For someone who lives in jeans and t-shirts and has more male friends than female ones, this has been a challenge.  But I’ve always believed in supporting my kids’ individual passions, so over the years I’ve become intimately acquainted with the many variations of pink, and with every Disney Princess, American Girl and Barbie on offer.  We’ve had countless tea parties and played “Pretty, Pretty Princess” more times than I can remember.  And I discovered that affirming Hope’s taste, even though it was and is so very different from my own, provided a boost to her self-esteem and gave her the confidence to be both feminine and strong at the same time.

This has been more significant than you might imagine. Hope has a physical disability that requires her to wear leg braces, so her self-image has been vulnerable from time to time.  But her own absolute faith in her beauty, femininity and grace has made that her reality.  It also led my mother and I to an idea for a children’s book series, The Very Fairy Princess, about a little girl who so believes she is a fairy princess that she overcomes all the naysayers and obstacles in her path.

• Isn’t princess a pejorative term?
• Should we really be encouraging girls to aspire to be princesses? Won’t that make them shallow or materialistic?
• Aren’t there already a glut of princess-themed books in the marketplace?

Perhaps. But their glittery covers notwithstanding, the Very Fairy Princess books are actually about inner sparkle rather than surface-level glam.  “You can be anything you want to be,” says Geraldine, our heroine. “You just have to let your sparkle out!”

So now we find ourselves launching National Princess Week, April 23-29^th… and in preparation for the event, I compiled a list of over seventy modern-day princesses and their causes for our young readers. As I did my research, I experienced a shift from paying lip service to the good work that princesses do, to gaining a newfound respect for their real value and contribution to the world. From their charitable endeavors – which are extensive and varied – to their dignity, strength and individuality, it turns out that princesses are, in fact, terrific role models for girls.

I’ll keep my blue jeans… but I might just wear a tiara to breakfast one day. After all, as Gerry would say, “Even a fairy princess is allowed to change her mind.”

The Very Sparkly Wand feature invites young princes and princesses to choose from three colors and sounds in order to create their own wand and add a little sparkle to anything with just a flick of the iPhone or iPad.  With the Sparkly Photo feature, they can add their choice of crown to a photo of themselves taken with the app itself or uploaded from a photo library. Photos can then be emailed, posted on Facebook, or Tweeted for friends and family to see.  Of course there’s also information about the books, and a gallery of images and captions taken from the illustrations.

This free app is the first step toward developing a full version that will include stories, games and other activities. Give it a try and let us know your feedback or ideas!

Click here to find out more: The Very Fairy Princess for iPhone

Here are some things to consider when using anthropomorphism…

Keys to Success

Reason for being – Think carefully about why you can tell this story better using anthropomorphism. Kids will not be more interested or engaged just because the protagonist is a giraffe, or a bunny, or a pig. Find a reason for using these specific characters to tell this story, otherwise they might just as well be human.

Authenticity – Incorporate as many of the real attributes and behavioral details of that specific animal or vehicle into the character as possible, and be sure that their actions and words are true to who or what they are.  For example, if your main character is a giraffe, try to find a way to bring her height, or legginess, to bear on the story.

Three-dimensional personalities – Anthropomorphic characters should have strong individual personalities and clear, well-developed motivations. They must encounter and overcome believable obstacles in the same way a human protagonist must.

Surprise – Consider the unexpected. Olivia is a case in point – we expect pigs to be slobs (such as in Mark Teague’s Pigsty), so there’s something deliciously ironic and endearing about Olivia’s vanity and self-absorption. Opposites and surprises can be very effective when using anthropomorphism.

Things to Avoid

“Cuteness” - Animals, by their nature, are already winning characters. They don’t need alliterative names, syrupy mannerisms or baby talk to be appealing. Even the youngest readers will find too much preciousness off-putting.

Humans in animal suits - Don’t just write generic animal characters who live in human-style houses, wear human clothing and engage in all the details of human life… otherwise they might as well be human. Consider how their lives, behavior and world are different from ours, as well as where they overlap.

Last week, in the children’s lit class I’m teaching at Stony Brook Southampton, we looked closely at the beginnings of middle grade and YA novels.  I made a list of important elements for my grad students… but I’d love to hear what else you consider when it comes to starting a story.

Here’s my crib sheet:

The beginning of your story has to accomplish several things. It must:

→ Introduce your setting
→ Introduce your main character/s
→ Establish the tone/rules of the world
→ Hook your reader and compel them to read on

The last point is perhaps the most important. Here, then, are some tips.

Good beginnings…

Start with an event, a problem or a change. Judy Blume says that novels should begin “on the first day that something different happens in your character’s life.” Don’t worry about backstory or exposition – that can reveal itself later.

Fulfill the premise – and promise – of your story. If your book is about a girl who can talk to animals, don’t wait 50 pages before she talks to, or hears from, an animal. Even if she doesn’t realize what’s happening yet, there should she be some hint right away of what your story is really about.

Raise questions. Questions propel the characters into action, and the reader into the next page, wondering what will happen next. What’s going on here? How or why did this happen? Who could have done this?

Avoid clichés. Childrens book authors often start books on the first day of school or the day a character arrives some place new. Although these are natural starting points because they involve a change, they’re also a little too common. Try to be fresh, original. Here are some other common/cliché beginnings to avoid:

→ The weather (“It was a dark and stormy night…”)
→ The hero waking up in the morning and thinking about his/her day
→ A dream or a vision
→ A death
→ Starting with the present, and then going into flashback mode to provide exposition

Establish the rules of the world. If your story is set in a world in any way different from ours, then some hint of how the world works, or the rules operating there, should be in your opening – but remember to show rather than tell. Reveal or demonstrate the rules in action as opposed to describing them through exposition.

Establish the tone, style and pacing of the book. Your opening scene sets the overall mood of your story, whether its dark, funny, contemporary, lyrical, whatever. Whatever the primary tone of your piece is, your initial scene should establish that feeling.

So here’s the favor: Please share your picture book app experience with me?

Which ones are the most successful, and why? (Not counting The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore, which is in a class by itself.) What are the essential differences between the free apps and the paid ones? Most of all, any ideas as to how our app can be used to celebrate individuality – what Gerry, our Very Fairy Princess, refers to as ‘inner sparkle’?

For many of us, though, there was another medium honored throughout a surprisingly large portion of the evening – children’s books.  Back in January, Publishers Weekly noted that 21 of the nominations were ‘nods for films based on kids books,’ specifically Hugo (11 nominations), War Horse (6), Harry Potter & the Deathly Hallows (3), and Tin Tin (1).

I would argue the number to be 24, if you count Puss in Boots, Jane Eyre (now widely considered to be a YA novel) and The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore, a children’s book app as well as a short film, that in and of itself celebrates books and reading.

This is great news for children’s book authors of all stripes (though it would have been nice – and politic – to hear Brian Selznick’s name mentioned at least once over the course of the evening’s 5 awards given to Hugo.)  It demonstrates the enduring appeal of stories for and about young people, from classic fairy tales, novels and comics to the richness of today’s middle grade and YA fiction and the exciting possibilities that new media represents for the entire genre.

But for me there was a subtler connection at play between the mediums of film and childrens literature on Sunday night.  The films on offer this year were notably less snarky, trendy or cynical than those of recent years. Those familiar Hollywood qualities were largely replaced by conscience, compassion and – dare I say it – hope.  What’s going on?  Even in the darkest realms of YA, these are the universal themes of childrens lit!

Whatever it is, I like it. Let’s hope it sticks around awhile… or at least for as long as some of Sunday night’s honorees have.

“If you’re dreaming of becoming the next J. K. Rowling, we’ve got the perfect place for you—the Southampton Children’s Literature Conference!”

As Director of the Conference, I am delighted to announce that applications are now being accepted for our July 2012 workshops. We have a truly stellar line-up of faculty members this year, every one of whom is an esteemed, award-winning author in his (or her) own right, including:

• #1 New York Times bestselling author/illustrator Peter H. Reynolds
• New York Times bestselling/Horn Book Award-winning author Kate McMullan
• New YorkTimes bestselling authors Cynthia and Greg Leitich Smith
• National Book Award finalist and ALA Best Book of the Year Award-winning YA author Patricia McCormick

Every workshop is capped at 12 students, which makes for a uniquely individualized experience and an incredible opportunity for specific and direct feedback and support. It also means they fill up quickly – so don’t delay if you’re thinking of applying!

A bit more information about the Conference… this year there will be two sessions, a five day one (July 11-15) featuring workshops in picture book, middle grade and YA with Peter H. Reynolds, Kate McMullan and Cynthia and Greg Leitich-Smith, respectively, and a 12-day session (July 18-29) in YA with Patricia McCormick.  Mornings are spent in workshop, and in the afternoons a series of electives are offered such as craft lectures, panel discussions and mini-workshops. You can also choose to spend time writing at one of the beautiful Hamptons beaches or on the gorgeous campus grounds.

Because the Childrens Literature Conference is part of the Southampton Arts Summer, it runs concurrently with workshops in playwriting and screenwriting, as well as with adult workshops in poetry, memoir, novel, creative non-fiction, and even acting and visual arts. Evening events feature well-known authors, playwrights, and filmmakers. The schedule of formal and informal social gatherings is rich—from author receptions to an open-mic night—with a few surprises, too. And because Southampton Arts sponsors an esteemed and long-standing MFA in Creative Writing and Literature at Stony Brook Southampton, as well as new MFA’s in Theatre, Film and Visual Arts, the workshops may be taken for credit. There are even a few partial scholarships available.

To find out more, or to download an application, visit http://www.southamptonchildrenslit.com

Writer Beware is a free website primarily for science fiction and fantasy writers, but they have a very good, regularly updated list of publishers and agents to steer clear of.  It’s important to run any name you have by their ‘red flag’ list of people and companies to watch out for.

The Absolute Write Water Cooler is a free forum on AbsoluteWrite.com, with a thread called “Bewares, Recommendations, and Background Checks.”  This is another great place to run a search and see if anyone has had a negative experience with the individual or organization that you are considering working with.

One of the best and most comprehensive resources out there is Predators and Editors. Intended to be a “compendium for the serious writer, composer, game designer, or artist to consult for information, regardless of genre,” the site has an extensive list of general rules for spotting a scam publisher or literary agency, as well as a long list of other sites and resources to find similar information and warnings.

Of course, when it comes to agents and publishers, your first and best resources are still the Children’s Writer’s and Illustrator’s Market and the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators. Anyone who is truly active and legit in the industry will be listed there, so if you don’t see the name of the agent or publisher you are considering, that is likely to be a red flag.

Remember that any agency or publisher who charges a fee for reading your manuscript is probably not legit.  Unless you are self- or independently publishing, you should not have to pay a publisher or an agent to read or to publish your manuscript.  The industry standard contractual agreement entitles the author to an upfront advance against royalties, and an ongoing royalty rate once the sales have ‘earned out’ that advance.   Agents customarily receive their commission as a percentage (anywhere from 10% to 20%) against an author’s advances and royalties.

Bottom line?  Unless you’re self-publishing, there should be no upfront costs to you as an author.  And if there are, consider it a red flag.

Each book turned out to be a unique lesson in showing versus telling, meaning letting the art reveal as much, if not more, than the text does. We discussed at length how we knew that Madeline and her friends attended a Catholic boarding school as opposed to an orphanage, how clear it was that Max’s mother had forgiven him, where Peter and Willie lived, and how much we knew about Olivia’s and Trixie’s families without being directly told… simply by way of their actions in the story, and most of all, through the illustrations.

That night, with showing versus telling on my mind, I watched “The Artist” – Michel Hazanavicius‘ valentine to silent films that is a contender for this year’s Best Picture Oscar. Since the story takes place in Hollywood during the time when silent cinema was replaced by the talkies, 90% of the film is silent. (It is also shot in balck and white.) The result is not only a wonderful, uplifting film and a terrific evening’s entertainment, but an invaluable lesson in showing versus telling.

With so little dialogue – which, when it occurs, is told through title cards – the story is almost entirely conveyed through action, behavior and expression.  It is a truly inspiring lesson for picture book authors, in terms of how little text is necessary to tell a story… as long as you know how to think visually, and show rather than tell. It also left me wondering how many other great silent movies might offer the same lesson.

This was something Katie Davis and I chatted about this week, when she invited me to be a guest on her terrific podcast series, Brain Burps About Books. (You can listen to the interview here: http://katiedavis.com/emma-walton-hamilton). Katie and I had a great time talking about various aspects of writing for kids, and she was enormously generous in putting the word out about my various creative efforts, such as The Children Book Hub, my Just Write for Kids online course in writing picture books and the Southampton Childrens Literature Conference. In return, I offered her listeners a special introductory rate to join the Hub (you’ll have to listen to the interview to access it!) and invited her to be an Expert Interviewee on the Childrens Book Hub in March. I’m really looking forward to that, since Katie has just published a fabulous resource for childrens book authors and illustrators, How to Promote Your Childrens Book. It’s chock full of invaluable information, and a thoroughly enjoyable read, being written (and illustrated!) in Katie’s fun, accessible style. I can’t recommend it highly enough.

I am also touched and honored to be “In the Spotlight” this week on Beth Stilborn’s excellent blog, By Word of Beth.  I have had the pleasure of working with Beth editorially on several different projects (she’s a terrific writer  with a shared commitment to the arts and literacy), and we now collaborate as co-administrators of the Childrens Book Hub Facebook page (check it out – it’s not limited to members of the Hub, but welcomes all children’s authors, illustrators and editors, whether published or aspiring). I’ve watched Beth’s passion for children’s literature grow into a thriving platform that now serves the industry in numerous wonderful ways. Beth is giving away two copies of my book Raising Bookworms: Getting Kids Reading for Pleasure and Empowerment this week – to be eligible for the draw, go here: http://www.bethstilborn.com/wednesday-worthy-emma-walton-hamilton/

As I watch our politicians (among others) take one pot shot after another at each other, I continue to be grateful to be a member of this warm and supportive community.