Michelle Worthington's Blog, page 18

Top Tips for Literacy: Reading with SPD Children Part 3

For more tips on reading to children with SPD, please follow my blog
www.michelleworthington.comwww.michelleworthington.com

Top Tips for Literacy: Reading to children with SPD Part Two

Reading to a SPD toddler can be like catching jelly in a net, persistence is the key. Please follow my blog for the next instalment and updates.

Talk soon
Michelle
www.michelleworthington.com
www.michelleworthington.com

Top Tips for Literacy: Reading to Children with SPD Part One

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lVPgqU1lWFs Part One of my top tips for reading to children with SPD.Please feel free to follow my blog for new video updates. Talk soonMichelle www.michelleworthington.com www.michelleworthington.com

Top Tips for Illustrators: Author Fan Girl Interview with Illustrator Dave Atze

Support Illustrator Dave Atze's Kickstarter Campaign for picture book, Don't Shut the Door  https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/2142085045/dont-shut-the-door
As an author, I am always in awe of illustrators. They are the rock stars of picture books and they don't come much more rock star than Dave. Dave is an Australian illustrator with a fantastic sense of humour that he translates effortlessly into his illustrations. I was lucky enough to interview him about his next project, Don't Shut the Door,  a fun children's book about a little boy named Elliott who is great at coming up with excuses why he needs his door left open at bed time. A few monsters make an appearance in the book J
 
 
 
 
 
What inspired you?
 The book was based on the writer Matthew Nicholls son.
My inspiration for the character Illustrations came from movies like monsters inc
 What has been your journey up to this point?

I have been illustrating for the past 5 years and this is my first childrens book
 
As a child, what was your relationship with books?

Goosebumps was my main jam when I was a kid and lots and lots of comic books
 What is the most important thing about what you do?

Having fun and making people laugh with my pictures
 
Do you believe picture books can change the world?

For sure. Every smile brightens up a persons day
 
What do you hope people will take away from this experience?

Hopefully a love for my style of Illustration so I can continue spreading fun and craziness
 
What is next?

Later this year I will be releasing my 1st Art Book. It will be a collection of my art both traditional and digital from my career up to this point.
Its called Totally Tasty! Keep an eye out for it!!   The best place to contact Dave is on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/daveatzeillustration/
Also follow him on:
 Twitter: https://twitter.com/DaveAtze
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/daveatze/ 
Support his Kickstarter Campaign here:https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/2142085045/dont-shut-the-door  www.michelleworthington.com

Top Tips for Authors: What to wear to meet with potential publishers

When you are meeting with potential publishers, it is not like a job interview. As much as I love tailored skirt suits and French twists, when you are meeting with someone who is thinking about spending time and money publishing your story, they want to very quickly be able to access who you are and what you can bring to the table as part of their marketing strategy. You are your best calling card and you need to dress accordingly.

When I met with publishers about my new book about a little mouse and a kitten, I bought a dress from Pinup Girl clothing that was perfect for my pitch. It has pictures of cats in frames all over the dress and I teamed it with some killer heels from Novo that gave me confidence...and height! I was a complete package, bringing them not only a great story but an author who lives and breathes marketing her story to make children happy all over the world.

https://www.pinupgirlclothing.com/

http://www.novoshoes.com.au/

You don't have to be as crazy as me and where clothes that match your book, but be a person that does more than just offer words on a page. Show them your personality in some way so they can make a quick assumption that you are a good investment. It's never to early to start showing them you can be their next super star author.

Talk soon,
Michelle

www.michelleworthington.com
www.michelleworthington.com

Author Interview with Dr June Perkins

 Born to a Papua New Guinean mother and Australian Father,  Dr June Perkins first lived in Tasmania for twenty years from the age of one. In her twenties she travelled, studied and lived throughout Australia with a growing family until settling in Queensland. During her travels between Tasmania and Queensland she completed a PHD in the empowerment of Indigenous women through writing, met and interviewed many amazing artists and writers, had the bounty of having and nurturing three wonderful and amazing children and was lucky enough to travel to Kiribati and New Zealand.  She has worked as a university tutor,  project coordinator, writer-in-community, writing group co-ordinator,  community journalist,  virtues education teacher, photographer, web moderator and editor. Her dream is to produce multiplatform story projects celebrating and teaching about nature, music and peace.  She is currently working to bring several projects to fruition and has begun tutoring and mentoring university students. Right now her major project is Magic Fish Dreaming. 
https://www.facebook.com/Gumbootspearlz-June-Perkins-107788312592571/?fref=ts  What inspired you?   
Magic Fish Dreaming was inspired by living in Far North Queensland , and working on a project nearly a decade ago, to inspire children and the community to write poetry – Ripple which I (which I had always loved since my teenage years).  It is a picture book of poetry about nature, family, environment, diversity and childhood.
 What has been your journey up to this point?

I began writing poetry as a teenager, but only recently in the last 6 or so years began to write poetry for families and children. The poetry was written over the time I lived in Tully Far North Queensland with my young children who are now teenagers.

In 2015 I did an online course of how to run a kickstarter, and picked this as the project most likely needed a kickstarter to be a reality as children’s poetry is a difficult form to find a traditional publisher for.we also looked at things like how to source an illustrator and what kinds of questions to ask them when working with them and even how do draw up a contract with them as well.  It was through the children's book academy.
 
I also found an illustrator and commissioned some samples of art from her for the kickstarter.  I loved finding and meeting Helene Magisson!  She is such a wonderful interpreter of my work and I absolutely trust her illustrative work with the poetry.
 
 


  
How did you find the experience of sourcing your own illustrator and working towards the same vision?
I looked through the Australian Society of Authors style file and found Helene there and her work appealed to me so much because of her representation ofchildren of all nationalities.
I did have one other illustrator in mind, but Helene was my first choice.
I emailed here and asked her  to let her know this and tell her about my project and myself, and asked if she would like to read the manuscript and explained how I would like to work.  Helene tells the story of this in one of the kickstarter videos.
The biggest thing was that she just understood the poetry and was attracted to this project.  I was so excited to discover she lived Brisbane as well, and after she had done a sample of two illustrations for the book we met in person.
She is a very easy person to work with and I love her interpretations of my poems in art - the collaboration just works and we are so looking forward to working on the rest of the book.
We communicate via email, phone and in person and it is great communication, with both of us very open in the work.

Why did you choose to publish via crowdfunding? 
Any kind of poetry is difficult to publish to any age group unless you have a well established name and plenty of connections.  I was told by some in the industry that such a book would simply not attract a mainstream publisher, and small independent poetry publishers don't seem to publish poetry for families and children either, but be more literary orientated and for older eaders.
But having worked with children in schools I know that poetry is taught and read and enjoyed by children so I wanted a book with a Far North Queensland setting that would be enjoyed and read by children with their parents and grandparents.
What makes you happiest, the publishing journey or the published book destination? 
I'd say both.   Because you want an audience for the book at the end but the process of creation, editing, ,publishing is important for that end destination to be reached.
I've learnt to enjoy the marketing process more, and the premarketing of the book through the various social platforms has been a lot of fun, especially the latest posts.
Helene is taking two of our kickstarter rewards, as overseas ambassadors to France, a platypus and a koala bear, and I can't wait to hear and see what the do in promoting the project!


 As a child, what was your relationship with books?
I read up to 10 books a week, and had a love of the public library.  I owned very few books, but they were very precious to me and usually from birthday presents.  I’ve written a poem called the Library brigade which is being published soon.
 What is the most important thing about what you do?

Sharing a love of the environment, music, culture, and family in writing and hopefully inspiring people to walk in and observe nature, take care of each other, and make music.
 Do you believe picture books can change the world?

Yes!
What do you hope people will take away from this experience?
 I hope that all those contributing to the kickstarter, will love the book Helene, myself and the Magic Fish dreaming team have created, as they will all receive a copy.  I also hope that they will be inspired to care for our planet and each other.

What is next?

Finishing off the kickstarter page and project plan, and launching in January 2016, and then hopefully working on the book February to September for release in October next year. 




Here is the link if you would like to support the Kickstarter Campaignhttps://www.kickstarter.com/projects/juneperkins/magic-fish-dreaming


You can contact June via social media 
Website: http://juneperk.wix.com/gumbootspearlz
 Blog: http://gumbootspearlz.org/ Facebook:   https://www.facebook.com/magicfishdreaming/?fref=ts Twitter: @gumbootspearlz
Goodreads:  https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6475917.June_Perkins Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/june-perkins-15764a99
Pinterest: https://twitter.com/gumbootspearlz
  
  www.michelleworthington.com

Top Tips for Authors: What to wear to book signings

When I do a book signing, it can be a heart warming or a heart breaking experience. Sitting behind a little table in the book store, waiting for people to come and buy your book. There is not always a line out the door. The best way to get through the day is to wear something that makes you feel confident, happy and draws attention. You are your billboard for selling your books, and if like me, you are not a fan of dragging customers physically into the bookstore or randomly accosting strangers to buy your book, you need to be noticed by the passing traffic.

My dress is from Rose Wholesale http://www.rosewholesale.com/ and my shoes are from Spendless Shoes http://www.spendless.com.au/ so my whole outfit cost less than $30. You don't need to dress like a rich diva.

I love wearing bright colours anyway, but it doesn't have to be like that all the time. When we were marketing for The Pink Pirate, we dressed up as pirates and had a great time having our photos taken with kids. We had pink shirts made and wore them whenever we were doing promotional work. Selling books was a happy bi-product of getting out and marketing our books and ourselves.



If people see you having a good time and you seem approachable and happy to chat, you will not only sell more books but have a more enjoyable day even if you don't. Just have fun.

Talk soon,
Michelle

www.michelleworthington.com


www.michelleworthington.com

Top Tips for Authors: International Publishers Accepting Unsolicited Picture Book Manuscripts

Here is a list of US Publishers accepting unsolicited picture book manuscripts at this time. Please follow my blog to keep up to date and let me know if you hear of any others.

Talk soon
Michelle

www.michelleworthington.com

Action Publishing

Albert Whitman & Co.

Andersen Press Ltd

Arthur A. Levine Books

Buster Books

Candy Jar Books

Charlesbridge

Chronicle Books

CoopJackPublishing

Curious Fox

Fat Fox

David Fickling Books

Flashlight Press

Fledgling Press

Frances Lincoln

Hogs Back Books

Kane Miller

Maverick

Mighty Media Press

NorthSouth Books

Nosy Crow

O’Brien Press

Owlkids Books

Pajama Press

Pants on Fire Press

Peachtree Publishers

Piccadilly Press

Strident Publishing

Stripes

Templar Publishing

Top That! Publishing

Walker Books - author/illustrator onlywww.michelleworthington.com

Top Tips for Authors: Writing an Outstanding Cover Letter

 In the competitive world of manuscript submissions, a cover letter can be the difference between your manuscript drowning in the slush pile or being seen by the people who make decisions about publishing. Whether you are submitting by email or post, the cover letter is always the first thing to be considered, making it just as important to be correctly written and edited as your final manuscript. Here are some tips to make your cover letter outstanding.

1. Do not send out generic cover letters to all publishers

Just like authors don't like getting generic impersonal rejection letters, publishers want to know that you have put some time and effort into considering why you are sending your manuscript specifically to them. In the first sentence of your cover letter, pitch yourself as an author in no more than 20 words. The second sentence should be the reason why you have chosen this publisher to submit your work to, whether it is a multiple submission and any other information that will catch the attention of the reader to know this is not just another blind mail out to try and get published. Have you met the editor at a conference? Did you get favourited on a Twitter pitch? What gives you the inside line to being read by the decision makers?

2. Show your credentials

List your published works and any awards received next. If you are a first time author, tell them why you are writing this book and what real life experience you have to back your story. Don't say you read it to your kids and they loved it, or your neighbour, or your dog. You have to show you are a professional in your field and can market your story within your established network. Don't fake it till you make it, be real about what you are bringing to the table to avoid embarrassment down the track.

3. Show your network

Do you regularly attend writers groups or are you a member of writing societies? Do you have a network of people already in place who will support you once your book is published? If your book is about a specific subject, are you a member of an interest group who will already be willing to buy your book? You know more people than you think. This will help them make a decision about whether you are in a position to get the publisher a return on their investment.

4. Your story

Perfect a short pitch about your manuscript, not a blurb or synopsis. If someone asked you what your book was about and you had 10 seconds to tell them and make them interested enough to buy the book, what would you say? Then go into more detail about word count, target audience and background story or illustration notes. This shouldn't be the biggest paragraph of the letter. The reader will decide for themselves and sometimes you can put them off by slanting a story in a certain way that would make them less interested than if they had just read it themselves. Sell your book here.

5. Thank you

Don't forget to say thank you, and mean it. Write a note to say you appreciate their time, again mentioning why you are sending the story to them and how you hope to hear from them at their convenience.

6. Contact details

So many people forget to list their contact details. If they love it, how can they contact you? Also list all the social media sites you can be contacted on. Publishers will google you so it's best if they go to sites you control rather than googling at random and finding some information you weren't aware existed. Google yourself regularly to make sure everything is in order.


I hope you have found my tips for writing an outstanding cover letter helpful. Here are all my contact details if you would like to stay in touch or contact me with any specific questions about getting published.

Talk soon
x Michelle

www.michelleworthington.com
https://www.facebook.com/michelleworthington.author
https://twitter.com/michelle_author
https://au.linkedin.com/in/michelleworthingtonauthorwww.michelleworthington.com

Author Interview with Katrina McKelvey

Dandelions In our time-poor parenting age this whimsical picture book reminds us of the value of taking the time to be in the moment and embrace life’s beauty, wherever we find it, in all its delicate detail.
A celebration of the bond between a father and his daughter, Dandelions, is also a joyful, floating flight into the simple pleasure of letting your imagination take you on a journey.
This gorgeous picture book is the story of a little girl who one day notices her father mowing the lawn — in the process destroying her favourite flowers: the dandelions. She rushes out to stop him, but she’s too late, they’re all gone. There’s nothing for it: she’s just going to have to sit outside and wait until they grow back! But fortunately, Dad has another idea. Taking her hand, he leads her to the house, and there, nestled near the verandah, are two tiny dandelion puff balls. Father and daughter each blow as hard as they can, and the tiny dandelion parachutes spiral and spin, up, up and away, spreading their seeds to create new generations of dandelions far and wide. And together, father and daughter lie down on the grass, watching as they whirl and twirl through the air.
Exquisite watercolour illustrations combine with lyrical text to create a story that’s perfect for readers aged 4–8. This is a book that will be cherished by families and recommended by teachers and librarians, exploring as it does the resilience of nature, the art of forgiveness, and the love between a parent and child.
Perhaps most importantly Dandelions is an exploration of Imagination, which once it takes flight, like a dandelion seed, can transport you just about anywhere.
 

What inspired you?
As my daughter and I used to walk to and from preschool, she would jump in gardens and gutters to pick dandelion seed heads. We found them growing everywhere. She enjoyed blowing them apart with me. After that, as my husband mowed the lawn, I used to get a little sad watching him destroy the dandelion pants that made those puff balls she loved so much and I wondered how she would feel if she ever found out.
 
As I have a teaching background, I also wanted to add a language element to the story that takes the reader (adult and child) beyond the story. I have tried to create an experience so the reader feels like they are moving with the seeds as they journey through the countryside.
 
What has been your journey up to this point?
 
I’m a former primary school teacher and worked very hard for 10 years, so when I had my children, I wanted to be a full time stay-at-home mummy. I absolutely loved being at home with my babies and didn’t want to go back to teaching full time. I knew I would use this time to plan a career change. I wanted a new career that would be flexible, creative and involve being with children. I didn’t want to neglect my teaching degree either.
 
During the quiet hours of one morning in early 2011, just before dawn, I remember sitting upright in bed. The idea of my next career had woken me. I was going to be a children’s author. I haven’t looked back but it has been a very interesting journey.
 
I have been to workshops, conferences, festivals and literary event from Brisbane to Melbourne and everywhere in between. I’m a Books In Homes Role Model, I facilitate the Hunter Writers Centre Children’s Writing Group, I’m on the board of the Newcastle Writers Festival (I help develop the children’s program and manage the program and volunteers during the festival), and I’m the founding member and current president of the CBCA (NSW) Newcastle Sub-branch. I have used the last few years to network in my local area and get involved in my local literary community.
 
Dandelions is my first published work but I plan to have more tiles in the future. Might even dabble in some junior fiction as well as continue writing picture books.
 
As a child, what was your relationship with books?
 
I was a reluctant reader as a child. I disliked reading and I’d be found up a tree, climbing on a roof, playing basketball or riding my bike instead. I didn’t ‘discover’ books until I picked up a copy of ‘Just Tricking’ in my early 20’s. I have had a passion for humorous books and Andy Griffiths ever since. I love writing humour even though I’m generally not a humorous person.



  I love that you were a reluctant reader turned author, how can we help reluctant readers become life long lovers of reading in today's world?

If anyone had told me as child I would become an author, I would have choked on my apple!


I believe reluctant readers need access to LOTS of different types of books with loads of colourful pictures and large text arranged in small chunks. Thick books can be overwhelming and boring to look at. Books need to be stimulating for reluctant readers from the front cover to the back cover and on every page in between - including the margins. Children also need access to authors and illustrators who can give them priceless 1-1 inspiration. ‘Just Tricking’ was THE books that got me reading and I’ve listened to Andy Griffiths speak at several festivals and conferences. Now he inspires me to write. Parents and teachers need to help children hunt and hunt until they make lasting connections with books. It could take years but it’s worth it! 


We are lucky we have so much quality children’s literature in Australia to dive into. Public libraries and school libraries are full of beautiful people who are very passionate about connecting people with the books. It’s never been easier to get our hands on the classics or the latest releases - and all for free. Local bookshops are wonderlands too. Go for a visit!


 

What is the most important thing about what you do?
 
Inspiring kids to read and connecting with them. These connections can be so varied. I know what it’s like to dislike reading. Reading is the foundation of living a fulfilling and successful life.
 
Do you believe picture books can change the world?
 
Oh yes! I love reading my ‘Dandelions’ to children K-6. I tell them its about the journey, not how many words are in a story. The big cover is like a door. You can escape and go anywhere you like. So powerful!
 
What do you hope people will take away from this experience?
 
I hope daughters and dads snuggling together to reading our book. I hope our  story is making people are more aware of nature around them, including dandelions. I hope classrooms are using our book to discuss resilience, forgiveness and hope. I hope our book has encourage children to go outside and really look at their world, and parents to stop and appreciate the small things their children are interested in no matter how insignificant the parents may think it is. I hope a children somewhere enjoys reading it just for fun too.
 
What is next?
 
Lots more writing (more than I did last year I hope), continue to promote ‘Dandelions’, conduct school visits next year, implement and participate in the Newcastle Writers Festival Children’s Program 2016, continue with managing the CBCA (NSW) Newcastle Sub-branch, continue to be a  Books in Homes Role Model, continue to facilitate the Hunter Writers Centre Children’s Writing Group, and possibly participate in some literary conferences and festivals in 2016. Wow, I’m going to be busy!  You can contact Katrina via social media:           Website: www.katrinamckelvey.com           Blog: http://katrinamckelvey.blogspot.com.au           Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/katrinamckelveyauthor/           Twitter: https://twitter.com/katrinamckelvey Tag: @katrinamckelvey           Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/14123189.Katrina_McKelvey           Linkedin:
You can buy copies of Dandelions here:  Publisher: http://ekbooks.com.au/titles/dandelions/ Book’s own website: http://dandelions.ekbooks.com.au   www.michelleworthington.com