The Sweet Taste of Rejection

There seems to be a lot of blog posts recently about "rejection" ~ how to deal with rejection, how to view rejection, how to learn from rejection, etc.

In fact, I recently read that we should appreciate  and maybe even celebrate rejection.  Why is that?  Well, as a writer we need to put ourselves "out there" through submitting.  So...the feeling is that if we are truly doing our jobs, we will be submitting and getting rejected.  Therefore, rejection is a kind of badge of honor or sign that we are doing what we are supposed to be doing.

But no matter how you spin it, rejection stings. 

I am not one to submit to twenty agents or editors all at once.  I am pretty picky.  Afterall, if I really want to form a relationship with said agent or editor, I should do my research and be selective as to who I query.  But it does lead to an even bigger sting when your net is not cast that widely.  This was the case back in early March when I received not one, but TWO rejections in a matter of an hour.  Ouch!  My reaction?  I immediately walked to the nearest chocolate.

I have come up with my own way of making rejection taste sweeter, and I would like to share my strategy with you.  It's called...REJECTION CHOCOLATE!

1)  Get a jar with a lid and fill it with your absolutely favorite chocolate or candy of choice.  Mine is filled with Cadbury Mini Eggs...which are not easy to find now that Easter is over.

2)  Place the jar near your work area to serve as motivation.

3)  Start submitting your work to your dream agents or editors.  Do your job!

4)  Don't touch candy.

If you get a rejection, AND ONLY IF YOU GET A REJECTION,

5)  you get to open the jar and eat a few pieces!!!  You deserve it.  You are a real writer.

6)  If you get so many rejections that you empty the jar, celebrate and refill jar.

If you get an acceptance,

7)  Chocolate serves as a Celebration Chocolate!  (choose candy wisely, so that it tastes good with champagne, too).

So what are you waiting for?  Fill a jar, get writing and submitting and next time you pop that jar you will have something to celebrate!

Conferences: One-on-One Manuscript Critique Help

Back in January I declared 2013 to be "The Year I Put Myself Out There."  Meaning that after spending the last 2 years focusing on building knowledge of the field and honing my craft, I would start to seek representation in 2013.  It is time to show people what I got.

As part of this personal goal, I am getting incredibly excited about attending both the New Jersey SCBWI conference in June and the SCBWI Summer Conference in LA in August. 

Nothing beats getting to hang with my Tribe for the weekend, but it won't be all fun and games.  I am planning on using conference time to make connections, especially with agents.  Therefore, I need to be very strategic in my planning.

For both conferences I intend to participate in One-on-One Manuscript Critiques with agents, editors and authors.  But here's my dilemma, I don't know what pieces to submit for critique.

Maybe you can help.

I have 3 manuscripts to consider:

MS #1 ~ This is a manuscript that is submission-ready AND has gotten the attention of agents in the past.  In fact, this manuscript is currently being considered by an agent.  So, I am not truly looking for critique on it, but would it be beneficial to submit it for one-on-one thinking that someone else might fall in love with it?  Or is that not the purpose of these meetings?

MS #2 ~ This manuscript is very close to being submission-ready.  I think it still needs some tweaking, but its almost there. 

MS #3 ~ This is my problem manuscript.  I have gotten so many compliments on the premise and the beginning, but the climax and resolution are really giving me difficulty. 

What would you suggest?

Which manuscript would you show to an agent?  To an editor? To an author?  What is the best foot to put forward?

Need Space?

Last week I celebrated my birthday and entered the end of yet another decade.  Now, although I often feel (and have been told, look) younger than I am, there are certain things that make me feel old.  For example:

• receiving a holiday card from a former student...and their spouse...and their 3 kids.
• finding myself gagging at the thought of eating a frosted Pop Tart.
• hearing the songs that were hits when I was in college on the classic rock station.
• spotting my favorite childhood toy in an antique store.
• discovering that the children who were born the day I graduated from high school can now legally buy alcohol.
• and the list goes on and on...

However, the newest addition to the list shocked me to my core.  Let me set the scene...

You are typing a sentence.  You type a period.  And then before you start the next sentence, how many spaces do you add?

My answer is 2.  That is how I was taught.

The young whipper-snappers I questioned about it said 1. 

My reaction?  They are "no-good hippies" and I said, "Get off my lawn!"

Anyway.  In all seriousness, I did a little research and learned that although I was taught to insert 2 spaces, that is because I was taught on a typewriter.  I was taught before different fonts existed.

According to a recent article on www.writersdigest.com, "With the dawn of computers, word processing programs not only began offering an absurd number of fonts, but each font was programmed to space characters proportionally (“l” takes up about a third of the space “w” does). In turn, most computer fonts will automatically give you enough room between sentences with one space. So, as a rule of thumb, use just one space when typing up your manuscript on a computer."

I had no idea.

I'm not sure that this old dog can be taught a new trick.  It is kind of second nature to insert that second space. 

What about you?  One space or two?  I am curious to find out.

Escape The Weather with LOOK WHAT I CAN DO! by Nancy Viau

When life is not ideal, it can be nice to lose yourself in a book.  And with Winter Storm Virgil flurrying all over NYC, I need to do just that. 

Where is Spring? 

I long for luscious green grass so deep you can get lost in.  And flecks of brilliant flowers in aromatic gardens.  Guess I have to wait...and lose myself in a book.

My recommendation to escape the "Spring that won't come" Blues is to delve into Anna Vojtech's glorious illustrations of LOOK WHAT I CAN DO! written by Nancy Viau.  Set among blue streams, grassy fields and colorful leaves (remember those? they grow on trees), this book is the perfect antidote for those of us who need to remember how wonderful Mother Nature can be.

I had the great honor of writing a Teacher's Guide for this gem of a book.  It's an affirming story about baby animals who take great lengths to accomplish goals of reaching, hunting or flying.  It reminds our little ones of the determination needed to try new things and succeed!

Written in rhyme, Viau's story of encouragement offers a text whose very pattern is predictable, yet a great stepping stone for young readers to read on their own.  With a couplet per spread, the words and illustrations build a simply beautiful world which is inviting for all.

Peppered throughout is a lyrical refrain: --"Friends of forest, / field, and stream, / Keep trying on your own. / Be proud today. / Have fun and play. / In time you will be grown".  What a beautiful message.

So what do you think, Spring?  Can you do it?  I believe you can.  Strive!  And soon you will be saying LOOK WHAT I CAN DO! too.

*****
One of the best aspects of writing Teacher's Guides is that I get to know and have personal relationships with some really cool authors, like Nancy Viau.

I recently asked Nancy a series of fun questions a la "Inside the Actor's Studio".  Here are her answers.  Thanks for playing along, Nancy!

What is your favorite word? Effervescent, because it's fun to say and I never get to use it in a children's book.

 

What is your least favorite word? Unfortunately, because nothing good ever follows that word in a sentence.

What makes you happy? It's a toss-up between the smell of the Atlantic Ocean in the springtime and the fluffiness of fresh snow at the very top of a Colorado mountain.

What makes you sad? Selfish people.

What sound do you love? Uproarious laughter from my kids.

What sound do you hate? The crack of thunder when the storm is immediately overhead.

What is your favorite time of day? 10:00 PM

What profession other than yours would you like to attempt? CEO of a major corporation.

What profession would you not like to do? Accountant.

If heaven exists, what would you like to hear God say when you arrive at the pearly gates?

"Fortunately, your mom, dad, and brother knew you'd get here eventually, so they saved you a spot."

Nancy Viau grew up in the suburbs of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, but now lives near a forest, field, and stream in New Jersey.  She loves to hike and bike on quiet trails, and often stops to watch the animals work and play.  Viau is the author of two other nature-inspired books:  Storm Song and Samantha Hansen Has Rocks in Her Head.  Find out more at www.nancyviau.com.

The Creative Habit: #12 "The Long Run"

On Monday evening I had the great pleasure of attending a live talk with Tomie DePaola at Pratt.  I was excited, thinking back to the days in my elementary school library when we would all beg to have Strega Nona read to us.  To me, Tomie is a legend.

Throughout the interview he gave insights to his incredible life and career (this includes 250 books, 8 honorary doctorates, and over $15 million in book sales). 

Unfortunately, they took some questions from the audience but didn't have time for a lot.  One of my friends who attended with me said, "I wanted to ask him what the key to a long career is."

A long career.  That is what we all want, right?  But what does that mean.

I finally was able to finish Twyla Tharp's "The Creative Habit: Learn It and Use It For Life". In the final chapter, The Long Run, she addresses this idea of a long sustaining career.

"I was 58 years ols when I finally felt like a 'master choreographer'.  The occasion was my 128th ballet.  Why did it take 128 pieces before I felt this way? A better question would be, Why not?  What's wrong with getting better as you get more work under your belt?"

She goes on to state that there is no long run without devotion, commitment, persistence.

"My heroes are the artists whose bodies of work are consistently surprising, consistently fresh.  They all had stunning early triumphs, and they kept getting better through their middle and later years."

Perhaps there is no better example to this than the 8 year career, 13 albums of the Beatles. 

Or give Bowie's newest album a listen.  He doesn't disappoint.

But what we need to have this kind of staying power is the devotion to craft.  The commitment to being an artist.  And the persistence to give it a go even when it is not easy.

Its easier said than done.  But the creative habit, having a routine makes this possible.  It feeds us.  Sustains us.

Tharp concludes the book with a story about her company in the days that followed September 11, 2001. 

"As the chaos of 9/11 developed, I thought about working with my dancers that day, but decided it was impossible, for so many reasons.  I phoned all of the dancers to check on their welfare, and I told them there was no obligation to attend rehearsal the next day.  Yet they all showed up, ready for work, arriving in a shaken Manhattan, with its bridges and tunnels only just reopened, from Brooklyn, Staten Island, New Jersey and Westchester County to the north.

We could have easily become absorbed by the tragedy, lost in it, and paralyzed by it, but what came back to us was the instinct to dance.  I began as a dancer, and in those days of pain and shock I went back to where I started.  Even in the worst of times, such habits sustain, protect, and, in the most unlikely way, life us up.  I cannot think of a more compelling reason to foster the creative habit."

I finish this book--this series--a very different person than I was.  During Chapter 1, I was frustrated in an overwhelming job and struggling to find 2 minutes to focus on my writing career.  Weeks would go by and I would not have written a word.  I felt dried up.

However, I have had the glorious opportunity to have focused solely on my writing career for the past 3 months--to the day.  (I stopped working at my job on December 21st).  And yes, I was lucky to be able to do this...but it won't last forever.  I am currently interviewing for my next job.

But I have learned how to form a habit of maximizing my minutes and finding the time to write daily. This is something that I treasure and know that I will be able to carry on into my next job.  It just took some stepping back to figure out how to make it all work.  I now realize that I need to write every day.  I need to work on forwarding my writing career to feel alive.  And, like Dorothy Gale, I had the ability to do it all along...but now its a habit.

I've been Tagged!

I was recently tagged by Julie Rowan-Zoch for "Tagging Thyme".  Thanks, Julie!

 

I have to answer 11 questions then tag 11 people who would be willing to answer weird questions.  So here ya go....

1)  What is the strangest things you have ever eaten in public? 
     
I am sure when I was a kid I ate a booger or two, but since being a nanny I realize that is not really strange.  Lots of kids do it.  Hmmm....I am not a picky eater, but I am not sure I am a daring eater, either.  In fact, I could NEVER watch Fear Factorfor that reason.  So I am going to go with ostrich...even though that isn't that weird.

2)  If you had to go on an adventure with elves, dwarves, or hobbits who would you take and why?
       

This would be when I kick myself for never reading Tolkien or playing Dungeons and Dragons.  I am sure they all have their pros and cons, but I wouldn't know who.  I'll go with hobbits.  I used to love to watch the 1977 animated Hobbit movie when I was a kid.  I still know some of the songs.  Might be fun for a little sing-a-long with them on our adventure!

3)  You are at a rural retreat lodge somewhere deep in Wisconsin or Canada. You are approached by a taxidermist who hands you a stuffed badger and asks you to put it in your lap. What do you do next?
         
Put it on my lap.  I have always been good at following directions.  But I might have to ask "why" once I do so.

4)  If you were given biscotti, would you prefer it with coffee, tea, or hot chocolate?
           
Coffee. I LOVE coffee. 

5)  In your opinion, who is the funniest man or woman alive today? (comedian)
            
Carol Burnett.

6)  If you were given thirty seconds on television to say something, what would it be?
              
"Turn off your television.   There are much better things to do with your life."  And then I would list as many things as possible that are BETTER uses of time than tv. 

7)  What is your idea of the most romantic date setting ever?
              
I like taking long walks.  Holding hands.  Doesn't matter where...just who I am with.

8)  If you could go on one date with a movie or television star, who would it be and why?
               
Rick Springfield.  I practiced kissing when I was a kid by kissing my Rick Springfield poster.  Just seems right that we would make it official at least once.  Then I'll have closure.

9)  What is the worst song you have ever heard?
                
Without giving it much thought....I am going to say Bruce Springsteen's cover of "Santa Claus is Comin' to Town".  He sounds awful.  He's basically yelling.  Not sure why this has become a favorite of so many. 

10)  If you could live anywhere else, where would it be?

Don't get me wrong...I LOVE BROOKLYN!  But since you are asking, I am going to go with California.  I love the weather.  I love that it smells like things growing. 

11)  Who- in your opinion- was the greatest person to ever live?

Hands down, Jesus Christ. 

Okay – now the following people are cordially invited to answer 11 questions and tag 11 others:

Joanna Marple
Kathy Ellen Davis
Genevieve Petrillo
Tara Lazar
Patricia Nozell
Lauri Meyers
Sylvia Liu
Jennifer Young
Kimberly Sabatini
Ame Dyckman
Alison Hertz
 

FOOD FIGHT: The Winners!

Creative people have a zillion flitting ideas throughout any given day.  Only sometimes they actually decide to act on one of them.  That is what happened last September when I was struck with the idea of FOOD FIGHT. 

After a one-on-one critique with Dr. Mira Reisberg it occured to me that although I absolutely love onomatopoeia I hardly ever remember to use it in my own writing.  That needed to change.

I came up with the idea of FOOD FIGHT as a way of promoting and reminding the writing community about the fun and beauty of onomatopoeia.

I knew it would be fun.  But I didn't know if anyone would participate. 

Enter 11 brave bloggers and 21 food flingers who took my idea and literally ran with it.  The creativity was astounding. 

We had stories that varied in setting from a car to a school cafeteria to sleep-away camp.  We had fights between farmers and bunnies, witches and princesses, cows and sheep.  And the choices of food to fling were hysterical, from rotted and spoiled food, to a bucket full of worms, to even a chipmunk in a forest fight.  There was even a very creative intergalactic food fight with words worthy of Dr. Seuss and weapoinzed food!  And who didn't love Timmy's grandma who definitely celebrated her birthday with a BANG, or should we say SPLAT?

You can read all of the entries here.

Thank you to each one of you who participated.  I definitely plan to run this as an annual event in conjunction with World Read Aloud Day. 

Also, I plan to create an ONOMATOPOEIA Word List which will include all of the fun words you created during FOOD FIGHT ~ like one of my favorites...BUNKARUNKADUNG!  I hope this list will be a living list and will be a reference guide for writers.  Stay tuned for that.

Now on to the winners.  And trust me, it was NOT easy.

First we have the winner of the Most Food Flung.  This person commented multiple times on each story and definitely was community personified. 

DONNA LOUISE SADD!

She wins a copy of KA-BOOM!: A Dictionary of Comic Book Words, Symbols and Onomatopoeia.  I hope it is a wonderful reference for you.  Watch out, everyone.  She's well-armed for next year. 

Be sure to email me your address at marciecolleen@gmail.com, Donna.

And now the winner of The Best Story. 

This was very tough.  As I said, the creativity was overwhelming and definitely had me rolling on the floor. 

The judging finally came down to the story which was not only creative in its setting, scenario and characters, but also set up an incredible challenge for the community, asking those who "grew" the story to be extra creative and write in rhyme.  This story elevated the FOOD FIGHT to a level of community building I had not intended.  So cool!  And that winner is
MAMMA D's "ON THE WAY HOME FROM GRANDMA'S"!

Mamma D wins free registration in the Picture Book Academy's self-paced e-course "Writing Wonderful Character-Driven Picture Books" which is taught by Marsha Diane Arnold and Dr. Mira Reisberg.

Please reach out to me at marciecolleen@gmail.com so we arranged your prize.

Enjoy! 

Congrats to the winners.  And once again, thank you to all of our participants.  I hope it was truly a good time and we hope to play with you again next year! 

I also want to thank Julie Rowan-Zoch for our fabulous badge that kinda screams cafepress.  We might need swag next year.