You know it's essential these days that authors market their books, and social media is often the most cost-effective way of doing that. Now, Pay with a Tweet lets you utilize the value of your readers' social networks to spread the word about your new books. You create a button for your website or blog  that leads to a free download (say, the first chapter of your new book) that readers get after they Tweet about you or mention you on their Facebook page. So instead of hoping your giveaways create a buzz, now it's guaranteed!

Those of you who are Fightin' Bookworms (members of our CBI Clubhouse online community) know that in the two years since we've launched the site, we've amassed a huge amount of information on writing and publishing children's books. So much information, in fact, that it was getting unwieldy.

So Jon's spent the last two months (days, evenings, weekends, even in his sleep) completely redesigning and improving the site. And as of this week….

The *NEW* CBI Clubhouse is now live at http://cbiclubhouse.com !   

The CBI 1-2-3 System is up and running, bringing you exactly the information you need, exactly when you need it.  No more hunting around through a massive library of information — it's all right there for you.

And, wow, wait until you meet our new Expert Guides!  A Newbery Honoree…multi-million selling authors…a magazine writer with more than 1600 credits….the most famous names in self publishing and book marketing…and on and on.  When we say All-Star, we're not kidding!

And this is just the beginning.  Private critique groups are coming soon. So are advanced and professional levels.  And webinars.  And…   well, we can't give away all our surprises now can we? 

OK, then – go check it out:  http://cbiclubhouse.com

And please let us know what you think. Your feedback helps us make the Clubhouse even better!

Looking for a manageable recommended reading list for all ages of children's books? Four Delaware seventh graders — Benjamin, Brittany, Shayna, and Chrissy — told me about a site they've been using for their summer school ELA requirement: Sofa Adventures in Reading: Reading Suggestions for Kids, Tweens and Teens. A mixture of new books and older titles, the site breaks the list into four age categories and gives a nice summary of each book. Thanks for the tip!

And if you're serious about keeping tabs on the market and who's publishing what, check out the Spring Sneak Previews from children's publishers in a recent Publishers Weekly. Can you spot the next big trend?

There are some amazing tools available today to help you create and edit your work — if you know where to look. In this two-part series we will gather some of the best of the many choices for your review.

D. Offer writes for Write4Kids. Offer manages the popular Facebook emoticons and Facebook smiley website Emoinstaller.com. Emoinstaller can add hundreds of additional Facebook chat emoticons into your Facebook account in just a few clicks.

Word Processing Software

There are still writers who use electric typewriters and even pen-and-paper, but today the word processor has become the norm for most writers. A good word processing program is the first, best tool in the writer’s toolbox, and fortunately there are some great alternatives available. The flexibility and productivity that a word processing program can bring to editing and revising your work is a nothing short of amazing, making it a must-have app for any writer who is serious about their work.

Microsoft Word  (Windows / Mac)  $102 to $120

Still the most popular word processing software on the market since it stole first place from Word Perfect way back in the 1990’s, Microsoft Word is clearly one of the best word processing programs available. Word offers some amazing tools that go way past simple word processing, including the ability to manage longer documents, apply styles and themes to your work, and is even capable of creating a self-updating Table of Contents and a detailed Index.

For most writers, however, most of the features are over-kill and are not really needed. Your publisher doesn’t need you to submit with the degree of formatting that is available in Word, in fact most discourage the practice. Also there is the problem of the price. The standalone version of Word is going for about $102 while you can pick up a copy of the Microsoft Office Home & Students edition for about $120 if you do a little shopping. The Home & Students edition includes the popular Microsoft programs Excel, PowerPoint, and OneNote (we’ll talk about OneNote later), and if you have a use for them the package deal offers more bang for the buck.

You can also test drive the suite for free if you want to see if you think it’s worth the money through the Office website. We’ve included it here because despite the cost, no list of word processing programs would be complete without an entry for Word.

LibreOffice  (Windows / Mac / Linux)  Free

LibreOffice Writer is a free, open-source Office application that offers an entire suite of productivity programs designed to compete directly with Microsoft Office. Just like the Professional version of Office, LibreOffice offers programs that can handle word processing, spreadsheets, presentations, databases, etc.

Writer, the word processor that comes with LibreOffice, is a full-featured program that offers almost everything a writer could want in a word processor. It does take slightly longer to load than maybe we’d like, but if you’re looking for an alternative to Microsoft Office without spending your hard-earned money, then Writer is an excellent choice.

FocusWriter  (Windows/Mac/Linux)  Free

One of the problems many writers have with programs like Word and Writer is that they are cluttered with features that are completely unnecessary. In response, the developers of FocusWriter have developed a distraction-free, word processing program that lets you stay focused on the writing. They do, however, provide you with the core set of features most writers will find handy.

You can set FocusWriter to fill your whole screen so that only thing you can see is the page, with options to change the appearance to one that works for you. The features it does offer have been developed with the writer in mind. You can open a number of documents at once utilizing a tabbed interface that makes the documents available without cluttering up your screen.

One feature unique to FocusWriter is the ability to set and track a daily goal for how much writing you want to accomplish each day. You can define your goal in terms of time spent writing or word count, depending on which works best for you, and FocusWriter will track your progress for you. It works even when you spread your writing out over the course of an entire day, and the software saves your results so you can review your progress against your goal at any time.

Second runner up to the Daily Goal tool in terms of its overall coolness is the ability to add typewriter sounds that give the user the illusion that they are working on an old Royal typewriter, complete with the familiar ding as you pounded each key as well as that wonderful sound that marked each time you hit enter to return the ribbon at the end of each line. The sound-effects are so amazingly realistic that you’ll have a hard time remembering you’re not using a real typewriter. It adds no real value, but it is fun to use.

BONUS APP:

DropBox  (Windows/Mac/Linux)  Free

One way to make sure you have copies of your work for years to come is to make you have a place to back-up your documents, and DropBox is a great cloud-based solution for document storage. A free download installs a DropBox folder that you can access just like any other folder. The DropBox folder is then synced with your DropBox account on the web and your files are stored on the DropBox servers. The free account gets you 2GB worth of document storage with more available for lease each month.

The app is so popular blogs are posting new ways to use DropBox to trick out your desktop, and there is a music player under development. A website login also lets you access your files from anywhere with an internet connection, meaning you can write anywhere without missing a beat.

Internet-based companies continue to appear by the dozens, and many of them are offering excellent tools and apps that can help you create, and edit your work. We’ll continue to keep our eye out for the best, and report back soon.

There are some amazing tools available today to help you create and edit your own work  if you know where to look. In this two-part series we will gather some of the best of the many choices for your review.

D. Offer writes for Write4Kids. Offer manages the popular Facebook emoticons and Facebook smiley website Emoinstaller.com. Emoinstaller can add hundreds of additional Facebook chat emoticons into your Facebook account in just a few clicks.

Even the most successful authors will agree there is a lot more to the writing business than just the writing. Sites like Write4Kids can be a great way to learn about the world of query letters, agents, publishing houses, and proposals. To be successful you’ll have to learn to master this strange, new world.

And yet, the writing is still the main thing – and the main thing is to keep the main thing the main thing.

To help improve your work we’ve searched the internet to bring you some amazing tools that can be had for little or nothing – if you know where to look. In this post, we’ll review some tools to help make researching your work a little easier and discuss Google and Microsoft’s attempts to bring word processing to the Cloud.

Research Tools

Today’s readers are increasingly more sophisticated, and they demand a high level of realism and authenticity in their fiction. Being true to the facts is critical, and errors can derail the credibility of your story with the reader. A careful attention to the details is necessary regardless of the genre  and that means doing the necessary research.

We’ve gathered the best tools available that will make research as painless, and productive as possible. Each has its own strengths and weaknesses and as with any tool it is important you pick the one that fits you best.

Microsoft OneNote  (Windows/Mac)  $64 to $120

Although we’ve mostly eliminated commercial applications from our list, OneNote by Microsoft offers amazing flexibility and a rich set of features, making it simply too good to ignore. Microsoft describes OneNote as “a digital notebook that provides a single place where you can gather all of your notes and information, with the added benefits of powerful search capabilities” and this handy little program easily lives up to the hype.

First it can store almost every type of file imaginable, including electronic copies of your handwritten notes, emails, text messages, photos, music, videos, and even audio recordings from your cell phone’s voice notes function. The search capability includes being able to recognize words within pictures as well as in audio and video files, making finding what you need even easier.

Keeping your notes organized in notebooks can save countless hours looking for lost documents and files. A “Send to OneNote” option is added to your right mouse click buttons that makes sending anything to your notebook incredibly simple. And a feature called a Side Note can open a blank notebook page that can be used to jot down ideas as the come to you, minimizing the interruption to your work flow. You can find OneNote for around $64 or get is as part of Microsoft Office Home & Student addition which will also give you Word, Excel and PowerPoint for less than $120 if you do a little shopping. If you’re on a budget you may want to consider some of the other programs listed, but OneNote is an incredibly powerful program and the clear category leader.

EverNote  (Windows/Mac/Linux)  Free

With many of the features, EverNote is a good alternative to OneNote and the basic version is offered at no charge. A free download gives you a powerful note-taking app for your desktop that integrates easily with a web-based version, allowing you to take notes on any computer and sync them to your home machine later. The basic version offers most users everything they will ever need to easily do research and take notes for later use.

The interface is well designed and makes organization easy and intuitive. Multiple notebooks can be created and you can easily switch between them. EverNote excels at capturing entire webpages for later reference but you can also access a feature that allows you to “clip” the section of the page you want and leave the rest.

EverNote offers a premium edition that costs $5/month to access. It allows you the ability to store Office documents that is not offered in the free edition as well as greater file size. While EverNote continues to add features and is closing in on OneNote in value, if you are going to invest in a program OneNote offers the best value.

Zootool  (Window/Mac/Linux)  Free

Although not designed with research specifically in mind, an internet bookmarking app call Zootool will let users capture and organize information from across the internet. According to its developers: “Zootool is about collecting, organizing and sharing your favorite images, videos, documents, and links from all over the internet.”

Zootool is really more of a social networking site than a digital notebook, but it will allow you to easily capture and store the information you find across the web. For many writers this is all they really need, and sometimes simple is best.

Quick Note  (Windows/Mac/Linux)  Free

If you favor a no-frills approach, Quick Note may be for you. It does require you to use either the Google Chrome or Firefox internet browser, but if you want a quick way to store links to pages and a great way to take notes as you are working Quick Note may be the choice for you. In fact, even if you choose one of the other apps featured, you may want to consider adding Quick Note to your toolbox anyway. The cloud-based app makes taking notes and outlining ideas quick and simple.

Installation also adds a Quick Note link to your right-mouse key that lets you open a new note easily, jot down your idea, and quickly get back to work.

Word Processing – Cloud Edition

A good word processing application is without a doubt the most important tool in a writer’s toolbox. In Part II of this series we’ll examine some desktop applications that will meet the needs of almost every writer. We’ve started by listing two of the major cloud-based apps that are being offered by Google and Microsoft that are worth taking a few moments to review.

Microsoft Word  (Windows/Mac/Linux)  Free

Microsoft is offering a stripped down version of Word as part its recent Web Apps initiative. Known as Office Web, users are given access to versions of the popular Microsoft Office suite of productivity programs with reduced functionality, but which are probably more than adequate for most writers. You will need to sign-up for a free Windows Live account that includes free email and access to a SkyDrive account that is used to store your work. You want to consider the wisdom of keeping all of your work on any single, Cloud-based site however.

Google Docs  (Windows/Mac/Linus)  Free

Like Microsoft, Google is offering a word processor as part of its cloud-based challenge to Microsoft Office called Google Docs. You’ll also need to sign up for a free Google account that will also give you access to a free email account, a calendar for scheduling, a YouTube account, and generally any and all things Google. The features are more than most writers will ever need, and like Web Apps your documents are stored in your account on the cloud. You’ll want to make a back-up of your work though, just-in-case.

That does it for tools to help you with doing research on the web and a quick look at the new cloud-based, web processing options from Google and Microsoft. Next time we’ll take a look at desktop word processing programs – the most important tool in the Writer’s Toolbox.

Teaching Kids the News is a site created by two Canadian educators and a journalist, and designed to make current events and culture understandable for elementary school children. Like an actual newspaper, the site features News, Entertainment, Science, Arts, Sports, Politics, and even and ESL section where some articles are rewritten for readers just learning English. Though the local news tends to be Canadian in nature (but why not have kids in the US read about another country's happenings?), most of the current events articles are global in scope.

Check this site out if you're a teacher or parent. If you're a new writer, study it out for examples of how to make nonfiction subjects accessible to younger readers. And if you're a published nonfiction writer, this is a good example of something you can create that could tie in with your books, but also raise your online profile with teachers and parents who might not otherwise know your name.

Yes, Google is great.  Really, it’s revolutionized the world.  But the web doesn’t end at Google’s doors.  For the writer, there are some really, really terrific research tools just waiting to be discovered.  So, let’s discover ‘em!

Ms. Freckles – Crisply designed site that puts a boatload of info at your fingertips.  It’s particularly strong for writers needing translations or definitions of non-English words. http://www.msfreckles.com/index.php?lang=en

Questia – Offers access to a huge collection of books and journal articles in the humanities and social sciences, plus magazine and newspaper articles, much of which are unavailable elsewhere.  There’s a monthly cost, but you can get a 72 hour free trial to check it out. http://www.questia.com

Yahoo Kids – OK, you’ve heard of Yahoo, but have you checked out this search tool?  From this page, you’ll be able to dig through pop culture in no time.  Need to know what your readers are into?  Here’s where to turn! http://kids.yahoo.com

Complete Planet - Got some serious research to do?  Have a look at Complete Planet, which provides over 70,000+ searchable “deep web”  databases and specialty search engines. http://aip.completeplanet.com/

The new issue of our free e-zine, Children’s Writing Update, is now online. This issue features some great market tips for YA writers, a treasure trove of writing advice from the late Allen Ginsberg, and article on creating great titles for your children’s books and much more.

Go check it out at http://www.getresponse.com/archive/cwupdate/Childrens-Writing-Update-The-Best-Writing-Tips-Ever-3302265.html

Enjoy!

Interested in learning how to write a book and send it to children’s book publishers? Come on over to The CBI Clubhouse for audios, videos, insider writing tips and much, much more!

Reference librarian Lisa R. Bartle has created a resource of immeasurable usefulness to children’s book writers—and anyone else who cares about literature for kids.

The Database of Award-Winning Children’s Literature offers over 4,000 records from 50 major children’s book awards across five English-speaking
countries. Looking for a young adult novel set in the 17th century that’s won an award? A pre-school book with a female, African-American protagonist that’s
been honored? No problem—the database makes such searches easy.

Here’s how this site can help writers: If you’re planning to write a story, visit the database and find honored books that have similar settings, age-group
targets, characters, etc. Then, go to your library or bookstore and examine these
award-wining books closely. You’ll get instant insight into not only what
makes a book well-received, but what makes your particulartype of book a winner.

Go to http://www.dawcl.com and check it out.

And for more information about children’s book writing — including our exclusive writing course, the CBI Challenge — visit the CBI Clubhouse at http://cbiclubhouse.com.

Had an interesting question the other day: Is there an online listing of Canadian children’s book publishers? I did a little research and found it.

First, for U.S Publishers, you can go to http://www.cbcbooks.org/about/ourmembers.aspx .

Now, here’s the Canadian equivalent:

Association of Canadian Publishers Search page

Just select “Children’s Pubs”, search and you’ll have it!
 

Interested in learning how to write a book and send it to children’s book publishers? Come on over to The CBI Clubhouse for audios, videos, insider writing tips and much, much more!