Wednesday, April 27, 2022

Fundraising 101 (or maybe just the 1!)

When it comes to fundraising, there are many factors that can determine success. I, along with fellow Sri Lankan in publishing, Mishma Nixon, recently concluded a fundraiser to help those suffering in our home country due to a severe economic crisis. We named it #KidlitForSriLanka and as expected, everyone stepped up. 

From prize giveaways of editor calls, manuscript critiques, AMA calls, signed books, customized artwork, and even a virtual school visit, to the dozens of donations that came in immediately, I was blown away at the ease with which everyone donated to the cause. 



When I approached Lee Wind with this topic as a blog post, he said something which made me think. He said that it was evident that the community trusted us. I took a moment to let that sink in. All this time, I had been focused on how generous the community was -we raised over 4000 dollars (which converted to over 1 million rupees!) - but what it really meant was that these donors, most of whom weren't Sri Lankan or even South Asian, cared enough and trusted us enough to part with not just their money, but also their time, energy, and expertise. I had not met any of these people in real life. Btw, I have never met Mishma either, but I trusted her to collect the money on our behalf and be transparent about it, which she was!

And that is possibly the main determining factor in the success of any charitable cause: Trust. People donate because they trust that thier donations will actually help something or someone. Much like a democracy; you vote for someone because you trust them to do good. And if anyone knows what it's like when that trust breaks, it's our country's people. 

Boy, am I glad I'm a writer and not a politician!

--------------

If you're interested in the specifics of our fundraiser, you can view the details here. We have stopped accepting donations and are in the distribution process right now, but if you are inclined to help, I've linked up organizations you could directly donate to in the spreadsheet itself. 



Thushanthi Ponweera is an author and poet from Sri Lanka. Her debut middle-grade verse novel I am Kavi is forthcoming from Holiday House in 2023. She is a former We Need Diverse Books mentee and a blogger for the same organization. Her writing reflects the frustration she feels at the inequality and injustice she sees around her, and also the deep love she feels for her island home. You can read more about her at www.thushanthiponweera.com and she can be found tweeting furiously as @thushponweera.


Tuesday, April 26, 2022

Round Two Voting for the SCBWI Crystal Kite Awards is Now Open (through April 30) #SCBWI22CK

 

"I voted" digital button for the SCBWI Crystal Kite Awards

It's time to cast your round two vote for the best PAL book in your division!

Here's how to vote in three easy steps:

step 1)

log on to scbwi.org

step 2)

Once you are on your Member Home page, go to the left navigation bar, scroll to the bottom and click on Vote in the Crystal Kite Awards

step 3)

That takes you right to the voting page where the finalist books in your Division appear. Then click the VOTE FOR THIS BOOK button below your chosen book and you are done!

Round two voting is now open and closes April 30, 2022.

Good luck to all the finalists!


Illustrate and Translate and Write On,

Lee


Wednesday, April 20, 2022

Outside In: An Author and an Illustrator in Sri Lanka Discuss Their Publishing Journey

One is a writer; the other is an illustrator.

Both are from Sri Lanka, a country so far away from the US and so tiny on a world map, that most would miss it. 

So how did we succeed in getting published by some of the best publishers in the world?

We share our experience and advice in the hope it will inspire you, wherever you are and whatever your experience in writing and illustrating has been, that anything is possible. 


What motivated you to get published internationally?

Thushanthi: I’ve always wanted to write a book in my lifetime. And during the pandemic, I was fascinated by the news that a Sri Lankan writer I knew—Amanda Jayatissa—had scored a book deal with Berkley Publishing, an imprint of Penguin. Growing up, much of my personal library had the little penguin logo on it, but I didn’t think it was possible that a book written by a Sri Lankan in Sri Lanka could even be published internationally. That was how “out there” of an idea it was for me. But once I had this information, I couldn’t let it go. And when I wrote my first draft of a picture book, I started dreaming big. I decided that somehow, someway, my stories too would be side by side with the best books in the industry.

Bhagya: I have always loved to tell stories through my art. When I realized that I wanted to illustrate children’s picture books, I was reminded of the Russian and Japanese picture books that I read as a child. We didn’t have the luxury to access many books, but some of those illustrations are imprinted in my memory although I can’t remember the names of those books. Maybe it was because they showcased such unique cultures. Sri Lanka is also so rich in culture, I thought it would be wonderful to be able to share it with the world. Eventually, I start learning about the publishing industry and I found that the international publishing market provides more opportunities to perfect my craft and a wider audience. That’s when I decided to chase the dream.


How did you start going about it?

Thushanthi: I joined Twitter’s #writingcommunity and the rest is history! The kidlit community is so helpful and friendly, and I soon figured out what I had to do and set about doing it. I joined SCBWI, was invited to join a critique group, entered competitions, won a mentorship with WNDB, and wrote and revised…A LOT. 

Bhagya: It all started with the pandemic. At the time I was occupied with architectural work as professionally I am an Architect. However, the pandemic allowed us space to explore our artistic sides and connect with like-minded people virtually. In the beginning, I knew nothing about publishing; especially not the specifics such as agency, agent, editor, art director, publisher, and so on. I thought that doing an illustration and sharing it on social media was enough to get a new project or recognition in the children’s industry (although I did get some amazing opportunities after a long wait). This continued until I met this amazing friend Kamla M. Nair , who is from India. She educated me about what it is to have an agent/agency represent you and how I should focus more on my portfolio if I wanted to get published internationally. That’s when I focused more on perfecting my craft, all through self-learning.


What are the challenges you have faced as an outsider?

Thushanthi: I would have to say the cost. The Sri Lankan rupee was weak against the US dollar – more so now—so anything that would cost a lot of money I would avoid as I couldn’t justify it. On the flip side, I was grateful that so many resources are freely available online. And thanks to the pandemic, I was able to attend loads of writing conferences and webinars virtually. I appreciate the diverse scholarships and mentorships that don’t require you to be a US citizen to enter. I really hope this aspect remains even as things go back to in-person. The other challenge is the time difference, nearly half a day! Waking up at 4.30am is not fun, but again, I’m grateful that there is space for me at all.

Bhagya: The cost of study materials such as online courses and online books is often too high to be affordable because of the extremely unfavorable exchange rate. This makes it almost impossible to access them. This led me to study from YouTube tutorials and other websites with free access. Fortunately, I was able to learn almost everything I know through these free resources! The time difference is also a challenge, mostly when it comes to the end of the project where quick feedback is vital to make the necessary progress in order to meet deadlines.


Finally, what is your advice to anyone living outside the US who wants to get published there?

Thushanthi: It is hard work. You need to be committed to improving your craft. Read recently published books in the genre you want to write, even the award winners, and compare those against your own writing. Study and learn how to write a book—technique matters as much as talent. Be prepared to revise the same story dozens of times and be rejected repeatedly before you find success; it can take years. Mostly, you need to be confident in your abilities and proud of your differences; your identity is what makes your stories unique and authentic! And keep building your community. I couldn’t have come this far without my writing friends. Even from miles away, their support is invaluable.

Bhagya: My most important advice is that there is an incredible artist community out there who is openly willing to help each other. Do not be afraid to reach out to them, stay connected and educate yourself in the areas you are lacking. Improve your artistic skills, question what is missing in your art style, and improve that. Get out of your comfort zone every now and then and learn something new. Of course, the path is not smooth and learning and improving yourself is a never-ending process. So don’t forget to enjoy every bit of it and eventually you’ll get there without even knowing it!



Thushanthi Ponweera is an author and poet from Sri Lanka. Her debut middle-grade verse novel I am Kavi is forthcoming from Holiday House in 2023. She is a former We Need Diverse Books mentee and a blogger for the same organization. Her writing reflects the frustration she feels at the inequality and injustice she sees around her, and also the deep love she feels for her island home. You can read more about her at www.thushanthiponweera.com and she can be found tweeting furiously as @thushponweera.



Bhagya Madanasinghe is a children’s book illustrator and architect from Sri Lanka, a colorful little island in South Asia. Bhagya's style combines simple shapes with ambiguous colors and she is dedicated to creating characters with emotions and actions emphasizing the mood of her illustrations. She loves exploring new places to inspire her work. Her forthcoming books include Something is happening to our planet written by Marianne Celano & Marietta Collins, published by Magination Press, My teacher has tattoos written by Darren Lopez and published by Soaring Kite Books, and Awe-Samosas written by Marzieh Abbas published by Clarion Books. Besides being an illustrator, Bhagya enjoys developing architectural design concepts with her husband in his architectural studio. You can find her on Instagram as @moving_doodles.



Tuesday, April 19, 2022

Publishers Weekly Talks Middle Grade Novels with Lisa Yee, Kate DiCamillo, Gordon Korman, Kwame Mbalia, Sharon Draper, Meg Medina, Laekan Zea Kemp, Kyle Lukoff, Marjorie Liu, Varian Johnson, and Saadia Faruq

Shannon Maughan chats with a number of amazing authors about writing middle grade books in this Publishers Weekly article, Middle Grade from the Author’s Desk.

screen shot of the Publishers Weekly article "Middle Grade from the Author's Desk" showing a photo of Lisa Yee and her latest middle grade novel, "Maizy Chen’s Last Chance"

Some standout quotes in the authors' discussion of what it means to write for middle grade readers:

“It’s about finding agency at a time when we have the least amount of power and yet can recognize that fact.” —Kwame Mbalia (The Tristan Strong trilogy)

“I love middle grade because I feel like it’s where characters are first discovering who they are in the world... They’re beginning to see that no one is perfect, even themselves.” —Varian Johnson (Playing the Cards You’re Dealt)

“The challenge is to write something that inspires them and encourages them and doesn’t bore them... Something that keeps their attention. And as writers we have to be better and better because [middle readers] all have a phone and they spend so much time on their devices. And when they get home, they’re watching television. So I strive to capture something that will get them away from some kind of device and into an actual book with words.” —Sharon Draper (Out of My Heart)

Read the full article here.

Illustrate, Translate, and Write On,
Lee

Thursday, April 14, 2022

Writing a verse novel

isn’t as hard as you may think.

As long as you know

what 

you want to write about

and why 

you want to write about it in verse,

the former slightly easier

than the latter.


Verse is best suited for 

stories that are

written in first person,

have a strong character arc,

lots of emotion,

and a lyrical voice.


   Verse lets you 

zoom in

to details,

to feelings,

to moods

     when you’re telling your story,

  making 

every single word

matter,

or even

  every single

  l     e   t   t   e   r.


Verse also lets you 

play around with 


              space 

                        

         and format

in case you hadn’t figured 

that one out yet!


Like when your MC is sad,

you can say 

My world came crashing

  d

o

w

n

as I watched my plans turn into rubble


and when they’re happy,

you can say that

My spirits

d

e

r

a

o

s

with a single smile from her.


The beauty of verse storytelling

is that no two verse novels are alike

because there are 

fewer rules 

and more

freedom.

I think they call it

poetic license.


Of course, 

I didn’t know any of this

till I wrote my first verse novel.

But looks like I got something right

because it’s going to be…

PUBLISHED!


And I know this is 

as cliched as it gets,

but some cliches ring true,

“If I can do it, so can you”.

So, write that verse!

Hope I’ve made you want to.

(Ha! Rhyme!)



Thushanthi Ponweera is an author and poet from Sri Lanka. Her debut middle-grade verse novel I am Kavi is forthcoming from Holiday House in 2023. She is a former We Need Diverse Books mentee and a blogger for the same organization. Her writing reflects the frustration she feels at the inequality and injustice she sees around her, and also the deep love she feels for her island home. You can find her on Twitter @thushponweera and on Instagram as @bythush.



Tuesday, April 12, 2022

The American Library Association releases their list of the "Top 10 Most Challenged Books of 2021"

The battle over what other people's kids can read rages on...

As announced by the ALA

The ALA Office for Intellectual Freedom tracked 729 challenges to library, school, and university materials and services in 2021. Of the 1597 books that were targeted, here are the most challenged, along with the reasons cited for censoring the books:


#1 Gender Queer by Maia Kobabe

Reasons: Banned, challenged, and restricted for LGBTQIA+ content, and because it was considered to have sexually explicit images

Read Maia's response to the banning in the Washington Post here.

screenshot of some comic panels from Maia Kobabe's editorial in the Washington Post about the banning of "Gender Queer"


#2 Lawn Boy by Jonathan Evison

Reasons: Banned and challenged for LGBTQIA+ content and because it was considered to be sexually explicit

#3 All Boys Aren’t Blue by George M. Johnson

Reasons: Banned and challenged for LGBTQIA+ content, profanity, and because it was considered to be sexually explicit

#4 Out of Darkness by Ashley Hope Perez

Reasons: Banned, challenged, and restricted for depictions of abuse and because it was considered to be sexually explicit

#5 The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas

Reasons: Banned and challenged for profanity, violence, and because it was thought to promote an anti-police message and indoctrination of a social agenda

#6 The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie

Reasons: Banned and challenged for profanity, sexual references and use of a derogatory term

#7 Me and Earl and the Dying Girl by Jesse Andrews

Reasons: Banned and challenged because it was considered sexually explicit and degrading to women

#8 The Bluest Eye by Toni Morrison

Reasons: Banned and challenged because it depicts child sexual abuse and was considered sexually explicit

#9 This Book is Gay by Juno Dawson

Reasons: Banned, challenged, relocated, and restricted for providing sexual education and LGBTQIA+ content.

#10 Beyond Magenta by Susan Kuklin

Reasons: Banned and challenged for LGBTQIA+ content and because it was considered to be sexually explicit. 


Illustrate, Translate, and Write On -- our books can change lives for the better.
Lee

Thursday, April 7, 2022

The ebbs and flows of creativity - By Thushanthi Ponweera

The other day I tweeted about the ebbs and flows of writing based on the experiences of my first year trying to get published. I spoke about how the common advice of “Write every day” can be detrimental, and the importance of figuring out your own rhythm; your own stride. And that was before my country, Sri Lanka, fell into a severe economic crisis, right on the heels of the pandemic. My advice to others became the best advice I could give myself during these trying times, and so I wish to share it with you too. 

If you’re a brand-new author like I was last year, you probably look to others in the writing community for direction. For me, it was the #writingcommunity on Twitter (more specifically #kidlit), my CPs and writing groups, Facebook groups, and the SCBWI blueboards and free digital webinars. More often than not, the general consensus is that if you want to call yourself a “writer” then you must write. Everyday. At least a little. 

Now I am married to a husband who travels a lot, am a mother to two young kids, and a sensitive person who soaks in the emotions of those around me and thinks (read: worry!) too much. This makes writing the ideal career for me as I can do it in my own time, and I have an outlet to channel all those thoughts and emotions into. On the flip side, it also makes it extremely hard to write every day. Some days I’m too exhausted, too wired, too busy, or I choose to prioritize my family instead. And when I started going on submission, I could do little else except refresh my inbox, looking for that validation that my stories were good enough (I do not condone this last one!).

Throughout all those days of not creating daily, let alone weekly, or monthly, I would feel immense guilt over “neglecting” my writing. There were times I wondered if I even belonged in this community. All this while working on a mentorship, finessing multiple picture books, AND revising a middle-grade novel! I was doing so much, but I was taking big breaks in between…how ever was I to succeed in getting published? I wasn’t in the correct mindset to create, no matter how much I fretted over it. So I waited. Had a few meltdowns in the process, but I waited.

And you know what? After those months of waiting, suddenly things fell into place. Life got a bit easier to manage and with it came my writing mojo. Things are still very difficult for my country at the moment, but I am still able to write a bit…a blog post here, a picture book there, a big revision. Everything has a season, ups and downs, ebbs and flows. The sooner you accept that you will be able to prepare for it. Create as much as you can when you can, and when you can’t, let go (but remember to keep jotting down your ideas!). Your writing will be all the better for it.


Thushanthi Ponweera is an author and poet from Sri Lanka. Her debut middle-grade verse novel I am Kavi is forthcoming from Holiday House in 2023. She is a former We Need Diverse Books mentee and a blogger for the same organization. Her writing reflects the frustration she feels at the inequality and injustice she sees around her, and also the deep love she feels for her island home. You can find her on Twitter @thushponweera and on Instagram as @bythush.



Tuesday, April 5, 2022

Round One Voting for the SCBWI Crystal Kite Awards is Now Open (through April 15) #SCBWI22CK

 

"I voted" digital button for the SCBWI Crystal Kite Awards

It's time to cast your vote for the best PAL book in your division!

Here's how to vote in three easy steps:

step 1)

log on to scbwi.org

step 2)

Once you are on your Member Home page, go to the left navigation bar, scroll to the bottom and click on Vote in the Crystal Kite Awards

step 3)

That takes you right to the voting page where all of the books in your Division appear. Then click the VOTE FOR THIS BOOK button below your chosen book and you are done!

Round one voting is open through April 15, 2022. Round two voting will open on April 18, 2022.

Good luck to all!
Illustrate and Translate and Write On,
Lee