Lights, Camera, Action: It's FAMOUSLY PHOEBE and her author Lori Alexander! by Kathy Halsey

FAMOUSLY PHOEBE thinks she's famous and who among wouldn't like to be famous for a bit? I predict PHOEBE will be famous as she finds her way into the hands of children and parents everywhere. Phoebe and Lori have toured several blogs since the launch last week, but hopefully you'll glean more from our Q & A as she answers my writerly questions. Go scout out Phoebe at your favorite book store/library NOW.  

Oh-oh, this just in... we have a winner from Tina Wheatcraft Cho's post last week. Rebecca Koehn you are now famous for winning  the very famous Alayne Kay Christian's chapter book critique of the first three chapters of your chapter book. Please message me or Tina via Facebook. 

Review

Phoebe's been under the lights for as long as she can remember. Parents, grandparents, her adoring family have surrounded her with love and camera time. From her point of view this means... she's famous. As first born, Phoebe enjoys her portrait gallery and the perks of being only child, until another ingenue steals the spotlight. Little sister Rose now receives the star treatment, but Rose is fussy and demanding. She doesn't even like the camera until big sister Phoebe makes her smile with her antics. 

This is a fun, modern twist on the evergreen topic of sibling rivalry and new baby. Yet, in Lori's hands, the theme of looking at life via the camera or ever-present "device" is also addressed in an engaging way. Lori weaves fabulous vocabulary and star-studded situations into Phoebe's story for great effect. Even though it's a long picture book via pagination, it feels short and bouncy. As a writer, I especially appreciate her spare text, deadpan humor, and use of page turns to develop rhythm. May I say...a star is born with this book.

Q & A with Lori

K: I seem to remember that your son inspired BACKHOE JOE, correct? What was your inspiration for this book?

Lori: Great memory, Kathy! This time, it was my daughter’s turn to inspire. I was a shy kid and still quite the introvert as an adult. Not sure how I ended up with a kiddo who is my complete opposite—very dramatic, outgoing, and perfectly at ease in front of a camera, of course.

K: Is Phoebe based on anyone you know? How did your main character change over time, through revisions?

Lori: See above, but my daughter’s “look at me” personality was just a starting point. With the way parents post their kids’ milestones to social media these days, I got a chuckle daydreaming about a character whose family snaps so many pictures of her, she thinks she might be famous. That’s how Phoebe was born! 

Here’s a mini rundown of the FAMOUSLY PHOEBE plot: The center of her family’s attention, only-child Phoebe feels like a celebrity. But after a new co-star arrives (baby sister), Phoebe feels more like an extra. Or worse yet, a person assistant. The baby only drinks from one kind of bottle, only plays with one kind of toy, only sleeps in one kind of way. What a diva! After lots of adventure, drama, and comedy, Phoebe lands a new role—big sister!

Phoebe didn’t change too much over the course of revising. While developing her character, I aimed for sweetly misguided rather than overbearing or conceited. Phoebe loves her family as much as they love her. There’s a spread where she “gives back” to her fans. 

K: Did you use any mentor texts or plan out how to re-imagine the typical sibling rivalry/new baby trope?

Lori: I did check-in with some mentor texts while writing PHOEBE. The ones I remember using the most were THE BOSS BABY, KEL GILLIGAN’S DAREDEVIL STUNT SHOW, and THE RETIRED KID. These weren’t books about sibling rivalry but they did compare everyday kid experiences to something else entirely, similar to what I was trying to craft with PHOEBE. For more info, check out my blog post on ReFoReMo (a site devoted entirely to reading for research and the use of mentor texts).

 K: This will be your second published picture book. What did you learn from debut to book two?

Lori: I learned having one published book under your belt doesn’t make it any easier to sell book two! There’s still all the work of writing, revising, seeking feedback, and revising some more. And unfortunately, the rejections are still there, too. Another thing I’ve learned is to be flexible. When I was feeling a little discouraged about the difficulty of selling fiction picture books, I tried my hand at writing a nonfiction PB. And when an editor suggested expanding the text into chapter book format for middle graders, I tried that, as well. 

The now 7000+ word manuscript is called ALL IN A DROP. It’s a biography of Antony van Leeuwenhoek, the first person to extensively use a microscope back in the late 1600s. As a cloth merchant, Antony had no advanced education or scientific training. Yet, he was the first to discover microscopic life! Needless to say, it took some time for others to believe him. The story sold to Houghton Mifflin Harcourt in 2016.

K: I love the humor and spare text in PHOEBE. Art and text work so well with this book. PB writers sometimes struggle with art notes. How did you approach notes and being open to the illustrator? 

Lori: I did include a handful of art notes. Let’s see… the original text I submitted was 410 words and I included about 70 additional words in art notes. Some of my suggestions made it into the final spreads and a few did not. Here’s an example:

“Being famous meant lots of special attention at the grocery store, the bank, or just plain walking down the street. Of course, Phoebe preferred traveling first-class.” [art: on daddy’s shoulders]

I could have added more art notes (Phoebe gets a free cookie at the grocery store, a sticker at the bank, her picture taken at the park, etc.) but those scenarios seemed self-explanatory so I left well enough alone. With the “traveling first-class,” I envisioned Phoebe riding high on her father’s shoulders, so I added the note. That suggestion made the cut!

My editor at Sterling was kind enough to share the sketches and artwork as they were being discussed and revised. I was able to offer a few more ideas but Aurélie didn’t need much help—she did an amazing job bringing starlet Phoebe to life!

K: Suggestions for pre-published writers/those who are submitting work?

Lori: Keep at it! It took me a year of writing and revising to get my debut picture book, BACKHOE JOE, into shape. Another 3-6 months to query agents. My three sales each received their fair share of rejections during the submission process. My lovely agent, Kathleen Rushall, remains positive and encouraging. She always reminds me, “It only takes one!”

K:What projects are you working on now?

Lori: I’ve been busy promoting FAMOUSLY PHOEBE but I’m also working on a handful of new picture book texts. I have a proposal out to HMH for a second chapter book biography. Fingers crossed for good news there!

K: Let's find out about five of your faves:    

A current PB that inspires you

Lori: For an “Aww”: WALK WITH ME by Jairo Buitrago

For a “Ha, ha!”: BROBARIANS by Lindsay Ward

K: A writing craft book

Lori: BIG MAGIC: CREATIVE LIVING BEYOND FEAR by Elizabeth Gilbert

K: Munchie/drink while writing

Lori: Dark chocolate Hersey Kisses & iced tea

K: Motivation technique when you are “stuck” on a story

Lori: Switch gears—start a new PB, catch up on blog posts, offer to critique something for one of your writer buddies, etc.

K: Best revision technique

Lori: Don’t be afraid to chop. You need fewer words than you think!

Author Bio

Lori Alexander is the author of BACKHOE JOE (Harper Children’s), FAMOUSLY PHOEBE (Sterling Children's) and the upcoming ALL IN A DROP, a biography of scientist Antony van Leeuwenhoek (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt). She lives with her husband and two children under the star-filled skies of Tucson, AZ. 

Find out more about Lori on her website: lorialexanderbooks.com and follow her on Twitter: @LoriJAlexander

PENNY KLOSTERMANN'S 'A GREAT NEPHEW AND A GREAT AUNT'--GREAT IDEA! By Sherri Jones Rivers

    

     I kind of "met" Penny a year or so ago when
she joined another poet during a webinar at the end of an online class. They were commenting on some first pages the class sent in, and Penny had some good things to say about a manuscript I submitted. Hmmm, I thought. I'd like to get to know her better. Later, I submitted a manuscript to her in a mentor contest. Although I wasn't chosen, she did ask to see more of my work. After a paid critique, it was obvious she knew her stuff. Then, when she asked me to be a part of her blog, A Great Nephew and a Great Aunt, I knew I wanted to know more about this great idea of matching art with poetry. So, here goes:


     How did you get started?


     When I decided to start blogging, I knew there were a large number of blogs about writing, books, and publishing. I wanted to find my own little corner that was unique and came up with the idea of writing a poem and having an illustration to go along with it. I'm not an artist but I have a very artistically talented great nephew. I spoke with his parents and then with him and we decided to give it a go. I named the series A Great Nephew and a Great Aunt because I thought it was fun to have the double meaning of "great." I have to admit that I didn't have Twitter's character limit in mind when I chose the name.
     Here is our very first collaboration:

     At first, Landon and I did a post every other Friday. After doing this for a year I worried about burnout...especially as Landon got older and had more homework and school activities. At that point I decided we would continue our collaborations one Friday a month and I would see if other poets/artists were interested in being guests for the other Fridays. I haven't had any trouble finding people who'd like to be guests! And along the way, some of my other great nephews and nieces have collaborated with me and have been on the series.


     Most of your posts feature young children. How did you decide to go that route?


     I taught school for twenty-six years and the art displayed in the halls of the elementary schools where I taught never failed to take me to a happy place. I LOVE children's artwork and I figure other people do, too. So why not feature child artists and/or poets and take my blog readers to that same happy place.
     Not all of the episodes in the series feature a young child. But there's always the collaboration aspect. I like the idea of two people working together creatively whether they're adults or an adult and a young child.

     Lori Degman collaborated with her adult son and it is a super creative collaboration Here is the link to have a look:
http://wp.me/p22d5X-1hi


     How does the collaboration with your great nephew work?

     I write a poem and he illustrates it. I let him do his own thing and I'm always delighted with his drawings. We live three hours apart so I email the poem and his mom sends back a picture of his art...well now that Landon is older, he takes a picture and sends it to me. There was one time when we reversed our collaboration. The drawing came first, then the poem. This came about when Landon showed me a drawing he'd done of his family (he even included his dog, Aunie) and I loved it so much that I wrote a poem about his drawing.

     Here is that collaboration:

     What kind of reactions have you gotten to your series?

     The reactions have been so positive. I believe my readers look forward to the posts. My guests tell me that they've enjoyed collaborating and some of them plan to collaborate more with their kids in the future due to this experience. Some people have reached out asking to be guests, and if they meet the criteria (collaboration with a poem and art) then I'm happy to try to fit them on my calendar. I've been very pleased with the reactions.


      What's the most unusual post in the series?


     Goodness! That's hard because all the posts are unique and special. I've collected links to every episode on a page on my website so that people can enjoy them. You can find that page here:
https://pennyklostermann.com/episodes-of-a-great-nephew-a-great-aunt


     There are two guest posts that hold a special place in my heart due to my twenty-six year career as a teacher. These posts feature teachers and students collaborating for a project. Ken Slesarik guided his first graders in his after-school poetry club in a project. Here is an artwork grouping and you can view the finished product at this link:
http://wp.me/p22d5X-1yl


     Have you gotten some surprises along the way?


     Yes! Every time I open emails that contain the materials for the guest collaborators I get a surprise! It's like Christmas over and over again. I have to say one of my biggest surprises was when my friend Elaine Kiely Kearns of KidLit411 fame said yes to being a guest and told me she'd be working with Tommie de Paola. I almost dropped my laptop! Here is their collaboration:
http://wp.me/p22d5X-1im


     Is there anything else you'd like to tell us about the series?

     There is an unexpected element that Landon added early on. He did this on his own. He started adding a hidden object to his drawings.
                 

 

It's always the same object. Every now and then he's forgotten to add it but it's in most of his artwork. I had some readers that could never find the hidden object so I wrote a riddle that gives very obvious hints. You can find it here:
http://wp.me/p22d5X-1F6   


________________________________________
     Penny Parker Klostermann is the author of A Cooked-Up Fairy Tale and There Was an Old Dragon Who Swallowed a Knight, both from Random House Children's Books. She loves all kinds of books, but especially loves very silly picture books that make her laugh. Penny has been known to hug her favorite picture books and seriously hopes that someday her books will gain huggable status too. You can learn more about Penny on her website at https://pennyklostermann.com. 
_________________________________________

Five Elements of Text Structures By Suzy Leopold

In my college level course at Lincoln Land Community College we discuss and evaluate text structures. Doing so supports the students to become proficient, strategic readers and writers. A variety of nonfiction picture books are used as mentor texts to study the five elements of text structures.

“When teachers combine picture book instruction with teaching text, 

students gain a better understanding of how texts are 

organized, strategies for recalling information, and approaches 

to use in their own writing.”

Credit:

Tracey S. Hodges, Assistant Professor of Elementary Education & Literacy, University of Southern Mississippi

Sharon D. Matthews, Clinical Assistant Professor of Literacy, Texas A & M University

Text structures are tools for readers and writers. 

Text structures are the way in which a reader organizes information in one’s mind while reading. This helps a reader to better understand the text and supports comprehension recall. While reading, thoughtful and  strategic readers make predictions and connections. Interactive readers are thinking and asking questions.

In our class, students ask, What is the author’s purpose for writing this piece?

A nemonic device is used to determine the text structure used and identify the author’s purpose.

P: Persuade

                                                       I: inform

E: Entertain

Text structures are useful to writers and readers.

Many writers consider a text structure as a road map for the reader. Using a specific text structure is an excellent tool for all writers. Selecting the just right text structure keeps the reader engaged and turning the pages.

Nonfiction Text Structure	Description	Key Words	Nonfiction Picture Book Suggestions
Cause and Effect	Shows the relationship among events	because, as a result, therefore, since, so	NURSE, SOLDIER, SPY: THE STORY OF SARAH EDMONDS, A CIVIL WAR HERO by Marissa Moss & John Hendrix
Compare and Contrast	Shows the ways in which two or more subjects are similar and different.	differs from, in contrast, alike, same as, on the other hand, either, both	WHO WOULD WIN? WHALE VS. GIANT SQUID by Jerry Pallota & Rob Bolster
Descriptive	Gives many details about a topic	for example, such as, like, in comparison to, in contrast to, first, second, last	SUGAR CHANGED THE WORLD The Story of Magic, Spice, Slavery, Freedom, and Science by Marc Aronson & Marina Budhos
Sequence	Presents details in time order— from first to last or sometimes from last to first.	first, next, not long after, while, at last, later	FINDING WINNIE: THE TRUE STORY OF THE WORDL’S MOST FAMOUS BEAR by Lindsay Mattick & Sophie Blackall
Problem and Solution	Identifies a problem and then proposes a	because, as a result, therefore, since, so	THE RIGHT WORD: ROGET AND HIS THESAURUS by Jen Bryan & Melisa Sweet

Credit: Picture Books Aren’t Just for Kids! Modeling Text Structures through Nonfiction Mentor Books by Tracey S. Hodges and Sharon D. Matthews

NURSE, SOLDIER, SPY:
THE STORY OF SARAH EDMONDS,
A CIVIL WAR HERO

WHO WOULD WIN? WHALE VS.
GIANT SQUID

SUGAR CHANGED THE WORLD: A STORY OF MAGIC, SPICE, SLAVERY,
FREEDOMAND SCIENCE

FINDING WINNIE: THE TRUE STORY OF
THE WORLD'S MOST FAMOUS BEAR

THE RIGHT WORD
ROGET & HIS THESAURUS

Understanding these five nonfiction text structures are mutually beneficial for both a reader and a writer. Studying text structures give readers and writers a deeper meaning. 

As we move on in our course work, my students’ the understanding of these complexities are applied to longer textbook readings, scholarly articles, and chapter books. The students' writing shows improvement as their writing benefits from this knowledge, too.

The element of text structure is important for all writers to consider. Writers who study how texts structures are constructed and why an author chose a specific structure supports a writer’s understanding of how to use text structures effectively and approaches to use in writing nonfiction stories. When rewriting and revising a manuscript consider how one structure may work better than another to tell the story. 

There are numerous text structures to consider. Hopefully, these five elements are helpful to your writing. Share in the comments other text structures that you find important.

Guest Post: I Have a Chapter Book Idea--Now What? By Alayne Kay Christian

I want to welcome a kidlit friend, author, and critique partner to the Grog Blog today--Alayne Kay Christian! Her new chapter book Sienna, The Cowgirl Fairy, debuted this summer, and so I invited her to share her expertise in writing chapter books. And Alayne has an awesome prize at the end! Take it away, Alayne!

So you have a chapter book idea. Now what?

A great place to start is by getting to know your protagonist better.

Some writers do a character inventory or character profile. You can find an excellent starting point with the following links that offer a variety of checklists. However, I agree with the note on the epiguide.com character chart that states, “Note that all fields are optional and should be used simply as a guide; character charts should inspire you to think about your character in new ways, rather than constrain your writing.”

http://niemanstoryboard.org/stories/building-character-a-checklist/

http://www.writersdigest.com/writing-articles/by-writing-goal/improve-my-writing/developing-your-hero-and-heroine

http://www.writerswrite.com/journal/jun98/how-to-create-a-character-profile-6986

http://www.epiguide.com/ep101/writing/charchart.html

Janice Hardy is the founder of Fiction University, which is a site dedicated to helping writers improve their craft. She also has many good books and workbooks on writing. I’ve decided to let some of Janice’s Fiction University posts along with a couple SCBWI posts help me provide you with good information on developing chapter book characters and stories.

If you find character profiles and charts to be a bit too much, check out the links below where Janice Hardy offers some interesting ways to develop your characters.

http://blog.janicehardy.com/2009/12/under-development.html

http://blog.janicehardy.com/2010/08/shes-such-character.html

http://blog.janicehardy.com/2017/07/birth-of-book-development-stage_17.html

Of course, there are other characters to consider besides the protagonist. The links below lead to some more good guidelines from Hardy.

http://blog.janicehardy.com/2017/07/birth-of-book-development-stage.html

http://blog.janicehardy.com/2011/01/who-is-that-guy-discovering-your.html

The following writers.net link offers some pros and cons of getting too carried away with a character inventory http://www.writers.net/forum/showthread.php?116160-character-inventory

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I’m a pantster at heart, so the idea of a character inventory doesn’t appeal to me. But I’ve found that playing around with methods of exploring characters can make one think beyond the surface. It is also a good way to get unstuck if you are struggling to get going on your chapter book. But, don’t let digging into your characters give you an excuse to procrastinate. In my experience, characters often reveal themselves as the story builds. Only you know what works best for you.

The approach you take with your chapter book may be different depending on where your idea starts. Does it start with a character or does it start with a plot? The answer to those questions may influence your approach to character and plot development. Check out this SCBWI post for help with forming connections between character and plot. https://easternpennpoints.wordpress.com/2017/07/10/character-primer-which-hatched-first-the-character-or-the-plot-by-kristen-c-strocchia/

I’ve created a list of questions (below) that may help you brainstorm and develop your idea deeper and begin finding the plot that will fill your chapters. There is much more to writing chapter books than these questions, but it is a start. My goal for this post is to help writers who have a chapter book idea to dig deeper and get to know their protagonist’s journey a little better. Once you get rolling, you might find that your character will help lead you from chapter to chapter.

• ·    Who is the protagonist that will drive this story idea?
• ·    What is the question you want to set in your reader’s mind at the beginning of the story? There may be more than one question, but they will likely start with words like “Will s/he?” “Can s/he?” “How will s/he?” “How can s/he?” From here on, for the sake of simplicity, I will refer to the protagonist as she and her.
• ·   What is the inciting incident? This is the event that pushes your protagonist out of her ordinary world and into the world of the story that you want to write. The world where the protagonist’s journey takes place.
• ·   What is the protagonist’s goal or problem that will fuel her actions and decisions throughout the story?
• ·   How does the big story problem escalate throughout the story?
• ·   How does the protagonist resolve the big story problem in the end?
• ·   How do the protagonist’s actions and realizations inform the reader? How do her actions and realizations inform her?
• ·   What does she learn by the end of the story? Has she changed in some way?
• ·   What is the point of the story?
• ·   What will make the reader care about the protagonist’s journey?
• ·   What stands in the way of the protagonist achieving her goal or solving her problem?
• ·    What are the stakes? What does the protagonist stand to lose if she doesn’t solve her problem or achieve her goal?
• ·    What do you want the reader to think about long after the story is over?
• ·    What kind of challenges does the protagonist meet as the chapters develop?
• ·    How can the big story goal or problem lead to smaller chapter problems? Perhaps there are obstacles to achieving the big story goal. How might these obstacles create tension and escalate as the chapters develop?
• ·    What is the first problem that stems from the big story problem? How does it escalate with action and tension? How is that first problem resolved?
• ·   What are three obstacles or challenges to achieving the goal that your protagonist might have to overcome that make her journey all the harder?
• ·   What kind of decisions might your protagonist be forced to make as she meets twists, turns, surprises, and more setbacks? What might those twists, turns, surprises, and setbacks be?
• ·    What is the worst thing that could happen to your protagonist? What is the moment that makes her, and the reader, feel that all is lost or there is no hope – as though she will never achieve her goal or solve her problem?
• ·   What is the event or aha moment that causes the protagonist to climb out of that all is lost place? What kind of realization might she have? What kind of thinking outside the box choice might she make to do something different? What is that one thing that drives her into the action that leads to resolution?
• ·   What is the resolution? Having a clear vision of the ending or resolution when you start your book will make it much easier to develop your story because you will know where your protagonist needs to end up. All you have to do is figure out how to get her there in a compelling way. Simple right ;-)
• ·   Is there a surprise twist that will grab your reader one final time?

As I said earlier, there is much more to writing a chapter book. Here is a link to a SCBWI post to help start you thinking about individual chapters, emotional core and tension, and additional characters. https://easternpennpoints.wordpress.com/2017/07/17/chapter-prewriting-guide-essential-character-inventory-by-kristen-c-strocchia/

The following link leads to an excellent post on inner struggle or inner conflict.

http://blog.janicehardy.com/2012/08/the-inner-struggle-guides-for-using.html

The following link leads to another Hardy post. This one is about turning your idea into a story.

http://blog.janicehardy.com/2017/06/birth-of-book-idea-stage-turning.html

Janice Hardy does a great job of laying out a way to start forming your idea into a story. Clarifying an idea.

http://blog.janicehardy.com/2017/06/birth-of-book-idea-stage-clarifying-idea.html

This next link leads to a post about testing an idea. This is similar to my list of questions above. But Janice has a different approach that may spark something new for you.

http://blog.janicehardy.com/2017/07/birth-of-book-idea-stage-testing-idea.html

Also closely related to my list of questions, Hardy walks her readers through character arc development.

http://blog.janicehardy.com/2011/01/find-your-plot-friday-grow-up-already.html

A BIG thank you to Tina Cho and the GROG team for inviting me to be a guest on their wonderful, informative blog.

Alayne’s Bio

Alayne Kay Christian is an award-winning children’s book author and a certified life coach. Her picture book Butterfly Kisses for Grandma and Grandpa (Blue Whale Press, LLC) received the Mom’s Choice Awards gold medal and an IPPY Awards silver medal. Alayne’s Sienna, the Cowgirl Fairy chapter book series first book, Sienna, the Cowgirl Fairy: Trying to Make it Rain is now available at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and bookstores near you. The next book in the series, Aunt Rose’s Flower Girl, and Alayne’s next two picture books Mischievous Maverick and Magic Mabel are all scheduled for 2018 release. Alayne is the creator and teacher of a picture book writing course, Art of Arc: How to Write and Analyze Picture Book Manuscripts.

Website: http://www.alaynekaychristianauthor.com/

Blog: https://alaynekaychristian.wordpress.com/

⇘
Alayne is giving away a chapter book critique (first 3 chapters) to a Grog Blog reader. If you'd like to be entered in the drawing, please let us know in the comments. The drawing will be held on October 6th. 

Links to books: https://www.amazon.com/Sienna-Cowgirl-Fairy-Trying-Make/dp/1946101052/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1505228454&sr=8-1&keywords=sienna+the+cowgirl+fairy

https://www.amazon.com/Butterfly-Grandma-Independent-Publisher-Recipient/dp/0981493807/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1505228492&sr=8-1&keywords=butterfly+kisses+for+grandma+and+grandpa