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How Do I Get Published?
by Elizabeth O. Dulemba

     True story:
     Dr. Seuss was at a cocktail party where he met a brain surgeon.
     "Oh, you're that man who writes those children's books," the Doctor said. "Some Saturday, when I have a little extra time, I am going to write one of those."
     Dr. Seuss replied, "Ahh yes. And someday when I have a little free time, I'll do brain surgery."

     Many people assume that writing children's books is easy and that getting them published is too. I used to believe the same thing when I first started in this business.
     One of my favorite quotes is by Mem Fox, "Writing a picture book is like writing 'War and Peace' in Haiku."      Picture books are their own unique art form and writing for children has particular and demanding requirements. For instance, most picture books contain less than 1,000 words, many less than 500. Trying to fit a good story into such a small amount of text can be hard enough, but getting published is usually even harder. In fact, breaking into the children's publishing industry is so difficult, the slot machines in Las Vegas offer better statistics.
     (Self-publishing is a different subject entirely, read below.*)
     But new books come out all the time so somebody is getting published, right?
     It's true, and if you are truly determined, there are some things you can do to increase your chances in the very competitive world of children's books.
     First, learn as much as you can about the business side of children's books. There are rules on how manuscripts should be formatted (33k .pdf) and submitted to publishing houses. Not following the rules will almost guarantee that you're work is passed over. Knowing where to send your manuscript is also important. Sending a picture book manuscript to a publisher who only does YA (young adult) will result in failure. Don't send a manuscript to a house that doesn't accept "unsolicited manuscripts," it will just go in the trash. Don't send illustrations with your manuscript unless you are a professional illustrator (doing otherwise is presuming to do the editor's job - they select the illustrator.)
     See a pattern? Learn the rules so you can jump the hurdles. Educate yourself. The more you know about the inner workings of this business, the better chance you'll have.
     A great place to start is with the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators. This is the organization that holds us together. They provide wonderful resources for new writers, including lists of publishers and what they want.

Another good resource is THE COMPLETE IDIOT'S GUIDE TO PUBLISHING CHILDREN'S BOOKS by Harold Underdown. Harold is a working editor, very knowledgeable, and highly supportive of those starting out. He also has a good resource online at The Purple Crayon.
     One of the things you'll learn from both of these resources is that unless you are a professional illustrator, you do not need illustrations to accompany your manuscript. Publishers prefer to select the illustrator for your book because they take many issues into account. For instance, they may pair a beginning writer with an established illustrator so the book will garner more marketing attention. However, once you have a contract with a publisher (which is the hard part) you can certainly suggest an illustrator if you have someone in particular in mind. Just don't expect your opinion to have much weight. You may be the author, but children's books are a business and the publishers are the professionals.
     Another thing you will learn is that you don’t need an agent. Yes they can help you avoid the slush piles (the thousands of manuscripts that swamp publishing houses every month), but it can be harder to find a good agent than to find a publisher. Wait until you have some projects under your belt, or a really amazing contract coming in that you need help negotiating before signing, to pursue an agent. As with all things, research to find a good one.
     There are three classes of agents: the creme-de-la-creme, the unqualified, and the crooks. Anyone who asks for money up front, falls into the last category. Agents work like realtors, they get paid when your project sells. If you're unsure, a good place to check out an agent's background is at PREDITORS & EDITORS.
     Of course, you need to make sure your manuscript is exceptional. Today’s market is especially tough, and nothing less will make it through (there are always exceptions, but let's not go there). Two great resources

for studying the art of writing for children are:

WRITER’S GUIDE TO CRAFTING STORIES FOR CHILDREN by Nancy Lamb, and PICTURE WRITING: A NEW APPROACH TO WRITING FOR KIDS AND TEENS by Anastasia Suen. Look into online classes and courses in your area. I also have numerous online resources in my LINKS section. Also, create or join a critique group - a group of writers who review and edit each other's work and cheer each other along on this difficult journey.
Many beginning writers write in a style they fondly remember from their childhood. With technology and today’s fast paced world, that antiquated presentation holds little interest for today’s kids. Research the market. Go to your local independent bookstore and read what is out there.

Buy lots of books - support your field! A great, very modern writer to study is Mo Willems. His books, KNUFFLE BUNNY and DON’T LET THE PIGEON DRIVE THE BUS,will give you an idea of how radically different children’s literature is today, even though the feelings of childhood remain constant.

     You do need to know the facts — it wouldn't be kind of me not to share them. Reality is less than 1% of the manuscripts received by publishing houses actually become books. I know it's depressing. I'm sorry, but it's the truth. Here are the stats:
    "81% of the population feels they have a book inside them . . .
     20% would do a picture book, cookbook, etc.
     6 million have written a manuscript.
     6 million manuscripts are making the rounds.
     Out of every 10,000 children's books, 3 get published."
               - Jerrold Jenkins. 15 May 99.
     Expect rejection, but also know, there are such things as “good rejections.” If you receive a hand-written note, or requests to see future works, that is a very good sign. Even Ted Geisel (Dr. Seuss) received 27 rejections before his first book was published.
     You realistically cannot expect your one-time whimsical project to go anywhere, but you can expect your 10th toiled over manuscript to finally grow some legs.
     All that said, it is possible to break in. If you have lots of stories in you, and you’re willing to work very hard, this may be a valid career path for you. But please, don’t take it lightly. Almost every published writer you meet has jumped unbelievable hurdles to get their work out there. You'll quickly understand that when you try it yourself. This business is for the stubborn and the persistent. Many call it "The 4 P's": Passion, Patience, Perseverance, and Postage.
     Personally, I like to set my dreams high. That way, even if I only make it half way there, it's still pretty darned good.

Some more good quotes:
     “Writing is easy: all you do is sit staring at a blank sheet of paper until the drops of blood form on your forehead.” - Gene Fowler
     “It is easy, after all, not to be a writer. Most people aren’t writers, and very little harm comes to them.” - Julian Barnes

     *Self-publishing, also known as Vanity Publishing or Print-on-Demand, is a completely different animal with different issues. Yes, you can pay to have your book published by the many companies who make this available, but don't confuse this with traditional publishing.
     Most bookstores will not carry self-published books because self-publishers seldom have the expertise or budget to seriously edit or market their books, they have not been through the checks and balances of traditional publishing houses, and because of retail restrictions, these books typically do not do well commercially. For these reasons, they generally cannot further my career and I usually don't take them on.
     If you don't understand the difference, it breaks down like this: in self-publishing, you pay them; in traditional publishing, they pay you.
     But sometimes self-publishing IS appropriate. It should be considered for personal projects for family and friends, or for niche markets that a large publishing house would typically not cover. I have two artist friends who are collaborating on a self-published picture book right now. Because of their established markets and areas of expertise, self-publishing actually made more sense.
     But if you are just running out of patience waiting for those big publishing house cogs to turn, keep this in mind, it took me three years to get my first book contract as illustrator - that was fast. I have plenty of friends who have been trying to break into children's publishing for much, much longer. When you work that hard to be traditionally published, it is frustrating to hear self-publishers claim it is the same thing. It's not. Yes, there are some success stories, but generally self-publishing is not the way to grow as a respected creator in this industry.