Tuesday, December 8, 2015

Monster List of Picture Book Agents - Heather Alexander of Pippin Properties

Heather Alexander became an agent at Pippin Properties in 2014. Prior to that she was a children's book editor at Dial Books for Young Readers. She is looking for quirky, subversive picture books. It seems to go without saying that Heather is an editorial agent. There is lots of great info about Heather online to help you decide whether or not she might be the right agent for you:

In this May 2015 interview Heather talks about picture book renaissance and commonly occurring themes in picture book submissions.

Heather did an insightful Query Questions interview where she talk about how many queries she gets vs. how many requests she makes among other interesting tidbits.

The Kidlit 411 Agent Spotlight with Heather is one you won't want to miss!

See some specifics of what Heather is interested in acquiring in her Manuscript Wish List feed. This is updated with Heather's #MSWL tweets so be sure to check back.

Heather talks about her ideal client and more in her interview at Valerie Cole Reads.

You can get some good tips from Heather's First Five Frenzy interview.

In this SCBWI Insight interview Heather talks about working with illustrators and more about what intrigues her.

You can read a couple quick thoughts on character and marketability from Heather at Adventures in YA Publishing.

Heather is looking for diversity.

Check out these critiques Heather did!

Follow Heather Alexander on Twitter @heatheralexand to learn more about her. You can also find her on Facebook. Pippin Properties also has Facebook and Twitter accounts.

And you are in luck! Heather just started her very own blog. Here's looking forward to lots of great info there.

Check out the Pippin Property submission guidelines if you are interested in querying. Pippin has a great website. Be sure to look at their clients page and the books they represent too!

This post is part of the Monster List of Picture Book Agents. If you have an additions or changes you think should be made to this listing please contact me or leave them in the comments. Thanks!


Wednesday, December 2, 2015

A Post!

Oh my gosh it has been a while! I have had a lot going on. Some things that I can tell you about and some that I can't (but hopefully will be able to soon!)

You know, sometimes I think I choose the hardest things there are to do. Write picture books. Check. Farm garlic organically. Check. Live on a mountaintop. Check.

As you might have noticed I pretty much took the summer off from my blog. But I still managed to do quite a bit of blogging at Sub It Club. I have actually been doing a series on Submissions that you might want to check out if you're new to submitting your work or if you just want to see if there's any new tips you may not have thought of. Or if you're like me and like to review information that you already know. (I say this because I am doing another round of reading books on writing. Once you've read as many as I have it REALLY starts to sink in. Ha!) Also, I've been updating lots of great contest opportunities so you might want to check those out.

This year (I count the months of March to early November as a year. I do more work in that time than I can even comprehend. Hooray for freezing weather to give us a farm break!) was a lot different at the farm. We decided to participate in WWOOF - World Wide Opportunities on Organic Farms for our first time. We had a bunch of great kids (they were in their 20's. I'm old.) stay with us over the summer. They came to learn about organic farming and rural living. It took a bit of getting used to at first having so many extra people around (more cooking and cleaning!). It was fun though and they helped us so much. It was great for my kids to get to know such wonderful young adults that they could look up to. We had super smart kids from prestigious colleges, athletes, musicians, and even a professional photographer stay with us. I think that the ruralness might have been a shock to some of them but everyone seemed to have a great time and we miss them all. You can see some of the fun we had at our Great Northern Garlic Facebook page. I wish I would have had time to post more but yeah--working. And we planted even more garlic this year. Next year should be interesting!

As for our ruralness. Technology has suddenly brought us closer. The "regular" internet has finally reached way up here in the mountains. (Yes, my technological words are lacking.) This means no more slow satellite internet with limited access! This also means that we can have a telephone. Gulp. I have lived for 20 years without a telephone in my house so this idea is taking a little getting used to for me. I did make my first phone call and it was just so weird to be talking on the phone in my house instead of in my parked car in town, which is where I usually (used to?) make all my phone calls. Having a phone at home will be super convenient, of course. Now if technology could just make the dirt road less bumpy.

On the writing front, super cool things are happening. My agent is the best and I know I am very lucky to have his help. Being a picture book writer is a huge challenge.You have to set the stage for a great story that includes pictures. And it has to stand out in a super competitive market. Even if you have a great story there is still revision and rethinking that can need to be done. So, my picture book writing friends, don't be discouraged. Keep at it. Celebrate the little accomplishments on your journey. And check in for new Monster List posts. Now that I have time I am planning to do more updates!