April 2004
What Are Early Chapter Books?
What is the proper word-length and idea-level for "early chapter books?" Are these books geared to 3-6 grade readers?
In her article "Understanding Children's Writing Genres", Laura Backes refers to early chapter books as "transition books" geared for 6 to 9-year olds, or first through fourth grades. She says, "Written like easy readers in style, transition books are longer (manuscripts are about 30 pages long, broken into 2-3 page chapters), books have a smaller trim size with black-and-white illustrations every few pages. See 'The Kids of the Polk Street School' series by Patricia Reilly Giff (Dell) or the 'Stepping Stone Books' published by Random House. Chapter books -- For ages 7-10, these books are 45-60 manuscript pages long, broken into 3-4 page chapters. Stories are meatier than transition books, though still contain a lot of action. The sentences can be a bit more complex, but paragraphs are still short (2-4 sentences is average). Chapters often end in the middle of a scene to keep the reader turning the pages. Look at the 'Herbie Jones' books by Suzy Kline (Puffin) and the 'Ramona' books by Beverly Cleary (Morrow)."
According to The Complete Idiot's Guide to Publishing Children's Books by Lynne Rominger and Harold Underdown, an early chapter book is 48-64 pages. However they avoid recommending any age or grade level.
How Can I Find A Publisher For A Spanish Version Of My Book?
I wrote a children's book which is currently published in English and I am interested in finding publisher for a Spanish version. The publisher owns only English rights. Can you help direct me?
Usually an author's agent handles foreign rights for the author. If you don't have an agent, you'll need to research the market for Spanish translations and rights.
Monica Di Santi's article "Selling Your Book in the Spanish-Language Market" offers an overview of the Spanish language market and how to find a translator. You will also find a links to Spanish language publishers to help you get started.
In his article "The fine art of translation: overcoming the pitfalls of bringing books from English into Spanish", Ed Morales discusses the finer points of translating books from English to Spanish, including examples of bad translations, such as Maria Shriver's Que le pasa a Timmy? He describes what makes a good translation and how to find a good translator. For more information about translations, check out Writing World's International Writing Resources. "How to Get Your Work Translated Properly" by Jim Pierce contains guidelines for what to pay a translator. "Checking the Quality of Your Translated Book" by Monica Di Santi focuses on the importance of details.
At the Lee and Low Books web site, Publisher Philip Lee has posted his article, "Publishing Spanish-Language Books in the United States" where you'll find more helpful information and links about Spanish translations. I don't know if Lee and Low is an appropriate market for your book, they specialize in multicultural children's books, or if they will do translations for books they don't own the English rights to, but this is another place to begin understanding and researching the market.
How Do I Submit To International Publishers?
The publisher of my children's book is no longer in business, and my book is now out of print. I recently got the rights back. I'd like to submit the manuscript to international markets. Do you have any suggestions or tips?
I don't have any first hand experience with international publishers. I have emailed queries to a couple of UK publishers, but they never replied so I haven't had much success.
The Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators has a publication that covers international markets. If you're a member, go to the web site and log in, then go to publications and scroll down to find "International Market Report." It was last updated in October 2003, so it should be current. In this PDF file, you will find market listings for international children's book publishers and how to contact them.
New for this year, the Children's Writers and Illustrator's Market contains eleven pages of Canadian and International Book Publishers, including tips and information about how to submit your manuscript.
A word of caution, many international book publishers will only consider manuscripts from writers in country. For example, Beach Holme Publishers (Vancouver, BC) only accepts work from Canadian writers. Although Miles Kelly Publishing (Essex, UK) will consider any email queries. Therefore, be sure to read and follow each publisher's specific guidelines.
For more information:
- Understanding Children's Writing Genres
- http://www.writing-world.com/children/genres.shtml
- Selling Your Book in the Spanish-Language Market
- http://www.writing-world.com/international/spanish.shtml
- The fine art of translation: overcoming the pitfalls of bringing books from English into Spanish
- http://www.findarticles.com/cf_dls/m1299/4_48/84971050/p1/article.jhtml
- How to Get Your Work Translated Properly
- http://www.writing-world.com/international/translation.shtml
- Checking the Quality of Your Translated Book
- http://www.writing-world.com/international/booktrans.shtml
- Publishing Spanish-Language Books in the United States
- http://www.leeandlow.com/editorial/spanish.html
- SCBWI
- http://www.scbwi.org
Peggy Tibbetts has been a professional writer, editor, and full member of the Society for Children's Book Writers & Illustrators for the past 26 years. She offers courses in children's writing and has edited several successful children's manuscripts. She is the author of the children's novel The Road to Weird, as well as the adult novel Rumors of War. Peggy also moderates the The Write List discussion list at Yahoo.
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