Ten-Minute Blog Break - 24th September

It's been a bumper week for new blogs - whether you're published or unpublished, relaxed or overworked, I hope you'll take ten minutes out with our fantastic SCBWI bloggers.




Lorraine Gregory has found some quite unusual reasons to be cheerful this week. Lorraine doesn't have an agent or a book deal and yet she couldn't be happier!

Those writers who do have a book deal will find Nicola Morgan's post on the cost of author events immensely useful. The question of how much authors should charge is always a contentious one, so Nicola lays out her scale of charges in exacting detail, showing exactly how she arrives at the figures and why she thinks they're fair.

Miriam Halahmy has some useful advice on writing the perfect one line pitch. With the SCBWI Agents' Party just a week away, there's never been a better time to boil your manuscript down to a single sentence. I was thinking of having a T-shirt made up with my one line pitch, but I decided that was probably just a bit too creepy...

T-shirt slogans aside, I'm also trying to meet an impossible deadline to revise my manuscript ahead of the Agents' Party, and Jane Heinrichs' latest post resonated strongly with me. Instead of admonishing ourselves for every tiny creative misstep, she'd like us to be gentle with ourselves.

Finally, dogged detective Rebecca Colby is blogging over at the funeverse, investigating that most terrible of transgressions, the Rhyme Crime! Are your rhymes guilty of being wilty? Find out from Rebecca how to give them sizzle before they fizzle.

Oh sorry, I have to go. I think the poetry police are breaking down my front door.

Nick.

---

Nick Cross is a children's writer, blogger and all-round techno-ninja. In 2010 he was a winner of Undiscovered Voices with his zombie comedy Back from the Dead.

This week on his blog, Nick's taking a look at story franchises and wondering why No-one Ever Really Dies.

What Are They Drinking in the North East?

Something is afoot up North - this week we have inspirational stories from Kate Pankhurst and Rebecca Colby and Sam Zuppardi and guess where they're all from?
 

---

Sam Zuppardi

North East member Sam Zuppardi will be illustrating a new picture book by David Elliot Nobody's Perfect due for publication in 2015 by Candlewick in the US. Sam is particularly pleased Candlewick requested him as he’s also working with them as author/illustrator of his own book The Nowhere Box due for publication this November! 
 Sam is also illustrating the middle grade series The Misadventures of Edgar and Allan Poe by Gordon McAlpine published by Viking/Penguin 

I think Sam's pencils are going to be busy for quite  while!

---

Kate Pankhurst, another regular at SCBWI North East meetings, has worked as a children’s

Kate Pankhurst
@kateisdrawing

book illustrator for over ten years. Since she graduated from the University of Central Lancashire in 2002 she’s illustrated many books for other authors about bogeys, pirates and puppies – including the inside illustrations for our very own Steve Hartley’s Danny Baker Record Breaker series.

I am thrilled to announce that Kate has a new project of her own - a brand new series for 7+ published by Orion Children’s Books about a determined girl detective – Mariella Mystery Investigates. 
The Ghostly Guinea Pig and A Cupcake Conundrum were published this April and The Huge Hair Scare is due to be released in October . Much of Kate’s work happens from her home studio in Leeds, with her Dalmatian (Olive). Kate also works with schools, libraries and children, running creative sessions to inspire ideas for stories and characters and for some strange reason she has an ever increasing collection of fake moustaches…

---

Rebecca Colby
@amscribbler

And there’s another North East member to toast this week, Rebecca Colby has sold another picture book, this time to Floris Books Kelpies imprint. There Was A Wee Lassie Who Swallowed A Midgie , is a rollicking Scottish version of the classic tale There was an Old Woman who Swallowed a Fly.

 Knowing Rebecca’s flair for rhythm and rhyme – she’s a founder member of The FunEverse, I just know this is going to be a wonderful read aloud book. Well done Rebecca!

 There must be something in that North East water…. 


Don't forget to mail me your news celebrations@britishscbwi.org. Submission guidelines are in our FAQ section

---

Kathy Evans is Celebrations Editor for Words & Pictures. She is South East Network Coordinator with Mariam Vossough and is represented by Sophie Hicks at Ed Victor.

SCBWI Members Scoop up Awards, Deals and Debuts!

Mo O’Hara celebrates the debut of her first book while Nicola Robinson, Ruth Eastham and Rosemary Hayes are delighting in award nominations and Liz De Jager and Rebecca Colby sign their first deals! Is there enough champagne in the whole of Britain for so much celebratory joy?!





Mo O'Hara and her big brother once brought their pet goldfish back from the brink of death. Happily this did not inspire her to become an Evil Scientist. Instead, actor, writer and storyteller Mo wrote My Big Fat Zombie Goldfish and Macmillan published it on February 28th!

 

Mo O'Hara

Mo grew up in Pennsylvania, USA, but now lives in south-east London. An active SCBWI member for about five years, Mo’s been a previous Masterclass Series organisor and has served on the conference committee. Hoorah for Mo and the hilarious Frankie! 

@NLRobinsonart

 From zombie fish to Monster Machines.  Nicola Robinson’s picture book The Monster Machine has been shortlisted for the 'Read it Again!' Cambridgeshire Children's Picture Book Awards. Nicola is thrilled to be included as the award is for a debut picture book where writer and illustrator are the same person. 

 Nicola is a freelance illustrator based in Nottingham, working mostly in the world of children's books, her work includes cover art for YA, popup books, colour and black and white illustrations for interior spreads and more. Monsters, animals, dragons and other creatures with teeth and claws are favourite subjects. Working in both traditional pen and ink and watercolour, Nicola also uses digital techniques to create her illustrations. Don’t forget to check out our Illustrators page.

@RuthEastham1
 Photo: Tim Simpson Photography

Rosemary Hayes

 Meanwhile there’s more award news for former Carnegie nominee Ruth Eastham and Rosemary Hayes. Rosemary’s book Loose Connections has been shortlisted for the 2013 James Reckitt Hull Children's Book Award while Ruth’s second book, The Messenger Bird has been nominated for the Redbridge Libraries Book Award 2013. Ruth is already on an astounding number of shortlists including the Warwickshire Book Award, the Essex Schools Book Award, the Sefton Super Reads Book Award and the East Sussex Book Award 2013. 
The Messenger Bird was also chosen by Booktrust UK as a title for the nationwide secondary schools’ BookBuzz programme. What a fantastic achievement both of you! 

Liz de Jager
@LizUK

From debuts and awards to deals. Liz De Jager has signed an amazing THREE book deal with Tor Books. Liz grew up in South Africa but moved to the UK in 2000. Liz signed with agent Juliet Mushens in August 2012 and after two sets of rigorous edits, they went to the market in mid-January. The end result was an auction leading to an incredible three book deal with Tor UK, an imprint of Macmillan Publishers. 

 Kathleen Rushall of Marsal Lyon Literary Agency sold Rebecca Colby’s first picture book, IT'S RAINING BATS AND FROGS, to Feiwel and Friends, a Macmillan US imprint. Before writing for

Rebecca Colby

children, Rebecca inspected tights (pantyhose to the American speaking world), taught English in Taiwan, travelled the world as a tour director, and worked as a librarian. Born in America, Rebecca now lives in North Yorkshire. Rebecca is one of ten crazy poets on The FunEverse - we look forward to seeing more of her crazy writing in picture book form. 

 SCBWI is proud of you all! How can we not be inspired? Back to your desks everyone – Success Comes By Writing and Illustrating!!

---

Kathy Evans is Celebrations Editor for Words & Pictures. She is South East Network Coordinator with Mariam Vossough and is represented by Sophie Hicks at Ed Victor.