First Pages with Agents Kelly Sonnack & Linda Pratt

What makes the 1st page a No:

Too much exposition (telling instead of showing)
Labeled for the wrong age group
Picture Book is dialogue heavy
Picture Book is list-y (tackling a list instead of an overall conflict)
Too much description in action scene slows down the pacing


What makes the 1st page a Yes:

Interesting opening line
Picture Book showing good imagination
Lots of action in opening scene

A Note on Titles: Choose a Title that doesn’t explain everything about the book.

Saturday Morning Scenes

Conference Bookstore

Conference Attendees

Agent Linda Pratt

Editor Lionel Bender

Editor Ruta Rimas

Special thanks to J. Michael Smith for the fabulous photos!

Linda Pratt talks about Voice

Linda Pratt (agent with Sheldon Fogelman Agency) talked about voice.
Voice in children’s books (and any book) is the key thing that agents, editors, & readers look for.

Voice is something that is developed. Most artists & most authors are not self-taught. Writers must be readers first. Writers great with voice must be good listeners.

Linda says, “Voice is the personality and the whole life history of a character when they speak.”

Look at who the character is and the language they use. Word choice and sentence structure can tell the reader a lot about the character.

Some exercises Linda recommends for honing your voice include:
*Eavesdrop on conversations.
*Read for pleasure, then re-read later. Study the work.
*Read your work aloud.