helped spur on the entire Civil Rights movement.

Shark vs. Train by Chris Barton, illustrated by Tom Lichtenheld
A hilarious, wacky book that pits Shark against Train in increasingly silly scenarios. Shark and Train play basketball, go bowling, play hide-and-seek, have a burping contest, and more. Who do you think wins, and who are you going to root for, Shark or Train?

Look! A Book! by Bob Staake
This is another project I'm handling for our Editor in Chief. Bob Staake is an award-winning author/illustrator of over 40 books who also has numerous New Yorker covers to his name. This is a fun seek-and-find book in the tradition of Where's Waldo, but with an innovative format using die-cuts on every page.

Board books:
Boy of Mine and Girl of Mine by Jabari Asim, illustrated by LeUyen Pham*
These are two board books that are companions to the adorable Whose Knees are These and Whose Toes are Those by the same team. The text in these two bedtime board books is fun and lyrical, and LeUyen's illustrations are absolutely brilliant. I can't wait to give these books as gifts to my friends with babies!

Middle Grade Fiction:
Ling & Ting: Not Exactly the Same by Grace Lin
This isn't really Middle Grade, but it falls between MG and picture book, so this is where we slotted it. This is an early reader, 48 pages, full color throughout, about two irresistible twins named Ling and Ting. They look exactly alike, but in reality they're very different. This is an exciting new format for Grace, and one that we haven't published much before either, but it's an absolutely beautiful, adorable book. Was Ling named after me? You'll have to ask Grace. :)

Moonshadow: The Rise of the Ninja by Simon Higgins*
A fun action adventure set in ancient Japan, and written by an expert of Japanese swordplay. This book was first published in Australia. This is a little more light and commercial that my usual books, but I loved the humor, the action scenes, the little bit of magic, and the historic setting. And although the main character is a boy, he encounters a girl ninja spy along the way, so there's plenty of girl power here as well. And who can resist ninjas?

The Adventures of Nanny Piggins by R.A. Spratt, illustrated by Dan Santat*
This is my assistant Connie Hsu's second acquisition, but I wanted to include it here because it's so frickin AWESOME. This is Mary Poppins meets Babe with the wicked sense of humor of Roald Dahl. This is the story of three kids and their nanny--who just happens to be a pig, and a wonderful adventurous, stylish one at that. Oh, and she has an insatiable love of chocolate. Here's a character sketch of Nanny Piggins in her former life as a circus pig.

Young adult fiction:
Guardian of the Dead by Karen Healey
This is a debut urban fantasy set in New Zealand and steeped in Maori lore. What impressed me most was the sharp, fresh voice and the kick-ass main character. It's deliciously creepy, sexy, scary, funny, and full of adventure, Maori fairies, monsters, and of course an epic battle. We already have endorsements from Holly Black and Libba Bray, the latter who says, "Mark my words, Karen Healey is going to be a big star." I believe it.

Sorta Like a Rock Star by Matthew Quick
When I first read this novel, I was on the subway, and I was right in the middle of a very tragic, heartbreaking scene that resulted in snot and tears running down my face--pretty embarrassing. But people who know me know that I'm a sucker for books that make me cry, and this was love at first sight for me. This book is Juno meets Stargirl--Juno for it's fresh, spunky voice, and Stargirl because of its message of optimism and hope.

Stay tuned for these books next Spring/Summer!

*books Connie took the editorial lead on

Happy wedding, Tracy and Kirk!

2009-07-05T16:16:00.000-04:00

Book Launch for WHERE THE MOUNTAIN MEETS THE MOON

2009-07-01T07:55:00.003-04:00

In honor of Grace Lin's book launch for her new novel Where the Mountain Meets the Moon, here's a video I took of her showing off the book:

Head over to her book site for more book launch fun and giveaways!! The T-shirts she's made are adorable.

Beyond the Book: Confetti Girl by Diana Lopez

2009-06-29T09:42:00.002-04:00

Cross posted from Blue Rose Girls.

Beyond the Book: Confetti Girl by Diana LopezConfetti Girl was submitted to me by agent Stefanie von Borstel of Full Circle Literary after we had met at a conference. I had mentioned that I was looking for more multicultural projects, both projects that had very much to do with cultural identity, and other projects that featured main characters of color, but of which their ethnicity was not the main focus in terms of the story and plot. I had given her a copy of The Year of the Dog as an example of the latter, and she told me she had the perfect novel to send me.

Stefanie pitched Diana Lopez as the "Latina Judy Blume"--not a bad comparison! Here's the summary of Confetti Girl:

Apolonia "Lina" Flores is a sock enthusiast, a volleyball player, a science lover, and a girl who's just looking for answers. Even though her house is crammed full of books (her dad's a bibliophile), she's having trouble figuring out some very big questions, like why her dad seems to care about books more than her, why her best friend's divorced mom is obsessed with making cascarones (hollowed eggshells filled with colorful confetti), and, most of all, why her mom died last year. Like colors in a cascarone, Lina's life is a rainbow of people, interests, and unexpected changes.

As I often mention, I need to make sure I love a book enough to want to "marry" it before I acquire it. After all, if we take on a project, we have to read it over and over at many different stages, to be wed to it for its lifetime. And so we have to make sure that we’re willing to commit completely, heart and soul, to a project.

As soon as I finished reading the first draft of Confetti Girl, I knew I wanted to marry it. Sure, I wanted to work with the author to make the novel even better, but the great thing about marrying a novel as opposed to a person is that you truly can make changes (a person might not be as open to changing!).

However, I also knew that it wasn't quite ready for our acquisitions meeting. My main issue was that it was stuck between the Middle Grade and Young Adult age groups, and I thought it should be younger, solidly middle grade. Thankfully, Diana and Stefanie agreed to revise the novel before a contract, and I sent over an editorial letter. She actually ended up revising the novel twice before I brought it to the acquisitions meeting, as the first revision was still not quite there, but close.

And throughout every stage of the process, I was always delighted with how much I loved this book in all of its manifestations. Diana’s voice is so lovely and sweet, and as clichéd as it sounds, this book truly made me laugh and cry.

Thankfully, my acquisitions committee loved the novel, too, and a year and two months after the first draft was submitted to me, I was able to offer Diana a contract. I'm so thrilled that it is finally out in the world (it pubbed at the beginning of this month).

A note on the cover: this is the first novel designed by our fantastic senior art director Patti Ann Harris, who specializes in picture book and novelty books. And I think she's done an absolutely fantastic job and perfectly captured the joy and flavor of the book. We hesitated a bit to put socks on the cover, as there have been a few similar designs on books recently, but in the end, it was just so perfect for the novel (Lina is a "sockiophile" after all!) that we went with it. Patti Ann did a photoshoot in the office, and the feet on the cover belong to one of my editor colleagues! We sent the socks to Diana when we were done:
Diana is a Texan native and taught middle school there for nine years, and she has perfectly captured that setting and age group. Her characters are quirky and real, and every time I read her book, I marvel at how simply charming and engaging her writing is.

Happily, the book has only received glowing reviews thus far:

"The story is saturated with Spanish traditions, such as the making of "cascarones" (confetti-filled eggs), and the chapters begin with "dichos," truisms that help Lina feel connected to her mother. Employing lovely metaphors and realistic dialogue, adult author López (Sofia's Saints) delicately displays the power of optimism and innovation during difficult times."
--Publisher’s Weekly

"An appealing coming-of-age novel."
--Kirkus

I absolutely knew from the start that this was both an author and novel that was extremely special, and I hope you all agree!

Read more about Diana and Confetti Girl on her website and this great interview over at Cynsations.

An Iowa adventure in pictures and videos, Part 1

2009-06-24T17:58:00.002-04:00

Find out what happens when we enter this road:(the sign says CAUTION MINIMUM MAINTENANCE ROAD, LEVEL B SERVICE, ENTER AT YOUR OWN RISK)

How do we get out of this? To be continued...

Happy Father's Day!

2009-06-21T14:03:00.001-04:00

An animoto video in honor of my amazing dad. Happy Father's Day!