March SCBWI WWA Meeting with Laura Moe!

March 14, 7-9pm, Bellevue College – Objective Correlative with Laura Moe

Objective Correlative: What All Great Poems and Stories share

The objective correlative sets an adequate tale or poem apart from extraordinary one, where the personal becomes universal through the use of objects, setting, and other details to evoke an ineffable emotional response from the reader. It helps your readers fall in love with you.

In her presentation, Laura Moe will use classic and contemporary children's literature to demonstrate how authors employ objective correlative. In addition, she will demonstrate how using the objective correlative can help authors amp up the writing at critical scenes to create emotional engagement, use detail to “show don't tell,”  and move the text from abstract to concrete.

Where: Bellevue College, Paccar Auditorium in Building N, Room 201. Building N is on Coal Creek Road near the South Entrance (corner of Coal Creek Road and Snoqualmie River Road). Parking is free after 5 pm except where noted by signs. Closest parking lots are Lot 13 and 14. https://www.bellevuecollege.edu/location/maps/parking/

Opportunities Abound: Awards, Teaching Gigs, Magazine Submissions

Sno-Isle Libraries Call for Proposals

Sno-Isle Libraries is entering our third year of offering our popular Write Now series in our 23 libraries. We’ve taken a bit of an analysis of our offerings and customer interest, and we would like to add additional classes aimed at adult writers writing for a youth audience. We currently have a few SCBWI members on our roster including Deb Lund, J. Anderson Coats, and Lisa Mantchev. I’m hoping that you will be willing to share our call for proposals with your members. We’re looking to add around five additional classes, but that number is flexible. We do pay instructors for classes, although, obviously since we’re a public library it’s by no means lucrative.

Proposals should be submitted via this link.

We’ll begin to review proposals on March 12.

SCBWI Book Award Deadlines Approach!

• Work-in-Progress Award, March 1-31 
• Karen and Philip Cushman Late Bloomer Award, March 1-31 
• Don Freeman Illustrator Grant, March 1-31 
• Crystal Kite Member Choice Award, March 21 

New Calls for Submission! Cricket Media Seeks Submissions for our  Award-Winning Children's Magazines Good morning, The editors at Cricket Media are delighted to share our latest calls for submissions, and we hope that you'll be willing to share them with your SCBWI Chapter. While we accept general submissions year-round, we're hoping to see some great new pieces on these topics in the coming months.  Cricket Media seeks fiction, non-fiction, folktales, and poetry for our literary magazines for children and teens: Babybug (ages 0-3), Ladybug (ages 3-6), Spider (ages 6-9), Cricket (ages 9-14), and Cicada (ages 14 and up). Especially welcome are works by LGBTQIA+ writers/artists, writers/artists with disabilities, and writers/artists of color. We are sensitive to issues of cultural appropriation and misrepresentation. Read on for our latest calls for submissions, and visit cricketmag.submittable.com/submit for more details. Call for Submissions: Dragons Deadline: March 15, 2018 Spider (for ages 6-9) is looking for stories, poetry, activities, and nonfiction exploring the theme of Dragons and Magic. Calling all dragons! We want big dragons, small dragons, serpent-like dragons, Viking dragons, gold-hoarding dragons, dragons that breath fire or ice, swimming dragons, flying dragons, burrowing dragons, fierce dragons, timid dragons, nice dragons, and even wannabe dragons. Send your traditional tales, but also stories with a creative contemporary spin.  Call for Submissions: Family Deadline: April 13, 2018 Cicada (for ages 14+) seeks fiction, poetry, comics, and essays on the theme of Family. We want to see honest works exploring all aspects of family life, whether it be family by relation or a family of choice. What connects a family? What might break it apart? How do we define family? In what ways do our familial connections heal or harm us? We are especially interested in works depicting found families and other nontraditional or nonnuclear families—show us how the family you build can be just as strong as (or stronger than!) the one you are born with. Call for Submissions: Over the Rainbow Deadline: April 15, 2018 Spider (for ages 6-9) and Ladybug (for ages 3-6) are looking for LGBTQAI+ inclusive fiction, poetry, and non-fiction manuscripts. We would like to see warm family stories, an entire story without gender pronouns, children with different gender expressions, and gentle realistic or metaphorical coming out stories. We are especially interested in matter-of-fact stories where being different isn’t the heart of the story, but part of the character’s identity. Call for Submissions: It’s Magic Deadline: April 15, 2018 Ladybug (for ages 3-6) is looking for magical short stories, retellings of folk and fairy tales, rebus stories, action rhymes, riddles, and songs. Tell us about enchanted keys, magicians, and talking animals, or share strange-but-true stories that would seem magical to a young child. Stories should have childlike points of view and simple yet strong plots; they need to be short, too (under 800 words). When reading submissions, we look for playfulness, humor, and a sense of wonder. Call for Submissions: Endless Summer Deadline: May 15, 2018 Cricket (for ages 9-14) seeks middle-grade fiction, nonfiction, poetry, recipes, and activities for our summer issues.  We’re looking for stories of less than 1,800 words about neighborhood adventures; new or unexpected friendships; summer jobs and attempts to earn money; beach holidays, summer camps, and sports teams; surprising encounters with nature; as well as fireworks, family trips, and long afternoons at the library. Submissions can be light or serious, but should have appealing, well-drawn characters and solid plots. Humor is always welcome. Call for Submissions: Inventions Deadline: May 15, 2018 Spider (for ages 6-9) is looking for fiction, nonfiction, poetry, activities, crafts, and recipes for the theme Inventions. Send us stories about objects or gadgets that intrigued you as a kid or that intrigue kids you know. Write about the origin of a toy, secret code or language, special technique or process, game or puzzle, school supply, musical instrument, or lesser-known technology. We’re interested in the gross and weird, silly and useless, and even fictional inventions. Especially welcome: works about inventions by kid inventors, women, and people of color. Please provide a source list if your submission is nonfiction. Call for Submissions: Tell Me More Deadline: May 15, 2018 Ladybug (for ages 3-6) seeks simple, compelling explorations of the young child’s world. Introduce our readers to a kid who lives in an unusual home, share a cultural tradition you know well, explore a new city with them, describe a cool invention, or tell them a story about an intriguing animal or ecosystem. We’re looking for writing attuned to a young child’s interests and capacity for joy and wonder. We accept narrative nonfiction (to 800 words), nonfiction (to 400 words) poetry (to 20 lines), and activities. Please include a source list. Click here for a printable PDF of these and even more upcoming calls for submissions:  Download PDF Version

March 2018 Meetups, Classes, and Book Events

SCBWI WWA & Network Events

March 3
Eastside Network Craft Bookclub, featuring Cheryl Klein's Magic Words. Space is limited, and rsvp is required.

March 10
The Peninsula Network meets up for a Kid Lit Drink Night at a new location! All are welcome to join from 6:30 on at The Old Whiskey Mill in Port Townsend. Meet behind the bar near the fireplace.

March 14
Our March SCBWI WWA meeting will be held at Bellevue College and feature Laura Moe speaking on the objective correlative. More details coming soon.

Classes

Seattle Writes! Multiple dates and locations.

Seattle Writes:  Fear and Writing 

Saturday, March 10, 2 to 4 p.m., at Seattle Public Library’s Central Library (downtown)

Join Peg Cheng in learning how fear is a natural part of the creative process and how you can use fear to propel your writing, rather than hinder it. Free writing class; no registration is required.

Space will be limited at this class; first come, first seated. 

Doors will open at 1:30 p.m.

More info here. 

Seattle Writes: Writing Circles with Hugo House

Drop-in writing circles facilitated by writers from Hugo House,

hosted at neighborhood libraries in Seattle. These sessions are free and no registration is required. Come ready to write!

Columbia Branch: March 8,   6 – 7:30 p.m.

West Seattle Branch: March 8,  6 – 7:30 p.m.

Fremont Branch: March 20,  6 – 7:30 p.m.

More info here. 

Book Events

February 28
Tamora Pierce and Rachel Hartman in conversation with Lish McBride about Pierce's newest, Tempests and Slaughter, and more, at University Temple United via University Bookstore.

March 1
Science fiction and fantasy lovers, come meet Fonda Lee, Chuck Wendig! They're in town for Emerald City Comic Con, but if you're not heading to the Con, head to Brick & Mortar to meet these speculative dynamos.

March 1
Head north to Village Books to hear Rachel Hartman talk about her newest YA speculative novel, Tess of the Road. 

March 2
Inside Story chair Dori Butler launches King & Kayla and the Case of the Lost Tooth at Brick & Mortar. 

March 3
Dan Geimenhart crosses the mountains to visit Brick & Mortar for a talk and signing. 

March 4
Head to Liberty Bay Books to help Kimberly Long Cockroft celebrate her picture book debut, Reading Beauty!

March 9
Elizabeth Rose Stanton brings her adorable Bub to University Bookstore!

March 10- Olympia
Did you hear that Corinna Luyken won the PNBA Award for The Book of Mistakes? Come celebrate at Browsers Books! Cake and prizes! 

March 10-Seattle
Joy McCullough makes her YA debut with Blood Water Paint. She'll be in conversation with Martha Brockenbrough at University Bookstore. 

March 10- Bellingham
Phoebe Wahl will be at Village Books to talk about and sign her latest picture book, Backyard Fairies. 

March 11
The Whatsits-- Kevan Atteberry, Ben Clanton, Jennifer Mann, Elizabeth Rose Stanton, and Wendy Wahman talk all things picture book at Brick & Mortar. 

March 13
Morris Award finalist Leslye Walton follows The Strange and Beautiful Sorrows of Ava Lavender with her next YA, The Price Guide to the Occult. See her at University Bookstore.

March 16
Brandon Mull stops by University Bookstore to talk about the last entry in his Five Kingdoms series, Time Jumpers.

March 19
Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff are in town for the finale of The Illuminae Files, Obsidio. See them at University Bookstore. 

March 19
Head to University Bookstore in Mill Creek to catch Andy Griffiths and the sixth book in his chapter book series, The 78-Story Treehouse. 

March 22
Pulitzer Prize winner Junot Diaz makes his picture book debut with Islandborn. Signing line tickets available with preorder from Third Place Books.

March 24

Janel Kolby talks about her YA debut, Winterfolk, at Brick & Mortar Books. 

March 27

Swim over to Third Place LFP to meet Liz Kessler. She's in town to talk about her latest in the Emily Windsnap series, Emily Windsnap and the Falls of Forgotten Island. 

April 2

Lynn Brunelle presents how to Turn This Book into a Beehive at Third Place LFP. 

Events will be added periodically.  Did we miss something? 

Email us at news.scbwiwwa@gmail.com.

Double-check times and whatnot with bookstores before you set out for events. If you snap a great picture, tag us at @scbwiwwa on Instagram and/or Twitter, and we'll try to repost. If you have good news or an event coming up, let us know!

Support book culture.

Support independent bookstores and libraries.

Support authors.

❤️

SCBWI WWA Mentorship Program 2018-2019

SCBWI WWA Mentorship Program 2018-2019 

The Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators of Western Washington is excited to announce the second annual mentorship program.

For a six-month period, writers and illustrators will work one-on-one with a published author to analyze every aspect of their manuscript and perfect their work for publication submissions.

Last year, the program accepted fourteen writers from our chapter. 

The mentees are: Lisa Cach Heideger, Linda Buck, Faith Conlon, Melissa Koosmann, Rebekah Hosman, Amy Poffenbarger, Sarah J. Mendonca, Kelly Rae Bahr, Maria Marshall, Shilpa Agarwal, Dawn Marie Hooks, Lenae Nofziger, Connor Desai, and Aubri Keleman. 

The mentors are: Dori Hillestad Butler, Kim Baker, Laurie Thompson, Lisa Owens, Lois Brandt, Peggy King Anderson, Jeanne Ryan, and Kevin Emerson.

Do you have a completed manuscript that needs help with revision? If yes, then do not miss out on the program announcement in May. More information coming soon!

Grupo de Crítica formación-- en Español!

An online critique group for writing in Spanish is forming thanks to a volunteer in Wales and La Cometa. We hope this can be the first of many other groups as there are Spanish speaking members all over the world. 

If you would like to participate in an ONLINE GROUP IN SPANISH, please contact the coordinator at SLC@SCBWI.ORG.

¡Escritura feliz!

Eastside Network Craft Book Club: The Magic Words with Cheryl Klein

Are you reading Cheryl Klein's The Magic Words this month? If so, come join the discussion! As a special treat, we will be skyping with Cheryl about her book during this meeting. Space is limited, so please RSVP to Dori Butler at dhbutler@kidswriter.com. Cheryl has asked to see the questions ahead of time, so if you have a question you'd like to ask Cheryl, please send that to Dori as well. She'll be forwarding questions on Feb. 26. Hope to see you there.

SCBWI revises anti-harassment policy

Recently, there has been a great deal of controversy about incidents of harassment that have occurred at SCBWI programs and events. It is of paramount importance to SCBWI that we maintain a welcoming and safe environment for all members of our community. 

We have a zero-tolerance policy regarding harassment, discrimination and intimidation of any kind. To underscore that commitment, we have revised our anti-harassment policy to now contain a complete definition of what constitutes harassment, a code of conduct for all our events, a detailed and entirely new reporting procedure, and a list of sanctions for offenders. All members and faculty attending our events will be required to acknowledge this policy and adhere to it.

Please note our newly established direct email for reporting harassment concerns (harassment@scbwi.org). You can read the entire policy here. 

Sexual Harassment Within the Children's & YA Book Community

Anne Ursu, acclaimed middle grade novelist and 2012 Weekend on the Water faculty, recently put out a call on social media for personal experiences with sexual harassment within the children's and YA publishing world. Today, she shared her findings on the pervasive problem. Please take the time to read Anne's important post as we continue to work on maintaining a nurturing and safe community where writers and illustrators may grow and thrive.


For the record, we have zero tolerance for harassment within our region and community. Please let us know if there is ever any problem. In addition, SCBWI's official anti-harassment policy can be found here.

February meeting this SATURDAY with Harold Underdown!

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This month only we're bringing you our Monthly Meeting on Saturday, February 10,10am-12noon, Demaray Hall, SPU

Industry Low-Down with Harold Underdown

Join long-time children’s book editor Harold Underdown for a Q&A session filled with insider tips and techniques for success.

Register in advance if you plan to stay for Harold's masterclass on Editing Without an Editor- A Revision Tools Workshop, February 10, 1-5, Demaray Hall, SPU

This carefully condensed version of a Three-Day Workshop is set up to help you learn revision techniques to use on your manuscript. Harold Underdown of Kids Book Revisions will show how to use a variety of revision techniques and help you get more out of critique groups. More info here.