Today I speak with Wendy McClure, a woman who wears many hats. Specifically, that of a columnist (for Bust magazine), published author (I'm Not the New Me, published this year by Riverhead press) and editor (for children's publisher Albert Whitman & Associates.)

What's the biggest misconception people have about your job as a children's book editor?
That my opinions as an editor somehow represent the opinions of the entire children's book publishing industry--I think it comes from the wrongly held belief that children's books are just all the same somehow, and that there aren't dozens of different genres just like in the grown-up book world. A lot of folks always come to me with their ideas for children's books and asking me what I think, though it's incredibly hard to discuss just an idea. I think sometimes people want me tell them whether or not they should embark on a children's book writing career, and I can't do that!

How do you come up with new ideas for your Bust column?
There's usually some kind of very personal origin to them--something in the current pop culture that gets under my skin somehow, whether it's a guilty pleasure, a pet peeve, or just a celebrity who makes me want to poke my eye out. I'll have conversations with friends where I try to articulate what I'm obsessed with or bothered by, and then at some point I'll just write and free-associate on a number of topics and see where that takes me.

Do you think that starting a blog can help a writer's career, or should it be a little more organic than that, than strictly a way to promote oneself?
Blogging as much of a social activity as a writerly one and I think having a weblog (and reading others' blogs) often serves the same purpose as a social network--you can make contacts, make your presence known, get a sense of what people are interested in, and take part in all kinds of discussions. But like a lot of social stuff, it's a tricky enterprise--you need to stick with it, for one thing (i.e., update your blog regularly) and you won't get much out of blogging unless you really enjoy yourself. So I think mileage will vary depending on personal temperament. I don't think having a blog is essential to a writing career yet, so if a writer doesn't care to keep one I don't think his or her career will suffer.

Can you tell us how you got in touch with your agent and wrote the pitch/proposal for "I'm Not the New Me"?
It was a little backwards... a couple of editors who had seen the 1974 Weight Watchers cards emailed me to say they liked my writing. As it happened, I was flirting with the idea of doing a book, and I asked them if they'd recommend a couple of agents. Once I'd had a few agent names, I Googled them to see what they'd sold before, and I sent a rough proposal to the agents who seemed like the best fit for me. My first choice was Betsy Lerner, who was at Gernert at the time--she'd also written a memoir about body image, and, like me, had a background as a poet. I sent her some journal entries and some unpublished material and about a week later she called my home voice mail while I was at work... just a few hours before the power grid went down on the East Coast. So I came home to discover I'd gotten this incredibly important voice mail and I couldn't call her back for days and days! But finally we did get to talk and she brought in another agent at Gernert, Erin Hosier, and together we put together a proposal. We first spoke in August 2003 and I worked through the fall to write some beginning pages, and we sent it out and sold it in January 2004.

Do you have any advice to writers about writing honestly about personal matters (to be shared or published)?
Give yourself a couple of days before you share or publish something!