Ask a Picture Book Editor

Our blog this month is all about . . .

(Here are steps 6 - 10! Head to last month's post for steps 1 - 5.)

Once the blads are in, it's time for the Rights teams to head off to the book fair! Depending on the time of year – and when your book is scheduled to be published – your book will be presented at either Bolonga (in March) or Frankfurt (in October).

Here’s what a blad looks like in comparison to the finished book.

The Foreign Rights team will sell your book to overseas publishers who will translate your text into their own language.

So that one English edition . . . 

No! by Tracey Corderoy and Tim Warnes

Becomes MANY foreign language editions!

HOORAY!

Back in the UK, the sales team will be presenting your book to all the big retailers you can find on the high street and on the internet.

The editor and designer, production person, author and illustrator will make one final check of the book. Then, at the printers  – usually in the Far East for picture books – your book will now be rolling off the printing presses. The pages will be getting trimmed, bound and fixed to the covers, ready to be shipped to the warehouse in the UK and sent out to shops in time for . . .

Hooray! Your book has hit the shelves! And it might be lucky enough to receive a very nice review from your friendly bookshop assistant:

Big Bad Owl by Steve Smallman and Richard Watson

With your help, the marketing, publicity and promotions teams will be arranging trips, school visits, bookshop signings, print and online coverage and reviews to spread the word that your utterly fabulous book is available to buy right now! 

Steve Smallman, Tracey Corderoy and Catherine Rayner at the Edinburgh Festival

As the author or illustrator, you can help spread the word and build interest to make sure that your book is read and enjoyed by as many children as it deserves to be!

Phew! And how long did that all take? Usually the whole process takes between 18 to 24 months from acquisition of a text. It certainly feels like a long time – and has taken a lot of passion, hard work, perseverance and belief from everyone involved – but the result is definitely worth it!

Next month: Keep your eyes peeled for our fantastic FESTIVE special!

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Natascha Biebow is editor, mentor and coach at www.blueelephantstoryshaping.com

Check our my new online small group-coaching courses:

http://www.blueelephantstoryshaping.com/new-online-courses

 

Ellie Farmer is Commissioning Editor at Little Tiger Presswww.littletigerpress.com

The Editorial Process

By Clare Whitston - Acting Commissioning Editor, OUP Children's Books

An editor’s job is to spot a good story when they see it, acquire that story for their list, and then help the writer to create the very best work they can. The end product is the culmination of hard work and dedication, from the author themselves of course, but also from the editor, designer, marketing, sales, and production teams. 

The usual route that stories find their way to us is via an agent but editors do well to remember that stories are everywhere. Part of an editor’s job is also to seek out the stories they want to read and to be open to finding new stories in unexpected places. Editors often share their wish list with agents, talk to published writers about the possibility of trying something new, or go to a writer with a seed of an idea and help them create something wonderful from it. For example, I’d really like to find an exciting new adventure story for readers aged 8-12 and am hoping that by being open to all possibilities, I’ll find what I’m looking for!

Stories are everywhere.

Once I’ve read a submission that I really like, I will share it with the editorial team and we discuss it together. How would we position this book and what kind of reader would enjoy the story? Are we confident that we can make it work? I write a pre-acquisition document, explaining why I think we should publish the manuscript. This will include market position, competition, and why I think the story is special. I share all of this with the heads of sales, marketing, rights, and our publisher. If they feel enthused by the story too, I will pitch it at a publishing meeting where I will (hopefully) be given sign off by the finance team, to make an offer. The acquisition process can take time and throughout this, an editor must have a really clear idea of what they want for the book and its author. 

Once a manuscript has been acquired, the editor and author usually meet to talk about the author’s vision for the book and talk about the schedule. Debut authors are often surprised to hear that it takes, on average, eighteen months to get a book published. This is mainly due to the selling cycles of the bookshops. Having a cover, selling material like a bound proof or marketing presenter, and the manuscript to send out are all vital ways to build the buzz, pre-publication. 

At OUP, the author normally has two editors (the person who acquired the book and a support editor) and a designer. The editor is the main point of contact for the author and they will answer any queries the author might have and liaise with them over the cover copy and cover design. 

The editor is the main point of contact for the author.

The author and editor may already have had a discussion about the kind of edits which may be needed prior to the acquisition, but I will always give the manuscript a close read and send the author an editorial letter, as soon as possible, once it has been acquired. I imagine this might be one aspect of the process that the writer might feel nervous about but it’s important to remember that by this stage, the editor has probably read the manuscript one or two times already and has felt passionate enough about it to pitch it to others in house, during the acquisitions process. Putting the editorial letter together is one of my favourite parts of the job. It’s an opportunity to share with the writer the areas I think are working well and to start off the discussion about the areas which I think they can develop further. The editorial process is just that: a discussion between two people, both of whom want to make the story the best it can possibly be. 

When I’m compiling an editorial letter, I think about whether the plot and structure work, whether the voice is believable and if there are any interesting themes which the author might expand upon. I also think carefully about whether I think the readers are going to find the story satisfying and compelling in some way. 

There’s no fixed amount of time for the editorial process and it’s different for every book I’ve ever worked on. Part of the editor’s job is to work out what’s best for each individual manuscript and go from there. 

When an author and editor are happy with the final manuscript, it goes off for copyediting. The copyeditor will spot inaccuracies (in a character’s appearance for example) and will mark up the text to comply with a publisher’s house style. The copy editor sometimes has queries on the text and these will be sent back to the author, via the editor. 

The manuscript is typeset and then proofread. The author has another opportunity to read their work at this stage, before it is finally published. 

Receiving advance copies of the published book is really special. It’s the combination of hard work and devotion and a belief that this book deserves to be read by as many children as possible. 

I work in children’s publishing because I believe that stories are really important. Children read stories for all kinds of different reasons: to explain the world around them, explore complex emotions, to wind down, to laugh, or simply to read for reading’s sake. Anyone with a desire to be published should remember that editors love stories! I start every new submission, excited about the possibility of finding a new gem to add to our list. 

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@CWhitston

Clare Whitston has worked on the children’s fiction list at OUP for four years and is currently Acting Commissioning Editor, covering Jasmine Richards’s maternity leave. Clare is always on the hunt for a good story and loves funny fiction as well as edge-of-your-seat adventure. Clare lives in Oxford with her partner and daughter.
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OUP Blog - blog.oxfordchildrens.co.uk