It feels as though I have always been wrapped in stories and books. My parents read to me, and I in turn read to younger brothers. Family economics meant we couldn’t own many books, but going to the library was as common as going to the market. I still have the books I received as gifts. They include two “Little Golden Books” that were savored in childhood, and have served as talisman ever since. THE BUNNY BOOK by Patsy and Richard Scarry (1955) and RABBIT AND HIS FRIENDS by Richard Scarry (1953).

I began writing stories when they were given as assignments in elementary school. By seventh grade I was writing even when there was no assignment. My dream of making books became so vivid, I submitted my first “formal” picture book manuscript to a publisher when I was sixteen. Eleven more years of school, work, reading, writing and luck finally brought about LIZARD’S SONG, my first children’s book to be accepted.

Picture books have been my professional focus now for 40 years. Reading them. Writing them. Sharing them with children. Teaching workshops and classes on writing them. Oh yes, and buying them. Lots of them. And now, blogging about them, and helping other writers.

That last line is what George is here to do now – help us writers.  One lucky 12 x 12 challenger will win a critique from George!  All participants are eligible for one point, regardless of whether you complete a draft in Feb. or not.  All you need to do to get your point is leave a comment on this post.  Now, take it away George!

From Flicker to Final Manuscript

The initial flirtatious idea for a new book is always delicious. That moment is packed with possibilities, but it will remain just that unless we take action. We must do the work. And, our primary work is doing all we can to maintain a sense of play as we write.

A sense of play allows us to take chances, to experiment, to explore with no purpose beyond the pleasure of looking. Play around by placing the idea in the middle or the end if a story, as well as the beginning. Drop it into different contexts. Try different characters. What you discover could affirm your first instincts or offer a more original story than you expected.

A sense of play also means getting words on paper or the computer screen. Thinking, pondering or musing about writing is NOT WRITING. If you want to be perfect then leave the page blank. If you want to create a story then dive in and get messy with changes, dead ends, revisions, and glorious surprises. Such surprises give us the chance to surrender and win. Clinging to our initial idea and plan for a book is not play. It is locking one’s self in box. As a child once said, “If you draw a picture of a dog and it looks like a horse then it’s a horse!”

My TOMORROW’S ALPHABET grew out of a failed novel. WISE ACRES was initially just one piece of a larger (still unpublished) book. Two of my forthcoming picture books began as poems in a collection that fell into limbo when the interested publisher sold the company.

We all feel stuck or stymied from to time as we write, but fretting about being stuck only makes things worse. So…play instead. Don’t try to find the best idea or sentence. Play toward options no matter how crazy they might feel. Relaxing into a mood of play may be just the thing to let the right idea sneak in the back door.

If a manuscript is flailing and you’re not sure why, relax and play. Go back to the picture books you love and savor them. Examine them like Lego creations to see how they work so well. The books we love are always waiting to teach us more about writing.

If we focus on all the aspects of publishing we cannot control we’ll never get out of bed again. But we can control the process by maintaining a sense of play and possibility. That in turn makes the process too enjoyable to avoid, and that makes us eager to write and write and write some more.

Books That Nurture a Sense of Play 

ART & FEAR: OBSERVATIONS ON THE PERILS (AND REWARDS) OF ARTMAKING by David Bayles & Ted Orland

BEGIN AT THE BEGINNING by Amy Schwartz

CHERRIES AND CHERRY PITS by Vera Williams

DANNY’S DRAWING BOOK by Sue Heap

DOODLER DOODLING by Rita Golden Gelman. Illus. by Paul Zelinsky

FREE PLAY: IMPROVISATION IN LIFE AND ART by Stephen Nachmanovitch

REGINA’S BIG MISTAKE by Marissa Moss

THREE BY THE SEA by Edward Marshall. Illus. by James Marshall

Thank you so much George!  That was an inspired post, as always.  Imagine thinking of writing as play time!  :-)

Participants – to enter to win the critique from George, you must be an official challenger and leave a comment on this post any time during the month of February for one point.  On February 29th, l’ll put a check-in post on the blog.  If you completed a picture book draft in February, you can let us know in the comments of that post for another point.  I will draw a winner using Random.org and announce on March 2nd.

Two exciting 12 x 12 in 2012 announcements!

Announcement #1

Beginning February 7th, a pre-published participant of the 12 x 12 challenge will guest post on the blog for the new Tuesday 12 x 12 series.  Each participating author and/or illustrator will write a post on a topic of their choice related to the challenge – why they joined, what they’ve learned, connections they’ve made, books they’ve written, etc.

I am so excited about this series because it will give you a chance to get to know some of the talented and courageous writers who have taken the plunge with me into this challenge.  Many of these writers, you will discover, have fabulous blogs of their own where they generously share their knowledge, successes, and bumps along the road.

You may be wondering why this series is focused on pre-published authors specifically.  For one thing, I guess I have a soft spot for pre-pubbies (my newly minted term), since I am one myself. Second, I already have plans to feature many published authors and illustrators throughout the challenge, so I wanted to shine the light on the great folks putting in the hours and the hard work it takes to get published today.  Finally, I have learned so much from reading their blogs already, and I know you will too.  After all, you don’t have to be traditionally published in order to have knowledge and experience worth sharing.  If so, my own blog would be out of business!  So I hope you’ll come by on Tuesdays and give these brave souls the support and encouragement they deserve.

Announcement #2

I was thrilled to welcome freelance editor Tamson Weston into the 12 x 12 challenge as a participant.  Tamson has very generously offered to give participants a FANTASTIC opportunity to practice writing pitches for the chance to win a manuscript critique from her.  More details will be provided on February 16th when the contest goes live, but because you will only have FOUR DAYS to submit your pitches, I wanted to give you some advance warning so you can start working on them in your “spare” time.

You may choose ONE of your WIPs and submit a pitch that is no more than 140 characters (same as a maximum Twitter message), along with THE FIRST line of your book.  The only exception is if your book is in verse, in which case you can submit the first four lines.  So get ready, because this is a HUGE opportunity.  The grand prize winner will receive a manuscript critique from Tamson.  Again, more information on how to submit, how the entries will be judged, etc. will be posted on February 16th.

Tamson is published children’s book author and editor with over 15 years experience at several prestigious publishing houses including HarperCollins, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt and Disney Hyperion.  Adam Rex, Mac Barnett, Robert Weinstock, Adam Gopnik, Jane Leslie Conly, Anne Rockwell, Deborah Hopkinson, Jen Violi, Alexander Stadler, and Dan Santat are just a few of the authors/illustrators she’s worked with.

Are you excited yet??

Now, I suggest you go follow Tamson everywhere she lives!

Tamson’s Blog

Tamson’s Facebook Page

Tamson on Twitter

That’s the way I feel today as I have the extreme honor of being Katie Davis’ first Brain Burps About Books podcast guest of 2012.  I am so excited I’ll be throwing the link around all over the place – in this post, on Facebook, on Twitter, email.  Want to make sure everyone in the world who wants to hear it gets a chance.

Before I write another word, here’s the link to the podcast.  http://traffic.libsyn.com/brainburps/78_JulieHedlund.mp3.  You can listen to it on your computer just by clicking the link, or you can do the same by clicking the link from your smart phone or tablet and listen to it from there. Or you can listen from the link on Katie’s blog here: http://katiedavis.com/78/

On this podcast, in a fitting tribute to the new year (because Mayans or no Mayans, we’re going to do our best work!), Katie and I talk about anti-resolutions (based on this post) and the need to set goals from a positive place rather than beating ourselves up over (perceived) failures from the previous year. What struck me during our discussion was how we all face doubt and disappointment, regardless of how far along we are in our careers.  It’s easy to look at a successful, multi-published author and think, “Oh s/he’s made it.”  However, that author may very well be plagued by the same doubts and frustrations.  So Katie and I discuss how to overcome that, and how being an active part of the writing community helps.

We also discuss the 12 x 12 in 2012 picture book writing challenge and other opportunities for writers to get a head start in the new year.  I had so much fun recording this podcast with Katie, and I hope you enjoy listening to it just as much!  It’s a great “feel-good” way to hit the ground running in 2012, if I do say so myself.

If you have never listened to a Brain Burps About Books podcast, you can start with the one with ME in it!  Then, get thyself over to Katie’s website and download and listen to the rest.  I’ve been a subscriber for a year now, and I’ve learned so much.  Every show is great. It’s like having portable conference sessions that you can listen to at your convenience.  And they’re FREE!  Or you can do as I did and buy the app from the iTunes store for $1.99 and have all the episodes in one place.  People, it’s a bargain.  Katie is an exceptionally talented, multi-published author/illustrator, a whizz-bang marketing guru and a pioneer in using all forms of media in the children’s book arena.  She recently published an e-book entitled, How to Promote Your Children’s Book. Best of all, she has her bio written in both haiku and limerick form (among others).  Sounds like a lady you can learn a lot from, no?

What can you learn from these podcasts, you ask? Well, Brain Burps About Books is all about children’s literature and has held the #1 in the iTunes store in Children’s Publishing since it began almost two years ago.  It has been downloaded in 40% of the world’s countries. If it has to do with the children’s book business – whether it’s craft, creating a platform, developing eBooks and apps, or supporting a small business as a writer, it’s fair game. Interview subjects include authors, illustrators, librarians, editors, app creators… anyone in the field covering anything under the umbrella of children’s books. Regular features include a “Take 5 Marketing Tips” by Dianne de Las Casas and picture book and middle grade reviews by contributors Betsy Bird of SLJ’s Fuse #8 Production, “Mommy” blogger Julie Falatko, Travis Jonker of 100 Scope Notes, and YA reviews by Bookalicious Pam.

I happen to know that in this episode, you get a double-dose of Julie, as 12 x 12 challenger Julie Falatko provides a review at the end of the show.  That’s 2 Julies for the price of one! An offer you simply can’t refuse.

Thanks again to Katie for making the start of 2012 especially awesome by inviting me to come on the show.  In conclusion, I’ll leave you with this trailer of Katie’s book, Little Chicken’s Big Day.  Warning: it is off the cuteness meter!

*My weekly Wednesday Artist’s Way Check-in will be posted tomorrow.

Questions or comments about the podcast? Leave them here!

Our fabulous artist is the amazing Linda Silvestri who donated her time and considerable talent to the cause.  Every time she posts a sketch to her blog, I have a happier day.  Her work is so charming, cheerful and often funny (and punny)!

And oh how I love this badge!  Especially the papers flying off the top of the border.  I also love that the little boy’s shoe is untied.  Such a cute touch.  It’s those little details that I love about Linda’s work.

Here’s how I “met” Linda.  A few months ago, I got serious about the idea of self-publishing one of my picture books.  I went quite far down the road and began looking for an illustrator.  I found Linda from another blog, looked through her portfolio and fell in love.  We exchanged a few emails, talked a couple of times on the phone and I loved her even more.  I knew we would make a great team.

Those of you who are published authors, or who are lucky enough to be illustrators yourselves, know the feeling of seeing your characters and your stories come to life.  As a pre-published author, I hadn’t experienced that particular thrill.  When I got Linda’s email with her sketches of my main characters, I burst into tears – not kidding!  She captured them perfectly and exactly as I had always imagined them.

I ended up deciding against self-publishing that book for a whole host of reasons that I won’t go into here.  It was the right decision for the book at this time, but I was so disappointed that I wouldn’t get to see Linda’s full vision for the story.  I decided I would contact her first if any other opportunities came up.

Alas, once I decided to launch the 12 x 12 challenge, I knew we’d need a badge of honor.  I asked Linda, and she didn’t even hesitate.  She is also one of our challenge members.  So please give it up for Linda, and be sure to visit her website and her blog.

THANK YOU Linda for this whimsical, beautiful badge!  We will all display it with pride.

I believe the reason resolutions often don’t work is because they start from a place of lack, of negativity, of failure.  We think about all the things we weren’t happy with in the previous year and set out to “fix” them in the new one.  Lose weight = I weigh too much.  Save money = I spend too much.  Make more money = I don’t have enough money.  Spend more time with my kids = I’m not doing enough for my kids.  Write more often = I don’t write enough.

If you’ve been reading this blog for any period of time, you know I am all about self-improvement, especially improvement that puts us on a path to self-actualization.  There is absolutely nothing wrong with setting goals, and achieving them is even better.  However, the goals need to be set on a strong foundation.  So I figured, why not start with what I did accomplish this year and set goals from there.  Let’s first celebrate success and then determine how to carry that forward into the New Year, rather than berating ourselves for what did not get done.  Being zen about it, probably everything got done that was supposed to.

Here is my list of what I consider to be my major professional accomplishments this year

• Completed two picture books.  Both are now on submission.
• Was accepted into, and completed, the Rocky Mountain SCBWI mentorship program.
• Drafted a third picture book which is at least halfway to submission-ready
• Completed PiBoIdMo and ended up with 30+ picture book ideas
• Sent 20+ queries over the course of the year
• From those queries, sold one poem and got contracts to write three articles (coming in 2012)
• Entered a picture book in the MeeGenius Children’s Author Challenge and made it to #16 out of 400+ entries
• Learned a TON about online marketing and promotion from the contest.
• Completed four months of group coaching to launch a new project.  I am now about halfway through drafting the business plan for that project (more news on that in 2012)
• Formed a LLC to support my writing business and other projects I launch
• Took a two-month course on blogging to build an author platform.  I have now gone from a high of 2000 hits per month on my blog to a high of nearly 6000 per month.
• Guest posted on several blogs
• Set up an in-person picture book critique group in Boulder
• Attended a digital publishing conference and the Rocky Mountain SCBWI regional conference
• Last, but not least, launched the 12 x 12 in 2012 challenge to write 12 picture books in 12 months.  This is, obviously, one of my major goals for the coming year.

In addition to work accomplishments, three other achievements deserve mention.  One is that I ran a personal best in the Bolder Boulder 10K this year and felt great.  The race also happened to take place right after I turned 40, which felt even better.

Second, I planned, from start to finish, and then took a six-week trip to Italy with my family for the summer.  This trip was the fulfillment of a major dream and life-changing in every possible way.  Although my kids are still young, I think it will turn out to be life-changing for them to have had such an experience.

One of the things the trip to Italy inspired me to do is the third achievement I want to mention.  I wrote a Bucket List.  I saw how rewarding it was to realize even one dream, so I thought I would capture as many more as I could in the hopes of realizing them all.  I am trying not be afraid of dreaming big.  So perhaps a motto for 2012 is Dream Big or Go Home.

For your further contemplation, here are a few other posts with an alternate take on New Year’s Resolutions

Lynnette Burrows doesn’t let Mrs. Darkside win.

Hayley Lavik is not going to change anything next year.

Prudence MacLeod is going to read books by live authors.

Emma Burcart is going to be kind – to herself.

Jennifer Lewis Oliver has never made a New Year’s Resolution.

Myndi Shafer does have a short list of resolutions, which she made in the Nick of Time.

What is your stance on New Year’s Resolutions?  Good thing, bad thing or in-between?

With everyone’s help, I developed the strength of TEN Grinches! Plus two.

Last Sunday, I launched a contest to help promote my entry in the MeeGenius Children’s Author Challenge.  Everyone who entered promoted their hearts out all week.  What’s more, MANY people who did not enter the contest did the same.  What meant the most to me, even more than the votes and promotion assistance, were the comments of support and encouragement I got from people about both the story and my promotion efforts.  At the end of the day, I wanted people to help because they loved the story as much as I did, and I was so heartened by all the feedback I got from you.  I can honestly say that whether I make the final round or not, this has been a tremendous experience.

As I said in my Gratitude Sunday post yesterday, at one point during the week I felt I would explode with gratitude.  In that moment, I decided there would be no “winners” of my contest because everyone would be a winner.  That’s right! Prizes for ALL who participated. After so many people did so much for me, I would have felt stingy and Grinch-like drawing only a few winners from those who entered.

I can still only provide one iPod Shuffle, 2 IndieBound gift cards and 3 picture books, BUT the other prizes will be unlimited, so the pool of entrants vying for the others will be much smaller – hence, a greater chance of winning.

So here’s how this will work.  First, you must have left a comment on my contest post, as that was how I was tracking official entrants (Erik at This Kid Reviews Books, you are the exception because you left a comment about the contest on one of my blog tour posts, so I put you down).  Provided you were officially entered, you simply need to leave a comment letting me know which prize you want.  If you want one of the tangible items, please list your first, second and third choices.  Here is what is available:

• List of 100+ children’s book agents (the Big Kahuna) = Unlimited (You want it, it’s yours)
• Critique of a full PB manuscript or first 10 pages of any other genre = Unlimited (You want it, it’s yours)
• iPod shuffle = 1 available (If more than one  person elects this as a first choice, I will draw a winner from among them)
• $25 IndieBound gift certificates = 2 available (Same as above)
• One picture book of your choice = 3 available (Same as above)

In your comment, please state the prize you want and your email address so I can contact you offline about details.  Please note: the agent list will be delivered by December 31st.  I just want to go through it one more time to clean it up and make sure it’s updated.  It is all publicly available information, but things change quickly in the industry, so I’ll double-check the data.  Writing critiques will be turned around by January 15th.  All other prizes will be ordered and shipped this week.

THANK YOU again to everyone, those entered in the contest and those not. I truly appreciate you all!

Anyone who’s read the blog at all this week knows that I entered a story in the MeeGenius Children’s Author Challenge, A TROOP IS A GROUP OF MONKEYS.  I started the week at #47 in the rankings (out of 400 entries) with 181 votes.  As of this writing, I was ranked #15 with 479 votes!

I did not gain 298 votes and 32 places in the rankings in the span of 7 days without an enormous amount of help.  In fact, the other night I was driving home and felt so overwhelmed by gratitude, I wondered how I would ever repay the universe (in the form of YOU) for all the good that happened this week.  So, this week’s Gratitude Sunday list will be focused on just a few things among many that gave me cause for gratitude this week.  Many thanks to each and every person who voted for the story, encouraged me with positive feedback and made me believe I could do this.  No matter what the end result of the contest is, I can truly say this has been a phenomenal experience, and one that has made me more certain than ever that I am on the right path.

Quotes on Gratitude

“No one who achieves success does so without the help of others. The wise and confident acknowledge this help with gratitude.”  — Alfred North Whitehead

“No one is useless in this world who lightens the burden of another.” — Charles Dickens

“A noble person is mindful and thankful for the favors of others.” — Buddha

Gratitude list for the week ending December 17

1. First on the list is Christine Zandstra, a friend and fellow parent at my kids’ school.  She got one of the first, fairly timid emails I sent out asking people to vote for my story.  She not only praised the book, but suggested that the school and parents get behind it.  She shared the link to my story nearly every day, and was responsible for drawing it to the attention of the school librarian, the principal, and the PTO.  She gave me the confidence that the story really was worth promoting.  I also thank Bina Moser, PTO President, who didn’t hesitate to send a message to parents about the story and ask them to vote when the time drew nigh.
2. Laura Barnes, fellow children’s author and marketing guru who stepped in to give me some extremely helpful advice on how to promote the story.  I think the results speak for themselves, but even more than her specific tactics, what helped me the most was the fact that she gave me permission to go out and go for it.  I learned more in one week about marketing than I would have in a year were it not for her.
3. Julie Berghoff and Sheila Gil, two very good friends and fellow Margareaders.  At a party Monday night, they both insisted I was still being too shy and urged me to go out and ask people to share my story within their networks.  They both proceeded to do that the very next day, in the nicest way possible, without even waiting for me to ask.  The very definition of a good friend.
4. The Gaylord Herald Times, the local paper of my hometown, stepped in on very short notice to write a “hometown girl makes good” story.  Neighbors and childhood friends I hadn’t heard from in years saw the story and voted.  One 82 year-old woman, who doesn’t have a computer, clipped the article from the paper to take with her on her visit to her children so they could vote for her.
5. Speaking of Gaylord, my high school friends went above and beyond to help.  Posting and re-posting the story.  Cheering me on.  The ties that bind, as they say…
6. Fellow bloggers and writers Nancy Hatch, Debbie Diesen, and C.B. Wentworth hosted me on very short notice for an impromptu blog tour.  Their readers stepped in and provided both votes and encouragement.  Thank you!
7. There are too many to name individually, but the folks who entered the contest I posted last Sunday have blogged about the story, promoted it on Facebook, and tweeted it every single day to their followers.  It made a huge difference, and I am so thankful for their support.
8. For the past two months, I have participated in a blogging class for writers led by Kristen Lamb based on her best-selling book on the subject – We Are Not Alone.  As a result, the 100 members of WANA 1011 supported me wholeheartedly and helped me spread the word.  A special shout-out to Diane Capri who, like Christine and Laura, told me to just go out and ask people for help and forget about being shy or afraid.  So I did. (I hope you’re not regretting that now Diane! )  But to all the members of the WANA team, you have proven that the title of Kristen’s book is true.
9. My brother Jeff, who has a fierce competitive streak, jumped in on Wednesday to galvanize his extensive network.  I’m pretty sure I had the biggest jump that day, plus the pleasure of two-days worth of texting back and forth about my ranking and how far I had to go to move to the next one.
10. Last, but most definitely not least, I am immensely grateful for every last person who voted for my story, offered an encouraging word, or shared the link with others.  It turns out it really does take a village, and I am blessed to live in such a generous one.

What are you grateful for this week?

P.S. There is still time to enter my contest if you want to help promote! Fun prizes for all.

In the meantime, I’m honored to be guest posting over at Jumping The Candlestick today – blog of Michigan picture book author Debbie Diesen.  This is particularly special because my kids love her book, THE POUT-POUT FISH so much that she is a true-blue celebrity to them.  So now they think I’m really hot stuff.  I’m sure that will last for about 2 whole minutes.  Anyway, drop by and say hi if you can!