Secrets of Writing Picture Books

How do you write a picture book? … Creating a picture book is easy, isn’t it? Only 500 words and the audience is under 8 years old. So they won’t care! … WRONG!

Picture books are the most competitive of all genres to write and get published! … Why?

Some publishers prefer prolific picture […]

QUERY LETTER – How to write a KICK-ASS Query Letter for a Publisher

WHAT IF: your dream Publisher OR Agent advertised for Manuscripts?

What would you send them?

First of all, you create a KICK-ASS query letter, one that spurs the agent or publisher to read on. It must be professional, intelligent, concise, and intriguing. It accompanies your submission. Your cover letter must capture their attention, begging for […]

I love my Picky Bitches!

Thank God for the Picky Bitches in my writers life! Just received critiques from my writers group for the first two chapters of Space Kids Book 2 … Josh vs. Lord Terra. My hands trembled with excitement as I read their notes and suggestions. Is it a winner?

My writing buddies delivered positive feedback […]

Requested!

A children’s publisher requested Josh and the It, my kids’ sci-fi chapter book I turned a query letter into a request for my manuscript. How?

For the last month I’ve researched children’s publishers, pouring over the writer’s bible, Australian Writers Marketplace, and publisher’s websites including their submission guidelines. I discovered my manuscript was too short […]

Elevator Pitch

How do you write a Elevator Pitch that will sell your book to a Publisher or an Literary Agent? You create an unforgettable blurb that will catch their attention … A snappy sentence that contains who and what, with a very captivating why. Think …What’s your story really about? What makes your story unique? … […]

Running Leap

I’m teetering on the precipice of Publishing, toes jutting over the edge. I gaze down at the deep abyss of failure and defeat. And stare over to the other side … the Mystical Land of Publishing.

All I need is a running leap.

My heart is pounding with exhilaration and uncertainty. I battle with the […]

Breathing Fresh Life into my Characters

Last Friday, a Children’s Publisher emailed the most Positive Rejection letter possible for my Kids Sci-Fi chapter novel, Josh and the It. So good I want to frame it.

Words like … ‘Your plot is strong and moves along at a good pace. Like your addition of humour … its child centred. You have successfully […]

Book Proposal

Agent?…Publisher?…Agent? I feel like I’ve yanked out the last daisy petal … Its PUBLISHER!!

Well if I’m proceeding to the Publishers DIRECT, then I’ll need a strong Book Proposal. Something that will convince the Publishers to take me on.

A BOOK PROPOSAL is similar to the Agent’s one-page Query letter but is far more detailed, […]