An SCBWI Southern Breeze Shout Out!

SCBWI is all about supporting our writers and illustrators, and in the Southern Breeze region, we have lots of opportunities! Last month, we had a handful of Breezers attend an event and...you know what? I'll let Breezer and author, Amy M. O'Quinn tell you more:

The UGA Hotel and Conference Center in Athens was the place to be March 23-24, 2018! The building was abuzz with all sorts of bookish goodness, as attendees of the 49^th annual Children’s Book Awards & Conference on Children’s Literature were treated to the most amazing keynote author presentations and workshops—and a lineup of interesting concurrent sessions on topics ranging from ways to get boys excited about reading to how to use fiction books to teach science and STEM. There was something for everyone!

I took part in a GCBA session last year (2017) presented by SCBWI members called “Authors in Your Backyard.” I had such a wonderful time that I submitted a proposal for a solo presentation this year called “Get Up Close and Personal! Spark Student Interest with Real Life Stories of Scientists and Inventors.” I was thrilled it was accepted! As an author/educator, I’ve interacted with students, teachers, and parents often over the last thirty years. And I’ve found that when students become invested in the life and struggles of a scientist or inventor, they become more interested in learning about that person’s discoveries or inventions. And I love to share great resources to that end. I had a lot of fun with the attendees who came to my session.

PAL Coordinator, Heather Montgomery, organized another SCBWI session for this conference called “The Book in You.” She invited SCWBI authors/members who would already be in attendance or presenting to take part in this jam-packed session. There were five of us —Heather Montgomery, Shelli Johannes, Randi Sonenshine, Paula Puckett, and me. We all created PowerPoint slides and chose specific talking points about the process of writing, being an author, and/or getting published. Heather did an amazing job pulling the whole thing together, and we presented to a room full of ‘aspiring author’ attendees. Based on comments and questions, they undoubtedly found our session to be very valuable. Just another outstanding SCBWI service!

I do enjoy the camaraderie with other authors and mingling with fellow book lovers, so attending the GCBA is a top priority for me. As a presenter, I was required to pay the conference registration fee, but that meant I also had full access to all the concurrent sessions. Moreover, I feel that this money is a marketing investment. It gives me yet another opportunity to make contact with educators and librarians from all over the state who are interested in my topic, presentation, or book, which lead to invitations for school visits or presentations.

It’s a win-win!

Amy M. O’Quinn is an educator and author of Marie Curie for Kids: Her Life and Scientific Discoveries, with 21 Activities and Experiments, published in 2106 by Chicago Review Press. Her next book, Nikola Tesla for Kids, is scheduled to be released in 2019. Amy and her family live on the family farm in rural south Georgia. Find out more about her and her work at www.amyoquinn.com.