I've learned a lot of new things and I've done my darndest to write it all down to share with ya'll.
To add on to the list from before, I learned a couple of new terms for certain types of books. "Word Books" are very simple books for toddlers and young children. They are often board books and have very minimal text, like "ball, yellow" etc. A "middle grade novel" is a step above a "chapter book" in complexity, but is not as long or difficult to read as a novel.
Books that are rated ages 12 and up do not have any sex in them, however books that are rated 14 and up may have some sex in them. I will expound on book content/ratings another day.
We were lucky enough today to have a meeting with the Executive Editor over Dial books, which is an imprint of Penguin Group. She has been responsible for finding/publishing big name books like "The Ladybug Girl" over her years with Penguin. I own a couple of the Ladybug Girl books and they are completely AWESOME. (more about Ladybug Girl to come)
This editor gave us a list of "What Editors Keep in Mind" when they are determining if they want to publish a book. I wrote them down and here they are!
1. Does this story surprise me?
2. Do I care about the main character?
3. Is there a good conflict, tension, climax and resolve?
4. Can kids relate to the main character?
5. Have I heard a story like this a million times?
6. Does the main character feel authentically young?
7. (for picture books) Is the art visually interesting throughout?
She also shared that most of her publications come from agent recommendations or reps, but not all of them. There are some submissions that are published because they are just so darn awesome.
Something fascinating to me about the Ladybug Girl artist David Soman is that he was a published illustrator with a very photo realistic painting style. He, however, was influenced by manga and some of his other artistic passions and was able to create a new aesthetic that is just beautiful. In my opinion, that is a great way to allow manga/anime to be a blessing and not a burden to an artist. Certainly there is demand for manga, but I have seen it cripple artists by limiting their creative horizons. Anyway, thats just food for thought.
I asked the question "Is an author/illustrator of children's books really writing the book for the parents?" and she said that she does not believe so. When she goes to approve a book, she is trying to publish something that kids will really love, and not trying to come up with a story that parents will want their kids to love. There is a level of marketability that is taken into account, but that isn't their primary focus. That is why there aren't many books about why you should clean your room! lol Kids don't want to read that kind of stuff!
I also asked about the validity of having an animal protagonist. She made a great point that animals transcend racial boundaries so they can be more universally applicable to readers. Music to my ears!
Found out today that the increase e-books has led to an increase in Young Adult sales and Erotica. Apparently people can read about teenagers and other embarrassing things without the fear of people seeing the cover! LOL!
The Editor recommended this website for aspiring authors/illustrators as a great starting point to take your ideas. http://www.scbwi.org//
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