wow, i've done something educational outside of college

me and beth went to the Brighton Children's Book Festival today, something we are both interested in, and i'm really glad i went. We mainly stayed for the 2 talks about how to get published and getting yourself noticed and some really useful stuff was said. I took a lot of notes, and this post is just putting them into some sort of legible format

A woman representing Tiger Press publishing was there to give her thoughts and tips when not only sending work off, but also when creating stories and illustrations.

- understand children, what will be important to them and what will engage them.
she noted how so many stories and images she gets sent that don't do any of the above things, which seems like a really obvious thing to do. Apparently a lot of authors assume just because they have children/grand children/slaves that makes them qualified in story telling.

- research - find out what is already on the market. Go to book shops and see what genres and styles are the biggest sellers. Read reviews of books to get other people's opinions. Research publishers to ensure you're sending your work to the right place.

- be adaptable and flexible with illustrations and look at the classics like "Not Now Bernard" and see why they succeed and the secret to their longevity.



- polite perserverance is also key i.e a follow up phone call perhaps 3 months after you've sent in your work is a good thing

Author and illustrator Liz Pichon was also there. She's written books such as 'Bored Bill' and 'The Ugly Bug'. She seems to write about animals more because apparently she's not great at drawing children... lulz. Regardless of that i've always liked her style of illustration and i looked a lot at her work last year for my exam project.



She studied graphic design and said this was more helpful than purely studying illustration as she was more aware of the layout of books, typography and the like.

Liz recommended getting an agent but when initially sending in work to publishers just send them a rought outline rather than finished artefacts of a new book as a lot tends to change.

Representing the agents was Penny Holroyde who works for the Caroline Sheldon Literary Agency.

The thing she kept coming back to was how important it was to read, revise and research. They were the key things in succeeding in getting published and getting work. She mentioned that the common trends of the moment were series fiction and the industry were lacking in more books for boys aged 7-9, like 'Dirty Bertie'


A book by Martin Salisbury was also recommended called
Illustrating Children's Books which i have ordered from
everyone's favourite shopping site as we speak.

Penny also said to think about transitional books. Many
children go from reading the wonderfully colourful picture
books, into books containing much denser text.

More research into publishers would include looking at the publishers catalogue to see what books they've done, again
making sure you're sending your work to the right place.

Another helpful hint was when to send your work out to
publishers. Apparently not after christmas and not in the March/April months, as this is just after the Bologna Children's Book Fair happens, the best time to send work out is the July period.

Penny also said that if you are just looking for illustration work, pick a scene from a story or fairy tale and illustrate it in your own style. All helpful for building up a portfolio. With the portfolio make sure there are drawings of children in there too, which seems like a pretty silly thing not to do, but apparently many illustrators dont or can't draw kids!

Other brief notes include:

- make sure everything is mounted and presented well

- cover letter is of the utmost importance, and to give it some character and personality

- stick to what you are good at rather than what you think you should do

- stick to one style of illustration rather than varying as it gives you a stronger brand and makes you more memorable.

The second talk was more about marketing yourself, which was stuff we already know, or are supposed to anyway, but still nice to have it reiterated. Online presence is so important and actually having a blog is sometimes better than a website if you're an illustrator. Readers and viewers like to interact and comment, leading to the lovely word "intercreativity"

Was also pointed out to get involved with stuff like festivals and fairs, send stuff to local papers, get publicity material and get involved with libraries.

All in all, a really good day with some excellent points raised. I felt very reassured from the whole thing, even tho it is a difficult and competitive industry, its not an impossible one.