The Sydney Taylor Book Award will be celebrating and showcasing its 2012 gold and silver medalists and a few selected Notables with a Blog Tour, February 5-10, 2012! Interviews with winning authors and illustrators will appear on a wide variety of Jewish and kidlit blogs. For those of you who have not yet experienced a Blog Tour, it’s basically a virtual book tour. Instead of going to a library or bookstore to see an author or illustrator speak, you go to a website on or after the advertised date to read an author’s or illustrator’s interview.

Later this spring, we’ll follow up with an episode of Katie Davis’s Brain Burps About Books devoted to the Sydney Taylor Book Award!

Below is the schedule for the 2012 Sydney Taylor Book Award Blog Tour. Please follow the links to visit the hosting blogs on or after their tour dates, and be sure to leave them plenty of comments!

THE 2012 SYDNEY TAYLOR BOOK AWARD BLOG TOUR

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SUNDAY, FEBRUARY 5, 2012

Susan Campbell Bartoletti, author of Naamah and the Ark at Night
Sydney Taylor Honor Award winner in the Younger Readers Category
at Ima On & Off the Bima
Holly Meade, illustrator of Naamah and the Ark at Night
Sydney Taylor Honor Award winner in the Younger Readers Category
at Into the Wardrobe
Shelley Sommer, author of Hammerin’ Hank Greenberg, Baseball Pioneer
Sydney Taylor Honor Award winner in the Older Readers Category
at Great Kid Books

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 6, 2012

Marcia Vaughan, author of Irena’s Jar of Secrets
Sydney Taylor Honor Award winner in the Older Readers Category
at Shelf-Employed
Ron Mazellan, illustrator of Irena’s Jar of Secrets
Sydney Taylor Honor Award winner in the Older Readers Category
at The Children’s War

TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 7, 2012

Trina Robbins, author of Lily Renee, Escape Artist: From Holocaust Survivor to Comic Book Pioneer
Sydney Taylor Honor Award winner in the Older Readers Category
at Bildungsroman
Anne Timmons (and possibly Mo Oh), illustrators of of Lily Renee, Escape Artist: From Holocaust Survivor to Comic Book Pioneer
Sydney Taylor Honor Award winner in the Older Readers Category
at Gathering Books
Morris Gleitzman, author of Then
Sydney Taylor Honor Award winner in the Teen Readers Category
at The 3 Rs
WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 8, 2012
Michael Rosen, author of Chanukah Lights
Sydney Taylor Book Award winner in the Younger Readers Category
at A Chair, a Fireplace, and a Tea Cozy
Robert Sabuda, illustrator/paper engineer of Chanukah Lights
Sydney Taylor Book Award winner in the Younger Readers Category
at Practically Paradise
Susan Goldman Rubin, author of Music Was It: Young Leonard Bernstein
Sydney Taylor Book Award winner in the Older Readers Category
at Cynsations
Robert Sharenow, author of The Berlin Boxing Club
Sydney Taylor Book Award winner in the Teen Readers Category
at Jewish Books for Children

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 9, 2012

Durga Yael Bernhard, author &amp; illustrator of Around the World in One Shabbat
Sydney Taylor Honor Award winner in the Younger Readers Category
at Frume Sarah’s World
Shirley Vernick, author of The Blood Lie
Sydney Taylor Honor Award winner in the Teen Readers Category
at The Fourth Musketeer

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 10, 2012

Eric Kimmel, author of The Golem’s Latkes
Sydney Taylor Notable Book, and winner of the National Jewish Book Award
at Ann Koffsky’s Blog
Gloria Spielman, author of Marcel Marceau, Master of Mime
Sydney Taylor Notable Book, and finalist for the National Jewish Book Award
at Shannon and the Sunshine Band
Richard Michelson, author of Lipman Pike: America’s First Home Run King
Sydney Taylor Notable Book, and finalist for the National Jewish Book Award
at Blue Thread
Sydney Taylor Award Winners – Wrap-Up
All winners, all categories
at The Whole Megillah

“There have been great societies that did not use the wheel, but there have been no societies that did not tell stories.” —Ursula K. Le Guin

It’s not enough to have the facts. You have to tell the story. Balancing both is the challenge of any nonfiction manuscript, and it doesn’t just happen. Research has to be vetted. Stories have to be compelling and accurate. Together, facts and narrative must capture the hearts and imaginations of young readers. Sometimes, you just can’t do it alone. You need a trusted reader. An experienced guide. A helping hand.

For 27 years, the Highlights Foundation has been fulfilling its mission of improving the quality of children’s literature by helping authors and illustrators hone their skills. The Whole Novel Workshop, launched in 2006, expands its offerings this year with a program specifically designed for nonfiction. During our week-long Nonfiction Narrative Workshop, May 20–26, you’ll have the chance to learn the craft of nonfiction storytelling with our award-winning faculty, including Carolyn Yoder, Susan Campbell Bartoletti, Peggy Thomas, and Elizabeth Partridge. You’ll gather with other dedicated writers, talking the talk, discussing your questions, and learning the subtleties of what makes a good manuscript a great book. You can enjoy all this, along with the quiet tranquility of your own cabin and the kind of farmhouse hospitality that makes you feel right at home.

During the workshop, your full manuscript will be read and critiqued by one of our faculty,you’ll have time to discuss your goals and vision for the story, and you’ll leave with a revision plan that will clarify and polish the text. We’ll also give you support as you prepare your pitch, query, and synopsis to ensure the manuscript is given full consideration by agents and editors.

Get the help you need to tell the facts and the story. Join us for the Whole Nonfiction Narrative Workshop.

To find out more, contact Jo Lloyd at 570-253-1192, e-mail Jo at jo.lloyd@highlightsfoundation.org or visit www.highlightsfoundation.org to request an application.

At the annual meeting of the American Society of Journalists and Authors in Manhattan in 2011, I had the pleasure of hearing Penny Sansevieri, President and CEO of Author Marketing Experts, Inc., twice. I walked away from her sessions with more than 30 action items to boost this blog and myself on social media and websites.

Penny graciously accepted my invitation to speak at the 2011 Jewish Children’s Writers & Illustrators Conference in Manhattan but was unable to make it due to the flu.

So, The Whole Megillah has posed a few questions…I hope these are some of the questions you wanted to ask. If not, use the comment section below and ask away!

The Whole Megillah (TWM): If authors write in more than one genre, should they have more than one website?

Penny Sansevieri (PS): I would say that it depends on what the genre is. We had an author who wrote children’s books and also erotic romance so clearly she’d have two different personas. But for other authors it’s really about how they want to be branded. We have authors who write across two or three different genres but want to brand themselves so that’s the difference. Decide first how you want to get “out there” and then that will determine how many different websites you need.

TWM: What’s the best platform to use for a website?

PS: Again, it depends but I tend to lean towards WordPress. Our website is entirely in WordPress design and it’s fantastic. Once the designer is done we can now do all of the updating ourselves. Also, WordPress is very SEO friendly, what that means is that you get great search engine ranking with this platform. Be sure to get your own URL (domain name) and host it somewhere other than on WordPress so you actually “own” the platform. If it’s hosted at WordPress you don’t own anything and that’s never good.

TWM: What are the top three essentials of building an author platform?

PS: This is really very pivotal to the author’s goals. So, for example if the author does speaking, then that becomes part of their platform building. In order to determine what their platform is they first need to identify either their goals or the needs of the reader (often times it’s a combination of both). If you aren’t sure what the needs of your reader are, then go in search of other top authors in your market and see how they are building their platform. For some, a platform is a heavy trafficked blog, for others it’s a large social media base. Audience needs and goals will determine what this is and how to build it.

TWM: At what point should authors begin to think about promoting their soon-to-be-published books?

PS: As soon as they come up with the idea. Really. I talked to an author last week who has a book coming out in August and wants to brand a new term and get it into the consumer mindset. Do you have any idea how long this could take? Neither did she. Things like branding new ideas, new terms and new authors can take a long time – sometimes as long as a year (depending on what else is going on in the world). Start early, that’s important. OK so maybe early on you won’t know what your book cover will look like so how can you design your site? Well, then just get a WordPress template site and revise it later. There are 1,500 books published in the US each day, that number does not include the recent eBook surge. The earlier you start, the better off you’ll be.

TWM: If an author doesn’t yet have a book contract, what are the top three things he or she should do to promote oneself?

PS: First the author should look at the needs of the audience. Are they on Twitter? Facebook? Pinterest? Google+? Or is this a very blog community? Figure out what your consumer needs and then serve that need. Often though, you’ll find that a blog (updated twice weekly at a minimum) and a Facebook Fan page are a must.

TWM: Should authors plan their own blog tours? What are the benefits of such a tour?

PS: I always believe that an author should be actively engaged in their own success so yes, they should do whatever they can to help market their book. Even if you hire a company to help market you, you should always do something. Blog tours? Love them. This is why it’s so important to start getting to know your market early. If you start to dig into your area you’ll know who the bloggers are and you can start getting to know them. How do you do this? I wrote a piece on the power behind blog commenting which, coincidentally, is a great way to get to know the high-end bloggers in your area. Here’s a link to it:. The benefits of a blog tour are getting the word out about your book. People sometimes devalue tours but truthfully, the bloggers can often be key to getting word out about your book. Don’t get stuck on the idea of getting book reviews from all of them because bloggers are really inundated with review copies.  As an alternative offer content to bloggers. Bloggers are always looking for content. So you’ll end up with a mix of reviews and content that gets out there, all of it leads back to you and your book, which is what you can!

TWM: Are bookstore appearances worth the effort?

PS: Well, there are a lot of pros and cons to doing book events. We’ve done some where eight people show up and we did one that sold 500 books in one night. They key is promotion and going after the right market. So, if you are set on doing events consider this: maybe your market isn’t in a bookstore. We’ve done events in non-bookstore markets for years. Consider: coffee shops, electronics stores, Hallmark, gyms, etc. I have two articles on getting into bookstores and getting into non-bookstore markets that you might find interesting:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/penny-c-sansevieri/8-tips-for-getting-into-b_b_656378.html

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/penny-c-sansevieri/beyond-the-bookstore-hold_b_648024.html

TWM: Some publishing houses ask for a marketing plan to accompany either proposals or full manuscripts. Are there templates for that for the author new to marketing?

PS: I’m sure there are but we’ve never used them. Sometimes we’ll do marketing plans for authors but we always start from scratch on those. Ideally you want to identify the following areas:

• Your market (so, the audience you’re doing after)
• Blogs in your marketing
• Key social media people you’ll want to network with
• Events (as appropriate) that you’ll want to go to
• Publications, media, etc. that will be key to the book

These are just a few areas to consider. Your market may have different needs, again the reader you are serving will often determine the points in your marketing plan!

Learn more about Author Marketing Experts, Inc.>>>

Book Awards

Younger Readers — Chanukah Lights, by Michael J. Rosen (author) and Robert Sabuda (artist) (Candlewick Press)

Older Readers — Music Was It: Young Leonard Bernstein by Susan Goldman Rubin (Charlesbridge)

Read the The Whole Megillah interview with Susan and her editor, Emily Mitchell

Teen Readers — The Berlin Boxing Club by Robert Sharenow (HarperTeen)

Read the The Whole Megillah book review

Sydney Taylor Honors

Younger Readers:

• Naamah and the Ark at Night by Susan Campbell Bartoletti, illustrated by Holly Meade (Candlewick Press)
• Around the World in One Shabbat by Durga Yael Bernhard (Jewish Lights) – Read the The Whole Megillah book review

Older Readers:

• Lily Renee, Escape Artist: From Holocaust Survivor to Comic Book Pioneer by Trina Robbins will illustrations by Anne Timmons and Mo Oh (Graphic Universe/Lerner Publishing Group)
• Hammerin’ Hank Greenberg: Baseball Pioneer by Shelley Sommer (Calkins Creek/Boyds Mills Press) – Read the The Whole Megillah interview with Shelley and editor Carolyn Yoder and The Whole Megillah book review
• Irena’s Jars of Secrets by Marcia Vaughan with illustrations by Ron Mazellan (Lee & Low Books)

Teen Readers

• Then by Morris Gleitzman (Henry Holt)
• The Blood Lie by Shirley Reva Vernick (Cinco Puntos Press)

Read the AJL Press Release for more details and for information on the twelve books recognized as Sydney Taylor Notables.

Mazel tov to all from The Whole Megillah!

• Louis Posner Memorial Award for Illustrated Children’s Books
• Children’s and Young Adult Literature

Mazel tov to the winners!

Want to know more about writing and publishing biography for young readers? The Whole Megillah caught up with Hammerin’ Hank Greenberg author Shelley Sommer and Calkins Creek editor Carolyn Yoder to find out more.

The Whole Megillah (TWM): What prompted the interest in Hank Greenberg?
Shelley Sommer (SS): I have a 16-year-old son, who has played a lot of baseball!  A few years ago, when I was thinking about a new subject for a biography (after writing about President Kennedy), my son was reading all kinds of books about baseball players.  Sometimes I would pick one up and begin reading it, and it wasn’t long before I noticed references to Hank Greenberg. I am not Jewish, but the story engaged me on many levels. First, I was curious why there wasn’t more available for young readers about this Jewish baseball star playing during such an eventful time in our history. I kept thinking about how interesting it was that in 1936, Jewish athletes were excluded from the Olympic Games in Berlin, but in this country, one of the most prominent baseball players was a Jewish man who was the son of immigrants.

Also, as an elementary school librarian, I know how inspired kids are by stories about people who encountered adversity and persevered. Hank Greenberg is definitely one of those people.

TWM: Please describe your research process, including photos.
SS: Thank goodness for the Baseball Hall of Fame!  The Hall of Fame keeps newspaper articles about player who has been inducted. During a visit to Cooperstown, New York, I looked at hundreds of newspaper stories from Greenberg’s time with the Detroit Tigers — and lots of wonderful photographs.  The photographs were especially interesting, not just the pictures of games, but the pictures of the fans who dressed much more formally than fans at today’s games.  No t-shirts or shorts!  Fans dressed up for an afternoon at the park.

Hank Greenberg’s own book (written with Ira Berkow,) The Story of My Life, was especially helpful. Reading it, I could imagine Greenberg sitting at a table and telling stories about his early days in New York City, enduring anti-Semitic taunts on and off the baseball field, his time in the military, being on two World Series-winning teams and meeting Jackie Robinson.

TWM: How prevalent were Jewish themes as you wrote this book?
SS: Hank Greenberg was not the first Jewish baseball player, but he was the most prominent.

I was very aware of how important that was to his fans. Some of my favorite anecdotes about Greenberg are those about young Jewish fans who were inspired by the big man at first base.

It’s been particularly rewarding to talk with Jewish students about Greenberg. Several young people have told me that their grandparents were fans of the Detroit Tigers because of Hank Greenberg.

TWM: Tell us about your writing process. Did you develop an outline first? How long did it take to write the manuscript? What was your greatest challenge?
SS: I’m a pretty organized person which makes writing a biography more manageable. I always tell my middle school students that the saying about proper preparation is true.

My note cards — and my post-it notes — were color coded. I began by reading lots of articles, using different colors of highlighters of course. I also went on a used book shopping spree with Amazon.com and ordered lots of books about the Detroit Tigers and Jewish athletes. After collecting as much information as possible, I began writing an outline.

I began by writing a very rough draft of the whole book. Carolyn Yoder, my editor, went through it, and made suggestions about what to emphasize and where more information was needed.

TWM: Carolyn, what appealed to you about Shelley’s manuscript?
Carolyn Yoder (CY): Calkins Creek is all about American history but many authors feel that that means the tried and true — biographies of the familiar, coverage of well-known events — and the same popular periods, such as the Revolutionary War era, the Civil War period, etc.  I am always excited to receive a manuscript on an important little-known individual — Hank Greenberg — and even more excited to receive a manuscript that combines sports history— baseball — with the history of the times — Great Depression, World War II, chiefly. Historical context is key at Calkins Creek.

TWM: How important do you think the first-hand accounts were to the success of the manuscript?
CY: Original research is also key at Calkins Creek. We require that authors rely on the classic resources as well as the most up-to-date. Primary research is essential as is working closely with experts in the field.

Quotations from the subject not only add insights but bring that individual to life. It is also important that the research and the book also include insights and quotations from other people. No one lives alone!

TWM: What do you look for in a biography?
CY: First and foremost is why is this biography being written. What makes the individual interesting, passionate, essential?  I also need to see “focus” and “tone.” I need to see the author in the biography.  Also, how is the individual a product of his/her times — what and who made him or her tick. Again, historical context is key. This is what drew me to Hammerin’ Hank Greenberg – he was influenced by his heritage, family, hometown, times, etc. Shelley wove in that historical and cultural context effortlessly.

TWM: Let’s talk about the editorial process for Hammerin’ Hank. Were there any challenges or surprises?
SS: I was lucky to have such a respected and committed editor. Carolyn Yoder has high standards and working with her made me a better writer. There were times when I felt a bit overwhelmed, but each time I looked back at Carolyn’s questions or comments, I knew she was right — and her suggestions made the book stronger.

CY: What I love about the process is working closely with an author molding a book. Shelley was willing to work hard. I can be quite demanding — no apologies here — and Shelley was willing to review the research, rewrite and reshape the manuscript at various stages, and make sure the manuscript was beyond 100 percent.

TWM: I noticed the photo captions give information not found in the main text. Is that something you routinely do? If so, why?
CY: I would like to say that nothing is routine at Calkins Creek. That’s the beauty of a small imprint! That said, photo captions should stand on their own. They should address the photo itself — what’s in the photo and who took it, etc.  They should make the reader think and look at the image. Sometimes material is hard to blend into the narrative and the captions offer opportunities to offer new material — sort of like sidebars. We purposely did not include sidebars, wanting the reader to follow closely Greenberg’s evolution as a baseball player.

TWM: How important are source notes?  
CY: Research is as important at Calkins Creek as writing style and direction. Our books tend to have extensive back matters — filled with further resources, source notes, and bibliographies. I want readers to realize that writing history is an exacting science but it can also be fun — what can be better than uncovering information!

TWM: What’s been the reaction to the book?
CY: It’s been very positive and people have responded to how well Shelley placed Greenberg in his world. How he reacted to the times he lived in. People also appreciate a book on a little known hero.

TWM: Shelley, what advice would you give to writers wanting to write biography?
SS: As cliché as it sounds, my advice to writers who want to write biography is to read biographies. I have always loved stories about people’s lives and remember reading countless biographies when I was young. A successful biography is wonderful because even though the reader is inspired by someone else’s story, they are also gaining insights into their own life.

TWM: What’s up next for you?
SS: Right now, I’m enjoying talking with students about Hank Greenberg and writing about books on my blog.

TWM: And finally, Carolyn, how can writers submit to you?
CY: I believe our writer guidelines are listed on www.boydsmillspress.com. We accept manuscript from agents and unsolicited manuscripts – but manuscripts must combine original research with original writing. We are looking for nothing in particular. I would encourage authors to look at our list for style, direction, tone, and research. I’ve been told we aren’t for the faint of heart!

The Whole Megillah recently spoke to author Amy Axelrod and Holiday House editor Julie Amper about

The Whole Megillah (TWM): Please describe your writing process for Your Friend in Fashion.
Amy Axelrod (AA):  Your Friend in Fashion, Abby Shapiro began as Headless Barbie and Other Doll Tales From My Childhood. It was intended to be a memoir for older readers about my unusual childhood growing up in an extended household (still rooted in the shtetl) and my emotional connection to dolls. My agent felt that it would not sell in this format and offered me three words of advice…Middle Grade Fiction. Being a picture book author, I wasn’t sure I had it in me to write a novel.  I’d never taken a fiction writing class and in general disliked working with structured outlines. I was stuck for about six months. And then the light turned on. It suddenly dawned on me that if I changed my family members’ names, I might be able to look at them as fictional characters. It was such a simple thing, but that’s all it took. The next step was to have the right opening line. My experience with picture books taught me that the first line shapes the whole book. So once I wrote…. “Auntie Rina says I should tell Susie Applegate that she is full of baloney,” Abby’s voice was loud and clear and ready to tell her story. I wrote the novel quickly, without an outline, just using the original memoir as a guide and did not revise until I was finished. This was a departure from my usual method of revising in layers during the writing process.

TWM: How did you decide what to fictionalize and what to keep true to yourself?
AA: That’s a good question. I will say that most of the novel is true to my memory of events. I think the important thing to emphasize is that none of the fictionalized scenes was a stretch. I knew my characters inside and out. I knew everything about them…mannerisms, habits, cadence of speech, likes/dislikes, and deep-seated prejudices. Because of this I could place them in any fictionalized scenario with realistic results. I made a decision when the novel was acquired that I would not separate the events in the book into “fact” or “fiction,” and just leave it that the story is highly autobiographical. But here’s an example I’m happy to share…..My Auntie Ida, who became Rina for the story, devoted her entire life to her widowed mother and siblings. All she knew was hard work and lived by her belief that absolutely nothing was more important than immediate family. My relationship with her was unique. She was more of a mother figure to me, as my own mother deferred every decision to her older sister. I was the child Ida never had and she indulged me with books and dolls. She rarely talked about the past or her childhood in Eastern Europe. I asked her once if she ever had a desire to go back to Vilna. She laughed and said, “No, what for? That’s why they call it the Old Country.”

Amy Axelrod at a 1957 family wedding

TWM: I love that line!
AA: But when I asked her if she ever had a boyfriend, she became quiet and I knew she would weigh her words very carefully before answering.  “There was someone, once,” she said. “I liked him a lot, but it wasn’t meant to be.”  I sensed her regret so in the novel I gave her a suitor, Sy, who waits nearly a lifetime for Rina to acknowledge his affection for her.

TWM: What was your greatest challenge in writing this book? Your greatest satisfaction?
AA: Truthfully, my greatest challenge was keeping focused while revisiting painful wounds of childhood. I was somewhat deflated, to put it mildly, when I finished the manuscript. I didn’t look at it for weeks because I needed to put some distance between me and Abby. When I finally picked it up again, I was able to read the story fresh, as a reader, not as the author. And I laughed!

Also, many years ago I was a graduate student at Columbia University and earned an M.A. in the Department of Linguistics (Weinreich Center/Yiddish Studies). It seemed so natural while writing the novel to use Yiddish in the dialogue with all of its humorous, rich beauty. I think writing Your Friend in Fashion, Abby Shapiro, was bashert, to use one of Abby’s favorite Yiddish words.

TWM: Your novel includes treatment of several Jewish values, including tikkun olam, repairing the world. Was that a conscious decision?
AA: I’m the product of a rigorous Jewish education (Conservative Movement) where not only the concept of tikkun olam was discussed, but we were encouraged to give to charity and to do our part in making the world a better place. I’ve tried to live by this value in my adult life, especially as a parent. I wanted to explore this in Your Friend in Fashion, Abby Shapiro because there is so much wrong in Abby’s world. I wanted her to understand what it means to do the right thing and to set an example for the adults in the novel.

TWM:  Even though you grew up during the time you wrote about, did you engage in any research to provide historical context?
AA: Not really. I did check dates and facts about the Kennedy campaign/election and popular culture of the period just to make sure that my memory served me correctly.

TWM: Julie, what attracted you to this story?
Julie Amper (JA): Abby. I’ve always been drawn to character-driven fiction, and Abby was totally irresistible. I loved her world view, her optimism, her enthusiasm, her courage, her sense of humor, and most of all her big, big heart.  She made me laugh, she made me cry, she made me cheer. She’s someone I would have loved to have been best friends with at age eleven.  I also loved the way the Amy Axelrod captured a memorable period in my own childhood—the transition from the staid, conservative ’50s to the exciting promise of the Kennedy years. And finally, I am a sucker for the epistolary format, which was handled so brilliantly in this novel.

TWM: What was your greatest challenge in developing this book and bringing it to market?
JA: The book was really quite a joy to work on. Unlike many authors of semi-autobiographical novels, Amy Axelrod was able to separate fact from good fiction, to weed and winnow and let the heroine and the narrative story line assume pride of place, even if it meant eliminating or altering historical fact. I did find myself asking Amy, “Was this true?” “Did that ever really happen?” I marveled that in this case truth was often just as compelling as fiction and when it wasn’t, Amy knew just what to do about it. I was delighted that everyone at Holiday House– editorial, art, marketing and sales departments supported Amy’s desire to illustrate the book with the charming, but amateurish paper doll fashion drawings she had done as a child.  This clearly demonstrated that they “got” the book’s special magic, which is very gratifying for an editor.

TWM: Many editors have been saying it’s hard to sell historical fiction. What’s your perspective on that? 
JA: As I said in response to the first question, I am drawn to character-driven fiction and if the characters are strong and their story compelling, I think that the book will find an audience. When you have an unforgettable heroine like Abby carrying a fast-paced, laugh-aloud, deeply moving story like Your Friend in Fashion, Abby Shapiro, you could set it at any point in history and it would be a winner. And keep in mind that for today’s eight-year-old, a novel set in 2003 is historical fiction. We’re fortunate at Holiday House to have such a strong school and public library market where historical fiction is still viable, and I hope we will continue to publish it for years to come.

TWM: What was your favorite book growing up?
AA: My favorite book as a child was Impunity Jane by Rumer Godden. I loved all of her books, not just because she was a wonderful storyteller, but because she wrote many adventures about dolls. Impunity Jane is the story of a small china doll that is put in a dollhouse when she’d rather be having fun in the real world. The grandmother in the story who purchases the doll tells her grand-daughter that the doll is well-made and could be dropped with impunity. I remember thinking that “impunity” was such a big vocabulary word! My Auntie Ida gave the book to me one Chanukah. I re-read Impunity Jane a million times, and sadly it did not survive my childhood. However, many years later I was in my own small town library, where I found a badly-battered copy on the shelf. It hadn’t circulated in over twenty years. I asked the librarian if I could buy it, and she said she’d gladly give it to me, since she was going to be “weeding out” old volumes. I told her I’d prefer to barter. I took Impunity Jane home with me then returned with multiple copies of books I’d published for the library.

Designs from Amy's original sketchbook

TWM: Have you thought about merchandising a line of fashion design kits for kids or giving workshops?
AA: No, but thanks for the suggestion! I’ll sleep on it for a while!

TWM: Did you use Barbie’s fashion design lightbox as a kid?
AA: I don’t think it existed in my early days with Barbie. All of my models and designs were drawn freestyle. I created three additional designs for the novel, and fortunately, my artistic abilities were exactly were I’d left off… in 1962!!

TWM: Did you ever submit your designs anywhere as a kid?
AA: No. If there were kids’ magazines at that time to do such a thing, I never knew about them. I was just happy to share my paper dolls and their fashions with my friends.

The Whole Megillah is a big fan of any of the Highlights Foundation workshops (including the one for writers of Jewish-themed content, which is being planned now for 2013!). The Whole Novel Program can bring your novel to new levels. (BTW, I’m a teaching assistant at the Whole “Novel” Program for nonfiction in May.)

Many times when a manuscript is rejected, it isn’t because the writing is weak. It’s because the manuscript isn’t ready. We all want to push our work to the next phase, but sometimes we submit work to agents or publishers before its ready. Maybe we’ve shown the manuscript to our writing group. Maybe we’ve revised a few times. Maybe we think we’ve done all we can do. But what we really need is a writing coach, a revision plan, and a clear strategy to make the best book we can. In today’s demanding world of publishing, you get only one chance grab the attention of an agent or editor, so make that chance count. Make sure you are ready.

The Highlights Foundation’s Whole Novel Workshop has been helping writers polish their manuscripts since 2006. Participants receive a reading of and editorial response to their complete manuscript prior to a week dedicated to revision and readying your manuscript for submission. We offer an award-winning faculty of writers, editors, and agents to help make your book the best it can be. Through one-on-one critiques and small-group discussions, we focus on revision plans, query letters, and pitch strategies to get you ready to submit. We also nourish your creativity with a private cabin in which to think and write, farm-style meals, and an environment that will refresh your publishing dreams.

Whole Novel Workshops offer targeted programs for nonfiction narrative (in May), fiction for middle-school readers (in July), and young-adult readers (in October). Our first whole novel workshop in 2012 takes place March 11–17. Submission deadline is December 30. The faculty includes award-winning authors and talented teachers Kathi Appelt, Alan Gratz, and Jeannette Ingold, as well smart and sassy editor Martha Mahalick from Greenwillow Books. Authors Janet Fox and Karen Henley round out the support team as teaching assistants.

Come spend a week in the woods and finally get your manuscript ready for publication.

To secure your spot, or for more information, contact Jo Lloyd at 570-253-1192, e-mail jo.lloyd@highlightsfoundation.org, or request an application online

To find out more and to apply to the Whole Novel Workshop, visit www.highlightsfoundation.org.

How are you doing with your manuscript? What’s been inspiring you or holding you back?

Entries are due on Wednesday, December 21. There’s still time to get in your 36,000-word YA submission.

The Whole Megillah

Let’s start off with exciting news from the Jewish Book Council — it has recently launched a new website and now offers readers the opportunity to sign up for a weekly email, featuring an image of each book it reviewed online that week with a link to the review.

And now for this month’s links:

• The Jewish Book Council shares two posts from its ProsenPeople blog:
• JBC Bookshelf: Series, Art, and Fiction
• Publishing a Real-Life Old-Fashioned Book
• The Book of Life’s Canadian Correspondent Anne Dublin interviews author and filmmaker David Bezmogis in David Bezmozgis and The Free World
• Ann Koffsky shares a holiday craft project from one of her books with Chanukah Activity – Shamash Holder
• My Machberet’s Erika Dreifus reflects on My Year in Jewish Books
• On her blog, Rhapsody in Books, Jill Broderick reviews The Lost Wife by Alyson Richman
• From the Jewish Journal J Street Zionist, Jonathan Kirsch shares his review of A New Voice for Israel by Jeremy Ben-Ami
• Linda Wertheimer recommends nine books for Hanukkah, one for each candle that will be lit on the last nigh, in Make Hanukkah a Literary Fest: My Jewish Book List for 2011
• The Whole Megillah presents a cyber-roundtable with the author-editor-illustration team that made The Doll Shop Downstairs and its sequel, The Cats in the Doll Shop, possible and a book review of a new favorite, The Berlin Boxing Club, by Robert Sharenow