Banana Peelin' with Amy Dixon

I just love today's banana peelin' author. I have had the privilege to meet her in person not once, but TWICE! Each time I was just blown away by how absolutely genuine and kind she was.  I feel fortunate to be included in the blog tour for the release of her first picture book, Marathon Mouse. Today Amy shares her less than glamorous experiences in writing for children and I am sure that any of you who don't yet know her will just fall in love with her through the complete awesomeness that is Amy. Please welcome children's author, Amy Dixon!

 

When I sat down to write this post, I was planning to tell you a funny anecdote. You know, the kind of banana peel slip that sends you down on your tush with a comic book THUNK splashed across the page. A bruised tailbone at best, a bruised ego at worst… that was the kind of story I was going to tell. But as my fingers moved across the keyboard, something else came out. Because the truth is that while I do have laugh-out-loud stories to tell about awkward book events or mortifying editor interactions, the story that my heart wants to tell is a different one.  Because not all banana peels are of the comic book variety. Some banana peels knock you down and break bones. And I was recently laid up in traction for a while.

You see, I am the most calm, centered person that most people know. Rock-solid. Unflappable. Rob and I have been married 15 years and he can count on his own two hands the number of times he has seen me really, truly cry. I am an extremely high “T” on the Myers-Briggs. Every problem has a solution. I don’talways think this is always a good thing. But it is who I am.

It was about 2 weeks before my book was scheduled to release. Being the wee babe I am in the realm of published authorhood, I felt that I needed to say yes to everything. Website, yes! Blogging and guest-blogging, yes! Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr, Google +, Goodreads, Shelfari, yes! Designing and producing bookmarks, stickers, promotional materials in preparation for 3 upcoming events, yes! So many yeses, and all for good, productive things. The problem was that in the midst of all those yeses, the reality of my life as a mom of four kids didn’t stop. I certainly wasn’t going to say no to my four-year-old’s birthday that week. Or no to the 2 extra days in the school library that I volunteered for so our librarian could attend her son’s wedding. Or no to the 10 mile run I had to accomplish that week so I would be ready for the half-marathon I had been training for. Perhaps I could have said no to the soccer practices, had my husband and I not been the coaches.  And maybe I should have said no to the cross-country meet, the school play try-out, or driving five 8-year-olds to a sleepover. But I didn’t.
 

For some reason that week, all of these things and more swirled together in a perfect storm of madness. So Thursday night, afterrunning the sports/homework/bathing gauntlet, the kids were finally in bed and I set about mopping the floors. Because what does a person who feels totally out of control of their world do?Yup, clean the house, thinking maybe if I can just get this one thing checked off of the list, then I can feel better about my life. But in the middle of mopping, something happened. I had what I can recognize now as a full-blown panic attack. Sweating, shaking, nausea, heart-palpitations. Sobbing. I was pretty sure I was going to be one of those stories of fit women in their 30s that out of nowhere have a heart attack and die. My husband was completely mystified. Who was this woman?

I didn’t recognize her either. Where was the calm? Where was the center? Whose life was this?

It was too much. I said yes to all of these things…all of them great things…but it was too much. The unflappable had been majorly flapped. So what did I do? I started to say no. And most of the things I had to say no to were writing things. Two weeks before my book release, my blog went dark. The box of promotional postcards sat unsent. My Goodreads account collected dust. Was this the way I wanted to lead up to my debut? Absolutely not. But I found by letting those things go, I could breathe. Literally.

An hour or so after the panic attack, I was in the shower, still shaken up from the whole thing. Being of the praying persuasion, I began to pray and ask God why I was such a mess(and please don’t let me die). What came to mind was a passage from Anne Lamott’s profound book, TRAVELING MERCIES:

“I don’t know why life isn’t constructed to be seamless and safe, why we make such glaring mistakes, things fall so short of our expectations, and our hearts get broken and our kids do scary things and our parents get old and don’t always remember to put pants on before they go out for a stroll. I don’t know why it’s not more like it is in the movies, why things don’t come out neatly and lessons can’t be learned when you’re in the mood for learning them, why love and grace often come in such motley packaging.”
 

And somehow, in that moment, I was able to see this giant banana peel as love and grace…certainly in motley packaging…but love and grace nonetheless. Slowing down and saying no were necessary, and my logical-brain-thinking with a capital T-ways would never have allowed me to do it. So my body rebelled. LOVE. And my brain shut down. GRACE. It wasn’t neat and I wasn’t in the mood, but it made me stop and feel what I needed to feel to be able to move forward with more balance. More calm. More center. And as I toddle my way through this writing and publishing business, I’ll take all the grace and love I can get…even if it means a few broken bones along the way.

To win a copy of Amy's book, Marathon Mouse, please leave a comment answering one of the two questions below:

Saying no is a hard thing to do. Unless you are my son. He's two.  What was the last thing you said "no" to and felt really great about? Or if you never say no, what is an example of a time when you KNEW you should have said no, but didn't AND disaster resulted? 

Looking for Authenticity: Indigenous Cultures in Picture Books An Interview with Linda Boyden

Welcome to day two of Lindapalooza! I am super excited about today's post. If you read Linda's Banana Peelin' post, you know that I am a huge fan of her ABC book, Giveaways. It's beautiful, smart and witty...hey, just like Linda! It is also respectful and reflects the beauty and diversity of indigenous cultures across the Americas.

I love learning about different cultures. People are interesting! Everyone has a story and I hope you find today's interview as interesting as I did. I also hope that it makes people think about what they see and read in a new light.

Linda is offering her book Giveaways: An ABC Book of Loanwords from the Americas, to one lucky reader. To enter, please leave a comment below describing one reaction, thought or feeling you had related to this post and you will be entered. The winner will be selected next week! 

Can you tell us a little about your Native American background? 

My father grew up in a small town in Tennessee and his family was of Irish/Cherokee ancestry. My mother’s parents’ families emigrated from Quebec, Canada, in the early 1900s eventually to southeastern Massachusetts where my siblings and I grew up.

Like many of my generation, my family only spoke about being “American.” Of course I was a child in the 1950s when it was not cool to be anything but American. As I matured I wanted to know more about Cherokee history and traditions.


How does your heritage influence your writing?

I came to my heritage late; my family isn’t enrolled in any tribal nation and I wasn’t raised in a traditional Native way. Mixed-blood people often wonder where they belong and that longing for “home” comes through in my poetry, for example.

In all my writing, I think how might this impact the Seventh Generation down the road? I strive to create books or art that would make my parents, children, and grandchildren proud; to produce works that will educate and enlighten non-Native people.

 

What do you feel are the biggest misconceptions society has of Native American cultures?

First, the terms, Indian and Native American, really convey nothing. They are simply gross generalizations. I think indigenous is more accurate, meaning the people who originally inhabited the land. Regardless this semantic debate goes on and on so I take the simple road: use them all! Truthfully, most Indians prefer to be called by their actual tribal affiliation, for example Cherokee, Abenaki or Lakota.

The underlying misconception with any of these generic terms is that all Indians were the same, and nothing could be further from the truth. The indigenous peoples of the Americas possessed and still do possess great diversity within their cultures.

 Another misconception is that all Native people vanished after their tribal lands were taken; that there are no modern Indian people alive today and that is completely untrue.


What inaccurate images of Native American cultures in picture books do you see the most? What should the public know about each?

In picture books, things have vastly improved within the last twenty years. Publishers are actively more sensitive to our concerns and act upon them. That said there are still not enough Native American authors, illustrators, and publishers in the publishing world.

 As mentioned already, books, especially picture books for young children, need to show accurate specifics of Native Americans whether set in present day or in the past. We did not all live in tipis! Indigenous peoples of the Americas lived in many different types of houses, wore clothing with ornamentation specific to their clan or tribe that reflected their tribal affiliations as well as their geographic regions.

What are three to five questions teachers, parents, and young readers can ask themselves to evaluate the authenticity of a picture book on Native American cultures?

~Have the authors/illustrators done their research? Have they interviewed tribal members/leaders? Have they listened to tribal elders?

~Is there anything in this book—words or pictures or any underlying theme--that could embarrass a Native child and misinform a non-Native child?

~Does the story contain positive Native role models for both Native and non-Native children to identify with?​

~Does this book foster positive American Indian family values, such as cooperation, sharing, and respect for tradition?


Do you have any favorite picture book titles that you would recommend to educators and families that accurately portray Native American cultures?
There are so many, but here are a few of my favorites:

 Margaret Bruchac’s “1621: A New Look at Thanksgiving.” This nonfiction book is the REAL Pilgrim/Indian story with excellent photos.

 Joseph Bruchac’s “A Boy Called Slow” and “Crazy Horse’s Vision.” The first is a snapshot of Sitting Bull as a young boy and how he earns his adult name. The second is also a glimpse into the life of the Lakota warrior-leader, Crazy Horse.

 Cynthia Leitich Smith, “Jingle Dancer.” A delightful story about how a young girl and her female relatives work together to make her jingle dress for powwow.

 James Rumford’s “Sequoyah.” Although a non-Native, Jim’s biography of the Cherokee genius, Sequoyah, is accurate, sensitive and beautifully illustrated; plus each page is printed in both Cherokee and English.

 Richard Van Camp’s “A Man Called Raven.” This story set in contemporary Northwest Territories of Canada blends the past with the present to helps kids value the natural world.

 And of course, my own!

“The Blue Roses.” The winner of Lee and Low’s first New Voices Award, this book helps kids understand the circle of life through the metaphor of a garden.

“Powwow’s Coming.” A contemporary Indian family introduces the Native tradition of powwow to young readers.

“Giveaways, An ABC Book of Loanwords from the Americas.” Every entry word in this nonfiction book originated in a Native language and celebrates the contribution Native languages have made to modern English. It has won a number of awards, too.

Thank you, Elizabeth, for interviewing me for your blog. It’s been a pleasure.

Banana Peelin' with Janee Trasler

I debated whether or not to post this week due to the events on the east coast .  I know that some of our friends are without electricity still, and this seems slightly indulgent…blogging, carrying on. I think many of us are feeling survivor’s guilt.

But I decided that a main goal of this blog and this series is to get a smile and maybe even a chuckle or two out of its readers.  And what better way to take someone’s mind off the ickiness that is catastrophic climate than someone else’s embarrassing moment? Let’s give it a shot, shall we?

This being the first post of November, a month traditionally reserved for giving thanks, my goal was to focus on gratitude.  Well, this week’s author Janee Trasler, has this amazing book that really makes you appreciate our fancy, modern conveniences, like…grocery stores. Caveman: A B.C. Story, (clever ain’t it?), follows a caveman and his buddies around on what appears to be just your average cave person day. Although there are only 26 words in its entirty (as it is an ABC book), they really pack a punch, especially when paired with the hilarious illustrations. It is one of our silliest books in the house.

I am grateful for so many things today: the safety our friends on the east coast, the health of my own family and friends, the grocery store, two buckets a bucket full of Halloween candy waiting for me on the kitchen counter… but I am also so thankful to have the wonderful Janee Trasler on the blog!

Having just left my job in corporate graphics, I was excited and eager to start my new career in children’s book. I was also greener than green eggs and ham.

Visit the library? Take a class? Actually read a picture book? Pshaw. When you’re walking around with that much blind optimism, you never even see the banana peel coming.

Within a week, I had my masterpiece! It was well over a thousand words, had 64 stanzas, and every other line ended in a rhyming “oo” sound. I packed up my single-spaced manuscript, mailed it to an agent, and waited for my contract.

I have to hand it to the agent (who did not even represent picture books, by the way). Somehow, he managed to send my “masterpiece” back to me without a big “SNORT!” written anywhere on it.

One picture book workshop and a trip or two to the bookstore later, I knew enough to be acutely embarrassed.

I learned so much from that slip. Now, I read a ton of current picture books, I watch the trends, and I’d never dream of sending anything out the door without running it by my critique group first (waves madly at the PBJeebies).

If I’d really researched the market before just barreling in the way I did, I’d probably have run screaming. It takes a lot of guts and hard work to get a book published; luckily, I was too green to know it.

 Janee has been generous enough to offer a copy of Caveman, to one person who responds to this question in the comments:

What is ONE modern convenience for which you are forever grateful?

The winner will be chosen via Radom.org and will be announced the beginning of next week! Good luck!

Banana Peelin' with Kelly DiPucchio

 I'm in love. But you see, it's quite complicated. We are what you might say...star-crossed.  Here is a picture of me and my beau.

Okay, okay. I know what you're thinking. Isn't this that guy Mortimer? And isn't he with that one gal, Mildred?

Fine!  You caught me. Our love is NOT star-crossed, but unrequited. That's what I get for loving a zombie!

You can only imagine my delight when Mortimer's creator, the literary brains behind one of my favorite picture books, Zombie in Love, agreed to come on the blog to discuss one of her not-so-shining moments in her career as a children's author. Please welcome the talented Kelly DiPucchio!

Most good stories involve some form of humiliation, promiscuity, or self-loathing. My Banana Peelin’ story meets all three criteria. And now that I’ve used the word “promiscuity” you have no choice but to read on.

            Many years ago when I was newly published, I attended an industry party hosted by my agent.  The room was full of famous authors, artists, and prominent editors.  I was absolutely star-struck. I alternated between feeling like Cinderella at the ball and feeling like an imposter who was about to be asked to leave the premises at any moment.

            At one point during the evening, I found myself standing next to one of my new editors. I will call her The Dragon Lady because she scared me. She was confident, cool, and sophisticated. In other words, she was everything I was not back in 2003. I introduced myself to The Dragon Lady. She was polite, but unaffected. We made small talk about the party. The longer I was around her, the more nervous I became. She casually asked, “So what other projects are you working on?”  I knew she really didn’t care what my answer was, but I wanted to impress her. I wanted her to like me!  And that’s when I developed a violent case of verbal diarrhea. 

My performance was very much like the infamous scene in Bridesmaids, only the cringe-worthy explosions were coming out of my mouth.  Maybe it was the glass of wine. Maybe it was the fact that the room was hotter than a sweat lodge. Or just maybe it was 20 years of crippling insecurity and self-doubt purging its ugly self all over this icy woman who had already made up her mind she didn’t like me. Whatever the cause, I proceeded to tell her about every book deal I had with her publishing competitors. In hindsight, I realize now this is a bit like telling your boyfriend about all of the other cute guys you’re sleeping with. 

            When my full-disclosure filibuster finally came to an end, Dragon Lady quickly excused herself, and I was left standing there with a glass of wine and a bucket of self-loathing.  I’d like to tell you the humiliation stopped there, but like any great horror film, just when you think it’s over - it’s not.

            The next day, I attended Dragon Lady’s session at a conference. The room was packed with nearly 800 writers and illustrators. Once again, Dragon lady was confident, cool, and sophisticated. After extolling a few industry niceties, she proceeded to discuss the pitfalls and perils of publishing promiscuity. I began to blush, and sweat, and shrivel in my seat.

“There’s a real danger in new authors spreading themselves too thin!” she spat. At that point, I fully expected a large spot light to begin scanning the audience before finally landing on me. Groan. I just wanted to disappear.

            Surprise, surprise.  I never did sign another book deal with Dragon Lady. But I did learn a very valuable lesson from that experience. Two actually.

            The first: SHUT UP. The “less is more” golden rule that applies to picture books also applies to social sharing.  Remember that, people! It’s important.

            The second:  SO WHAT? We all make blunders, look foolish, and say the wrong thing at the wrong time. So what? Let’s not take ourselves so seriously. Forgive yourself. Laugh at yourself. And when you slip and fall on that banana peel, say “Thank you!” Those awkward moments usually provide the best material for your stories.

Picture Book Idea Month

Do you ever feel that as a writer you're missin' somethin'?

Like....support?

Or motivation?

Or ideas?

Well, thankfully children's author Tara Lazar planned for this. November is the month where I will soothe my poor little soul by devouring pie. Oh no, it's not what you think. I will be devouring pumpkin pie after pumpkin pie according to tradition, but the kind of pie to which I am referring is actually: Pi-BoIdMo, also known as Picture Book Idea Month.

That's right folks. By participating in PiBoIdMo, in thirty days, I will be generating THIRTY ideas.

Do they have to be good?

NO!

Do they have to make sense?

HECK NO!

BUT. Some of these measly little ideas could be great spring boards from which other more sensible ideas will bounce, hop, sprout, and grow...hopefully like weeds... pretty ones, maybe even edible, into wonderful and silly stories.

Now, if for some reason I feel doubty and pouty (which I have been known to do), I know that during this great month of "PIE" each day (that's right, EACH DAY) I will have a guest post just waiting to inspire my tushie to carry on, to put the pencil to the paper to... to...  to do just what I love to do: gush over kid lit with writer friends create stories for children.  Some of the best and most creative children's authors and illustrators will be cheering us fellow writers on, sharing stories of triumph and struggle, of feast and famine of writer's block and...unblock? 

And it is less than a month away. Yeesh. I can not wait.

Banana Peelin' with Cori Doerrfeld

As a female, I feel I can do it all. I can work, I can blog, I can mother, I can wife, I can neighbor, I can student, I can write, I can read, I can be a fitness goddess.... Ah, well, something's gotta give. We are amazing, us women. And Cori Doerrfeld is no exception. Please welcome the author/illustrator Cori Doerrfeld, a woman who did it all and lived to tell about it.

At some level I feel my entire career as an author/illustrator of picture books has been one banana peel moment after another.  Even though I have published books, that real people can buy at real bookstores, I still somehow struggle to feel successful.  I will say that yes, getting that very first book deal is not easy.  That is often what people want to know from me.  How does one get a book published?  How does one even get a manuscript read by an editor or illustrations seen by an art director? And those are all good questions…but I feel like people don't often think about what happens next.  What IF you get that book deal?  What is it really like to make a living as a freelancer?  I want to share the banana peel moments that I never even saw coming…because I too had never thought beyond my first book deal.

 I did not write my very first published picture book, Brooke Shields did.  And I know that getting to do a book with a celebrity is a once-in-a-lifetime, amazing, true luck experience.  I AM grateful.  But it was not exactly what I imagined it to be.  The book did not lead me to fame and fortune.  First off the fame…no I  never met Brooke Shields.  In fact I never even spoke with her…not even over e-mail.  But that's actually very typical for any author and illustrator working on a book…communication is all done through the editor.  But still…to this day if someone finds out about my book, the first thing they ask is, "Did you get to meet Brooke Shields?" That is what gets people excited, not the book itself.  So naturally I disappoint. 

 As for fortune, I left my full-time job to illustrate the book thinking I would be completely financially secure with a sure best-seller.  Everyone loves celebrities, right?  The reality is that most books don't turn into best-sellers.  I received one royalty check and that is all.  I'm not sure if people consider that as a freelancer,  you truly have no control over whether you make money or not. I know it was a big reality check for me.  The Brooke Shields book was a wonderful experience, but in the end I made more as a nanny…and that income was guaranteed.

 Now the first book did well enough that they hired me to illustrate a second book with Brooke Shields.  This is what lead to perhaps the biggest banana peel of my career.  As I pointed out above, I was in no position to turn down work.  Having left my job, I needed to agree to any book that came my way so I could continue to pay basic bills.  So even though I was about to give birth to my first child, I agreed to illustrate the book.  I know now that I simply didn't understand what having a baby would be like.  Most women take a maternity leave.  Nobody is crazy enough to think that they can give birth and immediately begin work on a very demanding, high-profile job. 

I know now that I was wrong.  I slipped the hardest I ever have in my entire life.  Now for the moms out there, I don't need to go into how exhausting a newborn can be, or how you need to recover not only physically, but mentally, and emotionally.  Life is never the same after a baby is born.  I never considered being up all hours of the night with a colicky baby.  I never considered the strain it would put on my marriage.  I never considered that I wouldn't be able to somehow both care for my tiny infant and create 32 pages of hand-painted, full color art in less than three months.  I guess it is no surprise that I ended up with postpartum depression and a sense of inadequacy about myself as both a creator and a mother that still haunts me today. 

The ironic thing about it all, is that Brooke Shields herself is famous for her battle with postpartum depression.  A fact that didn't really buy much sympathy from the publisher, although they did send me a copy of Brooke's book, "Down Came the Rain".  In the end I did manage to finish the book on time with a small deadline extension.  Seeing the art now is like looking at something painted by someone else.  I cannot even remember how or when I painted that book…but I did. 

My daughter is now four years old, and even has a little brother.  The second time around, I had nothing to work on.  My son's birth and babyhood has been mine to savor.   On the flip-side, nothing to work on does mean no money…but I think being able to treasure the first months of your child's life with even a shred of sanity is worth all the fame and fortune in the world. 

Cori has offered to give away one of my family's favorite books, Little Bunny Foo Foo.  Just leave a comment below describing when you plopped a little too much onto your plate. (This book is fabulous for those times when you DO have too much going on and just feel like bopping something/someone on the head.)

Banana Peelin' with...Sharon Creech? A Little Blurby-Blurb

So this month marks the end of my FIRST YEAR writing for children.  I have found my passion.  I have always loved children's literature. As a teacher I would try to stuff it down my students' throats. I made whole semester-long units based around a single book. After my own kiddos came into the picture, I finally had a reason to flood our bookshelves with wonderful picture books. Last Fall, inspired by a Literature for a Multicultural World course (Thanks Dr. Bercaw!), I was inspired to create my very own stories. It just made sense. It clicked. Light shined upon my little head and angels sang.  I know I am a newbie, a small, and tender newborn in what literary agent Brenda Bowen calls a, "bunny eat bunny" industry, but please don't judge me, yet.

You see, my goal was to get the authors of my favorite children's books to post this month on the blog. A celebratory event, if you will. Well, I just idolize Sharon Creech. I think her writing is quirky and beautiful, rich and profound all rolled into one. So I contacted her via Facebook. Do you see how I can have a whole blog dedicated to Banana Peel moments? I just set myself up for them. I mean, I was contacting Sharon Creech for Pete's sake! What was I thinking?!

But luckily, she was kind enough to reply with a blurby blurb for which I will be forever grateful! I have adjusted the font size to create the illusion it is longer. =) How's that for more bang for your buck?!


Here's one: Several years ago, while traveling, I stopped in a bookstore. Noticing that Creech titles were well represented, I offered to sign them. The clerk eyed me suspiciously. "Do you have any proof of identification?" she asked. All I had was ID under my (other) married name. I opened one of the books and showed my photo. She studied it. "Doesn't look like you," she said. She did not let me sign my books.

Woo hoo! Yes. Her words graced my inbox folks...my inbox! Now, let's all go out and buy her latest middle grade novel, The Great Unexpected, out this week. Be sure to  check her blog or her website for a list of her work as well as her upcoming releases. Did I mention she writes so beautifully that it'll make ya wanna laugh AND cry and sometimes do both at the SAME TIME?!

AND stay tuned this month for real-life, blog visits (of normal length and font size) from authors of some of my most cherished books!

Banana Peelin' with Sarah Frances Hardy

I was first drawn to author Sarah Frances Hardy after reading a particularly banana peely guest post she did during the promotion of her picture book, Puzzled by Pink. I thought to myself, "Self, we must get this woman on the blog!"  I can think of no better way than to kick-start the Banana Peelin' series-a-la-back-to-school than with the experiences of this lovely lady, right here. See. There she is. Down to the left. Great picture, huh?  Please welcome, Sarah Frances Hardy!

Hi all! Thank you Elizabeth for having me today.

 I was directed to your fabulous Banana Peel series by one of my readers who commented on this blog post in which I tell the story of a particularly horrific critique. Plus, it happened when I was a wee babe . . . okay, not so wee, but fairly new to this whole writer roller coaster.

 Did I let it stop me??

 No. I did not. I’m a little tougher and wiser because of it, and I’m happy to say that my debut picture book PUZZLED BY PINK which I both wrote and illustrated was released by Viking Children’s Books in April. It’s kind of a “Wednesday Addams meets Fancy Nancy” story.

I thought all those embarrassing moments would end once I grabbed that brass ring and had a book on the shelves with a Big Six publisher. Right. I can hear all of you Banana Peelin’ readers laughing.

Here’s my most recent moment (and I’m sure that there will be many, many more to come):

Several months before my book came out, I decided to be proactive on the PR front since publishers do precious little for most debut authors. I sent out postcards, contacted media, worked on a website for a birthday party inspired by my book (I still haven’t officially launched it yet--but it’s here if you want to take a look, and I set up book signings at every indie bookstore I could find within driving distance--and we’ve got lots of great indies in Mississippi.

My book was still just a few weeks out and I’d had some successful regional signings as well as a killer launch party at my hometown bookstore. Flying high and proud, I hit the highway toward a small Mississippi town about an hour away. I brought my giant wooden cutouts of my book characters, coloring pages, and spider rings. I was dressed in my black dress with my pink jewelry. I was ready for story time, my friends.

I took a couple of wrong turns but made it to the bookstore with fifteen minutes to spare. The store had pink and black balloons out front, and the owner came out to greet me. As I was pulling out my characters, she said, “Where are the books?”

I stopped. Stared. Cocked my head to the side.

“Wha . . .?”

“The books? Oh my god. You forgot the books??!”

“I’m sorry,” I managed to squeak out. “What books? Don’t you have the books?”

“Well, no. Every time we’ve had authors, they’ve brought their books.”

“I’ve never brought books,” I say. “I mean, you’re a book store.”

“Oh. You must have been doing signings at big stores,” she said.

“No . . . small indie stores . . . so what do we do?” I asked as little girls started showing up. It hit me that she was used to dealing with people who had self-pubbed.

“Look. I’ll get in the car and drive up to Oxford and get them for you.”

“That’ll take two hours there and back, and here’s the thing . . . I don’t have any books.” And this was true. My publisher gave me a box of fifteen free books which I gave away for promotions. It had dwindled away to nothing. “I mean we could go and buy some from Square Books, but these kids aren’t going to wait for two hours. And I doubt they’ll come back.”

We stood out in the parking lot a little longer, just kind of staring.

“I’m doing a signing next weekend at a store thirty minutes away. I’ll bet they’ve already got the books. Call them.”

So she called, and she drove frantically to another small Mississippi bookstore (one who’d ordered the books ahead of time). Meanwhile, I’m at her store crawling on the floor with the precious little girls who had shown up. We colored. We talked.

And then I literally read every single picture book in the store to them. Every. Single. One. (Even a self published one that a local preacher had written with his son and it was illustrated with crayons.)

Everything worked out fine, and I honestly appreciated the owner’s willingness to make the drive to save the day. But whew!! Lesson learned. I now carry a box of books in my car at all times.

AND I had a signing a couple of weeks ago, and the bookstore ran out of books. Woo hoo!!! Luckily, I could pop my trunk and replenish the supply without missing a beat.

Cheers,

Sarah Frances

www.sfhardy.blogspot.com

Conference #2: A Success Story, Post Confrence Mojo Post

Howdy strangers. It has nearly been one week since my SCBWI region's Spring Spirit extravaganza. I still cannot manage to put all I learned into cohesive thoughts. When I attempt to explain all I absorbed, it comes out all jumbled and sounds something like this:

uggabooksforchildrenackvoicearghahtoomuchcaffieneheeheeshowdon'ttellbyebye.

And looks something like this:

 I'm scatterbrained as you can plainly see, a tad bit overwhelmed and giddy and definitely not in the right place to blog about all the juicy details. Instead, what I have decided to do is to write about what I did RIGHT this time around, at my second writer's conference, as opposed to how I was as a first time conference goer. (Please see Lessons for Next Time post, aka Conference #1: A Disaster Story) Of course this does not mean I did not have a few banana peel slips throughout the day, I mean, I just wouldn't be me without a few of those, but let us focus on the non-humiliating aspects of the experience.

The bestest thing I did was read Meredith Barnes's article, Conference 101: Know Before You Go, just before embarking on my conference journey. Did I wince a few times while experiencing some horrific flashbacks from my first conference? Sure! But it changed my perspective completely on conference-going.

The days leading up to the conference, I began chanting to myself and my husband what I hoped to get from this conference...

"I'm really going to go in and learn all I can from these workshops."
"I am really excited to meet other writers."
"I wonder what kinds of yummy pastries they'll have this time."

Just imagine me repeating these thoughts over and over again aloud about fifty times and you get the gist of the main topic of  conversation in the days prior to me leaving for what here-on-out will be referred to Conference #2: A Success Story.

With the sun shining,  green pastures both to my right and left, some giant big rigs spewing pebbles at my windshield, and The Boss blasting from my speakers (love you Bruce!), I was off at 6:00 in the morning, repeating the my mantra as I drove.

 Learn, meet, pastries. Learn, meet, pastries.

After getting lost while translating my map and ignoring my best judgment, I finally arrived,  ready to learn, meet, and pastry. (Please note that I have created a new verb, pastry (v): to consume large amounts of delicious, doughy pastries by loitering awkwardly around the pastry table for way too long.)

Rather than boring you with a play-by-play here is a list of what I did RIGHT at Conference #2: A Success Story (I owe it all to you Meredith Barnes!):

• I introduced myself to other writers I had seen online and met new unsuspecting writers on the seats next to me.
• Made jokes about how much coffee I had already had.
• Chatted while waiting in line for the restroom.
•  Touched Bitsy Kemper's pink, spunky hair like I had known her for a lifetime.
•  I approached editors and agents about what impressed me about THEIR work, because wowza, were they impressive. Please note: This was truly authentic...It wasn't coming from my own ambitions or hopes to promote my own work, just from an enthusiasm for all things children's literature. Highly recommend it! (Side note: This was NOT how I approached Conference #1: A Disaster Story)=)

EXAMPLE: I listened to an amazing talk on voice, where Sterling editor Brett Duquette, defined voice to be "writing that is smooth and honest." I had NEVER heard it described as this before! It was always more like, "Voice is so abstract, and hard to understand." With excellent and hilarious examples and exercises, I had to tell him how unique, clear, and helpful his presentation was. Did I mention my own work and how I would love to work with him? Nope! Was I thinking it? NOPE! My mantra was ingrained in my mind....Learn, meet, pastry.

• I don't think I mentioned my blog one time in attempts to recruit readers or contributors 
• Nor did I whip out my business cards (which I am thinking of using to kindle summer campfires) 
• I only really discussed my WIP in depth once, at a first pages critique session, where looking at writers' work was the goal.

I just enjoyed myself and the amazingly supportive community of children's authors and illustrators.

Although I am new at all of this, I know that this is the best piece of advice I can offer anyone who is going to their first conference. Enjoy yourself...learn, meet, pastry.

(P.S. Now that the conference is over, please note that I have added some pretty social media buttons, with the help of the amazing Sylvia Liu.  Come slip with me! )

Banana Peelin' with Jill Esbaum

Ohhhhh....how perfect this post is for today, this beautiful Thursday that follows so many SCBWI conferences.

 I have still not completely recovered from my amazing Spring Spirit Conference. My head is spinning with all of the the golden nuggets of information I ingested while sitting in workshops on voice, synopses, first pages critiques (eeek!), not to mention some incredibly humorous tips on writing from the SCBWI goddess herself, Lin Oliver. 

My people, all I know is I love this journey. This is where I want to be.  Even if it means publicly slipping on millions of banana peels along the way. 

One indisputable fact is that if you have to slip up every once in a while, you want to be surrounded by children's authors. It's true! They are such a wonderfully supportive community. So humble. So generous. So patient! Eh hem. With that said, thanks for waiting.

 Jill Esbaum, this week's banana peel author generously shares not only a couple of her banana peel moments, but a hilarious (and eerily familiar) poem she wrote about how to impress an editor, entitled... "How to Impress an Editor".  =)

Please welcome, Jill Esbaum!

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Unfortunately, I’ve had plenty of banana peel moments in my writing journey. The most embarrassing was before I’d sold any books.

In 2000, I was beyond excited about attending my first SCBWI retreat – SO excited that I didn’t sleep at all the night before the trip. The 3-hour drive to the retreat was a 4-hour, white-knuckled nightmare, thanks to a late-spring snowstorm. I soaked up the Friday afternoon talks and enjoyed schmoozing at the evening festivities, but ... no sleep that night either. Saturday morning, I listened to the speakers in a fog, wishing I were a coffee drinker. I would’ve traded a toe for a Pepsi, but I hadn't been able to find one anywhere in the facility.

I'd been lucky enough to score a one-on-one critique with a dream editor (a guy), which was scheduled at 4:15 on Saturday afternoon. By then, I was barely functional. Fifteen minutes before my crit time, I went to wait in the hall and discovered a Coke machine in a niche I hadn't seen before. Yay! I chugged a can of Coke in an effort to wake up. Boy, did I. By the time I walked into the cozy little crit room, I was as wired as Woody Woodpecker. First I fell sideways into an overstuffed chair and chirped, "Let's take a nap and just PRETEND we had a critique, heh-heh." Dream editor, bless his heart, valiantly tried to cover his initial reaction (fear!). He chuckled softly (while easing away), then attempted to tell me what he liked about my submission. I knew I should listen respectfully. Instead, I interrupted him constantly – yap, yap, yap – through the entire crit. I was horrified, yet unable to shut it off. At one point, I slapped a hand over my own mouth. Somebody had to. 

Miraculously, he ended up buying my first picture book – Stink Soup – eight months later. Guess he thought it was safe to work with me, as I lived 1,054 miles from New York City.

Years later, my SCBWI Regional Adviser asked me to write a poem to open one of our conferences – a tongue-in-cheek list of blunders attendees should avoid. By that time I’d been to enough conferences to have seen plenty of other people spook editors, too. And live to tell about it.




How to Impress an Editor by Jill Esbaum

It’s my first time at a conference.
This? My brand new picture book.
Let me hold your glass of wine so you can
take a better look.
See? It’s bound and fully laminated. Here’s the copyright.
Just look at how the silver glitter
sparkles in the light!
My nephew did the illustrations for me.
Aren’t they great?
I’m developing a series. This is number one.
Of eight.
Yes, you are a little peaked.
Let’s go over there and sit.
What? You have to do the schmoozy thing
and “work the room” a bit?
I’ll come with – and show you photos
of Chief Kitchy-coo, my dog. He’s the hero of my story
(written all in dialogue). See, he flies around Chicago
with his mother, solving crimes. It’s a shoe-in for that Printz Award. And check this out ... it rhymes. There’s a song at the beginning. There’s a moral at the end,
and a note reminding children that
the story’s just pretend.
I’ve already got endorsements from the
ASPCA,
and I’ve sent one to the Oprah Show.
I wonder ... do they pay?
Oh, you have to hit the ladies’ room? No problem. I’ll come, too.
While you’re taking care of business,
I can read aloud to you.
...Hon, is everything okay in there?
You need a helping hand?
What? You have a splitting headache? Sure, of course I understand.
You can take my little story to your room
and read it there.
No, it’s quite all right. Yes, I insist.
I want you to, I swear.
Let me walk you to your suite.
Oh, it’s no trouble, none at all.
Well, for goodness sake, we lucked out.
Look!
My room’s just down the hall!
Here’s an Advil for that headache. Here’s my card. Know what? Take two. Now, remind me of your name, hon,
and ... you edit books for who? Take a hot bath.
Take it easy.
Don’t you let the bedbugs bite. Ow, ow, ow! My foot was in there. We’ll talk soon, then. Nighty-night!

*First published in The Writer, April 2008

Jill Esbaum is the author of eleven picture books with major publishers, including the award-winning Ste-e-e-e-amboat A-Comin'!, Estelle Takes a Bath, Stanza, and her latest, Tom's Tweet (illus. by Dan Santat). She is a former instructor for the Institute of Children’s Literature, and, in addition to critiquing picture book manuscripts privately, she is a longtime workshop facilitator at the University of Iowa Summer Writing Festival and co-hosts the annual Whispering Woods Picture Book Writing Workshop. Jill and her husband live on a family farm in eastern Iowa.*

*(Disclaimer: Jill's biography is borrowed from Rate Your Story, where Jill volunteers her skills as a published author to rate manuscripts FOR FREE!

 *******************************************************

Now if you are like me, after you contain yourself, you will print this out and let this serve as a reminder to control your crazies at the next conference. It worked for me this last time, well, except when I touched Bitsy Kemper's hair (it was pink and spunky!) or when I screamed at some unsuspecting authors deep in quiet conversation, asking if they were looking  to be in a critique group (for scavenger hunt purposes, hence the screaming...).