Would You Read It Wednesday #224 – Heidi Seek (MG) (or YA?)

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Happy September-Back-To-School-Back-To-Blogging, my friends!

I missed you all during August, but my goodness! where did that month go?!  I feel like it just vanished in the blink of an eye – like we skipped straight from July to September!

But here we are.

There’s something about September that always feels like New Year’s to me – almost more so than January 1.  It’s that whole back to school thing… first for ourselves… all those years from Kindergarten through graduate school 🙂 … and then for our children…and for those of us who have them, grandchildren.  (And for those of us who are teachers, it comes with the job description 🙂 )  It has that same new start feel, full of possibility!

Who knows what awesomeness we will all accomplish in the coming months?! 🙂

Meanwhile, what’s the consensus?  How many of you are feeling bittersweet and poignant over your kids going back to school, or going to school for the first time, and how many of you are doing the dance of joy to have the little darlings out from underfoot for a few hours a day? 🙂

I offer you consolation or celebration in the form of Something Chocolate!  Given the heat this week, I think our Something Chocolate should be Something Ice Cold And Refreshing!  How about Frozen Hot Chocolate?  And not just ANY frozen hot chocolate, the one that claims to be the BEST! 🙂

Ah….!

Lip-smackin’ brain-freezing good! 🙂

I had grand plans of posting the June and July pitch picks today, but my internet has been extremely uncooperative.  It took so long for it to decide to work that I’m lucky I’m getting anything up today, never mind extras.  So… next week?

Meantime, we’ll get right onto today’s pitch which comes to us from Jeanna who says, “I’m a homemaker and I write romance and picture books – but not romantic picture books! My Twitter for anyone who’d like to keep up with my many ramblings is: http://mobile.twitter.com/JeannaLStars”

Here is her pitch:

Working Title: Heidi Seek (or possibly or possibly Heidi Sikh as I’m thinking of making my MC a young Asian girl)

Age/Genre: MG… or YA… or even PB?

The Pitch: If it’s lost, she’ll find it. Her parents first discovered her talent for hide & seek during an ultrasound, when she gave them – and the midwife – quite a fright! Now 12 year old Heidi Singh’s life revolves around finding lost keys, missing cats and trying not to lose friendships. When one half of an identical twin pop duo disappears, Heidi finds herself pulled into a mystery so complex, she has to look deep within herself for answers – or SHE might be next to get lost.

So what do you think?  Would You Read It?  YES, MAYBE or NO?

Special note:  Jeanna is on the fence about her title (see above) and on the fence about whether the book would work best as MG or YA.  She has even considered a simpler/funnier version as a PB.  She would love your input on this issue: MG, YA or PB?

If your answer is YES, please feel free to tell us what you particularly liked and why the pitch piqued your interest.  If your answer is MAYBE or NO, please feel free to tell us what you think could be better in the spirit of helping Jeanna improve her pitch.  Helpful examples of possible alternate wordings are welcome.  (However, I must ask that comments be constructive and respectful.  I reserve the right not to publish comments that are mean because that is not what this is about.)

 

Please send YOUR pitches for the coming weeks!  For rules and where to submit, click on this link Would You Read It or on Would You Read It in the dropdown under For Writers in the bar above.  There are openings in October, so you have a little time to polish your pitch before putting it up for helpful feedback and have a chance to have it read by editor Erin Molta!

Jeanna is looking forward to your thoughts on her pitch!  I am looking forward to vacuuming.

That was a test.  If you believed me, you failed totally and completely 🙂

Have a wonderful Wednesday everyone!!! 🙂

 

Would You Read It Wednesday #223 – Grizzie Moon Does NOT Like Cats! (PB)

32 Comments

Happy Wednesday, Everyone!

Can you believe August is almost upon us?  How did THAT happen???!!!

August is traditionally the month I take a blogcation, which means today will be our last meeting until Wednesday September 7 when we return with Would You Read It and the June and July Pitch Picks – it will be a big day!!! 🙂

For now, though, let’s celebrate the almost beginning of our August vacation with Something Chocolate.  How does gooey, delicious, warm Chocolate Chip Pie sound?  With a scoop of vanilla ice cream for extra deliciousness calcium and protein? 🙂

Chocolate Chip Pie

YUM!

The good thing about warm, gooey, deliciousness?  No crumbs in your keyboard 🙂

Now then, onto today’s pitch which comes to us from Amy.  Born and raised in Louisville, KY, Amy has earned two degrees in English and an MFA in Creative Nonfiction. Naturally, she writes picture books. She tests her picture book ideas on her two kids (ages 9 and 12) and her kid-like husband (age 47). Sometimes her two dogs offer their opinions. She’s really looking forward to your reader’s opinions, too!

Find her on the web at:
AmyMMiller1@twitter.com
https://www.facebook.com/ADDledliving/
AmyMMiller.com

Here is her pitch:

Working Title: Grizzie Moon Does NOT Like Cats!

Age/Genre: Picture Book (ages 3-7)

The Pitch: When Bob the cat destroys Grizzie Moon’s extraordinary ghoul stew, he must find a way to save the recipe and win the favor of this persnickety witch before her Stitch and Witch Club arrives.

So what do you think?  Would You Read It?  YES, MAYBE or NO?

If your answer is YES, please feel free to tell us what you particularly liked and why the pitch piqued your interest.  If your answer is MAYBE or NO, please feel free to tell us what you think could be better in the spirit of helping Amy improve her pitch.  Helpful examples of possible alternate wordings are welcome.  (However, I must ask that comments be constructive and respectful.  I reserve the right not to publish comments that are mean because that is not what this is about.)

 

Please send YOUR pitches for the coming weeks!  For rules and where to submit, click on this link Would You Read It or on Would You Read It in the dropdown under For Writers in the bar above.  There are openings in October, so you have a little time to polish your pitch before putting it up for helpful feedback and have a chance to have it read by editor Erin Molta!

Amy is looking forward to your thoughts on her pitch!  I am looking forward to spending the next couple weeks visiting with my sister and her family who are here from Georgia, and hopefully, maybe, working on some projects that I haven’t had enough time to finish up!

Have a wonderful Wednesday everyone!!!   And a wonderful, relaxing, enjoyable August!!!  See you after Labor Day 🙂

 

Would You Read It Wednesday #222 – Fear On The Mountain (MG)

19 Comments

Happy Wednesday, my friends!

How’s your summer going?  I hope you’re all enjoying July immensely!

I don’t get out much 🙂 but last weekend I did something wild and crazy.  I went to see Jim Gaffigan (the comedian) in real life.  It was so much fun!  He is hysterical!

As a writer, it is always interesting to me to see other expressions of creativity.  I love getting an insight into the creative process of musicians, artists, and yes – comedians.  We all deliver our thoughts in different ways, but we all aim to connect others and connect with others.  Whether you’re writing a story, singing a song, painting a picture, or standing on a stage making people laugh, you’re accomplishing the same thing: helping people articulate their reality and encouraging and supporting them by helping them see they’re never alone in their experience.  If you’re experiencing something in your life – good or bad – chances are extremely high that lots of other people have been in the same situation and know exactly how it feels.  It’s very comforting 🙂

Comedy is particularly appealing because not only does it let us know our experience is shared, it lets us laugh at it 🙂

It’s a good thing to keep in mind while you’re writing!

Now then, how about Something Chocolate?  That is always a good idea and always a worthwhile experience to share 🙂  Since it’s so hot and all, I’m thinking Something Chocolate and Something Ice Cream would hit the spot…

Cookies And Cream Ice Cream Cake

Oreo Ice Cream Cake…  It’s what’s for breakfast.  And that’s no joke! 🙂

Now that we are properly fortified, onto today’s pitch which comes to us from Robyn.  Robyn Campbell writes poetry, picture books and middle-grade from her farm on a mountain in North Carolina. She loves writing funny, and adventure and she speaks as a kid.

Find her on the web at:

 

Here is her pitch:

Working Title: Fear On The Mountain

Age/Genre: MG

The Pitch: Thirteen-year-old Anna doesn’t plan on getting lost. Or ending up surrounded by darkness in the Blue Ridge Mountains minus her insulin bottle. But that’s what happens.

She just wants to ride the mountain with Claire and their horses, have a picnic, and go home to the ranch. But what she gets is a lesson in survival if she can outlast the wild animals and high blood sugars. And it’s all due to Claire’s carelessness. How will Anna get them back home when she doesn’t know which way home is?

 

So what do you think?  Would You Read It?  YES, MAYBE or NO?

If your answer is YES, please feel free to tell us what you particularly liked and why the pitch piqued your interest.  If your answer is MAYBE or NO, please feel free to tell us what you think could be better in the spirit of helping Robyn improve her pitch.  Helpful examples of possible alternate wordings are welcome.  (However, I must ask that comments be constructive and respectful.  I reserve the right not to publish comments that are mean because that is not what this is about.)

 

Please send YOUR pitches for the coming weeks!  For rules and where to submit, click on this link Would You Read It or on Would You Read It in the dropdown under For Writers in the bar above.  There are openings in October, so you have a little time to polish your pitch before putting it up for helpful feedback and have a chance to have it read by editor Erin Molta!

Robyn is looking forward to your thoughts on her pitch!  I am looking forward to my sister coming back in a few days for another couple of weeks – one of the best things about summer! 🙂

Have a wonderful Wednesday everyone!!! 🙂

 

Would You Read It Wednesday #221 – Camp Crazy Meatballs (PB)

28 Comments

Good Wednesday to you, folks!

Do you know why today is especially important?

Well, I’ll tell you. 🙂

It’s Harrison Ford’s birthday!

This may not seem important to you, but there was a time when (unbeknownst to Harrison) he was going to marry either me or my best friend.

Back in the last millennium when I was a teenager, my best friend and I were huge fans of the original Star Wars movies, not because of Luke Skywalker (he was my sister’s crush 🙂 ) but because of the gorgeous scoundrel, Han Solo.  The Empire Strikes Back was our favorite movie of all time.  We saw it in theaters… well… A LOT of times! 🙂  Of course, back in those days, you had to enjoy it in theaters as much as you could because there was no such thing as “coming out on video.”  We did have the record (do I sound ancient enough yet? 🙂 ) less for the music than for the many full color photos of our beloved Harrison inside the jacket, but it wasn’t the same as the big screen.  Sigh.

Han Solo

We spent the better part of most of our algebra and Latin classes experimenting with every variation of Mrs. Harrison Ford we could come up with, embellished with an embarrassing array of hearts and curlicues in the margins of our notebooks.  And in spite of the fact that we went to an all girls school that prided itself on creating free and independent feminist thinkers, it never occurred to either of us that we might keep our maiden names, and we spent many a lunch period debating which sounded better: Susanna Ford or Caroline Ford.  I think the answer to that is obvious 🙂  Really, it’s probably a good thing we all eventually leave our early teenage years behind 🙂

So I think we should celebrate Harrison’s birthday (it’s his 73rd, BTW!) with a Something Chocolate cake – a Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Cupcake!!!

chocolate-chip-cookie-dough--cupcake--the-best-cupcake-ever_9251

Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Cupcake – Recipe HERE at The Dish by KitchMe.Com

I think we can all agree that that cupcake looks almost as delicious as Harrison!  🙂

Now then, onto today’s pitch which comes to us from PJ.  PJ McIlvaine is a screenwriter/kid lit author/journalist/writer. She’s also a co-founder and co-host of #PBPitch on Twitter. Her original Showtime movie MY HORRIBLE YEAR was nominated for a Daytime Emmy. She lives in Eastern Long Island with her family and Sasha the Psycho Cat.

Find her on the web at www.pjmcilvaine.com

Here is her pitch:

Working Title: Camp Crazy Meatballs

Age/Genre: Picture Book (ages 3-6)

The Pitch: CAMP CRAZY MEATBALLS is a zany picture book about siblings Matt and Morgan. Mom insists they go to camp for a week to break their routine of TV and computer games. But this camp isn’t quite what the kids expected. First, the counselors are talking animals, and second, everything—and I mean EVERYTHING— is made out of meatballs. Even their beds! And meatballs is the only thing on the menu! At first, the kids are thrilled—what kid doesn’t like meatballs—but meatballs morning, noon and night soon drives everyone crazy. In the end, the kids dream up a clever way to solve the dilemma and develop a new appreciation for broccoli.

So what do you think?  Would You Read It?  YES, MAYBE or NO?

If your answer is YES, please feel free to tell us what you particularly liked and why the pitch piqued your interest.  If your answer is MAYBE or NO, please feel free to tell us what you think could be better in the spirit of helping PJ improve her pitch.  Helpful examples of possible alternate wordings are welcome.  (However, I must ask that comments be constructive and respectful.  I reserve the right not to publish comments that are mean because that is not what this is about.)

 

Please send YOUR pitches for the coming weeks!  For rules and where to submit, click on this link Would You Read It or on Would You Read It in the dropdown under For Writers in the bar above.  There are openings in October, so you have a little time to polish your pitch before putting it up for helpful feedback and have a chance to have it read by editor Erin Molta!

PJ is looking forward to your thoughts on her pitch!  I am looking forward to finding out which movie YOU went to way too many times during your teenage years and who YOU doodled about in the margins of YOUR school notebooks! 🙂

Have a wonderful Wednesday everyone!!! 🙂

 

Would You Read It Wednesday #220 – Thanksgiving Delivery (PB)

24 Comments

Greetings, Peeps!

I hope you all had festive 4th of July Weekends and that your summers are all off to a lovely start!

I always think I’m going to get tons of things done in the summer.  I’m not really sure why, because it’s never happened yet 🙂  But there’s something about that long stretch of summer days that makes me feel like there’s room to accomplish soooo much…!  And who knows?  I’ve certainly got a list as long as my arm of things I want to do.  This COULD be the summer I get a lot done….(with a little luck and a following wind…) …or not… 🙂

Let’s have a little Something Chocolate to start the day off right, shall we?  I discovered this thing of beauty and thought it would be just perfect!

Strawberry Chocolate Mousse Cake

So perfect and summer-y-strawberry-y and chocolate-y!  YUM!!!

Now then, onto today’s pitch which comes to us from Susan whom you’ll remember from her May and June pitches for Room For Olives and Bossy Bird.  Susan Schade is a writer from Gilbert, AZ where she lives with her husband, three young sons and their corgy/jack Russell rescue dog, Jedi.  Originally from Madison, WI, she cheers on the Packers and the Badgers, loves movie nights with her family, and enjoys reading as much as writing.

Here is her pitch:

Working Title: Thanksgiving Delivery

Age/Genre: Picture Book (ages 3-8)

The Pitch: As Thanksgiving approaches, Lennie is determined to save the turkeys from their dinner fate.  After the turkey slim down plan falls short, Lennie discovers that that perseverance and imagination will spark his greatest idea, dinner delivery.  Lennie will race against time to turn the others into great chefs before they become Thanksgiving dinner.

So what do you think?  Would You Read It?  YES, MAYBE or NO?

If your answer is YES, please feel free to tell us what you particularly liked and why the pitch piqued your interest.  If your answer is MAYBE or NO, please feel free to tell us what you think could be better in the spirit of helping Susan improve her pitch.  Helpful examples of possible alternate wordings are welcome.  (However, I must ask that comments be constructive and respectful.  I reserve the right not to publish comments that are mean because that is not what this is about.)

 

Please send YOUR pitches for the coming weeks!  For rules and where to submit, click on this link Would You Read It or on Would You Read It in the dropdown under For Writers in the bar above.  There are openings in October, so you have a little time to polish your pitch before putting it up for helpful feedback and have a chance to have it read by editor Erin Molta!

Susan is looking forward to your thoughts on her pitch!  I am looking forward to tackling that to-do list… or possibly sitting on the back porch with a glass of iced tea and a good book… 🙂

Have a wonderful Wednesday everyone!!! 🙂

 

Would You Read It Wednesday #219 – Dancing Through Space (PB) PLUS The May Pitch Winner PLUS Straight From The Editor for April!!!!

10 Comments

Greetings Fellow KidLit Peeps!

Golly!  We have so much to do today that I’m not even going to regale you with tales of the Chopped Dessert Special conducted in my parents’ kitchen last night, contestant chefs being our kids and niece and nephews, basket ingredients including fresh lemon, Life cereal, dried fruit (apricot and pear), and Incredible Perfectly Free Non Dairy Frozen Bites.  When I say the judges (me, my sister, and my daughter) were brave, I am not kidding 🙂  The dishes prepared for us ranged from a Deconstructed Torte made of a dried fruit pancake with a chocolate and peanut butter brittle topped with candied lemon, to a Juice-Soaked Bread “Cake”, to a Fruit Dessert Soup…which curdled…! garnished with a chocolate-dipped dried pear.  And you’re lucky you didn’t see the kitchen 🙂

But like I said, no regaling!  Down to business!

First, the Winner of May Pitch Pick was Melissa with her pitch for Walking With Memphis: Inspired By A Real Dog.  Congratulations on a fabulous pitch, Melissa!  It has already been sent to editor Erin Molta for her thoughts, and I’m sure you’ll hear from her shortly!

And congratulations to all our other pitchers who did a stupendous job as well!  Even if you didn’t win the pitch pick, you are winners for writing your amazing pitches, being brave enough to share them in public, accepting constructive criticism in the spirit in which it was offered, and revising your pitches to make them even better!  Let’s have Something Chocolate all around to celebrate! 🙂  (And no, I will not make you eat the chocolate peanut butter brittle or the chocolate-dipped dried pear garnish from last night 🙂 )

No.  We’re going off the deep end today 🙂  I saw this and knew it was imperative that I share it with you…

DOUGHNUT CAKE WITH MOCHA WHIPPED CREAM!!!

doughnut-cake-2

Doughnut Cake Recipe HERE at SugarHero.com

doughnut-cake-8

Doughnut Cake Recipe HERE at SugarHero.com

And I didn’t even make this up!  There is someone else out there in the world who thought this was a good idea!  Probably my twin separated at birth 🙂

Next, we have Straight From The Editor for April.  As you’ll recall, the April Pitch Pick was won by Sam with her pitch for The School Supplies Intensive Care Unit (PB ages 4-8):
When a marker is left uncapped, a pencil gets cracked, or a glue stick dries out, there is only one place they can turn; The School Supplies Intensive Care Unit.  After a sudden spike in cases at The SSIC-U, it’s up to Nurse Patchet to track down the culprit and reform the classroom’s worst offender.

Here are Erin Molta’s comments:

This is cute, but I am a little confused as to whether the school supplies are supposed to be “alive” or personified and the culprit is another school supply. Or if kids are bringing their broken school supplies to Nurse Patchet and there’s a rogue student wreaking havoc…

 If you can somehow clarify that, I think you will have better luck with this pitch to an editor. For instance, using “student” instead of “they” in “there is only one place they can turn” will make it more clear that it’s about kids in a classroom. If you’re thinking the school supplies are personified, then you need to somehow add in something about a Pencil seeing the writing on the wall, or the somesuch…

Thanks as always to Erin for her very helpful and insightful comments!  I hope you learn as much from them as I do!

Now, onto today’s pitch which comes to us from Lydia.  Lydia Lukidis is a children’s author with thirty three books and eBooks published, as well as numerous short stories and poems. She writes both fiction and non-fiction, for ages 3-12, all designed to entertain and inspire. In addition to her creative work, she also composes educational activities and curriculum based texts for children.

Visit her on the web at:
www.lydialukidis.com
https://lydialukidis.wordpress.com/

Here is her pitch:

Working Title: Dancing Through Space

Age/Genre: Picture Book (ages 5-7 )

The Pitch: 3-2-1- Blast off! Dr. Mae Jemison launches into space and accomplishes her childhood dream. Despite challenges along the way, she never gave up and went on to become the first African-American woman to orbit the earth.

So what do you think?  Would You Read It?  YES, MAYBE or NO?

If your answer is YES, please feel free to tell us what you particularly liked and why the pitch piqued your interest.  If your answer is MAYBE or NO, please feel free to tell us what you think could be better in the spirit of helping Lydia improve her pitch.  Helpful examples of possible alternate wordings are welcome.  (However, I must ask that comments be constructive and respectful.  I reserve the right not to publish comments that are mean because that is not what this is about.)

 

Please send YOUR pitches for the coming weeks!  For rules and where to submit, click on this link Would You Read It or on Would You Read It in the dropdown under For Writers in the bar above.  There are openings in October, so you’ve got a little time to tweak your pitch to perfection and then get it up for some helpful feedback and a chance to have it read by editor Erin Molta!

Lyda is looking forward to your thoughts on her pitch!  I am looking forward to the fact that I will never have to eat Fruit Dessert Soup again and to harvesting more green beans from my Teensy Porch Garden which, against all odds, is still not dead! 🙂

Have a wonderful Wednesday everyone!!! 🙂

Would You Read It Wednesday #218 Breakdance Bertie- PLUS The May Pitch Pick

27 Comments

Happy Wednesday, Folks!  And Happy Summer!  Because now it officially is 🙂

I tell you, it’s a miracle I even got this post written!  Yesterday was every kind of crazy!  First, the junk guy showed up so we could clear out our basement (you know, to make it easier to paddle the canoe when it rains and the basement floods 🙂 ).  This involved removing the protective tarp from the bulkhead doors (vain attempt NOT to have basement floods 🙂 ).  Luckily, there were no snakes in the bulkhead stairway… but you never know until you open it and look in!  So you get the thrill of that I-may-suffer-palpitations-at-any-moment feeling 🙂

However, fussing around with the bulkhead stairway brought us in close proximity to the newly installed propane regulator… which allowed us to smell gas… which we should NOT… so we had to call about having it checked.  They wanted us to call the Fire Department!  LOOOOOONG “discussion” about whether that was really necessary culminating in the gas company guy showing up unannounced at 9 PM… only to say that he’d be back tomorrow to check it out properly!  So we got the additional thrill of that the-house-may-explode-at-any-moment feeling!

But being outside at 9 PM I heard noise and saw lights at our neighbor’s house… which is for sale and supposed to be empty… and it sounded more like a party than a poltergeist… which had to be investigated…and though by the time I got there the party was over, circumstances were such that the sheriff still had to be called… resulting eventually in the thrill of realizing I have become Gladys Kravitz (Bewitched) and Mrs. Rachel Lynde (Anne of Green Gables) and every other nosy-busy-body-crotchety-old-neighborhood-spy-wannabe rolled into one!

So.  Like I said.  Miracle right here! 🙂

Let’s get to it, shall we?

First, the May Pitch Pick.  Please read through the superb revised pitches below and then vote for your favorite.

#1 Susan – Bossy Bird (Picture Book ages 3-8)
Bossy Bird is the largest, loudest and bossiest bird of the bunch.  When the fed up flock sends him away, they lose their lookout and leave themselves open to the hungry neighborhood cat.  With danger crouching around the corner, Bossy Bird will discover that being the boss is not as important as being a friend and the others will learn that getting along is part of being a team.

#2 Sherry – Squirrelly Curly (Picture Book ages 4-8)
Three squirrel brothers need a home for the winter, but while Mo and Larry build nests, Curly pelts them with acorns and snatches nesting materials for his snow sports. When varmints and weather destroy their nests, it’s up to Curly to lead them to the safety of a nest and the scrumptious acorn feast he’s squirreled away for hard times. In this Three Little Pigs re-telling, varmints and an ice storm replace the wolf.

#3 Melissa – Walking With Memphis: Inspired By A Real Dog (Nonfiction Picture Book ages 3-8)
When Memphis becomes paralyzed and loses his wag, he must learn to walk with a wheelchair. He worries his dog days will never be the same, but he digs up the courage to embark on an adventurous discovery of all that he is capable of and what it means to be a lucky dog.

#4 Shae – Avocado Desperado (Picture Book ages 4-8)
Roll with the other avocados? Avocado Desperado? Ha, never! Until he realizes not every problem can be solved alone, especially those that start with guaca and end with mole.

Please vote in the poll below for the pitch you think is best and most deserves a read an comments from editor Erin Molta!  Please cast your vote by Sunday June 26 at 5 PM EDT, and I’ll announce the winner next week!

Now then, for today’s Something Chocolate, how about Strawberry Shortcake?  I know… technically it’s not chocolate 🙂  But the strawberries are SO GOOD in June it seems a shame not to take advantage of them.  And strawberries make for a VERY healthy breakfast.  And you can always put some chocolate sauce on your strawberry shortcake! 🙂

Gluten-Free-No-Bake-Strawberry-Shortcake-Icebox-Cake-iowagirleats-01

Strawberry Shortcake recipe HERE at Iowa Girl Eats

Don’t you feel healthful and virtuous after that exceptionally nutritious breakfast-y type snack? 🙂

Alrighty then!  Onto today’s pitch which comes to us from Lindsay who says, “When I’m not cleaning up the unsavory messes of my two little boys, Cavalier King Charles pup and two cats, you can find me writing picture books. I’m a former newspaper and magazine editor, so it makes sense that I love to revise and critique. Here is for the manuscript I developed in Susanna’s excellent course, Making Picture Book Magic. This is my first submission for Would You Read It Wednesday!”

Here is her pitch:

Working Title: Breakdance Bertie

Age/Genre: Picture Book (ages 3-8 )

The Pitch: Bertie the emu can’t help but wiggle to the beat blaring through the barnyard. When her human friend Jeannie tells her about an online breakdancing competition, Bertie decides to go for the grand-prize pool. She tries to practice her hops and drops Monday through Friday, but Jeannie and the boom box aren’t always around, and the other animals lose patience when Bertie’s hops flop. Calamity sends Jeannie running just before deadline and leaves Bertie and the animals to build their own beat.

So what do you think?  Would You Read It?  YES, MAYBE or NO?

If your answer is YES, please feel free to tell us what you particularly liked and why the pitch piqued your interest.  If your answer is MAYBE or NO, please feel free to tell us what you think could be better in the spirit of helping Lindsay improve her pitch.  Helpful examples of possible alternate wordings are welcome.  (However, I must ask that comments be constructive and respectful.  I reserve the right not to publish comments that are mean because that is not what this is about.)

 

Please send YOUR pitches for the coming weeks!  For rules and where to submit, click on this link Would You Read It or on Would You Read It in the dropdown under For Writers in the bar above.  There are openings in October, so you’ve got a little time to tweak your pitch to perfection and then get it up for some helpful feedback and a chance to have it read by editor Erin Molta!

Lindsay is looking forward to your thoughts on her pitch!  I am looking forward to seeing who wins the Pitch Pick!  It’s going to be a tough choice! 🙂

Have a wonderful Wednesday everyone!!! 🙂

Would You Read It Wednesday #217 – Crab And Gull

21 Comments

Happy Wednesday, Everyone!

I know it’s technically not summer for another week, but it’s so close now you can taste it!  Strawberries.  Blueberries.  Raspberries.  Peaches.  Chocolate. 🙂  (Okay.  You got me.  Chocolate is a year ’round delight 🙂 )

You probably all remember my “what can you put in a brownie” phase before Christmas, when I made peanut butter brownies, peppermint brownies, toffee brownies etc.

Well.

You’ll be shocked to learn I’ve got a new baking vehicle and it’s not even chocolate!  I have discovered that you can put all kinds of things in banana bread and wow! is it yummy!  Chocolate chips (obviously).  Blueberries (totally amazing! – if you haven’t tried it whip out your loaf pans this instant!)  And I’m seriously considering a version with peanut butter chips, or possibly some type of peanut butter swirl, although I haven’t tried that yet.  I am also open to any other suggestions you folks have.  Because at my house, bananas have to be an exact certain ripeness in order to be considered consumable.  Too green, they have to wait.  Too ripe, no one will touch them.  There’s about a 5 minute window.  Hence, I keep ending up with MANY overripe bananas.  Luckily, I’m willing to do my part for the cause and bake banana bread 🙂

But it’s Wednesday, and we all know that Wednesday is for Something Chocolate!  So Something Chocolate you shall have!

I don’t think we can go wrong with 3 ingredient Easy Oreo Truffles, do you? 🙂

Nom nom nom! 🙂

I thought not 🙂

Now then, onto today’s pitch which comes to us from Sam whom you may remember from her recent winning pitch for The School Supplies Intensive Care Unit.  Sam Altmann is a special education teacher who lives in Baltimore Maryland with her husband and two semi-cuddly chaos loving dogs. She is a sucker for soft serve ice cream, swimming in the ocean, and “quality” reality television.

Here is her pitch:

Working Title: Crab And Gull

Age/Genre: Picture Book (ages 4-8 )

The Pitch: Gull wants Crab’s sandwich. Crab wants Gull to leave him and his sandwich alone. But when Gull goes missing, Crab’s treat just doesn’t taste as sweet. He packs up his food in search of Gull, and finds that sometimes cooking up a friendship a more important than cooking up a seaweed sandwich.

So what do you think?  Would You Read It?  YES, MAYBE or NO?

If your answer is YES, please feel free to tell us what you particularly liked and why the pitch piqued your interest.  If your answer is MAYBE or NO, please feel free to tell us what you think could be better in the spirit of helping Sam improve her pitch.  Helpful examples of possible alternate wordings are welcome.  (However, I must ask that comments be constructive and respectful.  I reserve the right not to publish comments that are mean because that is not what this is about.)

 

Please send YOUR pitches for the coming weeks!  For rules and where to submit, click on this link Would You Read It or on Would You Read It in the dropdown under For Writers in the bar above.  There are openings in October, so you’ve got a little time to tweak your pitch to perfection and then get it up for some helpful feedback and a chance to have it read by editor Erin Molta!

Sam is looking forward to your thoughts on her pitch!  I am looking forward to adding to my Week In Wildlife photo collection (it’s been quite a week! – if we all had more time I would have shared it and shown you, among other things, the giant black rat snake I nearly trod upon whilst out marching about in the wilderness!)

Have a wonderful Wednesday everyone!!! 🙂

Perfect Picture Book Friday – 1 Big Salad: A Delicious Counting Book

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It’s Friday!  It’s Friday!

And what a week it has been here in Wild Kingdom!

First, there was the teeny frog who accidentally wandered in last Friday (see Wednesday’s post!)

Then on Wednesday a pretty little doe showed up in the front yard toward evening unable to bear any weight on her right front leg.  She seemed happy enough nibbling the tender grass, but she was decidedly lame.  I have seen her twice since, still not putting that foot down, but learned that she has a fondness for cantaloupe rinds!  Did you know white-tailed deer ate those?  I had no idea!  But apparently they’re quite a delicacy.

And just look at my tiny porch garden!  It hasn’t died yet!

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Zucchini on the left, tomato on the right 10 days ago

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Zucchini on the left, tomato on the right today!

My baby veggies are actually growing!  It’s nothing short of miraculous!  Of course, I’m waiting for the deer to figure out they can reach up onto the porch… 🙂

Today is the last Perfect Picture Book before our annual summer hiatus, and my not-yet-dead veggies inspired me to choose a book about salad! Which, who would have even thought there would BE a picture book about salad?!  It just goes to show, picture book writers, that if you can dream it up someone somewhere will be interested in reading it!

1 Big Salad

Title: 1 Big Salad: A Delicious Counting Book

Written & Illustrated By: Juana Medina

Viking Books For Young Readers, June 2016, Nonfiction

Suitable For Ages: 2-4

Themes/Topics: concept (counting), nonfiction, nutrition/food, imagination

Opening: “1 one Avocado Deer.
2 two Radish Mice.”

Brief Synopsis: “Starting with one avocado deer and working up to 10 clementine kittens, the anthropomorphic fruits and veggies in this counting concept book come together to create one big and appealing salad.” (From the School Library Journal review)

Links To Resources: the book itself is an appealing education in salad items, and the last page includes a simple, healthy recipe for salad dressing; talk about different kinds of salad – green salad, fruit salad, pasta salad, potato salad, etc.  What makes a salad?  Brainstorm different items you could put in a salad – different lettuces, veggies, nuts, seeds, raisins/dried cranberries/clementine segments etc.  What kinds of things do YOU like to put in your salad?  Make your own salad!  Eat it! 🙂

Why I Like This Book:    First of all, what a fun concept for a counting book!  Who would have thought salad could be counted? 🙂  Second, the language and illustrations use imagination to dress up vegetables (which some kids might not be so keen on), turning them into animals – cute, entertaining and fun.  A regular avocado might not be so interesting, but when it looks like a deer?  How fun is that?!  The book invites a discussion of what makes a great salad and will encourage kids to try making (and eating!) their own. A great choice for picky eaters, young chefs, or anyone who likes to play with their food 🙂

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Text and illustration copyright Juana Medina 2016

I hope you like it as much as I do 🙂

For the complete list of books with resources, please visit Perfect Picture Books.

PPBF folks, please add your titles and post-specific links (and any other info you feel like filling out 🙂 ) to the form below so we can all come see what fabulous picture books you’ve chosen to share this week!

Have a wonderful weekend, everyone!!! 🙂

And even though this was our last Perfect Picture Book Friday until September 9th or 16th (depending when I get back in gear 🙂 ) please keep joining us here for Would You Read It Wednesdays through July – the only complete vacation month around here is August! 🙂

Oh, and by the way, I’m terrible about remembering to tell people about these things, but What’s The Story Cards are now available if you email me.  Check them out!

They come in a nice little box.

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If you open the lid, you can stand the cards up to make it easy to pick randomly with your eyes closed 🙂

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The cards look like this:

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And they come with an instruction card that looks like this:

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Front

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Back

And they’re great for sparking and generating story ideas!  Good for writers who need an idea, families on summer road trips (a whole new spin on car/airplane entertainment), or a fun game while roasting marshmallows around the camp fire 🙂  So feel free to holler if you want some 🙂

Would You Read It Wednesday #216 – The Bath Of Least Resistance

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Happy Wednesday, Folks!

Up on Blueberry Hill where we are exceptionally close to Nature, things are hopping!  Literally!  Look at this cute little guy:

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There I was, wandering around my house as one does at midnight on Fridays, when what to my wondering eye should appear than this tiny housebreaker!  SPROING! SPROING! SPROING!  He hopped down  my hallway, leaping easily 10 times his height into the air.  He was the size of my thumbnail (i.e. pretty small! I thought he was some kind of bug at first!) and clearly bewildered by the strange surroundings in which he found himself.  I’m pretty sure he stopped in because my Perfect Picture Book for Friday was Frog Song 🙂  but once inside he wasn’t quite sure what to do.  Luckily, being a Resourceful Type, I knew what to do.  I took his picture for you guys (so forethoughtful of me!), then I caught him under a plastic cup, slipped a postcard underneath his tiny toes so he’d have something to stand on, and transported him outside into the spring night where he hopped gratefully away into the cool damp grass.

I think there’s a picture book idea in a Thumbelina-sized frog accidentally hopping inside a house of giants! 🙂

Of course, all this talk of hopping is making me hungry, so how about Something Chocolate? 🙂  For today’s Something Chocolate I chose something specially for our pitcher and his almost-4 year-old: Ice Cream Sundae Cookie Cups!  They’re easy to make and you can put any flavor of ice cream and any kind of topping you like on them!  A supremely kid-friendly perfect summer treat 🙂  I hope you all enjoy them!!!

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Ice Cream Sundae Cookie Cups Recipe HERE at Lovely Little Kitchen

If you wanted to make an extra cookie cup, that tiny frog would fit in beautifully, and then he could eat his way out…  Seriously, someone should write this picture book 🙂

Now then, onto today’s pitch which comes to us from Greg who says, “I was a film major in college who somehow ended up with a career in the IT industry. For exercise I play hockey and chase my soon to be four year old son around. He is also the inspiration for most of my stories. I love to cook and have made several of Susanna’s recipes. (Including the churro pancakes from May 4 which were pronounced awesome and resulted in my son requesting pancakes every weekend since then 🙂 ) I can be followed on my Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/gregoryebray/  or my blog: http://gregoryebrayauthor.blogspot.com/”

Here is his pitch:

Working Title: The Bath Of Least Resistance

Age/Genre: Picture Book (ages 3-8 )

The Pitch:  Paint is thicker than water, but the bond between a puppy and his human brother is even thicker.
When Bogie discovers the wonderful scent and texture of paint, he inadvertently tracks it all over the house. Chaos and calamity ensue with each attempt to get him into the tub. What will it take to give Bogie a bath, or is he destined to remain a colorful pooch forever.

So what do you think?  Would You Read It?  YES, MAYBE or NO?

If your answer is YES, please feel free to tell us what you particularly liked and why the pitch piqued your interest.  If your answer is MAYBE or NO, please feel free to tell us what you think could be better in the spirit of helping Greg improve his pitch.  Helpful examples of possible alternate wordings are welcome.  (However, I must ask that comments be constructive and respectful.  I reserve the right not to publish comments that are mean because that is not what this is about.)

 

Please send YOUR pitches for the coming weeks!  For rules and where to submit, click on this link Would You Read It or on Would You Read It in the dropdown under For Writers in the bar above.  There are openings in June (YES JUNE – you heard that correctly!!!), so you could get your pitch up for some helpful feedback practically next week, and have a chance to have it read by editor Erin Molta!

Greg is looking forward to your thoughts on his pitch!  I am looking forward to seeing what happens to my mini porch garden.  Right now, it’s zucchini vs. tomato as to who will take over the world and it’s a shockingly close race – very high suspense!  Feel free to place your bets 🙂

Have a wonderful Wednesday everyone!!! 🙂