Lots and Lots and Lots of Resources Tuesday!      Day 24

 

 The Webinar with Mira and Sudipta has been Rescheduled!

 

Mira Reisberg called me yesterday and unfortunately needs to reschedule the webinar

on Friday,  due to reasons beyond her control.

It is rescheduled for May 12th at 6:00 p.m. Pacific Time

This is the link to reserve your spot!

https://wj168.infusionsoft.com/app/page/free_poetry_webinar

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Critique Group Good News!

I will continue to offer rhyming/poetry critique groups on the RhyPiBoMo Facebook Group page. The groups will open up to new members starting mid-week, next week. Then, we will close them again until July. They will reopen to new members in October, January, April and so on…every three months we will open them up for new members.

Please join the Facebook group and sign up on the related post if you are interested

in joining a critique group as soon as possible.

Once the groups are closed, we will keep a waiting list.

When a spot opens up, it will be filled first come first served from the list.

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Last fall I was on some blog somewhere and happened upon the most awesome poetry for kids…it was simple, funny and so clever! Today’s guest blogger was the author of that awesome poetry! I commented  about how much I liked his work. Then I bumped into him again several other times, coming across more of his poems. And ironically, we both ended up competing in Ed DeCaria’s #March Madness Poetry Tournament this month…how funny that we kept crossing paths, but I guess it’s not that surprising as we both share a love for kids poetry!

I am so pleased he agreed to join us today!

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So, without further ado, I’m honored to present today’s

Golden Quill Guest Blogger

Matt Forrest Esenwine!

           

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Sometimes, Two Heads ARE Better Than One!

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Some folks love working by themselves. All alone, just them, their notepad or computer, and whatever inspiration happens to come along.

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And if inspiration doesn’t come along, they sit there and think and ponder and scribble and think some more and force inspiration to show up whether it wants to or not.

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I have to admit, this works quite well for me.

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However, not everyone is like that. Some enjoy the give-and-take of collaboration: throwing ideas into the ring, tossing others out, and being inspired by one’s partner to come up with new, better ideas.

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I now know what that’s like, too, and I can tell you from experience…when two people with complimentary talents take an interest in something, awesome things can happen!

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Earlier this year, I completed a collaboration project with a published picture book author, and the manuscript we’ve written would have never come to fruition without the two of us hammering it out, writing and editing, and sharing back-and-forth via Google Drive.

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I can’t tell you too many details, as the manuscript is being subbed presently, but I’ll do my best to not have you scratching your head in confusion…

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It all started at one of our SCBWI critique group meetings. She had been kicking around an idea for a picture book about a birthday party featuring animals. She wasn’t sure if it would rhyme, or if it was a picture book or board book, or even what the narrative arc might be, but we all talked about it and gave her some suggestions.

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Then a few months later at another meeting, she handed me a piece of paper with 4 or 5 partially-rhyming lines on it. It was still her basic premise, but she had altered it significantly.

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“I’m not sure what to do with it,” she said. “I have this idea, but I don’t know where to go from here.” Knowing that nearly all of my writing is done in verse, she asked if I’d mind looking the lines over and seeing if I could come up with anything.

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So I took the paper home and set it beside my computer. And left it there for a month, or two, or three. I didn’t mean to just leave it there – I placed it there specifically so I’d see it and work on it – but nothing ever really came to me.

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Then one night, I again looked at the lines she had written and a couple of other potential lines popped into my head. I wrote them down and tried to figure out how they would fit into this manuscript. By the time I went to bed, I had ¾ of the manuscript finished, I knew the arc of the story, and had a good feeling that this might be something special.

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Within a few days, I had completed the first draft. I emailed it to her to get her opinion, and her response made me think she might’ve fallen out of her chair when she read it! She loved it, and wanted to work on some revisions to tighten things up. So we threw the project on Google Drive (formerly Google Docs) and began collaborating.

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She’d make changes and leave comments. I’d do the same. We’d email each other ideas, then go back and make more changes and leave more comments.

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This continued for several months until finally, last month, we had completed our 17th – and FINAL – draft. It’s a cute, inventive, and fun book, if I say so myself (hopefully an editor or agent will agree!) but it would not have seen the light of day without the two of us working together.

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She might have taken the story in a different direction, and I would never have written any part of it without her initial query.

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Let this be a lesson. No, make that two lessons. The first is to always be open to new ideas, thoughts, suggestions, and avenues for creativity; just because you love working alone doesn’t mean you can come up with every cool idea yourself. Heck, even Shel Silverstein would lend a hand – or a pen – to folks who were struggling with a writing project.

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The second lesson? To not rush your manuscript. Don’t assume that after two or three drafts, you’re done. As I said, it took us 17 drafts to finally get our manuscript where we felt it should be, and this was after I wrote the very first draft…exactly ONE YEAR AGO.

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That’s right, it was last April that our collaboration began. Can you imagine how long that manuscript would’ve taken if we hadn’t collaborated?

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It quite possibly might never have been written at all.

 

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Bio: A voiceover artist and commercial copy writer, Matt Forrest Esenwine has had several adult poems published in various independent collections around the country, including The Henniker Review, Metamorphosis, the Tall Grass Writers Guild’s Seasons of Change, Assisi: Journal of Arts & Letters, and the Licking River Review, among others. In 2012, his poem, “Apple-Picking,” was nominated by the Young Adult Review Network (YARN) for a Pushcart Prize. Matt lives in Warner, NH, and is currently working on several children’s book manuscripts.

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matt@mattforrest.com Matt Forrest VoiceWorks http://www.MattForrest.com http://www.MattForrest.Wordpress.com (blog) http://www.Facebook.com/MattForrestVoice http://www.Twitter.com/MattForrestVW http://www.BostonCasting.com/MattForrest http://www.Voice123.com/MattForrest http://Soundcloud.com/MattForrestVoiceWorks (demos/samples)

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Thank you Matt Forrest Esenwine!

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RhyPiBoMo Daily Lesson: Tuesday, April 22nd

By Angie Karcher

© 2014 Lesson 24

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Submissions for Poetry Anthologies,

Magazines and Contests

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No matter what you are writing or who you are sending it to, the focus must shift from the writing to the Submission Guidelines! This is the golden key to the door of publication…of course your writing must sparkle but it won’t matter if you don’t follow the guidelines EXACTLY!

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The publisher’s submission guidelines will tell you whether they accept unsolicited manuscripts (unagented writers) or if they prefer manuscripts to be submitted through an agent. Some publishers have windows of time that they accept submissions so do your research well in advance.

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The guidelines will also state if the editors want a full manuscript or a sample of the work, a query letter, a synopsis, or a book proposal.

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Most publishers accept electronic submissions but some still require mailed submissions. As with any written correspondence sent through the mail, always include a self-addressed stamped envelope (SASE) if you want your submission returned. Most publishers will recycle your hard copies if you don’t want them back.

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More resources concerning the submission process: Writer’s Market http://www.writersmarket.com/

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The Art of the Book Proposal (Tarcher, 2004) by Eric Maisel http://www.amazon.com/The-Book-Proposal-Eric-Maisel/dp/1585423343

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How to Get Happily Published (Quill, 1998) by Judith Appelbaum. http://www.amazon.com/How-Happily-Published-Judith-Appelbaum/dp/0062735098

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Anthologies – a book or collection of selected poetry by various authors, chosen by the compiler and usually in the same literary form, of the same period, or on the same subject.

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This is a list from Poetry Foundation of Essential Children’s Poetry Anthologies. Notice who is publishing these “Must Have” books. http://www.poetryfoundation.org/children/essential/ant

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Resources:

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Red Hen Press http://redhen.org/

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How to Submit a Poetry Manuscript to a Publishing House http://www.ehow.com/how_4612158_submit-poetry-manuscript-publishing-house.html

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Literary Market Place http://www.literarymarketplace.com/lmp/us/index_us.asp

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Reading A – Z (Anthology for kids) http://www.readinga-z.com/book.php?id=866

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Boyds Mills Press accepts unsolicited manuscripts from unagented, published and unpublished writers http://www.boydsmillspress.com/writers-and-illustrators-guidelines

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Meadowbrook Press http://www.meadowbrookpress.com/t/General-Submission-Guidelines

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Beware!

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If a poetry contest requires you to purchase the anthology that you are published in, it is typically a vanity press and not necessarily a legitimate anthology publisher. They are certainly not a publisher with high standards or morals and typically everyone who submits is declared “a winner!”

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Please read this information concerning such situations. Apparently The International Library of Poetry is one to avoid! http://loc.gov/rr/program/bib/contestpoems/

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http://blogs.loc.gov/catbird/2012/03/poetry-contests-the-national-library-of-poetry-and-amateur-poetry-anthologies/

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I post these with a warning to proceed with caution as I don’t personally know anything about this list or any of the publishers… Dr. Clay seems to have been compiling and updating this list consistently since 2007. His site is very sweet and I feel good about its contents but there are no guarantees…

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This is a list of more than 1000 publishers who accept electronic poetry submissions. It was compiled by Louie Clay, Ph.D. D.D., D.D., D.H.L. Emeritus Professor from Rutgers University http://andromeda.rutgers.edu/~lcrew/pbonline.html

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Magazines

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There are many wonderful magazines for kids and the best way to research the magazine market is to hang out at the library and see what the kids are reading, what’s lying around on the tables, ask the librarian what is popular and then, grab a stack and start reading. It is essential that you familiarize yourself not only with the magazine’s style but also their voice. What do they publish? What age group is it targeted to? What is that magazine’s niche?

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Study the submission guidelines. And then study them again. You must submit exactly how they request or it will be refused. They get too many submissions to tweak anything that comes through incorrectly formatted or without contact information. It will most likely be viewed as unprofessional or amateur if you don’t follow the guidelines.

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Poets and Writers.org lists hundreds of literary magazines that accept poetry submissions. http://www.pw.org/literary_magazines

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Well respected magazines to be published in:

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The New Yorker Magazine – adult http://www.newyorker.com/

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Harper’s Magazine – adult http://harpers.org/

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Small Press Publishers Database from Poets and Writers http://www.pw.org/small_presses

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Cricket Magazine Group – children The best part about this magazine, other than its spectacular reputation is the fact that they offer theme lists for each month. They accept electronic submissions. http://www.cricketmag.com/submissions Literary magazines for kids BABYBUG for ages 6 months-3 years LADYBUG for ages 3-6 SPIDER for ages 6-9 CRICKET for ages 9-14 CICADA for ages 14+ Non Fiction Magazines CLICK for ages 3-7 ASK for ages 7-10 MUSE for ages 10 and up

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Cobblestone Publishing – you will find the information for Cobblestone under the link of Cricket Magazine Group above. Nonfiction Magazines for kids Social studies and science for ages 6-14 APPLESEEDS social studies for ages 6-9 CALLIOPE world history for ages 9-14 COBBLESTONE American history for ages 9-14 DIG archaeology for ages 9-14 FACES world cultures and geography for ages 9-14 IGUANA Spanish language for ages 7-12 ODYSSEY science for ages 9-14

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Highlights for Children https://www.highlights.com/contributor-guidelines

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Contests

What a hodgepodge of contests you will find if you type in poetry contest into Google search…

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Your initial reaction should be to assume it’s not legitimate and then do your research. – Do they ask for any money? – Do they promise to print your poem? – Do they list any contact information? – Does it sound too good to be true?

   RUN! RUN! RUN!

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Now, here’s the tricky part… Some legitimate poetry contests require an entry fee. Some legitimate contests offer prize money Some legitimate contests require you to belong to their website or magazine Tip Toe carefully through the stepping stones of these contests…trust your instincts.

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Your best bet is to submit to children’s magazines you are familiar with or a trusted blog or website that you are familiar with.

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I have personally won poetry contests where the prize was recognition of my poem with credits on the home page of the blog for a month, or where the website gave me my own page to promote what I like for a month. I also won a writing course scholarship in a contest before. So, you can find legitimate contests and the prizes can be great but you need to do your homework.

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Writers Digest is a great source of information and they host numerous contests throughout the year. http://www.writersdigest.com/

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Susanna Leonard Hill’s blog Something for Everyone in the World of Children’s Books – she often hosts contests and sometimes it is for poetry. http://susannahill.blogspot.com/

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More warnings about fraudulent contests from Winning Writers http://winningwriters.com/resources/category/scam-busting

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Winning Writer’s Annual Poetry Contests http://winningwriters.com/ Scroll to the bottom of the page for details

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Wergle Flomp Humor Poetry Contest Prizes: $2,000 Deadline: April 1, 2014 No Fee!

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Tom Howard/John H. Reid Fiction & Essay Contest Prizes: $3,000 Deadline: April 30, 2014

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Sports & Fiction Essay Contest Prizes: $3,000 Deadline: May 31, 2014

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Tom Howard/Margaret Reid Poetry Contest Prizes: $3,000 Deadline: September 30, 2014

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And of course, there’s The Golden Quill Poetry Contest! Entries are due this Saturday, April 26th by midnight.

 

https://angiekarcher.wordpress.com/rhypibomo-golden-quill-poetry-contest/ I can’t wait to read your poetry!

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There’s no writing prompt today…enjoy a day of catching up!

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Okay, now do everything else on the pledge for today and don’t forget to comment on today’s blog post!

RhyPiBoMo PledgeRhyPiBoMo Pledge Please comment ONLY ONE TIME below for a chance to win today’s prize! Prizes will be drawn by Random.com next Sunday for the previous week. To be eligible for a prize you must be a registered participant and comment after each days lessons.