Writing Mid-Grades

brainstrains

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I wrote this novel many years back. It's a mid-grade, I guess, under 40,000 words.

Everyone who read it when I first wrote it loved it. But I had some doubts so I put it away.

I just pulled it out and starting reading it. Strangely, I found myself laughing my head off (ok, enough patting myself on the back, but I amazed myself!)

However, I am not sure if there's a market for it. Where a million catastrophic things usually happen to characters in kiddie books, NOTHING happens to the heroine. It's mainly just her quirky observations on life and how unfair it can be. The major plot is that there's a dance and she can't find a date. Probably pretty boring and overdone by today's standards.

Anyone have any thoughts on this? Are there any major do's and don'ts of writing mid-grades that I should be aware of?

BT
 

Katiba

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I think there are a lot of MG books that don't have a whole lot happening. The Star Sisterz books, for example, or Rachel Vail's friendship ring series. (I read a lot more YAs than MGs, so sorry I don't have some more well-known examples.) I think the key is that the events have to seem catastrophic to the heroine, even if someone else (even someone her own age) would think they were no big deal. After all, if there's nothing at stake, then why would anyone read the story? That goes for every genre, from picture book through adult.

It sounds like there *is* something at stake in your book. If your heroine would be devastated, mortified or miserable if she doesn't find a date, then, well, there's your story. And I think that could appeal to a lot of pre-teens, who often feel like concerns that are absolutely vital to them are brushed off by other people. (At least I felt that way when I was a pre-teen.)
 

stormie

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If you really feel good about this manuscript (and under 40,000 wds, by the way, is okay), then start getting a query letter written and get it out there. I have to agree with Katiba. It sounds like you do have conflict--internal conflict. A good way to see if your story flows, has a problem, has conflict, has resolution, is to write a short--one page, single space, for MG's--synopsis. If you can do that, then you have a story. One time, after I finished one of my mss., I did just that. Couldn't write the synopsis for anything. Realized the story went nowhere. So it sits in a file, waiting for me to rewrite it or keep it away from editors!
 

brainstrains

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Thank you, friends!

That's very helpful! I'm going to throw together a query and synopsis right now.

BT
 

stormie

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brainstrains said:
Thank you, friends!

That's very helpful! I'm going to throw together a query and synopsis right now.

BT

You're welcome. One thing: after you've written the query and synopsis (remember, not all editors need a synopsis, it's more for you), set the query aside for a few days and then take a second look and revise.

Good luck!
 

Inspired

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I'd give it a shot, too. You may get responses that validate the feeling that you need to add more conflict, or you may just find a publisher who loves it. Either way, you'll get an idea if it's going to work or not.

FWIW, I recently wrote a short story that I thought was pretty good. Another children's writer told me that my MC was pretty much reacting, not acting. And, that's not generally picked up by publishers these days. Not to say it couldn't be, but it would be the exception to the rule.

So, I looked at it carefully, and did decide to add the character's action at a pivotal point in the story. I think it really helped the whole story out. It made my character come to life and face her internal conflict with an external action. (Well . . . more or less . . but you get the idea.)

Anyway - it's something to consider.
 

brainstrains

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FWIW, I recently wrote a short story that I thought was pretty good. Another children's writer told me that my MC was pretty much reacting, not acting. And, that's not generally picked up by publishers these days. Not to say it couldn't be, but it would be the exception to the rule.

Thanks, Inspired. That gives me a lot to think about! I think my character does react to an awful lot.

BT
 

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I think there's a lot to be said for reacting, too. For me, it seemed natural to have my character react. I know they're looking for more proactive MCs these days, but part of a kid's life is reacting. Especially if that is their personality.

Think about this. In most good books (especially in kids' books), the MC changes by the end of the story. Could your MC show that change through some action? Could part of your MCs change be taking a more active role in his or her life?

You may end up doing a lot of revision, but it's worth some thought.
 

brainstrains

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Inspired, I read over my ms again and a lot of the MC thoughts and actions are reactive. But toward the end, she is incised to become more proactive. I agree that it's more interesting...and real... to have that gradual change.

Everyone else in the school is growing up, interested in the opposite sex, no longer interested in "kid stuff", but she is the same. She tries to ignore it, she tries to drag them back with her, but in the end, she becomes more adult. Actually, it's very much a Don Quijote thing-- She ends up being more like her "mature" friend, and her friend ends up actually being more like her, and they see that they do have a lot in common.

As I was reading it over, though, my main concern was not that I didn't develop the characters enough or that it wasn't believable...I still think that the whole darn thing is just so prosaic. Sure, it's funny and told in a unique way, but the subject matter?? In my day, it was all "Blubber" and "Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing"...novels that I could relate to because they are set at school. Now it seems like most juvenile fiction is about other times, other places. I am confused whether publishers would still be interested in a story set in a boring old school, and not on a spaceship or the western frontier in the 1800s!

Any ideas?
 

Katiba

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Does your narrator's voice have a 'chick lit for (young) teens' feel to it? Think Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants. I know the girls in that are slightly older than your main character, but I've definitely seen books advertised as being in the same vein but with younger characters, the Callendar Cousins, for example. (I haven't read it but it's described as 'chick lit lite' and I think the heroines in that are 12.) If so, I think these books are very popular right now and you would have a good chance of pubishing it.

Another suggestion might be to alter a few elements to give it a more unusual twist. The Star Sisterz books I mentioned above do this; they are about ordinary girls who each receive an extraordinary message that causes each girl to change her life. I actually wouldn't recommend doing this because that's the element of the Star Sisterz that I thought didn't work - it felt very tacked on - but obviously it worked for the publishers.

If you'd like, I'd be happy to read the manuscript and give you my general impressions on the book. I'm not an agent or an editor, but sometimes an outside opinion can help! Send me a PM if you're interested.
 

Inspired

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Have you read Olive's Ocean (Kevin Henkes)? I just read it about a month ago, and I think it fits the ideas you've mentioned about your piece. It's contemporary, not strange or unusual. The MC does a lot of reacting, but realizes new things about herself and life by the end. Check it out. It won't take you too long to get through the book.
 

brainstrains

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Hi everyone,

I wanted to thank Katiba and Inspired for your book recommendations...I've read them and they helped me to see that maybe my work will sell, even if it doesn't contain anything unusual.

I queried three agents and all three requested my manuscript. So I guess there must be a market for that stuff! And they'll be able to tell me whether or not mine has any potential!

Thanks again!
 

Inspired

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Awesome! I can't wait to hear about your success with publishing!