SCBWI Exclusive with... Jill Davis, Editor, Astra Publishing

What was your path to Publishing?

I arrived in New York City in September of 1989, ready for an adventure with no idea what to expect. I’d grown up in the suburbs of Boston, had studied French at UMASS Amherst and for one year in France. Paris was the first city I’d lived in, and New York would be the second. In terms of publishing? Well, my dad was a social studies teacher and had written a history textbook for Houghton Mifflin and one for Scholastic. I knew he had an editor with a red pencil! I watched as he wrote his books longhand on yellow legal pads. So, while I knew I was coming to NYC to work peripherally in the publishing world, I really wasn’t thinking about it. My job? I’d be working for a journalist my dad knew from childhood. 

Dad and Ken Auletta had grown up together in Coney Island, Brooklyn, in the forties and fifties. Ken was a long-time journalist, TV news show host, and author of a long list of successful nonfiction titles and long New Yorker profiles. Ken and his wife, Amanda Urban, a literary agent, had an eight-year-old daughter. Ken asked my mom if I would be interested in coming to NYC as a live-in babysitter and research assistant. I never imagined myself as a “nanny,” but my mom told me that this was not an opportunity to miss. Smart mom. Besides, with a French major, I had no plan for my future. Working for the Auletta’s meant living with the family on the upper East side of Manhattan and doing anything and everything necessary for a second grader whose parents worked long hours. The apartment was a library of floor to ceiling bookcases--a world of its own. When the funny, adorable second grader, Kate, was at school, I did bits of research for Ken’s current project. It was a big book about the three television news anchors. It was called Three Blind Mice. My job was fact checking and minor editorial tasks—spelling and punctuation and the types of things I would later learn copyeditors did. I recall Ken’s boxes of reporters’ notebooks. How striking it was, seeing so many of them. Just realizing the vast number of interviews Ken did for a book, absorbing the idea that he organized interviews and took notes by hand. It left a big impression. It was serious work, and Ken was an absolute pro. 

Every night at bedtime, I read to Kate. There were picture books on a tall bookcase at the foot of her bed. Chiefly I recall loving Shrek by William Steig and also thinking a book called Michael Bird-Boy by Tomie dePaola was a bit preachy—but I remember how Kate related to the message about the environment. Realizing that an eight year old had concerns and ideas was an exciting experience for me. I was actually only about 12 years older than her! Mornings were hectic because we had to get Kate up and to school. Her mom, an extraordinary and super well-known literary agent named Amanda Urban, was often up at 7 AM, reading manuscripts. On the couples’ calendar were nightly book parties and dinners; and as hard as I could, I tried to track it all. 

After a year as a nanny, I wanted to move on and that was the terrific part of the deal. If I spent a year, they would gladly help me find contacts in an area of interest for me. I thought I might like to work for a magazine. I loved magazines and always had! Soon I was granted an interview at Family Circle magazine, where I was hired by an editor named Sylvia Barsotti to do a job called reader mail. This meant I opened all the mail the magazine received and looked for letters saying nice things about articles in the previous issue. I then took them and edited them down for the “Letters from Readers” column that appeared in the front of the magazine. I loved all the people I met at Family Circle and still remember almost all of them to this day. What a wonderful group of folks. That was in 1991-1992. 

So how did I get into children’s books? I dated a freelance magazine designer who told me I should consider working in children’s books. He had a friend who worked at Random House and had heard about a job there. I reworked my resume (helped to be dating a designer) and put together a book of tear sheets that included all my reader mail columns--and everything else I could brag about from my two years at the magazine. I interviewed for a position as an assistant editor at Crown Books for Young Readers working for Simon Boughton. At Family Circle, I had started writing a lot of funny parodies of the articles we worked on and especially ones about current events—and my silly streak and penchant for ridiculous rhyme usurped any journalistic aspirations. Another sign I wasn’t going to be a magazine editor was that I spent all my time at Family Circle visiting my friends in the test kitchen, making pillows in the crafts closet, sneaking around the makeup department looking for samples, and entertaining people. I guess this is why my boyfriend suggested kids’ books. 

My interview with Simon Boughton felt like being home. Simon spoke a language I understood and he appreciated my tear sheets! It was a terrific match, and I was lucky. Simon’s list at Crown was largely nonfiction picture books about natural history, so nonfiction became my entry point in children’s books, and one I have always appreciated. Simon was a brilliant first boss and if that wasn’t enough--the cast of editors and designers and publishers and copyeditors and production folks and marketing folks at Random House were legends. As a company, Random House in the nineties was an absolute treasure trove for learning the business and the craft; meeting and working with authors and illustrators face to face; and embarking on the journey I’d continue for the rest of my career.

What elements does a manuscript need to have to make you want to publish it?

For picture books, the voice has to feel crucial to children on some truly meaningful way. When I read texts or dummies, I try to turn my heart and my brain back to about age four or five years old when I was in love with Little Bear and Madeline. I try and feel how the words are going to land when kids hear them spoken. I try and explore what really matters to me as I read. Funny? Silly? Scary? Weird? Yes, all of these. For middle grade, the same, but I try to go back to my fourth-grade self who inhaled From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E Frankweiler, Blubber and Are You There God, It’s Me, Margaret?, The Pushcart War, and A Wrinkle in Time.

Hare are a list of questions to ask your younger self:

-Does the first line (or paragraph) grab me and make me have to keep going?

-Is there a story here from the first sentence?

-Do I care about it?

-Can I describe the story in a way that excites other people or pets?

-What does this character or story have to do with me?

-Or how is it completely different from everything I know?

-Is there a character here I connect with in an emotional way?

-Does this author’s voice make me curious about who they are as a person and how they came to invent this story?

-What are some of the hooks of the story? Can I imagine what time of year I might buy it or for what occasion? Or is it perennial—perfect anytime of the year--for bedtime, or as a gift, or for growing pains and basic curiosity? Is it a read aloud for lap-time with grandma or perfect for sharing at circle time?

-Do I connect with these illustrations?

-Are the expressions in the illustrations jumping out at me in a way that makes me feel a particular emotion? Are they easy or hard to interpret? Are they FUN? Serious? Accessible? This is for both picture books and graphic novels.

-If the illustrations are sophisticated, do I find them curious and interesting? Do I see something that excites me or makes me think or feel differently about something or someone than I did before?

What’s on your Manuscript Wish list?

A picture book or chapter book series from the point of view of a child whose mom works as a manicurist. Maybe it has something in common with Kim’s Convenience. A modern take on JAMBERRY—something alive with rhythm and rhyme.

As a big fan of William Steig and James Marshall (like most!) it would be fun to find a picture book voice that has just the right balance of clever and funny and mysterious, but who is not afraid to use some well-chosen bigger words.

I would love a picture book series featuring nature and discoveries—both with good information and a great voice. Perhaps even character driven. I am eager to find a project that makes nature feel as exciting as the screens we watch all day. I am always looking for character-based stories with stand-out characters and potential for follow ups.

What tips do you have for Writers who are querying their work?

Please understand that almost none of us (editorial people) have great systems for getting back to agents and authors. A few do, but I am not one of them. The only thing that works for me is continual nudging or else a competitive bidding situation. Don’t feel shy about nudging unless the editor tells you to stop. And do not take our lateness personally. I can’t begin to count the number of submissions I have, and since queries are sent with the push of a button, there is nothing we can do to control the volume. I’ve learned to accept it. One of my favorite publishers, Regina Hayes always said: “We just have to learn to live with guilt.” And believe me, we do feel terrible about not being able to get back to everyone, but we are always working on our current lists, and the books we are creating have to come before everything else. 

A query letter should be short and sweet, but if you can add a short paragraph that feels like an elevator pitch (with hooks!) and realistic comps, that is always helpful. Also, before sending it in, read your work out loud to a critical audience whose feedback you respect—and revise based on what you learn about how well your pacing and page turns work.

SCBWI premium members can query Jill during the month of May at [email protected]