For many years I've aspired to get something-anything officially published. This blog not withstanding. Several years ago I was going through a- I wanna write a illustrated children's book that I can't illustrate phase. Somewhat quickly I pumped out two.
I had been searching for these two manuscripts for the past couple years. They were the only copies I had, and I couldn't find them anywhere. Recently I found them as I was cleaning out the spare (black hole) room. I only submitted them to one major publisher (Houghton-Mifflin) through a friend of my sisters whose an editor there. Most of the BIG publishers rarely, if ever, accept unsolicited manuscripts.
Reading over them I realized why they were rejected. Not terrible, but not too good either, although I must say not too shabby for first attempts. The first is a book entitled "Tuesday Morning", in reference to September 11th 2001. It was a few years after the disaster and the book was probably not as relevant, however constantly perusing the children's book sections at stores, I never saw saw any books about it aside from the odd news/fact type book for older kids and teens.
Living in a commuter town relatively close to NYC, we (as a town) lost eleven people that day. Being in law enforcement, I was briefly involved in dealing with the victims families. I was wondering how to write a book for kids about a VERY sensitive subject, especially if the child had lost a parent, relative, or friend. After much consideration, I chose to write a simple poem alongside simple pictures using basic shapes. I actually drew some crappy thumbnail sketches that I passed to an artist friend of mine who rendered some simple, but cool pictures in his computer just as I had imagined them to look. Here now is that story, unfortunately without the pictures. Perhaps one day I'll figure out how to scan and upload pics to this blog.
"Tuesday Morning"- C. Louis Wolfe
Early morning clear blue skies.
Two loud booms as silence dies!
TVs and radio's busy with chatter.
Somethings wrong. What is the matter.
Smoke and sirens. Helping hands.
Tears and confusion throughout the lands!
One falls down, and then another.
Goodbye mother, father, sister, brother.
Many hero's rise and fall.
To help each other, to heed the call!
Broken hearts too high the cost.
So much in this city lost!
Time has passed, and this we know.
Every day our hope will grow.
Kinda crappy. I think it loses something without the illustrations, although they're simple and computer generated, just to give the publisher an idea of how it could look.
The second manuscript came about as I was pulling up my friends driveway and her HUGE great Dane was chasing my car in the pouring rain. She said, "would you look at that Dane in the rain". The proverbial light bulb went off in my head, and shortly there after I had written "Dane in The Rain".
"Dane in The Rain"- C. Louis Wolfe
As morning broke and max woke up, he wondered out loud;
"Where is my pup?"
He was shouting for his Dane, but hearing only his refrain!
So Max decided to begin his search.
High and lo. To and fro!
He climbed all of the stairs without any cares.
Up to the attic Max did go.
Ever fast. never slow.
He looked inside a big old trunk,
and even underneath some junk.
Max looked behind a dusty curtain.
His dogs location still uncertain!
He walked into a spiders web.
Icky and sticky, it stuck to his head!
Soon it was made abundantly clear,
Max's Dane was not here.
So Max descended the stairs.
This time with a few more cares.
Then straight to his room, Max shot with a zoom!
To find no Dane under his bed,
Max was surely filled with dread!
Where could a dog so big have hid?
Under a box?- under a lid?
Should he call 9-1-1? What should he do?
Where could that dog have scampered to?!
Max checked all the closets. Looked under his toys.
Listened for sounds. Checked every noise!
Looking under a pile of clothes,
Max hoped to find his dogs wet nose.
Down the hall Max checked the shower.
It began to grow late in the hour.
Could his dog be hiding under a towel?
Oh no- not there, Max began to scowl.
Hoping that his dog was not lost.
Max would find his Dane at any cost.
Max thought to himself, as he jumped down a vent;
"I'm sure to the basement is where my dog went!"
So down and down Max did slide.
In what became an incredible ride!
Landing on a mattress, which cushioned his fall.
Max got right up, and for his Dane he did call.
Although Max's shouts echoed off the wall,
his missing Dane did not respond at all.
His dog was not here, no not one trace.
Max then decided he was done with this place.
Now up to the kitchen to find his great Dane.
The search for his pup was becoming a pain!
I hope he's OK- I hope he's alright.
This thought gave Max a terrible fright!
Max looked through the cupboards, and under the stove.
he was determined, so onward he strove.
He looked in the fridge, even under some pies.
Max did not miss a spot using both of his eyes.
Max stopped in his tracks, he thought hard and well.
Where could his dog be? He could no longer tell.
But Max would not give up, determined to find,
the greatest of Danes, so loving and kind.
Having checked everywhere that dog could hide,
Max suddenly realized he had not checked outside!
So Max turned the knob, and threw open the door.
Just at that moment it started to pour!
Max stood on the porch and looked all around.
He even made sure that he looked up and down!
Suddenly out in the distance, what did Max see?
Shivering and shaking beneath a small tree.
Max drew closer, as he began to smile.
For there soaking wet was his Dane all the while.
Wow that's pretty bad. Rhyming has been done to death, especially by the master, Seuss! Flow is very important, as the story should be fun to read, and the words should sound good rolling off the tongue. I typed these up pretty much as they were and now can see the glaring grammatical errors, etc.
Hey, it took a few years, but I'm finally published, albeit in cyberspace!
