Our San Antonio SCBWI-SWTX chapter had the pleasure of featuring the awesome twosome, writer Xelena Gonzalez, and illustrator Adriana M. Garcia, at our monthly meeting.  They spoke of their experiences bringing their award-winning picture book, All Around Us, (Cinco Puntos Press) to fruition.  

To get you started on your writing and publication for 2019, here are a few publishers who are taking submissions:

Penny Candy Books – Hurry on this one. Deadline is from March to April 2019.

Lantana Publishing

The Old Farmer’s Almanac   Hurry on this one. This essay contest of only 200 words has a deadline of January 25, 2019.

And I’m sure you need no introduction to famous author Judy Blume. Here’s a link to her advice for aspiring writers. Great read!

First lines in picture books. It’s been a while since I posted on my blog. I have been so busy with writer conferences, school visits, and presentations. Plus, I’m getting ready for our annual family Christmas Cookie Exchange which I am hosting this year. Where in the world did the year go?

In the middle of all this busyness, I am trying to work on revisions for a non-fiction picture book that an editor has shown interest in. I came across this very helpful post by the Institute of Children’s Literature blog, “Every Book Begins Somewhere. Picture Books: First Lines.”

The post gives examples of great first lines in picture books and lists what a writer should look for when working on a picture book. For example:

The opening lines set the tone and pace.

The opening lines can introduce a character.

The opening lines can help readers connect.

The opening lines can introduce the theme.

This information was very helpful to me a few days ago when I did a presentation on “Why Picture Books Are Important,” at a book festival. Visit the website for more details.

Hi There!

Happy Writing and Happy Holidays!!

I’m pleased to announce that the book, Péinate: Hair Battles Between Latina Mothers & Daughters, published by La Pluma y La Tinta and edited by Raquel I. Penzo, is out. My essay, Doña Maria and Toni Perms is included in this anthology along with those of twenty-two other Latinas.

To order from an independent bookstore: WordUp Books

From Amazon.com:  Amazon

My short story, “The Reluctant Ángel,” has been published in the December 2018 Christmas issue of POCKETS magazine. It is a story about Las Posadas, a Latino Christmas tradition. Yay!

I am thrilled to have been awarded the 2018 Society of Children’s Book Writers & Illustrators (SCBWI’s) Work-in-Progress Grant for the submission of my novel in verse, Soledad Strikes Back. It won in the Multicultural Fiction category. Congratulations to all the winners in the different categories. Thank you, SCBWI.

From SCBWI: Congratulations to the winners of the 2018 Work-in-Progress Grants and Don Freeman Illustration Grants! Both awards are part of SCBWI’s program to assist children’s book writers and illustrators who are in the process of completing a specific project currently not under contract. The recipients will have their work posted on a special site which will be made available to a hand-selected list of agents and editors.

Well, my schedule is filling up with upcoming school visits.  I always enjoy these because I get inspired and invigorated by the enthusiasm of the students. I will be doing several in-town visits and some out-of-town ones. Busy, busy, busy. Next week, I will be one of the authors at a Night for Family Literacy event.

However, I need to squeeze in time for my writing and for attending writing workshops, conferences, and book launches for other writer friends. These are always exciting, and I look forward to reading some of these debut books. I just attended a book launch last night and bought the author’s middle-grade book which is written in verse. I am very interested in writing in verse as well so sometime today I will read that book.

Speaking of verse novels, if you’re interested in this type of writing, here is an excellent link on that topic by Jennifer Gennari on the blog, Through the Toll Booth.  The title of the article is “Five Steps to Writing a Verse Novel.”

In a couple of weeks, I should get copies of the anthology, Hair Battles Between Latina Mothers and Their Daughters. My story is among many with other Latina writers. The launch for this book is this coming Friday, September 21, in New York City.

It’s official. My children’s story, The Reluctant Angel, will be out in the December 2018 issue of POCKETS! Also, come September, my essay in Péinate: Hair Battles Between Latina Mothers and Their Daughters anthology comes out just in time for Hispanic Heritage Month. I’ve seen the lovely cover already. By the way, both stories above were entries to writing contests.

Recently, I attended a Gemini Ink Writers Conference here in San Antonio at the lovely El Tropicano Riverwalk Hotel. Writers and poets from all over the nation attended. One of the workshops I went to was very helpful. It focused on concrete details in one’s story. We did some writing exercises including one with conflict between two characters and then the same story adding a third character. Wow. Changed the entire dynamics. Then we changed the setting in the same story from indoors to outdoors. Big difference in the concrete details. That’s why I love to attend these conferences. I learn so much.

Gemini Ink Conference

Blydyn Square Books is open to submissions for their publishing contest. There is an entry fee of $25. Visit their website for details.

GEMS-Shine Brightly is looking for stories, articles, interviews, quizzes, games, puzzles, and crafts that are fresh, that present a realistic look at Christian life, and that cause young readers to see how their faith can play out in their daily lives.

Cameron Kids—the children’s book imprint of Cameron + Company, an independent publisher based in Petaluma, California—publishes children’s books for all ages

Ending a novel is almost like putting a child to sleep—it can’t be done abruptly. – Colm Toibin

Yesterday, I volunteered to do two reading sessions for a children’s summer program, sponsored by a non-profit community builder, American Sunrise. The younger children smothered me with hugs, which I loved. In addition, I was thrilled to find out that comedienne and star Carol Burnett once lived in the house where I was presenting right here in San Antonio. The renovated house is now a learning center. I had a wonderful history lesson today. https://bit.ly/2K8jz4X

Carol Burnett’s Childhood Home

Are you having trouble focusing on your writing like many of us do? Visit the Nathan Bransford blog and read his post, “How to Regain Your Concentration.” He offers pretty good advice on how to get through this.

Submissions:

Feminist Press

Boyds Mills Press

POCKETS

Until next time, KEEP WRITING!

A couple of days ago, I attended a writing workshop sponsored by our local SCBWI chapter in San Antonio. The topic: “Writing Picture Book Biographies.” The session was awesome. I learned a lot about writing these types of stories. I’m glad I went because I am in the middle of writing a picture book biography; I’ve never tackled this before. Needless to say, the workshop was very timely.

Picture Book Biography Workshop

I recommend attending writing workshops in your area. Even if you have already been published, you always learn something new by attending. You gain a new perspective on things. If possible, join the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI). Or go their website, www.scbwi.org, to learn more about writing workshops, conferences, contests, etc.

If you already have something to submit, you’re ready to write a query letter. How to write one? Visit the NathanBransford blog to find out how to do it. His post is pretty specific—from “what is a query letter to samples to researching literary agents to formatting a query letter.”

Submissions:

Chicken Soup for the Soul

North Star Editions

Institute for Writers

Keep writing!!

Sometimes I think it’s harder to write a pitch line for your book than to write the story. How many of you have ever felt that way? I tend to read some of the one-sentence pitches for a movie. They’re short and to the point and tell the viewer, more or less, what to expect.

There’s other ways, though. Read author Nathan Bradford’s post on his blog. It is titled: “How to Write a One-Sentence Pitch.” He writes that there’s “an art to it.” Part of the article reads:

There are three basic elements in a good one-sentence pitch:

• The opening conflict (called the Inciting Incident by Robert McKee)
• The obstacle
• The quest 

The quest can be a physical or interior journey, but it’s what happens to the character(s) between the moment when the plot begins and ends. The opening conflict is the first step in that quest. It’s how the journey begins. The obstacle is what stands in the way of that journey.

Read the entire article. Excellent information if you’re looking for a pitch line.

If you’re looking for an agent, you might want to visit the website, BookEnds Literary. They are open to submissions. For guidelines, go to their website.

By the way, I just sent my collection of poems to an editor. Wish me luck. Also, tomorrow I do one last school visit before school’s over for the summer.

This giant butterfly sculpture is in the Botanical Gardens in San Antonio.