Why Picture Books Writers Should go to Illustrator Workshops

Why Picture Book Writers Should go to Illustrator Workshops 

Springmingle is almost sold out this year, only one spot left, but we want picture book writers to know all about the opportunity they still have to attend Illustrators Day on March 10 at the Decatur Library.

You may ask, "Why would a picture book writer want to go to an illustrators' workshop?"

I'll start with personal experience.  When I registered for my first SCBWI conference in New York all of the writers' intensives were full, but I was studying the way text and image work together in picture books at Hollins University (for my Masters in Children's literature), and decided to see if Lin Oliver would let a non-illustrator attend the illustrators' intensive. She approved and it was one of the best decisions I have made in my writing life. You can read about illustrations creating tension on a page, and I was certainly doing a lot of that at Hollins, but when it is explored in an illustration workshop the term gains a deeper meaning.

It is also hard to comprehend the full nature of the collaboration between the writer and the illustrator. Picture book writers know they need to think visually when they write, but often this comes out as detailed verbal descriptions instead of active texts that offer visual possibilities for the illustrator.
In a blog about creating SAM AND DAVE DIG A HOLE with Jon Klassen, Mac Barnett says,

"I feel like a big part of my job in writing a picture book manuscript is to create opportunities for the illustrations to do the storytelling. And really the picture book writing is the art of finishing an unfinished thing. So there were crucial things to the book that I had no idea how [Jon was] going to solve: What were the spectacular things Sam and Dave were going to miss? How would falling from the bottom of the earth work visually? And how would [Jon] indicate that they’d landed somewhere else?" http://blog.picturebookmakers.com/post/129136224036/mac-barnett-jon-klassen (emphasis added)

The art of leaving things "unfinished" for an illustrator to flesh out is often contrary to our writer's instinct to describe everything in detail for the editor and illustrator so they will see how we envision the story unfolding. Understanding what it means to leave space for the illustrator to contribute to the story is essential to writing great text.

Similarly, as writers we know to include pauses and "cliff hangers" in text that signal a good place for a page turn, but maybe we are not thinking how that will work in the illustrations. Seeing and hearing how editors and art directors structure the text and illustration together helps us understand how we can improve what we submit, make it more acquirable, and be better partners in the collaborative process. 

So if you didn't register in time to attend Springmingle'17, consider coming for Illustrator Day. You'll learn a lot and we'll get to see you at the reception on Friday night! And as an added bonus, there are still a few slots available for consultations with an agent!

Claudia Pearson
Regional Advisor
SCBWI/Southern-Breeze

#SpringMingle - Dinner & Gala - #SBreeze17

Dinner & Gala

Who said conferences were all work and NOOOOOO fun? Let us set the record straight. That's not true. At conferences you meet new friends and get to have fun seeing old ones. You get to dip your toes into new adventures or plunge deeper into things you thought you already knew.
BUT that's not all that SpringMingle offers. There's a time and a place for you to let your hair down, eat some great food, grab a few drinks, and maybe even sing a karaoke song or two. It is the Dinner & Gala offered for a small extra fee on your registration. This meal is held after the Saturday day-long  part of the conference. So it's a wonderful time to sit back and relax, and enjoy time spent with fellow authors and illustrators.
If you're wanting to join in on the festivities, make sure you check the box for the Gala on Saturday night.

REGISTRATION IS NOW OPEN! Click  :::HERE::: to log in and register.

~See you in March~

Author Meet & Greet for #SBreeze16

Author Meet & Greet for #SBreeze16

~OPEN TO THE PUBLIC~

The fun doesn't stop when the conference does.
A select group of authors will be at the Homewood Public Library Sunday, October 9, 2016 from 2 pm to 4 pm. This is your chance to meet the authors, buy their books, and have them autographed.

PARTICIPATING AUTHORS: 

Bruce Coville

Don Tate 

Heather L. Montgomery 

Jo S. Kittinger 

Jodi Wheeler-Toppen 

Delia Blackstone  

Lucyann Wagner 

Kami Kinard

 

Come out and have a great time. See you there!

Light Your Imagination at #SBreeze16 WIK with Bruce Coville

Light Your Imagination at #SBreeze16 WIK with Bruce Coville

Bruce Coville is an SCBWI Advisory Board member and the author of over a hundred books for children and young adults, including My Teacher is an Alien, Into the Land of the Unicorns, and Jeremy Thatcher, Dragon Hatcher. His books have appeared in a dozen languages, and have won children’s choice awards in numerous states, including twice in California. Bruce is also the founder of Full Cast Audio, an audiobook publishing company devoted to producing full cast, unabridged recordings for family listening. 

KEYNOTE SPEAKER

• Ripples in the Pond: Why What We Do Matters 

INTENSIVE

• The Light Fantastic The session will begin with an “annotated storytelling” of the first two chapters of The Monster’s Ring, examining in detail the tricks and techniques being used. Then we’ll examine ten specific tips for writing compelling fantasies.

WORKSHOPS

• The Light Fantastic: Writing Fantasy and Science Fiction (a shorter version of the Fantasy/SF intensive)  The session will begin with an “annotated storytelling” of the first two chapters of The Monster’s Ring, examining in detail the tricks and techniques being used. Then we’ll examine ten specific tips for writing compelling fantasies. audience: Writers, all levels. 
• Voice in Writing: The Most Elusive Aspect  Ask editors what they are looking for in a manuscript, and more often than not the answer you will hear is “voice.” Unfortunately, while voice is the element of writing most sought, it is also the one least taught. Indeed, voice can’t really be taught . . . it something a writer must develop. So let’s talk about some ways that you can find your own voice . . . or voices! audience: Writers, all levels.
• At the Intersection of Plot and Character: Weaving Action and Insight  Writers are concerned about plot. Writers are concerned about character. But what we should really be concerned about is the ways in which plot and character intersect – how plot reveals character, and how character drives plot. In this workshop Bruce Coville will focus on these dual, intertwined aspects of storytelling, as demonstrated in his famous “Puddle Story.”  audience: Writers and illustrators, all levels. 

 

REGISTRATION IS NOW OPEN!

 CLICK HERE to be directed to our registration page! 

~See you in October~

"Something for Everyone!" 30 Days of WIK15 - Irene Latham

"Something for Everyone!"
30 Days of WIK15 - Irene Latham

Irene Latham will host a workshop with Doraine Bennett during WIK15:

• Finding Your Writing Voice
  Through a series of interactive exercises, discover your unique writer’s voice to determine what book you should be writing and where it might fit into the marketplace.
  AUDIENCE: Writers, all levels.
  
  
  

  

ABOUT R. IRENE LATHAM:

Irene Latham is the award-winning author of two novels for children, Leaving Gee’s Bend and Don’t Feed the Boy, and three poetry picture books, the first of which, Dear Wandering Wildebeest, earned two starred reviews and was named a Bank Street College Best Book and an NCTE Notable Poetry book. Fresh Delicious: Poems From the Farmer’s Market and When The Sun Shines on Antarctica will be released in 2016. 

LINKS:

Website

Twitter

Click here to REGISTER FOR WIK'15 now!

"Something for Everyone!" 30 Days of WIK15 - Jo Kittinger

"Something for Everyone!"
30 Days of WIK15 - Jo Kittinger

I remember my early days of writing for children. There was so much to learn!

As a potter, I knew all about making ceramics. I knew the qualities that made for good clay, and knew the multiple steps required to go from raw clay to glazed pot. But when I decided to try writing for kids, I was clueless. I knew which books I enjoyed, but I couldn't really tell you why. And I had no idea how to present my writing to publishers.

Through classes, my critique group, and talking with SCBWI members, I gradually grew in my knowledge. With time, perseverance, and lots of polishing of manuscripts I eventually gained publication in a wide variety of genres.

My workshop at wik'15, The Rules of the Game, offers a crash course in foundational information about the world of publishing in the children's market. We will look at the various divisions within the genre of children's literature and talk about what makes them distinctive. I will share some do's and don't's when you submit your manuscripts. From my personal experiences, I will discuss how to approach agents and editors, both in person and through submission pipelines.  A question and answer segment will allow me to address attendees unique concerns.

Whether an individual wants to write poetry, short stories, picture books, nonfiction, novels, magazine articles or illustrate, my hope is that this workshop will prepare first-time attendees with the basic knowledge they need to make the most of the remainder of the conference.

  

ABOUT JO KITTINGER:

Jo S. Kittinger is an award-winning author of more than 25 books for children, plus numerous items in various books, magazines and newspapers. Her nonfiction picture book, ROSA'S BUS: THE RIDE TO CIVIL RIGHTS received a Crystal Kite award. Her fictional picture book, THE HOUSE ON DIRTY-THIRD STREET, received two prestigious honors: a Christopher Award, which highlights media that "affirms the highest values of the human spirit," and a Social Justice Literature Award from the International Reading Association. Learn more about Jo at: www.jokittinger.com

LINKS:

Website

Twitter

Click here to REGISTER FOR WIK'15 now!

"Something for Everyone!" Days of WIK15 - Heather Montgomery

"Something for Everyone!"
30 Days of WIK15 - Heather Montgomery

Heather Montgomery will host several workshops during WIK15:

• Breaking Barriers: New Nonfiction
  Outrageous illustrations, irreverent voices, marginalia – this isn’t your grandma’s fiction! The confining walls of humdrum nonfiction are being chipped away by one boundary-pushing book after another.  In this session, we will examine our own perceptions of what nonfiction content is and how, by pushing the walls out of our way, we can re-imagine where children’s nonfiction can go in the future. Throw off your blinders! You have the opportunity to forge a new path, to write the next break-out book, to set the new standards. Here is your chance to expand your ideas on voice, structure and format -- see where you go by breaking the barriers!
  You will learn: an outside-the-box approach to subject matter, an exercise to stretch your voice, and visual thinking tools.  
• School Visit Success!
   How can you captivate kids? Please the principal? And teach the teachers? School visits offer opportunities to promote your books, reach a broader audience and generate income. But, in order to be relevant in today’s educational climate, your programs must speak to all three audiences: students, teachers and administration. How can you do that?What steps do you need to take to plan your visit, prepare for your presentation, and execute with style? During this workshop, you will see a sample, discuss issues you have and begin to formulate a plan for your own visits.  You will learn: How to recruit school visits, dig into curriculum standards, and please all three audiences (students, educators, administrators).

  

ABOUT HEATHER MONTGOMERY:

Author Heather L. Montgomery uses yuck appeal to engage young minds, inspire reluctant writers, and empower research bliss. Thanks to all she has learned through Southern Breeze SCBWI, Heather has published twelve nonfiction books including WHY DO MY TEETH FALL OUT? (Capstone) and HOW RUDE! REAL BUGS WHO WON'T MIND THEIR MANNERS (Scholastic). Heather has a B.S. in Biology, a M.S. in Environmental Education, and awards for her educational programs. She resides on the Tennessee/Alabama border and is the former Assistant Regional Advisor for Southern Breeze. Learn more at www.HeatherLMontgomery.com.

LINKS:

Website

Twitter

Click here to REGISTER FOR WIK'15 now!

"Something for Everyone!" 30 Days of WIK15 - Doraine Bennett

"Something for Everyone!"
30 Days of WIK15 - Doraine Bennett

Doraine Bennett will host a workshop with Irene Latham during WIK15:

• Finding Your Writing Voice
  Through a series of interactive exercises, discover your unique writer’s voice to determine what book you should be writing and where it might fit into the marketplace.
  AUDIENCE: Writers, all levels.
  
  
  

  

ABOUT R. DORAINE BENNETT:

Doraine Bennett has more than forty published books. She’s written two series, Georgia Geographic Regions and Georgia Habitats, which are on the Georgia DOE Common Core recommended books for teachers of second and third grade. She is a published poet, a blogger in the Kidlitosphere, and a certified yoga instructor. 

LINKS:

Website

Twitter

Click here to REGISTER FOR WIK'15 now!

"Something for Everyone!" Days of WIK15 - Faye Gibbons

"Something for Everyone!"
30 Days of WIK15 - Faye Gibbons

Faye Gibbons will host a workshop during WIK15:

• Mining for Gold
  Has your wonderful story idea gone cold?  Has your middle grade biography become stale?  Whether you are writing fiction or nonfiction, what you need is new material--fresh ideas.  This session tells you where to find those treasures.  You will learn how to keep and organize notes, how to get help from experts in the field, and how to enlist help from librarians.  The mother lode you unearth may give you ideas for other stories down the road.  Let's go prospecting!

  

ABOUT FAYE GIBBONS:

Faye has 14 books and numerous short stories and articles published.  Her most recent book, HALLEY, has received starred reviews from Kirkus and School Library Journal, and is a 2015 Jefferson Cup Honor Winner.  For the past eight years she has taught writing at John C. Campbell Folk School in North Carolina.  Many of her stories draw inspiration from the large mountain Georgia farm family she was born into, and the many mill towns she lived in as she grew up.  She eventually became a teacher--taking on every grade from 4 through 12.  After she married an Alabama boy she ended up on a farm in Deatsville, Alabama.  Faye shared her love of reading and writing with her two sons as they grew up, and now with six grandchildren.

LINKS:

Website

Click here to REGISTER FOR WIK'15 now!

"Something for Everyone!" 30 Days of WIK15 - Lisa Lewis Tyre

"Something for Everyone!"
30 Days of WIK15 - Lisa Lewis Tyre

Lisa Lews Tyre will host a workshop during WIK15:

• Rocking Your Social Media
  No matter where I am, or what I’m doing, someone wants to talk about social media. I guess with over one BILLION Facebook users, 540 million active users on GooglePlus, 225 million Twitter accounts, and 200 million users of Instagram, it’s on a lot of people’s minds.
  
  
  Or it could be that I’m a Social Media Evangelist and I’m the one always bringing it up. Whichever. I can’t help it. I LOVE social media, and despite the large numbers of people using it, you can still make great, authentic connections without spending every waking minute in front of the computer.
  
  
  This year I’ll be presenting Rocking Your Social Media at Wik15 and if I do it well, it’s going to be fun, useful and interactive – just like good social media! Together we’ll discuss good/bad social media practices, time management tools, the most popular platforms, connecting with influencers, etc. There may even be prizes.
  
  
  In between marketing my debut book and writing my next one, I spend my time blogging, posting, and tweeting for a variety of clients, and consulting with those who want to do it themselves. Trust me when I tell you, this CAN be fun.
  
  
  Hanging out at the SCBWI Southern Breeze conference will be great, but we don’t have to wait until then to connect. Follow me on twitter @lisalewistyre and let’s get social!
  
  
  Of course, we can always go old-school and talk face-to-face at the conference. Find me! I’ll be the one with the selfie stick.  

ABOUT LISA LEWIS TYRE:

Lisa Lewis Tyre is a middle grade author (Last In A Long Line of Rebels, Nancy Paulsen Books) a frequent contributor to The Huffington Post, a founder of the multi-author blog, Middle Grade Mafia and a social media evangelist! Follow her on twitter!

LINKS:

Website

Twitter

Click here to REGISTER FOR WIK'15 now!

"Something for Everyone!" 30 Days of WIK15 - Kami Kinard

"Something for Everyone!"
30 Days of WIK15 - Kami Kinard

Kami Kinard will host several workshops during WIK15:

• Humor Sells: Laughter-Inducing Techniques!Editors and agents love funny books. So do children! Writing humor isn’t easy, but by employing the techniques presented in this workshop, authors can have their readers laughing out loud!
  AUDIENCE: Writers, all levels. 
• Unconventional Formats: Pushing Beyond the Paragraph
  This workshop explores the benefits of incorporating unconventional formatting options in manuscripts. In addition to providing visual breaks, these allow for shifts in point of view and changes in voice.
  AUDIENCE: Writers, all levels.

  

ABOUT KAMI KINARD:

Kami Kinard’s latest novel, The Boy Problem was published by Scholastic in April 2014. Her first novel, The Boy Project, also published by Scholastic, was chosen for the 2013 Children’s Choices Reading List. Both novels employ humor and alternative formats. Kinard’s poetry, fiction, and nonfiction pieces have appeared in many children’s magazines, including Ladybug, Babybug, Highlights, and Jack And Jill. A co-founder of Kidlit Summer School, a free online program that focuses on the craft of writing for children, Kinard is also a teaching artist on the South Carolina Arts Commission’s Roster of Approved Artists. She lives with her family in Beaufort, South Carolina. www.kamikinard.com.

LINKS:

Website

Twitter

Click here to REGISTER FOR WIK'15 now!

"Something for Everyone!" 30 Days of WIK15 - Hester Bass

"Something for Everyone!"
30 Days of WIK15 - Hester Bass

Hester Bass will host several workshops during WIK15:

• Who’s the Boss? The Role of Editor, Author, and Illustrator w/ Kaylan Adair & E. B. Lewis
  Learn from the experiences of Candlewick Press editor Kaylan Adair, author Hester Bass, and illustrator E. B. Lewis about the process of successful collaboration that creates rewarding relationships and award-winning books.
  AUDIENCE: Writers and illustrators, all levels. 
• Relax and Remember: Acting Techniques for Precise Writing
  Develop skills every writer needs: concentration and sense memory. Practice exercises from the world of acting to recall specific details for any scene, which help you write more precisely and create the authentic emotional response you intend for your readers.
  AUDIENCE: Writers, all levels. 
• Honing Your Home-Run Pitch.
  Create your own luck when preparation meets opportunity! Learn to craft and practice a one-line and a one-paragraph pitch for your work-in-progress, including tips on how to deliver them during that elevator ride to impress an editor or agent.
  AUDIENCE: Writers, all levels.
  

Hester Bass will also host a half-day Writing Intensive workshop on Friday, October 16, 2015.

*Intensives are an additional fee. Please see Registration Page for cost.

  

ABOUT HESTER BASS:

Hester Bass was a broadcast copywriter, rock singer, Shakespearian actress, singing telegram messenger, and television game show contestant before becoming an author. Seeds of Freedom: The Peaceful Integration of Huntsville, Alabama (Candlewick Press, illustrated by E.B. Lewis) is a Junior Library Guild selection, Alabama’s representative at the 2015 National Book Festival, SIBA Okra Pick, and received a Parents’ Choice Silver Honor. Publishers Weekly said in a starred review: “This is nonfiction storytelling at its best.” The Secret World of Walter Anderson won the Orbis Pictus Award for Outstanding Nonfiction for Children, SIBA Book Award, and was named one of the Best Children’s Books of the Year. She has offered presentations for SCBWI regions, ALA, ILA, NCTE, and more to, as one librarian said, “encourage the most reluctant reader to read and the hesitant student to write.” Hester Bass lives in Santa Fe, New Mexico. 

LINKS:

Website

Click here to REGISTER for WIK'15 now!