Getting serious about getting a book published?

Tempted to start typing ‘Chapter One’ this year?

To get serious about getting a book published anyone might well take a quick squint at the current state of the publishing industry and notice there have been rapid changes in recent years. And think PANIC.

Niche publishers, e-publishing, creative writing MAs. How many different courses and services spring up all the time. Which ones are any good? Does any of this make getting published any smoother? Or is it actually just placing extra hurdles (and expensive ones at that) between you and your goals?

Our news at Space on the Bookshelf (we all write as well as being involved in children’s books in other ways) is that Sally has been longlisted for the second year running in The Times / Chicken House Children’s FictionCompetition. 

It seemed a good time to have a bit of a focus on writing. We like interviewing authors and editors, so we were intrigued that a group of editors have launched a weekend retreat where writers can engage directly with a bunch of children’s editors.

We set out to find more, and Karen Ball, publisher at Little Brown, has kindly answered some of our questions about what industry people think of courses like these, what authors should think about them . .  and about what their course in particular offers.

Over to Karen, one of the four editors behind Book Bound.

There has been an upsurge in workshops and retreats supplied by publishers and agents. I address this issue on Book Bound's inaugural blog post here. Yes, it's fiercely competitive out there for an author, but there’s also something more subtle and yet larger. There has been a shift in the entire industry's way of thinking. With the advent of self-publishing, fan fiction and other business models publishing, we need to re-think their engagement with both audience and authors.

We need to prove to ourselves and to you why you should (and you really should!) want to continue with some of the established models. One way of doing that is by reaching out to authors with expert knowledge. The friendliest and most constructive way of doing that is on a retreat!

We haven't organised this retreat in order to improve the quality of submissions. After all, we'll only be engaging with a select number of authors on the weekend. I certainly wouldn't say publishers are struggling to find the right books to publish. Define 'right' book!

Q:  The retreat has a really interesting programme. It appears to have a strong focus on how to present yourself to publishers and how to pitch. It seems to place less emphasis on creative writing, committing ideas to paper and improving your manuscript. Is this a focus on where you feel authors particularly need advice/work? Do you think it is a particular barrier authors face – the ability to be able to pitch a good idea and sell their writing, rather than the writing itself being an issue?

KB: This balance is because of the type of author we're inviting to join us. We are asking applicants to have a complete first draft. It's our hope to engage with people who may need some help polishing their diamond, but who are now flexing their muscles, getting ready to engage with the publishing industry. We could run an entirely different weekend, helping people get down their first chapters, but we consciously honed this retreat for authors who are at a different stage in their journey. Our hope is that all attendees will get a precisely focused set of workshops perfect for their needs as we help them become Book Bound.

Q: What is the best help currently available for writers to make the transition from pre-published to published author? If you see a submission that is close to being ready to be accepted, what sort of advice do you normally give?

KB: You've taken this long, why rush the process now? If a pre-published author receives some constructive feedback on their work, I'd suggest taking the time to absorb that advice, scrutinise your manuscript and devote enough hours to getting it right. Don't panic and rush revisions, just to be back in the game – whatever the game is. It's a big myth that editors are impressed by speed. We aren't. Editors and publishers often judge potential authors by how well they can take constructive feedback – you may be unwittingly be passing your first 'test' when you react in a considered way to comments.

Q: In launching this retreat, there must be goals that you have, and ways you’ll judge if the retreat has been successful. Are there specific things you are looking to get out of the retreat as the organisers, and is part of it a chance to discover ‘the next big thing’?

KB: There are some concrete ways of judging the success of our first retreat. For example, have we covered our costs? Good business management is key to enabling creativity! Do we feel we achieved the right balance of attendees? But other deciders of 'success' are more subtle. I will care deeply that attendees go home feeling fulfilled and inspired, that we saw a community build before our eyes and that someone who might have felt scared, leaves feeling confident. Yes, if we stumbled upon an amazing manuscript that could reach a wider audience, it would be humbling to help on that journey! But I believe that author engagement can be much, much more long-term and gentle than that. Publishing is a people-industry and it's a marathon, not a sprint. Both author and publisher careers can be built on a generous spirit and the desire to simply engage. You can't rush that type of chemistry.

Q:And finally: there are all kinds of reasons writers choose to go on retreats or residential workshops. You invite applications from writers that have ‘got the basics’. Why should writers consider ‘Book Bound’, and what is the best thing writers will get out of joining the retreat?

KB: This is a retreat organised by four friends who have expert knowledge, who know the industry as both writers and publishers and who want to help. You simply couldn't ask for more! Also, I'm going to come clean here – the venue is amazing! If I was going on a writers' retreat (and I've been on many!) I would be clamouring to stay in our Kent country estate. Imagine peace and tranquility. Imagine acres of manicured gardens dotted with stone fountains. Imagine a freshly-decorated bedroom, wooden staircases, servants' bells, a vegetable garden and book-filled library with cracked leather chairs. Yup, you got it. Then imagine a rigorous programme of workshops, led by four of the friendliest people in children's publishing, a whole weekend devoted to considering the next stage of your career and ways of improving your manuscript. 

Karen Ball has worked in publishing for over twenty years and is Publisher at Little, Brown Books for Young Readers & Atom. Sara O’Connor is the Editorial Director, Print and Digital, at the innovative children’s fiction publisher, Hot Key. Sara Grant works as a freelance editor, helping children’s publishers develop series fiction for children and teen readers. She writes books for both children and teens. And Jasmine Richards is Senior Commissioning Editor for children’s fiction at Oxford University Press.

3D Review - Brock – Spotlight on Writing.

Anthony McGowan’s Brock is a chilling and gritty read for teens. It is refreshing step away from the lion’s share of YA literature which centres on middle class teenagers focusing instead on Nicky and Kenny from a disadvantaged family. The voice is strong, tough and yet sympathetic and has an instant impact of a child that has been forced to grow up before his time.

Reading Brock transported me back to anther read, one I read as part of the school GCSE syllabus that have a similar gut wrenchingly tough voice and a protagonist from a working class background; A Kestrel for a Knave by Barry Hines. In our interview with Anthony early this week (press here to read) he sighted A Kestrel for a Knave as a strong influence for Brock, and on his web site (press here) he lists the film adaptation KES as one of his favourite films. This indeed shines through, yet Brock is distinct in its uniqueness.

A Kestrel for a Knave was published in 1968 and follows Billy, showing his relationship with his abusive half-brother, his disinterested mother living in the hard and desolate north, with his kestrel Kes being his only friend. The influences on Brock are clear, with Brock protagonist Nicky coming from a broken no-income home, but Anthony bring his tale in to the twenty first century.

A Modern Family is just as likely to be a single parent where it’s the father present, Brock reflects this, Nicky and Kenny’s mother walked out on them, and their father is unemployed, and in trouble with the law possibly facing prison. With their father being despondent it’s Nicky who steps up and takes on the parental role, looking out for himself and his brother Kenny. Whereas in A Kestrel for a Knave the sibling relationship is based on abuse and hate, Brock’s is bases on love, and tackles the difficulties subject of learning difficulties.

Kenny has learning difficulties, due to oxygen starvation when he was born. Nicky’s view on Kenny is touching, and is a real testament to Anthony's skilful writing.

“…he [Kenny] isn’t always trying to work out the angles, or how to stitch you up. He thinks other people are as kind as he is, and he only has one idea at a time…. I think ‘simple’ is a better and kinder and truer than talking about ‘difficulties’ or ‘disabilities’”

Nicky’s affection and parental nature is event throughout the book, with him always looking out for Kenny making sure he’s wearing warm clothes and has been fed, although the frustrations are also clear. Anthony has explored the issues of learning difficulties, single parent Families, and child careers seamlessly without turning the story into a heavy Issue’s book.

As a writer I'm always amazed about how other authors weave their stories juxtaposing narrative, action, emotion and description. What I found particularly intriguing in Brock is the sparse character descriptions. This makes it easy for a challenged reader, as coming away from the action to read a beautiful description of a person can make you lose the story thread and put down the book (and after all in real life you don’t look at someone you know and describe them in your inner-monologue!) In Brock Anthony, has skilfully adopted the Fairy Tale method of describing someone with a Name. Yes a NAME can be powerful enough to evoke an image in your mind, Sleeping Beauty, Ugly Step Sisters. In Brock, The human character names all congers up the right image especially in combination with the nougats of information that Nicky provides, like Jezbo (remarkably similar to ASBO) who has two dogs called…

“Satan and Slag. That told you all you needed to know about Jezbo.”

Brock is a sophisticated story written in an obtainable way for challenged reader that deals with difficult subjects whilst managing to deliver a happy ending that inspires hope. Despite it’s subject Brock has a reading experience which seem more like a roller-coaster; exciting, and quick and easy, which I strongly urge you read, challenged reader or not.

We have a copy of BROCK to giveaway!
Just e-mail  with your name address and Brock in the subject line to
SpaceOnTheBookshelf@yahoo.com

Good Luck!

‘Shrunk’ – Fleur Hitchcock – Spotlight on Writing

Having your first book picked as a ‘Sunday Times’ Book of the Month and having two publishers both snap you up seems like the dream scenario for any author (although having to write your fourth book online as a web-based creative writing project for children does sound slightly less appealing).

But for ‘Shrunk’ author Fleur Hitchcock, being a children’s author at all is a bit of a surprise as she only ended up on the now famous Bath Spa creative writing course for children because the adult course was already full.

‘I had been writing for a while, writing stories for adults and wanted to do an MA. But when I look back all my stories featured children, or had a children’s point of view.’ And she found her natural home, now having written ‘Shrunk’ (about a boy who discovers he has the power to shrink things), ‘Dear Scarlett’ about a girl who starts to uncover secrets about her jewel thief father, and ‘The Trouble with Mummies’ about a town where all the adults start behaving like they are living in a different historical period, which is difficult enough for the children to cope with - until all the historical re-enactment starts to involve sacrificing children.

All three books are quite different, although there is definitely a familiar strand of humour present in all of them. They will also appeal to slightly different age groups and if that isn't all tricky enough, Fleur has ended up being published by two different publishers.

I managed to catch up with her after a school event where she mummified some children and had them impersonating animals. Now all just part of the day job.

‘I wrote a book as part of the MA and that book got me an agent. But it did the rounds and didn’t get me a publisher, which was a very grim place. One of the best things about doing the MA was the fact that although I’d wanted to do it to improve my writing, what it also really taught me was about the commercial and practical side of publishing.

‘So we’d have talks where they’d say about this editorial team were really good or this publisher was good at that. And helped us recognise that lots and lots of people writing never make it – or get one or maybe two books published and then never another. So it made me a lot more realistic.

‘And you sometimes have to slap yourself around the face and say that didn’t work and write another one. You can only edit a book so much before it comes such a totally different book than the one you started anyway that it would have been better to have started completely fresh with something new.

‘So I started “Shrunk” and although Nosy Crow thought is wasn’t quite for them, they liked my writing and wanted to meet me. On the train to the meeting Kirsty Stansfield I was thinking that I didn’t really know what they wanted to meet me to talk about and I had this idea of what it would be like to live among the watercress beds around Andover that I passed on the train. And so when they asked me what I was writing next I told them and that became “Dear Scarlett” which was my first book for Nosy Crow.

‘In the meantime HotKey had been sent “Shrunk” and loved it, so I ended up with two different publishers.’

She was also plunged into writing a follow-up to ‘Shrunk’ on-line, inviting children to contribute all their ideas and shape everything from the characters to the plot.

‘The children have really written the book – they will see their ideas there and without their ideas it would not have been the book it is. But my synapses have had to make connections where they have never made connections before and it has been good for me. I have never tried before writing with someone else’s ideas.’

That book will be out next year, but for the moment she is returning home to write a book that, confidentially, may feature time travel and yogurt pots. And to polish up her schools events. ‘I definitely need more penguins.’

What was your favourite book as a child?

It’s impossible to answer that because I liked different books at different times of childhood, whether it was Noggin the Nog, or Narnia or The Silver Sword. And there was a pony book that when I look back was only photographs and information but I read that over and over as I did the ‘Handbook of Horsemanship’. I was a big user of the mobile library. I loved Moomins and Joan Aiken and Nina Bawden, who was a friend of my parents and I read all the books before they were printed and still have all of her letters.

What is your favourite children’s book as an adult?

I am a big fan of Frank Cottrell Boyce and also of Louis Sacher’s ‘Holes’. Any books that I read with my children and they enjoy always means their enjoyment becomes my enjoyment.

We've got a copy of The Trouble With Mummies  to give away.  To be in with a chance of winning it, e-mail us at SpaceOnTheBookshelf@yahoo.com with your name and address and 'Mummies' in the header.

Good Luck

Spotlight on Writing - The Secret Hen House Theatre by Helen Peters

Helen Peters writing really manages to transport you into the setting of the book whether it is the muddy decrepit farm, or the reclaimed hen house theatre or an antique shop, her sense of setting is almost tangible. You get the sense that Helen hasn't imagined this story but lived it, and when you read her bio, you can understand that she did indeed grow up on a farm and had her own Theatre in a tumble down shed. It’s the little touches to the farm setting, that really make it come to life, like  when a little lamb who unable to be cared for my it’s mother is being kept warm in a cardboard box in the Aga.

The Secret Hen House Theatre, is special in so many ways, it appeal to children is perhaps the strongest, as it ticks so many boxes.

 

Children of this age love animals and nature, and being set on a farm SHHT had lashing of both, plus the added threat of the animals being sold, and the farm being bulldozed to become a housing estate.

A prerequisite of all kids’ books is that somewhere there should be humour, and Helen has woven some very amusing pieces into the story. From the lovely program design that Lottie makes for the show, with the ‘Secret hen’ in dark glasses and carrying binoculars, to the Beans, and then slapstick with particularly funny scene where the land-reared sheep knocks over the smarmy estate agent on demand, SHHT has lot of moment that will make you giggle.

‘ “Jasper, Attack!”

Jasper didn't move.

Jo whispered the command again, fierce determination in her voice.

And Jasper put his head down and charged.

He butted the agent squarely on the bottom. The man’s feet slid out from under him and he landed with a thud on the concrete, arms and legs flailing, and a steam of high-pitched swear words pouring from his mouth, The Children watched, open mouthed and spellbound.’

Then there is the lovely and very real relationship between Hannah and best friend Lottie, as girl of this age has a BFF (best friend forever). 

Acting, as a child me my cousin and my sister would squeeze between the curtains and the patio doors, and then we come out and do a show that would entertain our parents for hours. Now I’m a parent there is one word that can strike cold dread when it pops out of my children’s mouth, the word? Show. Yes, children love to put on a show, and to act, and SHHT, is about just that. Helen has made the book about putting on a show, and hopefully will encourage children everywhere to take an air of professionalism to their shows, saving the sanity of parents!

First crush and growing up, this is a tricky thing to add into a book, and not have it take over the story line but in SHHT, Helen has dealt with the subject capturing the awkwardness but making it humours and not cringly embarrassing.

Action, there is plenty of action in SHHT, but from a barn fire, to a heist of a valuable painting! Helen expertly written fast passed action, which seem gentle and in pace with the story and plot.

All in all I think that the real unique aspect to the Secret Hen House Theatre is Helen way of making it so appealing to its readership, and feel so real whilst being a heart-warming read.

We've got a copy of The Secret Hen House Theatre  to give away.  To be in with a chance of winning it, e-mail us at SpaceOnTheBookshelf@yahoo.com with your name and address and 'Hen House' in the header.

Good Luck

Faerie Tribes The Crystal Mirror - Paula Harrison – Spotlight on Writing

Paula’s writing always brings me an element of awe, as she manages to evoke both strong atmosphere and almost tangible settings with very few words. Faerie Tribes is packed full of examples of Paula’s beautiful and powerful writing, as I have highlighted in the review, however in this feature I’m turning the spotlight on to her bold and unique look at Faeries.

From Artemis Fowl and Spiderwick to Melissa Marr’s Wicked Lovely world; fairies, fae, and faeries have been depicted in countless ways, and various guises, but they are almost always OTHER beings. Most literature turn to the older fairy-lore by depicting fairies as dangerous creatures or at the very least mischievous, that share our world or part of it, who may hide or live in full view with the protection of magic, but they also hold to the ancient beliefs that fairies are others beings. In most books, for a human to become a fairy, they have to change by trickery or magic, (there are a few exceptions like Wings by Aprilynne Pyke) and of course Faerie Tribes.

What Paula does in Faerie Tribes is more akin to Harry Potter or Percy Jackson, giving the reader the opportunity to believe that they could be like the protagonist, that although they don’t know it yet they really are special, supernatural, and in Faerie Tribes case a Faerie. In Paula’s Faerie world, all faeries are born human, and their powers awaken during childhood, revealing a layered world, the Faerie world that lies beneath the human world.  This allows the reader to have the fantasy that they are yet to be awoken.

Paula also creates a unique view of Faeries, living a life which is more human, adopting human ways, living alongside humans, holding human jobs, and attending human schools. This makes again a different approach to most Fairy books, where the faeries have their own ways of life yet still being set apart being others, but in Paula Skellmore the faeries do human jobs, living essentially more human lives than magical ones. Paula’s Faeries work in industries that are very normal but utilising their faerie powers to assist them, if there power is a spiritual connection to animals they run the pet shop or if there power is over water then they are plumbers.  Their lives unseen by human lives and to the extent that un-awoken faeries who live in the bosom of the village are blissfully unaware, take the protagonist Laney, who aptly puts it …

“I thought this [Skellsmore] was the most boring place on the planet” 

Finally, one of the other great strengths of Faerie tribes, is it Britishness. In recent years there have been many fairy books, but most are set in the America, Wicked Lovey – New York, Wings –California, Spiderwick- Maine. Fearie Tribes-Skellmore, which could be any village throughout the UK.

“…Skellmore High Street with its three shops and two park benches.”

From the park, the village pub, to the church Skellsmore is quintessentially British, looking like the rural backdrop where nothing exciting would ever happen. It’s so refreshing to have a fairy fantasy set in Britain, and its setting is a perfect contrast to the magical world.

In short Paula’s Faerie tribes is truly special as it's engrossing and allows the reader to do what all fantasy adventures should, fantasize and dream that they are part of the story. Paula's Faerie Tribes does just this by allowing the reader to believe that they are too a faerie yet to awaken.

We've got a copy of Faerie Tribes The Crystal Mirror, signed by Paula Harrison to give away.  To be in with a chance of winning it, e-mail us at SpaceOnTheBookshelf@yahoo.com with your name and address and 'Faerie Tribes' in the header

Good Luck!

Spotlight on Writing: My Big Fat Zombie Goldfish by Mo O'Hara

Mo at the Launch Party for My Big Fat Zombie Goldfish

Mo O'Hara’s début novel My Big Fat Zombie Goldfish brings parody to children’s literature the likes of which its readers (5-9 year olds) have been weaned on to through the medium of film, including Shrek (too many parodies to mention), Cars 2 (Bond) and Toy Story 2 (Star Wars). Here, Mo puts parody to extraordinary use, appealing to both parents and children. The book is fast-paced and very funny and is almost a parody of parody with a sense of humour not dissimilar to Simon Pegg and Nick Frost in Shaun of The Dead and Paul, but here, a focus on young readers remains throughout. 

The main characters, Tom and his friend Pradeep, are downtrodden and slight nerdy and yet thwart all plans made by their evil scientist and evil computer genius big brothers using secret made-up codes, their code for danger being colour matched to the taste of jellybeans. The humour is both gentle and childlike, like the jellybean code, and more adult-focused, like a Star Wars joke that will make most adults howl with laughter. Mo adopts tricks like recurring jokes, and phrases that will stick in your head and make children giggle before the sentence is even read, like ‘Swishy Little Fishy’ and the centipedes dancing in Tom’s stomach. 

Mo, whilst combining witty writing with a thrilling tale, has also managed to land My Big Fat Zombie Goldfish with serendipitous timing: Teen literature and films are stuffed full of Zombies. One thing children aspire to is to be able to enjoy the same things as their older teenage brothers and sisters. In the 80’s when older siblings were watching ‘The Lost Boys’ and reading Anne Rice’s vampire novels, their younger brothers and sisters were reading The Little Vampire by  Angela Sommer-Bodenburg. In the 90’s it was Buffy and Mona.  With My Big Fat Zombie Goldfish, Mo has written a book that is suitable for much younger readers, bringing zombies to ‘life’ in a safe and funny form for children.

Mo’s unique approach to writing for children, using parody, suffocated humour and a fin-on-the-pulse of current trends makes My Big Fat Zombie Goldfish  a fast and witty read for both children and adults. 

Don't forget to enter our competition to win a signed copy of My Big Fat Zombie Goldfish! If you want to enter, just email us at spaceonthebookshelf@yahoo.com with your name, address and the title of the book in the subject line. The winner will be chosen at random on Saturday 13th April.