Dear O'Abby: How do I transition from kids' books to books for adults?

 Dear O'Abby,

I am a kid-lit author with several published MG and picture books to my name.  I have also published a couple of YA  novels for younger YA readers.  I love writing for young people, but the new book I am working on is very different and will definitely be for adults.  

I'm wondering if you know anything about how to transition to this new audience without having to use a pseudonym.  With such an extensive publishing history, I don't want to lose the name recognition even though I'm targeting a different audience.

Yours truly,

Transitory

Dear Transitory,

Darn it!  You've already eliminated the most obvious answer here - to use a pseudonym.  But I understand your reasons for not doing this and respect them.

Firstly, I would ask if you currently have an agent representing your kidlit projects?  If so, do they also represent adult books?  If they do, they will be in a far better position to guide you through this transition than I.  But given you've asked here, I suspect you either don't have an agent or your agent does not represent adult books.

So...  If it's the latter, you need to talk to your current agent.  Let them know that your new book doesn't fit in the wheelhouse of your previous work. Depending on your working relationship, she may be willing to explore new avenues on your behalf.  Or there may be another agent at the agency who could represent your new project and the two agents could work together on your career.

If you don't already have an agent, or your current agent doesn't have any leads for you, you will probably want to query your new book when it is ready.  Research widely for agents best suited to your new work. Make sure that when you query you let the agents know that you have a body of work and (if it is the case) and agent already representing this facet of your career.  This will give you a leg up on authors that don't already have a track record of publishing and working with an agent.

Obviously the whole querying thing is a lot of work and if you feel like this book is a one-off and you probably won't write another adult book, you may not want to do this.  It may also be harder to get an agent for the project because agents tend to like working with writers' careers, rather than single books.  If this sounds like you, there is always self-publishing or even working with a small press that doesn't require an agent to submit.

There are so many variables!

Hopefully this is helpful.

Best of luck with finishing the new book.

X O'Abby

Tuning Your Ear

I volunteer to coach young writers at my daughters school, and yesterday I helped teach a writing workshop at the local library. I did it to help the kids, but it has tuned my ear for what kids sound like.

There's a reason so many teachers write for kids -- they have so much source material! But for the rest of us, working with children is a great way to re-tune our ears and eyes to stories. Even for parents, meeting kids helps expand story ideas.

It's not like I don't spend time with kids -- I have my own daughters, and they have friends. I have nieces and nephews. But the wider world of kids sounds very different than just the one I know well. Real kids sound so much younger and naive than I expect sometimes. Other times they sound so much older and smarter than I think they will be. And most individual kids will fit in both categories at different times.

I read a lot in my genre. I love kids' books -- picture books, easy readers, middle grade, young adult. It's a great way to learn about how to structure a story for each age group. It's not a great way to learn how kids sound, feel, or act -- many books get it exactly right, but emulating other writers is a game of telephone. Eventually, what you get at the end doesn't sound like much like a real kid at all. And there are certainly a lot of books like that on the shelves too.

It's not like kids even want books that sound exactly like they talk -- the hesitancy, the silliness, the lack of continuity sometimes. There's a reason actors on Disney and Nick sound like they do, which would be nothing like kids at all if they weren't imitated so much.

So wittier and more articulate versions of themselves are fine, as long as they would be recognizable as the juvenile stage of human development and not a child-sized puppet mouthing adult words, feelings, or sitcom badinage.

No experience is universal, so the more we interact with young readers, the more we will find those particular experiences that resonant with many readers. I think all writers should do it -- all agents and editors too -- if we want to create the stories where kids recognize a version of themselves, if we write the stories they really want to read.

Darkness in Kidlit, Victorian Style

The other day my daughter flipped through my copy of Sing-Song, A Nursery Rhyme Book by Christina Rossetti. She was attracted by the little girl on the cover cavorting with a lamb, one of the gorgeous original illustrations by Arthur Hughes, the Pre-Raphaelite whose illustrations for George MacDonald's The Princess and the Goblin I've loved since I bought my copy in the third-grade Scholastic Book Fair.

Many of the poems in Sing-Song cover familiar childhood experiences, including many sweet, touching, and funny subjects. But the poems often take a dark turn, familiar to Victorians for whom the living and dead existed side by side.

For example, a poem about a bird:

Babies and flowers:

A sweet poem about sisters that takes a dark turn:

A bedtime poem from which there is no waking:

Darkness in children's literature is a hot topic lately, but it's nothing new. Dystopians reflect teens' fears and perceptions about society, but also their hope -- they are the ones who redeem the corrupt societies portrays. Cursing in YA reflects the way some teens speak, but certainly doesn't expose them to words they would otherwise never hear. And absent parents in middle grade and YA reflect, for many, reality, and for others, a chance to learn about how other kids solve their own problems and make their own decisions.

Children's literature has always dealt with death -- fairy tales are notoriously grisly in their original versions, and the origins of many nursery rhymes is similarly macabre. And Victorian childhood, despite its sentimentalization in popular images, was a risky world, where infant and maternal mortality was an ever present risk. Literature for children reflected that then, just as it reflects the darker side of our world now.

More Reading:

• Dee Garretson on why YA dystopian fiction is important
• Kate Messner on building dark worlds to build a better one
• Liz Burns on profanity in YA
• Andrew Karre on motivations behind creating controversy in YA

What is Critterpalooza?

Yesterday, Angela Ackerman mentioned Critter, the unofficial mascot of the kidlit community. Today, we went to the source of the traveling mascot idea... 

Christy Evers

...and got the skinny on this chubby little cow...

Picture from Jacqui's adventure Taming the Critter
(Apparently, he's quite the junk food addict...ahem...
not like any of the Operation Awesome ladies...)

Katrina: Christy, what inspired you to send Critter out into the world, and what does he represent?

Christy: At first Critter started out as an interactive way to connect with my writing blog-buddies . . . like a Flat Stanley for writers.  When his travels were over I intended to use him as an inspirational muse-like decoration piece for my writing space.

It wasn’t until after the Haiti earthquake that Critter’s purpose changed.  It touched me deeply to see authors and illustrators auctioning their services and personal items (like shoes) to help those in need.  I wanted to do something, too, but I didn’t have the money or the influence to bring in the type of money that’s needed to make a real difference. Certainly no one was going to pay good money to buy my stinky shoes on e-bay.

Finally, it hit me!  I may not have fame or mucho-millions but I do have Critter.  At the time of the Haiti earthquake he had just started his journey, but already he had met so many interesting people and traveled so far.  My conscience wouldn’t allow Critter to be merely a muse on my desk.  I knew he could do some good in the world. 

Haiti had an obvious need, but since Critter still had a long way to go until his travels were complete, I decided to choose a charity that would always have needs.  Everyone who has hosted Critter is related to children’s literature. A children’s charity seemed a natural fit. Coupled with the fact that I have a daughter with a chronic kidney problem that will most likely require a transplant one day, I have a special empathy for families that deal with issues related to sick children.  I learned that St. Jude has a daily (let me say it again) DAILY operating budge of 1.5 million dollars. Most, if not all of it, comes through donations. 

Critter represents a thread that unites people around the globe, and the fact that you don’t need to be rich and famous to make a difference. Sometimes you just need to be a little creative in learning how to leverage the resources within your grasp.  Not to mention, he’s a good reminder of what can be done when people work together for a common goal. 

Katrina: Wow. This silly little cow has a serious purpose! We’ve been following his adventures on facebook and throughout the writerly blogosphere, but what do you think has been his greatest adventure thus far?

Christy: He has traveled to South Korea, been chased by dinosaurs, outrun a tsunami, crowd surfed at a concert, boated in the Virgin Islands, had his own maximum security in Vegas, been interviewed by the Texas Sweetheart’s... He did so many things and met so many people.  It’s hard to choose!

Katrina: Is Critter a he or a she? LOL. I had to ask because of the giant udder in front. ;) 

Christy: That is a good question.  The udder would naturally make one think “female” however the blue color and fangs makes “him” look more male-ish.  Though we tend to call Critter a “him” I don’t really know for sure. You see, Ian Sands created his critters to be mixed up animal creations.  He calls them “newimals”.   So, honestly, I think Critter is a mixture of all sorts and represents all mankind (and animal kind :0D )

Katrina: Ah, and now I am intrigued about Ian Sands' Critter Cube Book! Is the date of the auction to benefit St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital set? How long will we be able to bid on Critter, or how will the auction be run?

Christy: My aim is to auction Critter sometime in the first part of December. (just in time to buy the perfect gift for that hard-to-buy-for person) The exact date is yet TBD. 

He will be auctioned on e-bay and it will run for approximately one week. 

Katrina: What is Critter up to right now at this moment? And where should we look for him in the future?

Christy: Angela, at The Bookshelf Muse, still has some fun things in store for Critter. He’ll stay with her during Critterpalooza.  After that he will return to me sometime after Thanksgiving.  

You can follow Critter on my blog at: http://ChristysCreativeSpace.blogspot.com

Become a fan of Critter on Facebook at:

http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Childrens-Lit-Helps-Critter-Help-Kids/103354106367110

If you’d like to hear about Critter’s experience through Critter’s eyes, you can visit the Texas Sweethearts interview at: 

http://texassweethearts.blogspot.com/2010/06/featured-sweetheart-critter.html

Thank you, Christy, for answering our questions, and for extending your creativity to make a tangible difference for children in need.

Operation Awesome peeps, you'll want to click on that top link for a collection of amazing literary giveaways (through tomorrow), including a Skype chat with some pretty freakin' special authors. 

Good luck to everyone who enters. May the real winners be the children at St. Jude's. :)