Posts Tagged “writing for children”

Meet Literary Agent Lori Steel

By Susan Koehler on October 30, 2024 / Articles, Editor / Agent Spotlight

It’s been a big year for Lori Steel. As an established literary agent with a track record of solid experience and successful clients, she decided to open her own agency, SteelWorks Literary. We’re grateful that Lori found the time to be a part of our agent spotlight, and we know you’ll enjoy learning more about her.

Hi Lori! I think it would be great to start our conversation by learning a little about your path to becoming an agent.

My path to agenting started working with books first as an educator and school librarian, where I had the privilege of matching young readers to books. I am also a writer, and my experience as an MFA student at Vermont College’s Writing for Children and Young Adults program was transformative. Shortly after graduating in 2012, I was given the unexpected opportunity to be an assistant at Greenhouse Literary, which was then housed near DC. Later, I interned at other agencies, before joining Jacqui Lipton and team at Raven Quill Literary. When RQLA merged with Tobias Literary, I joined the wonderful team at Red Fox Literary before founding my own agency, SteelWorks Literary.

Starting your own agency is a big deal! Can you walk us through the experience?

It’s been an exciting and busy launch, with an incredibly warm reception (and support!) from editors, fellow agents, and other industry colleagues. It’s gratifying to see SWL client projects already thriving, with plenty of new deals, books releasing to strong reviews, and recent Society of Illustrator recognitions for two SteelWorks titles.

How would you describe the mission and vision of SteelWorks Literary?

I’ve always had a vision for creating an agency home focused on craft and career development, and a sense of community. A place where deals are made, of course, but also relationships are forged, alongside a professional development mindset. SteelWorks Literary is a space where creatives are supported and encouraged to explore, stretch, and grow beyond expectations and conventions.

It sounds like you’ve created a great environment. I’m sure a lot of authors are watching for your submissions window to open. What are some things you’d like to see in their queries?

A strong pitch that showcases the narrative voice and plot effectively, compelling pacing, fully realized setting, and a professionally crafted query letter will get the best attention.

Which genres/themes/subjects are you drawn to/not drawn to?

I’m drawn to middle grade stories that reflect a deep understanding of their audience and trust readers to create inferential leaps where warranted. I’m particularly drawn to setting-rich environments – even in contemporary novels – where the author’s sense of place feels authentic and realized.

Didactic narratives that place message above story-telling, space-bound sci-fi, and overly heavy informational text aren’t strong fits for my list.

What advice do you have for authors who would like to send you a query?

Give yourself time and space to ensure your project is ready for submission. A few weeks or months later is not going to impact interest, but quality of story will! And when it’s ready to share, keep an eye open on SteelWorks Literary’s social media pages and the agency’s website for open windows. I also open for special events such as conferences and workshops.

Here at the Mixed-Up Files, we are all about middle grade, and I understand you also have a great fondness for this wonderful category of literature. What do you love most about middle-grade novels?

Middle Grade is that special audience of independent readers, who are still open to trying all varieties of formats. With the age range of 8-12 (generally), this audience tends to have wide appetites. They’ll read an entire mystery series, before diving into a WW2 historical novel, or a humorous contemporary, illustrated novel. They crave connection and insights into the world, as they seek to find their place within it. What I love most is that this audience is still open to read-alouds – and a strong MG novel will always have this quality! Hook a reader at this age, and you have a reader for life.

What are some of your favorite current middle-grade novels?

Right now I’m reading Katherine Rundell’s Impossible Creatures and am swept away by the rich language and worldbuilding, dynamic pacing, and a sincere trust she shows her readers. Her books never disappoint and I have a deep appreciation for the depth of scholarly work she puts into each of her books.

We’ve all heard the distressing news about the “middle grade slump” and some downward trends in this market. Where do you think the middle grade market is headed?

This is a tricky question as it’s impossible to know how the market will respond to readers’ fluctuating needs, interests, and other outside forces. Currently, we’re seeing strong interest in graphic and illustrated novels, and a return to the shorter, more accessible middle grade novel format. While more robust page counts have been challenging to sell this past couple of years, the pendulum will swing back again. It always does! Readers need books, and new stories, with as much page count, genre, and format varieties as their intended audiences.

It seems like you’ve been very busy at SteelWorks Literary. Tell us about some current SWL projects that you’re excited about.

I’m excited about all SWL forthcoming projects! But since we’re talking middle grade, I’ll share Tate Godwin’s debut graphic novel series – starting with Operation: Cover Up! – which releases January 2025 from Andrews McMeel. Operation: Cover Up! introduces three unlikely friends as they navigate the complicated and comical terrain of fifth grade, learn how to be good friends, and remain true to themselves.

I’m also excited about Jilanne Hoffmann’s HeartLand debut middle grade novel. It’s a coming-of-age story told in parallel timelines and alternating POVs – in both prose and verse – about a girl on a sixth-generation Iowa farm, the legacy of the 1980s farm crisis, and a rooted-in-reality environmental cover-up that threatens the groundwater of the entire state (Little Brown Young Readers, fall 2025).

We’ve learned a lot about your work. I’m sure everyone would like to know more about ***you*. What are some of your favorite things that have nothing to do with being an agent?**

Time with family and friends. Being outside – whether that’s walking the dog, working in the garden, being near the water, or going for a hike…and baking for after-walk treats.

Where can authors learn more about you?

You can find out more about SteelWorks Literary on Instagram and Facebook @Steelworksliterary, and on Bluesky @steelworksliterary.bsky.social. Of course, you can also check out my MSWL.

Thanks so much for joining us, Lori! It’s been great learning about you and SteelWorks Literary, and we wish you all the best!

WNDMG Author Interview with Elle McNicoll

By Kate Penndorf on October 23, 2024 / Author Interviews, Diversity

WNDMG Author Interview with Elle McNicoll

My reading sweet spot is MG fantasy, so give me dragons, witches, spells, and curses any day of the week. Like A Curse by Elle McNicoll delivered on them all, plus more including a new creature I haven’t read about before!

I had the esteemed pleasure of sitting down to interview Elle. Here’s the inside scoop on both the author and her book…

About the Author

Elle McNicoll is a bestselling and award-winning novelist. Her debut, A Kind of Spark, was a Schneider Family Honor title, an overall winner of the Waterstones Children’s Book Prize, and a Blackwell’s Book of the Year. She has been nominated for the Carnegie Medal and was shortlisted for the Books Are My Bag Readers Awards, the Branford Boase Award, and the Little Rebels Children’s Book Award. Her second novel, Show Us Who You Are, was a Blackwell’s Book of the Month title and one of the Bookseller’s Best Book of the year. She is an advocate for better representation of neurodiversity in publishing and currently lives in London.

Interview with Elle McNicoll

Kate: Our Mixed-Up-Files readers would love the inside scoop on book 2 in your Like a Charm series. Can you tell us a bit about neurodivergent tween Rayma and her role in becoming a witch?

Elle: Ramya is a witch in training. She’s a little too emotional when it comes to her magic and, while a lot of fantasy heroes need to be convinced that they’re the chosen one, Ramya needs people to remind her that she can’t do everything by herself.

Kate: Beyond casting spells, there are other magical abilities to read about in your book as well. I absolutely love the notion of Glamour! This one’s new to me. Is this something you created? And, if I were to go about daydreaming this was my magical power, what are the rules around using it?
Elle: I wish!! Glamour is a fae creation, and it’s popular in Scottish mythology. It’s a kind of disguise, and Ramya is lucky (or unlucky) in that she can see through it. The rules of glamour are fairly simple. It can turn you into anything to just about anyone. It’s like a magical filter. It helps you edit or reinvent yourself.

Kate: Let’s talk setting. Edinburgh has been on my bucket list for years, so I thank you for bringing it to life for me! How important was it for you to place your story inside a real world vs a created one?

Elle: So important. As a Scot, I want the kids I write for to touch the places in the book. I’ve done a few sold out walking tours in Edinburgh and the kids adore being able to take pictures in the real locations.

Kate: Rayma comes into contact with many interesting creatures such as Hidden Folk – Hulders, Blue Men, selkies, and kelpies – just to name a few. When choosing who to add to your storyline, were any of these mythological creatures based on research? Or do they stem from part of your cultural folklore?
Elle: They’re all part of my culture, in stories that have been handed down. I liked using childhood memories of Scotland to craft the world Ramya lives in.

Kate: It’s often fun to read about the baddies of a book, and Portia is certainly up there on that list! How fun is it for you to write the antagonist?
Elle: It’s fun! I like her. There’s lots about her to like. And she’s got a big wound, one that’s much more personal than her enemies realise. I love that!

Kate: Other important characters include many of Rayma’s family members. In what ways do these multiple generations impact how you developed Rayma as a character?
Elle: I love the whole wild bunch. I like the three sisters, I think that’s such a witchy number. They’re all sort of a coven, and their disapproval of Ramya’s impulsivity make the dynamics fun to write. She feels like a bad witch compared to her aunts.

Kate: You and Rayma share many things in common, I’m sure, one in particular is dyspraxia. Can you tell MUF readers about dyspraxia and how this connection to Rayma helped you in your story development?
Elle: Dyspraxia is a learning difficulty that can impact coordination, balance, processing and memory. Amongst many other things. I wanted Ramya to be dyspraxic, like me. I’m also autistic. I thought a neurodivergent witch would be fun. Also, ND kids are forced to be really resilient so we make good protagonists, I think.

Kate: Like a Curse leaves readers with such a great message. Without revealing spoilers, can you describe your writing process: in organizing your duology, did you have this ending for book two in mind when you set out to write book one? And, can you give us an example of something you cut, changed, or reworked from draft to publication?
Elle: I knew I wanted to see Ramya and Opal’s relationship develop in Like a Curse and I wanted more of Portia. Everything was planned, I didn’t need to make big cuts. It was enough stories for a tight duology and I’m glad it panned out that way.

Kate: You write for multiple age ranges. Do you set out knowing before you write a book whether it will be MG or YA? And for Like a Curse in particular, how did you nail that MG voice?
Elle: I always know which age the book is for, usually because the main character’s age dictates it. It’s important to know, I think. I remember being 12. It’s very close to my mind at all times, so it’s easy to get back in those shoes.

Kate: Thank you for taking the time to share the inside scoop on Like a Curse. Is there something beyond Rayma’s world you can hint at? Perhaps a new project in the works?
Elle: I’ll be writing witches again. Without a doubt!

Kate: Where can readers best find you if they want to reach out?
Elle: @ellemcnicollofficial on Instagram
Or ellemcnicoll.com

And of course, no MUF interview is complete without a lightning round, so…

Favorite place to write? At home.Dark chocolate or milk chocolate? White chocolate.

Superpower? Glamour

Rollerblades or bike? Neither, I’m dyspraxic.

Dream job when you were a kid? This.

House pet? My dog, Cheeseburger.

Favorite piece of advice? Take the work seriously, but not yourself. And if you’re different from the herd, you gotta be tough.

Use Four Acts to Get Through the Murky Middle

By Katie Venit on October 21, 2024 / For Writers, Writing

Focus on the Midpoint

When I outline a novel or graphic novel, I love to reference Save the Cat. If you’re not familiar with this plotting method, it’s based on screenplays and breaks a movie into Act 1 (the first 25% of the book), Act 2 (the next 50%), and Act 3 (the last 25%).

I more or less stick to this, except I put even more emphasis on the midpoint.

A strong midpoint not only gives the reader a high-impact scene to break up the long slog of the middle, but it’s a great chance to change up gears. In fact, I try to make this moment so huge that it effectively breaks that long Act 2 into two acts, so each of the four acts is 25% of the book.*

Act=Goal

To do that, I think of each act as a goal for the MC. Act=goal.

So, in a sense, the flow of a novel could look like this:

Act 1: the MC is pursuing a goal, one that makes sense for their ordinary world. Then a catalyst happens to either put that goal in jeopardy or catapult it forward.
Act 2: Reacting to that catalyst, the MC sets forth to achieve a new goal. Then another catalyst happens (the Midpoint) that either puts that goal in jeopardy or catapults it forward.
Act 3: repeat, bringing us to the All is Lost moment, which is the catalyst for the last act.
Act 4: reacting to the All is Lost, the MC makes a final goal.

Sometimes the catalyst in each act is subtle. Sometimes it’s an accumulation of things learned in the act up to that point. Sometimes it’s huge, like a bombshell of information. Whatever it is, each catalyst prevents the MC from continuing to pursue the goal that they are currently on; they have to change gears.

Examples

Star Wars

Let’s look at how this works in Star Wars: A New Hope.

Act 1

Goal: Set up droids on the farm.
Catalyst: Ben Kenobi asks Luke to go with him to Alderaan and Luke’s aunt and uncle are killed, making his Act 1 goal of getting the droids set up on the farm irrelevant.

Act 2

Goal: Get the plans to Alderaan.
Catalyst: The Death Star blows up Alderaan and captures the Millennium Falcon.

image from Star Wars: A New Hope. Standing behind Han Solo, Obi Wan looks tense, gazing at something in front of them, saying "That's no moon."

Our Star Wars heroes are about to discover that they cannot achieve their Act 2 goal.

Act 3

Goal: Rescue the princess from the Death Star
Catalyst: They escape, but the Death Star follows them to the hidden rebel base.

Act 4

Goal: Destroy the Death Star to save the rebel base.
Result: Luke destroys the Death Star.

Other Examples

Movies:

Raiders of the Lost Ark (this goal shift is huge, as Indy’s goal goes from finding the Ark to getting it back from the Nazis; in fact, the entire second half of the movie is Indy trying to get and keep the Ark from the Nazis)
Monsters, Inc. (this is subtle, but Sully switches from wanting to save his career to wanting to save Boo, a goal shift that causes conflict with Mike)
Lion King
Up

Books: The Last Mapmaker and A Wish in the Dark by Christina Soontornvat are great examples of the main character’s goal shifting in at the midpoint.

Does It Really Matter?

I don’t think it matters to the reader whether you outline your story with a goal change in the middle, as long as the story moves along. But as the writer, I find splitting up that long middle to be incredibly helpful for getting through the murky middle. Basically, it’s chunking up a huge task into two more manageably sized tasks.

For example, imagine you’re writing Star Wars. Woud it be easier to plot if you had a list of goals for Luke that were:

Set up droids on the farm
Get plans to the rebel alliance
Destroy the Death Star and save the rebels

Or:

Set up droids on the farm
Get plans to Alderaan
Rescue the rebel princess and escape to the rebel base
Destroy the Death Star and save the rebels

You could interpret Star Wars either way, but personally, I would find the second to be much easier to build a story around. The specificity helps me to keep the middle of the book moving along. It would give me something more concrete to write toward.

I can think of many stories that do not approach the Midpoint this way. (I can think of many that don’t even really have a Midpoint shift). But if you’re stuck in the murky middle, try breaking that long Act 2 into two goals, and give each a catalyst that disrupts that goal.

*For more information on four-act stories, click here to read about Joyce Sweeney’s plot clock.