Tag: writing exercises

Would You Read It Wednesday #289 – Amy’s Birdsong Airs/Composer Amy Cheney Beach (PB)

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Hiya, folks!  Hope your Wednesdays are all off to a good start!

Princess Blue Kitty and I (that’s my car, for anyone who happens to be new around here and doesn’t know her 🙂 ) are hopefully off to a good start (or possibly arrived, depending on exactly when you’re reading this) to our favorite long-term parking lot.  I am such the traveller these days.  Normally I don’t go anywhere, but when I do, it seems to all be at the same time.  Didn’t I just get back from Brazil? 🙂

Anyway, let’s all get fortified with Something Chocolate, shall we?  And then we’ll be all fueled up and rarin’ to go to help  today’s pitcher!

Earthquake Cake

 

 

If you’re drooling it’s okay 🙂  You’re in good company 🙂

Now then, onto today’s pitch which comes to us from Patricia who says, “As a kid, I was totally into painting, singing, dancing and making up stories. Sometimes things never change and I’m glad I still enjoy it all :>)   And I’m so happy and blessed that Callie-Metler Smith at Clear Fork Publishing has given me the opportunity to have two books published in the near future.”

Find her on the web at:

www.patriciasaunders.com…..website
@Writer Saunders….twitter

Here is her pitch:

Working Title: Amy’s Birdsong Airs/Composer Amy Cheney Beach

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

The Pitch: Amy, a prodigy, wants more than anything to play the piano and compose music, but isn’t allowed, so she compensates by writing songs in her head. Eventually, her God given talent is recognized and Amy learns that perseverance leads to success.

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 Patricia 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 July, so you could get your pitch up pretty soon for helpful feedback and a chance to have it read and commented on by editor Erin Molta!

Patricia is looking forward to your thoughts on her pitch!  I am looking forward to 6 hours on an airplane!  (Okay, maybe not that part 🙂  But I sure am looking forward to seeing my daughter! 🙂 )

Have a wonderful Wednesday everyone!!! 🙂

 

Would You Read It Wednesday #288 – The Tooth Fairy Conference (PB)

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You know it’s June when suddenly there are fiercely protective does everywhere and, if you’re lucky, you get to see tiny new fawns wobbling along behind them.

A doe with a new fawn has taken up residence on the wooded outskirts of my yard.  I have yet to see the baby, but I know it’s there because the doe is terrorizing my dogs!  (Not that they don’t deserve it – they’re entirely too interested in the proceedings, and even though I know they’d never hurt the fawn – if only because they’d have no idea what to do with it! – they make the doe nervous with their investigations.  And as someone who is a mother, I understand 🙂 )

Since I haven’t seen the fawn yet, I’ll entertain your with baby horse antics instead 🙂

 

You will recall that we had a barn baby back in April… whose mother, coincidentally, is named April 🙂  At the moment, this little dickens is referred to as Sassy… when she isn’t being called something less polite 🙂  She is quite a handful 🙂

Anyone feel a picture book coming on? 🙂

Alrighty, then!

Since today’s pitcher is a self-professed Ice Cream Lover, and since summer is coming, and since what could be better for breakfast than ice cream, let’s have Something Chocolate Ice Cream for today’s snack!

Brownie Cup Ice Cream Sundae

brownie cup sundae

Recipe HERE (with helpful video!) at delish.com

Obviously either chocolate or coffee is the best flavor of ice cream to use, along with hot fudge and/or caramel topping, but since it’s breakfast time, if you feel compelled to have some fruit, you can go strawberry ice cream 🙂

Delish! 🙂

Now then, onto today’s pitch which comes to us from Katie who says, “I’m an educator, Word Nerd, and Ice Cream-Loving Optimist. Faith, family, and fitness are my motivators. My #1 writing goal is picture books featuring Big Ideas for Young Minds (also the name of my main blog). My side gig is creating teaching resources (my own and for hire).   Additionally, you may want to know:

        1. “Goodnight, Moon” is my least-favorite classic, but “Runaway Bunny” is tied for first with “Harold and the Purple Crayon” and “The Lorax.” Also, I have too many modern favorites to pick even the Top 10.
        2. I want to know why zillions of the facing-out picture books (e.g. hot sellers) in stores rhyme when verse is supposed to be verboten.
        3. Age ranges on picture book queries make me wince since I think picture books are perfect for any age. The little plus sign I put after the age range (e.g. 4-8+) makes me feel better.”

 

Here is her pitch:

Working Title: The Tooth Fairy Conference

Age/Genre: Picture Book (ages 5-9)

The Pitch: Tooth Fairy Gwyneth rallies brainy and brawny conference attendees to extract Plaque Man, a rot-minded foe, and save the fairy economy. Gwyneth must convince skeptical speakers presenting key economic and tooth collecting knowledge to form a posse with tough tooth fairies from all over the world. Now if only they can combine their dental and mental derring-do and wash skunky, gunky Plaque Man down the drain.

·        ~1250 words, PB ages 5-9+  It’s dreadfully long as a fiction PB, but it has nonfiction elements integral to plot and character development. I’m open to input on if it should be a chapter book instead.

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 Katie 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 July, so you have time to polish your pitch before putting it up for helpful feedback and a chance to have it read and commented on by editor Erin Molta!

Katie is looking forward to your thoughts on her pitch!  I am looking forward to seeing that little fawn one of these days soon 🙂

Have a wonderful Wednesday everyone!!! 🙂

 

Would You Read It Wednesday #287 – I Am Not A Hugger! (PB)

23 Comments

Darlings, I am such the world traveler!

Here I am, back from Brazil for the second time in 6 months!

I!

Who didn’t even have a passport until about a year ago!

Where should I go next?

I’ve always had a hankering to visit the Spanish Riding School in Vienna and see the Lipizzans… And for no particular reason I can think of I’ve always wanted to go to Ireland.  Maybe it’s because they have a lot of horses there too… 🙂  Any suggestions?  Maybe one of you will have a great idea and I’ll go and get a picture book out of it! 🙂

I will not even pretend that I’m on top of things around here.  I’m so behind it isn’t even funny.  So let’s all fuel up with Something Chocolate, shall we?  And then you guys can help out today’s pitcher, and I can go try to desperately to dig myself out of my email inbox, meet my editorial deadline, finish some critiques, and…. ok, I’m just going stop listing stuff because it’s scaring me 🙂 Did someone say CHOCOLATE?!

I’m in a cookie mood.  You can eat 3 cookies without feeling too guilty, whereas 3 cupcakes… ok, well I would eat 3 cupcakes too on a day like today! 🙂

Fudgy Chocolate Brownie Cookies

Mmmm!  Chocolate cookies!  They’re what’s for breakfast!  A perfect companion to coffee, tea, milk, or hot chocolate!  And why stop at 3?  They’re small… 🙂

Dig in!

Now then, onto today’s pitch which comes to us from Francis S. Poesy who says, “Francis S. Poesy is the pen name of Tim Canny, a writer of children’s stories aspiring to authorship, or is it authorhood? Authorness maybe? Basically, he’d like to be published. He has self-published a self-illustrated alphabet book, titled A Rather Round Alphabet, just to see what that would be like. He is a part-time graphic artist, but does not consider himself an illustrator.”

He can be found on the web at:
website: http://www.mulberryandbliss.com
twitter: http://www.twitter.com/tcanny
instagram: http://www.instagram.com/timcanny
A Rather Round Alphabet: https://www.amazon.com/Rather-Round-Alphabet-Francis-Poesy-ebook/dp/B06XFSKV1D/ref=tmm_kin_swatch_0

Here is his pitch:

Working Title: I Am Not A Hugger!

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

The Pitch: Val likes her personal space. But she is a minority of one in her extended family of huggers. So when the latest family gathering promises to be a complete hug fest, Val must find her voice and stand her ground if she wants to avoid the impending hugtastrophe.

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 Francis 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 July, so you have time to polish your pitch before putting it up for helpful feedback and a chance to have it read and commented on by editor Erin Molta!

Francis is looking forward to your thoughts on his pitch!  I am looking forward to catching up, which at this stage feels impossible, but I’m sure with enough chocolate it can be done 🙂

Have a wonderful Wednesday everyone!!! 🙂

 

Would You Read It Wednesday #286 – Sadie’s Tail (PB)

30 Comments

Happy Wednesday, my friends!

I can’t believe it.  This guy

Scan 28

is getting married!

Where does the time go?!

So I’m running around like a lunatic and will not take up your time with amusing anecdotes from my childhood or unnecessary ramblings about nature on Blueberry Hill.  Let’s get right to Something Chocolate, shall we?  I’m thinking Chocolate Wedding Cake… 🙂

choc wedding 2

What could be more delicious?! 🙂

Now then, onto today’s pitch which comes to us from Patricia who is a wife, mother to Two Orange Pups and 3 grown kids, & a pre-published author. I’ve wandered much of my adult life, logging over 20 moves in the past 30 years – there’s a “how to” story lurking somewhere!  I review Perfect Picture Books, primarily international ones, at Wander, Ponder, Write.

Here is her pitch:

Working Title: Sadie’s Tail

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

The Pitch: Ryan and his rescue-pup Sadie are the perfect pair, except for one thing. Whenever Ryan tries to brush her fluffy tail, Sadie growls, howls and otherwise avoids the brushing. As Sadie’s tail changes from fluffy to puffy and household items go missing, Ryan must discover a solution to tame that tail.

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 Patricia 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 July, so you have time to polish your pitch before putting it up for helpful feedback and a chance to have it read and commented on by editor Erin Molta!

Patricia is looking forward to your thoughts on her pitch!  I am looking forward to going to the wedding!!!

Have a wonderful Wednesday everyone!!! 🙂

(And I’m forewarning you, I don’t think I’m going to manage Perfect Picture Books this week because I’ll be in sunny Brazil, good lord willing and the creek don’t rise! 🙂 )

 

Would You Read It Wednesday #285 – The Day Without Y (PB)

14 Comments

Howdy, Folks!

I would like to announce that at long last the apple tree in my yard has blossomed!

IMG_5576

Aren’t apple blossoms just so beautiful?!

And… while we’re totally not on the subject… 🙂 I know it’s early and you might not have shaken off the cobwebs yet, but I have a question for you.

(And this is an actual question, not a riddle, because I don’t know the answer, which is why I’m asking 🙂 )

What’s red like a fox but shaped like a groundhog?

Because I spotted a critter fitting this description and I have no idea what it might be!

I’d guess a red panda, but I’m pretty sure they don’t hang out in the wilds of Blueberry Hill 🙂

The only other hints I have to offer are that it looked like it might be nibbling on leaves… but it may have just bumped them in its hurry to escape my prying eyes… and it disappeared into an opening in some rocks.

Maybe it was a rotund little baby fox… 🙂

A mini mystery for the day… and maybe a good spark for a story 🙂

While we mull over the identity of my mysterious visitor, let’s have Something Chocolate, shall we?  How about some Salted Caramel Brownie Ice Cream Cake!

Salted Caramel Brownie Ice Cream Cake

Mmm mmm good!  If that doesn’t say “breakfast”, I don’t know what does! 🙂

Now then, onto today’s pitch which comes to us from Jennifer who is a part time nurse, full time mom of three (four if you count the dog), wife, avid reader, blogger and picture book writer of the pre-published variety. She’s dreamed of seeing her words in print for as long as she can remember (and feels blessed to have made it this far.) You can find her at her blog, Magnolias & Manuscripts (http://magnoliasandmanuscripts.wordpress.com/blog) where she’s capturing her writing journey and asking questions to authors far more successful than she. If she’s not there, she’s probably somewhere jotting down ideas, playing with her kids or chasing the big goofy dog, always with a cup of coffee in hand.

Here is her pitch:

Working Title: The Day Without Y

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

The Pitch: As the youngest of a big family, Y struggles to find her place: the Consonants are crowded and the Vowels only let her hang around sometimes. Tired of being ignored, she decides to pretend she’s like the other Letters, but chaos and confusion set in as Y’s family tries to make sense without her.

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 Jennifer 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 July, so you have time to polish your pitch before putting it up for helpful feedback and a chance to have it read and commented on by editor Erin Molta!

Jennifer is looking forward to your thoughts on her pitch!  I am looking forward to The Millbrook Literary Festival this Saturday!  Iza Trapani, Karen Orloff, Nancy Furstinger, Tania Guarino, Michael Garland, Jenna Grodzicki, Steven Petruccio, and many others will be there too, so you should all come!

Have a wonderful Wednesday everyone!!! 🙂

 

Would You Read It Wednesday #284 – One Smart Cookie: The Story of Ruth Wakefield and the Invention of the Chocolate Chip Cookie (NF PB)

18 Comments

Darlings, life is a whirlwind!

Thank you all for your enthusiastic WYRI submissions last week – we’ve got a bunch of good ones lined up!

And in honor of the whirlwind just mentioned, for our Something Chocolate today let’s have a good old-fashioned tornado… otherwise known as a Chocolate Milkshake! 🙂

choc milkshake

Recipe HERE at BBCGoodFood

 

Now that we’re all wound up, let’s jump right into today’s pitch (which seems like it fits right in with our chocolate theme here 🙂 ) which comes to us from Jackie who is a picture book author and regional advisor of the SCBWI North Texas chapter.

Find her on the web at https://www.jaclynkruzie.com/blog

Here is her pitch:

Working Title: One Smart Cookie: The Story of Ruth Wakefield and the Invention of the Chocolate Chip Cookie

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

The Pitch: For years the invention of the chocolate chip cookie has been hailed a happy accident. Perhaps it was, or perhaps it was the clever invention of a clever lady. Devour every morsel of this mystery and decide if it was a lucky mistake or the creation of one smart cookie.

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 Jackie 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 July, so you have time to polish your pitch before putting it up for helpful feedback and a chance to have it read and commented on by editor Erin Molta!

Jackie is looking forward to your thoughts on her pitch!  I am looking forward to the whirlwind mellowing just a bit… maybe by the 3rd week of June or so 🙂

Have a wonderful Wednesday everyone!!! 🙂

 

Would You Read It Wednesday #283 – Willamina The Super-Mom Wolf Spider (PB)

20 Comments

Hiya, Peeps!

Hope you’re all having a lovely week so far!

I am having a school visit kind of week – teaching 4th graders about writing – tons of fun!  (But I confess to being away from my desk and absent from social media!)

Remember that baby horse I mentioned a while back?

(Don’t get excited…!)

We’re still waiting!

Such anticipation!!! 🙂

I’ll keep you posted!

Meanwhile, there’s nothing like Something Chocolate to help the waiting time go by… 🙂  Can I interest you in some Dark Chocolate Cream Pie?

Dark Chocolate Cream Pie

I know I can interest myself in some 🙂  YUM!

Now then, onto today’s pitch which comes to us from Corine.  An encounter on a dusty road in southwest Spain between a boar piglet, an abandoned hunting dog, and Corine, inspired her to write and self -publish her first children’s story. Nature is a constant inspiration and this new story idea is no exception. While sweeping the outside terrace of their holiday shack ( on a beach somewhere in Portugal), Corine stumbled upon a wolf spider with hundreds of babies on her back. EEEK! An incident that inspired this story.

Find her on the web at:
website https://www.bicadeideias.com
Pinterest https://www.pinterest.co.uk/ctbicadeideias
Face Book: https://www.facebook.com/corineaddis

Here is her pitch:

Working Title: Willamina the Super -Mom Wolf Spider

Age/Genre: Picture Book (ages 6-9)

The Pitch:  Willamina the Wolf spider wants more than anything to keep her spiderlings safe until they are ready to explore the world on their own. But when her tummy starts grumbling, she knows it’s time to leave the den to *hunt. Not an easy task with three hundred spiderlings on her back! To make matters worse, it is full moon and she is not the only one who is hungry. Willamina has to hide from an owl, run away from a shrew, and, in the end, outsmart a lady with a broom—an incident that forces her to release her spiderlings, but not without telling them they are going on an adventure.

*Wolf spiders hunt for prey. Females are single parents and carry their offspring
(hundreds) on their abdomen for about one week— until the spiderlings disperse— at times via ballooning.

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 Corine 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 May, so you could get your pitch up pretty soon for helpful feedback and a chance to have it read and commented on by editor Erin Molta!

Corine is looking forward to your thoughts on her pitch!  I am looking forward to that baby horse!  Maybe we should take bets on what day it will arrive! 🙂  I shall cast my vote for April 25 because that’s today… and it could happen… 🙂

Have a wonderful Wednesday everyone!!! 🙂

 

Would You Read It Wednesday #282 – Sylvia Swan & Cabot (PB)

25 Comments

Howdy, folks!

I hope you’re all having a wonderful week so far!

Here on Blueberry Hill it has been the kind of week that motivates me to check in with my favorite laugh-out-loud videos for a little pick-me-up.  Really, doesn’t laughing just make everything seem better?! 🙂

In case any of you need a laugh, I’d like to share this week’s favorite:

SNL – Pro-Chiller Leggings

Please please please feel free to share your favorite laugh-out-loud video in the comment section!  We can all use a laugh 🙂

I think that video has set us up perfectly for a Something Chocolate that prepares itself in the freezer whilst we lie on the couch, catch up on missed episodes of The Voice and eat bonbons!  Check out this delicious no-churn Chocolate Peanut Butter Ice Cream!

No-Churn-Chocolate-Peanut-Butter-Ice-Cream-6

Recipe (including helpful video!) HERE at iwashyoudry.com

All the deliciousness and none of the energy expenditure of churned ice cream – the best of both worlds!

Now then, onto today’s pitch which comes to us from Amanda who says, “I am a wife, mom of 4, teacher, writer, aspiring children’s book author, runner, and triplet. Writing is my creative outlet and it makes me happy.”

Find her on the web at:
Blog-https://writingstoriesonewordatatime.blog/
Twitter Handle-@jhkmom4

Here is her pitch:

Working Title: Sylvia Swan & Cabot

Age/Genre: Picture Book (ages 4-10)

The Pitch: When Sylvia Swan’s family is too busy to help her build a blanket fort…again, she takes matters into her own hands. She channels her frustrations into brainstorming, sketching, measuring, drafting and creating the perfect invention—C.A.Bot:Customized Assisting Robot. Will Cabot be the solution she has been waiting for? Will her favorite pastime become a reality? Sylvia Swan soon finds out that Cabot can help her build more than just a fort.

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 Amanda 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 May, so you could get your pitch up pretty soon for helpful feedback and a chance to have it read and commented on by editor Erin Molta!

Amanda is looking forward to your thoughts on her pitch!  I am looking forward to some quality time with my Pro-Chiller Leggings and to any funny videos you guys choose to share! 🙂

Have a wonderful Wednesday everyone!!! 🙂

 

Would You Read It Wednesday #281 – Curious Cassandra (PB)

32 Comments

Good morning, my friends!

I am waiting.

Yesterday, it snowed.

I am not making this up.

Huge flakes, so big you could see their crystalline construction.

Lazy, insolent flakes, just daring you to point out they had no business at this time of year making themselves at home on decks and porch railings, tree branches, swing sets and mailboxes, piling up like feathers after a pillow fight on every available surface.

Excuse me.

Did someone forget to mention it’s April?!

So I am waiting.

Waiting for sunshine.

Waiting for the temperature to get above 40 for more than 14 seconds at the warmest part of the day.

Waiting until the dogs and I can walk on Blueberry Hill and see the trees budding and the flowers blossoming, hear the peepers and the red-winged blackbirds in the marshy areas, wear shorts and a t-shirt and not be cold (well, the dogs don’t care about shorts and a t-shirt… 🙂 ), smell the sun warming the earth, trying to be patient…

…waiting for spring.

And I think I speak for all of us when I say nothing is better whilst waiting for spring than Something Chocolate!  Unless maybe it’s Something Chocolate that is also Something Coffee altogether in one mouthful 🙂  In case any of you are also waiting for spring, can I offer you some chocolate espresso layer cake?!

Chocolate Espresso Layer Cake

Chocolate+Espresso+Cake+with+Ganache

Recipe HERE at Pip & Ebby

Mmm-mmm-good!  I feel like I shored up a whole slice of patience!  I may be able to wait until this afternoon for spring to arrive! 🙂

Now then, onto today’s pitch which comes to us from Candace who usually sits in a comfy chair, with a cup of tea and something chocolate, while she reads and writes about things that make her curious.

Find her on the web at:

 

Here is her pitch:

Working Title: Curious Cassandra

Age/Genre: Picture Book (ages 4-7)

The Pitch:  Cassandra is a curious girl. She opens drawers, looks under beds, and rummages in boxes. The tall fence surrounding her neighbor’s garden makes her the most curious. She can’t see over it, under it, or through it, no matter how she tries.

She overhears her mother talking about the plants Mrs Fulton is growing – turtle’s heads, fox’s gloves, and lamb’s ears.  These are plants she must see for herself. Cassandra sits down, at her desk, and draws up some plans for getting into Mrs Fulton’s garden.

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 Candace 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 April, so you could get your pitch up pretty soon for helpful feedback and a chance to have it read and commented on by editor Erin Molta!

Candace is looking forward to your thoughts on her pitch!  I am looking forward to daffodils 🙂

Have a wonderful Wednesday everyone!!! 🙂

 

Would You Read It Wednesday #280 – The Littlest Astronaut (PB)

23 Comments

Happy Wednesday, Chickadees!

What a fun week it has been!

First, totally unexpected and out of the blue, an email arrived in my inbox with sketches for ALPHABEDTIME!  What a thrill!  It’s in the early stages yet, but looks fantastic.  Illustrator Betsy Snyder is doing a great job.  There’s even a pogo stick on page 10 (and any of you who know me know my passion for pogoing 🙂 )

Second (as if first weren’t enough!), I got to see the final art for WHEN YOUR MONKEYS WON’T GO TO BED, due out August 28!  (Apparently it’s art week and I didn’t realize it 🙂 )  Daniel Wiseman has done it again, and I can’t wait to be able to share with you!

As you all know, I cannot draw to save myself, so I feel incredibly lucky to have been paired with such amazingly talented artists who seem to know exactly the right way to bring my stories to life.  If it weren’t for them, my books would look like this:

SLH illustration style

illustration copyright SLH 20…hahaha…I can’t even say it 🙂

 

and nobody wins with that! 🙂

I think this calls for a celebratory Something Chocolate, don’t you?  Also, I believe I speak for all of us when I say it’s time for Second Breakfast!  I vote for Chocolate Swirl Pie!

Chocolate Swirl Pie

choc swirl pie

Recipe HERE (including helpful video!) at Twisted

Yum!  Delicious and nutritious! (Surely there must be some way in which that is nutritious… and I’m certain that if I have a second helping it will give me the brain fuel I need to figure out how 🙂 )

Now then, onto today’s pitch which comes to us from Rachel who ***nervously waves*** and says, “Hello! My name is Rachel. In no particular order I am a psychologist, mother of three (to a little girl who just turned 1 and two very goofy boxer dogs), a wife, a shoe hoarder and – cosmetics/face creams aficionado!!!

How and why did I start writing Picture Books? I was minding my own business when suddenly, without warning, a children’s book popped into my head, in fact a whole series of them did. They needed to be written down, it was a compulsion, I couldn’t stop. A bit like vomit, you feel better when it’s all out (yes I just compared my writing to vomit).”

Find her on the web at:
Twitter handle – @RachLTomlinson
Blog – https://rachtomlinsonwrites.wixsite.com/rachtomlinsonwrites/blog/

Here is her pitch:

Working Title: The Littlest Astronaut

Age/Genre: Picture Book (ages 4-10)

The Pitch: Even before she was born Seren was destined to become an Astronaut. After all, her parents had given her a name that meant star. When she shares her dreams with others they laugh, making her feel small, just because she isn’t grown up yet. It is a tall order when a space mission is jeopardised, and no-one else can help because they are too big. Can Seren step up and save the day?

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 Rachel 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 April, so you could get your pitch up pretty soon for helpful feedback and a chance to have it read and commented on by editor Erin Molta!

Rachel is looking forward to your thoughts on her pitch!  I am looking forward to seeing my new books progress and getting to share the process with you!

Have a wonderful Wednesday everyone!!! 🙂