Novel workshop at Highlights Foundation this summer

Darcy Pattison has taught her Novel Revision retreat locally, and thought we might be interested in her Master Class in Novel Writing that she's teaching at Highlights Foundation this summer.

Writing teacher Darcy Pattison will be teaching a Master Class in Novel Writing at the Highlights Foundation on June 14-16, 2016.

Pattison says, “In every craft, the top artists say that they are constantly learning new things, even after they’ve achieved a level of success. Yet in writing, it seems we find fewer ways to do this than in other crafts. I want to challenge successful writers to try something different, to see a technique a different way, to stretch their craft, to go home excited and hopeful that they can at last try the novel they scares them silly, scares them because they worry that they can’t do the story justice.”

More on what Darcy Pattison says about the retreat here:

http://eepurl.com/bXfWbH

The retreat will be held at the Highlights Foundation retreat center outside Honesdale, PA. Prices include workshops, housing, food, and transportation to and from local airports. Learn more here: http://www.highlightsfoundation.org/workshops/master-class-in-novel-writing-2016/

Save the date!

WEEKEND ON THE WATER!

It’s not too soon to SAVE THE DATE for this year’s writing retreat! 

Mark your calendars, folks, for October 21-23, 2016. 

With no local conference this year, there is even more reason to  take advantage 

of the terrific learning and camaraderie that happen during this amazing weekend.

Bonny Becker picture book workshop May 14

How to Write a Successful Picture Book

Whidbey Island Writers Association (WIWA) is offering an all day picture book workshop led by best-selling author Bonny Becker.

In the workshop, you’ll learn:

- what makes a good picture book idea

- specific steps to creating a good story, including a beginning that grabs editors, a middle that makes sense and holds the reader, and a memorable ending

- how to work with illustrators in mind

- how to submit your work

Then create your own picture book. Come with a picture book already in mind or develop an original idea in class. We’ll work on our stories in class and then you’ll create your own “dummy”—a mockup of your story that will show you how to work with illustrations and the specific page and length requirements of picture books (Supplies provided.)

Bonny Becker is the author of the best-selling Mouse and Bear picture books, including “A Visitor for Bear,” winner of the E.B. White Read Aloud Award and Amazon’s Picture Book of the Year, “The Christmas Crocodile,” illustrated by Caldecott winner David Small and others—in all 14 books for children. As a teacher and freelance editor, she has worked with hundreds of picture books.

Saturday, May 14, 2016

9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

5611 Bayview Road

Langley, WA 98260

Cost: $200; discount $185 for WIWA members

Website: www.nila.edu

360-331-0307; info@nila.edu

Northern Network MAY meeting

SCBWI Northern Network
Presents

A Mini-Critique Workshop

Last month we discussed the workings of a critique group. This month we’ll put what we learned into practice. Bring a picture book manuscript (around 500 words), three pages of a novel, or a few illustrations for us to share. We’ll practice giving (and receiving) good feedback.

Date: Wednesday, May 4, 2016

Time: 7:00 p.m.

Location: The Bellingham Barnes & Noble (4099 Meridian Street)

Questions? Call Rebecca Van Slyke at (360) 354-5797, or email at rebecca_vanslyke@hotmail.com [That’s rebecca(underscore)vanslyke(at)hotmail(dot)com.]

SCBWI presents: STUDENT MEMBERSHIPS!!!

Know any students who are budding artists and writers and storytellers? Well, now they can be in the SCBWI loop, with the unveiling of a new Student Membership. This is a Big. Deal. So, do unto others as you would have done to you: Pass it on!!

Click HERE for all the details.

Deadline Extended for Workshop Presenters!

We have received some terrific workshop proposals, but we still haven’t heard from YOU!
We want YOUR GREAT IDEAS for our next year of spectacular monthly meetings and April 2017 conference presentations. And because we know how busy you all are, note our EXTENDED DEADLINE!

The nitty-gritty: 

Workshops may address topics relevant to potential attendees that include (but aren’t limited to) the craft of writing and illustrating for children, book marketing, or the latest industry trends. Monthly meetings are open for areas of professional expertise and niche interests relevant to children's books and creating them. Share your talents with us all!

Click here for your application and submit your idea (or give somebody a nudge) TODAY!

SCBWI Summer Conference: Registration open now!

As if our local weather hasn't given us visions of a long, hot summer (whee!), then here's another reason to get the sunscreen out:

SCBWI's Annual Summer Conference in Los Angeles just opened its registration! For all the amazing, chock-full-of-goodness details, CLICK HERE.

Summer's almost here! Make it one to remember! Don't miss out!

SPECIAL MENTION: Please take a moment to appreciate and give a high-five to Liz Wong, the artist responsible for the beautiful conference artwork! Woo-hoo, Liz!!!

Three Amigas WEDNESDAY NIGHT!!

They're . . .

Faster than a bullet point!  

More powerful than a character's motive! 

Able to leap tall tales in a single read! 

 

Our April event is upon us! Come learn from a trio of Super Experts who will help us look at our crafts and stories from different angles. We are so lucky to have Caroline Abbey, Joy Chu, and Mary Kate Castellani spend some time with us this week. It's going to be a fantastic evening of words and deeds, no doubt heroic for us all!

 

SCBWI APRIL EVENT – You’re Invited!

The Amazing Amigas of April Arrive Anon!

 

Wednesday, April 20:

Monthly Meeting with Special Guests (above)!

Seattle Pacific University, Demaray Hall, 6:15–9pm

Free for Passport Holders. $10 for SCBWI members. $15 for non-members.

Keep It Simple Art Showcase begins at 6:15 pm. 

Meeting starts at 7pm (get there early for snacks and chat), till 9pm.

Inside an Editor's Brain

Random House Children's Books Senior Editor Caroline Abbey and Bloomsbury Children's Books Senior Editor Mary Kate Castellani become our “Gray Matter Guides,” giving us a behind-the-scenes tour through all the different ways editors think about a project. The tour winds up in YOUR brain and how you should be using it for your writing. You’ve never had a tour like this!

Putting on a Curator Hat

Art director, graphic designer, and educator Joy Chu will talk about how curating the illustration exhibit Writing With Pictures at The Museum at the California Center for the Arts, Escondido, was much like organizing a picture book – a really BIG picture book. With rooms. Exploring several case studies of the myriad ways artists are influenced, Joy will inspire your creative flame!

Keep It Simple Art Showcase

Ooh and ahh over the amazing artwork of 40 illustrators from our chapter, showcased informally in the lobby of Demaray Hall prior to our meeting, beginning at 6:15pm. This showcase is closed to additional submissions. Thanks to those illustrators who grabbed this opportunity early!

Thursday, April 21:

One-On-One Consultations

Library Seminar Room of Ames Library, Seattle Pacific University campus.

Those writers and illustrators with scheduled consults should have their confirmation emails and parking passes. Send us a frantic email if you don’t.

Master Classes – still some seats available!

1) Writers’ Master Class: Caroline Abbey & Mary Kate Castellani

3:00 – 5:00 p.m., in Demaray 150, Seattle Pacific University campus.

First hour: Finding A Hook with Caroline Abbey

What’s a hook? Why are they important? How are they used to pitch books to sales and marketing teams? We'll look at examples and brainstorm to come up with hooks of our own.

Second hour: Making Your Writing Sing with Mary Kate Castellani

Okay, so you’ve hooked your reader. Now how do you hold their interest? Mary Kate Castellani will share examples of writing that made her stand up and take notice and help you find ways to make your writing sing.

2) Illustrators’ Master Class with Joy Chu

3:00 – 5:00 p.m., in Demaray 358, Seattle Pacific University campus.

Using filmic storytelling as our model, we’ll create multi-panel storyboards to consider pacing, movement, framing and action. Stick figures are fine because this is about sketching out a good story from start to finish! Flex your drawing chops, tell stories, figure out what works and have fun!

To sign up for a Master Class:

1. If you are a Passport Holder, click the link in your email confirmation, log in and click the Modify button to add the class.

2. Write a check to SCBWI WWA in the appropriate amount (see below) and bring it with you to Wednesday’s meeting or to the Master Class on Thursday OR mail it (immediately!) to:

SCBWI WWA, PO Box 30505, Seattle, WA. 98113

The non-refundable fee is $80 for non-members and $60 for SCBWI members. Include a note about which class you are signing up for.

We can’t wait to see you Wednesday, April 20! 

Many thanks,

Dana Arnim and Dana Sullivan

Co-Regional Advisors, SCBWI Western Washington

Kid Lit Drink Night TONIGHT

Kidlit Drink Night is TONIGHT at the Issaquah Brewhouse, 35 W Sunset Way, Issaquah from 6:30 – 9:30. It’s the suburbs – lots of free parking and cheap beer, soft drinks, and wine. Great fish and chips (it’s right next to the salmon hatchery, one does wonder…)!

 

Join us to talk shop and meet new writing and illustrating friends. Ask for the SCBWI table. (Also under Lois’s name if the Squigby acronym is confusing people again.)

BE THERE OR BE SQUARE (OR SOME OTHER SHAPE)!

Inside Story!

Caws for Celebration

May 3 will be a night of fowl play as 23 local children’s book authors & illustrators get two minutes each to share the inside poop on their latest books!

About Inside Story

Inside Story has grown to a much-anticipated and warmly attended event. We hold this celebration twice a year so booksellers, librarians, teachers, and other children's book lovers can hear the "stories behind the stories" of new and upcoming books by our local authors and illustrators. We look forward to the chance to celebrate your book in the very near future!

May Inside Story

WHEN: Tuesday, May 3, 7–9pm

WHERE: University Book Store, Bellevue

990 102nd Ave. NE - Bellevue, WA

Our lineup includes:

Ben Clanton

Brianna Caplan Sayres

Carole Estby Dagg

Clare Hodgson Meeker

Corey R. Tabor

Curtis Manley

Dana Arnim

Dana Sullivan

Dori Hillestad Butler

Jaime Temairik

Jeanie Mebane

Jennifer K Mann

Jessixa Bagley

John Skewes

Kevan Atteberry

Kirby Larson

Liz Wong

Mark Holtzen

Michele Bacon

Nina Laden

Sandra Evans

Suzanne Kaufman

Toni Yuly

Come out and cheer on your peeps! It’s gonna be CAWSOME!

Sincerely,

Dori & Deb, Inside Story Coordinators

Kid Lit Drink Night THIS WEEK!

Counting down to some serious fun this Thursday night! Hope to see everyone there!

April 30! Independent Bookstore Day!

Seattle Area Independent Bookstores join together to celebrate
Independent Bookstore Day
Saturday, April 30
#SEAbookstoreday

Bookstores around the Seattle area and the nation are now preparing for Independent Bookstore Day: a country-wide celebration of books and independent bookstores on Saturday, April 30.

Local Participating Bookstores:
All participating stores will be throwing parties on April 30th celebrating their thriving businesses, local authors, and loyal customers. Some of the great happenings throughout the Puget Sound are: author signings, raffles,scavenger hunts, art prints, prize wheels, kids tables, book giveaways,
discounts and sales, workshops, story times, photo booth, dog costume
contest, and many more!


Ada's Technical Books
Phone: (206)322-1058
http://www.seattletechnicalbooks.com/

Book Larder
https://www.booklarder.com/

Eagle Harbor Books
http://www.eagleharborbooks.com/

Edmonds Bookshop
Free tote with $25 purchase and Jim Lynch will be signing copies of his
newest book Before the Wind.
http://edmondsbookshop.com/

Elliott Bay Book Co.
Dog costume contest, photo booth, blind date with a book giveaway, and
Fogland Printing will bring their printing press for the second time to
produce on-demand zines and posters.
http://www.elliottbaybook.com/

Fantagraphics Books  
Will host local cartoonists contributing to the Underground Seattle
mini-comic, a limited release printed in conjunction with Independent
Bookstore Day.
http://www.fantagraphics.com/

Island Books
Prize wheel all day, scavenger hunt, join the typing pool: collective
short-story writing by customers on our collection of vintage typewriters,
author visits with children's author Clare Meeker and YA writer Jennifer
Longo.
http://www.mercerislandbooks.com/

Liberty Bay Books  (Poulsbo and Bremerton)
Frank Beddor comic giveaway, free advanced reader copies for customers with
an Independent Bookstore Day map, signed copies. Bremerton and Poulsbo
stores have individual events as well.
http://www.libertybaybooks.com/

Magnolia's Bookstore
Snacks, raffle, giveaways, and author visits with Cam Dokey and Sean
Beaudoin.
http://www.magnoliasbookstore.com

Mockingbird Books
Ongoing bookstore scavenger hunt with prizes for kids throughout the day, a
book selfie booth, free advanced reader copies of your choice with each
purchase, and more!
http://www.mockingbirdbooksgl.com/

Open Books
A free commemorative stock certificate with each purchase.
http://www.openpoetrybooks.com/

Phinney Books
Workshops, contests, and readings by Shann Ray (American Copper) and
Laurenne Sala (You Made Me a Mother)
Tom Nissley: tlnissley@gmail.com
http://www.phinneybooks.com/

Queen Anne Book Company
Hourly prizes drawing, refreshments served all day, 20% off all books with
the word
'BOOK' in the title, children choose prizes from our Indie Bookstore
Treasure Chest.
http://www.qabookco.com/

Seattle Mystery Bookstore
http://www.seattlemystery.com/

Secret Garden Books
Story time hosted by Seattle Children's Theatre, cake from Larson's Bakery,
photo ops, free giveaways.
www.secretgardenbooks.com

Third Place Books
Lake Forest Park: Treats provided by the Honey Bear bakery to our first 50
customers, free drip coffee all day at the Honey Bear Bakery, prize wheel
all day with purchase, cake, scavenger hunt.
Ravenna: Coffee and treats for first 50 customers, provided by Vios Caf�.
Trivia contest, story time, prize wheel all day with purchase, and cake to
finish out the day!
http://www.thirdplacebooks.com/

University Book Store (University District branch, Mill Creek branch, and
Bellevue branch locations)
Poems on demand by William the Poet; prize wheel with hourly prizes; live
music by local musicians; Special StoryTime for Kids with authors Elizabeth
Rose Stanton, Ben Clanton, and Kevan Atteberry; StoryTime for Adults
featuring short stories about bookstores read by Bradley Craft and David
Wright; Science Fiction & Fantasy Author Panel with Greg Bear, Matt Ruff,
and Robin Hobb; hourly raffle drawings; kids' crafts and activities all day;
behind-the-scenes bookstore tour; and funny photo ops with favorite book
covers.
http://www.bookstore.washington.edu/home




ALSO: THE BIG DEAL - The Indie Bookstore Challenge!
Seattle area bookstores have joined together to crown the most dedicated of
their customers Indie Bookstore Champions by creating a bookstore day trip.
Indie Bookstore Champions will be awarded 25% off all year at all 17
participating bookstores!*

Here's how you can be an Indie Bookstore Champion:

*Pick up a bookstore passport at any of the participating stores on
April 30th.
*Visit ALL participating stores on April 30th and get their unique
stamp on your passport. (Only one stamp is necessary for stores with
multiple locations.)
*Turn your passport in at the last store of the day to be crowned an
INDIE BOOKSTORE CHAMP and WIN 25% OFF ALL YEAR AT ALL PARTICIPATING
BOOKSTORES*

Can't make it to all bookstores? Visit three or more and be entered to win gift cards, first edition books, and more! Grand prize is $425 in gift certificates ($25 gift certificate to each of the 17 participating stores)!Winners will be notified by email.
*Some restrictions apply. See each participating store for details.
*One gift certificate for stores with multiple locations.

Log your progress (and share your book haul!) on Facebook, Twitter, and
Instagram with #SEABookstoreDay.

Upcoming: Caroline Abbey

To round out our fabulous trio of panelists and consultants next week, Random House Children's Books Senior Editor Caroline Abbey will offer up her expertise and experience. Here, she reveals her favorite outdoor reading place, her status as a Twitter-stalkee, and her early adoration of Harry Potter.

1. Seattle in April: Do you have a Rainstorm Protection Plan (i.e., do you bring an umbrella, wellies, or just wing it)? Have you been here before?

I hadn’t really given this much thought before I got your email! Do I need to bring my wellies? I do have a bright yellow pair that I love! I’ve only been to Seattle once and it was only for a day (before my grandpa took the family on a cruise to Alaska), so I’m excited to stay a few days after the conference and explore the city with Mary Kate Castellani!

2. Where, outside of your day job, do you like to read? Do you read much outside of work (not a trick question)? Genres?

In the summer, I like to read in Central Park or on my building’s small roof deck. In the winter, I’m probably curled up on my couch! Like any editor, I find it tough to fit in “outside of work” reading. But lately I’ve been on a nonfiction kick. The last three books I read for fun were: Riding Rockets: The Outrageous Tales of a Space Shuttle Astronaut, by Mike Mullane, Death at SeaWorld: Shamu and the Dark Side of Killer Whales in Captivity, by David Kirby, and The Life Changing Magic of Not Giving a F*ck, by Sarah Knight (the cover calls this one a “practical parody” and I would totally agree with that statement!).

3. What is the aspect of working at a large publishing house that's changed the most in the last five years?

Huh…I feel stumped by this one because I moved from a small/medium house to a big house in the last five years. So my job changed a lot, but it’s not necessarily related to publishing on the whole. I think probably the explosion of social media has made a big difference in how we market books and how visible I feel in the world of publishing. For example, I got a hilarious email from an agent recently that said “I’ve been twitter-stalking you and I think we need to have lunch!” It was flattering and made me realize that there are probably lots of ways to figure out my taste now that there are so many ways to “stalk” me online! (Please follow me on Twitter at @carolineabbey or friend “Caroline Abbey Editorial” on Facebook!) 

4. Who was your favorite author from childhood? Were you a bookworm as a kid?

I think my very favorite book was Matilda, by Roald Dahl. But I was also a huge Babysitter’s Club fan and I loved Saddle Club, too! I was a big reader until high school. Then once we had so much required reading for school, my love of reading sort of disappeared…until senior year when I saw a preview for this little unknown movie called Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone. And I thought, “Huh, I’m not a huge fantasy fan, but maybe I should give that book series a try.” Fast forward three weeks and my mom is standing in my bedroom doorway saying “I will confiscate that book (Goblet of Fire) if you don’t work on your college essay.”

5. What is the food you most associate with Seattle?

Probably coffee. So let me know what I should be eating with my coffee!

Upcoming: Mary Kate Castellani

Bloomsbury Children's Books Senior Editor Mary Kate Castellani is coming to our meeting next week! Here's what she has to say about those dratted editorial letters, her vicarious green thumb, and her snack habits. Be sure to come next Wednesday, April 20 at 7pm to hear our extraordinary panel of special guests, which also includes Joy Chu and Caroline Abbey.

1. Do you have favorite reading treats: sweet or savory? Caff or decaf?  
I love coffee and I love sweets! But my go-to editing snack is homemade popcorn… I make it with salt and chili powder. A big bowl can get me through at least one chapter!

2. When it comes to your own reading (if there is such a thing), what non-kid lit genre would you reach for? 
When not reading for work, I love narrative nonfiction and historical fiction. I immediately purchase any new book in the Maisie Dobbs series and any new book by Erik Larson.  

3. Baking, cooking, takeout, or gardening?  
I really enjoy both baking and cooking, and I have a growing cookbook collection that makes me so happy. My husband and I also love to go to our local diner at the end of a long, busy week. I live in an apartment in the city, so my green thumb is seriously lacking, but I love being in Central Park, where there are so many beautiful trees and gardens!

4. What is the best approach a writer can take to editorial notes and not freak out? Any advice? Every time I send an editorial letter—especially if it’s a long, involved one—I think about how I would probably want to crawl into a hole if I received my letter. I would say that taking time to process things and giving yourself the room to feel the range of emotions… from fear to frustration to excitement. Spend time thinking and processing before you even turn your computer on. Taking care of yourself emotionally as you go through the revision process is important! Which, in my opinion, means having lots of chocolate!

5. What are the three children's books you most related to as a young reader? What one book do you wish was written back then? 
I absolutely adored the Little House on the Prairie books—that’s the series that fed my voracious reading in a way that turned me into a lifelong reader. Where the Red Fern Grows was also very special to me because it was the first time I cried while reading a book—I didn’t know that was possible at the time and it has happened many, many times since. I also remember Shabanu Daughter of the Wind so vividly because it opened my eyes to a culture beyond my own, that I didn’t even know existed! (This was before the internet!) I can’t think of a book I wished for… I was very fortunate in that my experiences were extremely well-represented, and so that has informed my work as an editor, trying to be sure that we are publishing stories of all varieties for kids today.

Upcoming: Joy Chu

Meet Joy Chu––former art director, graphic designer, and educator. She's going to be here next week, on Wednesday, April 20 for a special art/editorial event at our monthly meeting alongside two editors. For the full description of her visit details, click here.

1. As an art director and educator you have devoted many years to books for young people. What was your road to working with children's books? 

I've been working steadily in the book publishing field since college, always with trade books. It wasn't until I worked my way up to my fourth in-house publishing job that I began working exclusively on children's books. 

From a very young age, I had every intention of becoming a children's book illustrator myself! When I got my first library card, I'd grab as many juicy picture books as I could muster. Story-telling images paved the way to becoming a voracious reader. Thank you, Wanda G'ag, Marcia Brown, and Eleanor Frances Lattimore, for enriching my childhood!

Being a visual person, I also coveted books that invited me to read its pages with greater eye ease — and noticed that certain publishers provided this consistently. 

Immediately after art school and college, I spent a year organizing my portfolio. It was made up of 50% illustration, 50% mechanical skills (ruling pen and French curve exercises; numerous paste-ups — anyone remember those?). I went to my very first interview through a NY Times ad — and nailed my first job on-the-spot!  It was for the Knopf division of Random House. What luck, to land at a house that prized fine typographic design, illustration, and bookmaking!

I progressed to two more publishing houses. Then I craved change. Relocated to San Diego.  

Coincidentally, Harcourt uprooted and moved there a few months later, so I applied for work. It was like working for a start-up with a great backlist. 

At that time, the children's list was tiny, so adult and children's titles were worked on simultaneously by the same design department, an atypical set-up. This was also the period computers elbowed into the publishing landscape. Color printing became both gorgeous and affordable! We took on greater risks by publishing new talent alongside award-winners. During the years I was at Harcourt, we went from printing 25 children's books a year to 250 a season! 

I discovered that I loved working with artists! Coaxing the best out of them. Being their tech support. Artists sensed that I empathized with their process. And although I am not a book editor per se, I can think like an editor, and work well with them. It's like a beautiful dance ensemble, when you have artist, art director, and editor, moving in sync to the same melody!

Thanks to telecommuting and fax machines, I was able to start my own business from home, while raising my son. I've done free-lance work for 20 publishing houses — a smooth transition, since everyone used the same book printers and binders, the same computer software, and everyone in the business knew each other. Today those 20 houses are now 3 huge conglomerates.  

2. Your talk will reflect the structure of a picture book and show how you organized an exhibit of illustrator artwork. How did you come up with this idea and how does it relate to an author or illustrator approaching their own work?

Leah Goodwin, education director of the Museum of the California Center for the Arts in Escondido knew that there was a throbbing network of published picture book creators in the immediate vicinity. She needed someone to bring the right ones together with a theme. But how? Janice Yuwiler, SCBWI San Diego RA, knew I was the consultant behind bringing both the traveling component of The Society of Illustrator's Original Art plus works by 26 local illustrators to the William Cannon Gallery in Carlsbad, California. She suggested approaching me as Guest Curator. Assisted by her amazing museum team, we filled a 9,000 square foot space with pure magic! 

A picture book is like an intimate play. It opens with a setting, a main character, and supporting players. It highlights a premise with a beginning, middle, and ending. Putting together a museum exhibition featuring picture book makers is like setting up the most amazing chapter book you'll ever encounter. 

Ours began with an introduction — Marla Frazee's kids from her not-yet-released book Is Mommy? running towards the grand exhibition hall , and throughout the exhibition space — and capped at the other end by a room featuring book trailers and interviews. And in-between, a story wall filled with illustrated stories by young students inspired by the show.

Every author and illustrator I contacted brought their own back story behind what they produced. I worked with them, allowing them to curate what to share with viewers.

In one section, we'd show one author's inspiration, or "aha moment" and the resulting prose verse. Then the illustrator's enactment, in the form of initial character sketches. Some worked with photo as reference; others created clay models. Others de-constructed the art layers from double-page spreads. A few even shared their works-in-progress. Having character studies up, midway through their project, became part of their process!

I will share examples at my presentation!

3. How did the Children’s Book Illustration and Writing extension program come to be at UC San Diego? Tell us a little about the program and your role in its design.

It evolved as the local SCBWI membership grew, as did the process behind creating the picture book. Program advisor Annika Nelson saw I was bringing something far more comprehensive, adding on real-life experiences from the publisher's perspective to children's book illustration instruction. Up until that point, it had always been taught purely from an art standpoint. My class has become the foundation class for children's book illustration at UCSD Extension. It set the groundwork for forming the Certificate Programs in Illustrating and Writing Children's Books. Two dedicated programs that overlap each other.  As of this writing, they are adding intermediate art media classes just for illustrators, plus additional writing classes, including one for nonfiction picture books. It's all very exciting! 

(Interview by Tina Hoggatt.)

VOTE FOR CRYSTAL KITE AWARD!

Time to vote, folks! This is the second-most-important election this year!

ROUND ONE of the Crystal Kite Awards for excellence in published books from our region is up and running through APRIL 14.

How to vote:

Go to www.scbwi.org, and log in as yourself. When you get to your individual Member Profile page for yourself, look down at the bottom left. You should see: VOTE IN THE CRYSTAL KITE AWARDS. Click on that, and go from there.

NOTE: There are a whole lotta options, so click through EVERY PAGE. This is the first stage, so there are way more titles than you'll see right away. Flip through the multitudes and bask in the glory that is the output from the West chapters!


So. To repeat: Crystal Kites. Round One voting. Click through ALL the pages! Ends April 14th.

Please vote for your fellow authors, who've worked so hard and produced such wonderful work in the past year. Make your voices of appreciation heard!



Thank you,

Your Friendly Neighborhood Advisory Committee

Still a few Think Tank spots available

We've got a great and diverse group of participants lined up so far, but there are still a few spaces available if you're an SCBWI member at the published and listed (PAL) or self-published (full) membership levels,  or a traditionally published non-member, who'd like to talk shop with your peers at our PAL Think Tank. We’ll share our best tips and experiences on topics such as promotion, school visits, and working with agents and editors.

• Saturday, April 30, 2016
• 10:00 a.m. - Noon
• Seattle Pacific University,  Cremona Hall 102 

Find more details here.

Interested?

1. Sign up using the form here: http://goo.gl/forms/bDn0FAAySO

2. Mail a check made out to SCBWI Western WA to Joni at 58402 114^th Street East, Enumclaw, WA 98022-7954. This event costs $20 for SCBWI members and $25 for non-members.

 See you then!

Seminar: Find a literary agent with Clelia Gore

Here's a great event for those wondering how to begin or continue that complicated search for the right agent:

Clelia Gore, Literary Manager and agent with Martin Literary Management, will be teaching a
helpful and comprehensive seminar at Richard Hugo House on Saturday, April 23 called "Landing a Literary Agent."

It's catered specifically for authors of children's and young adult books. Here's the link to register: https://hugohouse.org/store/class/landing-a-literary-agent-for-childrens-book-writers-clelia-gore/.

Hurry, there are still spots open but they will go fast! Clelia herself wrote, "I think this will be a really helpful and empowering class for a writer."

What are you waiting for?


WHEN: Saturday, April 23 from 1-5pm
WHERE: Richard Hugo House,  1634 11th E, Seattle

Northern Network April meeting

Northern Network of WWA SCBWI

Critique Groups

What are they? How do you start one? What makes a successful one work?

Whether you are currently in one or are curious about them, come discuss the value of critique groups with us Wednesday, April 13^th. *

Next month (May 4^th) we will practice what we learned and do a mini-critique session!

Date: Wednesday, April 13^th, 2016
(*Note: This is the SECOND Wednesday in April, not the first, due to spring break.)
Time: 7:00 p.m.
Location: The Bellingham Barnes & Nobel (4099 Meridian Street)

Questions? Call Rebecca Van Slyke at (360) 354-5797, or email at rebecca_vanslyke@hotmail.com [That’s rebecca(underscore)vanslyke(at)hotmail(dot)com.]

Lois Harris writing workshop

Writing for Children: Critiquing Workshop 

 

 

Come North, ye writers for children!

 

Lois V. Harris will be covering the elements, advantages and disadvantages of in-person and online critiques, etiquette, and guidelines plus manuscript feedback at Skagit Valley College, May 5, and May 12, 6:30 to 8 PM. Cost is $49. Register for 6105 CENGL by calling 360-416-7638 or email MV.CTI@skagit.edu