Blogs by Rick Walton at BigUniverse.com

Celebrity Books

Wed, 11 Jun 2008 00:00:00 +0000

Q: What do you think of celebrity books? A: I think celebrities in general should do their homework before diving into an artistic area that they don't know much about. I respect the... ...

I Was a Kid Back Before Danger

Wed, 28 May 2008 00:00:00 +0000

I have mixed emotions about the care with which we watch our children. I want them to be safe, but I also want them to enjoy their childhood. I sure enjoyed mine. A little bit Tom Sawyer... ...

Q&A—How to Get an Agent

Wed, 07 May 2008 00:00:00 +0000

Q: How can I get an agent?
A: Ask agented writers you know who their agent is and what they think of him/her. Many authors I know got their agents from this type of word of mouth... ...

Comedian

Wed, 30 Apr 2008 00:00:00 +0000

I’m at a school visit, eating lunch with the teachers. They are talking about my assembly, about how funny it was. And then invariably, one of them says, “You should be a comedian!” I’m flattered. ...

Q&A—Agents

Wed, 23 Apr 2008 00:00:00 +0000

Q: My agent wants me to reimburse her for postage and phone calls. Is that fair?
A: It is fairly common, but make sure there's a limit on how much you have to pay. Don't give the agent carte blanche. ...

Q&A—After the Sale

Wed, 16 Apr 2008 00:00:00 +0000

Q&A—After the Sale

Q: After you sell a picture book, how much work are you asked to do before the book is published?

...

THE BEAR CAME OVER TO MY HOUSE

Wed, 09 Apr 2008 00:00:00 +0000

When I'm driving with the family, we sometimes sing. When I sing, I like to drift into parody. This idea came up on a trip to San Diego in 1999. ...

Rising to My Level of Incompetence

Wed, 02 Apr 2008 00:00:00 +0000

An editor once asked me if I would like to write tie-in novels for the Wishbone series. My agent once asked me if I would like to write sports novels. I turned them both down. From time to time ...

Beginning Mistakes

Wed, 26 Mar 2008 00:00:00 +0000

I’ve worked with a lot of beginning writers. I’ve been a beginning writer. We all make mistakes early on. (Hey, we also make mistakes later on, but that’s another column.) You’ll go from beginning... ...

How I Learned to Reverse Engineer

Wed, 19 Mar 2008 00:00:00 +0000

My first publication was an odd one - a quote in the book MURPHY'S LAW: BOOK THREE - "A fool and his money are soon elected." I was paid in kind, with books and calendars (where my quote appeared on... ...

How to Get Someone to Help You

Wed, 12 Mar 2008 00:00:00 +0000

I've found other writers to be very generous with their time and knowledge. They've helped me a lot. They've advised me, answered my questions, given feedback on my work, introduced me to people in ...

Hype

Wed, 05 Mar 2008 00:00:00 +0000

Every once in a while a book or movie comes out that gets rave reviews, is talked about incessantly, is all over the media, is hyped to the max. I'm not a first weekend moviegoer. ... ...

I Want to Be an Author

Wed, 27 Feb 2008 00:00:00 +0000

You can be an author. You can be almost anything, if you're willing to work at it and pay the price. But that's the catch. The price. Sometimes we think we can shortcut the process. Some people do. But you can't count on it. ...

Money from Writing, and the Perks for Free

Wed, 20 Feb 2008 00:00:00 +0000

I'm frequently approached by writers who have an idea for a book, or more likely a series of books, and think it's going to be a major moneymaker. They are clearly more excited about getting rich th ...

So You Want to Be a Successful Writer

Wed, 06 Feb 2008 00:00:00 +0000

You can be one, if you do the things that successful writers do... Read as much as you can and study the books you like best. ...

Good Picture Books...

Wed, 23 Jan 2008 00:00:00 +0000

Good Picture Books... Are about something the author is interested in. Appeal to kids and adults. Are unique, not cliche. Have a plot. Have a shape. Are concise, don't digress. Have real chara ...

Clueless

Tue, 15 Jan 2008 00:00:00 +0000

My father-in-law taught computer science for many years. He had one student, a foreign prince, who'd go to Vegas on weekends and drop tens of thousands of dollars. My FIL got one paper from this guy... ...

A Bold Newbery Statement!

Wed, 02 Jan 2008 00:00:00 +0000

It seems that each awards committee makes a statement, consciously or subconsciously, about children's literature, by the books they choose to award. Sometimes the message is political, sometimes... ...

Unwritten

Sat, 15 Dec 2007 00:00:00 +0000

(sung to the tune of Unwritten, of course, from Natasha Bedingfield) I've got a great idea for a book, came in a dream. I'm going to start right on it as soon as I have time. ...

How To Critique A Beginning Writer’s Weak Manuscript

Thu, 13 Dec 2007 00:00:00 +0000

As a teacher, a consultant, a friend, I do LOTS of critiquing of beginning writers manuscripts. A lot of them are really bad. ...