#LA13SCBWI - The Top Ten Things I'm Most Excited About

To celebrate the start of one of my favorite times of the year (the SCBWI Summer Conference), I thought I'd share my personal top ten things I'm most excited about...

10.  The Keynotes - I can't wait to be wowed by some major heavy-hitters!

9.  The breakout sessions - how to choose, how to choose? 

8.  The Monday intensives - I LOVE digging in deep during these.

7.  My pretty awesome Black and White Ball outfit.  No, I'm not spilling...  But I promise I'll post a pic later!

6.  The Los Angeles region meet and greet (Saturday from 12:30pm to 1:15pm, in the Bel Air room.)  We have around 300 local members attending the conference, and it's a super chance to band together and bond.  James Bond.  (No, not really, but I couldn't resist.  We do get silly sometimes!)

5.  The wonderful LGBTQ Q&A session (on Friday night, 8pm to 9pm, in the Olympic II room) that I get to host - it's such a wonderful, welcoming and friendly gathering every conference, and this time we'll be joined by the remarkable editor Emma Dryden, author Kristin Venuti and her agent Tracey Adams, bestselling author Ellen Hopkins and editor of his own imprint, Arthur A. Levine Books, Arthur Levin... all from the conference faculty!

4.  I'll be moderating the Sunday morning Agents panel on the main stage with agents Jennie Bent, Mela Bolinao, Ginger Clark, Steve Malk and Joanna Volpe.  We'll be talking about "The New World Of Children's Books" - covering industry changes, what's happening to the mid-list, backlist options, consolidation and new media opportunities.  It should be a great discussion!

3. Hanging with my Team Blog teammates:  Martha Brockenbrough, Jaime Temairik, Jolie Stekley and Suzanne Young, and all the magic this particular band of five makes happen at The Official SCBWI Conference Blog. 

2.  The unexpected moments of inspiration that always happen.  The plot breakthrough.  The character quirk.  The specific insight into how I can be a better writer.

1.  Seeing and spending time with my wonderful SCBWI conference friends (new and familiar.)   I'll be hanging out in the conference hotel lobby and at the bar poolside as much as I can.  Really, going up to your room without socializing in this remarkable island of people-who-love-things-that-are-written-and-illustrated-for-children-and-teens is like missing half of what the conference offers!  They're my community - my tribe.  And it's a joy to be with them.

It's going to be four days of non-stop craft, business, inspiration, opportunity and community... and I can't wait!

If you'll be there, make sure to say hello!

Namaste,
Lee

Editor Namrata Tripathi: The Exclusive #LA13SCBWI Team Blog Interview

Editor Namrata Tripathi

Namrata Tripathi is executive editor at Atheneum Books for Young Readers, an imprint of Simon & Schuster.  She acquires fiction and nonfiction picture books, literary-commercial middle grade and YA novels, and select graphic novels. She acquired and edited the New York Times #1 Best-selling Olivia and the Fairy Princesses by Ian Falconer and the Printz Medal and Morris Award-winning novel Where Things Come Back by John Corey Whaley. She is interested in finding fresh, bold picture books and honest, hilarious, or heartbreaking novels with unique voices and diverse characters.

I caught up with Namrata to find out more about her and the sessions she'll be giving at the upcoming 2013 SCBWI Summer Conference, August 2-5 in Los Angeles...

Lee:  When you attend a conference, are you looking to meet writers and illustrators?

Namrata:  Absolutely! Since I acquire and edit picture books, middle grade, and YA, I’m looking for talented folks who work in all these formats.

Lee: What would be the ideal way for someone to approach you - a pitch? A sense of what you've edited? A business card?

Namrata:  It’s always great when someone is familiar with my list and what I’m looking for. That helps ensure the best use of everyone’s time! It’s rather overwhelming to be given samples/submissions while I’m walking the floor at the conference. It’s definitely better to take advantage of the open submission period following the conference (the details should be included in the conference packet) after researching the various editors and agents present and reaching out to those with whom you think your work will click.

Lee:  Having said all that, out of the last 10 projects you acquired, how many were agented?

Namrata: All of them. However, I have acquired a few projects based on partial manuscripts I saw at conferences.

Lee:  You'll be speaking on the Saturday morning editors panel "What Makes an Evergreen, What Makes a Hit." What's the distinction - is "evergreen" a book popular beyond trends and time, and a "hit" is the big book of the moment that we can't even remember the next summer?

Namrata: Everyone will have his or her own definition of “evergreen” and “hit,” but I think you’ve captured a lot of what is implied when we use these terms. That’s not to say that hits cannot become evergreens. Some hits really stand the test of time. I don’t think a hit is necessarily something we can’t even remember the next summer, but is rather a book that somehow captures the essence of this summer—a cultural moment, a trend, a point of view. I’ve been re-reading a lot of Judy Blume’s middle grade and YA backlist, and to me they feel like the type of books that are both hits and evergreens.

Lee:  Yeah, Judy Blume is amazing! You'll also be giving a Pro-Track workshop (along with John Corey Whaley) on "Best Practices for the Author-Editor Relationship, and the Challenge of the Second Book." Can you share a bit more about what you'll explore in that session?
Namrata:  Corey and I will get into the nuts and bolts of what it means to really collaborate on a project—how the process works and how you can make it work more smoothly by communicating well, knowing when and how the agent can be helpful, hiccups you might encounter, how the process of writing your second book is so different from your debut etc. Each project and every relationship is different, but I think it’s always interesting and illuminating to listen to publishing anecdotes. Plus, you’ll learn how Corey and I discovered we’re literary soul mates!

Lee: You're ALSO (you'll be busy!) giving a Sunday morning workshop "Inside My List at Atheneum" - which sounds like the best way to get to know your tastes in books.

Namrata: That’s right! This is a great place to learn about my list and what I’m looking for if you’re considering submitting to me after the conference. Plus, I’ll get a chance to brag about the wonderful authors and illustrators I get to work with and every editor loves doing that!  If you’re attending the picture book dummy intensive on Monday, I’ll go over this information then as well, so don’t feel you need attend both!

Lee:  I remember hearing the story of your challenging illustrator John Rocco to write his own picture books as well as illustrate, and he's done just that to great success. Is that advice you'd roll out to illustrators in general?

Namrata:  It depends. I think this is a great thing for all picture book illustrators to do as an exercise. It helps you understand the medium on a deeper level, presents you new insight into the interplay between art and text, and gives you an appreciation for the hard work of writing a picture book. But not every illustrator is meant to be an author. Just as not every author is meant to be an illustrator! They are both storytellers, but each has their own set of tools to use. Some folks are lucky enough to be ambidextrous in that way and if I see a hint of that, I always encourage them to explore it.

Lee:  Favorite advice to share with conference attendees?

Namrata:  The same advice I give myself going into the conference: Be open and curious. And have a good time!

Lee:  Speed round!  Pie or cake?

Namrata:  Pie. Unless you can add a graham cracker crust to the cake. Then both.

Lee:  Science Fiction or Fantasy?

Namrata: To acquire and edit, probably neither, but I’d lean towards fantasy. To watch/read…I may be coming around to the Science Fiction side of things. My husband’s relentless nerding out is starting to win me over.

Lee: Black & White inspiration for the Saturday night gala?

Namrata:  Madhubala meets Tana Hoban. No, I can’t back that up!

One of Tana Hoban's books for young children

Bollywood Actress Madhubala

I can't wait to see that outfit!  Thanks, Namrata!

To attend Namrata's sessions and experience all the craft, business, inspiration, community and opportunity the SCBWI Summer Conference offers, grab one of the few remaining spaces here.

 
Oh, and a CONTEST  - the first commenter to correctly identify the arcade game Namrata is playing in her photo above will win an ARC of Corey Whaley's newest book, NOGGIN.  The novel even has an arcade game thread!  Good luck!

StoryApp Author Sarah Towle: The Exclusive #LA13SCBWI Team Blog Interview

Sarah Towle, StoryApp Author and 2013 SCBWI Summer Conference Faculty

Sarah Towle’s debut storyapp, Beware Madame La Guillotine, A Revolutionary Tour Of Paris, launched in July 2011 to rave reviews and went on to earn a Top 10 2011 App by School Library Journal, a Teachers With Apps Top 10 2011 Tried & True Classroom App, and a Top 10 2012 Educational Travel App by the World Youth & Student Educational Travel Confederation. It is now available in iBookstores. Sarah’s second title, Day of the Dead, will follow in 2013. Published by Time Traveler Tours & Tales, Sarah’s concept combines the traditional power of storytelling with the latest in mobile technology to bring history to life.

Sarah will be on faculty at the upcoming 2013 SCBWI Summer Conference (August 2-5, 2013.) I caught up with her to learn more about her remarkable StoryApp and her Sunday afternoon conference workshop...

Lee:  Can you tell us about "Beware Madame La Guillotine, A Revolutionary Tour of Paris?"

Sarah:  Beware Madame la Guillotine is a daylong story-based treasure hunt through Paris at the time of the French Revolution with 18th century convent schoolgirl turned murderess, Charlotte Corday, as your guide. It’s unlike any other tourism app in that it is rooted in narrative storytelling. It’s different from most nonfiction histories in that the story is recounted in the 1st person. Targeted to youth (12+), and the young at heart, it’s been dubbed the next generation of tour guide for a new generation of traveler, perfect for family and student educational travel groups. But you don’t need to be in Paris to enjoy it, evidenced by the many teachers and librarians who have adopted it for curricular use as well.

In the storyapp, Charlotte Corday takes you back in time to four steamy summer days in Paris in 1793, when already simmering tempers came to roiling boil. That’s when she stalked and killed radical propagandist, Jean-Paul Marat. She drove a dagger into his heart as he languished in the bath due to a skin ailment. She believed Marat to be the puppet-master behind the increasing violence later termed the Reign of Terror. She was convinced that if Marat were removed from the picture, the Revolution could return its original, humanistic goals. She resolved to kill him, even though it would mean sacrificing her own life as well. Confident that violence was justified if done in the name of peace, she faced Madame la guillotine calm and erect, assured that her French brethren would one day applaud her.

As Charlotte spins her yarn, she brings the history of the French Revolution to life. Prompts are triggered at certain points throughout the narrative, compelling you to seek out cultural artifacts related to her tale, thus driving both story and itinerary forward. Pop-up windows provide additional information about the Revolution, trivia and tidbits that Charlotte could not have known. Activities, such as multiple choice questions and map-orientation puzzles, ask you to think beyond Charlotte’s story, to consider bigger-picture issues in historical context, unlocking deeper-level understanding of the period. Archival images, including several masterpieces, illustrate Charlotte’s story and offer a subtle lesson in art history. What’s more, the app is fully bilingual in French and English, making it a fun language-learning tool for advanced students.

Beware Madame la Guillotine puts an important past moment in the palm of your hand and invites you to discover history with one who helped make it. It appeals to youth, in part, because no one can resist a good story; in part, because the story is delivered on a device they associate with play.

Lee:  How cool!  How did it evolve as an app? Was there a moment when you thought, wait, this isn't a traditional print YA Nonfiction book after all!

Sarah:  I was searching for a way to bring history to life in an enriching, educational and dynamic way for young people. As a kid, I found history dry, boring, difficult to perceive. But all that changed when I grew up and set off on an expatriate journey around the world. Suddenly, history was fascinating to me because I was steeped in it, surrounded by it, living, speaking and breathing it. That’s when I realized that understanding history unlocks a greater appreciation of people and culture. And not just that of others, but of your own as well.

In 2004, I landed in Paris and flipped for the rich cultural and historical heritage of the city – there’s a reason why Paris is the most visited city in the world. Yet, year after year, I was stunned to observe the stampede of family and student educational tour groups that tromped right past timeless cultural artifacts without stopping to heed their tales. This compelled me to find away to unleash the narratives hiding in plain sight.

By 2006 I was fast at work, retelling the history of Paris for youth, one era at a time, in what I envisioned to be a 12-chapter book, from Roman Paris through today. In 2009 I had completed a 70-page proposal and three sample chapters and was ready to sell my concept to the editor of my dreams. But a series of serendipitous events revealed that the project was destined for digital, rather than print.

I’ve recounted these events in several places, including my website, Katie Davis’ Brain Burps About Books and Cynthia Leitich Smith’s blog, Cynsations. So I’ll just cut to the chase here and say that it was, ultimately, 44 13-14 year olds that steered my in the storyapp direction. These wonderful young people had all agreed to pilot the prototype version of Charlotte’s story tour back when I was considering self-publication in print. In their follow-up anonymous questionnaires, they informed me that they loved the concept of learning history through story. They loved Charlotte and were keen to see her story through to the end. They enjoyed the treasure hunts and learning extension puzzles and games. But they hated having to stop at each point in the tour and read the story out loud.

“It stinks as a book,” they told me, unwilling to spare my feelings. “But it would make a killer app.”

Beware Madame la Guillotine was one of the three sample chapters I had originally prepared for the book proposal. It is now the first in a hopeful series of immersive story-based apps and interactive books about Paris: the digital fruit of an idea initially envisioned for print.

Lee:  Was the research you had to do to make the project an app different then if you had written it as a more traditional published-on-paper book or guide?
Sarah:  No, and yes.

As far as the writing process goes, No, not really. I researched the history of the French Revolution from every angle, just as I would if writing for print. I sought out as many primary sources as I could and used those to inform Charlotte’s voice and character. I went on many, many site-based research visits to trace her footsteps, to step into her shoes so that I could better imagine what it would have been like to plan and carry out a murder, knowing it was tantamount to suicide.

I also worked very hard to research and think through various issues of craft and genre that came up for me throughout the writing process. Things like: What does it mean to write creative nonfiction vs. historical fiction and which best suits my underlying concept? How do you develop a story arc from historical record? Is it possible to honestly create a compelling character, true to fact, in the 1st person? When can you extrapolate in the nonfiction genre to create emotional resonance between character and reader, and when can you absolutely not?

With regard to the production, however, Yes, my process was very different. For starters, I had to create a tour that intersected with Charlotte’s own journey and make it doable for the reader/user to do in a day. I had to study a lot of digital products, from CDRoms to web-based learning tools to early apps, to envision the best screen-based navigation and user experience (UX). In the app space, we’re not simply turning pages anymore.

Indeed, writing the story was just one piece of this creative puzzle. My research ballooned to include the how to’s of making wire-frames and spec docs; obtaining image rights on a shoestring; recording and engineering audio (also on a shoestring); building a web-based platform to support the project and brand; branding and positioning; learning how to market using social media. And so much more.

The research, and the learning, has been endless!

Lee: Your Sunday workshop (along with Julie Hedlund) is called "Picture Books and Story Book Apps: Same, Same but Quite Different." Can you give us a sneak peak of what the session will cover?

Sarah:  Sure! Let’s just say that due to many factors, including fear of financial risk-taking in an economic depression as well as not really understanding the potential of the medium, the first storyapps to appear on the digital landscape were mainly scanned reproductions of former print products. Established publishers have been, for the most part, unwilling to experiment with original content. So, if they’ve produced apps at all it’s been with already branded, tried and true content for which they own the rights. Some of these apps have worked in the medium, but most of them really have not, thus contributing to the debate about whether publishing digitally is worth the expense and effort.

In the last year, however, early experimenters in the digital wild, wild west have come to realize that a new medium deserves a new approach – as I said above, we need not be limited to page turning anymore. So, more and more, original content is being produced specifically for digital media. These products are really breaking new ground and revealing the potential of the form.

Julie and I will be demonstrating this transformation in two ways. We will illustrate the evolution of storyapps, while identifying interactivity that serves and enriches story vs. that which distracts and detracts. We will also offer a model of great transmedia storytelling – that is, storytelling across the media – by way of explaining how a single tale can (and must) be retold and adapted to work best in print vs. digital formats, as well as other media, like film.

Lee:  That sounds great!  Lots of people see the changes coming to the children's publishing industry as scary - what's your take?

Sarah:  I’ve never been more excited for writers and illustrators as I am right now. The Digital Revolution has exploded the opportunities for us all. In fact, thanks to the digital innovations, we are now firmly ensconced in a content-based economy, meaning that writers, especially good ones, are in greater demand than ever.

Digital formats, moreover, are highly visual, meaning that great illustrations are needed now more than ever to lend their spice to all the new written content.

And absolutely everyone is talking about the importance of story, from children’s book publishers to advertising executives to global corporations. Story is both the oldest human art form and the art form of the moment. Stories have the power to unite us, to bind folks from all over the world. And they will go on doing exactly that, with ever increasing reach, until there are no more humans left to recite and receive them. So, rather than bemoan the potential passing of the book – which I do not believe for a moment will ever happen – the challenge today is to think “book and beyond”. That is, to endeavor to produce and deliver our content in the media our audiences most wish to receive it.

This, to me, is the future of “transmedia” storytelling. And why I have now published Beware Madame la Guillotine as an interactive book for the iPad as well as a storyapp. Soon, it will also be available as an eBook for eReader. And I’ve never stopped hoping that it will someday appear in a bookstore shelf, as a traditional print publication. That is a goal I will continue to work toward.

Lee:  Does your next project, "Day of the Dead," have a location-based element to it as well?

Sarah:  It does. In its eventual app form, it will take reader/users from Les Halles in Paris’ famous Marais district, to the Paris Catacombs, then on to the Montparnasse Cemetery. But, in contrast to Beware Madame la Guillotine, this story and the next one, Long Live the King’s Garden, will be published as interactive books before they evolve into storyapps.

Lee: Speed round!  Newest piece of technology you're excited about?

Sarah:  Well it isn’t really new anymore, but I remain a loyal fan of the iPad. It has endless potential. It’s so totally intuitive that it has exploded the possibilities in eLearning, especially among early readers as well as autistic and other learning challenged populations. There’s so much you can do on an iPad. And, well, everything on it just looks great!

The one downside of the iPad was once the expense. But now we have the iPad mini, which does everything its bigger cousin does, though in a smaller display.

Lee:  Coolest French Revolution fact you learned that surprised you?

Sarah:  That the guillotine is really small and surprisingly compact – not much wider than a human neck (I don’t know why I imagined it otherwise). That it was totally portable. And, that its use was not abolished in France until 1984.

Lee:  1984???  That is surprising!  *pulling my collar*  Black and White Inspiration for the Saturday Night Gala?

Sarah:  The printed page. Obvious, yes. But ironic, too, at least for me since I am, thus far, a bullishly digital gal.

Thanks so much, Sarah!

To attend Sarah's workshop and experience all the craft, business, inspiration, community and opportunity the SCBWI Summer Conference offers, you'll need to be there yourself.  Find out all the details and register for one of the few remaining spaces here.

For more on Sarah, visit her website here.

Agent Joanna Volpe - The Exclusive #LA13SCBWI Team Blog Interview

Agent Joanna Volpe

Joanna Volpe (New Leaf Literary) represents picture books to teen novels. Some of her recent titles are See a Heart, Share a Heart by Eric Telchin (Dial), Altered by Jennifer Rush (Little Brown), Chained by Lynne Kelly (Margaret Ferguson Books/FSG), Insurgent by Veronica Roth (Katherine Tegen Books/HarperCollins), Ever Afters: Of Giants & Ice by Shelby Bach (Simon & Schuster), Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo (Henry Holt), and Puzzled by Pink by Sarah Frances Hardy (Viking). She is currently on the lookout for Young Adult horror, dark high fantasy or literary novels; middle grade all genres; picture book art-focused, 200-500 words.

Joanna will be on faculty at the upcoming 2013 SCBWI Summer Conference in Los Angeles, August 2-5, and I connected with her to find out more...

Lee: As an agent, do you head to a conference hoping to connect with new-to-you talent?

Joanna:  Absolutely. I have found most of my illustrators through SCBWI conferences, and 4 authors from conferences as well. They are a great way to connect with authors and illustrators directly, and to get to know them a little, too.

Lee:  What's the best way for an author attending #la13scbwi to approach you? A business card? A pitch? A sense that they know who you are and what you represent?

Joanna:  It's important to have a quickfire pitch ready if I ask for it. Otherwise, it would be great just to say hello and talk about books they're enjoying and whatnot. It would be nice if they have a sense of who I am and what I represent, but I don't expect it. I don't usually ask for business cards, and sometimes when I am handed them, they get misplaced.

Lee:  Is an on-line presence/profile something you look for before signing someone new?

Joanna: It's not mandatory for signing a new client, no. But anyone I'm considering signing needs to be comfortable with creating one soon!

Lee:  There are big agencies, one-person agencies, and agencies like yours (New Leaf Literary has four literary agents.) Is agency size something authors and illustrators should consider when looking at submitting to an agent?

Joanna:  It really depends on the agency. Whether a big agency or small agency, I think your relationship with your agent is what is most important. So make sure you find the agent you connect with, creatively and business-wise.

Lee:  Your Sunday ProTrack workshop at the conference is called "Cracking The Mystery of Your Royalty Statements." Tell us more.

Joanna:  Well, SCBWI asked if I would talk about this and I said "sure!" haha. In truth though, royalty statements can be very intimidating and overwhelming. And I believe that knowledge is power. So what I'm hoping to accomplish with the workshop is for authors to leave there feeling empowered and able to interpret their statements better--and to also know what kinds of questions they should be asking.

Lee: Should people bring a copy of one of their royalty statements to try to decode it in-session?

Joanna: If they feel comfortable sharing their statement with me, then yes.

Lee:  Any advice for authors and illustrators of works for children and teens you could share?

Joanna:  My advice is always: be ready to work hard, and be open to new ideas and paths to take. Things are changing so much right now, but it's not all doom and gloom! There are some exciting opportunities out there for authors and illustrators that weren't available before. We have to adapt to the changes, and that's OK. Also, always keep reading!

Lee:  Speed round!  Your favorite TV show?

Joanna:  Right now? It's a tie between Parks and Recreation and also The Walking Dead.

Lee:  Literary food you'd most like to try?

Joanna:  Crumpets. I don't know why.

Lee: If you were a contestant on 'The Voice' (or a similar reality singing show) what song would you sing?

Joanna: "What's UP?" by Four Non Blondes

Thanks, Joanna!

To attend Joanna's session and take part in all the remarkable craft, business, inspiration, community and opportunity the SCBWI Summer Conference offers, you have to be there in person!  Go here for all the details, and to register.