Birth Stories for Books: NO MORE NOISY NIGHTS (and other books) by Holly L. Niner

I can't think of a better way to kick off a new year for my blog than to resume the Birth Stories for Books series: Posts about paths to publication from published authors and illustrators.

Today's post rings especially true for me, because, like Holly L. Niner, I love words, and books have always been a part of my life. I can also relate to Holly's experience of pushing past rejection. So, what does Holly have to say?

Rejections Be Damned! The Words Are Calling…

by Holly L. Niner

If a word cloud hung over my head it would include these words: 

Daughter, sister, wife, mother, grandmother, aunt, friend, speech therapist, writer, author, cook, baker, reader, good listener, left-handed, happy, strong-willed, smart, baby boomer, Caucasian of mixed heritage, cat lover… I’ll stop there.  You get the point. This word cloud would be in the shape of a heart because-

I LOVE WORDS! I always have.

Books have always been a part of my life.  In our home there are books in every room, even the bathroom.  I have memories of my parents reading to me.  Saturdays meant a trip to the library.  In elementary school we could check out 3 books each week.  That was not enough! So the librarian suggested a friend and I pick our books out together and trade during the week!  Books were such a part of my life that my mother even made me books for a birthday cake. 

And yet, by education I am not a writer, but a speech language pathologist.  I’ve spent my career working in the adult population. While that is not writing, it does involve words and the power and importance of communication.

But what about writing?  How did that happen?

When I had children I stayed home for a number of years and I was immersed in the glorious world of picture books and chapter books.  I watched my children pour over pictures, fall in love with books and ask amazing questions as we read books. The desire to write something children would love bubbled to the surface when my mother suggested a correspondence writing course.

I enjoyed the course, learned a lot about writing and a little about the business of writing.  Upon graduating, I was sure I would soon be published.  I was wrong!  In those days, the 1990s, there were many publishers open to submissions.  You would send your manuscript with a self-addressed stamped envelope.  And then you would wait…usually many months, for the form letter rejection.  I wasn’t prepared for the rejections. 

Some big life changes happened and I stopped writing.  But years later I returned to it because I missed weaving words into stories.  This time I learned more about the business of publishing. With that understanding, the rejections did not hurt quite as much.  I learned the difference between stories that are right for a magazine vs a picture book. I joined a critique group and worked on the craft of writing.  The rejections continued to pour in, but now they might have a word of encouragement written in the margin.

My first success was in the magazine market.  Then in 2004 Albert Whitman published Mr. Worry: A story About OCD.  My son has OCD and, at the time, I could not find a picture book to explain it to him or his sister. That manuscript found a home fairly quickly because Albert Whitman publishes books about children's issues. I Can't Stop: A Story About Tourette Syndrome (2005) came about because I had a relationship with Albert Whitman and they were looking for a book on the subject.

Success!

And yet the rejections continued to pile up.

In 2008 I’d been working on two manuscripts. The Day I Ran Away, grew from an America’s Funniest Home Video clip where a little boy, standing in his yard, asked,  how can I run away, when I’m not allowed to cross the street. Like all ideas, it tumbled around in my mind until it became a story.  This one all in dialogue, where my heroine recounts the day’s adventures while Dad tucks her in at night.  After critique group edits, it began the lonely unsuccessful trips back and forth to editors.

At the same time No More Noisy Nights was also making the rounds. The idea came from a 1st-3rd grade writing prompt book.  The prompt: write a letter to the monster under your bed.  Jackson, a genteel mole, appeared and he moved into a house that already had a ghost in the attic, a boogey monster in the basement and a pixie in the piano.  Their nighttime activities kept Jackson awake, but he found a way to help them occupy their nighttime hours and in the process made some new friends.

Unfortunately, even with two picture books published by a well-known publisher, these manuscripts weren’t finding a home. 

Discouraged, I asked a published writing friend for advice. She suggested I contact Shari Dash Greenspan at Flashlight Press.  And so in September of 2008 a dialogue with Shari began.  A different manuscript was sent and rejected.  Sigh.  But in October of 2009 she requested a story I mentioned in 2008. We tweaked and discussed it in emails and finally it was under contract in 2012!!  That story, No More Noisy Nights, was released in the fall of 2017.  During our emails about it, The Day I Ran Away was mentioned. Shari asked to see it in 2012. It was under contract in 2014 and released in April of 2017.

Since then? Well, the rejections continue…

At school visits I show students a LONG scroll listing the 101 (and counting) finished stories; the four book and 20 magazine titles are highlighted. I show them a folder of well over 100 rejection letters. I tell them that’s ok. Each story I write makes me a better writer and the rejections show I’m still pursuing my dream!

While there are the instant success stories, most writers work hard at their craft for years before publication. That was how it was with me. Full of ups and downs, starts and stops, rejections and acceptances. That is still how the writing life goes.

But I continue. For me, the words call. They ask me to collect them and connect them. Together they are more. Just like each of us is more than our collection of words and more still, when we connect with others.

THANK YOU so much, Holly, for inspiring us with your words about your path to publication. I've enjoyed connecting with you and learning about you and your books ... and all because of our shared love of words!

************************

Holly Niner is a speech therapist, book lover and children’s author. Her books include, No More Noisy Nights (Flashlight Press) & The Day I Ran Away (Flashlight Press).  Both received a Gold Mom’s Choice award and were nominated for Mississippi Magnolia Children’s Choice award 2019. No More Noisy Nights was a scholastic Book Club selection and featured on Storyline Online.  Mr. Worry: A Story about OCD (Albert Whitman) received the 2005 IBBY Outstanding Books for Young People with Disabilities Award, and I Can’t Stop: A Story about Tourette Syndrome (Albert Whitman) which was the winner of the 2006 Oppenheim Toy Portfolio Award and a 2005 Bank Street College of Education Best Book. She lives in Fort Wayne, Indiana with her husband, in a home with books on bookshelves, on tables, in boxes, even in the bathroom! Her now grown children, were always able to talk her into buying them a book.  Find her at hollyniner.com. Follow her on Facebook and Twitter. 

Critique and Rejection

I visited a 4th grade classroom yesterday, and one of the questions the teacher asked me to respond to is what it's like to face critique and rejection over and over, again, and again, and again.   My answer:  I look at critique and rejection as an opportunity. My published works would not be published works, if it were not for both elements being a big part of my writing life.

Case in point: The Nest Where I Like to Rest was honored as an Oregon Book Awards Finalist in 2011.  It's a 250 word picture book. In typed, manuscript form, it is only three pages long. Here is the file folder that stores the many, many revisions to this one story:




On the left is an example of some notes I took during a critique session back when this story was entitled, "The House I Made Out of Hay" (one of many titles along the way).

This story went through dozens of revisions and iterations before it was selected for publication (Newsflash: it went through several additional revisions even after I received a contract for publication).  The turning point for this story was when I received a professional critique from Kirby Larson at a writing conference. Kirby's feedback was very positive, and yet full of suggestions. She liked the humorous aspect of the story, and encouraged me to lean into that more heavily.  She praised my ability to rhyme, but questioned the purpose of some of the characters that were included in the story at the time.  She challenged me to take a good story and make it better.  I accepted the challenge, and made some significant changes to my story.  Those changes led to the eventual final draft that I submitted to publishers. And then the real fun began!

Here is as sampling of the rejection letters I received for this manuscript once I started submitting it:


During yesterday's author visit, a student asked me to read the worst rejection letter I'd ever received for this story.  I explained that for me, the two worst kinds of rejection letters to receive are 1) standardized form letters with nothing personalized about my actual story, (which means I have no morsels of wisdom to work with to make the story better), and 2) a personalized letter where the editor praises my story, but indicates that the particular manuscript is not right for their publishing house. After I left the school visit, I paged through my files and re-read the most disappointing rejection letter I ever received for this story.  It was from Steve Geck, who at the time was Executive Editor at Greenwillow Books, (a publishing house near the top of the list of prospects I had identified as a good fit for my work).

The letter itself was thoughtful and complimentary ( " . . . It's a beautiful, playful text . . .") What made the correspondence so disappointing (and yet exciting at the same time) was that Mr. Geck enclosed my original manuscript along with a retyped version of my manuscript (where some editorial changes had been inserted).  On the retyped version of the manuscript was this sticky note to "Virginia" (the Vice President and Publisher of Greenwillow) pictured below:  

I did some research and determined that "Paul Z." was likely Paul O. Zelinsky (an amazing illustrator who has published several books with Greenwillow). Sigh.  My story made it all the way to the publisher's desk, with an editor's suggestion about who might be a good illustrator for the project.  But alas, the decision was, ". . .  In the end, however, I'm afraid I didn't feel we would be able to publish this successfully . . ."  

The truth of the matter, however, is that Mr. Geck's letter helped boost my confidence.  It motivated me to continue sending the manuscript to other publishers.  In the end, it did get selected for publication and later as a Finalist for a meaningful award. Not to mention that it continues to be one of my favorites to read aloud at public appearances--with or without the
chicken hat!

I am beginning to catch my breath from the demands of my new books that came out in January, so that means I will once again start submitting my ready work to targeted publishers.  Rest assured that I will strongly consider Greenwillow (and Mr. Geck's current publishing house, Sourcebooks), as I plan my marketing strategy for my new publication-ready material.  Stay tuned!