Nancy I. Sanders's Blog, page 35

Faith Building Fridays: Pure

The words of the Lord are pure words,

Like silver tried in a furnace of earth,

Purified seven times

You shall keep them, O Lord,

You shall preserve them from this generation forever.

-Psalm 12:6-7

It’s easy to slip into writing words that will be accepted by publishers because they are edgy, or deal with current trends in immorality, fortune tellers, or psychics. But God’s words are pure words, refined and purified. As we write our manuscripts, may our words be pure and holy as well.

Dear God, purify me! Try me! Refine me as a writer until the words I write are pure and will stand the test of time.

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For more faith-building encouragement as a writer, visit my site, Scribes.

Scribes: Devotions for Christian Writers is available at Amazon. What a great gift of encouragement for you to have to start a brand new year as a writer! Add it to your Christmas wish list today.

Filed under: Faith-building Fridays

Happy Thanksgiving!

Sing to the Lord a new song,

for He has done marvelous things.

-Psalm 98:1, NIV

Happy Thanksgiving!

What a wonderful time to gather with family and friends and share in the rich blessings the Lord has given to each of us.

I pray that no matter where you are or what your circumstances are that you will be filled with an overwhelming joy and thankfulness for our amazing God.

If you’re called to be one of God’s scribes and would like devotions to encourage you along your journey, please visit my site Scribes.

And if you’ve never yet met God personally or would like to know more about how to connect with the best friend you could ever have, please CLICK HERE.

Filed under: Uncategorized

Writing Text Levels in Nonfiction Picture Books

Do you notice the three levels in this photograph?

That’s me in the front, the main image in the scene.

At the bottom behind me is a level of sand with seagulls standing on the shore.

And in the background is the Gulf of Mexico.

Writing nonfiction picture books in today’s industry is a lot like this photograph.

Think levels.

Of text.

Wanna hear more and learn how to use this technique to take your picture books to the next level?

Check out this article I wrote that’s posted at the Working Writer’s Club!

Filed under: Nonfiction, Picture Books

NF PB Journey: Idea Journal

Guess what I’m really into these days? Blank composition notebooks! For example, I like the thick 80 to 100-page journals for jotting down my ideas on a new project.

I’ve used various notebooks and file folders over the years but right now I’m enjoying the slim size of blank composition notebooks. They’re easy to slip in my purse or a tote bag when I’m going out and want to carry my idea journal with me. Also, they slide so nicely into the pocket folders I love to use to store all my files for a project I’m working on.

So since I’m starting out on a journey to explore Charlesbridge, I decided to create a brand new idea journal to carry along. I thought I’d show you what I’ve done so you can make your own too if you’d like.

Here’s how I decorated the cover of my idea journal. I have scrapbooking pages that I used to cut a front cover to glue on my composition notebook.

I also save old birthday cards and other cards we get all year long. That’s where this cute cat and inspirational Bible verse came from that I glued on to decorate my front.

The verse is, “I can do all things through him.” What a great verse to start our journey on!

I want to show you the inside of my book, too. This is the Table of Contents. Yes, I label each blank page in the bottom of the right corner all the way through the book. And in the beginning, like you see here, I create a Table of Contents so I can quickly find which page has which idea on.

Each time I add a new entry to a different page, I note it here in my table of contents.

And here’s how I decorated the back of my idea journal.

I’m loving using these idea journals. Right now this one is blank, but here are some of the items you’ll find in my table of contents for the idea journal I’m using for a different picture book I’ve been working on lately:

PRAYER FOR MY PROJECT

FAVORITE SCRIPTURE VERSES FOR MY PROJECT

PERSONAL OBSERVATIONS

Because this picture book is about a nonfiction topic I’m doing some “experimenting” on myself, this is where I’m recording some of my observations.

IDEAS FOR A POTENTIAL SERIES

BACK MATTER IDEAS

PACING/PLOT IDEAS

LIST OF WAYS I COULD REUSE MY CURRENT RESEARCH IN FUTURE MANUSCRIPTS

INTERVIEWS OF PEOPLE ON MY TOPIC

(This is a short list. Longer interviews would be filed in my pocket folder.)

NOTES ABOUT MY MENTOR TEXT

TEXT IDEAS FOR MY PICTURE BOOK 

This actually takes up most of the pages in my idea journal!

STYLE GUIDE FOR MY PICTURE BOOK

Sometimes I create a style guide. This is especially handy if there are variations on spelling, etc. I keep a list here of choices I make to use throughout my ms.

WORD WALLS

(Words related to the key themes in my picture book so I have lots to choose from in my writing.)

GLOSSARY

(Words on my topic that I could add to the back of my picture book)

RESEARCH NOTES

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So no matter if you use a 3-ring binder, a spiral notebook, loose pages in file folders, or what suits you best, go ahead and have an enjoyable time creating an idea journal. It can be you best friend along your journey!

Filed under: Nonfiction, Picture Books, Uncategorized

Faith Building Fridays: Do Well

Whatever you do, do well.

-Ecclesiastes 9:10, NLT

It’s tempting to not do our best on a manuscript when we’re rushing to get things done. Let’s train ourselves, however, to do our best on each phase of a manuscript. Let’s take time to go back through our manuscript and polish it until it shines. Let’s keep rewriting and reworking certain passages until it’s the best we know how. Let’s take the time to properly target a publisher so our idea fits their product line like a glove. Whether it’s a manuscript for a low-pay market or a manuscript for a top publishing house, let’s do well in whatever God calls us to write.

Dear Father, as I write and work at the various tasks of writing, help me always remember that I’m working for You! -In Jesus’s name. Amen.

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For more faith-building encouragement as a writer, visit my site, Scribes.

Scribes: Devotions for Christian Writers is available at Amazon. What a great gift of encouragement for you to have to start a brand new year as a writer! Add it to your Christmas wish list today.

Filed under: Faith-building Fridays

Nonfiction Picture Book Journey

Ever since I attended Pat Miller’s amazing NF4NF Conference in Houston last September, I’ve been inspired to focus on nonfiction.

I mean, I’ve always loved writing nonfiction and have published numerous nonfiction books. But right now I feel totally immersed in this world and I’m loving every minute of it.

Some exciting things I wanted to share with you as a result of this include an upcoming 4-session audio workshop that I’ve been working on to help YOU be a successful writer of nonfiction for kids, too. You’ll be the first to know when it’s available for release. (Hopefully in December!)

Another exciting bit of news is that I’ve got a new contract in the works…for nonfiction of course! It will be one of the biggest projects I’ve ever done in my career. I’ll let you know about that soon, too, but for now it’s still under wraps.

But here’s the most exciting thing I wanted to share with you today. I’ve decided here on my blog to invite you in on my journey as I’m targeting a specific nonfiction publisher to submit to…Charlesbridge!

I love Charlesbridge picture books. Especially their nonfiction picture books. I’ve ordered in stacks lately and have picked out some of my favorites!

But before we get started on our new adventure, I wanted to wrap up something we’ve talked a lot about on my blog over this past year.

UPDATE ON KAEDEN BOOKS

If you’ve been following along on my blog this past year, you may have written and submitted a manuscript to Kaeden Books as I did. Unfortunately, like others of you who have contacted me about this, I’ve never heard from them. Not even to return my post card to confirm that they got my manuscript.

One of my blog followers actually called them and asked about this and Kaeden said they are back-logged about opening the stack of submissions.

(A side note…you’ll still hear stories of writers who get contracts offered a couple of years after a submission because the publisher finally got around to opening and following through with it.)

I just wanted to update you on that bit of info.

ON TO CHARLESBRIDGE

But now let’s look ahead. Charlesbridge publishes beautiful nonfiction picture books. And what’s the best thing about this for us as nonfiction writers?

They accept unsolicited manuscripts! CLICK HERE to check out their submission guidelines.

So in the days and weeks and perhaps even months ahead, I’m going to explore Charlesbridge and work on submitting a manuscript to them. I plan on taking my time and enjoying a leisurely stroll into their world.

I’m inviting you to join me in the journey. We’ll have so much fun along the way! We’ll dissect some of their fantastic nonfiction picture books and get to know their editors and discover a whole new list of wonderful picture books to love.

And this will all help us grow as writers. Especially as nonfiction writers for kids.

I hope you’ll come along!

Filed under: Nonfiction, Picture Books

And the Winners Are!

Thank you to everyone who joined in the celebration of Laura Sassi’s newest picture book, Goodnight, Manger! It was so wonderful to have you sign up for a chance to win a copy of her delightful book or a free picture book critique by yours truly.

Drum roll, please!

I’m happy to announce that the winner of the free picture book, Goodnight, Manger is Pamela Haskins. Woot! Woot!

And the winner of the free picture book critique is Darlene Ivy. Hip, hip, hooray!

Again, thank you to all of you who joined in the fun. It’s always exciting to participate in the release of a brand new beautiful picture book, and having you all join in the celebration made it even more special. And thank YOU, Laura Sassi, for having us join you in  your book’s online tour. Best wishes and blessings to you on its upcoming journey!

Filed under: Book Review, Free Giveaway, Uncategorized

Book Review: The Carols of Christmas

The Carols of Christmas

(A Celebration of the Surprising Stories Behind Your Favorite Holiday Songs)

by Andrew Grant

Informational rather than inspirational. History buffs and trivia collectors of music history will find this book packed with detail. This book presents the history behind 21 popular Christmas Carols. Lyrics and music accompany each selection. The author is a choirmaster, church musician, and university professor.

Here are some samples from the text:

O Holy Night

“Perhaps there is something in the Unitarian worldview that lends itself to carol writing. By rejecting the doctrine of the Trinity, Unitarians bring the figure of Jesus and the events of his life into a sharper and more human focus. The story of the nativity, of a human child, certainly seems to hold a special appeal for the movement’s versifiers and hymn writers.”

Personent hodie

“It may appear slightly incongruous that one of the principal sources of English Christmas carols originated in Finland. The explanation lies in that most potent force in the shaping of human destinies: luck. The fact that this particular book survived, came into the possession of a couple of English clergymen, who then used it as a source for their own carol book, which in its turn survived and prospered, is the result of a series of coincidences and chance encounters.”

O Little Town of Bethlehem

“So next time these words and those notes work their familiar magic, remember the people who wove that magic for us: an American who imported peace from the Middle East; two dreamers–a naughty ploughboy and a real estate salesman; a devil in a puff of blue smoke; an English genius taking off his cycle-clips; and Mr. Garman of Forest Green, Surrey.”

 

 

-Thanks, BookLook Bloggers for another free book in exchange for my honest review!

Filed under: Book Review, Uncategorized

Nonfiction for Children’s Magazines: Submission Time!

This is a photograph of our cat Sandman hiding under a baby quilt I made.

Sometimes as writer’s we feel like that! Instead of submitting a manuscript we worked hard on to write, we opt to remain hidden and never actually send it in.

I want to encourage you to follow through and submit your nonfiction manuscript for a children’s magazine you’ve been working on!

If you’re not quite done yet, go ahead and wrap it up.

Then get feedback on it, hopefully through a critique group you participate in. (Not a member of a critique group? Start your own like I recently did! I e-mailed a small group of like-minded writer friends I know from social media sites and invited them to join. It’s so helpful to have extra pairs of eyes to read through my manuscripts.)

And then send it in. I’m getting mine ready to submit too.

If you’re submitting a nonfiction article to Clubhouse Jr., be sure to mention that you followed along here on my blog to learn more about their particular interests and types of nonfiction they need.

So do you have any questions about this entire process as we’re wrapping up this discussion here on my blog about writing nonfiction articles for children’s magazines? If so, be sure to post them here and let me know.

And stay tuned for our next adventure…I can hardly wait!

Next up here on my blog, we’re going to target a publisher who accepts unsolicited submissions for nonfiction children’s picture books! I hope you’ll join me on the journey.

(And if you signed up for the free giveaway last week here on my blog, the winners have been chosen. Their names will be announced in an upcoming post! Hopefully one of them will be you!!!!!)

Filed under: Magazines, Nonfiction

Book Review: My Christmas Stocking: Filled With God’s Love

My Christmas Stocking

(Filled With God’s Love)

by Crystal Bowman

Art by Claudine Gevry

Summary

This board book is written with sweet rhyming text and soft, precious illustrations. It tells in simple words the historical account of Saint Nicholas and how he started the tradition of giving gifts tucked inside someone’s stocking. Why did he do this? To “remind everyone of the Gift that God sent…” Jesus!

What I Like

Let’s start with the shape of this book. It’s a stocking, of course! Perfect for little hands to hold. (And did I mention fun?!!!) Plus it’s a board book. Sturdy pages for even the youngest child to touch and grab. Even better! I’m so enjoying reading board books to my one-year-old grandson now, and this is going to be a favorite this Christmas, I can tell. But my favorite favorite thing about this book is its focus…Jesus! This book brings the historical account of St. Nicholas up into the real world of the reader both in the beginning of the story and the ending. And here’s my favorite page of all, the very last:

“If you see stockings hung up in a row

bulging with gifts from the top to the toe,

Remember that Christmas is all about love,

and Jesus our Savior, God’s Gift from above.”

What a perfect addition to include in your family’s Christmas traditions if you celebrate the holiday with the joy and delight of a Christmas stocking!

-Thanks, BookLook Bloggers for another wonderful free book in exchange for my honest review!

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BONUS GIVEAWAY! BONUS GIVEAWAY! BONUS GIVEAWAY! BONUS GIVEAWAY!

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And if you haven’t yet done so, be sure to sign up for a chance to win Laura Sassi’s new picture book, GOODNIGHT MANGER or a free picture book manuscript critique by moi, yours truly. The contest ends midnight, November 15. CLICK HERE for details.

Filed under: Book Review