There are members of the
Words & Pictures Team who are amazingly organised, work very hard but often don't get enough recognition for their talents. First up are two members of the writing features team (which also includes interim celebrations editor Tania Tay),
Mel Rogerson and
Katrina Charman, who have been in the thick of it since January.
Mel posts on Mondays and Katrina on Wednesdays; they are both insightful, creative and wonderful to work with. Jan asked them about their
Words & Pictures journey, where and how they work.
Katrina
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| Katrina in her alternative writing space |
I volunteered to be a part of the
Words & Pictures team, because I'm one of those people who volunteers for, and says "yes" to everything! When I began my long (ongoing) writing quest towards publication and had absolutely no clue where to start, the SCBWI was there, offering a wealth of information and support for aspiring writers like myself. It has been great to be able to give something back to such a brilliant organisation.
I'm one of those people who volunteers for, and says "yes" to everything!
Being a part of the Words and Pictures editorial team has been a bit of a whirlwind. We only launched in March, but the time has flown by.
It seems like we've been going forever, and I think that is due in part to the way everyone behind the W&P scenes really does work as part of a fantastic team. Working with Jan, Mel and Tania, and all of the writers and contributors who put so much time and effort into their features, has been wonderful, and I have made some new friends along the way.
...it has been really enjoyable, meeting fellow Scoobies, and working with editors and agents.
During a typical month, I will liase with Mel, Jan, Tania and our writers, to see what features we have coming up, and what features we might be able to commission to fit into our upcoming themes. Although some weeks there can be more to do than others, it has been really enjoyable, meeting fellow Scoobies, and working with editors and agents.
I'm hoping to make it to the SCBWI conference this year to finally be able to put some faces to all those names, so come and say hi if you spot me! I mostly write YA Sci-fi and Fantasy, and am currently working on polishing up my submission for Undiscovered Voices. (Good luck to everyone who is entering this year!)
Jan asked for a picture of my usual working space, but as the weather has been so lovely (and I usually write in bed, which wouldn't be a pretty picture!) I cheated a little to show my outdoor writing space.
Mel
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| Mel with assistant features editor |
Words & Pictures came at just the right time for me - two months into maternity leave. People said that I was mad to take on a new commitment, but it turned out to be the perfect antidote to the long, icy winter.
All we had to do was set up a schedule, which immediately appealed to my control freak instincts...
I got to hang out with a great editorial team and talented contributors - all from the comfort of my own home. To be honest, I didn't really have a clue what an editor did before I accepted the role, but luckily Jan, our fab editor, had prepared a lot of the groundwork before we started - lining up volunteer authors and establishing ground rules. All we had to do was set up a schedule, which immediately appealed to my control freak instincts (I'd been a production manager for a publishing house in my former life so knew the value of spreadsheets!) and contact the wonderful people who had kindly offered to submit features. Their enthusiasm was overwhelming and it soon became clear that we weren't going to run out of material (a major fear at the outset) for quite some time.
The quality of the copy has always been outstanding...
Since that heady start, things have calmed down slightly, and it's become easier to manage the technicalities of the job. I can now upload a post to Blogger in thirty minutes, rather than two hours. I also understand rudimentary HTML. Little things that add up when you're trying to write a new YA novel and grapple with a demanding baby.
The quality of the copy has always been outstanding so that's never been a major issue. We have regular Skype catch-ups to discuss planning, or to brainstorm fresh ideas such as Agent Confidential (inspired by our own search for literary agents). I love the variety of the role, and nothing beats the excitement of receiving a new feature or being the first to read the answers to Sara O'Connor's Ask A Publisher column. But my favourite part of the journey so far has to be working with Katrina, Tania and Jan. Being part of such a supportive and friendly team has made all the difference to my big year out.
Thank you Mel and Katrina for all your behind the scenes planning, emailing, posting, html-ing and emailing and social networking and emailing some more,
you're stars in the W&P universe!
