MUF Contributor Books

“How to Make a Book” – Behind the Scenes (for kids, teachers, parents, and writers)

By on August 10, 2015   /   Author Interviews, Book Lists, For Kids, For Librarians, For Parents, For Teachers, For Writers, Giveaways, MUF Contributor Books, Writing  

HarperKids launched a terrific video series called How a Book is Made, including details on how a book is Revised, Edited, and Designed – from those elusive publishing insiders – meaning the author, the editor, the marketing director, the art department, etc. The actual editors and marketing folks at Harpercollins talk about their jobs and what they do (inside their offices in NYC so you can peek at the surroundings!)

I’m a writer with Harpercollins and Scholastic so over the years I’ve become fairly familiar with the hands-on process of manuscript production through revisions and copy-edits and proofreading typeset pages, but the rest of the in-house process is foreign to me. I found the Production video especially interesting to see the pieces of the book and how it all goes together. I’ve read about that process, but it was fun to actually *see* it.

The 7 videos are between 3-5 minutes apiece, so short, snappy, and fun! And they’re narrated by the amazing middle-grade author, Lauren Oliver, who wrote Leisl and Po, and The Spindlers, as well as many Young Adult novels.

These behind-the-scenes videos would be great for sharing the writing and publishing process with your kids as school begins in the next few weeks, or in your classroom if you’re a teacher to inspire your students in their own writing, or a homeschooling parent – I homeschooled for many years and getting my 3 sons to write was the most hair-pulling challenge I had! It would be easy to pull together lesson plans using these fascinating videos.

If you’re a writer or artist I think you’ll find these behind-the-scenes videos intriguing and informative as well so enjoy!

1. How a Book is Made: Developing Ideas w/ Lauren Oliver
2.Writing the Story w/ Lauren Oliver
3. Editing the Book w/Editorial Director Rosemary Brosnan
4. Creating the Art w/ Harper Art Director
5. Proofing the Story w/ Harper Managing Editor
6. Printing the Book, w/ Production Director
7. Reading the Book w/ Lauren Oliver

Please share your thoughts below, we’d love to hear if there’s anything else similar to this out in the world, or if you find them helpful to use with kids and writers of any age.

AND . . . because we love our readers here at Mixed-Up Files I’m giving away a hardcover copy of my recent middle-grade novel, THE TIME OF THE FIREFLIES to anyone who posts a comment, even if it’s just to enter the giveaway. 🙂 Cheers! ~Kimberley

Time of the Fireflies_Cover

Kimberley Griffiths Little’s seven MG novels with Knopf and Scholastic have won several awards and Forbidden, the first of a Young Adult trilogy recently published with Harpercollins was starred by Booklist and included in the Top 10 Historical novels of 2015.

Find Kimberley on Facebook. and Twitter @KimberleyGLittl. Teacher’s Guides, Mother/Daughter Book Club Guides, and fabulous book trailers filmed on location adorn Kimberley’s website.

 

 

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Houses and Stories

By on July 24, 2015   /   For Writers, MUF Contributor Books, Writing  

I love houses.

Old and new. Big and small. Cozy and sprawling. Mansions, cottages, castles, ranches, igloos. Tudor, Cape Cod, Colonial, French Provincial. No matter the size or style, houses simply fascinate me.

One of my all-time favorite books for young readers is The Little House by Virginia Lee Burton, published in 1942 and winner of the Caldecott Medal. I remember being completely taken by this book as a child — the story of a little house that was happy living in the country, swallowed up by progress, then moved and happy again. I delighted in sharing this book with my three children.

153540What struck me as a kid, and still strikes me now, is the house’s expression and how it changes from a smile to sadness and despair, back to a smile again. How interesting it was that a house could have a face!

But the truth is, I think houses have stories too, shaped by the people who live in them and the neighborhoods they are a part of, and perhaps that’s why I love them so much.

I’ve never been a runner or very good at going to the health club, but I do take a long walk almost every day. Sometimes when I’m out walking and get a glimpse inside someone’s house, I immediately start imagining the story of the people who live there. (It’s a little creepy, yes, but admit it — you’ve done it too.)

My mini-obsession with houses prompted me to set my middle grade novel, The Summer I Saved the World…in 65 Days, in a cul-de-sac of eight houses. Here’s a drawing from the first page of the book. Each house in the neighborhood has a story and a personality. Mr. D, a reclusive neighbor who never comes outside, has a neat house with the shades revised cul de sac finaldrawn tightly. One house is for sale and it’s unloved and empty, with overgrown grass and broken shutters. Mrs. Chung’s house has Christmas lights strung around her trees year-round and marigolds in front.

All of these details come into play in the story, as the main character sets out to do 65 good things for her family and neighbors the summer after eighth grade, except things don’t go exactly as she envisions.

For me, character’s houses (or apartments or huts or igloos) go so much beyond just the setting. They’re almost characters in themselves, with quirks and emotions and unique attributes. And the details that are found in houses can become important parts of the plot, such as a lost toy or Grandma’s antique table or a rusty, squeaky swing set.

I particularly loved Kristen Kittscher’s The Wig in the Window for just that reason. Seventh-graders and best friends Sophie Young and Grace Yang, who 12848132make a game out of spying on their neighbors, stumble on an adventure and mystery that unfolds from something they see in a house.

To me, home is not just where the heart is, but where the heart of the story is.

Michele Weber Hurwitz is the author of The Summer I Saved the World…in 65 Days (Wendy Lamb Books 2014) and Calli Be Gold (Wendy Lamb Books 2011). Both books are on 2015-2016 state reading lists. Michele can be found at micheleweberhurwitz.com.

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From the Island of Misfit Books, Episode 2

By on July 22, 2015   /   MUF Contributor Books, News  

My prior Mixed-Up blog entry introduced the Island of Misfit Books, populated by works that find themselves in publishing limbo: unsalable manuscripts; series books abandoned by their publisher; and other books with no traditional route to readers who would love them.

For the sake of those books, I’ve been gathering information about self-publishing and sharing with other authors who find themselves in a similar position.

So far we have learned that:

  • Self-publishing is now called indie publishing because, like indie music and indie film, indie publishing sees itself as an underground movement. Whatever you do, don’t call it “vanity” publishing;
  • Self-publishing has become more common and less stigmatized than in the past;
  • Because of trends and market forces, traditional publishers are less willing or able to support midlist authors as they did in the past, and are putting more resources into short-lived blockbuster titles;
  • Authors with hybrid careers, publishing both traditionally and independently, are becoming more common;
  • For indie publishers, the rise of ebooks and print-on-demand technologies have eliminated the need for large print runs and warehousing expenses;
  • Online retailers have automated the ordering and fulfillment process;
  • Websites and social media have made powerful marketing tools inexpensively available to authors; and
  • An independent marketplace for many of the services provided by traditional publishers—editorial, proofreading, design, layout, marketing, and publicity—have made it possible for indie books to be as polished and professional as traditionally published books.

Or in other words, for authors who believe strongly enough in their work, the Island of Misfit Books has a sleek fleet of escape boats.

One recent inspirational example of a middle grade escapee from the Island is…

The Sweet Spot by Stacy Barnett Mozer

When thirteen-year-old Sam Barrette’s baseball coach tells her that her attitude is holding her back, she wants to hit him in the head with a line drive. Why shouldn’t she have an attitude? As the only girl playing in the 13U league, she’s had to listen to boys and people in the stands screaming things like, “Go play softball!” all season just because she’s a girl. Her coach barely lets her play even though she’s one of the best hitters on the team.

All stakes now rest on Sam’s performance at baseball training camp. But the moment she arrives, miscommunication sets the week up for potential disaster. Placed at the bottom with the weaker players, she will have to work her way up to A League, not just to show Coach that she can be the best team player possible, but to prove to herself that she can hold a bat with the All-Star boys.

The Sweet Spot

The Sweet Spot

Mixed-Up Files author Stacy Barnett Mozer says:

Self-publishing The Sweet Spot was not an easy decision. I went the traditional route first. The book had an agent, spent a year in revision, got feedback from editors, went through more revision, but it didn’t sell. My agent suggested putting it in the drawer. I spent over a year working on other projects, but my heart was still in this book so I took out the editor feedback again and spent another two years revising it. I could have sent it back out there but the idea of taking control of the process became too enticing. It was the right decision for me and this book to do it myself.

What I have liked about self-publishing is that it has been up to me to get the book out there, to make sales, and to champion my work and since I have access to all of my sales, I can tell within a few hours whether something I tried worked. And getting the book out there hasn’t been completely my doing either. Every time someone has posted about my book on Facebook or written a review on Amazon, I have seen a bump in sales. It has not been easy, but at this point over a hundred kids all over the country are reading my book. That wouldn’t have happened if it had stayed in my drawer.

More details on Stacy’s decision and experiences can be found here and here.

Inspired by Stacy’s success, I’m building my own escape raft for…

Galaxy Games, Book 2 by Greg R. Fishbone

Galaxy Games, Book 1: The Challengers was the story of Tyler Sato, who turned eleven and got a star named in his honor…

which turned out to be a doomsday asteroid…

which then turned out to be an alien spaceship!

Tyler found himself at the center of the most important event in human history, and only his last-second victory over an alien challenger could secure Earth’s invitation to the greatest sports tournament in the galaxy.

I thought it’s a great story, but I also wrote it, so I’m biased. But my agent thought it was a good story, my editor thought it was a good story, my publisher thought it was a good story, and that it would make money. A whole bunch of talented folks helped turn it into an actual book, and I was very grateful to have them on my team. Readers thought it was a good story too, or at least the ones I’ve heard from. It’s just a shame there weren’t enough of them to maintain an ongoing series.

And that’s how GG#2 ended up on The Island of Misfit Books.

I resisted the self-publishing route for a long time after the series cancellation because I didn’t want to be a publisher. I’ve already done that once, and I hated it. Back in the 1990s, I published Mythic Heroes magazine, working long hours with tight deadlines. I read submissions, purchased stories, commissioned artwork, managed an editorial staff, put layouts together, took out advertisements, dealt with a printing company, a shipping company, warehouses, and distributors, handled returns, and acted as corporate attorney, accountant, and IT department.

There was so much grunt work that I didn’t have any time left for actually writing anything, which was why I’d started the magazine in the first place.

But today, an ebook can be put together with HTML, which is like a second language to me. And now you’re telling me that I no longer have to front for a print-run and fill my garage with boxes?  Sold!

2015 is not 1995. It’s a brave new world, with fewer excuses than ever for a good book to remain cooped up on an island, on a USB drive, or in a desk drawer.

Which is why I am pleased to announce, officially, that by this time next year you will be able to hold a copy of Galaxy Games, Book 2 in your hands!

Or loaded into your favorite device, which would also be located in or near your hands. Either way, Tyler Sato’s next adventure will be in close proximity to your fingers very soon.

In Book 2, we will discover the high personal cost of Tyler’s victory, and the new danger that will emerge as the Earth team ventures into the galaxy for the very first time. The story world will expand, the stakes will be raised, mysteries will be revealed, and new characters will be introduced.

Website Reveal

There are several places you can go to keep up with Galaxy Games news. The Mixed-Up Files blog, of course, but also galaxygam.es, where a new series website is coming together. It’s an early beta, so your feedback and comments are welcome.

And since I won’t have a traditional publishing house behind this second book, I would love to have you on Team Tyler as we launch this boat off the shores of the Island.

Greg R. Fishbone is the author of galactic fiction for young readers.

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