Last month, I attended the SCBWI Middle of the Map Kansas/Missouri Fall Conference in Overland Park, Kansas, put on by the fantastic SCBWI Kansas/Missouri group.
The conference started on Friday evening with a Mix and Mingle while critiques with speakers were held. On Saturday, the main event began with an all speaker panel and then most of the day was spent in breakout sessions, with a closing keynote and book signing with reception ending the day.
All Speaker Panel
All of the speakers at the conference participated in a panel answering questions from the moderator as well as questions from the audience.
Sarah Jane Abbott – Associate Editor for Paula Wiseman Books and Beach Lane Books at Simon & Schuster. She started her career at S&S as a publicity assistant before joining Paula Wiseman Books and Beach Lane Books as editorial assistant in 2014. She is also on the editorial board of Simon & Schuster’s OfftheShelf.com. She has had the pleasure of working on books such as The Boy, the Boat, and the Beast by Samantha M. Clark and Blue & Bertie by Kristyna Litten. She loves quirky, character driven picture books with a lot of heart; non-fiction picture books, especially about little-known, strong women; and unique, literary middle grade novels. Find her on Twitter at @SarahJaneEyre.
Katie Heit – Editor for Scholastic. Katie Heit edits nonfiction picture books and chapter books, as well as select fiction picture book titles. She edits books by Sandra Markle, Monica Robinson, and Nick Seluk, among others. She is actively building her list and is interested in books that approach nonfiction in a unique, kid-friendly way. Find her on Twitter at @katieheit.
Jim Hoover – Art Director at Viking Children’s Books. A graduate of Rhode Island School of Design in Illustration, Jim has been in publishing now for twenty years. He speaks regularly at SCBWI and has designed and art directed hundreds of books including: PICTURE BOOKS (Tea Party Rules with K. G. Campbell, Shy with Deborah Freedman, Ella with Marcos Chin, Bus! Stop! with James Yang) NOVELS (Nnedi Okorafor’s Akata Witch books, Max Brallier’s New York Times best-selling series The Last Kids on Earth) NONFICTION (National Book Award Finalist Elizabeth Partridge’s Marching for Freedom, Printz Award-winning John Lennon: All I Want Is the Truth, and the up-coming Boots on the Ground, and the children’s book adaptation of Al Gore’s An Inconvenient Truth) Jim lives in Brooklyn with his wife and son. Find him on Twitter at @JimHoover17.
Alyssa Eisner Henkin – Literary Agent, and Executive Vice President, at Trident Media Group. After earning her Bachelors from the University of Pennsylvania, Alyssa fulfilled a childhood dream that she professed on a home video at the age of six: move to New York and work with books. In 1999, Alyssa began her career in editorial at Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers. Here she found “kindred spirits” who loved Anne of Green Gables as much as she did and a kids book space that was rapidly growing. In late 2006 Alyssa (and her inner-entrepreneur) headed to Trident to expand the firm’s children’s book business. Over twelve years, hundreds of deals, and numerous bestsellers and award-winners later, Alyssa still delights in nurturing her books at every stage. From editing and idea-honing to collaborating with marketing, foreign, dramatic, merchandising, and audio partners, Alyssa works hard to ensure longevity for her authors’ work. She represents multiple award-winning and bestselling authors, including Julie Berry, Ruth Behar, Jen Bryant, and R.J. Palacio, whose novel Wonder has been on the New York Times Bestseller list since it came out in 2012 and was turned into a feature film by Lionsgate which came out in 2017. Find her on Twitter at @AgentHenkin.
Quressa Robinson – Literary Agent with Nelson Literary. Quressa Robinson joined Nelson Literary Agency in 2017 after working at a previous agency as an editor for five years. She is originally from San Francisco, but has been living in New York City for over a decade. As a New York based agent, she is eager to build her MG, YA, and Adult lists. When not curled on her couch reading, she plays video games, enjoys too much TV-mostly Sailor Moon and Harry Potter (Slytherin!), eats delicious things, drinks champagne, hangs out with her very clever husband, and adds another “dramatic” color to her lipstick collection. Quressa is also a member of the 2017-2019 WNDB Walter Grant Committee and holds an MFA in Creative Writing: Fiction from Columbia University. Find her on Twitter at @qnrisawesome.
Alexandra Levick – Literary Agent with Writers House. Alexandra Levick has worked with a wide range of established New York Times bestsellers, national award winners, and debut clients. After graduating from the University of Rochester with a degree in English focused on Creative Writing, Alexandra attended New York University where she received her Masters of Science in Publishing with a specialization in Content Development. Prior to Writers House, she spent time at Sterling Lord Literistic, in publicity at Bloomsbury, and as a bookseller for Barnes and Noble. Today, she is building a broad list and works on everything from picture books to speculative adult fiction. Find her on Twitter @AllieLevick.
Giselle Anatol – Moderator Author/Professor – Gisell is a professor of English at the University of Kansas. She has edited three collections of essays on popular literature for children and young adults. She is also the author of THE THINGS THAT FLY IN THE NIGHT: Female Vampires in Literature of the Circus-Caribbean and African Diasapora.
First question asked was describe a typical day from your side of the desk.
Most of the speakers said they started by reading up on industry news and checking emails before diving in to their day.
Jim Hoover said, “Ideally I’ll have a cover up.” He likes to look at a piece of artwork first thing.
Katie Heit said that since her work is mostly focused on nonfiction, she hits those type of sites first, like the Smithsonian and National Geographic.
Alexandra Levick and Quressa Robinson agreed that there wasn’t really a typical day in the life of an agent. Alexandra said, “If I try to plan, it’s disastrous.” Quressa said that instead of a daily to-do list, she does weekly lists.
Next question asked about their pet peeves.
Almost all responded that it really got under their skin when they received submissions addressed incorrectly, with their name misspelled, queries addressed ‘Dear Sir or Madam’, or addressed to multiple people. (Although Quressa Robinson said she doesn’t like it when you misspell her name, she won’t hold it against you.)
Katie Heit said she also didn’t like it when authors included more than one manuscript in an email submission.
Sarah Jane Abbott clarified her pet peeve a little further: “When people haven’t done their research and send a query way out of my wheel house.”
Next question delved into what writers/illustrators should ask when choosing agent/editor to work with, specifically regarding chemistry.
Sarah Jane Abbott said you should ask about the vision your editor has for your story. If it doesn’t mesh with yours, this is important to know before you get started.
Alexandra Levick said you should ask about edits. Hopefully the goal is to make the book more your own – stronger. Also ask for references from their clients, who will be more honest about how agents work.
Quressa Robinson said you should definitely ask about their agenting style. “Some people aren’t phone people – like me.”
Last question asked when they would be willing to take a risk on a project.
Most responded with a need to feel passionate about the project as the precursor to championing a project.
Jim Hoover said simply if he sees the potential is there.
Katie Heit asked “Does it have a lot of potential?” Then after conversation with the author, can we craft this together? Does this make me really excited?
Alexandra Levick said she needs a really strong vision on how to edit it. Very solid ideas on how to edit and get to end goals.
Alyssa Henkin said if she feels the voice and feels so certain in her love for the story. The plot can be a mess – the plot is fixable.
Breakout Sessions
Alexandra Levick – How to Find the Right Literary Agent
Alexandra did her first internship at the University of Rochester. She worked for Bloomsbury for two years while pursuing a Masters degree where she fell in love with Children’s literature when she took a class on the subject. She currently works with senior agents Rebecca Sherman and Brianna Johnson at Writers House. She started there as an intern under Merrilee Heifetz, Neil Gaiman’s agent.
Alexandra had many great tips on how to go about the process of submitting, including what questions to ask and what information to include in your query letter.
One of the first things you need to have before you get started is a COMPLETED MANUSCRIPT. That’s right. You shouldn’t be querying unless your manuscript is completed. So, if that’s you, stop right now and get back to to your pages.
Finish.
Write on until you reach ‘The End’.
Then, continue reading. (Yes, I am also talking to myself.)
What you will need if you are querying:
- Query letter
- Sample pages
- Synopsis
- FULL manuscript (which, if you’ve read this far, you now have)
Every agent’s submission guidelines are almost always different. Make sure to do your research so you know what each one expects with a submission. What is important about following these guidelines is to show that you can follow instructions. (Yes, it is a test.)
Another interesting tip Alexandra gave was about using comp titles. The purpose of comps is to convey mood or a book’s place on the shelf. It’s better to have NO comps than to have ‘meh’ comps. Think of your examples in terms of “plot meets tone”. Give one comp title that has a comparable plot to your novel, and one that has a comparable tone. Using movies and songs as well as book titles are fine as well as any combination of the three. Also make sure your comp titles are RECENT! Published within about two years.
You can read about the submission guidelines for Alexandra Levick at Writers House here.
Sue Lowell Gallion – Beginnings, Endings, and That Murky Middle
Sue Lowell Gallion is the author of PUG MEETS PIG and PUG & PIG TRICK-OR-TREAT, which both received starred reviews from Publishers Weekly. Her latest books are the TIP AND TUCKER early reading series. Sue is the former SCBWI regional advisor of the KS/MO region.
Sue is no stranger to us here in the Oklahoma region of SCBWI. She has been a guest speaker at some of our SCBWI OK events as well as a guest on our monthly #okscbwichat on Twitter.
Sue gave some excellent advice on keeping your writing focused on its true purpose and how to get it unstuck when in the “murky middle”.
She said in the Beginning, sometimes we shortchange the rest of our manuscript when we agonize over the first sentence, the first page, the first hook.
She suggested READING PICTURE BOOKS WITH CHILDREN: How to Shake Up Storytime and Get Kids Talking About What They See by Megan Dowd Lambert. It will help you think of all the elements as you create your story.
Examples of stories with great beginnings:
- ALMA AND HOW SHE GOT HER NAME by Juana Martinez-Neal
- PENGUINAUT by Marcie Colleen, illustrated by Emma Yarlett
- QUACKERS by Liz Wong
- THE KING OF KINDERGARTEN by Derrick Barnes, illustrated by Vanessa Brantley-Newton
Sue said the Middle is where her stories begin to wander because she gets tired of it or it’s time for recess.
Being too predictable can get you stuck in the middle. Ask yourself, does every sentence further the story? Does each trial and failure increase the tension? Make sure to stretch the tension out so your readers want to turn the page.
If you’re feeling lost in the middle, try writing the flap copy.
Examples of stories with great middles:
- JABARI JUMPS by Gaia Cornwall
- A KITE FOR MOON by Jane Yolen
- TRUMAN by Jean Reidy, illustrated by Lucy Ruth Cummins
Sue said you’ve got to stick the Ending! Don’t rush it or short-change it. The ending needs to be logical AND completely unexpected.
Most picture books end with hope, even if the story is not happy. And the main character needs to have a hand in the conclusion.
More great examples:
- A LITTLE CHICKEN by Tammi Sauer, illustrated by Dan Taylor
- HELLO LIGHTHOUSE by Sophie Blackall
- BOOT AND SHOE by Marla Frazee
- BUNNY SLOPES and HUNGRY BUNNY by Claudia Rueda
- CREEPY CARROTS by Aaron Reynolds, illustrated by Peter Brown
The best compliment for a story after getting to the end, is that request to “Read it again!”.
Quressa Robinson – Plotting and Characterization: The Art of Conflict and Personality
Quressa brought her extensive knowledge to the task of teaching us to go deeper into our work on plot and character development. She put us through several writing exercises, which I always find painful under the best circumstances. Useful, maybe, but painful nonetheless.
She said the tension where a reader holds their breath when turning the page is what makes writing truly great.
(GOALS!)
She walked us through several different plotting triangle scenarios and discussed ascending and descending forces. It was very intense.
Quressa said that everyone’s story is different. The stakes in your story don’t have to be actual life and death, however, they do need to be high enough to matter.
If you’re having a problem with your plot, something that’s helpful is to try plotting backwards. Start at the climax of your story and work backwards. (This was actually the focus of one of the writing exercises – one I found very helpful.)
Also think about listing the external and internal stakes for each of your characters. Are their stakes high enough? What can you do to make them higher?
At one point during our discussion of the writing exercises, Quressa said, “Writing is a communal process.”
That is my favorite quote from this conference. Bar none.
“Writing is a communal process.”
And man, do I love my writing community.
I had a great time attending this conference and I hope to attend more outside my state. I love meeting new people and being around other writers.
What about you?
valerie r lawson 