Sunday, February 20, 2011

Writing for children

Patricia Johnson, a proffesional writer, offers excellent advice for query letters when you are writing for children,
Query Advice
(c) Patricia Johnson

•A query is succinct; make it one page in length.

•Include the unique elements of your work; the genre, subject and target audience.

•Include marketing information such as if you are already beginning to market by social media like twitter and blogging on relevant sites. Briefly mention the marketing you plan to do after publication. Will you market locally as well? Mention that also.

•Include a brief history of your writing experience that is relevant to this project.

•Give the name(s) of those who referred you to the publisher/agent.

•If you are submitting other queries, be sure to mention this. Limit the amount of queries you send at one time since some agents/publishers want a low number of queries out on a book, or even an exclusive query. ### Patricia Johnson, patricia.writeviewpoet@GMAIL.COM.

The following are excellent resources for writers who pursue a career in writing for children.(*)

Childrens Writing -- Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBSI), http://www.scbwi.org/ is considered the best resource available for writers who aspire to write for children. If you're new to writing for children start with Resource Library tab. Use Illustrators tab to locate illustrators.

The Children's Book Council, http://www.cbcbooks.org/ is another great resource.

Check out these FREE resources at Write 4 Kids.com, Children's Book Insider, http://www.write4kids.com/index.html. Be sure to click the About US Link at the bottom.

Hover your mouse along the top bar, and especially appreciate the drop-down site style to locate goodies!

Explore! Explore! You won't find such a wealth of excellent, free information anywhere else, http://www.write4kids.com/ebooks.html.
END

*Excepted from Access The World and Write Your Way To $$$, Chapter 13 - Genre Writing and Writing for Children: http://tinyurl.com/3x33osl.

Friday, February 18, 2011

Manuscript preparation

A reminder about what you must have on every page of a manuscript submitted to an agent or editor:

Your header should contain the following,
  • Title:
  • Word count:
  • Your contact information.
Don't forget to number every page.
Do not staple or use clips.

Editors and agents prefer to receive a manuscript stacked and unbound with the above information on every page.
###

Sunday, February 13, 2011

Valentine's Day 2011

(c) Mona Leeson Vanek

Valentine's Day, that special one,
When lovers do, in unison,
Gaze into each other's eyes
And whisper idiotic lies.

Sunday, February 6, 2011

Writers Guidelines Pose Restrictions

Today I'd like to remind you of the importance of studying a magazine's writer's guidelines, and following them to the letter. Here's an exercise to jump start you ~~ study Pine cone.on.ca, http://www.pinecone.on.ca/ guidelines. It is a good example (paying market.) Their promo says, "Ontario's magazine for history, heritage, nostalgia, nature, environment, travel and the arts ... located in the heart of the Madawaska Valley, on the York River."

Sounds great, right? However, many magazines want stories only about a specific area or country. Pinecone.on.ca is a good example: "We accept only Canadian content by Canadian authors." Their guidelines are also very specific about what they do and do not want, and queries are mandatory. Guidelines, http://www.pinecone.on.ca/MAGAZINE/writers.html.

You can learn more at Access The World and Write Your Way To $$$, Chapter 2 - Careers and Marketing, http://tinyurl.com/286848e.