How Not To Get Published

Editorial Anonymous (A blog of a children’s book editor) is an astonishing blog. It is written with truth, a bit of bawdiness and most of all some real good information laced with humor.

While surfing I found reference to two outstanding and outrageous posts. I highly recommend the read and if you aren’t wiping tears from your eyes then you aren’t reading it.

The Biggest Mistake Would Be Writers Make

And

How Not To Get Published

Write it down,

Carma

A Few Good Links

Over the weekend I ran across more than a few good links while I was looking for relevant content. There is so much great stuff out there that I couldn’t decide what to post, so I decided to post links and let you surf and peruse around.

Margot Finke’s post on “The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Publishing Children’s Books” by Harold Underdown is one I don’t want to miss. Go here to read it.

And this link http://www.underdown.org/writing-guides.htm will lead you to dozens of guides on how to write children’s books!

Dottie Enderle’s website is very appealing. Click here to take a quiz and discover 10 tips for writing picture books.

One of my readers gave me this tidbit. Maybe some of you already know where to go to get the submission guidelines for the Cricket Magazine Group. I did not.

Have legal questions? Take a look at Writer’s Beware. This site has an abundance of information.

Another place to submit articles for sale is Writing for Dollars.

In Addition:

Have you ever wondered what to read when looking for ideas and examples for your nonfiction writing? I discovered one idea that said the best way to do this is to look in a bookstore under the topic you’re writing, (biographies or science, American history, etc.) and pull out a few books for the same target audience.

Certain authors of these books have made a name for themselves and they are who you want to study. Also ask your local librarian which titles are flying off the shelf.

Write it down,

Carma

Magazines for Kids - A New Generation, by Chris Piotrowski

Anybody who grew up in the 60's and 70's will probably remember the old standby children's magazine, Highlights for Children. For me, it was the only thing I liked about going to the dentist. My mother was a stickler for healthy teeth, and dragged all five of us every six months in to see our dentist for our biannual checkup.

The waiting room was standard fare for the time - a pot of coffee hissing and steaming in one corner, a row of chairs lining each wall, and in the corner an end table cluttered with a pile of assorted magazines to help pass the time until your name was called. Always somewhere in that pile was at least one copy of Highlights magazine, filled with enough stories and puzzles to keep my mind off the possibility of impending doom in the dentist's chair.

Today, the choices for children's magazines have grown exponentially. No longer are you limited to Highlights and a handful of others - there are literally dozens of quality kids' magazines to keep your young readers entertained and coming back for more. No matter what your child's area of interest, there is bound to be something to suit his needs perfectly.

For animal lovers, you can't go wrong with Zoobooks or Ranger Rick - both are long-time favorites that help kids sharpen their reading skills and develop a deeper appreciation for our natural world. For the younger set, there's Zootles for 2 to 6 year olds, which includes a featured animal, number, and sound in each issue, and Your Big Backyard, for ages 3 to 7, which draws preschoolers closer to nature and gets them ready to read. Youngsters will enjoy the seasonal crafts, simple cooking recipes, fun games, and more.

Along those same lines, there are a number of science magazines to engage young readers with their dramatic color photography and informative kid-friendly text. In Kids Discover, each issue investigates a single high-interest topic in science or social studies, engaging its readers with compelling content. There's Muse, a science and discovery magazine for children ages 10 and up from the publishers of Smithsonian, as well as Odyssey, a physical and space science magazine written in language that kids between the ages of 10 and 15 can understand and enjoy. The younger set will enjoy Click, an educational, skill-building publication for ages 3 to 7 that is colorful and easy to read, making science accessible to even young children.

Perhaps the most popular and quality-driven of the children's magazines today are the Cricket line of magazines, a literature-oriented series filled with wonderful illustrations. They contain no outside advertising and are available for every age group. The series begins with BabyBug for ages 6 months to 2 years, followed by Ladybug for 2 to 6 year olds, Spider for 6 to 9 year olds, Cricket for 9 to 14 year olds, and Cicada for ages 14 and up.

If you're just looking for something to keep your kids entertained on a rainy day or on short car trips around town, there are plenty more to choose from besides the more educational titles mentioned above. MAD Kids is all about fun, with jokes, puzzles, cartoons, dumb interviews, and much more. Nickelodeon magazine is the award-winning magazine from the number one network for kids. It keeps kids of all ages entertained for hours with celebrity interviews, comics, pull-outs, puzzles and more. Its sister magazine, Nickelodeon Fun Puzzles & Games, is filled w/full-color, fun puzzles like word searches, mazes & easy crosswords, plus riddles and pictures to draw, featuring favorite Nickelodeon characters.

With children's magazines, the possibilities are endless. They make perfect gifts, and while they may not be the most exciting gift to open at the birthday party, the joy on a child's face every month when he receives his very own magazine delivered right to his mailbox is priceless.

With the wide variety of titles available for children, there is bound to be something for every child in your life. For more information on the above titles and many more, visit Mile High Magazines at http://www.milehighmags.com.
Chris Piotrowski is the owner of Mile High Magazines (http://www.milehighmags.com/oscommerce/catalog/), an online retailer of over 1200 magazines, including 50 children's magazines.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Chris_Piotrowski

Write it down
Carma

Join the Club and Become a Successful Children's Author

What does it take to become a successful children’s author?

Join the club. The Children’s Writer’s Coaching Club (that is) (CWCC).

From the comfort of your own home you will learn how to develop a career writing for children. The children’s writing market is growing by leaps and bounds and publishers are looking for good writers. Good writing doesn’t just happen.

When you join the CWCC you will have access to four 55 minute teleclasses each month and four manuscript critique sessions for the low price of $27.00 per month. In addition you will have the opportunity to listen to published professionals like Suzanne Lieurance (founder of CWCC), Margot Finke and Simon Rose who will teach you all the tricks of the trade.

Is your interest peaked? Join the club now and you will be on your way to fulfilling your dreams as a published children’s book author.

Click Here. Don’t be shy.

Write it down,

Carma

Eight Links to Expand Your Writing Know-How

There are literally thousands of web sites and blogs that are useful to writers. This wealth of information can be overwhelming. How does a writer, especially a new one, know who, what or where to turn? To help keep your mind from going wacka wacka and to help you cut through the cyber maze, I have chosen eight informative links for writers of children’s books, stories and articles that may be helpful.

Enjoy.

www.ukchildrensbooks.co.uk/pubs.html

www.signaleader.com

www.bookmarket.com/childrens.htm

www.write4kids.com

www.freelancewriting.com/writingcontests.php

http://owl.english.purdue.edu

www.asuen.com/blog.central.html

http://editorialanonymous.blogspot.com

Trading Places by Claudia Mills - Book Review

Trading Places
Author: Claudia Mills
Publisher: Farrar, Straus, and Giroux
Reading Level: Ages 9 - 12
ISBN: 13:978-0-374-31798-0
ISBN:10:0-374-31798-4
Hardcover: 138 pages

Amy and Todd Davidson learn that things in life rarely turn out perfectly and that labels don’t always fit. Amy and Todd are fraternal twins who get along as well as any other brother or sister except they share the same birthday and the same classroom. This is where the similarity stops. Amy is the poet, sentimental and a bookworm while Todd is the engineer, super organized and an over achiever.

As the twins begin their Mini-Society school project things get flipped upside down at home. Their father loses his engineering job and their mother takes a job at the local craft store. The father becomes depressed and hangs around the house in his pajamas all day. This turns out to be an embarrassing situation for Amy when her best friends come home with her after school. Learning how to cope with change becomes a daily experience.

Through the alternating view points of Amy and Todd, Trading Places shows how acceptance of non-traditional roles can open minds to change. Claudia Mills has artfully written about a common problem for many families in today’s changing economy. Her easy going prose presents a realistic solution to a difficult situation in words for the “tween” years.

The fundamental message is about how change can affect everyone in the family, even Wiggles the dog. Amy and Todd learn that change can be good and they learn that opportunities in life pop up when you least expect them too.

This story has all the characters that you would expect to find in a regular classroom. The super shy girl with no friends, the clumsy kid who is a walking accident, the class show off and several more. This is an attention-grabbing read for middle graders.

Write it down,
Carma

Publisher Seeks Fiction, NonFiction for Children with a "Hook"

Do you write fiction and nonfiction picture books and books for middle grade readers? Then this information is for you.

Pelican Publishing Company primarily publishes fiction and nonfiction picture books and books for middle grade readers. They have a wide variety of categories such as; folktales, history, multicultural, stories related to the South and holiday stories.

All books should have that special “hook” that appeals to a specific audience which will set them apart from general fiction. Pelican Publishing Company is also interested in books that can grow into a series. However, they do not want any anthropomorphic stories, pet stories, fantasy, poetry, science fiction or romance. Picture books (ages 5-8) should not exceed 1100 words. Middle grade books (ages 8-12) should be at least 25,000 words.

Pelican Publishing Company does not accept unsolicited manuscripts.

All writers should send a query letter and SASE, describing the project briefly and concisely.

The book’s title must be clearly stated at the top of the query letter or in the first sentence.

The letter should then discuss the following: the book’s content, its anticipated length (in double spaced pages or in words), its intended audience, the author’s writing and professional background and any promotional ideas and contacts the author may have.

If an author has been published by another firm please indicate why a change is sought.

A formal synopsis, chapter outline, and/or one or two sample chapters may be sent with a query letter, but these are not required. If absolutely necessary, very short manuscripts (four pages or less) may be sent in their entirety.

Pelican responds to queries in one month. If Pelican requests the manuscript, it must be submitted exclusively.

Submit all queries with a SASE to Editorial Department, Pelican Publishing. Co., 1000 Burmaster St., Gretna, LA 70053.

For more information visit their web site at http://www.pelicanpub.com/

Write it down,

Carma