17 Wednesday May 2023
Posted in Ask an Editor, Tips and Tools
“Ask an Editor” is a forum wherein SCBWI members submit questions that are answered quarterly as part of our Kite Tales blog.
Hi Christine–Since you write nonfiction, are you an expert on those topics? How much does an author need to know to write nonfiction and get it published?—Gen, Pasadena
10 Wednesday May 2023
Posted in Industry Conferences, Industry News, Los Angeles, PAL, SoCal
Tags
Annelouise Mahoney, authors, C.K. Malone, Caroline L. Perry, Glenda Armand, Heather Buchta, illustrators, Janie Emaus, Jennifer Pitts, LATFoB, Los Angeles Times Festival of Books, Molly Ruttan, PAL events, published, R.S. Mellette, SCBWI community, SCBWI members, Tina Athaide, writing
by Annelouise Mahoney
The Los Angeles Times Festival of Books is an annual tradition of literary wonder. It’s the Coachella of book festivals, the largest in the country.
This year, as they do each year, the SCBWI Los Angeles chapter extended an invitation for its PAL members to sell and sign their books at a festival booth. SCBWI SoCal joined the L.A. chapter at the festival for the first time ever, sharing Booth #826. PAL members of the two regions who signed up could choose a two or three-hour time slot for either Saturday or Sunday of the event.
Continue reading03 Wednesday May 2023
Posted in Author's Perspective, Editor's Perspective, Tips and Tools
by Cara J. Stevens
Part 2: 7 Self-editing checkpoints to take your manuscript from first draft to ready for submission
**Note: This is the second in a two-part series. To read part one, click here.**
My first post covered storytelling basics to get you to a solid first draft. Once your manuscript is complete, however, it’s far from finished!
Here are seven checkpoints to guide you once you’re ready to edit.
Continue reading26 Wednesday Apr 2023
Posted in Author's Perspective, Editor's Perspective, Tips and Tools
by Cara J. Stevens
The first time I submitted a manuscript, it was rejected within 24 hours. “This story is more instructional than engaging,” the editor said, and went on to suggest that it would make a great article. I was dismayed and confused. I thought I had written a story that hit all the notes of a good picture book. I wondered where I had gone wrong.
I reached out to a colleague who used to be a children’s book agent. “Your main character has no agency,” he pointed out. “If your main character has a problem and someone else solves it, then he’s not really your main character.” My mind was sufficiently blown. As soon as he said it, I saw it so clearly! After a lifetime of reading and exploring picture books, how could I have missed that?
Continue reading19 Wednesday Apr 2023
Tags
author-illustrator, flip tabs, illustrating, interactive, Jackie Huang, Picky Panda, picture books, SCBWI community, writing
by Jackie Huang
Whether it’s a novelty book or a picture book, an interactive element (e.g., flip tabs, spinners, sliders, touch/feel textures, etc.) can give your book an extra level of engagement. But how do you decide if your book should have interactive elements?
Coming from a paper engineering background (i.e., I make pop-up cards), I really wanted to include some kind of interactive element in my first book. When you decide to include something interactive, there’s a special kind of dance that happens.
Continue reading14 Friday Apr 2023
Posted in Industry Conferences, Industry News, Los Angeles, PAL, SoCal
Tags
authors, illustrators, LATFoB, Los Angeles Times Festival of Books, PAL events, published, R.S. Mellette, SCBWI community, SCBWI members, writing
by R.S. Mellette
Like James Brown said, it’s time to “Get up offa that thing.”
If you are reading this, chances are you are an SCBWI member, quite possibly in Southern California. That means you’re interested enough in writing and/or illustrating books that you’re willing to pay dues, go to mingles, take workshops, and generally give of your time and money to improve your craft. On Saturday and Sunday, April 22 and 23, you will have that opportunity at the largest book festival in the country, the Los Angeles Times Festival of Books.
Much of this event is FREE, and SCBWI will be there to make you feel welcome.
Continue reading12 Wednesday Apr 2023
Posted in Author's Perspective, Contests & Grants, SAG, Writers' Retreat
Tags
Christine Van Zandt, Milkweed for Monarchs, picture books, SCBWI members, Sue Alexander, writing contests
by Christine Van Zandt
The 2023 Sue Alexander Grant contest opens tomorrow, April 13, offering one SCBWI-L.A. writer a guaranteed spot and free tuition to the Working Writers Retreat (to be held at the Holy Spirit Retreat Center in Encino, September 29 to October 1, 2023). This will be the first time this popular event has been held in person since 2019!
We asked last year’s Sue Alexander Grant recipient, Christine Van Zandt, to talk about her winning manuscript:
The idea for Butterfly Dreams began in May 2020, when my daughter and I bought our first milkweed plant unaware that a mother monarch had sent us home with a surprise—actually 26 surprises! Soon, our plant was covered in adorable caterpillars. We excitedly watched them grow … until something came along one night and ate every last one.
Continue reading05 Wednesday Apr 2023
Posted in Central Coast, Los Angeles, SoCal, Tri-Regional News
by Judy Faulkner and Michelle Lin, Kite Tales Co-Managing Editors
The seasons are changing—at Kite Tales, too.
Jessica Chrysler and Noel Csermak, two stalwart SCBWI Tri-Region volunteers, have recently stepped away from their respective long-time roles as KT’s managing editor and proofreader. If you’ve enjoyed the blog in recent years (as we know so many of you have!), they are two major reasons why.
Continue reading29 Wednesday Mar 2023
Posted in Author's Perspective, Central Coast, Tips and Tools
Tags
authors, CenCal, craft, Patricia Toht, poetry, publishing, rhyming, SCBWI community, SCBWI events, SCBWI members, writing, writing tips
by Ann Rousseau Smith, SCBWI CenCal News Liaison
Join us on Thursday, April 13, at 6:30 p.m. for a webinar with Patricia Toht titled “Let’s Get Rhyming!” Despite what some may insist, it’s not a crime to write in rhyme! But it does take effort to master your verse. Join author and Rhyme Doctor Patricia Toht as she shares her new releases, Together With You and Pick a Perfect Egg, along with other wonderful books in rhyme, and reveals key elements that make them shine. The price will be $12 for SCBWI members.
Continue reading22 Wednesday Mar 2023
Posted in Contests & Grants, Mentorship Contest
by Cara J. Stevens
Note: In January, we invited picture book authors to apply for a six-month mentorship with one of our Published and Listed members. This year’s mentor, Cara J. Stevens, joins us to announce the winner and share some of the submission highlights.
I was blown away by the submissions I received for this year’s mentorship contest. Each story showed promise, and each author’s interview responses showed just how ready they all are to take their picture book writing to the next level.
Continue reading
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