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Editor Spotlight: Tara Weikum

Tara Weikum has worked in publishing for decades.  Starting as editorial assistant with ALA Booklist Magazine in 1996, she then spent three years  as an associate editor with Disney Publishing. In 2000, she moved to HarperCollins where she’s been ever since. Beginning as an editor, she became editorial director in 2009, and vice president, editorial director in 2013. In 2024, she was promoted to vice president, publisher of HarperCollins’ new Storytide imprint. From the Mixed-Up Files of Middle-Grade Authors borrowed Tara for a quick chat to learn more about her career, influences, and Storytide in general.

headshot of Tara Weikum, vice president and publisher, HarperCollins' Storytide imprint

 

MUF: Thanks for agreeing to speak with us, Tara. Congratulations on launching this new endeavor. First off, what can you tell us about the Storytide imprint? What’s its focus or specialty?

TW: The Storytide imprint publishes powerful and distinctive stories with commercial, bestselling potential as well as literary merit, across all genres. Our focus is on middle-grade and teen fiction.

MUF: What has your career path been like so far? How did you get into publishing in general, and editing in specific? What was your educational background?

TW: Like many in publishing, I was an English major. I grew up in the Midwest and after college I attended the Rice University Publishing Program, which is no longer around. That immersive experience was what convinced me to take the leap and move to New York, after a year of working at the American Library Association in Chicago, to look for opportunities in publishing.

MUF: What sort of duties and responsibilities do you fulfill in your current position?

TW: Editors wear many different hats. I currently oversee the Storytide imprint and team of editors. We are focused on shaping the imprint identity with the books and authors we publish.  I manage budgets, acquire new projects, edit manuscripts, write copy, review design and marketing materials—the list goes on!

MUF: Did you always know you wanted to work with this aspect of the field?  Did you ever dream of being an author?

TW: I’ve always dreamed of working with books in some capacity. I never aspired to be a writer myself but I devoured everything I could get my hands on when I was growing up, and I was always the person that friends asked for advice about their English assignments and personal writing. I grew up on a farm in a rural area so bookstores and even libraries were hard to come by. My childhood reading appetites were fed with a wide-ranging variety of books I could scrounge up from friends and relatives by authors such as VC Andrews, Shel Silverstein, Frances Hodgson Burnett, and Danielle Steel; series like Harlequin Romance; and classics like the Trixie Belden and Bobbsey Twins books, supplemented by books that were assigned at school and birthday gifts. The adage of “reading widely” was true for me by necessity and I believe it helped inform my ability to love all kinds of books across genres.

MUF: What books have inspired you along the way, whether growing up or as an adult? What books do you wholeheartedly recommend at any given opportunity?

TW: Books by authors such as Jandy Nelson, Franny Billingsley, Jacqueline Woodson, Alison Bechdel, and Casey McQuiston are some favorites over the years. Kate Atkinson’s Life after Life and Gabrielle Zevin’s Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow are two adult novels that were wonderfully devastating. And of course from my own list of middle-grade I’ll hand any of Katherine Applegate’s incredible novels to any child or adult, as well as Thanhha Lai’s award-winning verse novel Inside Out & Back Again.

MUF: What do you look for in books and submissions? What catches your attention and calls to you?

TW: If a premise feels fresh and offers a unique twist on an idea, and the writing is engaging and compelling, I’m often open to considering manuscripts. Since I’m drawn to a variety of genres I like to consider a range of subjects.

MUF: Do you have a favorite age range or genre to work with?

TW: I’m drawn to contemporary realistic novels; romance; magical realism; and light fantasy across middle-grade and teen.

MUF: What sort of tips, tricks, and advice do you have for aspiring writers, editors, or even agents?

TW: Reading widely in the area in which you’d like to write or work is definitely the top piece of advice. As a writer, what will help you see how and where your future books might sit alongside current books, or how they can be set apart in an intriguing way. And as an editor or an agent it’s important to be knowledgeable about the market. And for aspiring writers in search of an agent, research who represents your favorite writers as a first step to finding a good fit for your own work. For future editors and agents, internships will provide incomparable insight into the ways in which all manner of publishing works, and can help guide you to find out where you’d like to work.

MUF: Do you have any interesting hobbies or interests? How do you unwind and relax?

TW: I work remotely and live in Hawaii, so everything water-related is a favorite of mine, from snorkeling to swimming to stand-up paddleboard. I also volunteer regularly at the local humane society and take shelter dogs on hikes and to the beach.

MUF: Do you have any upcoming Storytide releases you’d like to plug? Any juicy announcements?

TW: Lady’s Knight by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner is a raucously funny and romantic teen novel publishing in early June; The Haunting of Bellington Cottage by Laura Parnum is a gently spooky middle-grade novel coming in July; No Sam! And the Meow of Deception, Drew Daywalt’s sequel to the NYT bestseller They Call Me No Sam, is coming in September; and Thorn Season by debut author Kiera Azar is a sharp and sexy romantasy also publishing in September, in both hardcover and a gorgeously spec’d out deluxe limited edition.

Cover of Inside Out & Back Again Cover for No Sam and the Meow of Deception Cover for The Haunting of Bellington Cottage

Longer Picture Books Are “Gateways” for Middle-Grade Readers

On a middle grade blog, I feel the need to confess up front: I love picture books. As a fourth-grade teacher, I read picture books to my class nearly every day. As a mom of two elementary-aged boys, I read picture books to them every day. And as an author of picture books, I read picture books every day! So many picture books, in fact, that when I check out books at my library, they give me a cart to wheel them to my car.

So why am I talking about picture books on a middle-grade blog? Because longer picture books can be “gateway” books for our middle grade readers–particularly our more reluctant readers. I think of gateway books as a bridge between picture books and traditional middle grade books. Gateway books are still in that familiar large book (usually hardcover) format. They are still highly illustrated yet have more text per page, which makes for a longer read.

Examples of “Gateway” Books

Battle of the Butts by Joselyn Rish is an example that always comes to my mind. At around 6,000 words, it is definitely not a traditional picture book. (Traditional nonfiction picture books are typically less than 1,000 words, though some are longer.) Engaging writing draws readers into a topic that is sure to interest middle grade students. Plus, the book features the interactive element of rating each butt on a scale from “Boring Backside” to “Terrific Tushie.” A butt that can breathe?! I think that’s one “Remarkable Rump.” How about you? Be sure to check out the sequel: Battle of the Brains.

Spooky Lakes by Geo Rutherford is an oversized picture book with dense text on each spread. The pages contain enough intrigue to captivate middle grade readers whose interest will be piqued by the haunting illustrations. Beware! These pages mention dead bodies!

Plants: The Sneaky Ways They Survive is another oversized picture book. Even though it contains longer blocks of text, the book leaves plenty of room for stunning illustrations. And there is loads of intriguing information to keep older readers engaged. I mean, who doesn’t want to learn about rats that use flowers as toilets?

Sensational Senses: Amazing Ways Animals Perceive the World by Rebecca E. Hirsh is aimed at an older audience, yet still packaged in a picture book format. Photographs, diagrams, and sidebars break the text into manageable chunks. The information will fascinate students and keep them reading. Did you know star-nosed moles blow snot bubbles underwater and then suck them back in to “smell” the water? What?!

The Wisdom of Trees: How Trees Work Together to Form a Natural Kingdom by Lita Judge pairs poems about trees with detailed expository information. These chunky blocks of text are packed with interesting information. I’m fascinated every time I read about how trees communicate and share resources underground.

The Scientists in the Field series is a set of texts written more specifically for middle grade. (The suggested grade level is 5-7.) Yet because this series is in a picture book format with lots of illustrations, the books can be more approachable for reluctant readers.

For some readers, longer, high-interest, nonfiction picture books with colorful illustrations and interactive elements can seem more manageable than staring at an entire page of words. By incorporating gateway books into your classroom, you are helping students to find books that, to them, are less daunting and more delightful. Bottom line: you are doing everything you can to help your students develop a love of reading (and perhaps, their knowledge of butts.)

Growing As a Writer – the Power of Community

Growing As a Writer – the Power of Community

If you’ve ever seen one of those sped-up videos illustrators post online, maybe you know the kind – of their artwork going from blank canvas to finished masterpiece all in the span of 30 seconds – I LOVE those! And yet I always walk away thinking how cool it would be for us writers to have something comparable. 

What would our sped up video show? 

 

My first thought is of a writer alone at their desk, possibly hunched over a low lit keyboard while frantically typing away. My next thought is of a writer in a cafe, at a table for one, tucked snugly in the corner with a tea in one hand and a pencil in the other. But neither capture the whole picture – or in this case: video.

 

Consider what writing looked like in early grade school. So many of us writers have a neatly “crafted” book on a shelf in our home (mine was

published via a manilla folder and some pink yarn). Then jump to middle school when our next novel’s printing press came in the form of a spiral binding machine found in the teacher’s lounge. These books weren’t written by our younger selves left alone to our own devices in classrooms or in the cafeteria sipping from tiny chocolate milk cartons. Instead, we had amazing teachers instructing us in the process of beginnings, middle, and ends. They were our first editors, showing us how to tighten our pages. And they partnered us up with peers who critiqued our work – maybe pointing out a spelling mistake or laughing at a well placed joke. These teachers and classmates were our community. They were who we bounced story ideas off of, who we asked questions about plot to, and who we sought advice from.

 

Upon graduation, if you were like me, chances are your community faded. This might be why we hear writing is a solitary effort. But, with no one to gain feedback from, to talk craft with, discuss books or the writing world with, and even perhaps no one who “gets” this side of us, how are we to grow? 

I believe community is the secret sauce. 

 

Community challenges us by holding us accountable. It lifts us up when imposter syndrome rears its ugly head. And it champions us by connecting us with experts and professionals. 

 

When I went looking to find “my people,” as happy as I was to attend conferences and workshops, I was saddened to leave the party, so to speak. It felt like the fun was over, and once again so, too, was the community. If my 30-second sped-up video were to be a true representation of writerly growth, then community needed to be a constant.

 

So I had an idea! 

 

Together with my literary bestie, Valerie Heller, we created MuchAdoAboutWriting.com where writers get to hone their craft AND stay connected. In our four years of running weekly live calls, we’ve had the privilege of seeing members truly become community as they interact with and support each other, share ideas and pages, deepen their understanding of writing craft, own techniques and skills, take in feedback and understand how to implement it when drafting and revising, and even celebrate getting published.

 

And the fun is just beginning! Now it’s our turn to grow by offering even more to writers. So, on top of our teaching calls, interactive workshops, and editing nights, we’re adding daily events to get you thinking and conversing about story on a deeper level through prompts, sprints, games, weekly eyes on pages, and much more.

 

As I round out my 30 second video, a HUGE shout out to Jon and Laura at https://writeforkids.online/ who are our biggest cheerleaders and collaborators in building this community’s offerings. We’re teaming up with them, and are inviting all the readers at From the Mixed Up Files to join us in a live webinar as we take you behind the scenes of The Insiders Coaching Club on Wednesday, May 28th at 8pm ET. Follow this link to sign up for the call: https://writeforkids.lpages.co/icc1/