Current Scratch: Join us, Local/Regional Events, Free Local Coverage & Latina Illustrators

Howdy, y'all! It's April already...wildflowers are dotting the highways, it's starting to warm up... great reasons to get outside and be inspired. On the other had, there is pollen everywhere... great reason to stay in doors and get some writing done! Whatever you choose to do, I wish y'all a productive month of writing, reading, and connecting with your fellow authors and illustrators via the SCBWI Facebook group or one of our upcoming events!

Join us

JOIN US Wednesday, April 27th at 10 a.m. in the College Station Barnes & Noble for our monthly meeting  Our program is as follows: this month we´ll be having our annual original poetry reading. Word list for the poems will be posted soon! We'll also discuss news and provide encouragement. Gentle critique begins at 9:30 a.m. Bring copies of 5 double-spaced pages of your work in progress. Those who have time may go to lunch at a local restaurant. Members and friends welcome!

Local/Regional Events

• SCBWI Houston is holding an Illustrator Workshop with Greg Pizzoli on April 23rd. More info here. 

• Former Brazos Valley regional adviser Janet Fox will be signing her new middle grade book, The Charmed Children of Rookskill Castle, at the College Station Barnes & Noble on April 16th! The book has been described as "a creepy tale of intrigue and espionage." Joins us for lunch with Janet from 11:30am - 1pm (restaurant TDB) or come to the book signing at 2pm. 

Free Local Coverage

We were recently contacted by Shelbi LeMeilleur, the editor of Insite Magazine, regarding the Brazos Reads column. They are interested in highlighting local authors and have yet to feature any local children's book authors. Ding, ding, ding! That's us! If you're interested in having your books featured, contact Shelbi at (281) 636-2787 or shelbi@insitebrazosvalley.com.

Latina Illustrators

In an attempt to make my Facebook addiction "work for me" I subscribed to a bunch of childrens' literature related Facebook pages a few months ago (I figured it was a better use of my time than looking at Buzzfeed listicals and Tasty video-recipes). This has yielded a fair number of rewards, from learning about new (and old) books I should be checking out to issues (gender balance, cultural sensitivities) I should keep in mind when I start writing. The latest discovery has been a number of awesome Latina illustrators, thanks to the Latinos in Kid Lit Facebook page and their series "Spotlight on Latina Illustrators."  Since my goal is to eventually write multi-lingual books for multicultural (specifically Latino) audiences, I have been trying to familiarize myself with popular Latino authors and books. But I had not thought much about Latino illustrators. This series is a helpful introduction and I was particularly happy to discover that I was already familiar with some of the titles mentioned (though now I will try to pay attention to the illustrators themselves as well). Check out the series here. You may be surprised how many books you recognize!

Spotlight on Latina Illustrators Part 1: Angela Dominguez, Juana Medina, and Ana Aranda

Spotlight on Latina Illustrators Part 2: Juana Martinez-Neal, Maya Christina González & Laura Lacámara

Spotlight on Latina Illustrators Part 3: Sara Palacios, Claudia Rueda, and Tania de Regil

 

That's it for this month's Scratch! Enjoy the blue bonnets and maybe consider writing a children's book reminding parents that it is NEVER a good idea to take wildflower photos along the highway (actually that sounds like a pretty grim book).

          

 Disclaimer: The views expressed here are my own, and not necessarily those of the SCBWI.

Join Us, Local Events, Illustrator Workshop, A Bookshelf for Baby

It looks like it will be a rainy week here in East Texas, but it also feel like spring is upon us. Redbuds are in bloom, the first few Bluebonnets are saying "hallo" and I've been able to spend quite a few warm days reading outside in my hammock strung up between two trees just beginning to blush with new green.

JOIN US 

Our next meeting is on on Wednesday, March 30th at 10 a.m. in the College Station Barnes & Noble for What’s Your Platform for Catching the Success Express? We'll also discuss news and provide encouragement. Gentle critique begins at 9:30 a.m. Bring copies of 5 double-spaced pages of your work in progress. Those who have time may go to lunch at a local restaurant. Members and friends welcome!

LOCAL EVENTS 

Besides our monthly meeting there are a few more events you might want to investigate:

Kathi Appelt & Alison McGhee Book Signing
3/10/2016 @ 5:30 pm
Jacque's Toys & Books
4301 S Texas Ave, Bryan, Texas 77802
Kathi and Alison will both be signing their new book, MAYBE A FOX. 

"I’m so happy that Alison will be with me," Kathi said. "We met at Vermont College as new faculty members. This book took us about 4 years to write." The new novel has garnered three starred reviews--from School Library Journal, Booklist, and Publisher’s Weekly--so far.

Alison is the NY Times bestselling author of SOMEDAY, along with books for all ages, including adults. Kathi’s first novel, The Underneath, was a National Book Award Finalist and a Newbery Honor Book. It also received the Pen USA Award, and was a finalist for the Heart of Hawick Children’s Book Award.

Building a Website in WordPress for Writers and Illustrators
4/2/2016 @ 9:00 am - 2:00 pm
Wesley Foundation
201 Tauber - College Station, Texas 77840

Writer and software developer Avery White will lead this hands-on workshop on building a website using WordPress. Bring your laptops and we will set up in the Fellowship Hall of the Wesley Foundation (Methodist Student Center) in College Station. We'll work from 9 to 11 a.m. and break for lunch at a restaurant nearby. The afternoon session, 12 to 2 p.m., will allow time to answer everyone's questions. 

ILLUSTRATOR WORKSHOP

Not quite as local, but certainly worth the drive; SCBWI in Houston is having its first Illustrator's Day, it looks to be a really great event!

Illustrator Workshop with Greg Pizzoli
4/23/2016 @ 9:00 am - 5:00 pm
The Lanier Theological Library
14130 Hargrave - Houston, TX 77070

Join SCBWI-Houston for our first Illustrator's Day! We are excited to have Geisel Award winning author-illustrator Greg Pizzoli present a workshop featuring peeks into his process, hands-on exercises, illustration critique, and discussion. It promises to be a day full of information and inspiration.

A BOOKSHELF FOR BABY

On a more personal note, this member of the blog team is approximately seven weeks away from meeting her first child. I've been reading to him in utero, but since his comprehension skills are on the low side, he is just getting to hear what I'm reading. I like that his little developing brain is being bathed with the language of such infinitely talented wordsmith's as Zadie Smith, Carl Sagan, and Rebecca Solnit, and I hope the practice of reading out loud is making me a better storyteller, but I know I'm going to have to start reading more age appropriate literature soon. Also once he exits the dark confines of my guts he might enjoy some pictures. So I've been starting to build a bookshelf for our tiny human.

At first the baby registry just consisted of books. As an illustrator this has given me an excuse to indulge in some of the books created by my favorite artists; Jon Klassen, Carson Ellis, Beatrice Alemagna all made the list. I've also gotten to revisit some of my favorites from when I was little, so Goodnight Moon, Make Way for Duckling, and Are You My Mother are present. I'm also enjoying picking up serendipitous surprises from scanning the kids section at Half Price Books; Ed Emberley drawing books, Number flash cards covered in bug facts and graphics, and a book of poems with Edward Gorey drawings have all snuck on to the little boy's shelf. Even more special is that a lot of these books are appearing as gifts from some of my favorite people.

Books have been the tangible link to the little person who will exist on the other side of this pregnancy. Reading to him, watching him explore illustrations, wondering about his favorite stories, is one of the ways I can imagine this new life actually existing alongside mine.

I just hope he likes to read. :)

Self promotional plug: I've redesigned my website, check it out!
And I have a new facebook page for my illo work, come see :)


Disclaimer: The views expressed here are my own, and not necessarily those of the SCBWI.

Current Scratch: Join Us, Local, Harry, Tips, Comedy

Hi folks, Welcome to sunny winter. It is beautiful. I hope that you are pouring some of this winter beauty into your art.

JOIN US!

Goal-setting for Creatives” with guest speaker Pam Wiley is our first meeting of 2016 on Wednesday, Jan. 27, at 10 a.m. in Barnes & Noble, 711 Texas Ave, College Station, TX. Pam will share strategies for setting and staying on track with both long and short term goals. Join us for discussion, news, and encouragement!

Gentle critique begins at 9:30 a.m. Bring copies of 5 double-spaced pages of your work in progress.

Those who have time stay for lunch at a local restaurant. Members and friends welcome!

LOCAL

Divining Creativity Workshop

Molly Blaisdell

Covenant Presbyterian Church

Wednesday, February 17, 2016 at 6:15. 

It's a weekly program called Onederful Wednesday. Molly will lead a workshop called Divining Creativity. Here are a few of the things she will dig into -- What is holding you back? What will push you forward? What will make you leap? This should shake down the cobwebs and open all the windows.  It's free.

There is a meal at 5:15 p.m. and it costs $5.00 person and $20 for families. Call this number to RSVP if you are interested: 979-694-7700.

Heading to TLA this year in April? Here are the deets.

Houston Writers Guild 2016 Conference in April 29, 30, May 1. The headliner is Jay Asher, author of 13 Reasons Why.

Advanced Writer Weekend Workshop Erzi Deak at the Writing Barn in Austin, TX May 07, 2016.

HARRY

For everyone hungering for a Harry Potter fix. It's not over.

TIPS

Seven Tips From Ernest Hemingway on How to Write Fiction

"To Be a Story Teller" by Zilpha Keatley Snyder

Kwame Alexander talks about his book The Crossover.  The why of his story.

Matt de la Pena on turning his life into a story.

The story of Jacqueline Woodson.  A look at her take on realistic fiction. Where do her stories come from?

COMEDY

How to make comedy work with Ricky Gervais. 

Disclaimer: The views expressed here are my own, and not necessarily those of the SCBWI.

Current Scratch: Join Us, Regional Events, Tricking Yourself into Writing, Resources for Writing from Home, Last Stop on Market Street

Join us 

JOIN US Wednesday February 24th at 10 a.m. in the College Station Barnes & Noble for our monthly meeting  Our program is as follows: Mary Mize will talk about wordless picture books, and Molly Blaisdell will report on agents at a recent writing conference. We'll also discuss news and provide encouragement. Gentle critique begins at 9:30 a.m. Bring copies of 5 double-spaced pages of your work in progress. Those who have time may go to lunch at a local restaurant. Members and friends welcome!

Regional Events

SCBWI Austin is celebrating its 20th year with a conference on May 14. 

Picture book writers--check out the SCBWI Houston workshop with Tammi Sauer on June 4. 

Tricking Yourself into Writing 

January's SCBWI meeting featured a talk/workshop lead by Pam Wiley about goal setting. One of the methods she mentioned for success was creating "exponential little bits" (otherwise known as baby steps) to slowly get closer to your goal. While it is tempting to push and pressure ourselves towards huge goals ("I'm going to write three hours a day!) in the long run it is easier to slowly but surely trick yourself by incorporating new habits stealthily into your current routine. And if there is one thing I have learned in my first year of SCBWI meetings it is that writing children's books is a long game. 

So how do you break down the monumental task of birthing a children's book into small baby steps that can easily be incorporated into your everyday life?

Divide and Conquer

Make a list of all the steps that go into creating a story/book. Take those steps and sort them based on the amount of time and energy they take (as well as any physical requirements they involve). Then take a good hard look at your daily life and see where you can slide them in by pinning them to a task/activity you already do. Here are some examples:

Generating ideas / Getting inspired

Honestly, this can happen during any part of your day; the trick is to be ready to capture and store those ideas when they come to you. Whether you're daydreaming at the supermarket, playing with kids, talking with family, always be ready to grab a pen or even your phone and start jotting things down. Personally I like to keep everything in a file on Evernote since I can access it all the time on my phone or computer and can even add picture of a weirdly shaped cloud or a scene of my kids playing. 

Having trouble getting inspired? Come up with fun little challenges for yourself in order to generate ideas like making up stories about the person pumping gas in front of you or imagining your child as an animal or mythical monster the next time she/he throws a tantrum.

Learning about the Industry

If you are a novice author/illustrator time spent learning about the publishing industry is time well spent! Even if you are an experienced author, our industry is undergoing so much change it can’t hurt to stay abreast of the latest trends. This is an easy one to slip into your daily life. Like to read in bed (or in the bathroom)? Subscribe to magazines about the publishing industry such as Writer’sDigest or go through your back issues of SCBWI magazines. If you’re a social media junkie follow your favorite authors, illustrators and publishing houses. In my case I am interested in multi-cultural children’s books so I follow a few publishers and authors that specialize in that area. And if you like radio programs and podcasts then check out SCBWI's podcast series or Sara Zarr's This Creative Life series.

Actual Writing 

This is the hard one, but it is doable. Remember, this too can be broken down into baby steps. If you know you will be stuck in a waiting room for a while, be sure to put that time to good use! Obviously it would be lovely to get 3 hours of uninterrupted time to write but if you put your mind to it even 10 minutes can yield something useful. It is also worth looking at your weekly calendar and figuring out how to bunch together activities/errands so that you can clear out a 2-3 hour window for writing at least once a week. If you decide that you can write on Tuesdays from 9-12 be sure to protect that window from intrusions and distractions. Remember, studies have shown it can take an average of 21 minutes to regain focus after being distracted or interrupted.  Don't let your phone or dirty dishes steal 20 minutes of writing from you.

Resources for Writing from Home

Write Where You Live

I have no idea how and when I found this book but I love it. Some of her examples are a bit old since the book predates cell phones and Facebook, but the ideas are very useful. I love her advice to leave the cleaning till later (or never). Amen, sister. 

Note to Self’s InfoMagical Project

Do you feel like technology is eating into your writing time? Are you struggling with information overload? Check out this neat project from Note to Self with challenges designed to help you make the technology that surrounds you work for you (in this case, help you meet your book writing goals). 

 

Last Stop on Market Street

I’m really excited to read this year’s Newberry Medal winner, Matt de la Peña’s, “Last Stop on Market Street.” Not only is it a picture book (see this post for an opinion on why that is awesome) but it is the first Newberry award winning book to be written by a Latino author. Here is the description from Matt de la Peña’s website:

“Every Sunday after church, CJ and his grandma ride the bus across town. But today, CJ wonders why they don’t own a car like his friend Colby. Why doesn’t he have an iPod like the boys on the bus? How come they always have to get off in the dirty part of town? Each question is met with an encouraging answer from grandma, who helps him see the beauty—and fun—in their routine and the world around them.

This energetic ride through a bustling city highlights the wonderful perspective only grandparent and grandchild can share, and comes to life through Matt de la Pena’s vibrant text and Christian Robinson’s radiant illustrations.”

Disclaimer: The views expressed here are my own, and not necessarily those of the SCBWI.

 

Current Scratch: Join Us, Going There, Little Red, Awards

Hello and welcome to 2016! It's the New Year and with it comes new resolutions, goals, and plans! It will be exciting to see what the year brings for us all!

JOIN US If you haven't made any resolutions or find making plans daunting join us for our next meeting on Wednesday, January 27th at 10 a.m. in the College Station Barnes & Noble for a presentation on Goal-setting for Creatives. We'll also discuss news and provide encouragement. Gentle critique begins at 9:30 a.m. Bring copies of 5 double-spaced pages of your work in progress. Those who have time may go to lunch at a local restaurant. Members and friends welcome!

GOING THERE Another opportunity for YA writers coming up in January is the Texas SCBWI webinar; Going There: Romance & Sex Writing in YA Literature with Carrie Mesrobian. The webinar will help writers comfortably tackle those more intimate scenes in their characters lives, and provide discussions about how to approach sexual relationships in a story. Also, a limited number of post-webinar single-scene critiques are available. Sign up for critiques when registering for the webinar.

Lisa Cinelli, First Place Winner: Tomie dePaola Award

LITTLE RED Anyone wanting to take a gander at the talented artists in SCBWI should head over to the Tomie dePaola Award Gallery and look at all the wonderful entries for this year's contest. Winners have also been announced and you can see those here.

2016 Newbery "Last Stop on Market Street" Cover

2016 Caldecott "Finding Winnie" interior spread

AWARDS The 2016 Newbery and Caldecott Awards have been announced! The Newbery went to Matt de la Peña's "Last Stop on Market Street," illustrated by Christian Robinson. The 2016 award is notable as it is the first time the medal went to a true picture book and the first time a Latino author won the gold. The 2016 Caldecott went to artist Sophie Blackall for her work in the book "Finding Winnie: The True Story of the World's Most Famous Bear." It is a story of friendship between a soldier and a real bear, a bear who eventually inspired A.A. Milne's famous Pooh.

The views expressed here are my own, and not necessarily those of the SCBWI.