SCBWI Conference - and Book 2!
Last weekend I went to the SCBWI Summer Conference, conveniently held here in Los Angeles. (Convenient for me--not sure the East Coasters would agree!) I was still dragging from having moved to a new home the weekend before that, so I skipped a few sessions. Still, I made it to most of the conference and had a good time, as always. I met a couple of editors; I also got some good ideas on publicizing my work from Alexis O'Neill's workshop.
Since my nametag was yellow (for published), I found that several unpublished writers (blue tags!) approached me to ask "how I did it." I'll just share one overriding impression, which may sound cynical, but should instead be considered realistic. That is, a lot of aspiring writers want to write picture books, but they're kind of barking up the wrong tree.
I understand that a picture book just seems like a more manageable chunk of writing. Plus, these "young" writers point out hopefully, though the picture book market had been considered kind of dead, editors at the conference were talking about signs of renewed life. I'll add that the editors were ALSO saying that it's not enough for them to like a picture book manuscript anymore; they have to LOVE-LOVE-LOVE it to consider buying it. I can attest to this--I've sent my editors picture book manuscripts that they did like, but they wanted a shockingly powerful love connection in order to feel compelled to produce a book! Furthermore, editors told us that they prefer to hire writer-illustrators for picture books whenever they can."Yes," the young writers told me, "but I have a good idea."
Okay, hit me.
So they shared their ideas. And I struggled to find a way to say something far more diplomatic than "No, that is NOT a good idea. "On a related note, one writer sounded like she had YA potential, but when I brought it up, she said, "My writing teacher tells me that, too, but I want to write picture books." So here are various pieces of advice. From the heart:
1. Your idea is NOT fresh enough if it is your first idea, your second idea, or even your third idea. You have to generate a LOT of material to come up with something fresh enough to ignite an editor's interest.
2. Your idea is NOT fresh enough if it is overtly didactic or overly sentimental. (Remember "show, don't tell"?) If your plot runs along the line of "Betty the Bunny hurts her best friend Mary the Mouse's feelings and then makes up with her by sharing some special cheese," forget it.
3. Your idea is unlikely to sell if it is what editors today call too "quiet." Today's kids are pretty rowdy (and TV-trained to want action); sweet lullaby-type books aren't selling much, especially if they're by first-time authors.
4. Just because it's a short form doesn't mean picture book is an easy form! Really, it's harder to write a good poem than a good story because of the tightness of the format. My picture books, for example, mostly aren't written in classic short form--I'm writing fairy tales, a longer genre for older children. Be aware that you MAY not have a picture book mind and voice because you MAY be better suited to writing for intermediate or YA readers. This is not a terrible fate--writing longer manuscripts is like writing many short pieces (chapters) strung together!
5. Anyway, if you think your picture book ideas are that astonishing, you probably haven't read what's out there. You should have read HUNDREDS of picture books before you try to sell one (not write, sell)! You should be familiar with classics like Where the Wild Things Are and Millions of Cats, later arrivals such as Good Night, Gorilla and Chicka-Chicka Boom Boom, as well as newcomers ranging from Punk Farm to Show Way. (Yes, Show Way is "quiet"--it's also poetic, unusual, and written by an established writer.) Reading voraciously in the field will let you know where you stand so that you won't miscalculate the marketability of your work; it will further give you the impetus to evolve as a writer and thinker. For example, at the conference, one editor mentioned a new fantasy called Fly by Night, and I had read it the previous week. When he wondered in his panel discussion why it wasn't doing better than they had hoped (so far), I had an opinion--yes, the language, the metaphors, and the characters are incredibly good, but the politics are a bit murky, and the book IS a little dark. Perhaps these factors are slowing the development of a market? But really, I concluded, it's too soon to tell. And when another editor gave an example of a book that, unlike most manuscripts, DIDN'T need editing, I knew why. It was a book on an obscure, possibly dull topic, so many of the audience members took the example to mean that THEIR obscure, dull manuscripts had a chance, too. Not me. I own a book by that author-illustrator, Shaun Tan. It's called The Red Tree. It's beautiful and strange and really, in my opinion, not for children. Shaun Tan is like the Neil Gaimon of picture books. So anything he produces is likely to be highly creative, visually striking, fresh and risky and POSSIBLY more oriented to grown-up collectors than child readers. If an editor found himself unable to edit Shaun Tan, that's because it's difficult to edit a unique, complete little universe--and that would be a Tan book. So maybe I know a little TOO much about the world of children's books--but anyone aspiring to write for kids should really immerse him- or herself in the field at least enough to know the classics, award-winners, and best-sellers!
Okay, thanks for letting me get that off my chest. I'll conclude by saying that my second book came out last week--YAY! The Runaway Princess was fun to write, so I assume/hope it's also fun for kids to read. My editor sent me another good (early) review from The Horn Book, so that's encouraging. The Kirkus review is already out, and is also positive.
I'd better go finish unpacking my kitchen... the dishes and canned goods are in the cupboards, but the pots and pans continue to taunt me in their clangy little voices!
--Kate
