Denise Cronin: What Makes Your Work Publishable

There are two Denise Cronins in our industry, and so the first step in the right direction of your long walk toward publication is knowing which Denise you're sending your art samples to.

The one you want is right here:

Denise Cronin, Art Director and VP at Viking Children's Books

And honestly, she was so warm and friendly it made me wish I weren't just a very fast typist writer.

Actually, correction: She was warm and friendly to everyone except Cecilia Jung, her counterpart at Penguin, whom she tried to kick out of the room. But Cecilia hung around, and Denise didn't actually seem to mind, so what for a moment seemed like a death match between two famous art directors ended with a shrug.

Denise told us about Viking's deep history in publishing, where only six different people have run the company over a 78-year span. Their backlist is huge: including classic titles such as FERDINAND, CORDUROY, PIPPI LONGSTOCKING, and modern classics such as THE STINKY CHEESE MAN.

And here's what you need to show if you want your work to stand out:

Attitude. Does something have a kick to it? Let’s see a little attitude.

Drawing skills. Has the artist done his homework? Does he really understand what he's drawing?

How does somebody use color? Do they know how to use it to separate foreground from background? 

Can the artist show her the ability to expand a narrative, not just echo the text. (Can she a substory with illustrations?)

Perspective and scale: Are they always showing something head on in the same scale? You need to vary those things, but it needs to make sense in terms of the story.

Is rendered in an innovative way (making her want to take a second look at an ordinary thing)?

You want your work to get noticed, so don't send it in a plain envelope. Illustrate it, or send her a glassine one so she can have a hint of what's inside. At the least, write SCBWI on it.

Finally, here was her best line:

Audience member: My question is about money.

Denise: We work in publishing. There is no money. 

SCBWI TEAM BLOG Pre-Conference Interview: ADs Lucy Ruth Cummins & Denise Cronin

Over the holidays, SCBWI TEAM BLOGger Jaime Temairik posted interview with two fabulous Art Directors in her blog CocoaStomp.

First Jaime talked to Lucy Ruth Cummins, Associate Art Director at Simon & Schuster. Below is a bit from her interview. Click here to read the full post. 

Jaime: Okay, help is on the way. In the meantime, I'm having my people send Justin [Chanda] a bunch of emails so he'll be distracted and hopefully you'll be able to answer a few more questions. Illustrators will definitely want to know if you are currently acquiring?

Lucy: We are always acquiring new talent. I'm always keeping my eyes peeled. Even if I can't place someone on a project immediately (and it is true that some parts of publisher's lists are shrinking!) I'll often keep them on hand waiting for the right project. An example of this is the debut book from illustrator Jon Klassen, CATS' NIGHT OUT by Caroline Stutson - Jon just received the Governor General's Award for this project, and I had had his work on hand for several years before I was able to pair him with the perfect project. Although we may not always be able to immediately put the rubber to the road with new folks, good artwork makes a strong impression and the quest for a winning collaboration is always on my mind.

As for what I'm looking for - there's never anything specific. I love such a range of things, but I'm mainly looking for things I'm touched by. I love cute. I love simple. But I also love creepy and detailed! There's no one thing I'm looking for and I'm always happy to be surprised.

Next Jaime talked with Denise Cronin, Vice President in the Penguin Young Readers Group and the Art Director for Viking Children’s Books. There's a snippet below. Click here to read the full post.

Jaime: Denise, did you know not only are you an Art Director, you're a flipping Vice President? What is your average day like?

Denise: If you count time spent on the train, checking files and reading manuscripts, my day is about 9 hours. We are usually juggling about 60 books at various points of development. I work very closely with the editors and the designers in my department from start to finish. Making books is very collaborative. Rarely do I work alone.

Be sure to check out both the interviews for insights from these terrific art directors and to see if they had the same answers to Kill, kiss or marry: Helvetica, Baskerville or Comic Sans? If you attend the conference, you can meet each of them during their breakout workshops. And--attention illustrators--there's still space in the Illustrators' Intensive, Beyond Books: Picture Books and the New Media.

And remember, whether you join us in New York or not, SCBWI TEAM BLOG will offer full coverage of the conference and intensives, live blogging throughout. Bookmark or follow the Official SCBIW  Conference Blog today!