jean, Author at Jean Reidy, Children's Author

Get Your Picture Book Ready for PB Peek Week #2!

Picture Book Peek Week #2 is coming July 20th. Is your manuscript ready? Check out this helpful video.

Posted July 10, 2009 & filed under News to Use, Picture Book Peeks, The Writing Process, Tools for the Taking.

Join in the Chicken Dance!

I love Tammi Sauer’s new trailer:

Posted July 9, 2009 & filed under Great Reads, Stops and Sightings.

Picture Book Peek Week #2 Coming July 20th!!

Back by popular demand: Picture Book Peek WeekFree critiques of select PB manuscripts – including those wretched rhymers (Yup, 3 of my upcoming PBs are written in verse!) Peek Week #2 begins July 20th. I’ve changed up the format a bit. Here’s how it will work: Sign up for a critique by entering your FULL… Read more »

Posted July 8, 2009 & filed under News to Use, The Writing Process, Tools for the Taking.

Pondering the Predictable Plot Point Part II – MY SISTER’S KEEPER

WARNING 1: Don’t read my post title out loud. You’ll spit all over your screen. WARNING 2: SORT OF A SPOILER ALERT A few years ago, I read Jodi Picoult’s MY SISTER’S KEEPER and enjoyed it. I was especially fascinated by the service dog subplot and drawn into fireman dad’s sensitivity. I can also completely… Read more »

Posted July 2, 2009 & filed under Great Reads, The Writing Process.

Deciphering Editor Extraordinaire

A fabulous editor at a top-notch house invited one of my crit buddies to revise and resubmit a picture book manuscript. Yeah!! Tonight we evaluated her revision in light of the editor’s comments. It’s a beautifully, rich story. But here’s the problem. The editor’s early comments seemed to completely contradict her later comments. We discussed…. Read more »

Posted July 1, 2009 & filed under The Writing Process.

Hard Evidence That I’m Really Writing Today!

I know. I can’t believe it myself. But here’s proof: A pic of my crazy, marked-up manuscript. (Of course, taking pictures of your work is a tried and true procrastination technique!)

Posted June 25, 2009 & filed under On a Personal Note, The Writing Process.

Back to Basics – Revision

No need for fancy methods or specialized software. Sometimes we need the simplest of reminders.

Posted June 25, 2009 & filed under The Writing Process, Tools for the Taking.

Pondering the Predictable Plot Point – SLUMDOG spoiler alert!

I must be the last person on Earth to have seen SLUM DOG MILLIONAIRE. But I’d heard so many wonderful things about it – aside from all the Oscars – I waited for a night when I was well-rested enough to take it all in. Well I’m still waiting to feel well-rested, but I finally… Read more »