Writing - and Selling Kids Books - Workshops for Pre-Published and Professional Authors

Yes, I teach writing  and business skills. Usually over beer or coffee when I rant at my friends. But I also present at writing conferences and SCBWI chapter meetings and the like. In fact, I'll be doing several workshops next week at the When Words Collide Conference in Calgary. If you're in the Calgary area, please come by! It's an awesome program! Kidlit and YA Writers Amanda Sun, Claire Eamer, Karen Bass will also be presenting.

Here are the the most popular workshops I offer. Please keep me in mind if you or your organization is looking for a professional speaker. I also do a hilarious prezzie on humor writing, if I do say so myself.

> Basic Business Skills for Writers. ROI. B2B. Profit Centre. Supply Chain. Qualifying the Customer. If these and other business-related phrases strike fear in your heart, this workshop is for you. Learn the business basics you really need to jumpstart your writing career. Note: This class is not about the publishing business. It focuses on the skills you will need as a sole proprietor of a freelance writing business.




> The 17 Celestial Secrets of Writing Nonfiction. The Common Core Curriculum specifically mandates nonfiction books for kids. What makes nonfiction work? How do you pitch and present a nonfiction idea to agents or editors? This all-true workshop gives you the info you need to make the sale.



> Writing Picture Books - Picture Books are Opera on the page. Your books needs all of the elements an opera has - compelling character, great plot, action and drama, set design, costumes, music and dance - even if features a Pigeon. Learn the basics of how to create a compelling Carmen, a terrific Tosca, and a powerful Pigeon in 32 perfect pages.



> Poetry Primer. You've all heard it - no one buys poetry. It's not true. What they won't buy is BAD poetry. And chances are your poetry isn't up to scratch. In this workshop, you'll learn the common faults most beginners make when writing rhyming verse, and how to make your verse sparkle like a brand new espresso machine (and pack the same punch!)

Crystal Kites Awards Announced!

THE SOCIETY OF CHILDREN'S BOOK WRITERS AND ILLUSTRATORS ANNOUNCES THE WINNERS OF THE ANNUAL CRYSTAL KITE MEMBER CHOICE AWARDS




The SCBWI is excited to announce the winners of the 2013 Crystal Kite Member Choice Awards for our fifteen regional divisions:



Africa

• Neil Malherbe - The Magyar Conspiracy (Tafelberg Publishers)



Australia

• Meg McKinlay - Ten Tiny Things (Fremantle Press)



California/Hawaii

• Katherine Applegate - The One and Only Ivan (HarperCollins Children’s Books)



Florida/Georgia/South Carolina/North Carolina/Alabama/Mississippi

• Augusta Scattergood - Glory Be (Scholastic)



Kansas/Louisiana/Arkansas/Tennessee/Kentucky/Missouri

• Sharon Cameron - The Dark Unwinding (Scholastic)



Middle East/India/Asia

• Benjamin Martin - Samurai Awakening (Tuttle Publishing)



Minnesota/Iowa/Nebraska/Wisconsin/Illinois/Michigan/Indiana/Ohio

• Aaron Reynolds - Creepy Carrots (Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers)



Nevada/Arizona/Utah/Colorado/Wyoming/New Mexico

• Jean Reagan - How to Baby Sit A Grandpa (Alfred A. Knopf (Random House Children's Books)



New England (Maine, Vermont, New Hampshire. Connecticut, Massachusetts, Rhode Island)

• Jo Knowles - See You At Harry's (Candlewick Press)



New York

• Kate Messner - Capture the Flag (Scholastic)



Pennsylvania/Delaware/New Jersey/Wash DC/Virginia/West Virginia/Maryland

• Ame Dyckman - BOY + BOT (Alfred A. Knopf (Random House Children's Books)



Texas/Oklahoma

• Lynne Kelly - Chained (Farrar, Straus & Giroux, Inc.)



The Americas (Canada/Mexico/Central & South America)

• Jennifer Lanthier - The Stamp Collector (Fitzhenry and Whiteside)



UK/Europe

• Dave Cousins - Fifteen Days without a Head (Oxford University Press)



Washington/Oregon/Alaska/Idaho/Montana/North Dakota/South Dakota

• Kim Baker - Pickle (Roaring Brook Press (Macmillan Publishers)

About the Crystal Kite Awards

The Crystal Kite Awards are given by the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators to recognize great books from the seventy SCBWI regions around the world. Along with the SCBWI Golden Kite Awards, the Crystal Kite Awards are chosen by other children’s book writers and illustrators, making them the only peer-given awards in publishing for young readers.





About SCBWI

Founded in 1971, the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators is one of the largest existing writers’ and illustrators’ organizations, with over 22,000 members worldwide. It is the only organization specifically for those working in the fields of children’s literature, magazines, film, television, and multimedia. The organization was founded by Stephen Mooser (President) and Lin Oliver (Executive Director), both of whom are well-published children’s book authors and leaders in the world of children’s literature. For more information about the Crystal Kite Award, please visit www.scbwi.org, and click “Awards & Grants.”

Yes, there ARE nice people in the world

I'm sure you were as horrified as I was to hear the stories about Malala Yousoufzai's getting shot for supporting education for girls.

Journalist and author Kate Jaimet was. And she decided to do what she could to help Malala and the girls of Pakistan. So she got in touch with other members of the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators in our region, Canada East, to see about sending a "Get Well Soon" box of kids books to Malala.

The response was overwhelming. So overwhelming, in fact, that Kate quickly found herself faced with logistical and practical problems of sending boxes and boxes of books to Pakistan. In the end, Kate arranged to have a small box of books, written and donated by SCBWI members who had attended the recent SCBWI conference in Ottawa, to the girls' school in Pakistan that is named for Malala. Another book and get well card was mailed directly to Malala in hospital in Britain.

The selected book was Greener Grass by Caroline Pignat. The card, handmade by illustrator Peggy Collins, was signed by all the authors and illustrators who had contributed to the project.

My own contribution was The Quiz Book for Girls. I hope the girls in Pakistan enjoy it!