Méabh McDonnell - Into the Witchwood - Irish Debuts Series

Méabh tell us about your publication journey 

 I started writing Into the Witchwood in 2020 during one of the lockdowns. It was inspired by my daily walks through Kylebrack woods and being back in my childhood home. I started to stare deeply at the trees that I passed and thought about what if the shapes I was seeing in them were magical creatures hidden inside? I’ve always wanted to write for children, but until I got that flash of inspiration I never felt like I was writing a story that was truly mine. The Witchwood felt like a story that really belonged to me. I spent about a year drafting and redrafting it - in between my work as a children’s bookseller in Charlie Byrne’s Bookshop in Galway and once I felt it was ready to be seen by a publisher I submitted it to The O’Brien Press’ annual Pitch Perfect event as a part of Culture Night. After that event they asked to see a manuscript of my book and, much to my delight, they accepted it for publication after a few months.

 Do you have an agent?

I don’t have an agent, because The O’Brien Press accepts unsolicited manuscripts as do some of the other Irish publishers. I feel really grateful that that’s something that they do here.

 What has surprised you about the publication journey?

I was lucky enough to be fairly familiar with the publishing industry, considering my job as a children’s bookseller, but I was surprised by how many people a manuscript passes through before it reaches a reader. I also have been really pleasantly surprised by the goodwill that so many people in the Irish book community have had towards a debut author. We’re so lucky to have such great people involved in our industry who are extremely welcoming to newcomers and willing to answer all of my naive questions!

 What advice would you give people who would like to write a children’s fantasy novel?

The first piece of advice I’d give to someone who would like to write children’s fantasy novels is they should probably read children’s fantasy novels! Reading is such a key part of writing. Read everything from brilliant new Irish fantasies, like Sinéad O’Hart, Alex Dunne and Catherine Doyle, to older international ones like Madeline L’Engle, and Ursula Le Guin. Familiarise yourself with the conventions of the genre and then when you break all of the rules - you’ll be doing it on purpose!

While fantasy stories are steeped in magic and things that ‘aren’t real’  it’s usually used as an opportunity for the author to explore darker feelings and emotions by giving them a physical representation. For example, the Witchwood in my story is a metaphor for grief and the challenges we face growing up.

This means it is vital that the characters themselves come from a real and grounded place.

Because of that I would say you should write the story that you would most like to read. But I don’t mean write the story that you read when you were a child, I mean write a story that makes you excited. If I’m not interested in the characters I’m writing or the setting I’m trying to create - then the reader won’t be either. So write the story that makes you feel like your fingers are falling over each other trying to get it out.

Méabh McDonnell

 Méabh, tell us about your book and your writing process. How long did it take you to write?

It took me about a year to write the novel, on and off at different times. I tend to write in spurts where I intensely write a draft over about six weeks, then revise and change aspects of the story sporadically in the months after that.

 How many drafts did you do?

 I wrote roughly three drafts. One initial one, then I edited that extensively into a second before submitting it. After that I rewrote it into a new  - shorter - draft when the manuscript was accepted. There were also multiple smaller aspects of the story that were redrafted within those three. The beginning was the part of the story that changed the most, but I made significant changes to the characters' plotlines throughout. Most of the time I was editing things out rather than adding them in. I usually write as much detail as I can think of and then cut back and revise later.

 Are you a planner?

 I am a planner - although I try my hardest not to plan so much that there’s no room for inspiration along the way.

 I am a planner because I am also a procrastinator. If I don’t plan my plots then I will allow myself to write go-nowhere chapters where all the characters do is talk and nothing happens. Dialogue and conversations are my favourite things to write so that happens a lot if I don’t have a chapter plan to follow! Planning also stops me from walking away from the story and not finishing it, which is something I have a tendency to do if I don’t know what’s going to happen next.

 That being said, I think a mixture of planning and what writer Mary Watson calls ‘writing into the mist’ is the best way to create a story, as those little moments of inspiration that are unplanned are often the most magical part of the writing process.

 What is your favourite thing about the writing process?

As I said, my favourite thing about the writing process are the surprises that characters and plots hit you with along the way. Not to spoil Into the Witchwood - but there is a plot twist towards the end of the book. But the thing is, I didn’t know about that twist until the moment that I wrote it. It wasn’t a part of my plan, and I think it might be one of the best bits of the story! It just strolled into my mind as an idea and luckily, I was paying enough attention that I decided to use the idea and add it in.

 And your least favourite thing?

My least favourite thing about the writing process is initially sitting down to write! I find it very difficult to convince myself to open up my word processor or notebook and just start working. Once I do that, I’ll stay working for hours, but it’s that initial starting up that is so difficult to convince myself to do. I try to combat it by setting out times for myself to write in the day, so that it doesn’t feel like I’m neglecting it when I’m doing other things.

 What are you working on now?

I’ve got lots of different ideas that I’m working on right now but I’m trying to narrow my focus to just one. The stories that are most interesting to me are the ones that draw on the magic and mythology of familiar places from my childhood in the same way that Into the Witchwood does with Kylebrack Woods.

Into the Witchwood is available from all good bookshops. Buy it here

The Business of Children's Books - #Properbook Event November 2023

On Thursday 9th November the latest in the #Properbook series of professional development events for children’s writers and illustrators took place. These events are run by Children’s Books Ireland and this one was in association with Dublin Book Festival and dlr Libraries. It took place in the lovely dlr Lexicon in Dún Laoghaire. It was programmed by myself, Sarah Webb.

Here is are some notes from the evening. Thank you to all the speakers for taking part and to the audience who came along on the night.

On the first panel Marie-Louise Fitzpatrick and Mary Murphy spoke about their experiences of sustaining a career as a children’s writer and illustrator.

They shared some figures about children’s authors’ and illustrators’ earnings.

£7k is the average advance payment for a picturebook in the UK at present (this can vary a lot)

The publishing panel talked more about advances, see below. Here are most of Mary’s books - she’s written and/or illustrated a lot of books!

And here are Marie-Louise’s - again there are a lot!

Here are some slides that Mary shared - thank you, Mary!

Next up was the publishing panel, brilliantly chaired by Aoife Murray from Children’s Books Ireland.

The publishers taking part were Ivan O’Brien from The O’Brien Press, Matthew Parkinson-Bennett from Little Island Books and Róisín Adams from Futa Fata.

Here is some of the information shared by this panel in note form. Hope it’s useful!

The O’Brien Press is always looking for new children’s books, inc. from debut writers. Children’s books are around 50% of The O’Brien Press’ list and are very important to the publishing house. In 2023 they published 33 new children’s books (some are new editions). They publish around 10 picturebooks a year and are pretty much full up unti 2025 (but will squeeze in any brilliant books they are offered).

Little Island are looking for ‘the best books that we love the most’. They don’t chase trends they like to change the market rather than follow it. They have been active in seeking out diverse voices.

Futa Fata commission a lot of their books and love working with new writers and illustrators. They are very keen on nurturing new talent in the Irish language world and are esp. looking for short novels for the 5 to 7 age group. They would love to find an Irish language author/illustrator but are open to working with illustrators who do no speak Irish (yet).

You do not need an agent to subit to all three of these publishers. For submission guidelines see here:

O’Brien

Little Island (closed at present but will open again soon)

Futa Fata

Advances and Royalties

Little Island pay an average advance of e1.5k to their author for a book. (It’s an advance against your royalties - so once it’s paid off then you start earning royalties.)

They like to sell foreign language rights where they can.

Futa Fata pay around e1k advance to writers per book (depending on the length of the book). They pay e4k to e7k to illustrators for a picturebook, depending on the amount of illustration work needed and the length of the book.

O’Brien Press - they pay a higher advance for a higher print run

They have sold rights for Fox and Son Tailers by Paddy Donnelly to around 7 or 8 different foreign publishers. They paid out e300,000 in royalties in 2022.

Print Runs

O’Brien - they printed 26k of last year’s World Book Day book. The lowest print run they would do is around 3k copies.

Little Island printed 5k of their new book, Black and Irish. And have just ordered another 3k print run.

Futa Fata print runs are smaller - from 1k to 2k.

All three publishers are devoted to author care and to looking after their authors and illustrators. I’ve published with both O’Brien and Little Island and I can say with confidence that this is 100% the case.

I have published 9 books with O’Brien and I have 2 more coming in 2024. I really enjoy working with them. My latest book, I am the Wind: Irish Poems for Children Everywhere (with Lucinda Jacob and Ashwin Chacko) was published by Little Island and I’ve really enjoyed working with them too.

it was a really interested evening and I learned lots of new information, especially about Irish language publishing. Thank you again to all the speakers and to Children’s Books Ireland, Dublin Book Festival and dlr Libraries.

Good luck with your writing journey!

My latest book - with Lucinda Jacob and Ashwin Chacko

The Best Children's Book Agents 2023 - Recommended by Their Writers and Illustrators

Every year I try to update this post - one of the most popular posts on my blog. I hope it's helpful. If you are a published writer or illustrator and would like to recommend your agent, please contact me. I'd be delighted to add your agent to the list. 

All the agents on this list are recommended by people in the know - their clients, children’s writers and illustrators. Thank you to all the writers and illustrators who have responded to my call out for recommendations over the years. There was a terrific response this year and it is much appreciated.

Irish Publishers (You do not need an agent to submit to Irish publishers)

In Ireland we are lucky to have publishers like The O’Brien Press whose editors are happy to read unsolicited manuscripts. The O’Brien Press are mainly looking for manuscripts from Irish or Irish based writers and illustrators. You can send your book directly to one of their editors. Submission details are on their website and they publish a wide range of picturebooks, fiction and non-fiction for children and young people (and adults in fact), including my books: https://www.obrien.ie/submissions

The team at Little Island are also happy to read unsolicited manuscripts and they publish a wide range of books for children, fiction including verse novels, non fiction and poetry collections (however they do close submissions at certain times of the year so check before sending): https://www.littleisland.ie/pages/getting-published

Gill Books publish some terrific picturebooks, children’s fiction and children’s non-fiction. Venetia Gosling is their new Associate Publisher and she is in charge of the children’s list.:

https://www.gillbooks.ie/write-for-us

HarperCollins Ireland has recently appointed an editor, Catherine Gough who is actively looking for new children’s books. opensubmissions@harpercollins.ie

Website link here

Bonnier Books has also recently appointed an Irish publishing director, Deirdre Nolan

Find out what she’s looking for here

Bonnier website

Deirdre’s Linked in page (in case it’s useful) https://www.linkedin.com/in/deirdre-nolan-a8738257/?originalSubdomain=ie

Mercier and Poolbeg also publish some children’s books and accept unsolicited manuscripts.

Mercier: Submissions can be sent by email to commissioning@mercierpress.ie or by post to Commissioning Editor, Mercier Press, Unit 3B, Oak House, Bessboro Road, Blackrock, Cork, Ireland.

UK Publishers

Most UK publishers do not accept unsolicited manuscripts so you will need to submit your work through an agent.

WHAT DOES AN AGENT DO EXACTLY?

1/ An agent can advise you on your manuscript and on how to make it more attractive to a publisher. Many will act as editors and help improve a manuscript before it is sent out to editors.. They are also excellent at coming up with strong book titles as I’ve discovered.

2/ An agent can find the right editor or publisher for your work – like a book matchmaker. And they can sell your UK, US, digital and foreign rights. They can also look after any film or television rights.

3/ Agents deal with the difficult and technical area of contracts. This is particularly important at the moment as digital rights can be tricky.

4/ Financial back up – they can chase up your royalties and talk to your publishers about outstanding monies owed to you.

These days having potential isn’t enough, your manuscript must be as perfect as you can make it before it goes anywhere near a publisher. A good agent can play a vital role in this process.

WHO REPRESENTS SOME OF THE BEST CHILDREN'S WRITERS?

Remember to check each agent’s website for submission guidelines before you send anything out. Or ring the agency for details – I know it’s daunting but they can advise you on how (or if) to submit. Be warned – you may get the agent herself/himself on the phone. Be prepared.

RECOMMENDED CHILDREN’S AGENTS: IRISH WRITERS

Eoin Colfer is represented by Sophie Hicks. Sophie is a very experienced agent and her writers rate her highly. She also represents Oisín McGann. www.sophiehicksagency.com

Lucy Coats adds ‘Sophie Hicks of SHA is, of course, the best agent in the world! Sympathetic and positive in adversity, great sense of humour and fights her authors’ corner like a tigress on speed. Highly recommended.’

Derek Landy is represented by Michelle Kass, who also represents Patrick Ness. www.michellekass.co.uk

Sarah Webb, Steve McCarthy and Chris Judge are represented by the wonderful Philippa Milnes Smith at The Soho Agency. She is hugely experienced, wise, kind and patient, a joy to work with.

Steve McCarthy says: ‘I'll second that for Philippa! I can attest to her kindness, wise-ness and hilarity.’

Contact: https://thesohoagency.co.uk/submission

Marita Conlon McKenna is represented by Caroline Sheldon www.carolinesheldon.co.uk

Patricia Forde is represented by Anne Clarke. Trish says ‘She is absolutely wonderful and I recommend her wholeheartedly!’
http://anneclarkliteraryagency.moonfruit.com/home/4574290903

Elizabeth Rose Murray recommends her agent, Sallyanne Sweeney of Mulcahy Associates. She says she’s ‘supportive, thorough, creative, knowledgeable & really champions her authors. And she really loves children’s/YA literature too – always a bonus!’

Mary Murphy says ‘I have an amazing agent, Clare Pearson of Eddison Pearson… personal attention, huge understanding of young books, background of editing in Walker. Completely champions her authors and I know some of my books would not see the light of day without her inspirational responses. She attends to each author herself, and so while she is open to submissions, she can only take on the occasional new client.’

Let's hear from some other Irish writers:

Dave Rudden: 'I'm with Clare Wallace at Darley Anderson - can't recommend her enough!'

Clare also represents Olivia Hope.

Shirley McMillan: 'My agent is Jenny Savill at Andrew Nurnberg Associates. She is wonderful.'

Jenny also represents Nigel Quinlan.

Kelly McCaughrain recommends her agent Kirsty McLachlan at Morgan Green Creatives. She says ‘She's so kind, knowledgeable and dependable and my friends are quite jealous about how quickly she gets back to me about anything!’

Sinéad O'Hart is represented by Polly Nolan. Sinéad says: ‘She's an excellent editorial agent, very supportive, and someone I'm glad to have on my team.’

Celine Kiernan says: 'I changed agencies late 2015. I am with Sallyanne Sweeney now, of Mulcahy Literary Agency. Have worked with her on two books now and find her wonderful.'

Aislinn O’Loughlinn says Amber Caraveo at Skylark Agency is a wonder. She says ‘I’d absolutely recommend her to any querying author, she’s so amazingly warm & supportive, with a brilliant editorial brain as well!’

Alison Weatherby recommends her agent Lucy Irvine at PFD Agents

Marianne Gunn O'Connor represents Shane Hegarty and Triona Campbell. Triona says ‘she is just a #warrior when it comes to making dreams come true’

Sue Divin recommends her agent Laura Williams at Greene and Heaton Agency.

Eilish Fisher recommends Joanna Moult at the Skylark Agency. As does Olivia Wakeford.

RECOMMENDED AGENTS - UK AND INTERNATIONAL WRITERS

Hannah Gold recommends Claire Wilson and Sam Copeland from RCW Agency.

Louie Stowell recommends her agent Molly Ker Hawn. ‘She's a fantastic champion, 10/10 would recommend.’

Jay Joseph recommends Becky Bagnell

Meredith Vigh recommends Christabel McKinley at David Higham

Lucy Farfort recommends Ash Literary

Svani Parekh recommends Lydia Silver at DA Children’s Agency As does Rashmi Sirdeshpande

Lizzie Huxley-Jones recommends Abi Fellows at The Good Lit Agency

Leigh-Ann Hewer recommends Maddy Belton at MM Literary Agency

Natasha Holmes recommends Megan Carroll from Watson, Little, Ltd. She says ‘Wonderful editorial input, inclusive, approachable & v witty contributor to any panel event.’

Jennifer Claessen recommends Jenny Savill from Andrew Nurnberg Associates

Frances Stickley recommends her agent Penny Holroyde. She adds ‘I want to keep her secret like a good Cornish beach. But she’s far from secret, she’s the best.’

Ian Eagleton recommends Spring Literary

MG Leonard recommends Kirsty McLachlan at Morgan Green Creatives. She calls her a ‘battle angel’ which is rather wonderful!

Rachel Hamilton recommends Louise Lamont at LBA Books

Lindsay Galvin recommends Clare Wallace from DA Agency. She says ‘She has overhauled my experience of being an author. She's creative, honest, efficient, insightful. We have a true partnership. I seriously doubt I could have made writing my full time career without her.’

Lucille Abendanon recommends Thérèse Coen from SLA Agency

Kathryn Evans recommends Sophie Hicks

Kaye Umansky recommends Caroline Sheldon

George Griffiths recommends Claire Wallace from DA Agency

Kathryn Foxfield recommends Chloe Seager from Madeleine Milburn Agency, as do Nazima Pathan and Maisie Chan.

Maz Evans recommends Veronique Baxter. She says ‘Professional, ethical, passionate and a dear friend. Very lucky to have her.’

Lesley Parr recommends Amber Caraveo from Skylark Agency ‘The most wonderful wonder of all! Communicative, astute, kind, wise - everything on my agent wish list. And a Buffy fan, so many boxes ticked.’

Ash Bond recommends Jessica Hare at The Agency

Eve Ainsworth:  'I'm with Stephanie Thwaites at Curtis Brown, she's fab.'

Russell Sanderson and Lu Hersey recommend their agent, Ben Illis.

Zana Fraillon recommends her agent, Claire Wilson.

Jo Nadin says: ‘I love Julia Churchill without reservation. She’s quietly kickass, clever, kind, and, best of all, listens.’

Anne-Marie Conway recommends Julia Churchill, as does John Dougherty

Julia Churchill (A M Heath) says 'My speciality is checking if people need to go to loo before meetings.' Nikki Sheehan says Julia 'Would win against 100 horse sized ducks.' 

Mark Burgess: 'I’m represented by excellent & wonderful Nancy Miles of Miles Stott Children's Literary Agency. She also represents Gill Lewis & Frances Hardinge.'

Sarah McIntyre: ‘I'm represented by Jodie Hodges at United Agents, she's brilliant! I couldn't do without her, she keeps my life in order.’

Annaliese Avery recommends her agent Helen Boyle from Pickled Ink. She says ‘Helen is the most supportive champion, her knowledge of the industry is second to none and the esteem that I, her other authors and illustrators, and publishers hold her is is immense!’

Teo Georgie recommends Inkling Illustration

Holly Ryan recommends her agent Lorna Hemingway at BLM Agency.

Catherine MacPhail says: ‘Caroline Sheldon. Always keeps in touch. Great agent.’

Cathy Brett says ‘And Felicity Trew, Caroline's co-agent. A little terrier!’

Mary Hoffman: ‘ It was Pat White and, since her retirement, is now Claire Wilson, both of Rogers, Coleridge and White.’

Also recommend are:

Eve White, Eve White Literary Agency

Catherine Clarke at Felicity Bryan

Robert Kirby at United Agents

Jodie Hodges at United Agents (recommended by William Bee); Catherine Mary Summerhayes, Jo Unwin and Clare Conville at United Agents

Hilary Delamere at The Agency

Lindsey Fraser at Fraser Ross

Gemma Cooper at The Bent Agency

Penny Holroyde at Holroyde Cartey

Elizabeth Roy – www.elizabethroy.co.uk

Laura Cecil – www.lauracecil.co.uk

Sam Copeland and Claire Wilson at Rogers Coleridge and White – www.rcwlitagency.com

Good luck with finding a great agent

Henny is Stuck - Q and A with Debut Picturebook Writer/Illustrator Aileen Crossley - Irish Debuts Series

Aileen Crossley’s debut picturebook, Henny is Stuck has just been published. To celebrate this I asked her some questions about her road to publication and her new book.

Aileen, tell us about your publication journey

It was a hard long road of learning from mistakes and finding out how picturebooks work along the way. I got great encouragement though from very generous folks, especially from Ivan O'Brien. I remember rocking up to his offices in 2014 with a dummy book and he was so very encouraging. 

Setting deadlines for entering competitions helped. I was shortlisted for the Unpublished Picturebook Showcase last year and that was so encouraging. I knew then to keep going. I also won an Agility Award from the Arts council which was so encouraging. That gave me some space to work on Henny and the confidence that indeed she was bookstore worthy,

Do you have an agent?

I don't have an agent. I would love one. Anyone out there?!

I found my publisher Little Door Books by chance at the Scottish stall at Bologna Children’s Book Fair last March. I basically blagged my way (Irish style) into meeting with them due to my having lived and studied in Glasgow.

I also felt it was a little bit of home from home, and just wanted to have the chats with some friendly Scottish folks. Bologna is big and overwhelming at times for illustrators, and all the friendly faces you can find really help keep you going. We clicked straight away and the rest is history. A year later Henny is published. 

What has surprised you about the publication journey?

How long it took and how competitive a space it is.

What advice would you give people who would like to write or illustrate a picturebook?

Get your story right first and play with leaving gaps in writing and image making for children to fill in. They are amazing meaning makers, better than adults, and they don't get enough credit for that. 

I am currently writing and illustrating my second picturebook as part of my final master project for my masters in Illustration at Falmouth. Researching picturebooks, how they work, and how children read and learn is fascinating. I can feel this time I am avoiding all the mistakes I made previously, and due to my masters research and image creation development, it's making for a much richer writing experience.

Aileen, tell us about your book and how you wrote and illustrated it.

The idea of the book was inspired while studying illustration at Glasgow School of Art in 2011. Someone I once knew had a studio out the back of his house called The Blue Egg. I wondered about a character Blue Egg who was stuck in her shell, and slowly started to form a narrative around this character, her problem and how she might overcome it. After many iterations Blue Egg is now Henny is Stuck.

My lithography printmaking practice at The Black Church Print Studio in Temple Bar was key to finding my illustration style. I went to Bologna Childrens Book Fair last March, for the second time with Henny, where I met Little Door Books who offered me a publishing contract. Working with Alan and Susan was fantastic and they really helped craft the final copy and elevate the colours.

It was a long and winding road of a journey and I literally have a sack of dummybook iterations. Henny and I got in the end and the process has taught me everything about picturebook creation, resilience, feeling stuck, and finding yourself, just like Henny. 

About Aileen 

Aileen is an author/illustrator and an award-winning animator. Her illustration style combines her love of printmaking and lithography and retro style illustration. 

She is the Winner of two IDI awards ( Best Short Animated Film and Emerging Designer Award) for her animated short ‘Wishing Well’ for Paul Hourican. 

Her debut picture book, Henny is Stuck is available in all major bookstores from 13th March including Halfway up the Stairs in Greystones.

www.aileencrossley.ie

KPMG CHILDREN'S BOOKS IRELAND BOOK AWARDS 2022

KPMG Children’s Books Ireland Awards 2022 (books published in 2021)

 2021 was a whopper of a year for Irish books, with over 140 titles published, a record high. Here are my (rather hasty as I’ve just realised the shortlist is announced tomorrow 9th March) predictions for this year’s shortlist.

 Picturebooks:

Maybe by Chris Haughton

Weirdo by Zadie Smith and Nick Laird, Illustrated by Magenta Fox

There’s a Ghost in This House by Oliver Jeffers

Frindleswyle by Natalia O’Hara and Lauren O’Hara

 Younger Readers (A really strong age group this year!)

Rabbit and Bear: A Bad King is a Sad Thing by Julian Gough, illustrated by Jim Field (One of the best books I’ve ever read for this younger age group – this age group often gets overlooked for awards – esp if books are in a series – I think it deserves to win the overall prize.)

Cluasa Capaill Ar An Rí by Bridget Breathnach, illustrated by Shirely MacDonald

Wild Child by Dara McAnulty, illustrated by Barry Falls

Rescuing Titanic by Flora Delargy (My prediction for Eilis Dillon Award for First Book – amazing book!)

Tree Dogs, Banshee Fingers by Manchán Magan, illustrated by Steve Doogan (the illustrations are outstanding – I’d love to see this on the shortlist)

Leaflings by Niamh Sharkey and Owen Churcher

 Age 9+

The Summer I Robbed a Bank by David O’Doherty, illustrated by Chris Judge (I would love this to feature – brilliant book)

Wolfstongue by Sam Thompson

 YA

Hani and Ishu’s Gide to Fake Dating by Adiba Jaigirdar

Guard Your Heart by Sue Divin

 The shortlist may also feature:

Picturebooks

Twas the Night Before Christmas by Clement C Moore, Illustrated by PJ Lynch

One of the many Paddy Donnelly titles (Here Be Dragons is my favourite)

Big Dance by Aoife Greeham

Younger Readers

Bad Panda by Swapna Haddow, Illustrated by Sheena Dempsey

Age 9+

Tabitha Plimtock and the Edge of the World by Erika McCann, illustrated by Philip Cullen

The Kidds of Summerhill by Ann Murtagh

Mr Spicebag by Freddie Alexander, illustrated by Helen O’Higgins

Teens

All the Money in the World by Sarah Moore Fitzgerald

YA

All Our Hidden Gifts by Caroline O’Donoghue

The Best Children’s Book Agents 2022 as Recommended by their Writers and Illustrators + Irish Publisher Submission Details

Getting Published

Every year I try to update this post - one of the most popular posts on my blog. I hope it's helpful. If you are a published writer or illustrator and would like to recommend your agent, please contact me. I'd be delighted to add your agent to the list. 

All the agents on this list are recommended by people in the know - their writers and illustrators. Thank you to all the writers and illustrators who have responded to my call out for recommendations over the years. 

YOU CAN SEND YOUR BOOK DIRECTLY TO MOST IRISH PUBLISHERS (WITHOUT AN AGENT)

In Ireland we are lucky to have The O’Brien Press whose editors are happy to read unsolicited manuscripts. You can send your book directly to one of their editors. Submission details are on their website and they publish a wide range of fiction and non-fiction for children and young people, including my books: https://www.obrien.ie/submissions

The team at Little Island are also happy to read unsolicited manuscripts (however they do close submissions at certain times of the year): https://littleisland.ie/submissions/

Gill Books publish some terrific picturebooks, children’s novels and children’s non-fiction. Venetia Gosling is their new Associate Publisher and she is in charge of the children’s list.:

https://www.gillbooks.ie/write-for-us

HarperCollins Ireland has recently appointed an editor, Catherine Gough who is actively looking for new children’s books. opensubmissions@harpercollins.ie

Website link here

Bonnier Books has also recently appointed an Irish publishing director, Deirdre Nolan

Find out what she’s looking for here

Bonnier website

I will post her contact details when they are available.

Mercier and Poolbeg also publish some children’s books and accept unsolicited manuscripts.

Poolbeg submission details here

Mercier: Submissions can be sent by email to commissioning@mercierpress.ie or by post to Commissioning Editor, Mercier Press, Unit 3B, Oak House, Bessboro Road, Blackrock, Cork, Ireland.

UK PUBLISHERS

Most UK publishers do not accept unsolicited manuscripts so you will need to submit your work through an agent.

WHAT DOES AN AGENT DO EXACTLY?

1/ An agent can advise you on your manuscript and on how to make it more attractive to a publisher. Many will act as editors and help improve a manuscript before it is sent out to editors.. They are also excellent at coming up with zippy book titles as I’ve discovered.

2/ An agent can find the right editor or publisher for your work – like a book matchmaker. And they can sell your UK, US, digital and foreign rights. They can also look after any film or television rights.

3/ Agents deal with the difficult and technical area of contracts. This is particularly important at the moment as digital rights can be tricky.

4/ Financial back up – they can chase up your royalties and talk to your publishers about outstanding monies owed to you.

These days having potential isn’t enough, your manuscript must be as perfect as you can make it before it goes anywhere near a publisher. A good agent can play a vital role in this process.

WHO REPRESENTS SOME OF THE BEST CHILDREN'S WRITERS?

Remember to check each agent’s website for submission guidelines before you send anything out. Or ring the agency for details – I know it’s daunting but they are always happy to advise you on how (or if) to submit. Be warned – you may get the agent herself/himself on the phone. Be prepared.

RECOMMENDED CHILDREN’S AGENTS: IRISH WRITERS

Eoin Colfer is represented by Sophie Hicks. Sophie is a very experienced agent and her writers rate her highly. She also represents Oisín McGann. www.sophiehicksagency.com

Lucy Coats adds ‘Sophie Hicks of SHA is, of course, the best agent in the world! Sympathetic and positive in adversity, great sense of humour and fights her authors’ corner like a tigress on speed. Highly recommended.’

Derek Landy is represented by Michelle Kass, who also represents Patrick Ness. www.michellekass.co.uk

Darren Shan is represented by Christopher Little   For general enquiries email: www.christopherlittle.net

Sarah Webb and Chris Judge are represented by the wonderful Philippa Milnes Smith at The Soho Agency

Steve McCarthy says: ‘I'll second that for Philippa! I can attest to her kindness, wise-ness and hilarity.’

Contact: https://thesohoagency.co.uk/submission

Marita Conlon McKenna is represented by Caroline Sheldon www.carolinesheldon.co.uk

Patricia Forde is represented by Anne Clarke. Trish says ‘She is absolutely wonderful and I recommend her wholeheartedly!’
http://anneclarkliteraryagency.moonfruit.com/home/4574290903

Elizabeth Rose Murray recommends her agent, Sallyanne Sweeney of Mulcahy Associates (London). She says she’s ‘supportive, thorough, creative, knowledgeable & really champions her authors. And she really loves children’s/YA literature too – always a bonus!’

Let's hear from some other Irish writers:

Dave Rudden: 'I'm with Clare Wallace at Darley Anderson - can't recommend her enough!'

Clare also represents Olivia Hope.

Shirley McMillan: 'My agent is Jenny Savill at Andrew Nurnberg Associates. She is wonderful.'

Jenny also represents Nigel Quinlan.

Sinéad O'Hart is represented by Polly Nolan who is also recommended by Louis Stowell.

Celine Kiernan says: 'I changed agencies late 2015. I am with Sallyanne Sweeney now, of Mulcahy Literary Agency. Have worked with her on two books now and find her wonderful.'

Sheena Wilkinson: ‘Faith O'Grady. Not a children's specialist -- handy as I am writing adult now, but very supportive and approachable. Based in Dublin.’

Sheena Dempsey says:  ‘Felicity Trew is absolutely brilliant, a determined bulldog but with a lovely manner and thorough to the last where contracts are concerned. Incredibly supportive where editorial and art direction are concerned. Always pushes for better terms. Top marks.’

Marianne Gunn O'Connor represents Shane Hegarty and Cecelia Ahern. 

OTHER RECOMMENDED AGENTS - UK AND INTERNATIONAL WRITERS

Cathy Cassidy is represented by Darley Anderson and highly recommends him.

Eve Ainsworth:  'I'm with Stephanie Thwaites at Curtis Brown, she's fab.'

Russell Sanderson and Lu Hersey recommend their agent, Ben Illis.

Zana Fraillon recommends her agent, Claire Wilson.

Julia Churchill at A M Heath who says 'my speciality is checking if people need to go to loo before meetings.' I have met Julia several times and she is a funny and smart woman who knows her onions. Well worth sending your manuscript to. Nikki Sheehan says Julia 'would win against 100 horse sized ducks.' 

Jo Nadin says: ‘I love Julia Churchill without reservation. She’s quietly kickass, clever, kind, and, best of all, listens.’

Mark Burgess: 'I’m represented by excellent & wonderful Nancy Miles of Miles Stott Children's Literary Agency. She also represents Gill Lewis & Frances Hardinge.'

Sarah McIntyre: ‘I'm represented by Jodie Hodges at United Agents, she's brilliant! I couldn't do without her, she keeps my life in order.’

Catherine MacPhail says: ‘Caroline Sheldon. Always keeps in touch. Great agent.’

Cathy Brett says ‘And Felicity Trew, Caroline's co-agent. A little terrier!’

Mary Hoffman: ‘ It was Pat White and, since her retirement, is now Claire Wilson, both of Rogers, Coleridge and White.’

Also recommend are:

Eve White, Eve White Literary Agency

Catherine Clarke at Felicity Bryan

Robert Kirby at United Agents

Jodie Hodges at United Agents (recommended by William Bee); Catherine Mary Summerhayes, Jo Unwin and Clare Conville at United Agents

Hilary Delamere at The Agency

Lindsey Fraser at Fraser Ross

Gemma Cooper at The Bent Agency

Penny Holroyde at Holroyde Cartey

Elizabeth Roy – www.elizabethroy.co.uk

Laura Cecil – www.lauracecil.co.uk

Madeleine Milburn – www.madeleinemilburn.co.uk

Sam Copeland and Claire Wilson at Rogers Coleridge and White – www.rcwlitagency.com

Good luck with finding a great agent!

How to Pitch to Book Festivals - Practical Tips for Children's Writers and Illustrators 2021

 This blog was prepared for the Children’s Books Ireland Artists’ Coffee Morning in May 2021

They are updated from a 2018 notes and I do hope they are helpful! Here’s me at a book event for young children and their families, showing them how to make a baby owl.

Schedule of Programming

Many book festivals start programming over six months in advance. Many key names would be in place many months in advance for the children’s programme: ie RJ Palacio (Wonder), Oliver Jeffers. I am starting to programme for November (WonderFest) now (May).

If you are thinking about approaching a festival (and more on how to do this in a moment), make sure you don’t leave it too late. I would suggest at least 4 months before the festival is on.

I am lucky to be sent early proofs which I read carefully. If you have written a brilliant, original and exciting book you have a good chance of being invited to a book festival. FOR ME IT ALL STARTS WITH THE BOOK.

 If you remember one thing when it comes to events – remember this – IT’S NOT ABOUT YOU, IT’S ABOUT THE AUDIENCE. You are almost irrelevant. The only people who matter are the children or young people in front of you.

 What I Am Looking For:

1/ Strong, award-winning names for individual events and panels – esp writers who have written outstanding books eg Eoin Colfer, Oliver Jeffers, Katherine Rundell, Robin Stevens.

Many festivals like to vary the writers they invite every year (although in the children’s world, the audience changes every 2 or 3 years – as they grow up!)

 2/ Writers who are excellent at performing for school audiences and who have a strong body of work behind them. Experience is key for school events in a theatre (or in any venue or online). Ex-teachers or actors can be particularly good, people who can also draw are useful. Eg Marita Conlon McKenna, Judi Curtin, Alan Nolan.

 3/ Exceptional storytellers eg Dave Rudden and Marianne McShane.

 4/ Exceptional workshop leaders eg Claire Hennessy, ER Murray, Eve McDonnell. The best ones engage 100% with the young writers/illustrators and bring something unique to their workshops.

 5/ New/newish writers for panel events featuring new voices –  eg Paddy Donnelly, Adiba Jaigirdar.

 6/ New voices from a wide range of communities - representing all writers, illustrators and readers. Voices from the Travelling community for eg.

 7/ Exceptional picturebook makers to give talks/workshops to children and also masterclasses to adults eg Yasmeen Ismail, Chris Judge, Chris Haughton.

 8/ Unusual and original book related events. Esp non-fiction events in fact – history, natural history, science, maths. Come up with a unique and inspiring event and practice, practice, practice.

 9/ Artists who are willing to work hard and go the extra mile. Artists who will muck in. Artists who offer to fill in for other artists when there’s a last minute illness or delay. Artists who are fun to work with and above all, professional. I’ll never forget Sarah McIntyre and Philip Reeve mucking in at one of the festivals I programmed when one of speaker’s children was rushed to hospital. They did his events for him.

 10/ Strong local talent – writers, poets, storytellers, illustrators, picture book makers and more. Experienced and debut writers alike.

 What I Am Not Looking For:

 1/ People with no experience. Get out there. Start with your local school or library and build up your experience. See below for some ideas.

 2/ Writers of books I have not read or heard of (if you’re a new writer, please ask your publisher to send me your book). If you’ve written an amazing book, you have a great chance of being invited to a festival on that basis alone.

 3/ People who think a book event means standing and reading your book for 40 mins and then taking some questions. Unless you are J K Rowling or Jacqueline Wilson, this will not work.

 I’m a Self-Published Writer, Can I Apply to Appear at a Festival?

 Many festivals are curated festivals. This means the curators select the artists. Yes, you can apply to appear, if you think you can offer something original and exceptional. Your book must be professionally produced, an excellent read and widely available - children deserve the best literature we can give them. But please note that very few artists who apply directly are selected; most artists are invited. This goes for all writers, not just self-published writers.

What I’d Love to See More Of:

1/ Non-fiction events – science, natural history, history. If your book is fiction, you can still offer a festival a non-fiction event. I put together an event called ‘Talk Like a Dolphin, Sing Like a Whale’ for festivals/schools – based on whale and dolphin communication. I deliver Blazing a Trail events based around remarkable Irish women.

 I’d love to see some interesting science or nature book events offered to me, or workshops around diversity or equality.

 2/ Innovative workshops – offer me something different and put time and passion into developing your idea. Again, you need experience. Offer to present your workshop at a local school. Ask the students and teachers for feedback.

 For eg in the past I have created a Book of Kells workshop for Hay Festival in Kells, with real vellum and swan quills; a Jane Austen workshop for mothers and daughters. Be inventive! The more prep work you put in, the better a workshop or event will be.

 3/ Innovative pairings – dancers, musicians, artists, puppeteers, other writers. For eg  I teamed up with Judi Curtin and we talked about our friendship at lots of the major festivals. It was our ‘Friendship Tour’. Previously we have toured with Oisin McGann (The Ideas Shop and The Magical History Tour) and Sophia Bennett (Your Wildest Dreams Tour). Team up with someone interesting and put together a cracking event. It’s also a lot of fun!

 4/ Events for children with special needs. In previous years I put together a How to Catch a Star workshop with Deirdre Sullivan for children with autism.

 5/ Early years events and workshops  – age 0 to 5 for the whole family to attend and enjoy. There is a growing demand for quality, creative events for very young children and their associated grown up/s.

In fact FAMILY events in general, designed to entertain and inform the whole family, are also something I am very keen to see more of.

 6/ Events that are DESIGNED for online audiences – especially schools but also families. Innovative, fun, engaging online events, both live and pre-recorded.

 How to Apply to a Book Festival:

 Before you do – research the festival and make sure it actually programmes the kind of event you are thinking of offering. Start local.

 1/ It’s best to apply thorough your publisher if you can. Tell your publisher you are interested in appearing at (X) festival and ask them for their opinion. They will either a/ say yes, great idea or b/ suggest you might need a little more experience. If their answer is b – go off and get that experience and go back to them.

 2/ Be a festival supporter - it’s important to attend and support festivals if you’d like to appear at them. You also learn a lot by watching and listening to other artists doing events. Take a notebook along and jot down things that work and things that don’t work. You could even volunteer to help at a festival.

 3/ Make a demo video of yourself in action and upload it to You Tube. Nothing fancy – you can take it on your phone. Let programmers see you in action. Make sure your social media is up to date and reflects who you are as a writer – yes, we do check you out on Twitter or Instagram!

 4/ If you don’t have a publisher, you can apply yourself. Email the children’s curator/programmer c/o the festival email - outlining your book, the events you’ve done and what you can offer them: workshops, events etc.

 It is vital to have a professional photo to send festivals for their brochure. It must be high res, clear and should show something of your personality. Ask someone to come along to one of your events and take an in-action photo if possible.

 The blurb for your event and your biog should be short, well written and relevant. I rarely get sent interesting titles for events – be the one who sends me something unusual and clever!

 Tips for Events: If You Have No Experience – Go and Get Some

 Prepare an event and deliver it in creches, schools, libraries. Anywhere that will have you. Make your mistakes early and learn from them. This is the only time you should be offering free events.

Ask an experienced writer if you can shadow them. Or go to events at festivals and see how other writers do it. Learn from them and then come up with your own event.

Ask the teachers to give you an event ‘reference’ eg ‘Nishna Bandari was wonderful. She kept JI and SI highly entertained with her stories about Indian animals and they learned a lot in a fun and innovative way.’

Prepare a script for your event and practice it until it’s perfect. Most events are around 60 mins. Break this down: 20/30 minutes talking is perfect. Add 1 or 2 x 5 min readings within or after the talk (never more) + 15/20 mins for questions at the end. Use images – children are highly visual.

Your event is not a hard sell for your book. In fact some of the best talks I’ve ever heard are not about the artist’s book at all. Eoin Colfer is one of the best in the business (watch him in action on You Tube) and he rarely mentions his books.

Think about using props, music, dance, theatre, images (although powerpoint presentations can go wrong so always be prepared to deliver your event without it), whatever you are comfortable with.

Think about looking visually appealing to children (see Sarah McIntyre and Philip Reeve’s costumes).

 Growth Areas:

Online events

Events for babies and toddlers and under 7s

 Family events that the parents will enjoy as much as the children – eg Monster Doodles, innovative storytelling.

 Events that combine mindfulness with books; music with books; dance with books

 Events for children with autism

 Sports writing workshops for children; screen writing workshops for children; animation workshops for children – also the same for teens. Innovative workshops for children.

Brilliant school events that can be delivered online

 What Some of the Festivals and Programmers are Looking For:

 Writers’ Week, Listowel:

We would love any writers to contact us either through their publisher or directly themselves, but we would like a brief biog about themselves and their writing included.

The events that we are looking for are fun, interactive events, and creative writing workshops.

 Aoife Murray, Children’s Books Ireland

How to approach a festival: For me I don’t mind if it’s via agent/publisher or on your own bat as long as the contact is respectful, informative and useful to my purposes eg: I want to know what age you do events for, what type of events you prefer and how much you want to charge. I feel it’s essential to research the festival to see if you suit it, otherwise you are banging on a closed door and it’s important to remember that the programmer has a vision and if you don’t fit it, that’s unfortunately just how it is on this occasion.

 Events we’re looking for: Something more than the standard reading and signing, as this doesn’t generally work for younger audiences. In demand at the moment are events for 0-2 and 5-8.

Sample Pitch

A Sailor Went to Sea, Sea, Sea:  Family Rhyme and Art Fun with Sarah Webb and Steve McCarthy                   Age 5+ and the whole family    30 minutes

Join writer, Sarah Webb and illustrator, Steve McCarthy for this interactive event for the whole family. Revisit favourite childhood rhymes and songs such as She’ll Be Coming ‘round the Mountain (an American song with a very interesting Irish link), A Sailor Went to Sea, Sea, Sea and The Owl and the Pussycat, and discover new ones from Ireland and beyond. Join in the skipping (jump rope). Watch Steve draw owls, pussycats, boats and sailors, and draw along; and create your own colourful sailing ship. Sea-filled fun for everyone!

 Workshop Details:

This workshop is designed to give children a playful and engaging creative experience. Songs, rhymes and poems are part of every child’s literary heritage and we will share them with the audience in a novel, interactive way. Most importantly we aim to make the event dynamic, playful and inspiring for the audience.

 Step by Step Guide to the Workshop:

Sarah and Steve will welcome the children and associated adults as they arrive and give each of them a personalised name sticker. When all the participants have arrived Sarah will share some favourite rhymes and songs from A Sailor Went to Sea, Sea, Sea with the audience and Steve will draw along.

Steve will then show the audience how to a sea creature and the audience will draw along.

Sarah will then turn a skipping rope and encourage the children and adults to join in some Irish skipping games – including Cross the Crocodile River and Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear.

Finally they will help the children create their own sailing ship using collage materials – felt, coloured card, scraps of material, metallic paper, lollypop sticks and straws.

 Watch the experts in action:

Sarah McIntyre and Philip Reeve

Katherine Rundell

Eoin Colfer

Robin Stevens

How Books (and Three Book Angels) Changed My Life!

I wrote this for Children’s Books Ireland recently to promote their Books Make Things Better campaign. I truly believe books do make things better. They changed my life!

My mother has always been a squirrel, hoarding my childhood bits and bobs, from picture books to baby clothes,  squiggly ‘paintings’ I did as a toddler, and my earliest attempts at writing.

Recently she handed me a large brown padded envelope full of memories. Ephemera, long forgotten notebooks, greetings cards, drawings, school reports, postcards  - things  I never dreamed I’d ever see again and one item threw me back in time so strongly I was almost floored.

It was the letter I’d written my parents at age twenty-four when I first found out I was pregnant, a letter so full of emotion I’m welling up now even thinking about it. I was too afraid to talk to them in person, so I took to pen and paper to tell them the news. The news that burned inside me and threatened to ignite me.

But as anyone who loves children’s books (The Phoenix and the Carpet) or Greek mythology will know, out of the fire rises the phoenix. And it was because of my baby son and the bravery and hope and at times audacity it took to raise him a young single mum that I became a published writer. And because of three book angels.

I’ll explain. Since the age of around ten I’d written stories and poems, and as a teenager I’d kept daily diaries. I’d published pieces in the school magazine but by the time I’d left school and entered college (History of Art and English at Trinity College Dublin) I became less confident about my writing.

I’d sent what I thought was a chatty, newsy letter to a friend in America who I respected deeply and she’d replied ‘Is this a joke? You sound about eleven. What’s with all the weird kiddo stuff?’ I have never, ever forgotten it.  Now when I talk to young writers and to adults about their work I always remember that words matter, that kindness matters, and that everyone’s writing voice should be respected.

So, back to getting published. At twenty-five I found myself the single but very proud mother of a new born baby, Sam. I was running the children’s department in Waterstones at the time and to cut a long story short, I needed money to buy a car to get Sam to and from his minders. I was barely coping on the bookselling wage so I needed a second job I could do in the evenings and weekends, while Sam slept to be able to afford a car. Out of desperation, I rang Southside News and asked if I could write for them. The kind editor, Ken Finlay (the first book angel in this story) said yes. It gave me the confidence to try writing a children’s book, which taken on after many other rejections by the second book angel in this story, Reena Dardis of The Children’s Press. The third book angel was the remarkable Robert Dunbar who introduced me to Children’s Books Ireland and the wider world of the Irish children’s book community, where I have made life-long friends.

Over twenty years later I have published close to forty children’s books, from rhyme and poetry collections for young children such as The One with the Waggly Tail, illustrated by Steve McCarthy, which is out this October, to animal fact books like Animal Crackers (with Alan Nolan), teen novels (the Ask Amy Green series), middle grade books like The Songbird Cafe series. I’m currently writing a novel for children set in Ireland in the 1900s. It’s been quite the journey.

I am very lucky to have an agent (Philippa Milnes- Smith of The Soho Agency in London) and publishers who are happy for me to write up and down the age groups and to tackle any theme or subject that interests me. For me, a book (for any age) starts with a thought or an idea, followed closely by knowing I have something I want to say to children about that subject. I’ve found if I’m passionate about a subject, the book will work.

I let my books make their own way in the world and I don’t put pressure on them to pay the bills. That way I can write the books that are in my heart, the ones that mean the most to me, not the ones that might pay the most. As well as writing I programme books festivals, work with MoLI (Museum of Literature Ireland) on their Bright Sparks family programme, teach creative writing to both children and adults, and visit schools and libraries, talking about writing and my books and hosting creative writing workshops. Monday and Tuesday are my writing days, Wednesday to Saturday are for other work.

Each book has its own genesis. I wrote Blazing a Trail: Irish Women who Changed the World (illustrated by Lauren O’Neill) to tell children about President Mary Robinson and all the other remarkable Irish women whose shoulders we stand on. It came out in 1918, the year we celebrated the centenary of votes for women.

My latest book, The One with the Waggly Tail, illustrated by Steve McCarthy, is a collection of rhymes, poems and songs, both Irish and international. My first collection of such rhymes, Sally Go Round the Stars (with Claire Ranson and Steve McCarthy) was put together to make sure Irish children had access to rhymes and poems from Ireland at a young age.

Rhymes and songs are part of every family’s history. They help create the story of who we are and where we come from. Sharing them with young children introduces babies and toddlers to a rich tapestry of sounds, words and rhythms.

And to me that’s what children’s books are all about: exploring and sharing the story of who we are and where we came from. My books are part of me and I am part of them. It’s there laid bare for all to see – what I care about most is in my books: family, friends, remarkable Irish women, whales, dogs, history, dreams, creativity, bravery, courage. Read them and you read me.

Sarah Webb’s latest books are Animal Crackers with Alan Nolan and The One with the Waggly Tail, illustrated by Steve McCarthy, both published by The O’Brien Press.

Writing a Children’s Book? Some Fuel for Thought… by Eve McDonnell

To celebrate the publication of her new book, Elsetime, Eve McDonnell has written this guest blog post all about writing for children and her road to publication - thanks, Eve!

You’re here, so I’m guessing you’re a children’s writer, and you don’t need me to tell you the road to publication is long – filled with ups and downs, scary junctions (far too many!) and, unfortunately, the odd roadkill manuscript! But, if you are anything like me, once in that driver’s seat of ambition, we are there to stay, stubborn as mules. If we are going to make it from A to Z, one thing is pretty obvious: we need to stop for fuel in order to get to the final destination – the seemingly unmapped town called Publication.

Puddling about in a career as an artist, my writing journey began when a fortune-teller shrieked at me to Write! Write! Write! I went home, opened up a blank page rather than a canvas, and began my first children’s book. Like a brand-new car, the words flowed so smoothly! The ideas felt shiny! And within minutes I experienced one of those eureka-OMG moments – this is what I should be doing with my life!

I went full-throttle, and with every word I wrote, the dream of one day seeing it printed grew bigger. But, here’s the thing: books take time. SO much time! As an artist, I was used to putting the effort in and all I needed to do to effectively have it ‘published’, was nail it to a wall. Job done. If it was good, it brought smiles – my ultimate goal. However, in that time between the first brush stroke and hanging it on a nail, I had something precious – bubbling up inside me was a fuel that spurred me on, even through the trickiest bits. A fuel called hope.

I was always one for enjoying the buzz of the run-up to Christmas rather than the day itself so whether a painting was successful or not didn’t matter. As long as I had hope, I kept going. I quickly realised this was the best fuel for my writing journey too, and where I found it was at a serendipitous meeting with Vanessa Fox O’Loughlin of Writing.ie.

The Writing.ie and ILFDublin’s Date with an Agent competition was soon closing, and she encouraged me to go for it. Not knowing if my work was truly awful or held potential made pressing the send button difficult, but press it, I did. Immediately I filled up with that wonderful fuzzy feeling of hope! Regardless of the outcome, I had all I needed to change gear and motor on. A couple of agent dates and manuscripts later, I took a sharp turn and began to write a children’s book called Elsetime.

As my courage grew, I sent what I thought were finished drafts (lol!) to more competitions and, later, agents. Even rejections were worth the anticipation and hope they had delivered! Then, came some good news including longlisting in the Bath Children’s Novel Award and winning the Wells Festival of Literature Book for Children competition. These earned me not only joy but something else too – a precious shortcut for my journey. With each win or long-listing, Elsetime hopped up a few places on agents’ slush-piles until it stood proudly near the top where it might, at least, be considered. My tank of hope was ready to burst!

Flash forward a couple of years and I write this just as my phone beeps with photos of Elsetime appearing in bookshops. I can’t put into words the feeling that brings, suffice it to say every bump on that long road was more than worth it.

Maybe DO consider that writing competition that grabbed your eye. Unlike Premium Unleaded, hope is cheap – and sometimes free – so put your foot to the pedal and get your work out there.

Enjoy the ride!

Eve x

Characters from Head to Toe by Natasha Mac a’Bháird

Natasha Mac a’Bháird is a freelance writer and editor. Her latest novel, Laura’s Spooky Show, the third book in the Star Club series, is out in September 2019.

Characters – From Head to Page

When I signed off on my first novel, Missing Ellen, the sense of achievement at finally finishing it was tinged with sadness that I would no longer have those characters living inside my head. After all the time spent daydreaming, writing, rewriting and editing, they were so real to me I found it hard to let them go.

With my first Star Club book, Hannah in the Spotlight, came a whole new cast of characters, and the best thing about writing a series is not having to leave those characters behind. I get the chance to really develop them over time, seeing how they react to new situations and how the relationships between them change. I’ve chosen to write each book in the series from the point of view of a different member of Star Club, and that’s been an interesting challenge as well – making sure each voice is unique, and looking at a character from the inside out in one book and then as others see her in the next.

Laura is, in many ways, the character I identify with most. She’s a bookworm who spends as much time living in imaginary worlds – her own and other people’s – as she does in the real one. She is seized with ideas for stories and has days where she can hardly write fast enough to keep up with her thoughts – and days when they remain stubbornly elusive, completely refusing to be put down on paper.  So far, we have quite a lot in common. But Laura is a lot tougher than me. She knows her own mind, is grimly determined in the pursuit of what she wants, and is totally unconcerned about what people think of her. Maybe when I grow up, I can be a bit more like her.

And isn’t that the best thing about writing – the chance to live many lives instead of one? To be in someone else’s head, thinking about how they would feel, how they would react – and, sometimes, to do things you wish you were brave enough to do yourself.

What I love about writing too is when characters start to take on a life of their own. When I thought up the character of Ruby, I was mainly thinking of her as someone who was obsessed with ballet, fully focused on her training and supremely confident about making her dreams come true. But other aspects of her character took me by surprise. She became the anxious one of the group, the one who worries about getting into trouble, who panics at being expected to take on too much. I love that I never planned that side of her, she just evolved that way as the story went on.

Having come through some stressful situations in the first two books, the girls’ friendship remained firmly intact – but that all comes under threat in book three. I must admit I felt terribly cruel at some of the situations I was inflicting on them, especially Laura, who begins to feel that the whole world is against her.

Laura’s Spooky Show is my tenth book. Getting that first copy into my hands is every bit as exciting as the first one – and letting it go on its way out into the world is every bit as terrifying. I hope readers will identify with these characters and enjoy their adventures, but it’s out of my hands now. It’s time to pick up my pen again and see what happens next.

WRITING FOR CHILDREN WEEKEND WITH GRAINNE CLEAR and SARAH WEBB - 31ST AUG/1ST SEPT

I’ll be running a weekend course for anyone interested in writing for children very soon with Grainne Clear, who is a Senior Editor at Walker Books, London.

There are only 15 places so if you are interested email or text me quick!

Grainne Clear and Sarah Webb (with Lucky)

Writing for Children Weekend with Grainne Clear (Editor) and Sarah Webb (Writer)

Focus on Fiction

Sat 31st August and Sun 1st September 

 Everything you need to know about writing for children and getting published!

 Grainne Clear is a Senior Editor with Walker Books and Sarah Webb is an award-winning children's writer

 (look out for our picturebook day in early 2020)

During the weekend they will cover:

Age groups and genres

Creating compelling characters

Plotting and the story arc

Creating authentic dialogue

Rewriting and editing 

The world of agents, editors and children's publishing 

and much more! 

 The weekend will also feature a guest author of MG or YA fiction to speak about the day-to-day of being an Irish writer and share their writing tips

 Before the course begins, Grainne or Sarah will critique your work (or book idea if you are just starting out) so you can concentrate on the areas that need attention over the two days

Max 15 people to guarantee plenty of individual attention 

 Cost - including 1 page manuscript critique and notes, lunch on Saturday and coffee/tea both days: e250 

 Venue: Royal St George Yacht Club, Dun Laoghaire (e5 parking per day to the right of the club on the pier, e6 per day in dlr Lexicon Library car park), 2 mins walk from 46A bus stop and Dun Laoghaire DART station 

Times: Sat 10am to 5pm (coffee/tea and light lunch provided)

Sun 11am to 4pm (coffee/tea provided) 

Booking - sarahsamwebb@gmail.com or text 0866086110

Children's Books Ireland Book of the Year Awards 2019

The CBI Book of the Year Awards shortlist has just been unveiled. The winners will be announced at a ceremony to be held on 22nd May at Dublin’s Smock Alley Theatre as part of International Literature Festival Dublin. Tickets will be available for the event if you’d like attend. Stay tuned to http://ilfdublin.com/ for details.

Well done to all the shortlisted writers and illustrators!

Mucking About by John Chambers

 The Weight of a Thousand Feathers by Brian Conaghan

 Beag Bídeach scríofa ag Sadhbh Devlin, maisithe ag Róisín Hahessy

 The Great Irish Weather Book written by Joanna Donnelly, illustrated by Fuchsia MacAree

 Between Tick and Tock written by Louise Greig, illustrated by Ashling Lindsay

 Tin by Pádraig Kenny

 Tuesdays are Just as Bad by Cethan Leahy

 The Pooka Party by Shona Shirley Macdonald

 Dr Hibernica Finch’s Compelling Compendium of Irish Animals written by Rob Maguire,

illustrated by Aga Grandowicz

 Flying Tips for Flightless Birds by Kelly McCaughrain

Life as a Professional Children's Writer - the Low Down

This evening I am the guest on #MGiechat on Twitter, run by the wonderful E.R. Murray. To prepare I’ve been thinking about the questions she has set and I have posted some answers below in case they are useful to other writers.

Q1: What’s your definition of a professional writer?

Interesting question. A professional children’s writer is someone who makes their living from writing or activities linked to their writing. Most professional writers do not earn their living solely from advances and royalties. And royalties and advances go up and down, so it’s a good idea to have a second (or third!) income stream.

I’m not sure relying on your creativity to earn you a crust is the best way to encourage and nurture it either. Elizabeth Gilbert is very good on this in her book Big Magic. She explains putting demands on your writing can scare it away.

Personally I cherish my creative life more and more as I get older. I spend 2 to 3 days a week writing, and 3 to 4 days doing other work. Yes, that adds up to 7 days sometimes!

As well as writing I also:

Programme book festivals (ILFD, Dubray StoryFest – 29th Sept in Airfield, Dundrum – do go!).

Write children’s book reviews for the Irish Independent

Mentor Children’s Writers for the Irish Writers Centre and teach adults for them also (writing for children and teenagers)

Give training days for librarians and charity workers who are interested in children and creativity (I recently did one for Trocaire)

Work as a consultant for Dubray Books – at the moment I am working on a new Dubray recommended reading guide for 2019 (and StoryFest)

Run writing clubs and a drawing club for children in Dún Laoghaire

Do some voluntary work – I’m currently helping CBI and Poetry Ireland with a project

Visit schools and libraries and do workshops and events at book festivals (and other creative festivals)

The common thread to all of this – CHILDREN’S BOOKS!

Roughly 1/3 of my income comes from book advances and royalties, 1/3 from teaching, schools visits and other events (I’ll come back to this later as it’s important), 1/3 from programming and other work.

Q2: People believe the holy grail is to be getting paid for just writing - but how realistic is that? How does a professional writer really make a living?

See above! For about 8 years I wrote full time, my income came from advances and royalties. But the books I want to write and work on now are not series books and are not as commercial as my previous books.

My latest two - Blazing a Trail which is out in October and A Sailor Went to Sea, Sea, Sea (with Lauren O’Neill and Steve McCarthy) - are books that are mainly for an Irish audience. I have adored working on them both with the team at O'Brien press. But it does mean I need to work on other projects to pay the bills. But that is my choice.  

And the next two are similar – passion projects. I’m lucky to have that choice.

Most of my children’s writer friends are similar – they have some years where they are writing full time, other years when they are doing other work too. That is normal. In my case it suits me, it keeps me engaged and interested. I’m not sure I’d be able to go back to just writing. I’m having too much fun!

Q3: How much should a writer charge for their time? And how do writers go about having this conversation?

Writers should always charge for their time when it comes to events. If you have a new book out your publisher may ask you do to some promotional events, that is of course fine and I always support my publishers in this way. But schools, libraries, festivals – you must charge for your time.

There is an excellent piece on the Words Ireland website about fees for events which includes this from Children’s Books Ireland:

‘For our annual conference, we cover travel, accommodation and meals for speakers and offer a fee of €250 for someone speaking alone, €200 each for a duo, €150 each for a panel unless the author/illustrator in question is including the event in a promotional tour.* For our education work, we pay a €200 fee plus travel and accommodation for a schools workshop, which runs usually for up to 2.5 hours.’

* It is standard practice that writers do promotional events to publicise a book and don’t receive a fee, though they are earning their usual royalty on sales generated by such events. This should occur in the weeks or months ahead of, and just after, publication of that book.

The full piece is here:

http://wordsireland.ie/words-ireland-pay-scale-information-for-writers/

When a school or library approaches you to do an event – quote these recommended fees. Then prepare your event meticulously. Make sure you give your all at the event. Arrive punctually and be professional at all times. I often give the school a copy of one of my books for the school library.

I have also pasted a link below to a blog about approaching or pitching to festivals. The ones I programme are curator led, so I don’t generally take many proposals (1 out of 25 events might come from a proposal and it’s usually a workshop), but some other festivals do.

More on this here: How to Pitch to Book Festivals - Practical Tips for Children's Writers

https://www.sarahwebb.info/blog/2018/3/20/how-to-pitch-to-book-festivals-practical-tips-for-childrens-writers

And here is a piece from The Bookseller about why writers should not do free school visits:

Authors Aloud, an organisation that helps schools to find authors to visit them, said writers should only do “two or three” free events at the start of their career as a learning exercise and ask for feedback from the school in return.

(Clara) Vulliamy said all authors should charge a similar rate because “one of the worst things you can do is offer yourself at a lower price. That muddies the water and makes it harder for the rest of us”.

https://www.thebookseller.com/news/free-school-visits-one-worst-things-author-can-do-306293

Q4: People need practice, but working for free undermines other writers. What advice do you have for writers starting out with events?

Tips for Events:

If You Have No Experience – Go and Get Some.

Prepare an event and deliver it on a trial basis in creches, schools, libraries, retirement homes. Anywhere that will have you. Make your mistakes early and learn from them. Ask for feedback.

Ask an experienced writer if you can shadow them. Or go to events at festivals and see how other writers do it. Learn from them and then come up with your own event.

Ask the teachers to give you an event ‘reference’ eg ‘Mandy Bloggs was wonderful. She kept JI and SI highly entertained with her stories about African animals and they learned a lot in a fun and innovative way.’

Prepare a script for your event and practice it until it’s perfect. Most events are 60 mins. Break this down: 20/30 minutes talking is perfect. Add  1 or 2 x 5 min readings within or after the talk (never more) + 20 mins for questions at the end.

Your event is not a hard sell for your book. In fact some of the best talks I’ve ever heard are not about the artist’s book at all. Eoin Colfer is one of the best in the business (watch him in action on You Tube) and he rarely mentions his books.

Think about using props, music, dance, theatre, images (although powerpoint presentations can go wrong so always be prepared to deliver your event without it).

Think about using costumes or at the very least looking visually appealing to children (see Sarah McIntyre and Philip Reeve’s costumes).

Q5: You wanted to talk about the reality of book advances @sarahwebbishere – fire away!

At one of the #ProperBook events for writers recently Grainne Clear from Little Island was open and honest about advances:

She explained that advances are paid to a writer based on how many books the publisher thinks they can sell and the price of the book.

Little Island pay a standard advance to all writers, both new and established of e1k this was something I hadn’t realised and useful to know. Authors usually get 7.5% royalty of the recommended retail price of the book. The average Irish print run is 2.5k copies Grainne said.

For more on this see this piece:

https://www.sarahwebb.info/blog/when-are-you-going-to-write-a-proper-book-the-lowdown

And finally an article from the Irish Times about Writers’ Pay in Ireland by Martin Doyle and Freya McClements which includes quotes from Donal Ryan and Liz Nugent.

“Maybe now people will stop asking me why I’m driving a 13 year old car,” says Liz Nugent.

The article says: ‘The most recent survey of Irish authors’ incomes – published by the Irish Copyright Licencing Agency in 2010 – found that in 2008-09 over half the writers consulted (58.7 per cent) earned less than €5,000 from writing-related income. Indeed, the commonest response – given by more than a quarter, or 27.9 per cent of respondents – was that they earned less than €500 a year.’

https://www.irishtimes.com/culture/books/the-500-a-year-career-do-irish-writers-get-paid-enough-1.2965310

Now go write! Write the book of your heart and enjoy the writing journey!

Yours in writing,

Sarah XXX

The Best Children's Book Agents 2018 - Recommended by their Writers

Every year I update this post - one of the most popular posts on my blog. I hope it's helpful. If you are a published writer and would like to recommend your agent, please contact me. I'd be delighted to add your agent to the list. 

All the agents on this list are recommended by people in the know - their writers and illustrators. Thank you to all the writers and illustrators who responded to my call out for recommendations. 

WHY DO YOU NEED AN AGENT?

In Ireland we are lucky to have the O’Brien Press whose editors are happy to read unsolicited manuscripts. You can send your book directly to one of their editors.

Little Island are also happy to read unsolicited manuscripts – they have excellent submission guidelines.

Gill Books has recently started publishing children’s fiction, Mercier and Poolbeg also publish children’s books and accept unsolicited manuscripts.

But most UK publishers do not accept unsolicited manuscripts so you will need to submit your work through an agent.

WHAT DOES AN AGENT DO EXACTLY?

1/ An agent can advise you on your manuscript and on how to make it more attractive to a publisher. Some of them will act as unofficial editors to their clients or at the very least can suggest changes or improvements. They are also excellent at coming up with zippy book titles as I’ve discovered.

2/ An agent can find the right editor or publisher for your work – like a book matchmaker. And they can sell your UK, US, digital and foreign rights. They can also look after any film or television rights.

3/ Agents deal with the difficult and technical area of contracts. This is particularly important at the moment as digital rights can be tricky.

4/ Financial back up – they can chase up your royalties and talk to your publishers about outstanding monies owed to you.

These days having potential isn’t enough,  your manuscript must be as perfect as you can make it before it goes anywhere near a publisher. A good agent can play a vital role in this process.

WHO REPRESENTS SOME OF THE BEST CHILDREN'S WRITERS?

Remember to check each agent’s website for submission guidelines before you send anything out. Or ring the agency for details – I know it’s daunting but they are always happy to advise you on how (or if) to submit. Be warned – you may get the agent herself/himself on the phone. Be prepared.

RECOMMENDED CHILDREN’S AGENTS: IRISH WRITERS

Eoin Colfer is represented by Sophie Hicks. Sophie is a very experienced agent and her writers rate her highly. She also represents Oisín McGann. www.sophiehicksagency.com

Lucy Coats adds ‘Sophie Hicks of SHA is, of course, the best agent in the world! Sympathetic and positive in adversity, great sense of humour and fights her authors’ corner like a tigress on speed. Highly recommended.’

Derek Landy is represented by Michelle Kass, who also represents Patrick Ness. www.michellekass.co.uk

Darren Shan is represented by Christopher Little   For general enquiries email: www.christopherlittle.net

Sarah Webb and Chris Judge are represented by the wonderful Philippa Milnes Smith at LAW

Steve McCarthy says: ‘I'll second that for Philippa! I can attest to her kindness, wise-ness and hilarity.’

Contact: All submissions should be sent, in hard copy, by post to: LAW, 14 Vernon Street, London, W14 0RJ www.lawagency.co.uk

Marita Conlon McKenna is represented by Caroline Sheldon www.carolinesheldon.co.uk

Elizabeth Rose Murray recommends her agent, Sallyanne Sweeney of Mulcahy Associates (London). She says she’s ‘supportive, thorough, creative, knowledgeable & really champions her authors. And she really loves children’s/YA literature too – always a bonus!’

Let's hear from some other Irish writers:

Dave Rudden: 'I'm with Clare Wallace at Darley Anderson - can't recommend her enough!'

Clare also represents Olivia Hope.

Shirley McMillan: 'My agent is Jenny Savill at Andrew Nurnberg Associates. She is wonderful.'

Jenny also represents Nigel Quinlan.

Sinéad O'Hart is represented by Polly Nolan who is also recommended by Louis Stowell.

Celine Kiernan says: 'I changed agencies late 2015. I am with Sallyanne Sweeney now, of Mulcahy Literary Agency. Have worked with her on two books now and find her wonderful.'

Sheena Wilkinson: ‘Faith O'Grady. Not a children's specialist -- handy as I am writing adult now, but very supportive and approachable. Based in Dublin.’

Sheena Dempsey says:  ‘Felicity Trew is absolutely brilliant, a determined bulldog but with a lovely manner and thorough to the last where contracts are concerned. Incredibly supportive where editorial and art direction are concerned. Always pushes for better terms. Top marks.’

Marianne Gunn O'Connor represents Shane Hegarty and Cecelia Ahern. 

OTHER RECOMMENDED AGENTS - UK AND INTERNATIONAL WRITERS

Cathy Cassidy is represented by Darley Anderson and highly recommends him.

Eve Ainsworth:  'I'm with Stephanie Thwaites at Curtis Brown, she's fab.'

Russell Sanderson and Lu Hersey recommend their agent, Ben Illis.

Zana Fraillon recommends her agent, Claire Wilson.

Julia Churchill at A M Heath who says 'my speciality is checking if people need to go to loo before meetings.' I have met Julia and she is a funny and smart woman who knows her onions. Well worth sending your manuscript to. Nikki Sheehan says Julia 'would win against 100 horse sized ducks.' 

Jo Nadin says: ‘I love Julia Churchill without reservation. She’s quietly kickass, clever, kind, and, best of all, listens.’

Mark Burgess: 'Im represented by excellent & wonderful Nancy Miles of Miles Stott Children's Literary Agency. She also represents Gill Lewis & Frances Hardinge.'

Sarah McIntyre: ‘ I'm represented by Jodie Hodges at United Agents, she's brilliant! I couldn't do without her, she keeps my life in order.’

Catherine MacPhail says: ‘Caroline Sheldon. Always keeps in touch. Great agent.’

Cathy Brett says ‘And Felicity Trew, Caroline's co-agent. A little terrier!’

Mary Hoffman: ‘ It was Pat White and, since her retirement, is now Claire Wilson, both of Rogers, Coleridge and White.’

Eve White, Eve White Literary Agency

Catherine Clarke at Felicity Bryan

Robert Kirby at United Agents

Jodie Hodges at United Agents (recommended by William Bee); Catherine Mary Summerhayes, Jo Unwin and Clare Conville at United Agents

Hilary Delamere at The Agency

Lindsey Fraser at Fraser Ross

Gemma Cooper at The Bent Agency

Penny Holroyde at Holroyde Cartey

Elizabeth Roy – www.elizabethroy.co.uk

Laura Cecil – www.lauracecil.co.uk

Madeleine Milburn – www.madeleinemilburn.co.uk

Sam Copeland and Claire Wilson at Rogers Coleridge and White – www.rcwlitagency.com

Good luck with finding a great agent!

How to Pitch to Book Festivals - Practical Tips for Children's Writers

These notes were prepared for Mindshift at Irish Writers Centre March 2018

 Notes by Sarah Webb, Family and Schools’ Curator, ILFD, Literary Advisor to Listowel Writers’ Week

One of my festival events with Alan Nolan for age 7+ 

Schedule of Programming

Many book festivals start programming six months to a year in advance. Many key names would be in place 6 to 10 months in advance for the children’s programme: ie Francesca Simon, Judith Kerr (or sometimes more).

If you are thinking about approaching a festival (and more on how to do this in a moment), make sure you don’t leave it too late. I would suggest at least 4 months before the festival is on.

What I Am Looking For:

1/ International names who will attract a large audience and fill a theatre (300+ seats) eg Francesca Simon, Eoin Colfer, Julia Donaldson, Michael Rosen.

2/ Strong, award-winning names for individual events and panels – esp writers who have written outstanding books (anything from 120 seats to 300+ seats depending on the artist) eg David Almond, Louise O’Neill, Patrick Ness, Katherine Rundell. Most festivals like to vary the writers they invite every year (although in the children’s world, the audience changes every 2 or 3 years – as they grow up!)

3/ Writers who are excellent at performing for school audiences and who have a strong body of work behind them. Experience is key for school events in a theatre (or in any venue). Ex-actors are particularly good, people who can also draw are useful. Eg Guy Bass, Steve Cole, Niamh Sharkey, Marita Conlon McKenna, Oisin McGann, Judi Curtin, Alan Nolan, Nicola Pierce.

4/ Exceptional storytellers eg Dave Rudden and Grainne Clear.

5/ Exceptional workshop leaders eg Dave Lordan, Celine Kiernan, Niamh Sharkey, Claire Hennessy, Sarah Crossan. The best ones engage 100% with the young writers/illustrators and bring something unique to their workshops.

6/ Exceptional new/newish writers for panel events featuring new voices – eg Catherine Doyle (for her MG book, coming in July) would be on my wish list for autumn 2018, Bethan Woollvin, John Kane – new picturebook makers. 

I am lucky to be sent early proofs which I read eagerly. If you have written a brilliant, original and exciting book you have a good chance of being invited to a book festival. FOR ME IT ALL STARTS WITH THE BOOK.

7/ Exceptional picture book makers to give talks/workshops to children and also masterclasses to adults eg Yasmeen Ismail, Oliver Jeffers, Chris Judge, Chris Haughton, Niamh Sharkey.

8/ Unusual and original book related events. Esp non-fiction events in fact – history, natural history, science, maths. Come up with a unique and inspiring event and practice, practice, practice.

9/ Artists who are willing to work hard and go the extra mile. Artists who will muck in. Artists who offer to fill in for other artists when there’s a last minute illness or delay. Artists who are fun to work with and above all, professional. I’ll never forget Sarah McIntyre and Philip Reeve mucking in at one of the festivals I programmed when one of speaker’s children was rushed to hospital. They did his events for him.

10/ Strong local talent – writers, poets, storytellers, illustrators, picture book makers and more. Experienced and debut writers alike.

What I Am Not Looking For:

1/ People with no experience. Get out there. Start with your local school or library and build up your experience. See below for some ideas.

2/ Writers of books I have not read or heard of (if you’re a new writer, ask your publisher to send me your book). If you’ve written an amazing book, you have a great chance of being invited to a festival on that basis alone.

3/ People who think a book event means standing and reading your book for 40 mins and then taking some questions. Unless you are Judy Blume or Jacqueline Wilson, this will not work. Not that Judy or Jackie would ever dream of doing this!

I’m a Self-Published Writer, Can I Apply to Appear at a Festival?

Most festivals are curated festivals. This means the curators select the artists. Yes, you can apply to appear, if you think you can offer something original and exceptional (and your book is professionally produced and an excellent read – children deserve the best literature we can give them). But please note that very few artists who apply directly are selected; most artists are invited. This goes for all writers, not just self-published writers.

What I’d Love to See More Of:

1/ Non-fiction events – science, natural history, history. If your book is fiction, you can still offer a festival a non-fiction event. I have put together an event called ‘Talk Like a Dolphin, Sing Like a Whale’ for festivals/schools – based on whale and dolphin communication. I have some Blazing a Trail events coming in the autumn based around remarkable Irish women.

I’d love to see some interesting suffragette events offered to me, workshops around diversity or equality. Think outside the box.  

2/ Innovative workshops – offer me something different and put time and passion into developing your idea. Again, you need experience. Offer to present your workshop at a local school. Ask the students and teachers for feedback.

For eg I have created a Book of Kells workshop for Hay Festival in Kells, with real vellum and swan quills; a Jane Austen workshop for mothers and daughters and I do a rhyme, song and craft event around A Sailor Went to Sea, Sea, Sea. Be inventive! The more prep work you put in, the better a workshop or event will be.

3/ Innovative pairings – dancers, musicians, artists, puppeteers, other writers. For eg  in 2016 I teamed up with Judi Curtin and we talked about our friendship at lots of the major festivals. It was our ‘Friendship Tour’. Previously we have toured with Oisin McGann (The Ideas Shop) and Sophia Bennett (Your Wildest Dreams Tour). Team up with someone interesting and put together a cracking event. It’s also a lot of fun!

4/ Events for children with special needs. In previous years I put together a How to Catch a Star workshop with Deirdre Sullivan for children on the autistic spectrum.

5/ Early years events and workshops – age 0 to 5. There is a growing demand for quality, creative events for very young children and their associated grown up/s.

How to Apply to a Book Festival:

Before you do – research the festival and make sure it actually programmes the kind of event you are thinking of offering. Start local.

1/ It’s best to apply thorough your publisher. Tell your publisher you are interested in appearing at (X) festival and ask them for their opinion. They will either a/ say yes, great idea or b/ suggest you might need a little more experience. If their answer is b – go off and get that experience and go back to them.

2/ Be a festival supporter - it’s important to attend and support festivals if you’d like to appear at them. You also learn a lot by watching and listening to other artists doing events. Take a notebook along and jot down things that work and things that don’t work.

3/ Make a demo video of yourself in action and upload it to You Tube. Nothing fancy – you can take it on your phone. Let programmers see you in action.

4/ If you don’t have a publisher, you can apply yourself. Email the children’s curator/programmer - outlining your book, the events you’ve done and what you can offer them: workshops, events etc.

It is vital to have a professional photo to send festivals for their brochure. It must be high res, clear and should show something of your personality. No frowns, please. Ask someone to come along to one of your events and take an in-action photo if possible.

The blurb for your event and your biog should be short, well written and relevant. I rarely get sent interesting titles for events – be the one who sends me something unusual and clever!

If the programmer says no, do not hound them under any circumstances. That is not going to make them change their mind.

Tips for Events:

If You Have No Experience – Go and Get Some.

Prepare an event and deliver it (yes, free) in creches, schools, libraries, retirement homes. Anywhere that will have you. Make your mistakes early and learn from them.

Ask an experienced writer if you can shadow them. Or go to events at festivals and see how other writers do it. Learn from them and then come up with your own event.

Ask the teachers to give you an event ‘reference’ eg ‘Mandy Bloggs was wonderful. She kept JI and SI highly entertained with her stories about African animals and they learned a lot in a fun and innovative way.’

Prepare a script for your event and practice it until it’s perfect. Most events are 60 mins. Break this down: 20/30 minutes talking is perfect. Add  1 or 2 x 5 min readings within or after the talk (never more) + 20 mins for questions at the end.

Your event is not a hard sell for your book. In fact some of the best talks I’ve ever heard are not about the artist’s book at all. Eoin Colfer is one of the best in the business (watch him in action on You Tube) and he rarely mentions his books.

Think about using props, music, dance, theatre, images (although powerpoint presentations can go wrong so always be prepared to deliver your event without it).

Think about using costumes or at the very least looking visually appealing to children (see Sarah McIntyre and Philip Reeve’s costumes).

Growth Areas:

Events for the under 7s

Family events that the parents will enjoy as much as the children – eg Monster Doodles, innovative storytelling, book-related puppet shows

Events that combine yoga/fitness with books; music with books; dance with books

Events for children on the autistic spectrum

Drama workshops for children; screen writing workshops for children; animation workshops for children – also the same for teens.

What the Festivals Are Looking For:

Writers’ Week, Listowel:

We would love any writers to contact us either through their publisher or directly themselves, but we would like a brief biog about themselves and their writing included.

The events that we are looking for are fun, interactive events, and creative writing workshops.

Aoife Murray, Children’s Books Ireland

How to approach a festival: For me I don’t mind if it’s via agent/publisher or on your own bat as long as the contact is respectful, informative and useful to my purposes eg: I want to know what age you do events for, what type of events you prefer and how much you want to charge. I feel it’s essential to research the festival to see if you suit it, otherwise you are banging on a closed door and it’s important to remember that the programmer has a vision and if you don’t fit it, that’s unfortunately just how it is on this occasion.

Events we’re looking for: Something more than the standard reading and signing, as this doesn’t generally work for younger audiences. In demand at the moment are events for 0-2 and 5-8.

Sample Pitch

1/ A Sailor Went to Sea, Sea, Sea:  Family Rhyme and Art Fun with Sarah Webb and Steve McCarthy                   Age 5+ and the whole family    30 minutes

 Join writer, Sarah Webb and illustrator, Steve McCarthy for this interactive event for the whole family. Revisit favourite childhood rhymes and songs such as She’ll Be Coming ‘round the Mountain (an American song with a very interesting Irish link), A Sailor Went to Sea, Sea, Sea and The Owl and the Pussycat, and discover new ones from Ireland and beyond. Join in the skipping (jump rope). Watch Steve draw owls, pussycats, boats and sailors, and draw along; and create your own colourful sailing ship. Sea-filled fun for everyone!

Workshop Details:

This workshop is designed to give children a playful and engaging creative experience. Songs, rhymes and poems are part of every child’s literary heritage and we will share them with the audience in a novel, interactive way. Most importantly we aim to make the event dynamic, playful and inspiring for the audience.

Step by Step Guide to the Workshop:

Sarah and Steve will welcome the children and associated adults as they arrive and give each of them a personalised name sticker. When all the participants have arrived Sarah will share some favourite rhymes and songs from A Sailor Went to Sea, Sea, Sea with the audience and Steve will draw along.

Steve will then show the audience how to a sea creature and the audience will draw along.

Sarah will then turn a skipping rope and encourage the children and adults to join in some Irish skipping games – including Cross the Crocodile River and Teddy Bear, Teddy Bear.

Finally they will help the children create their own sailing ship using collage materials – felt, coloured card, scraps of material, metallic paper, lollypop sticks and straws.

Watch the experts in action:

Sarah McIntyre and Philip

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1jGKikDb4QU

Katherine Rundell

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_rwqp5uSIYQ

Michael Rosen

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wckNoTA5r-4

Eoin Colfer

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wrV1kguaHEs

Children's Books Ireland Book of the Year Awards 2018

The 2018 Children’s Books Ireland Award is given to books published in 2017. There were some outstanding titles last year for all ages, from Rabbit and Bear for young readers of five plus (Julian McGough and Jim Field), to Sarah Crossan’s searing YA novel in verse, Moonlight.

Every year I predict the titles that will be on the shortlist and the overall winner. This year I have a book in the mix, A Sailor Went to Sea, Sea, Sea, illustrated by the hugely talented Steve McCarthy. Obviously I’d love it to be shortlisted. I believe Steve’s illustrations are outstanding and if it is shortlisted we will both be over the moon. Let's wait and see!

The shortlist will be announced on the 12th March and the awards are on 23rd March (tbc).

So here goes – my predictions for the CBI Awards 2018:

Picturebooks

1/ The President’s Glasses by Peter Donnolly 

A wonderfully funny tale about what happens when the president of Ireland forgets his glasses. Striking illustrations in luscious colour.

2/ Here We Are by Oliver Jeffers

A heartfelt ode to the world for his new baby son. Glorious illustrations in a more painterly style. A treat for the eye.

Early Readers

3/ Rabbit and Bear: The Pest in the Nest by Julian Gough, illustrated by Jim Field

I am a huge fan of Rabbit and Bear – what brilliant characters. Funny and thoughtful, a super book for reading aloud. 

Age 9+

4/ Illegal by Eoin Colfer and Andrew Donkin, illustrated by Giovanni Rigano

Moving graphic novel about two refugee brothers who are making their way from North Africa to Europe by boat. Not to be missed.

5/ Hopscotch in the Sky by Lucinda Jacobs, illustrated by Lauren O’Neill

Moving and thought-provoking poems for children about subjects that fascinate children. A brilliant collection from one of our most important children’s poets. (Disclaimer – I worked with Lucinda at the early stages of this book.)

Age 12+

6/ Pavee and the Buffer Girl by Siobhan Down, illustrated by Emma Shoard

Graphic novel about a traveller girl. Siobhan write it before she died and her writing as always is lyrical and powerful.

7/ A Dangerous Crossing by Jane Mitchell                      POSSIBLE OVERALL WINNER

Excellent novel about a refugee boy from Kobani, Syria. Strong and powerful.

8/ Star by Star by Sheena Wilkinson

Suffragette tale by one of our most talented writers.

YA

9/ Moonrise by Sarah Crossan                  POSSIBLE OVERALL WINNER

Powerful novel in verse about death row that deserves to be read.

10/ The Space Between by Meg Grehan

Debut novel in verse about an Irish teenager with mental health problems. Brave and moving.

11/ Tangleweed and Brine by Deirdre Sullivan

Lyrical, sinuous writing make these feminist retellings of fairy tales leap off the page. Not to be missed.

Other outstanding books from 2017 that might make the shortlist

Like Other Girls by Claire Hennessy

Claire is an outstanding YA writer and this book about gender politics and identity pulls you in from the first page.

The Girl in Between by Sarah Carroll

Debut about a homeless girl and her mother from a writer to watch.

Stand by Me by Judi Curtin

Judi’s books are beautifully written and are much loved by readers. This one goes back time to the 1960s.

Knights of the Borrowed Dark: The Forever Court by Dave Rudden

Brilliant fantasy adventure with heart.

The Lotterys Plus One by Emma Donoghue

A tale of a family with two dads, two moms and seven children.

Good luck everyone!

Friendship and Writing Buddies by Judi Curtin

I'm delighted to welcome Judi Curtin to my blog. Judi's new book, Stand by Me, is out this week and a brilliant read it is too, a wise and funny novel for readers aged 8+ about friendship. As well as being a bestselling writer, Judi is also one of my dearest friends. We go back a long way as Judi explains below. Check out the visual record of our friendship - including Judi's stunning green 1980s dress and one of my own 1980s outfits, and watch me interview Judi about her writing at the end of the blog.

Thanks to Judi for her lovely piece. I wish her all the very best with her new book, Stand By Me!

Writing can be a lonely job, and that’s why we authors need our writing buddies. When my first book was published in 2002, my old friends were suitably supportive and enthusiastic, but none of them really understood the new world I’d stepped into. Then I got an e-mail from Sarah Webb (who I’d never met), inviting me to a writers' lunch. With some trepidation, I joined a large group of warm and welcoming women - and I haven’t looked back since!

Judi and Sarah at Listowel Writers' Week 

Sarah and I have been friends since that day. She’s a fount of knowledge on the writing world, and is incredibly generous with her time. We bounce new ideas off each other, share the pain when our writing’s not going the way we’d like and (look away publishers) gripe about some of the terms in our contracts.  Mostly though, when we meet, we have a laugh, both well aware of how lucky we are to have such a great job.

Judi and Sarah at Electric Picnic 

Sarah and I have even made a career out of our friendship, visiting schools and libraries with our ‘Friendship Tour.’ This involves a fun and interactive talk for children (with weird props, including Sarah’s firebrush costume). I love to talk about writing and being friends with Sarah, but for me these events are mostly a chance to hang out with one of my best friends!

Judi and Sarah at their friendship event - sketch by Sarah McIntyre 

Dlr Writer in Residence, Sarah Webb talks to Judi Curtin about her books including her new title, Time After Time.

April Diary - Writer in Residence

April was full of fun book events for all ages.

Dalkey Baby Book Club ran for four weeks and we made owls, polar bears, caterpillars and lollypops and shared lots of picturebooks, rhymes and songs. The next Dalkey Baby Book Club is on 9th June at 10.30am and we'll be back in September after the summer holidays.

We had a writing workshop in Blackrock Library and I visited Shanganagh House in Shankhill with writer and children's poet, Lucinda Jacob. We created a poem with the children at the centre called I Am Shanganagh House. I also made some dogs and shared dog stories with the younger children. 

I had some exciting news in April - I'll be publishing a new book with O'Brien Press in 2018. More details about that in June. 

On Monday 17th April I took part in Cruinniú na Cásca, the family festival of culture. I told stories in a tent in St Stephen's Green for young children and their families. It was such fun! Here is Paul Timoney, one of the storytellers from the festival who shared my tent. 

The award winning writer and illustrator, Lauren Child visited our library in April to talk to school children and also adults who are interested in art and design. She was inspirational and it was such an honour to meet her. She spoke about her love of cheesy detective shows like Hart to Hart, and mystery books like Nancy Drew. She showed her rough drawings and talked about where she got ideas for characters - many come from real life. What a treat to have her in the Lexicon!  

The Silent Books arrived in the library at the end of April, ready for their exhibition in June, wordless picturebooks from all over the world. The exhibition will be in the library until 29th May, don't miss it if you love picturebooks. There is a set of the books on the Italian island of Lampedusa where they can be read by local and immigrant children, regardless of the language they speak. Here is PJ Lynch launching the exhibition on 8th May and some of the artwork the children produced at the workshop he hosted. It was a wonderful event. 

On 27th April the Lexicon celebrated Poetry Day and there was pavement art outside by some students from Holy Child Killiney. I worked on a poem with my writing club and we read the poems that the library staff and recommended and pinned on the window in the library - a great idea. 

That's it for April and early May. More next month.

Yours in books,

Sarah XXX

Sarah Webb's Top 3 Tips - Writing Picturebooks

1/ Picturebooks are generally short – around 500 words – and are made up of 12 double page spreads. Make every word count and work on the text until it shines.

2/ You do not need to provide artwork. Concentrate on the text, don’t worry about illustrations. An editor’s job is to match text with the right artwork and they are gifted picturebook matchmakers.

3/ Read award winning and best-selling picturbooks. Study Julia Donaldson’s poetry – and it is poetry – every line is carefully worked out. Just because you can rhyme sat with hat doesn’t mean you can write a rhyming picturebook. The whole line has to sing. More about this in another blog soon.

Read Maurice Sendak. Read some of the best Irish picturebook talent: Yasmeen Ismail, Oliver Jeffers and Chris Haughton.

Coo over Helen Oxenbury’s babies and Mem Fox’s outstanding text in the modern classic, Ten Little Fingers and Ten Little Toes.

Learn from the greats – and then get back to your own work.

Work at it and keep working at it until you crack it. Don’t give up!

I’ve been teaching creative writing for over 20 years now. Good writers with tenacity and grit, writers who are prepared to work hard at their craft, they are the ones who get published. Good luck!

Yours in writing, Sarah X

When Are You Going to Write a Proper Book? Full Podcast

Photo by Peter Cavanagh from The World of Colour Exhibition in the Lexicon Library 

Here is the Soundcloud podcast from the recent When Are You Going to Write a Proper Book? event. #properbook if you want to check out the posts on Twitter. It's the full day and thanks to dlr Libraries for providing the podcast. A must listen if you are interested in writing or illustrating for children. 

Soundcloud Podcast