More on the Glenn Beck/Ted Bell Interview...
Here's an interesting discussion on Guys Lit Wire.
Entertainment Weekly's 100 Best Books of the Last 25 Years...
I zipped home for lunch this afternoon, and found the latest issue of Entertainment Weekly in my mailbox (a happy surprise--it usually comes on Saturday) featuring The New Classics--The 1000 Best Movies, TV Shows, Albums, Books & More of the Last 25 Years. I almost didn't make it back to the office I was having so much fun reading it. And look at Daniel Radcliffe/Harry Potter smack in the middle of the cover! I immediately turned to their book list.
Now, as EW would say:
SPOILER ALERT!!
If you want to read these yourself leave my blog right now (or at least shut your eyes and scroll way down).
Here are five books of note that made the list:
#2: Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire because J.K. Rowling "went epic and evil."
#21: On Writing because Stephen King offers "some of the soundest advice to writers set to paper."
#40: His Dark Materials trilogy because Phillip Pulman offers "a grand, intellectually daring adventure through the cosmos."
#65: The Giver, by Lois Lowry because they agree with the Newbery committee (and it's a fantastic book).
#84: Holes, by Louis Sachar, because they continue to agree with the Newbery committee (and it's also a fantastic book).
Mixed in with the many fiction and nonfiction titles were several graphic novels such as Art Spiegelman's Maus, Marjane Satrapi's Persepolis, and Neil Gaiman's Sandman.
Fact that surprised me: The Da Vinci Code was on the New York Times Hardcover Best-Seller List longer than HP and the Goblet of Fire (166 weeks vs. 148 weeks--3 years-ish for each!)
My Saturday afternoon is officially taken--I have a date with this double issue.
Firebrand Launches Book Packager Tinderbox...
Auden Media Corporation, parent company of Firebrand Literary, recently announced the launch of Tinderbox--"a book packager of superior quality, high-concept teen and middle grade fiction."
According to the company's press release:
Their website will go live in the fall, offering detailed info for publishers and agents, and the scoop on current and upcoming projects. As far as submissions, Tinderbox is not accepting writing samples from unagented authors, "but welcomes inquiries and samples from agents on behalf of their clients."Tinderbox prides itself on offering more equitable terms to its writers than the traditional book packager, offering competitive splits of the advance, royalties and subrights. "We want to ensure that our writers are as invested financially as they are creatively," says Nadia Cornier, who co-founded Tinderbox with Michael Stearns.
Guide to Literary Agents Blog New Agent Alert...
Editor Chuck Sambuchino (who is currently in Austin and had a birthday yesterday--Happy Birthday Chuck!) offers news on new agents whenever he finds it. Check out this recent post by GLA blog contributor Kristen Howe on Eddie Schneider of JABberwocky Literary--he's interested in YA books. (Be sure to bookmark Chuck's blog if you're in the market for an agent. It's chock full of agent-related news including lots of conference info.)
Books for Boys...
I saw this on Galley Cat, but the sound didn't work, so rather than linking to it, I've included the video below (because I just figured out how to do that).
Here's Glenn Beck on CNN "laying all the politically incorrect cards on the table" discussing books for boys with Nick of Time author Ted Bell. Oh boy (with the emphasis on oy)!
Rolling Through Stop Stop Signs: Stop the Madness!...
This may be a rant apropo of nothing, but here it goes:
Why why why why why does no one stop at stop signs? WHY? I'm a pretty laid back kinda gal. I go with the flow, roll with the punches, all that stuff. But numerous times each day during my 3-mile round trip commute, none of the other driver seem to ever stop at stop signs. And at the 4-way stops--they don't take turns! It's anarchy! Today on my way to lunch the lady coming the other way didn't even bother to slow down, even a little. I'm on the brink of road rage.
I have a vivid memory from Kindergarten of the very first time in my entire life that I ever raised my hand in class to answer a question. (This was a big deal; I was painfully shy.) We were talking about stop signs and traffic lights and my teacher Mrs. Hill asked why it's important that cars stop at red lights and stop signs when they are supposed to. It was quiet for a spell and when no one else answered, my tiny hand tentatively went up. "Because a car might be coming the other way and you could get in an accident," I said. How very wise I was. If 5-year-old me can figure this out, why can't everyone in the greater Nati area who is on the road when I am?
Perhaps if all teachers go over this stuff in Kindergarten and each subsequent year of school and parents start talking about traffic laws at an early age, I'll be a happier commuter. I've spent a little time on Amazon to see if there are any kids books that would be helpful, and I found a few to share with all of you (who I'm sure are very good and conscientious drivers). I might have to stop in a bookstore soon to check these out, so I can start to read to Murray about the rules of traffic. He'll remember it all when he's 16, right? (At this point I'm sure he's onto the stop sign thing--he generally witnesses my rants to other drivers from his car seat).
Lisa Holton's New Venture...
PW reports that Lisa Holton, formerly of Scholastic, is launching Fourth Story Media:
Fourth Story will produce stories and content that spans multiple formats, including books, Web sites, online games, DVDs, audio/digital downloads and social networks. Its first series is The Amanda Project, an interactive, collaborative fictional mystery series for girls aged 12 to 14, told across a variety of different media including books, a Web site that features games and a social networking platform, a related series of blogs and satellite sites, music, and merchandise. Fourth Story, which owns all rights for the property, will produce the content for The Amanda Project with a creative team including Web design agency Happy Cog, young adult authors, artists and graphic designers. The project’s Web site will be up and running by the end of this year. Throughout the spring of 2009 Fourth Story will continue to build it, adding more features, and the first book—published under the HarperCollins flagship imprint—will come out in fall 2009. Seven more will follow.
Scholastic's Report on the Reading Habits of Kids & Teens...
From PW Daily today:
A new report released today from Scholastic corroborates the findings of the company’s 2006 report on children’s reading habits, finding that pleasure reading in children begins to decline at age eight and continues to do so into the teen years. The study found that a majority of children (68%) think it is “extremely” or “very” important to read for pleasure, and “like” or “love” doing so. However, that number decreases with age: 82% percent of children ages five to eight “like” or “love” reading, compared to 55% for children ages 15 to 17. It also found that although children can readily envision a future in which reading and technology are increasingly intertwined, nearly two thirds prefer to read physical books, rather than on a computer screen or digital device.
As to the influence of J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter series, of the children who had read the books, almost three-quarters said the series had made them interested in reading other books. Some, however, would be happy simply to have more Harry in their lives: 31% of children don’t believe the series is over.
Authors Offer Summer Reading Tips for Kids...
Check out this interview from WABC-TV featuring three authors who share tips for getting kids to read over the summer. Picture book author Jane O'Connor (Fancy Nancy), middle-grade author MAC (Anna Smudge: Professional Shrink) , and YA author Scott Westerfeld (Uglies) are interviewed.
My favorite tip came from MAC, a new author who recently sold out of her debut novel at its sneak preview during NY Comic Con, who advises parents to run over the video game console with the vacuum cleaner. Here's her book cover.
Have the Carus People Ever Actually Seen a Cicada?...
I remember the days when the Carus Publishing Company only published a few mags, like Cricket, Ladybug and Spider. I always liked that their publications were named after bugs. Then ten years ago, they started a literary magazine for teens and called it Cicada.
I loved the idea of the magazine, and the word "cicada" has a nice ring. But--oh--those bugs.
I Do Not Like Them.
I bring this up because the Nati, where I live, is currently abuzz--loudly abuzz--with five billion Brood X cicadas (and I do not exaggerate--it's Biblical). They are noisy and big and have red eyes. They fly at car windows and splatt unpleasantly. They try to mate with weed whackers and lawn mowers. And piles and piles of their shells and their dead bodies in the 90-degree-plus heat does not smell particularly nice. (And I suppose the Carus crew has seen real cicadas--my googling shows that cicadas do occasionally rear their buggy heads near the Carus HQ.)
I swiped some pictures of my unwanted insect companions to share with you.
First here are cicadas popping out of their shells.
Look at those eyes--very horror movie.
Can you tell how big it is compared to this person's hand? I think they're bigger than hummingbirds.
This is what all the trees in my yard look like only my trees have piles of dead bugs and shells around the bottom.
If you're interested in learning more about the bugs that are currently bugging me, click here. Be sure to check out the Cicada links, especially the Cicada chorus--that's truly what my world sounds like.
And here's the listing for Cicada magazine that will appear in the 2009 CWIM (which is being printed as I type.)
CICADA
Carus Publishing Company, P.O. Box 300, 315 Fifth St., Peru IL 61354. (815)224-5803. Fax: (815)224-6615. Submissions address: 70 East Lake Street, Suite 300, Chicago IL 60601. E-mail: cicada@caruspub.com. Web site: www.cricketmag.com. Editor-in-Chief: Marianne Carus. Executive Editor: Deborah Vetter. Art Director: John Sandford. Bimonthly magazine. Estab. 1998. Cicada publishes fiction and poetry with a genuine teen sensibility, aimed at the high school and college-age market.The editors are looking for stories and poems that are thought-provoking but entertaining.
Fiction Young adults: adventure, animal, contemporary, fantasy, history, humorous, multicultural, nature/environment, romance, science fiction, sports, suspense/mystery, stories that will adapt themselves to a sophisticated cartoon, or graphic novel format. Buys up to 60 mss/year. Average word length: about 5,000 words for short stories; up to 15,000 for novellas (one novella per issue).
Nonfiction Young adults: first-person, coming-of-age experiences that are relevant to teens and young adults (example: life in the Peace Corps). Buys 6 mss/year. Average word length: about 5,000 words. Byline given.
Poetry Reviews serious, humorous, free verse, rhyming (if done well) poetry. Maximum length: up to 25 lines. Limit submissions to 5 poems.
How to Contact/Writers Fiction/nonfiction: send complete ms. Responds to mss in 3 months. Publishes ms 1-2 years after acceptance. Will consider simultaneous submissions if author lets us know.
Illustration Buys 20 illustrations/issue; 120 illustrations/year. Uses color artwork for cover; b&w for interior. Works on assignment only. Reviews ms/illustration packages from artists. Send ms with 1-2 sketches and samples of other finished art. Illustrations only: Query with samples. Responds in 6 weeks. Samples returned with SASE; samples filed. Credit line given.
Photography Wants documentary photos (clear shots that illustrate specific artifacts, persons, locations, phenomena, etc., cited in the text) and "art" shots of teens in photo montage/lighting effects etc. Uses b&w 4×5 glossy prints. Submit portfolio for review. Responds in 6 weeks.
Terms Pays on publication. Rights purchased vary. Pays up to 25¢/word for mss; up to $3/line for poetry. Pays illustrators $750 for color cover; $50-150 for b&w inside. Pays photographers per photo (range: $50-150). Sample copies for $8.50. Writer's/illustrator's/photo guidelines for SASE.
Tips "Cicada is currently closed to unsolicited submissions. Please see our current issues for submission guidelines for writing and artwork by readers ages 14-23. The Slam, our online microfiction and poetry forum, is also open to young people ages 14-23. Check www.cricket.mag.com for updates on our submissions policy."
How Do People Read and Buy Books?...
Publishers Lunch reported on a Random House/Zogby survey which "explores how and where readers shop, what makes them buy, and their reading and book-buying habits." Click here to read the results. It's interesting and is making me think about my own reading and buying habits. (I particularly liked the question about what book you'd recommend to the next President if s/he called you at a 3 a.m. asking for an I-can't-sleep book suggestion.)
Here is part of the Publishers Lunch rundown:
Zogby International released results from a nationwide online survey of the reading and book-buying habits of over 8,000 representative adults, commissioned by Random House (which will publish a book with Zogby later this year). The overall portrait shows Americans as light readers and book purchasers (half buy fewer than 10 books a year; just 14 percent buy more than 20 a year for themselves) who are highly unlikely to buy an e-reading device (3 percent own one; 4 percent plan to buy); more influenced to buy a book by public radio (15 percent) than Jon Stewart (8 percent) who still rans above Oprah Winfrey (5 percent); light sellers of their books when finished with them (only 3 percent do so) and big online customers (more people buy often online, 43 percent, than anywhere else, including chains, at 32 percent) at Amazon in particular--which 66 percent named as online retailer they frequent (with the failed Booksense.com drawing an insignificant response).
So What's Going on with Me and CWIM (in case you were wondering)...
It's been a bit of time since my last post--and since then the 2009 CWIM has gone to the printer! And I must say, it's a really good one. (I know I say that every year, but it's true.) It will be available in early August, hopefully in time to go on sale at the SCBWI LA Conference August 1-4.
Below you can see the new CWIM cover. (It's still a nice shade of light purple, but the fish has swum away.) While we're waiting for the book to be off the presses, I'll be posting some excerpts from the new edition, which will hopefully get you interested in reading more when the book hits stores.
Speaking of the LA Conference--I will be going, I will be presenting, and I will certainly be blogging. I so love this event. It's good. It's fun. It's information-packed. It's a schmooze-apalooza!
Before I worry about putting my presentations together, I've been worried about finding a plane ticket that will not bankrupt SCBWI. I live in Cincinnati, and we are supposedly the most expensive airport to fly out of in the country. (Sometimes the Westchester County airport in New York is higher. I've flown there. It's tiny.)
It costs $200 less to fly from LGA (New York) to LAX than to fly from CVG (in the Nati) to LAX. Does that make sense to you? Sure, I could fly out of Dayton or Columbus or Louisville, but that would involve driving longish distances and long-term parking and layovers and changing planes. I'm not getting any younger--just contemplating 16 hours of travel zaps the life out of me. To quote Carrie Bradshaw as she headed off to Paris, "I want to arrive stunning and impossibly fresh looking." You never know who you'll run into in the lobby. (I'm a tad excited about the Sex & the City movie that opens tomorrow. My company just announced Friday "summer hours"--it's like we work in New York--and I'm seeing a late afternoon matinée with six of my co-workers at the mall across from our office. I will be wearing heels.)
After a couple more market books go out the door in early June (I'm here working on them while a number of my co-workers are in LA at the BookExpo--but I had to pick one LA trip over the other, and SCBWI won), I'm taking a little vacation to New York. It's not publishing-related except that I will be hanging out with a number of my editor friends (who left the Nati to move to New York, both for the publishing jobs and, I'm sure, the cheaper flights). I'll pretty much be eating and shopping and meandering.
Then I'll get back to work and start thinking about my plan for the 2010 CWIM. I'm alway open to queries, so feel free to email me (alice.pope@fwpubs.com) after June 16th. Then I'll start assigning articles in full swing when I get back from the LA SCBWI event.
Reading My Now-Vintage Writing...
Since my last class reunion, I’ve been getting together with a group of high school friends every few months. A few weeks ago we met at one of their houses and someone brought along a stack of our high school newspapers, Spectrum, for which I was the features editor my junior and senior year. I was a little scared to read the articles I’d written, but once I’d grabbed a stack of papers and searched for my byline I couldn’t quite put them down. My stuff--the alliterative headlines, the essays on first speeding tickets and under-appreciated vending machine candy bars, the channeling-my-inner-teen-psychic horoscopes--was not bad. Not stellar, but decent for 17-year-old me (although I was temped to grab a pen and do just a little editing).
On a recent visit with my sister in Florida, she pulled out a box she had unearthed full of letters I’d written to her when I was in grade school. (She moved down south when she was 20 and I was 11.) The letters were pretty clever and witty, sometimes downright hilarious, and rife with recurring themes (and creative spelling). It was interesting to see my young voice in those letters (and to revisit the things that were soooo important to me when I was 12).
When I was in grade school I never had aspirations to become a writer. (I wanted to be a geologist and anthropologist “both at the same time.” I liked rocks and bones.) When I was in high school, I never made declarations that I would have a career in publishing. (Does anyone in high school ever say I want to be an editor?) I had no clue what to do with my life, pretty much until junior year of college. Yet the universe steered me in this direction.
I remember the moment the world of children’s books was reintroduced to me in college—that first day of my Victorian Children’s Lit class, which I took in the summer, Monday through Friday, every day for six weeks, at 7:30 a.m.—and wheels began to turn in my head. But looking back at my early “masterpieces,” I wonder why the younger me didn’t have a clue that working with words was the way to go.
WD Magazine's 101 Best Websites for Writers...
Writer's Digest has recently compiled their annual 101 Best Sites for Writers for 2008.
Says WD:
"We sifted through more than 2,100 nominations and chose the 101 most valuable. This year, we've added a "jobs" category and have expanded the genres/niches category to better fit your needs. The list has been divided into nine sections: general resources, creativity, publishing resources, jobs, writing groups and communities, genres/niches, agent blogs, protect yourself and just for fun. "
New Agent Interview: Michael Stearns...
After nearly 20 years working on the editorial side of things--most recently as editorial director and foreign acquisitions manager for HarperCollins Children's Books, and prior to that, as senior editor, director of paperback publishing for Harcourt Children's Books--Michael Stearns decided to mix things up a bit. Starting last month, he left Harper to become a literary agent at Firebrand Literary.
Stearns brings a wealth of experience to his new role. He has worked on hundreds of books for children and adults including many bestselling and award-winning titles such as A Northern Light by Jennifer Donnelly, Tangerine by Edward Bloor, The Secret Order of the Gumm Street Girls by Elise Primavera, Whales on Stilts by M.T. Anderson, Fly By Night by Frances Hardinge, the Young Wizards series by Diane Duane, and the Chet Gecko Mysteries by Bruce Hale. He has taught a dozen classes on writing, edited three anthologies of original stories, and published a half dozen pieces of his own fiction for both adults and children.
Below, in his first interview as an agent, Stearns talks about his career shift, the kind of material he's looking to represent, his submission policy, his agenting style, and exciting changes at Firebrand.
Why the huge career shift?
I don't see it as that big a change in what I do—but okay: why'd I skip over the fence separating publishing and agenting?
Something terrible happens to the successful: They get kicked up the corporate ladder as a reward for having done well.
I found myself as an editorial director at HarperCollins Children’s Books, as well as the manager of foreign acquisitions for the list. There were obvious benefits to the job—I could acquire with a freer hand, attend all the book fairs, develop a thorough knowledge of UK editors and publishers, line my pockets with gold and faded dreams—the usual. And yet . . .
I was spending more and more of my time attending meetings, and helping my team figure out their books and their publishing strategies; and spending less and less time doing what I've always loved most, which is working closely with talent. Editing, shaping, and bringing books to market is the funnest part of the job.
There is nothing wrong with what I was doing at Harper, but I wanted more hands-on time to nurture writers and their careers. And now I have that.
What types of work for young readers are you most interested in representing?
My list will be 75-80% novels, with the remaining 20 percent made up of picture books.
I'm not against picture books, but I am extraordinarily picky, and I find that most beginning writers tackle picture books because they mistakenly think they are "easier." So there is a higher degree of suckage in most picture book submissions. Rather than plow through that, for picture books I am relying on referrals and am signing only a few writers whose work I know and trust. (This 80/20 percentage is nothing new, by the way; this about equals the make-up of my lists at Harcourt and Harper.)
Okay, picture books are unlikely. But how do your tastes run with regard to novels?
I’m keenest for both teen and middle grade fiction. Nothing makes me happier than commercial novels with literary chops—good writing that isn't afraid of plot—though "good writing" is what everyone wants, I'm sure. What do I mean by “literary chops”? I mean, the writer has skill and voice, and that she recognizes character as a key to all good storytelling.
Genre-wise I flee far and fast from issue novels (hard to sell) and am much more interested in non-Tolkienesque fantasy, paranormal romance, comic coming-of-age, and thrillers (again, all with some literary spin). For whatever reason, I respond well to wit. Not dorky funny but genuine wit. (See authors I’ve worked with such as M.T. Anderson, Frances Hardinge, Bruce Hale, Derek Landy, et al.)
Are you open to unsolicited submissions?
Well, of course. Writers can submit via Firebrand’s website at www.firebrandliterary.com, which has very detailed descriptions about how to submit. People who have not submitted to and been rejected by Firebrand in the past can submit to me. If it is not for me, they will receive a form "No, thanks," rejection via email. If it is something I want to see more of, I'll invite them to send the full manuscript via email. Actual mailed submissions are not being accepted. (We try to be as paperless and green as possible.)
The website is going to relaunch in a few weeks with a new look, a new logo, and all sorts of unbelievable goodies. Same tender snark as at the old site, but with even more of the qualities that make Firebrand a different animal from other agencies.
What, exactly, are those differences?
Well, it will be revealed in greater detail on the site to come, but here’s a small tease: We are creating an aggressive marketing team to help sell-through for our books and authors—marketing that will complement those of their publishers. And we have a foreign rights agent in myself who, thanks to years spent buying and publishing major UK titles for the United States market, knows the UK market very well—the publishers, their lists, and the editors whose tastes shape those lists.
And there will be more. These are exciting times at Firebrand.
[Here's the agency's new logo.]
How would you describe your “agenting style”?
Oh my god, is there such a thing? “Post-modernist, with a surreal dash of ‘finger painting and graham cracker’ interpretations of Duke-of-Windsor-style men’s fashion”? “Jean-Paul Gaultier sans cones and bad dancing”?
No, no, no. I haven’t the foggiest idea what my “agenting style” is quite yet—I haven’t even been here a month!—though I imagine it will turn out to be much like my editorial style. That is, I will work very closely with my writers to develop their projects and to guide their careers. I love developing projects, and I think of myself as my authors' second head: someone who understands their goals as a writer.
I don’t waste time making nice. I get fired up about a book only when I feel like I've really found something new or exceedingly excellent. I don’t phone it in. If I love something, I’m all about that love. By the same token, I have little time for projects that are just “good enough.” Good enough rarely is.
My utter lack of a poker face is one reason I have the trust of the people I deal with—whether my writers and clients or the editors to whom I sell projects. People know that I can’t fake enthusiasm.
Do I have any upcoming gigs at which writers can meet you and/or pitch their ideas?
The only things that should be pitched are baseballs. (Go, Mets!) Or nonfiction books for adult readerships.
I abhor pitches for children’s books. A worthwhile book lives or dies in execution, on the skill of the writer, and pitches are the complete opposite of that. A pitch boils an idea down to its most basic, but who cares? I want to see what the writer does with the idea.
You can find me at two SCBWI events this summer: a workshop in Florida on June 6 and 7, and the national conference this August in Los Angeles. As well, I will be dropping in on the Vermont College MFA in Writing for Children during their summer session.
We'll be posting the appearances schedule of all of the Firebrand agents on our new website. Yet another reason to check it out!
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