American Library Association Announces 2016 Winners

Critique with Agent Jen Rofe of Andrea Brown Literary Agency #KidLitForHaiti

 

KID LIT FOR HAITI: Jen is offering a critique of the first five pages of a manuscript (PB, MG or YA).

Jennifer Rofé is my agent (I love saying that!), and I can tell you first hand—her editorial suggestions will make your story sparkle! I attended SCBWI conferences for years and years. After attending Jen’s workshops, having a handful of face-to-face meetings and spending a lot of time stalking researching Jen’s style and sales, my BIG goal was to score Jen as my agent—Dreams come true! It took five years of learning, trying and honing my craft until I finally got “the phone call” and landed on team-Jen (well worth the wait!) I suspect the glasses Jen wears aren’t just any old specs—they have magic—Jen can see right into your story and help guide you with what works and what doesn’t. I remember when I was researching Jen, I landed on a post by Crystal Allen (author of one of my favorite books HOW LAMAR’S BAD PRANK WON A BUBBA SIZED TROPHY.)  In Crystal’s post she talks about how Jen is an editorial agent and her editorial notes urged Crystal to dig deeper, go bigger, write stronger. In the end, Jen got Crystal a six figure deal because Crystal wrote a story that is laugh-out-loud funny, full of heart and drama and jampacked with VOICE. Another one of Jen’s big-time clients is Meg Medina, and if you haven’t yet read her 2014 Pura Belpré Award Winning book YAQUI DELGADO WANTS TO KICK YOUR ASS (Candlewick), then you need to stop reading this blog, race your bookstore and buy this book. 

Jen represents projects ranging from picture books to YA. Middle grade is her soft spot and she’s open to all genres in this category, especially the tender, hilarious, or zany. She is always looking for fresh and distinct voices; stories that simultaneously tug at her heartstrings and make her laugh out loud; and “adorkable” heroes. As for YA, Jen is drawn to contemporary works; dramatic, funny, or cringe-worthy romance; and urban fantasy/light sci-fi. She’s especially interested in smart stories that are layered, complex, and unexpected, and she appreciates big, developed worlds. In terms of picture books, she is interested in character-driven projects and smart, exceptional writing. Jennifer also represents illustrators and author-illustrators.

Critique with Jen: You are bidding on a five page critique to be received via email. If you win, please format your manuscript in Times Roman, double spaced with one inch margins.

How do I bid? This auction item has closed

Place your bid in the comment section at the bottom of this blog post by increasing the previous bid by a minimum of $10. Please include information about how I may contact you if you are the winning bidder; If I haven't contacted you immediately following the auction, please reach out to me at ktomsic@gmail.com . Questions can also be posted in the comment section below.

When does this particular auction item close?

**This Auction will close on December 13, 2014** Last bid will be accepted at 11:59PM Mountain Standard Time (MST) 11:59 PM mountain time = 10:59 PM Pacific Time= 12:59am next day Central Time=1:59am next day Eastern Time This auction item has closed

What happens next?

I will contact the winning bidder (as long as you remembered to provide your contact information!). You will make your donation at this donation link and then you will email a copy of your receipt to me at ktomsic@gmail.com Then I will put you in touch with Jen.

What are other items on the Kid Lit for Hait (#KidLitForHaiti) Auction?

To Visit a full list of all the auction items featured on Kid Lit for Haiti: PLEASE CLICK HERE

How do I know when new auction items are posted to this blog:

You can receive emails when new auction items are listed. Simply enter your email address in the upper left corner of this blog where it says "Follow by email". You will only receive an email when a new post is created on this blog.

Want to know more? Here are some of Jen's clients and their books:

Meg Medina
SUNSET COLORA (Candlewick, forthcoming)
YAQUI DELGADO WANTS TO KICK YOUR ASS (Candlewick), *Pura Belpré Award Winner 2014*
THE GIRL WHO COULD SILENCE THE WIND (Candlewick)
TIA ISA WANTS A CAR (Candlewick), Ezra Jack Keats New Writer Award 2012
MILAGROS, GIRL FROM AWAY (Holt)

Eliza Wheeler - Author-Illustrator
LEFT-HANDED FATE by Kate Milford, illustrations (Holt, forthcoming)
TELL ME A TATTOO STORY by Alison McGhee, illustrations (Chronicle, forthcoming)
OUR BABY by Varsha Baja, illustrations (Nancy Paulsen Books/Penguin, forthcoming)
NOT EVEN CODY and CODY AND THE MEEN KIDS by Tricia Springstubb, illustrations (Candlewick, forthcoming)
WHEREVER YOU GO by Pat Zietlow Miller, illustrations (Little, Brown Children's, forthcoming)
INCORRIGIBLE CHILDREN Books IV, V by Maryrose Wood, illustrations (Balzer + Bray/HarperCollins)
THE GRUDGE KEEPER by Mara Rockliff, illustrations (Peachtree)
DOLL BONES by Holly Black, illustrations (Margaret K. McElderry Books/Simon & Schuster)
MISS MAPLE'S SEEDS, author-illustrator (Nancy Paulsen Books/Penguin)

Mike Boldt - Author-Illustrator
I DON'T WANT TO BE A FROG by Dev Petty, illustrations (Doubleday/Random House, forthcoming)
COLORS VERSUS SHAPES (HarperCollins, forthcoming)
TIARA-SAURUS REX by Brianna Caplan Sayres, illustrations (Bloomsbury, forthcoming)
GET ME ANOTHER ONE by Robert Munsch, illustrations (Scholastic Canada)
ODE TO UNDERWEAR by Helaine Becker, illustrations (Scholastic Canada)
LITTLE JACK HORNER, LIVE FROM THE CORNER by Helaine Becker, illustrations (Scholastic Canada)
123 VERSUS ABC (HarperCollins)

Joy Preble
FINDING PARIS (Balzer + Bray/HarperCollins, forthcoming)
THE SWEET DEAD LIFE series (Soho Press)
The DREAMING ANASTASIA trilogy (Sourcebooks)

Kathryn Fitzmaurice
DESTINY, REWRITTEN (HarperCollins)
A DIAMOND IN THE DESERT (Viking/Penguin)
THE YEAR THE SWALLOWS CAME EARLY (HarperCollins)

Crystal Allen
THE LAURA LINE (Balzer + Bray/HarperCollins)
HOW LAMAR'S BAD PRANK WON A BUBBA SIZED TROPHY (Balzer + Bray/HarperCollins)

Barry Wolverton
THE VANISHING ISLAND trilogy (Walden Pond Press/HarperCollins, forthcoming)
NEVERSINK (Walden Pond Press/HarperCollins)

Bob Boyle
ROSIE & REX (HarperCollins)

Lauren Strasnick
THEN YOU WERE GONE (Simon Pulse/S&S)
HER AND ME AND YOU (Simon Pulse/S&S)
NOTHING LIKE YOU (Simon Pulse/S&S)

Denise Doyen
ONCE UPON A TWICE (Random House), *E.B. White Read Aloud Honor*

Samantha Vamos
ALPHABET TRAINS (Charlesbridge, forthcoming)
ALPHABET TRUCKS (Charlesbridge)
THE CAZUELA THAT THE FARM MAIDEN STIRRED (Charlesbridge), *Pura Belpré Illustrator Honor*
BEFORE YOU WERE HERE, MI AMOR (Viking/Penguin)

Brandi Dougherty
RECIPE FOR ADVENTURE Books 5-8 with celebrity chef Giada de Laurentiis (Grosset & Dunlap/Penguin, forthcoming)
THE LITTLEST ELF (Scholastic)
THE LITTLEST CHRISTMAS STAR (Scholastic)
MISS FORTUNE (Scholastic)

Nick James
SKYSHIP ACADEMY trilogy (Flux)

Kim Tomsic

THE ELEPHANTS CAME (Chronicle 2017)

Gripping, Entertaining and Relevant--Yaqui Delgado Wants to Kick Your Ass is a Must Read

Yaqui Delgado Wants to Kick Your Ass by Meg Medina is a riveting story that doesn't let you walk away until the last page is turned. New girl Piddy is the unfortunate target in the cross hairs of high school bully Yaqui. Survival stakes are on the table, so readers can expect raw tension, high school drama, and relatable, real-life ups and downs. You’ll laugh, cry, cringe, mourn and celebrate with each plot turn. Medina writes authentic, believable characters and handles this story of bullying in an absorbing way. She takes us places and forces us to look at things that make some people squirm. But beyond compelling entertainment, Yaqui Delgado Wants to Kick Your Ass is also an important piece of modern literature. It could be shelved next to Laurie Halse Anderson’s Speak and would also be enjoyed by the same readers of Please Ignore Vera Dietz by A. S. King.

We all know bullying is a hot button right now. The subject gets center stage on the talk show circuit, in the news and in schools across America. I applaud leaders for no longer brushing bullying aside as a rite of teenage passage. And I applaud Medina for not handling the topic in a preachy way, but instead as an experience from the point of view of the mark. It’s a book that will make readers think long after the story is over.

Every student in every grade at my daughter’s school had to read Dear Bully as one of their summer reading assignments. Ninth graders at my son’s school read Speak. It won’t be long until teachers and librarians start recommending Medina’s work. In the meantime with such an inviting title, teens will gladly pick up a copy of Yaqui Delgado Wants to Kick Your Ass without ever being told to do so.

Jacket flap

"One morning before school, some girl tells Piddy Sanchez that Yaqui Delgado hates her and wants to kick her ass. Piddy doesn’t even know who Yaqui is, never mind what she’s done to piss her off. Word is that Yaqui thinks Piddy is stuck-up, shakes her stuff when she walks, and isn’t Latin enough with her white skin, good grades, and no accent. And Yaqui isn’t kidding around, so Piddy better watch her back. At first Piddy is more concerned with trying to find out more about the father she’s never met and how to balance honors courses with her weekend job at the neighborhood hair salon. But as the harassment escalates, avoiding Yaqui and her gang starts to take over Piddy’s life. Is there any way for Piddy to survive without closing herself off or running away? In an all-too-realistic novel, Meg Medina portrays a sympathetic heroine who is forced to decide who she really is."

• Hardcover: 272 pages
• Publisher: Candlewick (March 26, 2013)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0763658596
• ISBN-13: 978-0763658595

If you'd like to read more books featuring diversity in YA, please visit the Diversity in YA blog.