Editors and Agents Panel: Saba Sulaiman

 

from top left: Laurent Linn (moderator), Josh Adams, Tiffany Liao, Saba Sulaiman, and Sonali Fry

Saba Sulaiman is a Senior Agent at Talcott Notch Literary Services, a boutique agency located in Milford, CT. She holds a BA in Economics and Middle Eastern Studies from Wellesley College and an MA from the University of Chicago, where she studied modern Persian literature. Being an immigrant who is constantly negotiating her own identity and sense of belonging in a place she now calls “home,” she is committed to championing books by writers from marginalized communities with compelling stories to tell; stories that demonstrate the true range of perspectives that exist in this world, and address urgent and often underexplored issues in both fiction and non-fiction with veracity and heart.

In Saba's introduction, she shares that her list right now is heavily picture book, and she's looking for more novels (she represents picture books all the way through YA, fiction and nonfiction.) Saba is drawn to character-driven narratives, unique and high stakes, morally gray characters, some humor (sharply observed humor), subtext, messiness of being human, timely and timeless.

Saba likes stories that "de-center me from my perspective" and "writers who can write in a way that can make ordinary things... feel fascinating."

And a warning about writing to a trend: "I can tell when a story's gimmick outshines its emotion."

Tries to "develop unique working relationships with each of my clients... they all have different circumstances in which they thrive creatively." Saba prefers working with clients that write across categories. Looking to work with authors, and careers.

What a great discussion!

Panel: The Outlook for Children's Publishing 2024 - Alvina Ling & Susan Ven Metre

Alvina Ling is VP and Editor-in-Chief at Little, Brown Books for Young Readers where she has worked since 1999. She edits children's books for all ages, including Where the Mountain Meets the Moon by Grace Lin, The Land of Stories series by Chris Colfer, The Wild Robot by Peter Brown, Ghost Boys by Jewell Parker Rhodes, Troublemaker by John Cho, The Astonishing Color of After by Emily X.R. Pan, and The Cruel Prince by Holly Black. She co-hosts the podcast Book Friends Forever with author Grace Lin. Alvina lives in Brooklyn, NY with her husband and two cats.

Alvina is celebrating her 25th anniversary at Little, Brown. She works on picture books, middle grade, and YA. She has a soft place in her heart for middle grade. Books on the LB list tend to straddle both literary and commercial. 

TeMika :What are you reading?

Alvina: LUNAR NEW YEAR LOVE STORY by Gene Luen Yang and LeUyen Pham 

She just finished reading BIG MAGIC by Elizabeth Gilbert

TeMika: What makes you fall in love to a manuscript? 

Alvina loves books that remind her of the books she loved as a child, books she loves right now, and books she wishes she had as a child. Being drawn in by voice is important, along with feeling like she wants to keep reading even when she's busy. 

TeMika: What is your editorial style? 

Alvina asks a lot of questions. She's not much of a line editor. She loves world building and asking a lot of questions about world building. She says it's collaborative, and more like a conversation. 

TeMika: Are there any things you consider when working with an author/illustrator rather than an author only?

If Alvina can picture what the book would look like from the text, that's important for a writer only. For an author illustrator it's a question of: Do I like the art style? 

TeMika: How do you find illustrators? 

Alvina echoes what the others have said about the importance of social media and websites. Little, Brown also has something they call picture book breakfast where the picture book editors and designers get together and share illustrators they've discovered

TeMika: Trends in picture books?

Alvina has a wish to shift back to more storytelling. 

***

Susan Van Metre is the Executive Editorial Director of Walker Books, a new division of Candlewick Press. Previously she was at Abrams, where she founded the Amulet imprint and edited EL DEAFO by Cece Bell, the Origami Yoda series by Tom Angleberger, the Internet Girls series by Lauren Myracle, THEY SAY BLUE by Jillian Tamaki, and the Questioneers series by Andrea Beaty and David Roberts. She lives in Brooklyn with her husband, Pete Fornatale, and their daughter and the ghost of their Lab mix.

Susan works on mostly fiction and graphic novels. She's also in love with those books for kids aged 8 to 12. Susan is CeCe Bell's editor, who just had a wonderful conversation with Sarah Baker on the stage. 

TeMika: What are you reading? 

Susan: Ever Since by Alena Bruzas

TeMika: What makes you fall in love to a manuscript? 

Susan: The recognition that there are high stakes for kids in the ordinary events of their lives, and how big those feel to a child's life. 

TeMika: Are there any things you consider when working with an author/illustrator rather than an author only. 

For Susan, it depends on the type of book. Susan does get excited when she has an author/illustrator for a graphic novel. But, with picture books there's something wonderful about the partnership between author and illustrator, however the timeline can often be longer. 

TeMika: How do you find illustrators? 

Instagram is important way to find illustrators, as well as having a good website. 

On a final note: As the the panel wraps up, all the panelist see SCBWI as an asset to writers and illustrators in terms of learning and growth, to have a better understanding of the business, and for the all-important community. 

Thao Le: Agents Panel #scbwiWinter22

Thao Le is an agent with the Sandra Dijkstra Literary Agency. She represents picture books and graphic novels by author-illustrators, middle grade fiction, and young adult across genres, as well as science fiction/fantasy and select romance for adults. In the picture book realm, she’s excited to work with illustrators who write their own picture books and is most drawn to art that is emotive and vivid. Her tastes tend towards stories that are character driven, witty, progressive, and end with a twist. In middle grade and YA, whether in prose or graphic novel format, she’s currently seeking contemporary stories that are witty, heartfelt, and authentic. She’s especially drawn to stories about family and friendships from the POV of diverse protagonists. She’s a fan of young characters who are passionate about the arts, sports, STEM, activism, and geeky fandoms. She adores stories with a touch of magic and whimsy, and is a fan of mythology and fairytales. In general, she loves beautiful literary writing with a commercial hook and tight plotting. She is actively seeking underrepresented voices (including, but not limited to, all ethnicity, sexual orientation, mental and physical health, and socioeconomic status) to her client list.

Agent Thao Le (lower right) presents at the Agents Panel.
(Also pictured is ASL interpreter Joanne Carron.)

Thao's advice:

Define what success means to you -

• Getting published by a Big Four Publisher?
• Commercial Success? (Preorders, Bestseller lists, Earning Out)
• Awards?
• Film/TV Deal?
• Multiple Books?

 and recognize that can change over the course of your career. Set your goal and communicate that with your agent.

If querying agents, look at books you love, who published them? Who represents them? Make your dream list.

If you're doing a cover reveal, include a call to action (have buy links or goodreads links available). For announcements and your website, provide easy buy links -- and diversify those links. Figure out "the shortest distance between you, the reader, and that buy link."

There is no magical number of sales that is "successful". 10,000 copies can mean a lot - but it depends on the size of your advance. 

Consider longevity and your career goals. Her goal as an agent is longevity in the publishing industry.

"The best way to succeed in publishing is to keep writing."

The Agents Panel Begins! #scbwiWinter22

 

Clockwise from top left, Bonnie Bader (moderator), Chad Beckerman (The CAT Agency), Thao Le (Sandra Dijkstra Literary Agency), Jem Chambers-Black (Andrea Brown Literary Agency), Samantha Fabien (Root Literary Agency), James McGowan (BookEnds Literary Agency), and ASL interpreter Joanne Carron.

#SCBWIsummerspec Agent Panel: Rosemary Stimola

Rosemary Stimola is a former independent children's bookseller, who founded the Stimola Literary Studio in 1997, a boutique agency representing fiction and nonfiction from preschool through young adult, as well as all genres. Stimola Literary Studio is made up of a wonderful team of agents. 

On the wall of Rosemary's office, hangs a framed print of Maya Angelou's poem I Love the Look of Words. In the poem there is a stanza that says:

When I have stopped reading, 

ideas from the words stay stuck

in my mind, like the sweet

smell of butter perfuming my

fingers long after the popcorn

is finished.

I love the book and the look of words

the weight of ideas that pop into

my mind

I love the track

of new thinking in my mind.

This is a mantra for Rosemary. When Rosemary considers a submission, the very first thing that strikes her are the words and the narrative voice that carries them. 

She's attracted to complex characters, even for the youngest readers that exhibit heart as well as well as a penchant for subversive and independent thinking, challenging the status quo, and traversing boundaries. 

Also, who doesn't love a page turner? 

Rosemary shares authors and illustrators she represents that brought words that stuck in her mind, characters that stood up when the world asked them to, and stories that begged to be read until the last page.

All were written by authors that were not so in love with their words that they weren't willing to revise them. And, all sit well in the current marketplace, that seeks diversity, does not condescend to young readers, and challenges them to see beyond themselves.

Rosemary shared some examples.

INSIDE OUT AND BACK AGAIN by Thanhha Lai is a middle grade novel in verse that came to Rosemary as cold submission with a beautifully written query. After reading it, Rosemary was still thinking about it three days later (the words stuck), but she thought she could already write the rejection letters for it. (Historical. Vietnamese protagonist-this was 2009. Told in verse.) This book sold for a very modest advance but went on to win the National Book Award, a Newbery Honor, and still lives on NYT Bestseller list. 

ONE OF US IS LYING by Karen M McManus came to Rosemary at the right time, in the right place (with what was happening with young people in the world). It came with a perfectly crafted query. Ro couldn't put it down. This book has spent 100 weeks on the bestseller list and sold in 41 languages. Karen has earned the title of Queen of the YA Mystery Thriller.

Mathew Cordell has been with Rosemary for more books and years than she can remember. 

WOLF IN THE SNOW won the Caldecott Medal. It was his 31st book! There are no words in the books, so you might wonder: Where are the words that stuck in Rosemary's mind? They were there, in the art.

Some books recently published.

James Bird, author of THE BRAVE, had Rosemary at his character's first word, which happened to be a number. 18. This main character has unique condition that leads him to count every word spoken to him. It makes him a target for bullies and a source of frustration for his dad. 

THE FELL OF DARK by Caleb Roehrig (Caleb's fourth YA novel) was just published days ago. Caleb's was a cold submission. He caught Rosemary's attention with a sharp and witty query letter. He also had a compelling mystery and complex LGBTQ  characters, in what became his debut novel LAST SCENE LEAVING. 

And a forthcoming title by Irene Latham and Charles Waters. Poets and authors. They write independently, but when combined they form the dynamic duo referred to as the The I&C Construction Company. Together they have penned CAN I TOUCH YOUR HAIR and DICTIONARY FOR A BETTER WORLD. Their latest brings something very special into our market, looking deeper into stories that have not been told. AFRICAN TOWN, a historical novel, told in verse through multiple voices, tells the story of the last African's brought to America. It comes out spring of 2022. Rosemary says, "It's told in voices that sing and ache. Even the ship has been given a voice that speaks of her human cargo and their fates."

  

These books "go beyond the moment and bring words and pictures together that stick in minds, just like they did in mine."

The Agents Panel Begins!

The Agents Panel at #SCBWISummerSpec

A screen shot of Lin Oliver (top left, moderating) and the panelists Regina Brooks (top right), Linda Camacho (center left), Brooks Sherman (center right), Rosemary Stimola (lower left), and interpreter Jennye Kamin (lower right.)

#SCBWIdigital Workshop: Marietta Zacker Presents "A Creative Look at the State of Children’s/YA Books"

Marietta Zacker

Marietta Zacker is Co-Owner and Agent at the Gallt & Zacker Literary Agency. She has worked with books, authors and illustrators throughout her career -- studying, creating, editing, marketing, teaching and selling. She supports independent bookselling, believes in libraries and takes pride in her work as a Latina in the world of publishing.

Once again, today's #SCBWIdigital workshop is interpreted in sign language by Jennye Kamin. In Lin's introduction, she mentions that there will be six additional SCBWIdigital workshops that are free for SCBWI members in June and July!

Lin then introduces Marietta, calling her "passionate," "inspiring," and someone who "leads with her heart."

Marietta opens with some stats, from a recent Publishers Weekly article, citing that children's and teen bookselling is generally going strong amidst the COVID-19 crisis.

Marietta Zacker (at bottom) shares in her #SCBWIdigital workshop. At top is ASL interpreter Jennye Kamin. 

She is asked all the time, "What should I write? What should I illustrate?" Marietta notes that the books being sought right now offer readers an escape, truth, hope, or are practical. But, she reminds us, "Anything you write or illustrate now won't be published for another couple of years." So what to focus on?

Just because we're in this crisis now, doesn't change the needs our young people have. You need to think about what is important to you as a writer. "What's important to your heart to get out? That's what people are going to want. It's about what's authentic to you."

A screen shot from Marietta's presentation, with her key takeaways for us. 

What are agents and editors looking for? What they're always looking for, only maybe now more so. Escapist, Truthful, Hopeful, and always Authentic.

Marietta shares some examples of picture book, middle grade, and young adult books that "perfectly encapsulate" these four elements: in them you can escape, find truth, find hope, and they're authentic.

Picture Book and Middle Grade examples

YA examples

“It’s about being truthful to yourself and being authentic about what you write.”

Marietta answers attendee questions ranging from the COVID-19 crisis impact on advances, online book marketing, critical skills for authors and illustrators, #OwnVoices, and much more.

One final gem to share: When asked to define authenticity, Marietta challenges us to consider:

“Is the story you’re telling one that only YOU could tell in the way you’re telling it?”

Thank you, Marietta!

Stay safe, all.
Lee

Agents Panel: Adriana Dominguez, Jennifer Rofé and Alexander Slater

Literary Agents
L to R: Adriana Dominguez, Molly O'Neill,
Beth Phelan, Jennifer Rofé and
Alexander Slater 

Literary agents Adriana Dominguez, Jennifer Rofé, and Alex Slater started out discussing trends (what is popular in a given timeframe), evergreens (universal, timeless feel) and how to sell your book in today's market. Jen cited Merci Suarez Changes Gears as an evergreen book with its focus on a child claiming agency and changing family dynamics.

Concerning trends, Jen warned that "you have to be careful with trends because you'll never catch one. Those deals, those books were sold years and years before they come out on the market."

Alex shared that he recently sold a middle grade horror novel, but he knows that by the time he tries to do another one the trend will be elsewhere.

When asked about nonfiction, the panel offered a number of noteworthy responses.

Adriana says she is not a trend chaser and sees nonfiction is an evergreen. The subject, the way the story is told is more important. We're in a moment of reckoning in the country. Fresh perspectives get us looking at things in new ways. There's less resistance now to stories about people and events that have not been as well known compared to five or six years ago.

Alex responded to the question about diverse books and how they "unearth little known points of history" is a privileged view. He attended the SCBWI OK conference this spring and learned about Tulsa Race Massacre. There are many stories that people know and have been impacted by these events, so there needs to be a focus on these stories.

Jen shared that We Need Diverse Books is less a movement, but a correction. It's what should have always been happening.

Adriana said that some of us (agents) have always been focused on this and the numbers are increasing. But it's still so small compared to books being published with characters who are animals and inanimate objects. She does feel that editors are doing better at listening to diverse authors and illustrators as they bring their stories and art to books.

The agents also offered stories of how they help manage their clients' work and when it's best to submit. As business partners with creators, they are committed to helping the creators best position themselves in the market.

For more information about Adriana, visit her website and follow her on Twitter.

To find out more about Jen Rofé, head over to her agency website or Twitter.

Learn about Alex by visiting his website and Twitter.

Alexander Slater: Subsidiary Rights 101 - Growing Your Business in the Global Market

Alex loves selling foreign rights at Bologna!

Alexander Slater is a literary agent with Trident Literacy Agency where he has worked since 2010. He was a foreign rights agent for many years and a third of his agency's sales comes from overseas sales of subsidiary rights. 

Subsidiary rights refer to "the right to produce or publish a product in different formats based on the original material." Generally the original material refers to the print rights in the original contract. This will involve selling one of these three print rights: World, North American English or World English.

First, the agent intends to sell the book and then they analyze the subsidiary rights as the contract negotiation occurs. They consider:

• What should be sold to the publisher? Or . . . who is best equipped to handle these rights?
• Where and how can the author do the most business?

Literary agent Alexander Slater

Alex presented and answered questions about the following rights: foreign, film/TV, audio, serial, permissions, anthology, and book club rights. 

He shared that agents want to snowball a creator's business and find opportunities to share their work more broadly.

For more information about Alex, check out his agent profile or his follow him on Twitter.

Alexandra Penfold - Real Talk About Maximizing Your Agent Relationship

 Alexandra Penfold is an agent at Upstart Crow Literary AND author of NYT best-selling picture books. She was ALSO an editor with a marketing/publicity background at Simon & Schuster, AND she STILL always knows where to go for the best baked goods in literally any city she is in.

Alex wants us to know that getting an agent is not the end of your professional journey, it is only the beginning. Alex thinks that once you have an agent, you should be prepared to work even harder.

She shares a great slide showing how most of us envision what our publishing life will look like after we garner representation on the left, but what the reality really looks and feels like on the right:

Alex is full of great quotes:

“Publishing time is an alternate reality of time and we can let that break us or MAKE US STRONGER.”

“Always have an in-progress project to turn to when you are on submission, don’t wait to hear back on that first project, publishing takes a long time.”

“Even with an agent, you still need to balance your non-writing work (email/social media promo/social media socialness) with your writing work.”

My favorite is probably:

“To be READY for publishing, you need to understand and recognize the limitations of external validation.” “You will always want more stickers. Instead think about the reader, write the next book.”

Adriana Domínguez: Writing with Cultural Authenticity

 

Adriana Domínguez

Adriana Dominguez, a literary agent at Full Circle Literary Agency, has more than 20 years of experience in publishing. The agency motto is "representing books that break barriers and stand the test of time."

Before becoming an agent, she was Executive Editor at HarperCollins Children’s Books, where she managed the children’s division of the Rayo imprint. Before that, she was Children’s Reviews Editor at Críticas magazine, published by Library Journal. She's also worked as a translator.

Being an agent helps her put her varied background to work to help writers.

Adriana talked to us about diversity, and how and why it's a vital topic to understand. She approaches the subject of diversity with a lot of humility, and recommends we do this too.

In our industry, a lot of things have changed in the five years since We Need Diverse Books was founded. But some things haven't changed so much, she said.

Not all that long ago, she heard things like "diverse books don't sell." It was discouraging. But it was essential to keep going, because children don't see people who look like them in books, they internalize the idea that their stories don't matter.

This year, though, Full Circle Literary has had multiple bestsellers by diverse creators: The Day You Begin, Taking Flight, Amal Unbound, and The Distance Between Us.

"A lot of things have changed. That is the great news. That is part of why you're hearing so much more about diversity."

Diversity is not a trend. She wants to talk about why. "Trend" reminds her of things like vampires, or passing fads. Trends aren't an essential part of the publishing world; stories about marginalized people are.

While things are improving in terms of books being published by and about people of color, there still aren't enough books written by people with that lived experience. Also, there are more books about animal characters than there are about children of color.

"We're still a long way to go from being where we need to be," she said. 

Another disheartening stat: 5 percent of books are about LatinX characters, and 20 percent of kids in school are LatinX. 

Here's what diversity isn't: stereotypical or didactic—the literary equivalent of Brussels sprouts. The books that are like this might have been the best creators could do at the time they come out. But we're past that. 

She gave several ways to understand "cultural authenticity"—here are a few:

• It's instantly recognizable by readers from within the culture being written about 
• It's the opposite of generic and stereotypical 
• Culturally authentic literature is specific and universal

And some do's and dont's:

• Don't write in first person from outside a culture 
• Have someone from within the culture read your book
• Do your research, reading both fiction and nonfiction, as well as immersing yourself in pop culture

She recommended we look at some award winning books, because we need to "read, read, read":

The Coretta Scott King Award
Schneider Family Book Award
Asian Pacific American Librarians Association Award
Pura Belpré Book Award
Stonewall book Award
Americas Award
Tomas Rivera Mexican American Children's Book Award

#ownvoices titles represented by Adriana

Ammi-Joan Paquette: Unusual Story Structures: Strategies, Options, and Ideas to Twist Your Narrative

Ammi-Joan Paquette is a senior agent with Erin Murphy Literary Agency, representing all types of children’s and young adult literature. She is also the author of The Train of Lost Things, the Princess Juniper series, and picture books including Ghost in the House, Elf in the House, Bunny Bus, and The Tiptoe Guide to Tracking Fairies. With acclaimed author Laurie Ann Thompson, she is also the co-author of the ‘nonfiction with a twist’ series, Two Truths and a Lie. In her agent acquisitions, Joan is particularly drawn to richly voiced, unforgettable characters and settings, as well as tightly paced, well-plotted stories with twists and turns that keep you guessing right until the end. Visit her on the web at www.ajpaquette.com

**

Ammi-Joan's focus in this session is mostly on longer form projects (i.e., novels) but she advises that many of the concepts discussed could also work for picture books.

Defining story structure as the framing point, looking through the lens at your story. How are you going to tell this particular story in the way most meaningful to you? A quote she shares:

"Every story demands a different structure. No universal structure exists. It's why that mopey old saw about there being only seven plots or some bullshit is, well, bullshit. If you distill them down to their barest (and in many ways most meaningless) essencce, sure, that's true. But the art is in the arrangement. The structure you build around the plot to support the story is where the elegance lies. - Chuck Wendig

Ammi-Joan divided up the different kinds of out-of-the-box books into six categories:

1. Structure by Narrator
Out of the box examples include: Ibi Zoboi's American Street, R. J. Palacio's Wonder

2. Structure by Mosaic (smaller stories that add up to a larger whole)
Out of the box examples include: though mostly this is in adult books so far - And the Mountains Echoed by Khaled Hosseini and The Cardboard Kingdom by Chad Sell.

3. Structure by Device
Out of the box examples include: Monster by Walter Dean Meyers (in the form of a screenplay) and Regarding the Fountain: A Tale, in Letters, of Liars and Leaks byKate Klise, Illustrated by M. Sarah Klise

4. Structure by Time
Out of the box examples include: Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver (time looping) and One Day by David Nicholls

5. Structure by Deception (unreliable narrators)
Out of the box examples include: The False Prince by Jennifer A. Nielsen, Fingersmith by Sarah Waters

6. "Meta" structure (a book within a book)
Out of the box examples include: The French Lieutenant's Woman by Vintage Fowles, The Princess Bride by William Goldman


Ammi-Joan speaks of so much more, including" the tussle between craft and magic" and how the reader needs "a logical and clearly visible path through the madness" (of a complicated structure.)

final take-away:

Your structure needs to add something to the story. Otherwise it's just showing off.

Sangeeta Mehta: Self-Publish Like a Traditional Publisher

Sangeeta Mehta

Sangeeta Mehta was an acquiring editor at Little, Brown Books for Young Readers and Simon Pulse before starting her own editorial services company, which focuses on middle grade and young adult fiction. She has written several articles about self-publishing for Jane Friedman Media, including “The Business of Self-Publishing Children’s Picture Books,” “Shepherding a Self-Published Picture Book to Success,” and “Should Children’s Book Authors Self-Publish?” A Member-at-Large of the Editorial Freelancers Association, Sangeeta founded the organization’s Diversity Initiative. She also serves on the board of The Word, a nonprofit working to build a more inclusive publishing community. Follow her on Twitter @sangeeta_editor or visit www.mehtabookeditingnewyork.com.

**

Sangeeta starts out by sharing self-publishing success stories, how to determine your publishing goal, answers the question/offers us the mantra "What would a traditional publisher do?", shares resources, and fields questions from the attendees.

Success stories:

Edgar Allen Poe and Virginia Woolf and Beatrix Potter who took matters into their own hands.

More recent examples of break-out self publishing success include The Martian by Andy Weir, Still Alice by Lisa Genova, Milk and Honey by Rupi Kaur.

In children's books,

Amanda Hocking's Watersong
Beth Reekles' The Kissing Booth (published as a teenager on Wattpad and won an award there.)
Christopher Paolini's Eragon
Carl-Johan Forssén Ehrlin's The Rabbit Who Wants To Fall Asleep
John and Jennifer Churchman's The SheepOver

She cautions that it's very hard to make it the way these authors have. One of the ways to help make it happen for you is to figure out your self-publishing goal.

Some of the goals for self-publishing Sangeeta shares that we might consider:

-to hone your craft
-to be part of a writing community
-undertake a project that may or may not be lucrative
-create a family keepsake
-become an entrepreneur or leverage your position as an entrepreneur
- promote your backlist
- get "discovered"

Sangeeta shares about WattPad, InkedVoices (an online critique forum), and cites Beth Revis and Cassandra Claire as examples of hybrid authors, who do both traditional publishing and self-publishing.

The heart of the session is this:

If you have a traditional deal, it's the editor who is the center of everything. If you're self-publishing, YOU'RE the center of everything.

She breaks down what the different departments at a traditional publisher do, including the:

editorial department (developmental edits, etc...)

managing editorial department (scheduling everything, copyediting, proofreading, etc...)

design department (interior and cover, etc...)

contracts department (consider if you're hiring professionals i.e,, an illustrator, etc...)

marketing department (including setting publication date, price, advanced reader copies, trades shows, etc...)

publicity department (submit book for review and award consideration, etc.... Shout out to SCBWI's Spark Award for books published in non-traditional ways.)

Hot tip: Pitch articles that tie into your book but aren't necessarily about your book.

subsidiary rights department sells or licenses your book (foreign, translation, audio, etc...)

sales departments (gets your book into bookstores, etc...)

Where to focus first when all this responsibility is on you? Sangeeta suggests we focus on our goals, and let those guide us.

She shares lots of resources, talks about the value of paying for a Kirkus review, being the local hero where you live, shares checklists, discusses how much to invest in your book, "series potential," and so much more!

A few articles Sangeeta recommends:

Check out this article Sangeeta wrote where she interviewed Zetta Elliott, Brent Hartinger, Cheryl Klein, and Stephen Mooser about their experiences and advice self-publishing children's books.

And this article on Reedsy, How much does self publishing really cost? 

(Another resource for authors self-publishing is the nonprofit Independent Book Publishers Association.)

And Then There Were More: Series

Author and agent Ammi Joan Paquette of the Erin Murphy Literary Agency talked with us about the art of writing a series.

As an author, she's written the Princess Juniper middle grade series, and the Two Truths and a Lie nonfiction series co-authored by Laurie Ann Thompson. (She also writes picture books and gives a strong impression of being an immortal, all-knowing being when it comes to children's literature.)

Her client work includes series books The False Prince by Jennifer Nielsen, Grounded by Megan Morrison, Divided We Fall by Trent Reedy, Book Scavenger by Jennifer Chambliss Bertman, All Four Stars by Tara Dairman, and House Arrest by K.A. Holt.

Here are a few highlights from her incredibly useful breakout session.

Why write a series? 

Joan gave us four reasons to write a series: You can tell a larger story. You can make the most of your created world—that took a lot of time and energy, and you can carry it on further with a series. Kids love them, especially in the MG age. And why not?

Princess Juniper was her first plunge into series, followed by Two Truths and a Lie--connected nonfiction books that don't carry on a single story.

She gave us an overview of categories:

• YA: tends to be high concept. Lots of fantasy and dystopian. 
• MG: there can be both fantasy and realistic series. 
• Chapter book. Many of these series go on for a long time. 
• Picture book series. Rare to sell a series. If it's wildly successful, a publisher will say "let's do more."

There are also genres:

• Paranormal/dystopian. 
• Fantasy, epic fantasy, and science fiction
• Action adventure—tends to be especially middle grade
• Mystery—sometimes in MG, sometimes in YA. 
• Outliners—contemporary, historical, literary (like the Luxe series). You don't see a ton of contemporary in series  

They come in numbers:

• Duology—two books
• Trilogy—used to be the name of the game (editors might be wearying of this) 
• More-than-that-logy 
• Also ongoing (Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Babysitters Club) 

How do you know your book might be a series ?

• Does it tell a larger story? 
• Does it have an irresistible hook?
• Can you sell it? 

How do you query an agent with one? 

It makes an agent nervous to be pitched on a series that's all done or mapped out. Publishing isn't a sure thing. Best bet is not to write the whole series ... yet. Here's a handy phrase: "This is a standalone book with series potential."

Agent Panel: Alexandra Penfold

Alexandra Penfold is an agent at Upstart Crow Literary. She represent everything from picture books up, with some select adult titles. She's also an author.

In books, Alexandra is a seeker of beauty and truth and light.

At an annual SCBWI conference in NY Alexandra met Jessixa Bagley when Jessixa thanked her following a breakout session. After the conference Jessixa sent Alexandra a picture book dummy. When Alexandra read it, she cried. She signed Jessixa, and together they worked to refine the story. They created changes with small word choices, in order to hit the emotional target. That book became Boats for Papa which won last year's Golden Kite Award for picture book text.

Another SCBWI success story happened at the LA summer conference when Alexandra met illustrator Suzanne Kaufman through friends. This relationship was first one of friendship but then Alexandra had a chance to see Suzanne's work and she later signed Suzanne as a client.

They are now collaborating on a book together called All Are Welcome.

"Work on the things you are afraid to work on."

In terms of submitting, the plan is formulated based on the book. Sometimes Alexandra might take it wide or target in on the perfect person. As agents, they are match makers. 

Publishers are asking agents to see "own voices" stories.