I wish I had a book published for every person who's told me they want to write a children's book. I've begun to understand the cliche of the doctor who's grilled at parties by everyone who's had an ailment in the last decade.
The startling statistics for the increase in children's book sales are a measure of this genre's appeal. According to the American Booksellers Association, the sales of children's books rose more than twice than that of general-interest books in 1990.
These figures might make writers imagine that there's never been a better time to enter the market, but experiences producing and critiquing books tells me otherwise. It seems almost impossible to publish a children's book. One reason is may be that editors are inundated with submissions. Last year, for example, Scholastic received 25,000 unsolicited children's book manuscripts. They published only one to two percent of these and due to overwhelm have decided that next year they will not accept any unsolicited manuscripts.
Generally the way a large house handles submissions is by sorting them into three different categories of consideration. The most promising are written by proven authors and illustrators, or a perhaps a celebrity whose name will guarantee the sale of a book.
The second kind of manuscripts are marked by something that demands editorial attention. They might be submitted by an agent. They might have been written by someone who's submitted before and has been asked to submit again. They might be sent with a recommendation by someone who's respected or recognized. Or they might be sent by someone an editor's met at a cocktail party.
The third and largest type of submission are the unsoliscited manuscripts which publishers refer to as the slush pile. These are most likely to get form rejections. Form rejections give writers the least amount of information and the most heart ache.
To survive rejection, writers need to learn how to count successes in the rejection arena. The worst rejections are manuscripts returned with the cover letter still attached. The only clue they've been touched by human hands are new coffee-stains. A scribbled note on the bottom of a form rejection is a significant triumph. And the best is a detailed refusal asking for further submissions, especially if it passes the spit test. To determine this, wet your finger and apply it to the signature. If the ink runs, the letter has been signed by a real person who's taken time from a frenetic schedule to credit your work. If you still want to write a children's book after these discouraging facts and you haven't yet produced your first submission my next commentary will suggest ways to get you past the fear of beginning.
Many children's book writers started careers because they felt they could write better than books they read. Reading is how many writers begin. It's the best way to see what's available, familiarize yourself with current trends, and recognize age-appropriate themes. One of the worst frustrations for booksellers, parents, and children are books whose content, style, themes or lengths don't match the age they're intended for. It won't take long to notice patterns-- baby and toddler books have lots of repetition, noisy drama, and rhythm and rhyme while they are lots of monster books for four to six year olds. Reading books to children will give you a further awareness of what ignites and excites.
Children's librarians and book sellers are excellent resources. Not only are they usually happy to talk shop, they're not bothered by people who want to find a quiet corner to read. I recommend that parents who plan to devote a chunk of time to studying books, leave their children at home. This will improve both your focus and your relationship with a librarian or bookseller .
Publishers are printed near the title page of most books. As you review books, you may also begin to get a sense of what characterizes different publishing houses. There are no hard and fast rules, but many firms seem to have a specific publication philosophies. Whitman, for example, releases many concept-type books while Green Tiger Press books have a dreamy almost metaphysical quality.
One of the best ways to learn the ins and outs of the industry is by joining the Society of Children's Book Writers. They are probably the best known professional organization for writers and illustrators. Their quarterly newsletter is filled with everything from editorial updates to short inspirational articles. The Society of Children's Book Writers can put you in touch with other children's book writers and alert you to conferences in your area. For more information, write the Society of Children's Book writers at : 345 North Maple Drive, Suite 296, Beverly Hills, CA 90210; 310-859-9987.
Conferences can be a good initiation. One of my favorite conferences was the Port Townsend Conference in Washington state where I wrote, critiqued, and studied with Jane Yolen for ten days . Attending the American Bookseller or American Library Association conferences are a great way to take stock of what's in the market place. The Society of Children's Book Writers hosts an annual informational/inspirational August conference offering everything from manuscript consultations to meeting children's book writers from all over the country with whom you can connect, commiserate, and complain.
I'll always remember editor Kathleen Krull talking about how she judged a children's book contest. She separated stories into three piles of possibility and then decided to analyze what made a manuscript worthy of winning. The one quality that ran through the manuscripts she considered most carefully was originality.
When you begin to write, begin by writing your own story, in your own voice. A good place to start is the story you imagine when you think, "I always wanted to write a children's book." I wouldn't censor myself by worrying about marketing or audience at this point. Publication requires serious commitment and the best way to begin is by establishing consistent writing times and patterns. Facing a blank page can be terrifying. If you want help warming up I recommend Natalie Goldberg's two books, Writing Down the Bones and Wild Mind: Living the Writer's Life, both published by Bantam. Dorthea Brande's Becoming a Writer, published by J P Tarcher, is also a good source of inspiration. You can also exercise by writing letters and journaling.
After you've spent some time getting to know your own writing voice and have a draft down on paper, you might want suggestions more specific to children's books as offered by Jane Yolen in her Guide to Writing for Children or Jane Fitz-Randolph How to Write for Children and Young Adults.
Though I hesitate to inhibit initial writings in any way, I warn that a common editorial complaint is talking animal stories or talking inanimate objects. I still remember an entire conference giggling over the submission: Herbie, the Freezer who could Defrost himself. Other subjects to avoid are violence or mutilation, and above all, preachy or cutsey stories. It's most important to write your story and then consider your audience and editors. Don't limit what you really want to say or your vocabulary because you are writing for children. They hate to be talked down to.
One of the best things I did to support my writing was joining a writing group specifically for children's book writers. Over the ten years I belonged every one of our eight members published a children's piece. We also shared marketing news, manuscripts, critiques, sorrows, frustrations, and triumphs. The longer we met, the more honest we became and as a result our critiquing and writing grew more professional. And again and again we understood the statement that no one understands a writer like another writer.
I guarantee you'll never sell a children's book if you don't send it out. I wonder how many writers have never submitted because of their fear of marketing .
You actually may have begun marketing without knowing it. If you've admired certain publishing houses and imagined how your book would fit with their list, then these should be the first places you submit. Once you're at the nuts and bolts stage of selling you may find help in resource books like Kathleen Krull's Twelve Keys to Writing Books That Sell and How to get Happily Published by Evans and Applebaum. Of enormous help is Children's Writer's and Illustrator's Market published by Writer's Digest which lists tips, book and magazine publishers, agents, and contests.
One of the most talked about controversies in the children's book field is multiple submission. Realistic editors must realize that the overwhelming number of unsolicited submissions has slowed their process so much that they can't expect writers to submit to only one house at a time. Madeline L'Engle's classic young adult novel, A Wrinkle In Time was rejected over twenty-five times before Farrar Straus published it. When L'Engle was submitting, the turn around time was a lot quicker--now it can take as long as eight months to hear from a publisher. You don't have to be a math wizard to question the merits of single submitting. I only grew uncomfortable with multiple submission after I'd built a rapport with specific editors.
The length of time a publisher keeps a manuscript, doesn't necessarily mean it has better chance of publication. Your story might be buried under stacks of other manuscripts, or it could even have been lost. If you don't hear from a publishing house within three months, I think it's legitimate to call and pleasantly ask about the status of your work. I've built some very receptive relationships with publishing assistants through phone contact. It's good to have an assistant editor's ear. Editorial assistants aren't quite so busy and one day they may become editors.
Cover letters are a real art form. They should be a brief brag, capturing attention without being obnoxious. You don't need illustrations to accompany a submission, and editors don't want to read your illustration suggestions. Doing either of these things may mark you as an unprofessional novice.
Establish a habit of having envelopes ready and waiting to go to the next publisher. It's incredibly disheartening to have a manuscript returned, but as soon as it's back in the mail, you can hope again.