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2017 Annual Summer Conference in LA July 7 - 10
Plan ahead for this life-changing event!
Registration will open in MARCH.
We will announce exact registration dates soon!
Join us for the 46th Annual Summer Conference in Los Angeles at the JW Marriott at LA Live. This beautiful hotel is located directly next to LA Live, the premier downtown campus featuring sports and music venues, night clubs, restaurants, a bowling alley, museum, and movie theaters.
2017 SUMMER CONFERENCE DATES
General Conference: July 7 - 9, 2017
Optional Intensives: July 10, 2017
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Leave Room for the Reader
By Jolie Stekly
Sara Pennypacker loves books that force the reader to work a little. She believes strongly in omission, or leaving room for the reader. This craft tip is often mentioned but not so often demonstrated.
Pennypacker, the author of
Pax and the Clementine series, closed out this year's SCBWI winter conference in NYC, sharing what she's learned with conferences goers, and, well, she took us all to school with her excellent example of omission.
Take a look at the first page of
Clementine.
I have had not so good of a week.
Well, Monday was a pretty good day, if you don't count Hamburger Surprise at lunch and Margaret's mother coming to get her. Or the stuff that happened in the principal's office when I got sent there to explain that Margaret's hair was not my fault and besides she looks oaky without it, but I couldn't because Principal Rice was gone, trying to clam down Margaret's mother.
Someone should tell you not to answer the phone in the principal's office, if that's a rule.
I've had no so good of a day.
Sara asks readers what is funny on this first page. The typical answer is that Clementine cut Margaret's hair and that she answered the principal's phone. But, as Pennypacker points out, she never wrote those words, instead she allowed the reader come to those conclusions.
Omission asks readers to mentally invest in the story, and because the opening of Clementine is funny, it also allows readers to make the joke. "Hit the reader first with humor. Humor opens us up. It gets your reader on your side and makes them relax and laugh."
On a whole novel level, Pennypacker also includes an omission. She never mentions that Clementine is a child with ADHD, but readers can connect by recognizing himself or herself or someone they know.
Not only is leaving room for the reader one of the ten most important things Sara said she has learned as a writer, but she also believes it's a key ingredient for creating a memorable book.
Jolie Stekly is a writer, a writing teacher and coach, and a member SCBWI Team Blog. joliestekly.com
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You're Home From the Conference, Now What?
By Martha Brockenbrough
It can be almost as
 overwhelming coming home from a conference as it is going to one. You've heard so many ideas. Learned new things. Maybe even come home with renewed energy for your work in progress. And you've almost certainly met new people. All of that is great-this is why we drop everything and go to these conferences. To keep this momentum going, one of the best things you can do for yourself and your career is to cultivate the relationships you made in New York City.
Maybe you attended an intensive or a round table and met an agent or editor who liked your stuff. More likely, you met another writer or illustrator and you lamented the fact you don't live in the same city. All of these relationships are important. And as much as we all go with the secret hope of being discovered professionally, the truth is, no relationships are more important so than the fellow writers and illustrators. These can become the sustaining relationships of your career. They create opportunities for daily interactions that will motivate and inspire you, challenge you, and help propel you to the best work of your life.
There's lots of historical precedent for the way groups of writers and creative types can revolutionize each other's work. Think about C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien, who called themselves the Inklings as they worked together. And then Dorothy Parker and the Algonquin Round Table. Or the many writers and creators of the Harlem Renaissance.
There is no reason you can't do the same thing with like-minded people you met at a conference. Geography is no barrier, either. The trick is keeping those relationships going, either using social media or private social forums like Slack.com. This is a big part of my own creative process. Other writers and I set word count goals. We ask each other for professional advice. We sometimes chew on thorny problems of plot and character. We recommend books of all sorts to each other.
No relationships are more important than those with your fellow writers and illustrators.
Martha Brockenbrough is a member of Team Blog, and the author of The Game of Love and Death, the Dinosaur Tooth Fairy, and the forthcoming Alexander Hamilton, Revolutionary.
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Social Media's Key Questions Answered
By Lee Wind
 Smartly moderated by Team Blogger and author Martha Brockenbrough, the Children's Books and Social Media Panel at the 2017 SCBWI Winter Conference with Travis Jonker, Cynthia Leitich Smith, and Matthew Winner was helpful, relevant, and encouraging. The panel answered the classic journalistic questions Who, What, When, Where, Why, and How. I've mixed the order up, and here share some highlights:
Why?
Social media is a way to connect with teen readers and child and teen gatekeepers like librarians, booksellers, parents, and other caring adults. Social media can also build our community of creators, connecting us with other writers and illustrators, and industry professionals like agents, editors, and art directors.
Who?
You. Should you obsess about your audience?
Here's how Travis put it, "When I first started with my blog, trying to decide who the audience was was tricky. Was it for kids? Adults? I finally decided on an audience of 1, me. What I think is interesting and funny."
And, as Matthew remarked, "I never set out to have an audience. I set out to share what I love."
Cynthia built on that advice:
What?
Consider "What do you have to offer?" She gave the example of Debbie Ridpath Ohi, and how Debbie is a tremendous resource for others.
Cynthia also shared that it's good to have a mission for what you're doing. Hers: "My goal is to share upbeat information and inspiration with real, professional take-away. Content that will empower."
Where?
"Don't be afraid to try out new platforms, even though they may go away (Vine, MySpace). Personally, however, I like to stick to one platform and do it well." That's Matthew's advice.
How?
Travis made the suggestion: "Carry over your voice from projects to social media," and cited Tim Federle as someone who's funny in social media and in his middle grade, YA, and even adult books.
Matthew spoke of the power of kindness, and Travis amplified that, saying, "Have a generous spirit online."
Most of all, Cynthia reassured us, "Participate how you feel comfortable."
Which leaves us with the final journalistic question:
When?
This one is for you to answer. Why not now? Be inspired.
Lee Wind is the official blogger for SCBWI, the Captain of SCBWI Team Blog, and a writer of PB, MG, and YA. leewind.org
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Draw This!
Draw This! is our monthly prompt word for illustrators.
The February prompt was
LOVE
Congratulations to the February Winners:
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Beth Mills |
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| Denise Holmes |
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See all the entries here: Gallery
March's prompt is . . . MARCH (yes, the prompt is March)
Entries are due March 20 to scbwidrawthis@scbwi.org
Submissions for February will be up in our April gallery.
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