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Waiting for Brilliance by Maria Oka

11/20/2014

27 Comments

 
At my first SCBWI conference, Frances Gilbert (Editor at Doubleday) said, in effect “If I were going to write a picture book, I would write and write until I believed I had an award winning picture book. Only then would I seek publication.”

Sitting in the back of the auditorium, clutching my recently finished (and very first) picture book manuscript, I listened quietly. I had worked hard on my cute story, writing and re-writing. My husband and sister had critiqued it. And I had even joined SCBWI. I decided to ignore her advice. I wasn’t trying to win any awards. I just wanted to get my little book published, and I was sure I could do it. What I didn’t realize at the time, was that in order to publish at all, cute wouldn’t cut it. I needed brilliant.

But I kept working on that little story, getting critiques, and submitting it on my brave days. It wasn’t until my very supportive, and very honest husband said, “Do you think that maybe you’re submitting a bit too early? What if you take the time to, you know, take classes, learn more about writing, and refine your craft?” I was crushed. I thought he didn’t believe in me. But in reality, he believed in a better me. And in time, I learned to believe in a better me too. Which is why, for the most part, I’m not submitting a whole lot right now. I will. But right now I’ve decided to WAIT. And if you feel like you’re not quite ready yet and you want to play the waiting game with me, I have some tips on how to WAIT:

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1)      Write –

First up: WRITE. Write as many stories, thoughts, ideas, poems and vignettes as your schedule, creativity, and confidence allow. Write funny things, write sad things, write things you care about, write things you don’t care about (so you can feel the difference…or maybe discover new things to care about). Write often. Sometimes you’ll need to be inspired to start writing, and sometimes you’ll need to start writing to be inspired. But one thing is certain. If you want to be a writer, you need to WRITE! 


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2)      Absorb –

Second, ABSORB. Absorb every bit of beauty, every bit of wonder, every bit of laughter from the books that grab you. Pay attention to how you feel when you read a really great book, and then figure out how the author made you feel that way. Absorb ideas from your surroundings, your family, your pets, friends, neighbors, kids at the grocery store, school etc. And one day all of that absorbing will mash up into some pretty brilliant story seeds.  ABSORB.

(Meet my daily inspiration) ----------------------------------------------------------->

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3)      Invest - 

Third, INVEST. Invest time. Invest creativity. Invest little pieces of your soul into what you’re writing. Invest effort and energy into other blossoming writers (and they will invest in you). And sometimes, invest money. Classes and conferences can be an invaluable part of growing yourself as a writer. So INVEST.


<------------------------------- (Note: you might need more than $2)

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4)      Trust -

Finally, you have to TRUST. Trust that as you write, absorb, and invest, words will flow, stories will form, and you’ll be headed for brilliance. That same supportive, and very honest husband of mine recently told me that every manuscript I write is better than the last. I can feel it too. I love my current stories more than my first ones, and I’m sure that I will love my yet-to-be-written stories even more. When you have done your part, and your (thorough) research, start submitting. And then trust some more. Trust that (eventually) your stories will find their way into the hands of agents and editors who love them, so that they can find their way into the hands of children who will love them even more. TRUST.

(Your hard work will pay off! Like this girl's.) -------------------------------------->


And from what I hear from those on the other side, this process doesn’t end with your first book deal. The Writing, Absorbing, Investing, and Trusting can continue in an upward spiral, bringing with it new heights and greater depth.

I want to write the kind of books that beg to be pulled off a child’s bookshelf and held in her heart. The kind that not only become part of childhood, but that define it. The brilliant kind. I’m not there yet, but I hope to be one day. And when I get there, I think it will have been worth the wait.

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This post was written by Maria Oka, a mother of three very busy girls whose reading and writing spans from books for the very young to older picture books. Besides being interested in rollicking laugh-aloud books with her girls, Maria is also interested in children's books with a spiritual element. She reads, writes, and tries to juggle dinnertime, school schedules, and doing the dishes one-handed in Southern California, where she lives with her husband and munchkins. 

27 Comments

Awe in Picture Books by Marsha Diane Arnold

11/14/2014

4 Comments

 
In blogateer Lori Mortensen’s November 12th blog, Say “Ahhh...” she wrote about that satisfying “Ahhhhh!” at the end of good picture books.

With Lori’s permission, I’d like to pair her thoughts on “ahhhhh” with mine on “awe.” Indeed, they’re “kissing cousins.” When you feel awe, you might even express “ahhhh.” Both have an important place in picture books, but awe has a more spiritual component. It’s rare to discover awe.

We usually have strong memories of those times we’ve felt true awe. It might have been when we looked on our newborn child or across the Grand Canyon at sunrise. One of my awe moments was in the Sierra Nevada mountains, above 10,000 feet. Alone in my tent at night, I opened the flap to look up at a surprising and stunning display. It made me laugh outloud. Stars tumbling over stars, more than I had ever seen before, dancing across the night sky.

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Nature is what most often produces awe. So can mere humans ever hope to produce it in a picture book? Perhaps not the awe of a starry night or a Grand Canyon, but “little awes” are within our grasp. In all good books there’s an emotional arc and a plot arc. When those two grow together and resolve together, you have a very good chance of getting either an “ahh” or an awe moment.

Recently, in response to a manuscript I’m working on, my Cliffhangers writing group had a discussion about awe. We agreed that if I (and an awesome illustrator) can pull it off, the story I’m writing will inspire awe. The “ahh,” which I hope will be felt along the way, will transform into a shining, magical, organ-music-type awe at the end.

Both fiction and non-fiction provide opportunities for creating awe. Biographies do too. In Jennifer Berne’s amazing biography of Einstein On a Beam of Light, the first page reads, “Over 100 years ago as the stars swirled in the sky, as the Earth circled the sun, as the March winds blew through a little town by a river, a baby boy was born. His parents named him Albert.” This beginning was so beautiful, it stopped me for a moment. I guess you could say I was awestruck. The allusions to Einstein’s scientific discoveries live in the stars and the circling Earth.

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I discovered You are Stardust at one of my favorite blogs. Though I’ve yet to read this book, I perused the description and gazed on a few of the book’s wondrous dioramas. The creators seem to have set out to inspire awe, a cosmic awe, that “instills that profound sense of connection with the natural world.” Here’s part of the beautiful text: “Your breath is alive with the promise of flowers. Each time you blow a kiss to the world, you spread pollen that might grow to be a new plant.”

What other “little awes” were out there? The Pomelo stories by Romanian born Ramona Badescu and illustrated by Benjamin Chaud have a sense of wonder about them and some readers might feel a spark of awe from time to time. 

If I had to choose one of my own books that expressed a “little awe” it would be Heart of a Tiger, illustrated by Jamichael Henterly, specifically the last phrase. The phrase ends a story of desire, fear, and adventure, when Little Four becomes Bangali Shedr Ka Dil: “And all the animals agreed they were fair and honest names.

When you feel awe, you’re realizing the highest expression of something: nature, knowledge, friendship, discovery, or yourself. “Ahhhhh” connects us to our community of friends and family.  Awe causes us to look outside of ourselves and our community for a moment. But when we step back in, we feel a deeper connection and we are changed.

I encourage you to start making a list of your awe moments in life.  Not only will it make you feel connected and happy, it may lead you into writing an awe-filled story of your own.

I’d love for you to share picture books that give you a feeling of awe as well as moments of awe in your own life.
PictureMarsha Diane Arnold with agent Karen Grencik in Marsha's California garden
Marsha grew up on a Kansas farm and for decades created imaginative worlds and wacky characters in northern California. She’s now creating those worlds in southwest Florida, amidst building a new home and helping care for her energetic granddaughter. An award-winning picture book author, she has eleven traditional books, two digital apps, and an e-book to her credit. Represented by Karen Grencik of Red Fox Literary, they recently sold six picture book and board book manuscripts to Neal Porter Books, Kate O'Sullivan of Houghton Mifflin, Random House UK, and Yolanda Scott of Charlesbridge.
Her Writing Wonderful Character-Driven Picture Books course has helped many published and aspiring writers to write stronger characters. You may read about her books, school visits, and life at www.marshadianearnold.com



4 Comments

So You Want to Illustrate Children's Books. Let's Get Started!

11/6/2014

11 Comments

 
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I'm thrilled to be the newest "blogette" at the Children's Book Academy! For my first post, I'm going to dive right into talking about illustrating children's books.

But... before you take the plunge with me, ask yourself what I ask myself every day: Why do you want to illustrate books for kids? Is it just because you like to draw or create art? Or are you anxious to portray a story through pictures? Are you dying to see your name in print? Or do you have a passion to help kids learn to read? Would you love to see kids turning the pages filled with pictures you created? Or do you want to watch the joy that comes across a child's face when he holds a book that YOU helped to create?

Maybe you said "yes" to one, two, or all of those questions. Whatever your reasons for wanting to illustrate children's books, there's no doubt that it is one of the most rewarding, enjoyable, life-changing career paths you could ever choose.

So are you certain that illustrating books is for you? If you are, do you know what it takes to become an illustrator? Well, here's a list of five suggestions based on my experience:

1) Get yourself blacklisted from the public schools' employment system.
That was written in jest, of course. But in my case, that's what I had to do to make my dream come true. It wasn't like I set out to make anyone angry or make myself out to be a bad employee. I had been working as a full-time teacher for many years in New Jersey before moving to Florida in 2002. When I started teaching in Florida, I found the school systems to be not at all what I had expected. But I had to keep teaching full-time until 2007 when I became pregnant and was fortunate enough to be able to teach part-time instead. I used the other workdays to start focusing on learning how to write and illustrate children's books. Do what you have to do to follow your dreams.

In 2011, after graduating with an MFA in Illustration from Academy of Art University's online Illustration program, I started sending out postcards and tear sheets to promote my illustrations. While I was waiting for responses, I had to go back to teaching full-time to help pay the bills (and the student loans!) But in 2012, after accepting a full-time teaching job, I was finally offered some educational illustration projects. Yay! I was afraid to quit my teaching job because the illustration project was only short term. Well, trying to teach full-time and illustrate caused me to be late to work AND late on the illustration projects. I didn't get contacted for more educational work after that, and thus had to continue teaching full-time. Don't take on more work than you can handle, and submit your work on time.

Then, in 2013 - two years after sending out promo material - I got not one but TWO offers to illustrate books. Yay again! BUT... I had just accepted another teaching position. Crazy, right? Though I had to choose - do I try to teach AND illustrate two books? Do I just take one book deal? Or do I quit teaching and take a chance on getting published twice in one year? I chose door number 3. Needless to say, it was a bit nuts trying to illustrate two books at the same time. I wound up being a little late on one of them. In the end, I was happy with my decision to focus solely on illustrating and leave teaching full-time.

Right now I teach Art part-time at a charter school and one day a week at the Art Institute in Fort Lauderdale. This schedule allows me a few days each week to focus on my writing and illustrating while still helping to pay the bills. The ultimate goal is to be able to write and illustrate full-time, but I'll take what I can get for now. 

2) Develop a style that you are comfortable using and passionate about but one that is consistent and unique. I'm one to talk about this because I thought I had a style developed back in 2011 but am now going through a transition to change it a bit, going fro
m solely digital back to more hand drawn/painted work and mixed media. I just felt like it was time to change it up, to come up with a style that I'm more passionate about, one that's more personal and comfortable for me to work in and one that would stand out in the crowd. If you're struggling like I am, here's a great link to a blog post by illustrator Peter Brown about developing a style from styles that you like.

3) Be persistent and patient.
As you can read from #1 above, I sent out promo material in 2011 and got work two years later. So it can take some time - you have to be patient but persistent. When your portfolio is ready, research different publishers, editors and agents to whom you can send your portfolio link and contact info. A great resource is the Children's Writers and Illustrators Market that comes out each year. However, many people in the industry move around a lot, so you really have to use that book as a starting point, then go to the companies' websites and read their most current submission information. And while you wait for responses, continue to work on your style and your portfolio. Send out quarterly postcards to show new work and keep those contacts interested in you. And just be patient - if you work hard at your craft as well as the business side of it, the contracts will come.

4) Join a critique group and the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI).

SCBWI is THE organization to belong to if you want to write and illustrate children's books. It's a national organization that everyone and anyone in the children's publishing world is a member of. SCBWI is a vast resource of information on writing and illustrating. There are regional chapters all over the world so you can attend conferences and find critique groups where you can share information and learn from other illustrators. If you want to make it in this industry, you have to be confident but have a thick skin and take constructive criticism well.

5) Study, study, study!!
Commit to being a life-long learner of illustrating for kids. This could mean attending annual conferences, or taking a course, such as our wonderful Dr. Mira Reisberg's "The Craft and Business of Illustrating Children's Picture Books" (well, next time because this one is sold out!) Or buy some books on the topic, such as these wonderful resources:

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It's also important to study other illustrators to see their styles, techniques, layouts, compositions, ideas, etc. Make a weekly trip to your local library AND book stores, as many libraries may not carry the most current releases. You can learn so much from what's already been done to be able to do something that hasn't been done yet.

You'll also see just HOW many different illustration styles and talent levels there are. As an Art teacher, I let all my students know - from preschool through college - anyone can learn how to draw. You just have to know how to look at things like an artist does - in shapes and lines. And remember that art is subjective - what one person likes another may not. So there is plenty of room in the art world - and illustration world - for lots of different styles. You just have to find the one that suits you best.

That's all for now - I'm looking forward to sharing more ideas and topics with you in future posts to come. Until next time, go out there and get started being a children's book illustrator. You won't regret it.

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Angela Padron is a published illustrator of two books, including "The Hero in You" by Ellis Paul, as well as a Star Wars geek and chocolate chip cookie connoisseur. She also writes and illustrates her own picture books, board books, and chapter books. When she's not teaching, Angela works as a freelance writer and editor for educational publishers and spends weekends enjoying walks along the beach with her family. View her online portfolio at www.angelapadron.com. You can also "like" her facebook page, follow her on Twitter @angela_padron, and follow her own blog
called "Show and Tell" with weekly posts about teaching, writing and illustrating books for children.  

11 Comments

    Meet the Friday Blogonauts

    First Fridays will feature Bryan Patrick Avery, published writer , man of mystery, and professional magician among other things.

    Second Fridays will feature  awesome multi-award winning author Marsha Diane Arnold who will be writing about character-driven and/or nature-based books and/or anything she likes :)

    Third Fridays
    will feature independent Aladdin/Simon & Shuster editor Emma Sector who has helped bring many books into the world.

    Fourth Fridays will feature the great Christine Taylor-Butler who has published over 70 award-winning fiction and non-fiction and nonfiction books including the acclaimed new middle grade series - The Lost Tribes.

    Fifth Fridays will feature the fabulous Carl Angel award-winning multi-published Illustrator and graphic designer.


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  • Home
  • WRITING
    • Mastering Great Graphic Novels >
      • 2023 Mastering Graphic Novels Registration
    • Craft & Business of Writing Childrens Picture Books
    • The Chapter Book Alchemist
    • New!! Middle Grade Mastery Instant Access
    • 2022 Kidlit Palooza >
      • 2022 Palooza Program
      • 2022 Palooza Faculty
  • ILLUSTRATION
    • NEW!! Craft & Business of Illustrating Children's Books Instant Access
    • Never a Dull Moment Workshop
  • TECH
  • About Us
    • Why Us?
    • Meet the Faculty, Lives & GT Judges
    • Testimonials
    • Books by Students
    • Our Bookshop
    • As Seen In
    • Privacy Policy
    • Contact Us
  • Blogfish
  • MN Course Access
  • Community
    • Our Bookshop
    • Come Play With Us!
    • Resources
    • Course Scholarships >
      • Yuyi Morales Picture Book Scholarship
      • Andrea Davis Pinkney MG CB Mastery Scholarship
      • Rafael Lopez Illustrating Childrens Books Scholarships
      • Larissa Marantz Merit & Need Scholarship