A Silly Song!

Peas porridge hot!

Peas porridge cold!

Peas porridge in the pot—

I hope you don't mind mold.

Some like it hot.

Some like it cold.

Some like it in the pot—

You don't, do you, mind mold?

from the Dept. of Believe it or Not

Editor X recently said his/her (we shan't reveal!) big house will use pen names for authors' whose last books tanked. Authors have long asked to use pen names— for multiple reasons (that's the juicy part, but our lips are sealed)— and pub'rs always refused. The problem was promoting a previously pub'd, maybe even known, author while keeping the ruse from booksellers. We cannot say why this is not a problem still.

We think it is a sin that a bookseller's loyalty runs only book-to-book. Steve Ross, the CEO who united Warner Bros. and Time Inc., said that without failure, you are not doing your job, which is to make things (in this case stories) new.

Questions? Comments?

Ame Dyckman Debuts Today!

BOY + BOT pubs today. see R-H's Facebook page.

Amazon names BOY + BOT a Best of April book!

for the next two days, see the BOY + BOT trailer here. thereafter, see it everywhere.

A Silly Song!

SCIENCE, from our line of educational verses


The prize-winning project
At the state science fair
Was a clay pot of radishes
Growing human hair.


The prize-winning student,
With her parents both in tow,
Shocked those attending
The ceremony show.


The audience could see 
They displayed horrid grooming
Upon all three heads?
Row of radishes were blooming!

Stars Apalooza!

hang on to your hairdo! Debut Ame's BOY + BOT (with an assist from Dan Yaccarino) got its third star yesterday! This time from Booklist.

Is any love greater than that between a boy and his robot? While picking pine cones, a boy meets a bright red, rocket-shaped robot and asks, “Want to play? “Affirmative!” the robot responds, and the pair has tons of fun until a rock bumps the robot’s power switch off. Not understanding the bot's unresponsiveness, the boy wheels him home and begins feeding him applesauce, reading him a story, and crafting a makeshift bed. When the boy’s parents, unaware of a robot behind the door, check on their son, the door bumps the robot’s power switch back on. Not distinguishing the boy’s unresponsiveness as sleep, the robot, in a humorous reversal, fears the boy has malfunctioned and carries him back to his laboratory, where he gives him oil and begins to prepare a new battery—when, just in time, the not-evil-at-all invetor shows up to put things right. The spare text (“Boy! You-are-fixed!”) replicates the steady beats of the simple yet comedicstory, while Yaccarino’s expressive, quirky, and humorously geometric gouache illustrations make the boy and robot’s relationship all the more endearing. The final, nearly wordless pages, with snapshots of the friends at play, are priceless. Booklist *starred*

STAR!

Story by Maribeth Boelts  Pictures by Lauren Castillo

Props for HAPPY LIKE SOCCER! which is not merely a Junior Literary Guild Selection but today also became the proud parent of a glorious PW STARRED REVIEW! (A book gives birth to its review.) We are so proud. This is a vividly heartfelt story, exquisitely conjured by our Maribeth and inspired illustrations from Lauren Castillo. This is a very happy picturebook marriage.

The other girls on Sierra’s soccer team are surrounded by their families on game days, but Sierra’s auntie, a waitress, works Saturdays, and Sierra plays alone: the onlookers “cheer for me by the number on my uniform, not knowing my name.” The plan Sierra comes up with to allow her auntie to see her play—and the courage she summons to put it into action—give Boelt’s (Those Shoes) story unexpected emotional depth. Castillo’s (Melvin and His Boy) quiet ink-and-watercolor spreads make it clear that Sierra’s situation is different from that of the other girls, and that her auntie treasures her niece and keeps her safe. The fenced-in soccer field in Sierra’s urban neighborhood is scruffier than the team’s suburban field, but Sierra’s auntie’s apartment is cozy and welcoming, and so are her words. Class differences (“Then my ride comes, filled with laughing girls who know the jokes I don’t”) and the clash of city and suburban culture are clearly laid out, but softened by supportive adults (Coach Marco asks Sierra if there’s anything she needs, and means it). A thought-provoking read-aloud. Ages 5–9. PW *starred*

HAPPY LIKE SOCCER pubs in May and is Maribeth Boelts's second Candlewick book, again from editor Sarah Kertchersid. their first, THOSE SHOES, is kicking butt on Amazon. (yeah, yeah, anecdotal, blah, blah— but this is eight months running, people!)

What's the Matter?

why hesitate, Gentle Readers? the time is now to extol (or not, if you're crazy) our picturebook list this spring! it is a bonanza! can't you guys chime in or something?

"Manning's pages are exhunberance itself." —PW

ANOTHER star— this one from PW. In addition to the above quote-made-in-heaven, PW called LAUNDY DAY "vivid" and "warmhearted". Happy us, happy we!

"English" A Silly Song!

for our English teacher followers, and the like . . .

Nouns name things.

Adjectives describe them.

Verbs act up.

Adverbs circumscribe them.

Now! 

Construct a sturdy sentence

From your toolbox of good grammar.
The rule for if it wobbles?

Smartly smash it with a hammer!

this is copyrighted.

Kiki's Gone Board Book!

You loved her in hardcover and now she's on board(book) in a new format. Especially cool is that Janie conceived the book this way. Meredith Mundy-Wassinger at Sterling pared and repositioned the text and created A RIGHT PROPER BOARD BOOK— not a picturebook gone slumming. Janie Bynum is a graphic designer as well as superlative illustrator— this lady can draw! Kiki's graphic pictures are perfect for babies still learning to focus or learning to move their eyes in a horizontal (text) line.

Joosse + Jutte = OMG! BRILLIANT OR WHAT?!

Appealing illustrations and a cheerful, rhythmic text [create] an entertaining voyage of imagination with engaging, eccentric companions.— Kirkus

Speaking of Starred Reviews. . .

no better quote than how Kirkus summarizes its starred review of author/illustrator Maurie Manning's tour de force LAUNDRY DAY (Clarion: editor Marcia Leonard): "Everything teams with movement and life— completely beguiling."

top that!

Stars Aplenty for Ame Dyckman's debut!

We're so excited! Ame's first reviews ever are both stars! 

Kirkus *starred* "this book will be a hit." (cuts to the chase, doesn't it?)


Publisher's Weekly *starred* "Imaginative and sweet-natured, Dyckman’s picture-book debut [will] keep children entertained for many re-readings."

Knopf (editor: Michele Burke) did a great job with this book and Dan Yaccarino came through as always. And Ame's text is . . . well, advance order your copy today!

Ame's next book TEA PARTY RULES (Viking: editor Leila Sales) is not far off, either. Keith Campbell is already sketching away.


pssssst: even more great Ame news (can't you hardly stand it?): although our sleeves are still rolled up on this one, we are virtually positive we will soon be rolling them down to. . .  toast Ame's THIRD BOOK! yep! check back soon!

DARK DEEPS German Cover

Love the look of this awesome cover for Book 2 in Art Slade's HUNCHBACK ASSIGNMENTS series! You can pick up the American edition here.

ABANDON CHANGES: A Girl Parts Story

Our own John M. Cusick's new short story is now a free e-book from Candlewick Press.

Abandon Changes: A Girl Part's Story, takes place several months after the events of John's debut novel Girl Parts, and is available on Amazon,  Kobo, and Barnes & Noble. Check it out!

Rei’s a runner—fast, smart, doesn’t ask questions, and keeps her mouth shut about the errands she runs. She doesn’t know what’s in the packages she delivers and she doesn’t care. It’s simpler that way. But Rei’s soon-to-be-ex, Sam, has gotten under her skin, and she’s started thinking about the effects of her errands. Can Rei be close to someone and do her job—and can she make a choice before it’s too late? ABANDON CHANGES is a short story by John M. Cusick, set in the same world as his compulsively readable debut novel, GIRL PARTS. This story includes a sneak peek at the first few chapters of GIRL PARTS.

Monster Maker Kevan Atteberry. . .

draws 'em like he sees 'em!

Another Silly Song— by demand!

Jack Sprat could eat no fat
His wife could eat no lean.
And so between the two of them
Mealtime was a scene.

The act for which the two are known,
For licking clean the platter,
Is a lie the missus spun:
Jack stuck his tongue out at her.

this is copyrighted.


p.s. did you know the original was pub'd in 1639?

a Silly Song!

There was a crooked man

And he walked a crooked mile.

He met a crooked lass and said— what else?

I like your style!

The Life Cycle of a Book

via Publishing Trendsetter

Janis Repka is Not Clueless!

originally Janis titled this book Counting Frog Feathers. her publisher, Penguin, concluded Too obscure. so the title became Aphrodite Figures it Out, then The Difference Between Hair Roots and Square Roots, then Wiz Kid and Twirl Girl. while THE CLUELESS GIRL'S GUIDE TO BEING A GENIUS does not rightly express Janis's regard for her characters, whom she would never call clueless, it has that commercial patina we now more than ever pin our hopes on.

the  hardcover ofJanis's debut The Stupendous Dodgeball Fiasco sells steadily; but only its place on several state reading lists precipitated the need for a softcover edition, to pub next year. 

We love Janis!

Play, Louis, Play! Nominated for Texas Bluebonnet Award

Congratulations to Muriel Harris Weinstein, whose Play, Louis, Play! (Bloomsbury, 2010) has been nominated for the prestigious Texas Bluebonet Award. We'll keep our fingers crossed!

Boogie Monster

Check out author Josie Bissett (of ABC's The Secret Life of the American Teenager) talking about her picture book BOOGIE MONSTER, illustrated by our own Kevan Atteberry!

BOOGIE is the follow-up to Josie and Kevan's TICKLE MONSTER.

A Silly Song!

The sky is falling!

The sky is falling!

Chicken Little said.

The moral is how easily

Rumors sometimes spread.

And yet you have to wonder:

Did they jail that false town crier?

To tell the truth, 

I half suspect

She wound up roaster-fryer.

Printz on Our Minds

And why shouldn't it be when we have Pat Hughes's superb (we say it again!) FIVE FOURTHS OF JULY, an historical, which the Printz people typically acknowledge. just to prove our evaluation is impartial, even though Pat is our client and this is our book, take a look at this!

Go Pat!

A Silly Song!

do you readers like these? let us know.

There was an old woman who lived in a shoe.

She had so many children she didn't know what to do.

In fact, she had two.

Great big brats the old woman had.

They vexed her and perplexed her and they drove her fairly mad.

They tell us she beat them and sent them to bed—

Not that she woke up next day with no head.

GO, SLEEPING BOOTSIE, GO!

Read it here, The Children's Book Review calls Maribeth Boelts's fractured tale "delightful" and "perfectly suited for children reading on their own in grades 1-3". Can't argue with that.

Philadelphia Inquirer Loves FIVE 4ths of JULY!

Don't take our word for it, Pat's novel is one of the very best historicals in years. Read it here, folks. This is a gripping, original account, including horrific, little known aspects of the Revolutionary War. One example, 11,500 Americans died on British prison ships anchored in  in New York harbor, whereas only 4,500 Americans died in all Revolutionary War battles combined. Surprising, right? The novel's even greater achievement— besides setting the record straight by correcting the preposterous conceit of Johnny Tremain— is Pat's creation of relate-able teens, flesh-and-blood people not so different from teens today. A stupendous book— with two starred reviews, so far! (But who's counting?)

A Silly Song

Skip to the loo

With Sally and Sue

Remember: Wash your face!

Time to skidoo

Tell Sally, take Sue

And skip to another place!

Boy + Bot

oh, do avail yourselves of the preorder opportunity to own Knopf's DEBUT of picturebook author Ame Dyckman. we like to tell authors seeking agents that we snatched Ame at a conference after expressly announcing we were not signing picturebook author-only clients. Ame proves the adage, cream always rises to the top. call us skimmers, if you must.

Ame's SECOND picturebook will be coming from Viking, sometime in 2012 we imagine.

go Ame!

WIENER WOLF #1 Bestseller!

in Austin, anyway, BUT beating out The Hunger Games, Judy Moody, and Super Diaper Baby 2 is no cinch, and it sure bodes well for Jeff Crosby's cute-cute critter. here, look. (you have to scroll down for the Children's List.)

Of course you want to know more about Jeff (who wouldn't?). Quell your curiosity here.

A Silly Song (our occasional feature)

Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall—

Or so the story goes.

The real event he underwent

No one really knows.

So just suppose. . . 

Humpty Dumpty lay on a chaise,

Humpty Dumpty soaked up some rays,

Humpty Dumpty looked at the pool,

Humpty Dumpty acted the fool.

As an egg, of course, HD could not swim.

He sank to the bottom— and everyone forgot him!

Too, too late was the King's lifeguard:

When they fished him out, he was boiled hard.

this is copyrighted.

Acknowledged: the last line uses (in order to scan) the popular convenience of the plural pronoun, which we generally deplore.

W I E N E R W O L F

Dachshund picturebooks abound, the classics being Noodle by Munro Leaf and Pretzel by Margaret and H.A. Rey. BUT only inspired author/illustrator Jeff Crosby's WIENER WOLF takes you inside the soul-stirring secrets of the hot dog breed. We see another Skippy Jon Jones here, folks— hint: buy extra copies for friends.

Illustrations! (a taste what's on our tabletop)

• • • Janie Bynum • • •

    J. C. Phillipps  

====Ricardo Barahona====

                            Jan Jutte  

°°°°°J e f f  C r o s b y °°°°°

R i c h a r d   H u l l 

A Silly Song (our new incidental feature)

Old Grandpappy says a word to the wise,
Grow extra apples if you want extra pies.

Grandpappy says, Eggs get cold, no sense hollering—
excepting for to make colder eggs for swallowing.

Grandpappy, like as not, will add for the record,
No call for polka dot— when you're wearing checkered!

this is copyrighted.

A Publishing Industry Glossary

by our own Rick Walton...

(a brief sampling)

Advance - the best proof your project is moving forward.

Author - the costume a writer puts on when he goes to a cocktail party.

Backlist - books still in print, but which the publisher hides behind his back so they are hard to see.

Cover letter - a letter designed to cover the weaknesses in your manuscript.

E-book - E stands for everyone, as in everyone now will think they can write a book.

Graphic novel - a comic book that went to college.

Hardcover - the best kind of book to use as a murder weapon.

Mass-market - a type of book that most of the time the masses, with great enthusiasm, ignore.

Typewriter - the best writing device ever to use as a murder weapon.

Vanity press - a variation of "van o' depressed." So-called because you end up depressed with a van full of books.

Young adult - the average age of editors today.

From our collection of Silly Songs

She sells sea shells by the seashore—
Should she sally city-side, she'd sell more!


it's copyrighted, fyi.

Congratulations, You're Half-Pregnant!

a ms came in over the transom* and got a very positive reader report. we requested minor-to-medium items be addressed in a revise, and now the revised ms has arrived. although we could submit it now (shows we love it), we reigned in our enthusiasm. our new client is refining the remaining rough parts so the ms we show editors will (we hope) wow them. even if an editor does not make an offer, the editor will remember our client's talent and promise.

* a colorful metaphor of yore

Have We Bragged?

if so, then we have not bragged enough. illustrator Kevan Atteberry's TICKLE MONSTER has been kicking butt since 08. Kevan also designed the Tickle Monster Tickle Mitt, which has also sold umpteen thousands. all we have to say is, Local Boy (outside Seattle) Makes Good! keep your eyes open for BOOGIE MONSTER, coming soon to an airport, K-Mart, Target, and hundreds of other outlets near you!

Kevan is also illustrator of FRANKIE STEIN and FRANKIE STEIN STARTS SCHOOL.

We love Kevan!

How to Sell a Picturebook

in her second picturebook WINK: THE NINJA WHO WANTED TO NAP author/illustrator JULIE PHILLIPPS takes WINK into a toystore. to make things look toystore-like, on a display shelf in the background of one picture, Julie stacked units of a made-up toy Monkey Ho HO. Her editor asked, What is that monkey character in the background? then she offered a contract for Julie's third picturebook: MONKEY HO HO, due next year.

we almost forgot to ballyhoo our beloved Maribeth Bolt's new easy reader. we love our Step Into Reading titles: they sell like mad! we particularly love the surprisingly epic SLEEPING BOOTSIE— so much happens! and how about the cover, eh? that's what we call commercial.

Grand Prix de l'Imaginaire!

we can scarcely brag enough: Art Slade's steampunk-tacular THE HUNCHBACK ASSIGNMENTS (about which we have raved for sometime, as our followers know) won France's most prestigious award for non-French teen fiction. that's right: the top award!

the French edition of Book #1 translates to The Agents of Mr. Socrates: The Brotherhood of the Clock, which would have captured our attention, middle-schooler reading demons that we were.

if you have not read THE HUNCHBACK ASSIGNMENTS. . . why the heck are you doing reading our blog? you need to prioritize your reading. (put smiley face here.)

AN HISTORICAL!

Our

very

own

Pat
Hughes wrote the anti-Johnny Tremain story of the Revolutionary War. This smart, shocking, and gut wrenching novel posits the experience of real 18th century teens, no more likely to be cock-eyed patriots than teens today. then, as now, teens preferred freewheeling pleasures. but POOF! their lives exploded upon attack.

so far Booklist and BCCB touched FIVE 4THS OF JULY with fairy wands, rewarding the novel with those all-important STARS!

Pat rocks hard! this is a must-read. we are looking for the Scott O'Dell Award. start buzzing.

New From David Ward! BETWEEN TWO ENDS

Mark Your Calendars!

NOTICE: We will be suspending submissions for the Bologna Book fair, March 25th - April 4th.

Thanks for bearing with us!

Arthur Slade is Lighting Up the Web

HUNCHBACK ASSIGNMENTS author Art Slade is all over the web this week.

Followers of his blog (arthurslade.blogspot.com) and twitter feed (twitter.com/arthurslade) may have heard about his new short story STUBB, available on YARN (the Young Adult Review Network). You can read it here.

Not only that, but Art Slade titles of yesteryear are back— as ebooks, thank you very much. Fans worldwide can now purchase DRAUGR while English readers everywhere-but-in-Canada* can download the Governor General's Award Winner DUST to their e-readers.

More to come? We should say so!

*We tell you, electronic rights are tricky!

Wisdom from the Author's Guild on E-Book Royalties

Must reads for authors, agents, and publishers alike:

E-Book Royalty Math: The House Always Wins

"So, everything else being equal, publishers will naturally have a strong bias toward e-book sales. It certainly does wonders for cash flow: not only does the publisher net more, but the reduced royalty means that every time an e-book purchase displaces a hardcover purchase, the odds that the author’s advance will earn out -- and the publisher will have to cut a check for royalties -- diminishes. In more ways than one, the author’s e-loss is the publisher’s e-gain."

&

The E-Book Royalty Mess: An Interim Fix

"Here's a solution that won't cascade through countless backlist books: soften the e-bias by eliminating the author's e-loss. That is, negotiate for an e-royalty floor tied to the prevailing print book royalty amount."

HUNCHBACK ASSIGNMENTS Audio Book Give Away!

Like the HUNCHBACK ASSIGNMENTS by Arthur Slade? Share this post on twitter and Facebook for a chance to win a free copy of the audio book from Listening Library!

Submissions Reopened

It's January 10th, and that means STNY Submissions are officially reopened. The Kindles are charged and ready, and we can't wait to read your stuff!

Hope you all had a lovely Holiday! We sure did.

-JMC

Cafeteria Mystery Meat

. . . is overused, has been for years. the phrase in a middle grade ms makes me think Generic. dig deeper, writers. cafeteria food is a cliche— as airline food was to stand-up comics years back.

Manuscript Makeovers by Claudia Mills

(Ms. Mills distributed this fabulous list at the 2010 SCBWI Iowa Conference.)

Picture Books and Easy Readers

1. Make sure that what you have really is a picture book!

2. Focus in immediately on what the story is about.

3. Cut everything extraneous.

4. Don’t drop any balls.

5. Bring the story full-circle in a satisfying way.

6. Think hard about what your bottom-line theme/message is.

Chapter Books and Novels

1. Begin at the beginning: inciting incident.

2. Let us see by the end of the first chapter what the book is going to be about.

3. Don’t give too much back story in the first chapter.

4. Make sure your character has strengths as well as weaknesses.

5. Make sure your character has weaknesses as well as strengths.

6. Pace the main character’s growth appropriately.

7. Make sure your character is active rather than reactive.

8. Have your main character solve his central problem himself.

9. Avoid having too many characters.

10. Make sure all your characters are interesting and three-dimensional.

11. Once again: don’t drop the ball. Make use of everything!

12. Build tension.

13. Don’t allow things to go too well for your character.

14. Be true to your own self-descriptions of characters.

15. Foreshadow main events.

16. Don’t have crucial scenes happen offstage.

17. Make sure all the action relates in some way to the main story line of the book.

18. Be wary of copying too lavishly form real life.

19. But in a realistic novel, be realistic in details.

20. Clarify the theme.

21. Avoid didacticism: number one problem in endings!

22. Make the ending as satisfying as possible, without being over-the-top and unbelievable.