Debbie Ridpath Ohi's Blog, page 22
December 5, 2017
Advice For Young Writers, Cake & TANGLED PLANET: Three Questions For Kate Blair
I first met Kate Blair at CANSCAIP's Packaging Your Imagination conference, when she was helping during my presentation. Her debut YA, TRANSFERRAL, came out from Dancing Cat/Cormorant soon after; I posted about it here. I enjoyed Transferral so much that I couldn't wait until Kate's second book came out...and I wasn't disappointed. TANGLED PLANET is fantastic.
Canadians can buy Tangled Planet now while you Americans will have to wait for the second book until May 2018. If you're a fan of science fiction, I highly recommend you buy Kate's first book as well!
Born on a tiny English island, Kate Blair has worked as a museum curator, a clown and at a theme park in New Jersey. She lives in Toronto and is an author, a mother, and terribly tired. Her first novel, Transferral, was a MYRCA, Snow Willow and Sunburst Award nominee. You can find Kate at KateBlair.com, on Twitter at @curledupkate and on Instagram at @kateblairauthor.
Synopsis of TANGLED PLANET (Dancing Cat Books/Cormorant):
Arriving on a planet after 400 years aboard a generation starship, 16-year-old engineer Ursa struggles to adjust. When her crewmates start being killed, and a strange creature is seen in the forests, Ursa is determined to prove Beta Earth is unsafe, and return to the safety of her starship home.
Q. Could you please take a photo of something in your office and tell us the story behind it?
I don't have a writing office. I have the kitchen table, or the laptop on my lap in bed or on the sofa, and coffee shops on lunch. So this is from a coffee shop:
The good thing about working in coffee shops is they often have cake. I don't have much free time, so having to be in the right space to write, or needing specific tools or inspiration would definitely hold me back. And it amazes me how being in different spaces can give you a different outlook on things - which is a major upside to not having a specific place to write. Well, that and cake.
Q. What advice do you have for young writers?
Don't hold onto a project too long. Sometimes, it's time to move on. I worked on one story for nine years and sent it to about 20 agents and publishers - but in the end, it simply wasn't good enough. Once I finally gave up and started a new book, it took me just one year to write and was accepted by the first publisher who saw it. That first book makes me cringe now, so I'm so glad it wasn't published. But those nine years weren't a waste of time - that book was how I learned to write.
Q. What are you excited about right now?
Christmas! I'm going home to see my family in the UK. It's been an extremely busy year. I haven't had any real time off since March, so lazing around at my parents' house while they help with the children, eating too much food and watching the Christmas Doctor Who is my idea of bliss.
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For more interviews, see my Inkygirl Interview Archive.
December 4, 2017
November 29, 2017
Teachers! I'd love to see what your students draw with broken crayons
You never know what will come out of a broken crayon.
Those of you who follow my Twitter and Instagram accounts will have seen my Broken Crayon series, now up to #35. To teachers: I'd love to see what your students draw with broken crayons! If you send me a link to an online gallery (private or public), I'd love to see. Here is some broken crayon art from 5th-graders in Grande Cache, Alberta, Canada:
Suggestions on where to post a gallery: Padlet, Flickr, Facebook album....if you know of other student-safe gallery venues (all of the ones I've mentioned can be made private if desired), please let me know (you can also tag me on social media) and I'll add it to the list.
November 27, 2017
November 20, 2017
November 8, 2017
Exciting news: Michael Ian Black and I are teaming up for I'M WORRIED, a sequel to I'M BORED and I'M SAD!
I've been dying to make this public and I finally can: I am THRILLED to announce that I will be illustrating a new picture book by author / comedian / actor Michael Ian Black called I'M WORRIED.
The story features the Potato, Little Girl and Flamingo from the previous two books in the series, I'M BORED and I'M SAD:
This was my first children's book, published in 2012. Find out how I was chosen as the illustrator.
This sequel to I'M BORED comes out from Simon & Schuster Books For Young Readers in June 2018.
The third book in the series, I'M WORRIED, will be published by Simon & Schuster Books For Young Readers in 2019. And YAY, I'll be working again with Justin Chanda (published/editor) and Laurent Linn (art director/designer) again!! As you can tell from this photo of one of our meetings about I'M SAD, I have a lot of fun with this crew. :-)
Justin Chanda, Laurent Linn, me and Alexa Pastor meeting about I'M SAD at Simon & Schuster Children's.
November 6, 2017
Interview with Curtis Brown literary agent, Tess Callero
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Tess Callero is one of the fabulous literary agents at Curtis Brown Ltd (another fabulous agent is Ginger Knowlton, my own agent). I got to know Tess when I recently did an Instagram takeover of the CB feed; the fact that I had so much FUN was largely due to Tess's enthusiasm and help - in addition to her role as an agent, Tess is also the Social Media Director at Curtis Brown.
You can find Tess on Twitter at @tesscallero, Curtis Brown on Instagram at @curtisbrown.ltd and on Twitter at @curtisbrownltd.
Q. How did you become an agent?
I was a business major at Indiana University and halfway through my junior year taking finance, accounting, and marketing classes, I sort of hit a wall. I missed reading books and discussing them with a class. I missed writing essays and thinking critically about literature. I got in touch with an advisor in the English department who worked with me on my schedule so I could take up a dual degree in English and Marketing and still graduate on time. I then enrolled in a literary publishing class that outlined the whole industry. One of our guest speakers was a lit agent assistant, and the way she described her job was the perfect marriage of my two degrees. I took an internship in NYC at an agency after graduating - I had never even been to NY before and was completely terrified. But I knew this was what I wanted to do, and almost four years later here I am!
Q. According to your Curtis Brown agent profile, you welcome all YA submissions. I assume this means you are NOT interested in picture book or middle grade? Your profile also says you gravitate toward stories involving friendship, romance or suspense in YA. Any other details you’d like to add about what you are and are not looking for?
On the children’s side, I am only looking for young adult submissions. As far as what I’m looking for – I would LOVE a YA about a girl with dreams to make it to the MLB/NHL/etc. I’m also interested in a friendship story involving mental health. I’m not the best agent for high fantasy, but love a touch of magical realism in the vein of BONE GAP. Lastly, I’m a total sucker for a good psychological suspense novel that will keep me guessing!
Q. What turns you off the most when reading a query letter?
An author should always include a bio! An agent/author relationship is a partnership, and even a short introduction is key so I know who I could potentially be partnering with.
Q. Is it ok to send a query for more than one story at a time?
I would prefer that you choose your best and most complete story. You always want to put your best foot forward!
Q. Your profile says that you will only respond if you’re interested in taking a look at a writer’s work. How long should a writer wait before assuming you’re not interested?
I tend to respond to queries within two weeks.
Q. What’s your opinion about a writer submitting a manuscript to more than one agent at a time?
I think that is completely understandable – and I encourage it! Just because an agent is interested doesn’t necessarily mean he or she is the right one for you. Authors should consider all their options and choose the agent that is the best fit for them, and submitting to multiple agents is the only way to do that.
Q. Are you an editorial agent?
Yes. One of my jobs as an agent is to make sure a client’s work is in its best possible form when submitting to editors. This may mean one quick round of edits, or many (many!) back and forths. Either way, I would only offer representation to stories – and writers – I believe in, so an author should never take this personally. Editing is meant to be constructive, not critical.
Q. What else would you like people to know about you?
I grew up being one of the only readers in my circle of friends and family. Now, I love sharing books with my non-reader friends and having them fall in love with the feeling reading a good book can give someone. My goal as an agent is to help writers put books out into the world that will appeal to those “non-readers” – books I would personally recommend to friends and family. I read pretty much every genre, so what really captures me is the connection I feel to the characters because I know that if I feel connected, others will too!
Thanks, Tess!
If you are interesting submitting a query to Tess, please check her Curtis Brown profile info for her email address and other submissions details. As of today (November 6, 2017), Tess *is* currently accepting submissions, but I'm pointing writers to her CB profile page since others may read this post after it's been archived.
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For more interviews, see my Inkygirl Interview Archive.
