In one recent year, thirty children's books sold a hundred thousand copies or more in hardcover, one hundred paperbacks sold a hundred thousand copies or more, and the perennial favorite Aladdin sold more than one million copies in hardcover. Small wonder that children's book acquisition editors receive so many submissions.
The Children's Book Acquisition Process
An article in Publishers Weekly delineates the plight of the acquisitions editors at children's book publishers, and the slim odds of breaking into this field as an illustrator or writer.
It has been estimated that the acceptance rate for children's book submissions is one-fourth of 1 percent, or four acceptances in a thousand submissions. How then does this highly selective process work? Most large children's book publishers have departments staffed by several editors, each with a degree of specialization. As in the other areas of trade publishing, raw unsolicited submissions, otherwise known as "slush," are handled by editorial assistants and assistant editors. In addition, the slush team has an assistant art director or assistant design editor. At many houses, the slush pile is so profuse that freelance readers are hired to evaluate submissions and submit reports on their findings.
The task of reading submissions has become so taxing and expensive that many children's book publishers no longer accept unsolicited manuscripts, a policy many have adopted for all their books. These publishers often prefer that the writer or illustrator send a written query first describing the project. If the query sounds promising to an editor, the writer may be asked to come in to discuss the proposal.
What do children's book editors look for in a submission? Of course, the obvious answer is another Maurice Sendak or Dr. Seuss, but realistically, one editor defines her quest as, "an original voice or a strong character." Another editor says that she looks for writing that creates an emotional response. Look at a dozen children's books and you'll find these qualities quite evident.
In terms of art, the preferred approach for editors is to look at as many portfolios as possible in order to find the visual qualities and excitement necessary to make a children's book stand out. A number of children's book publishers schedule regular meetings to evaluate new artists' portfolios.
One successful children's illustrator, Tom Pohrt, answers the question about what you need to break into children's illustration:
Have a portfolio that shows a consistent vision, so that an editor can see what direction you've taken and match you up with the right writer. The work is everything. I don't think it's a case where the more people you meet, the better off you are. I just walked into Farrar, Straus and six months later got a call to illustrate Miko. That says to me it's a wide-open field.
Being self-taught means a lot of stumbling around.
I took an art course in college and all but flunked out.
Getting an agent is still the soundest approach to breaking into children's book writing and illustration. Agents receive about 15 percent commission for their services. Check Literary Market Place in your library. Under agents, it lists about fifty agents with children's books as their specialty. Later in this chapter we discuss the Children's Book Council and the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators. These groups may be helpful in locating a reputable agent.
Once you become one of the fortunate few who get published, you won't become rich unless you're Maurice Sendak, Dr. Seuss, the Berenstains, or Martin Handford of Waldo fame. The advances in children's book publishing are slim, running about $1,000 each for artist and writer, against a total royalty of 10 percent.
The Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators
The Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI), founded in 1968, is an excellent professional organization for writers and illustrators of children's literature. Its primary purpose is to act as a network for the exchange of knowledge between writers, illustrators, editors, publishers, agents, librarians, educators, bookstore personnel, and others involved with literature for young people.
SCBWI issues a bimonthly publication to its members, and sponsors a free manuscript and illustration exchange among its members. It also conducts periodic meetings and workshops in key regions of the country. Once a year, SCBWI sponsors a national conference with lectures, workshops, and individual manuscript and art consultation.
To inquire about the many benefits of this organization, write to Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators, P.O. Box 66296, Mar Vista Station, Los Angeles, CA 90066.
If your interest lies in children's books, as an editor, writer, or illustrator, read Publishers Weekly for excellent coverage on this specialization. In your job search, focus first on the big guys. One publisher, Bantam, Doubleday, Dell Books for Your Readers, has nineteen separate imprints, or lines. In total they publish more than four hundred books a year.
And, of course, read children's books to see what makes them stand out.
