#KT250 Winning Entries: 1st Quarter 2018

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agents, contests, fantasy, literary fiction, middle grade, mystery, publishers, SCBWI members, seeking publisher, seeking representation, The Last Bookstore, unpublished, YA, young adult

#KT250 is our first Kite Tales quarterly community contest! We’re proud to announce this quarter’s winners and share the first 250 words of their unpublished manuscripts. We encourage agents, publishers, and mentors to reach out to any winners whom they find intriguing!

To find out how YOU can enter for next quarter, check out contest info here. Entries are now being accepted for next quarter!

GRAND PRIZE WINNER:

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HarperCollins Editor Karen Chaplin on Defining Voice, Trends, & Time Management

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Guardian Herd, Karen Chaplin, middle grade, picture books, trends, voice, writing tips, YA

Karen Chaplin began her publishing career at Scholastic. She was an editor at Puffin Books/Penguin Young Readers Group for six years before she moved to HarperCollins Children’s Books, where she is currently a senior editor of picture book, middle grade, and young adult fiction and nonfiction. Karen received her undergraduate degree in English from the University of Delaware, and her MA in English from Simmons College. When she’s not working, she enjoys spending time with her family, traveling, finding DIY projects to do, and dabbling in photography. She also has graciously offered to do a Q&A with us!

Sarah Parker-Lee: As an editor, it’s your job to take a writer’s labor of love and not just fine-tune it but take it to the next level. What are you looking for when you first begin this process?

Karen Chaplin: One of the first things I look for in a manuscript is voice. The voice of the story, of the main character, of all the characters, really needs to draw me in from the first few pages, and if that happens, then the author has got me hooked. Plot points, character issues, the ending—all of that can be modified. But the voice is difficult to accomplish, and if an author nails that, it’s a fantastic start.

SPL: Any advice for writers working with an editor, whether they are first-timers or old pros?

The LitMingle Minute: San Fernando Valley LitMingle Picks the Brains of YA Readers

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Author Tips, SCBWI community, SCBWI members, YA, young adult

By Karen Sampson (SFV LitMingle Coordinator) & Jennifer S. Pitts (former SFV LitMingle Coordinator, current LitMingle Meister) 

Have you ever wanted to pick the brain of today’s Young Adult reader? The Minglers at the San Fernando Valley LitMingle did, which is why we invited five voracious teen readers to our June LitMingle to share what they read and why. As to be expected, their answers were as diverse as their backgrounds, but listening to them was extremely insightful. It would be impossible to summarize all the insight given by these bright young readers, but here are a few highlights*:

Social Media and Web

• Teens have Facebook accounts but prefer Instagram, YouTube, and Snap Chat.
• Adult discussions (rants) about politics and current events are of no interest to them.
• Popular YA websites include IndieBound (Kids Next), Epic Reads, and others that cater specifically to teen readers

What Draws Them to Particular Books?

Author Catherine Linka on Community for Introverts, Critique Tips, What Sells, & Balancing Romance with Wonder Woman

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A Girl Called Fearless, A Girl Undone, Author Tips, Catherine Linka, community, romance, SCBWI community, SCBWI events, SCBWI members, Wonder Woman, writing tips, YA

Catherine Linka, author of the A Girl Called Fearless series, joins this year’s LA SCBWI Working Writer’s Retreat faculty. She is a world traveler, former buyer for an independent book store, and was almost thrown out of boarding school for being “too verbal.” She spoke with me about her work, your work, Wonder Woman, and the kid lit community’s place in the world.

Linka first became involved in SCBWI “forever ago.” It was the first time she’d found people interested in the same kid lit things as her. Later, she added her Vermont College of Fine Arts MFA community and then the debut author community. “Everyone was so generous and warm and inclusive.” That’s why she believes it’s so important to give back. “It costs me nothing but time to help someone else out, really, so why not?”

True to that ideal, Linka is a huge supporter of SCBWI and an active SCBWI mentor and member. She knows every writer needs a supportive community. “It can take years to develop your craft, and you need people to cheer you on, point out opportunities, open doors, celebrate successes and mourn defeats. We really can’t do this alone, and it is so much more fun and satisfying to do it together.”

Linka acknowledges that writers who are often introverted, herself included, may feel overwhelmed in social situations, even when taking advantage of SCBWI’s group activities and professional development opportunities. This can also make it harder when we eventually have to do our own marketing. Her biggest advice:

Pam Gruber: Editor’s Perspective, Writers & Illustrators Day Faculty

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authors, Cecilia Vinesse, Claudia Gray, Emily Lloyd-Jones, Jen Calonita, Josh Sundquist, Pam Gruber, publishers, publishing, YA, young adult

Pam Gruber is a Senior Editor at Little, Brown Books for Young Readers where she has worked on everything from novelty and picture books to novels. She primarily acquires middle grade and young adult fiction and nonfiction. She loves alternate histories, off-beat teen romances, witty voices that can make her laugh and cry simultaneously, and stories of characters being asked to see their world in a different way. She is also on the faculty for this year’s Los Angeles SCBWI Writers and Illustrators Day (Feb. 25^th) where she will deliver a keynote and lead a breakout session on immersive world-building. For a great preview and insights from an editor-extraordinaire (and cute cat photos!), read on:

SARAH PARKER-LEE: Your list includes a hybrid graphic-novel series, VIP by Jen Calonita, Claudia Gray’s new space opera, Defy the Stars, and YouTuber Josh Sundquist’s debut novel, Love and First Sight. You certainly don’t dwell in traditional spaces for content or creator! What makes you want to take a risk on non-traditional projects? What’s the difference between non-traditional and straight-up gimmicky?

Great News!

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authors, community, news, picture books, poetry, SCBWI members, YA, young adult

SCBWI loves celebrating our members’ successes and noteworthy news, and there are many! Read on to find out who’s got something to shout about. Digital high-fives welcome in the comments!

 

 

Joan Bransfield Graham’s poem “Tuck a Poem in Your Head” is featured in former U.S. Children’s Poet Laureate Kenn Nesbitt’s new poetry anthology One Minute Till Bedtime, which debuted on November 1^st.

Betsy Rosenthal’s An Ambush of Tigers was selected as a 2016 Notable Children’s Book in the English Language Arts and consequently, she has been invited to serve on a panel at the upcoming National Council of Teachers of English annual convention.

Toot Your Horn!

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authors, community, illustrators, middle grade, picture books, published, publishing, SCBWI members, YA, young adult

 

Living Fossils: Clues to the Past, by Caroline Arnold, illustrated by Andrew Plant, Charlesbridge, ages 7-10, Picturebook Nonfiction, ISBN: 978-1-58089-691-7, released 06/02/2016.

 

Past PAL Mentors Praise Program as 2017 Selection Process Begins

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authors, Catherine Linka, community, E. Katherine Kottaras, mentors, mentorship, SCBWI members, YA, young adult

One year ago authors E. Katherine Kottaras and Catherine Linka answered our call for published members interested in mentoring. Since May, they have been working with their chosen mentees. As we now request proposals from next year’s potential mentors, Kottaras and Linka reflect on their experience of advising aspiring writers.

Toot Your Horn!

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authors, illustrators, middle grade, picture book, published, publishing, SCBWI members, YA

 

A Charmed Life / Una Vida con Suerte, by Gladys E. Barbieri, illustrated by Lisa Fields, Arte Público Press, ages 4-8, bilingual picture book, ISBN: 978-1-55885-827-5, released 05/30/2016.

 

 

Industry News: Augmented Reality

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Anomaly, Augmented Reality, Between Worlds, Brian Haberlin, Jay Anacleto, Morton Heilig, Penguin Random House, Skip Brittenham, YA, YA Fantasy

I recently attended a demonstration of the amazing Augmented Reality (AR) which accompanies Skip Brittenham’s new YA speculative fiction book, Between Worlds (released August 30^th). The AR is created when your mobile device’s camera registers one of the book’s thirteen illustrations, enabling three-dimensional images to literally pop out of the pages. Readers can interact with the characters by tapping these images. The AR also includes additional text not found in the book itself.

Brian Haberlin, Co-Founder of Anomaly Productions talks with us today.