My muse is cheating on me.

Some times I feel as though my muse is cheating on me. I have always been blessed with creativity and imaginative thinking and numerous times through out my life I have had, what I thought, were brilliant ideas or inspiration only to find someone else had the same inspiration and produced their version of the idea faster or better than I could afford to.

The latest example of this is that I spent part of last year, along with my partner, creating a new children’s book based on the classic tale of Jack and the Beanstalk. We finished our project several months before the end of the year and we began shopping the manuscript around. Now if you pay attention to current films you will know that in the beginning of March there was a new film released called Jack the Giant Killer. My hart sank a little.

We, however, are not giving up on our project because it is intended for a much different audience. If we had not finished our project we may have abandoned it when we saw the news, but it does go to show that a good idea will always find its way into the light no matter who had the idea first. So my lesson out of this is, as always, you have to believe in what you are doing because if you don’t no one else will and that you need to act on your inspirations because someone else may have had the same inspiration.

Good luck and keep writing.

Less can be more.

A few weeks ago, after the holidays were over with I started the daunting task of taking down all my Christmas decorations. Because I love the holidays so much, each year I completely transform my home into a holiday showpiece. I remove almost all of my everyday nick knacks, pack them away, and replace them with the holiday treasures I have accumulated over the years. When I strip that all away my house looks like I am moving out, it is so empty. Each year this gives me the opportunity, when restyling my home, to edit those things that I have acquired over the past year and stream line the focus of the over all design. Part of this comes from my experience as a visual display artist and some of it is a need to keep from being burred under clutter.

When I was going through this process this year I realized that this is very much the same way that I edit my photo illustrations. When I begin a new project I start with the design of the puppets, or characters, then I move onto the set designs. I almost always fill my sets with so much detail that it would be impossible to show it all in one photograph. So when I am setting up the framing of a particular shot I have to decide on what is the most important aspect of that shot and what that plate will need to convey to the reader. I still find myself trying to capture as much detail as I can but that is where the editing process comes into play.

After the photos have been finished I sit down with all the frames and going through them one by one I select those that best enhance the story and will engage the readers imagination. Those photographs are not always the best technically, but they are the best for moving the story along. Sometimes all the detail and attention that I put into a set is lost to the readers eye but I feel that the essence remains and comes through the illustration as an atmosphere and translates into a feeling. So I guess that what I am saying is that sometimes it is not important to focus on something just because you did it (or have it) but to keep your eye on what is important to the story telling process. As the old saying goes, “Sometimes less is more.”

Good luck and keep writing.

Morgan

Thank You!

During this festive time of year, which I love, I do tend to get a little depressed being separated from my family and my closest friends. I, however, take solace in knowing that my work may bring joy to others and their families this season, and maybe, just maybe become part of their holiday traditions. I would like to think that my children’s books are under a few trees this year.

With that said, I would like to thank all of you that have supported my work over the years and wish you and your families the most wonderful and joyous Happy Holidays and to wish you all, all the best for the upcoming New Year. 

Good luck and keep writing.

Morgan

 From me to you Merry Christmas!!!

Disappointment; get use to it.

Recently some of you may have read that I had petitioned some bookstores to carry my books in their brick and mortar stores. Well I got an answer back from one of the largest booksellers in the world and basically their answer was no. What I was told was that since they already carried my books on their on-line stores and because they already stock some one million titles in their brick and mortar stores they did not feel that at this time they could add my books to their on shelf inventory.

I am perfectly OK with that response. The fact that I received a response in the form of a letter I see as a success. So many publishers and agents do not even afford that courtesy now a day.

A big part of trying to become an author is learning to deal with disappointment. I would guess that only about ten percent (or less) of my queries even get a response, but it is important to keep trying especially if you believe in your work. There are so many factors that go in to selecting projects, it can rang from timing to subject matter to marketability to talent or even what is happening in the pop culture and you may never know what some one is looking for at any given time. If you did know that it would increase your chances a hundred fold. But because most of us do not have a crystal ball we just have to keep trying. The important thing is to keep trying. There are things that you can do to increase your chances such as getting as much feed back as you can from friends, family, and even strangers. Have your work as finished as it can be. Use professional editors. Above all believe in yourself and your work and don’t let your disappointments get the best of you, because there will be disappointment but they will make the successes that much sweeter.

Good luck and keep writing.

Just a bit of a rant.

From my childhood on till today The Little Golden Book series has always stood for quality and innocents in children’s picture books. In fact I have recently started collecting old Golden Books, when I find them at antique shows, for their wonderful vintage illustrations and nostalgic sentiment. Yesterday I was looking at some new children’s books at a local store. Ever since my books were published I like to periodically check out the new competition as it is released and to my total surprise I saw a new Little Golden Book about, of all things, the Iron Man. Now I ask you  . . . The Iron Man? Really? What are they thinking? Comic books have their place and even though I have never been a reader of them I respect the talent it takes to create them, and like baseball cards they are a huge part of American culture but lets leave those characters as that. The Little Golden Books and Marvel Comics are not a good partnership. I know this is just my opinion but I don’t think that a toddler needs to be exposed to the story of Tony Stark as the Iron Man or indeed any super hero. Let a child be a child first.

End rant.

It's in the mail.

Many years ago, before I ever thought of becoming an author, I was celebrating Thanksgiving with my friend Jan and her family. Jan’s father was a successful published author and he told me that his secret to getting published was to always have something in the mail. He said that it was the only way to make a living at it. What he meant was that you need to keep trying. If one person rejects your manuscript, send it to three others; that is if you believe in your work. That is important so I will say it again, you must believe in your work! With my first book, The Deep Black Pond, I went through dozens of rejection letters before I got a yes. As of today I am shopping around two new manuscripts, as well as promoting my two published books. And even though snail mail is mostly replaced with e-mail the advice I was given still holds true today, you must always have something in the mail.

This week I have been petitioning bookstores to carry my books. That’s right you have to ask a bookstore to carry your work. Even though my books are on many of the bookstores web sights and my books are available through those avenues to get into the brick and mortar stores I have to ask to be considered. Like submitting work to publishers and agents each bookstore has its own criteria for how to send the request so it is important to research each and every store you wish to petition.

Once you have every thing in the mail the waiting begins. Some publishers and agents still accept SASE but others simply tell you that if you have not heard from them in six weeks to four months they are more than likely not interested. That is the only part of this process that I do not like. I feel that if you have gone to the trouble and expense of submitting to them the least they could do is bang out a note that says NO THANKS, but that’s just my opinion. So in addition to all the other skill sets you must master to become an author patients is an important one but when you finally get that acceptance letter it makes it all worthwhile.

Keep writing and good luck.

Finding the perfect publisher.

Trying to find a publisher for your work, that meets your needs, can be a full time job in it self. Every publisher has its own set of criteria for submitting a manuscript and many will not accept unsolicited works. So it is important to review any potential publisher's requirements before you send anything out. This also leaves you with two choices. One, find an agent to represent you or two, try to find a publisher that will accept unsolicited manuscripts. Neither choice is easy. I have found that my best resource throughout this process has been Google. There are many, many publishers out there to pick from and that is the beauty of a free market, but it also can make things very confusing.

After you find a publisher that you think will be a good fit for your book it is important to check them out further. Again, Google is a great resource for this. When you type in the name of any publisher it will spit back all sorts of information such as other authors reviews on how it is to work with that publisher and business practices that that publisher may engage in. Author be wear is also a good site to check out information on potential publishers. Get all the information you can and if you still make a mistake just remember, as I said, it is a free market and you can always switch publishers for your next book if you have not signed a multi book deal, but that is highly unlikely if this is your first book.

I cannot stress enough how Important it is to research and get all the information you can before signing any contract. It would also be a good idea to have a third party review any contract you are offered before signing it. I know that if a publisher offers to produce your book that feeling of excitement and elation can override your business sense, but stop, take a breath and reground yourself. Most important be smart, take off your artist’s hat and get fitted for a business one. 

Never stop learning and good luck.