Public Service Announcement #7

all about collaboration

PSA: Collaboration is everything

The above image is a collaboration with Addy Rivera Sonda who took my little poem and brought it to moving, emotional life with her beautiful art! The outcome is our wish to make a world where we wipe away the tears of children rather than create them.

With both the sketch Addy showed me and her final art, I immediately thought: yes. And when I brought up a Spanish translation, she collaborated with her sister and me on that too for a pair of images in two languages to speak to more people.

It is such an honor when someone welcomes this kind of partnership and so gratifying when the outcome is a connection with a creator you admire, learn from, and stay in touch with as well as a lasting contribution that might open hearts and inspire action.

Addy has illustrated two picture books that are out so far, You Be Grandma and Five Words that are Mine, with another coming in December, Bobby and the Big Valentine! I can’t wait to read all three.

Another PSA: 3 things I’ve learned from collaborating

Collaboration is everything! Don’t you think?

Right now, I’m working with illustrators on picture book projects we hope will fly, one special person on a co-writing project, Julie Zowan Roch for our #ifyouwriteforkidsfightforkids series, my partner on getting our stop motion work into the world, folks in our new collective, Story Sunbirds, other activist-organizers, and honestly, the list goes on and on!

Because not only is collaboration everything, everything is collaboration. Friendship is collaborating. Neighbor-ing is. Domestic life-ing. Social media-ing. Event or meetup-planning. And even the kind of writing that’s a solo venture because of teachers, agents, research advisors, expert readers, critique traders, editors, book designers, marketers, readers(!!!), and all the people who go into making writing sing and then do its thing.

I absolutely love collaborating and how it helps me grow and get to know more about the world. (That said, when it’s challenging, it can be really challenging as we have all probably experienced!)

So here’s what I’ve learned about collaboration that might help:

1. Let go. By letting go, you let the other person bring what only they can from their voice, vision, self. By doing this, they will inevitably surprise you, their creations and ideas delight you. This might look different in different scenarios, but if you can let someone bring what only they can, good stuff will fruit from it.

2. Hold on. This may seem opposite to. #2, but it’s also true. Hold on to your values, what really matters to you whether that’s values around your vision for the project or your other overarching values (principles like ethics, honesty, equity, inclusivity, representation, sensitivity, etc.). Hold onto those things; don’t swish them away if they whisper to you.

3. It’s all about WHO you collaborate with. I’ve discovered that I need to ideally have collaborators who communicate. Because if communication is open, then the way I’m wired, everything is golden no matter what happens. It might be different for you, but for me, transparency and authenticity in collaborating are absolutely paramount.

What’s a collaboration takeaway for you? I want to hear it!

---

Recent collab-ish events

[Photos an Innovation Festival for elementary school students at which I presented To Make with loads of collaboration from high school student volunteers, a wonderful bookseller: Jhoanna of Bel Canto Books, organizers, and the kids who made amazing stuff and helped each other too!]

[And photos from a visit to a local community college—where I used to TA and then teach!—for a panel with picture book author buddies for college students.]

[And finally, photos from an Authors Against Book Bans protest and City Council Meeting in Huntington Beach, CA. You can sign the EveryLibrary petition on this issue right here!]

Collaborating with clients

I’m not just saying it when I pronounce how much I enjoy working with writers on picture book projects for critiques or especially for month-long practitioning stints. I mean it!

It’s undoubtedly rich and rewarding to partner with someone as supporter, fresh perspective, and guide who, while an outsider on the project, nonetheless becomes immensely invested in its story, its vision, and its creator’s unique process. (I’m always inspired too!)

Aside from video calls, emails, and rounds of line notes on drafts, I always try to do something, well, extra. It’s all tailored to that particular writer, but I like to give them something even more tailored, some small, special talisman to inspire and reward the journey.

Here’s a new testimonial I’m honored to share from someone who was referred by an author-illustrator pal. Paulina is amazingly creative, open, spirited, motivated, and a total dream to work with. Thanks to her for trusting me and for this write-up!

"Playful, productive, fun. I’ve wanted to write this for a long time, but didn’t know how to start. Danielle gave me the tools necessary to not even start the book, but to finish it too. Having Danielle as a mentor for a full month was a fantastic experience. She shared some hacks to make my wrtting process easier. Not only did she help me make my story beautiful, but I feel we became colleagues and friends! I was allowed to play with no judgment!!! Just beautiful! I have a finished project and the words needed to sell myself and my book!"

—Paulina Suárez,  illustrator of a number of children's books.

Paulina’s website. And Instagram .

Here’s a PDF with some details about my Picture Book Practitioner service—I’ve got room in my calendar for a client starting in May!

Class announcement with Writer’s Digest University!

I’m thrilled to announce I’m teaching a picture book course through Writer’s Digest University, which starts May 16!

Writing and Revising Your Picture Book: From Concept to Polished Project

In this six-week video series, you can go at your own pace and show up for sessions when you have space. But there are assignments I’ll review weekly to keep participants on track as well as office hours! And, I’ll be giving some feedback on every manuscript turned in after the course is over. :)

Whether you’ve got an idea or a draft, this class will give you the tools you need to proceed from where you are to where you want to go and is designed for both experienced and newly-minted picture book writers (and illustrators!) exploring writing a story in this form.

A huge thank you to Jordan Rosenfeld, an extraordinary teacher (and writer!!) I’ve taken terrific, writing-life-altering classes from over the years for helping me reach out to the folks there!

All the details are here if you’d like to check it out or sign up!

Paid subscriber upgrades

What do you get as a paid subscriber? Aside from supporting me as a writer, I host video Q&A’s two-four times a year. Our first one was full of inspiration all around! If you’re a subscriber who’d like to upgrade before the next, you can join in too! And if you can’t, no worries about that either.

---

Thank you for spending this time with me and for reading! I hope it served you as moments well spent. And please do tell a friend, leave a comment, or stay tuned for the next PSA from Danielle Davis.