Opportunities in Writing for the Educational Market — by Christy Mihaly

Many of our readers who are writers have asked GROG to post more information about educational writing, or work for hire (WFH).  And no wonder: Getting paid to write? Knowing that your editor wants your manuscript and will get it published it on schedule? Not having to worry about promotion or marketing? What's not to like? 

In today's post, I'm passing along some choice tidbits from the world of Work for Hire: news of two upcoming events, and words of wisdom from a bevy of WFH veterans.

Opportunity Knocks! If you're interested in writing for the educational market, check out two excellent opportunities—a conference and a workshop—happening next month. I attended one of these in 2014, and the other last year, and I highly recommend both. Though they're quite different, both offer high quality instruction and a chance to make great connections. At both, I've met wonderful folks, learned tons about the market, and made contacts that led to book contracts.

In chronological order:

June 10-12: The 21st Century Children's Nonfiction Conference, now in its fourth year, is a three-day event offering a huge selection of workshops and panels on children's nonfiction.  It will be held this year at Iona College in New Rochelle, NY. Topics range from new nonfiction formats and specialized niches to audiobooks and video markets. Workshops cover educational innovations, magazines, science standards, incorporating greater diversity, the publishing process, and how to find work. Co-chairs Sally Isaacs and Lionel Bender have recruited forty-plus faculty members, including established editors and agents, best-selling authors, book packagers, educators, librarians, and marketing gurus. There are opportunities for paid consultations on manuscripts and proposals; there's plenty of time to schmooze with other serious nonfiction writing professionals; and the atmosphere is exhilarating. Fellow GROGger Todd Burleson and I attended in 2014 and blogged about it here. 

June 19-23: The Highlights Foundation workshop, Writing for the Educational Market, is a five-day program taught by two seasoned educational writers, Jan Fields and Paula Morrow. Held at the idyllic facilities of the Highlights Foundation, it covers fiction and poetry as well as nonfiction. In this intimate setting, a select group of writers learns about the practicalities of working for hire (creating and sending out writing samples, juggling multiple assignments, evaluating contracts), the craft of educational writing (with writing exercises and individual critiques), and the details of WFH niches including writing leveled readers and test passages. This year, visits with special guest editors are scheduled. The invaluable personalized attention at this workshop includes an expert review of participants' resumes. And the price of admission includes optional morning yoga! Last summer, I gained a better understanding of the educational market, some great ideas for getting work, and a circle of excellent WFH friends and colleagues.

So if you can find room in your schedule and your budget, consider signing up, and prepare to learn from the masters.

Not convinced yet? Wait, I have more. I asked a group of WFH writers to answer two questions for GROG readers. Here are their generous replies:

 Q: What do you love about Work for Hire? 
The writers I surveyed agreed on several themes:

 
• Variety: Many writers enjoy switching back and forth between WFH and "passion writing." And there's lots of variety within the WFH work. Observes writer Jen Swanson: "I get to write about really cool technical topics in STEM. I get to work with a bunch of different editors  who have their own formats and structures, which I think makes me a better writer."

• Money: The money is less than we'd make collecting royalties on a best-seller, yes. But the pay is reliable and can be steady once we're receiving regular assignments. So if you want to make a living as a writer, WFH has great appeal.
• Clarity: With WFH, the writer knows precisely what the editors want. "What I like is that it's clear-cut," says writer and mentor Laura Purdie Salas. As she describes it, with work for hire, "many of the decisions are already made, and my job is to solve the puzzle of doing the best writing I can do that meets the criteria already set."
• Publication: With trade books, you write and submit, wait, get rejected, submit, wait, revise, wait (you get the picture). This process may eventually result in publication, but it often seems to take forever. Many of us can't stand the waiting and rejection. With WFH projects, when you submit a manuscript, you know that although you may need to revise, you'll see that book in print before your toddler hits high school.

• Educating kids: People who write for the educational market love knowing that their work is read by students and appreciated by teachers and librarians.

• Educating ourselves:  Many WFH writers cited the joy of learning about new subjects, including, as Joanne Gise Mattern says, topics "I would never investigate on my own." Author Lisa Amstutz adds, "I love research, especially when I come across interesting tidbits that I know kids will love."

Q: What are your top tips for writers new to Work for Hire?
I'll just let these experienced writers speak for themselves: 

Study catalogs and get to know other people who work in this niche. 

—Laura Purdie Salas 

Put together a great WFH package. Make sure you mention what topics you'd like to write about in your cover letter.  Your writing samples should reflect the age and topics you wish to write about. Most importantly, they need to "sparkle and shine", meaning they should be your best, most energetic, descriptive writing. The writing samples are what will land you the job!—Jennifer Swanson 

Identify potential markets and approach them as they request on their website.  —Jane Heitman Healy 

 My best advice for breaking in is to carefully study your target market and tailor your writing samples to their style. Your samples should reflect the age level and genre of the writing you want to do (e.g.,nonfiction picture books, middle grade fiction, etc.) 

—Lisa Amstutz

 My top tips would be to research and investigate new markets and network, network, network with other writers and editors! Word of mouth is an amazing tool to finding new jobs.
—Joanne Gise Mattern 

And on that note, about-to-be published writer Annette Whipple shared this inspirational tale about getting her WFH start at the 21^st Century Children’s Nonfiction Conference: 

As an unpublished writer, I was thankful to make a contact through the 21st Century Children's Nonfiction Conference. I sent her my resume and writing samples. A couple months later she asked if I wanted to write a book about insects. I only knew the general topic, word count, due date, and payment. But I said "yes," and the editor explained the specific topic and more detailed requirements for the book. I researched and wrote it in less than two months. Insects as Producers will be out in August. 

Congratulations, Annette!

For Further Reading: 

Writing for the Education Market provides an excellent community forum and job board. 

Evelyn Christensen generously compiles and updates an online list of Educational Markets for Children's Writers. 

At Mentors for Rent, Laura Purdie Salas and Lisa Bullard offer many resources including a how-to book for writers, Writing for the Educational Market.

And here are past GROG pieces introducing the basics of the educational market, and sharing more WFH stories: 

• Tina Cho's 2014 informative posts about writing for the educational market, parts one and two; plus her review of Nancy I. Sanders' instructional book, here, and her interview with Ev Christensen, here.

• Kathy Halsey's February 2016 interview with Lisa Amstutz.

• My 2015 interview with Jen Swanson about her book Brain Games.

• Patty Toht's interview with moi, about my WFH experience with the NGK Junior Ranger Activity Book.

• Finally, if you write articles and other short pieces, these GROG posts cover magazine writing (parts one and two) and other possibilities for writing for money.

Makerspaces: A Whole New Market for Authors? By Todd Burleson

Makerspaces:  A Whole New Market for Authors? by Todd Burleson

What is a makerspace and why should authors be interested?  A makerspace is a place where learners create, tinker, explore, prototype, fail, research, discover and learn through a variety of materials. The tools can be anything from cardboard to microprocessors.  A makerspace is about producing rather than consuming.  Makers learn to make stuff by making things. “Schools often forget this as they endlessly prepare students for something that is going to happen to them next week, next year or in some future career. Students can and should be scientists, artists, engineers and writers today.”

As this movement continues to grow, educators and parents are constantly looking for ways to dovetail literacy with it. Sometimes, for me as a librarian, I’m looking for a way to fold in a lesson.  Take  Not a Box by Antoinette Portiss.   This lovely story about creativity is going to be an excellent way for me to introduce the Global Cardboard Challenge to my school.  

This coming October, we'll invite the school and wider community to come visit our IDEA Lab and Project Room. We’ll have stations set up and manned by parents and students.  This will be everyone’s chance to visit and learn more about the makerspace we’ve created.  Following the Open House, we’ll gather to watch the film that inspired the idea behind the Global Cardboard Challenge.

Then, we’ll invite families to use the hundreds of pounds of cardboard, dozens of rolls of Duck tape, packing tape, Make Do Kits, zip ties and more to create with cardboard.  They might create an arcade game or a robot.  The only limit is their imagination.  Finally, we’ll end the day by taking a gallery walk to see one another’s awesome creations.  

One of the elements of the Maker Movement that is most inspirational to me is that it is breaking down the traditional borders around engineering and making.  Great books like Rosie Revere the Engineer , Crafty Chloe, Violet the Pilot,Iggy Peck Architect are some tremendous examples.  

So why should I as an author be so interested in the Maker Movement?  I see the answer to this question in two parts. The first is that this should encourage authors to seek those obscure heroes from history; there’s never been a better time to highlight them.  The second is that as authors, indeed as human beings, we should be ‘making’ ourselves.  This summer, as a result of my attending the CMK Conference in Manchester, NY, I went from complete newbie with coding and circuitry to realizing that, with just a bit of research, I could make THIS

Rather than paying $3,000 dollars for it, I could actually make it. All it takes is a basic understanding of code and circuitry.

I began to look at the world with a lens that helped me feel empowered. No longer was I merely a consumer, I was a creator.  This is the same sense of empowerment we want to hone in our students and teachers who are involved in the maker movement.  Indeed, this is what it means when you hear that education is preparing students for jobs that don't yet exist. We are preparing them to think, explore and imagine!

As authors, we are constantly mining the world for our 'next' idea. When School Library Journal leads with a "Maker Issue," this is a good sign that the concepts are pretty entrenched.  

So, get out there.  If you are a teacher, plan to visit a makerspace near you.  If you are a parent, grandparent, uncle or cousin, check out how you can encourage this type of thinking at home.  If you have never worked with tools or microcomputers, I encourage you to explore.  

Makerspace, Hackerspaces, IDEA Labs, Innovation Studios, Fab Labs, whatever we call them, they are popping up in public libraries, in former furniture stores and a school near you.  Go CREATE!  Go get inspired and then turn those ideas and the ones they inspire into a piece of literature that will keep the movement going!

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1  "Why the Maker Movement matters to educators | SmartBlogs ..." 2013. 23 Aug. 2015 <http://smartblogs.com/education/2013/08/20/why-the-maker-movement-matters/>

Reading is Magical ~By Suzy Leopold

     The Cat in the Hat, Charlotte’s Web, Good-night Moon, Stuart Little and Winnie the Pooh are all beloved children’s books that my Mom read to me fifty plus years ago.  You may recognize the list of classic book titles, may have listened to, or even read the same books as a kid.  I am so thankful that my Mom instilled the value of reading in me.  She modeled for my sister and me the value of learning, as young children.  Visiting the public library and checking out a tall stack of favorite books, and sometimes checking out the same titles numerous times, was a family event that we enjoyed, prior to kindergarten and continued throughout our attendance in elementary school.  Reading picture books to my sister and I was a special time when Mom shared the joy of reading with us.  Reading was part of our daily routine, usually as a bedtime ritual, while cuddling in bed or sitting together in a big, comfy chair. 

     Do you value literacy and the importance of reading everyday?  Do you promote the love of reading everyday?  Parents can help promote their child's literacy and the development of reading comprehension.  Even before a child can exhibit the skill of reading, young children begin to acquire basic concepts about literacy.  The single most important activity for building these understandings and skills, that are essential for reading success, is reading aloud to children.  Board books read to babies from birth develops the infant’s brain that continues to develop during the first year of life. Nursery rhymes read to tiny toddlers, lays the foundation for language development. Picture books read to children during the preschool years, builds success in learning. Reading to and with elementary school age kids, equals expanded vocabulary and builds a foundation for student achievement.  

     Want your child to be a better reader, develop the habit of reading as lifelong learning, and be successful in school?  It is plain and simple; just read.  Reading is magic.

Image:  Scholastic 

Read and Write Everyday!

How to Use Word Clouds to Create Stunning Graphic Designs

As writers, we work with words.  Today I’m going to share with you part one of a two part series about word cloud creation tools.  Wordle is a tool that has been around for a while.  Most of us have seen Wordle Word Clouds. Wordle allows you to choose font, color and arrangement of the words to make very attractive visual representations of the words you input.  The feature that I love most about Wordle is that the more times a particular word or is input, the larger the word becomes in the final design.  This is a fun way to analyze your text.  For example, I took the text of Dr. Seuss’ Oh the Places You’ll Go and made a word cloud out of it.  I thought it was interesting that the words waiting and go showed up so large in the design.  It’s kind of fun to see how those two words pop out of the design.

I have a PDF of these steps at the bottom of this post.  

It’s really simple to create a basic Wordle.  Simply copy and paste in your text.  (There is a more advanced set of features which we’ll look at later in the tutorial.) Then hit GO.

You’ll see that it randomly arranges the words, chooses fonts and colors for you.  If you like it, swell.  If you don’t, all you need to do is make some adjustments.  

Hit Randomize and it will choose a whole new set of colors, fonts and orientation.

Now, you can go into the various settings, for Font, Layout and Color and tweak it as you wish. 

One of the newer, and more creative features of Wordle is the ability to use the URL of any blog feed, or any other web page that has an Atom or RSS feed.  This is an interesting way to analyze your favorite web page or blog too.

For example, I took the feed of this blog and pasted it into the window.  After several randomizations, I came up with this design that I like a lot.

In the advanced features of Wordle, you are able to really tweak the settings.  If you have any coding or HTML experience, you’ll notice that you are able to weight certain words to show up more frequently and tailor the specific colors using HTML data. 

Also, for our readers who are also teachers, HERE is a fantastic link to 108 Ways to use word clouds in the classroom. 

Here are a few of my favorites:

1.  Create a group word cloud of the entire class or sub groups in the class. This could be in reaction to a discussion, an idea, a reading, or video. Students work in groups to come up with 20-30 descriptive words and then make a word cloud. Using advanced tools they could rank them or color code them.

2.  Have a students analyze their frequency of word usage in a writing piece.

3.  Have students write a book review and put it into a word cloud. Find write ups of books and create word clouds to promote a book.

4.  Put words in a word cloud that will be part of spelling tests and vocabulary investigations.

5.  Students create a word cloud to illustrate their favorite artist or musician and do not include the name. They then present word cloud to class and students try to guess. Finish by including their word cloud as part of a poster with a picture of artist/musician, name of artist/musician, and paragraph about him/her.

So, there you have it.  Wordle is a fun, free and exciting way to work with your words.  Go ahead, take some of your text and make a word cloud.  I think you will be pleased with the results.

If you would like to download a copy of this tutorial, here is a link to the PDF.