Change is in the air for me, Blue Whale Press, and my blog. I have some announcements today and more to come. Where to start?
Well, I’ve been waiting for a big announcement to be made, but I let the cat out of the bag the other day during an interview with Mel Rosenberg. I loved the interview. It was like talking with a longtime friend.
I figured I should lead with the biggest news, which I just did on the above video. After very long consideration, I’ve made the tough decision to step down from my roles as acquisitions editor and art director at Blue Whale Press. It’s time for me to practice a little self-care and step into some new adventures (or maybe I should say ventures????), which time will slowly reveal. I recommended Jackie Kruzie to be my replacement, and I’m happy to share that she is stepping up to the challenge as acquisition editor. To learn more about Jackie at Blue Whale Press, click here. You can also find Jackie’s wish list and temporary submissions page here. I believe Callie will be doing a blog post about the change, which explains why I recommended Jackie for my replacement, and you’ll gain deeper knowledge about Jackie’s excellent credentials and kid lit experience.
It has been an honor for Steve and me to bring Blue Whale Press up to this point. We are extremely proud of our little press, and even more proud of the books we’ve produced and the wonderful authors and illustrators who entrusted their precious work to us. We are grateful for each and every author and illustrator and the relationships we have built with them. Knowing that Blue Whale Press will live on as an imprint of Clear Fork Publishing under the fine guidance of Callie Metler and Jackie Kruzie makes this difficult life choice much more palatable.
I am no longer taking submissions. However, I will continue with art directing and design through May 15, 2021. This will give the last four books that I acquired a good head start before I fully pass the baton to Callie and Jackie. After May 15, I will likely take a sorely needed hiatus. Once I regroup, I will be back better than ever with more surprises for kid lit writers and friends.
As for Blue Whale Press’s future, we would love to see Blue Whale Press continue to grow. After that, our wish for Blue Whale Press is that it will continue to publish quality books that have so much staying power that they have potential to one day be called a classic. I believe Blue Whale Press books will continue to entertain, inspire, and educate readers of all ages. From the beginning, one of our dreams was to launch authors and illustrators into long-lasting careers that they love and are proud of. We continue to want that for Blue Whale Press authors and illustrators. And we’d love to see our vision of many Blue Whale Press books becoming award winners on best-sellers lists.
I can’t say it enough; I’m extremely proud of Blue Whale Press and my accomplishments there. Maybe one day, I’ll write a blog post about it. For now, I will offer my latest photo (although slightly blurred) of my office Blue Whale shelf (top shelf). With four more books in production, I’m honored to share that I played a role in bringing 17 Blue Whale Press books into the world. It has been a beautiful and fulfilling ride. More to come in Callie’s blog post.
There are some changes coming to my blog as well. I’m resurrecting my “All About” blog series (All About Submissions and All About Platforms combined with Marcie Flinchum Atkins’s “We’re All In This Together” series—with Marcie’s permission of course. Thanks, Marcie! And boy do we have some fantastic multi-published authors to tackle our old topics and lots of new ones. We’ll be sharing our wisdom and stories about the world of kid lit writing and publishing. And because of all our combined years of kid lit writing experience, we will be giving the series a new name. KID LIT WRITING WISDOM (Over 170 years of combined experience as authors!) I will introduce the team after one more announcement.
As many of you know authors are always happy when another one of their babies comes into the world. So, I’m thrilled to see Sienna, the Cowgirl Fairy series bring a new story to readers. This time Sienna is having some COWBOY TROUBLE. Here’s the trailer.
Please allow me to introduce the Kid Lit Writing Wisdom team.
All of our team members (except for one) have new picture books coming out or already released this year. We are either members of 2021 Word Birds or Twenty One-derful Picture Books in 2021 or both.
Beth Anderson
Marcie Flinchum Atkins
Kirsti Call
Pippa Chorley
Alayne Kay Christian
Laura Gehl
Vivian Kirkfield
Ellen Leventhal
Michelle Nott
Rosie Pova
Dawn Prochovnic
Rob Sanders
Melissa Stoller
On Sunday, I will fully introduce you to the team with bios and images and links.
IN THE MEANTIME, IF YOU HAVE WRITING OR PUBLISHING QUESTIONS THAT YOU’D LIKE TO SEE THE TEAM ADDRESS, PLEASE LEAVE YOUR QUESTION IN A COMMENT.
Hurray for Blue Whale Press…and hurray for you, Alayne, bravely moving forward in different directions! I can’t wait to hear the details.
And I’m honored to be part of We’re All In This Together again – I believe you are 100% correct – people have lots of questions about writing, agents, publishing, editors, and more. I think it will be a very helpful resource.
Thank you my dear friend. I’m very happy you will be part of the team, and I’m grateful you are my friend and critique partner.
I’ve learned a lot from your posts and writing videos. I hope you enjoy your break. Good luck with your next venture.
Thank you kindly, Ashley. I’m excited that we have the Kid Lit Writing Wisdom series coming up, so I’m hoping the learning will continue to come for you and many other writers.
Looking forward to it!
All the best to you Alayne and I look forward to “seeing” you around in kid lit in some new and exciting way!
Thank you Mary. Keep an eye out ; – )
Congratulations Alayne! Wishing you all the best as you continue with your career. Thank you for all you do for this amazing kid lit community!
Thank you very much!
Congratulations, Alayne. On your new ventures and focus and on the upcoming Sienna book. It looks wonderful!
Congratulations, Jackie. I’m so excited about your new role!!!
Thank you, sweet Lenora!
Best wishes, Alayne, on all these changes and exciting future!
Thank you, so much Tina.
Best wishes to you on this new chapter, Alayne! And, congratulations to Jackie! Happy creating to all!
Thank you so much for all your good wishes.
Exciting new ventures for all. Good luck Alayne and all the best for the future.
Thank you, my dear friend!
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Congratulations, Alayne! Best of luck as you move forward. I’m excited about KID LIT WRITING WISDOM!
Thank you, Cathy. I’m excited about Kid Lit Writing Wisdom, too.
Good luck on your new adventures! Looking forward to Kid Lit Writing Wisdom!!
Thank you, Andrea. We’ve got some great answers of wisdom to the first question coming in a week or two.