Working Titlez

Some years back, puttering around a used bookstore, I came across a first reader, Many Surprises. Picking it up and leafing through the pages, a growing sense of familiarity overtook me. Monte Vista Elementary School. Miss Bird. First grade. I suppose we must have worked first on the alphabet and the sounds of the letters. I don’t really recall that. What I do remember is the day the teacher put us in a circle on the floor and passed out a copy of Many Surprises to each child. We preceeded to “read” about Jane and Billy, Miss Bird helping us sound out the words. All at once, I “got” it. It made sense. I could decode these collections of letters and spaces into words. I was in awe. I was R E A D I N G. Reading! What a gift this new skill would be for my entire life. I discovered the magical world of the book. To be transported to another time, another place, merely by opening a book. I became a bookworm. I would rather read than nearly anything. My mother was a regular library patron and as soon as I started reading, checking out books for me became part of the weekend regime as well. The Ontario Library on Euclid Avenue was a Carnegie-funded edifice (talk about a philanthropist who made a difference!) of speckled gray granite. The children’s department was in the basement (in Southern California, a basement was a novelty in itself). It was cool and dark with the musty smell of old and well-used books. I thought it was heaven. Since these books had to last me a whole week, I’d select an armful, and the librarian would make me put half of them back. There was a limit, after all, something like three or four. After a while, the librarian would overlook the limit requirement and let me take home five or six. Eventually, I’d read the entire young children’s collection, several times over. I’ll never forget the day the children’s librarian took me by the hand and led me upstairs to find my mom. A discussion ensued concerning letting me check out books from the adult section. It was agreed that the adult librarian would have to approve anything I took, but I was granted this very special exemption. The librarian, who was initially very disapproving of this notion of a CHILD reading these books, took it upon herself to make selections for me. Now I was reading REAL books — you know, the big thick kind with pages of words and no pictures. I was happier than ever when I discovered the simple world of kid’s books was now this deliciously complex place of plots and characters and story arcs and subplots in the “big” books. If I was hooked on books before, I became an addict. Besides the library, I was able to build a small book collection of my own. We’d often go to the Goodwill or Salvation Army, and I’d be allowed to select one used book (they sold for five cents each). The pickings were somewhat slim. Mary Poppins, The Five Little Peppers and How They Grew, Elsie Dinsmore, Litte Women (my favorite!), Trixie Belden, Tom Sawyer — I still have them all. Christmas or a birthday usually brought a coveted and brand-new Nancy Drew. Nancy, who always drove a convertible, had a boyfriend Ned and a BFF George, seemed to live a life of impossible adventure and independence. When I was nine, my Aunt Evelyn gave me a copy of Lamb’s Shakespeare for Children. I still have it. I read that book over and over and over. The Tempest. A Mid-Summer’s Night. The Taming of the Shrew. All dumbed down a bit to a suitable level for children, but curious and a bit incomprehensible to me. Years later, when we read Shakespeare in high school, I felt like I was visiting an old friend. I can’t possibly define the difference reading books has made in my life. Here I am, all grown up and a grandma, no less, and I still marvel at the joy and magic that is reading.

Ok, this is just fun — especially for fontaholics like me. Go to WORDLE and paste in some copy (a story, a poem, a report, a letter, whatever) or paste in a URL (your own web site or a favorite). Wordle creates a word cloud giving greater importance to the words most used. It offers up dozens of completely different designs. It is not only creative but a visual interpretation of the words. This example is from the words on this very web site.

Sue Campbell, a Colorado resident, is an experienced art director and book designer of many years; she is also the principal designer for Stephens Press titles. In this interview with Working Titlez, she shares her knowledge on what makes an effective cover design, how the process works, and what inspires her creative efforts.

How important is color in book cover design?

Color is always important in design. Color is hard-wired in our brains. It means things to us on a basic human level, but it also has cultural meaning so we must be careful with how we use it with respect to cultural connotations. Certain colors evoke emotional responses—it reminds us of events or experiences. And it also acts as a language, one that we learn and with it make associations. For example: we know that darker colors mean mystery and fearful happenings—tension. It makes sense then for thrillers to often appear cloaked in dark and mysterious images in dark colors that evokes a bit of unease.

Should color trends be followed?

By trends, if you mean what is fashionable or popular in a given year. No. I don’t think so. I don’t personally follow color trends because color is so significant. Particularly in book cover design. Because colors are rich in meaning—the decisions to use them need to be made in consideration with the subject matter, genre, target audience, and the feeling you want people to get when they see the cover. People may be surprised that we don’t just pick blue or red or green because that’s the author’s (or our) favorite color. Of course, sometimes you have to do that too. That’s an ill-considered way of making those kinds of design decisions though.

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Writing can be a lonely vocation. Writers’ conferences and workshops can be invigorating, inspiring and an investment in your career as an author. There’s a multitude opportunities for writers to engage with other authors, meet agents, learn the ropes and network. I’ll be using this space, periodically, to alert you to recommended writer’s events.

Bruce McAllister Workshops
Writing coach Bruce McAllister is a master at helping authors find their voice, polish their work, and navigate the path to publication. His workshops, held in Southern California, are highly regarded.

Saturday, March 14, 2009
GETTING YOUR NOVEL WRITTEN AND PUBLISHED IN 2009
A Workshop in Choosing the Novel That’s Right for You, Getting It Written, and Using the Guerilla Tactics the New Book-Publishing Marketplace Demands
Saturday, May 2, 2009
MEMOIR, BIOGRAPHY, SELF-HELP, TRAVEL, NATURE, BUSINESS AND EVERY OTHER KIND: WRITING AND PUBLISHING YOUR NON-FICTION BOOK IN 2009
A Workshop for Writers of Non-Fiction Books of All Kinds
More info  >>>Bruce McAllister

Nuts & Bolts Author’s Workshop
Join me and my colleagues, author Maralys Wills and editor Jami Carpenter for a practical workshop full of tips, tricks and “lay of the land” advice on writing, editing and getting published. Best, it’s free! Download a workshop flyer here.

April 4th, 11 AM to 3 PM
Clark County Library
1401 East Flamingo Road, Las Vegas

Publishing Basics – How It All Works
11:00 AM – 12:00 PM
Las Vegas publisher Carolyn Hayes Uber will explain the basics of the publishing industry from the big New York publishing houses to smaller independent presses to the scary world of self-publishing. Find out how to evaluate your options, whether you need an agent, and what to expect during the publishing process. More info >>>Carolyn Uber

Polish Up That Manuscript!
12:45 PM – 1:45 PM
Veteran author Maralys Wills incorporates both solid tips and a fresh sense of humor in her advice to writers. Sparkling manuscripts are the result of self-editing and careful polishing. She will share tricks of the trade to elevate your manuscript from good to publishable. More info >>>DamnTheRejections

The Mechanics of Editing
2:00 – 3:00 PM
Professional editor Jami Carpenter explains why every author needs an editor. How do you find the right editor, what are the different types of editing? Should your manuscript be edited before submission to agents and publishers? Learn how to ensure a happy and productive author/editor relationship and more. More info >>>RedPenGirl

Las Vegas Writers Conference
April 16-18
Sam’s Town, Las Vegas
Join writing professionals, agents, industry experts and your colleagues for three days in Las Vegas, Nevada, as they share their knowledge on all aspects of the writer’s craft. This popular conference offers great opportunities to meet (and pitch) agents and publishers as well as hone your craft with an outstanding faculty.
More info >>>Las Vegas Writers Conference

Want your book made into a movie? You may have a long wait reports Noel Griese, editor of The Southern Review of Books. He goes on to say:

At Anvil Brokers / Anvil Publishers, Inc., we’ve been associated with a number of book to movie deals. Most recently, we brokered the sale of VanderWyk & Burnham to Quick Publishing. One of the V&B titles sold is Brad Cohen’s Front of the Class. Cohen, when age 10, was diagnosed with Tourette syndrome. He went on, nonetheless, to become one of the most outstanding grade school teachers in Georgia. His story was optioned to Hallmark Hall of Fame, and broadcast nationally in a CBS-TV movie aired on December 7, 2008, to an audience of 11.8 million tuned-in households.

So, what are the odds that your book will get optioned for a movie, and then made into a film? Astronomically high against it, according to available numbers.

Take the case of Richard Yates’ Revolutionary Road. According to a story by David Mehegan in the December 27 Boston Globe, it took from 1961, when the novel was published, for it to become a movie in 2008. The movie, which stars Kate Winslet and Leonardo DiCaprio, drew Hollywood interest almost as soon as it was published, but Yates died on 1992, long before the book became a movie. Had it not been for the personal passion of Winslet and her director husband, Sam Mendes, the book might never have reached the screen.

Now showing are movie adaptations of Stephenie Meyer’s vampire-teen tale Twilight, F. Scott Fitzgerald’s short fantasy story The Curious Case of Benjamin Button,  Bernhard Schlink’s 1997 novel The Reader and Kate DiCamillo’s children’s story The Tale of Despereaux.

Of the 500 to 600 movies, counting art-house films, that are made annually, only a fraction are based on novels. With more than 50,000 works of fiction published each year, according to W.W. Bowker, publisher of Books in Print, the odds of any given novel becoming a movie — even if the book is optioned — become far less than one in 100.

Says Boston literary agent John Taylor Williams: “An author shouldn’t be surprised if, after a movie option is sold, the movie is never made.”

The Southern Review of Books is a monthly e-newsletter full of stories on the state of publishing, breaking news, and current statistics. Southern Review is edited by Noel Griese. The author of 17 books and numerous articles on various subjects, he has been a newspaper reporter and editor and has taught English and journalism at the Universities of Wisconsin and Georgia.

Check out the archives here. To add your e-mail name to the subscriber list, send an e-mail to custserv@anvilpub.com.

Q: Do children’s books contain lead?

A: Very little.

Carolyn being interviewed by KVBC Channel 3 News on the issues surrounding the lead in children's books requirements of the new Consumer Products Safety Improvement Act.

The Consumer Products Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA) goes into effect on Tuesday, February 10, 2009. Administered by the Consumer Product Safety Commission, it oversees all products intended for children 12 and younger, including toys, clothing and books.

Brought about by public outcry over the lead-tainted toys and impure baby formula from China, the Act is broad in requirements to protect children. Perhaps overly broad.

The new requirements prohibit more than 600 ppm of lead in children’s products (dropping to 300 ppm in August). Independent third party testing by approved laboratories is required of every product.

Children’s books, which consist of ink on paper or ink on board, typically test out at less than 5 ppm, considerably under the 600/300 ppm threshold. From the publisher’s perspective, books should be exempt. The testing is prohibitively expensive, and for small publishers, financially impossible to implement.

The American Association of Publishers (AAP) and the Small Publishers Association of North America (SPAN) have led the way in providing documentation to the Commission supporting an exemption.

At Stephens Press, we’ve supported these efforts to educate public officials on the justification for the exemption. We’ve acquired component testing (ink, paper, film) from our manufacturers. All components fall into the 2 to 5 ppm range. General Certificate of Compliance documentation has been provided to our distributors and retailers such as Borders and Barnes & Noble.

The Commission has just implemented a one year “exemption of enforcement” of the product testing requirement. Products must still meet the lead requirements, but the testing of products can be delayed. It is our expectation that an exemption will be acquired within the year.

We all know babies and young children chew on everything, and we certainly want and expect toys and children’s products to be safe and lead-free. Fortunately, children’s books are not a risk.

By Krissy Hawkins, Stephens Press

When it comes to the world of Amazon—the more the better.

The wonderful children’s author R.L. Stine once said that he had to have a great title for a book before he could write it, or sometimes would write a book simply because he had a great title.

A title often becomes a hub around which your book flourishes, then, once published it provides a sort of magnetism to draw people in.

In the world of Amazon, it’s a smart subtitle for your non-fiction work benefits you immensely. Notice I did not say a ‘good’ or ‘catchy’ subtitle, but rather a smart one.

If the job of your title is to focus your book and attract readers, the job of the subtitle is to make your book ‘findable’. Given Amazon’s search capabilities it is best to include keywords in your subtitle to optimize its chances in search results.

For example, take Aaron Shepard’s book The Business of Writing for Children: An Award-Winning Author’s Tips on Writing Children’s Books and Publishing Them, or How to Write, Publish, and Promote a Book for Kids. Quite a handful, I know, but can you think of a popular search term under the umbrella of writing for children that is not included in that title? Exactly.

And that is why Mr. Shepard’s book will come up among the top results almost every time anyone searches for books on that topic. Such a subtitle may not be much of a paradigm of efficient writing skills, but a thorough subtitle is a good tactic when it comes to visibility on sites such as Amazon, the world’s biggest book retailer.

Your publisher will have the final say on your book’s moniker, but a well-thought out title on the top of your manuscript will earn you props from the acquisitions editor from the get-go. If you need assistance when it comes to selecting keywords check out www.wordtracker.com or www.google.com/insights/search.

Author Joe Koranth

Most authors face their first bookstore signing with eager trepidation. What to expect? Will people show up? Talk to me? Buy books?

Thriller author Joe Konrath is a veteran of signings and he shares both encouragement and practical tips for follow writers in this guest post. Joe is the author of the Jack Daniels series and each book is named for a cocktail. Great concept and he’ll not run out of title ideas anytime soon! Joe and his books can be found at Joe Konrath and his blog at here.

By Guest Blogger J.A. Konrath

No aspect of a writer’s job offers more opportunity for euphoria (and anxiety) than a book signing. But how do these events really go down?

The Fantasy. Your escort picks us up at the airport and drives you to the largest bookstore in the state. She tells you they’ve advertised the event in the three local papers and on the radio. When you arrive, there are a hundred fans already waiting. You meet the excited staff and sit behind a table stocked with a huge pile of books, under a giant color poster of your cover. You read a chapter aloud, receive thunderous applause, and then do a quick Q & A before signing for a solid 90 minutes, people waiting patiently in an endless line to tell you how much they love you.

The Reality. You arrive at the bookstore ten minutes early. There’s no crowd of fans—there’s not even one. No posters, no signs, no table full of books. The employees look at you like you’ve grown a second nose when you say you’re the author and there to sign. Finally you convince someone to help you and they unearth a box of your books and set up a small table for you in the rear of the store, near the washrooms. You sit there for two hours, each second an eternity. People try hard to avoid eye-contact when they pass. Some approach you and ask where The DaVinci Code is. One will always come over and say, “So you’re an author? I’ve got a lot of ideas. How about I tell them to you, you write them, and we’ll split the millions?” No one buys a book. It’s debasing, humiliating, discouraging, and you vow to never do this again.

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