Lin Oliver's Welcome to #NY21SCBWI

It's virtual, but it's still a warm welcome to the SCBWI Winter Conference.

Lin Oliver, co-founder and Executive Director of SCBWI welcomes us all (lower box), with sign language interpreter Susannah Jaffe pictured in the higher box.

Welcome to #NY21SCBWI!

There are over 4,700 of us attending (both live and asynchronously). Over 1,000 of us are already published, and we're from all over the world!

Over 2,000 of attendee writers have manuscripts in the gallery where for the next two weeks, over 200 editors and agents will be exploring those.

And "hundreds and hundreds" of attendee artists have submitted art to the portfolio showcase - the Grand Prize winners will be announced tomorrow. That's available for all of us to peruse here.

There's a bookstore where you can purchase the books of the conference faculty - and it supports independent bookstores! - https://bookshop.org/shop/SCBWI

Lin sets the tone of the conference, suggesting we imagine we're all sitting around a table, artists and authors, with common goals, wanting to be both vulnerable and safe, and committed to creating great books for kids.

And with that, we're off to the first keynote, Matt de la Peña and Christian Robinson, "The Picture Book as a Perfect Marriage Between Author and Illustrator"!

The Golden Kite Awards are LIVE - and online with 6,000 of us watching!

Lin Oliver, co-founder and Executive Director of SCBWI, introduces the evening's festivities, telling us that among the 6,000 of us attending are folks from all 50 of the US states and 60 countries, and every continent except Antarctica...

Lin Oliver (left) with sign language interpreter Jennye Kamin at right.

Tonight there will be eight awards presented - announcing the one honor and one winner in each category.

But first, a heartfelt message from childhood literacy advocate, parent, and actor Jennifer Garner, about how our books help children feel "all the feelings, big and small."

Jennifer Garner's special message to viewers of the 2021 SCBWI Golden Kite Awards

And now, let's see who the honorees and winners will be!

Thank yous and conference wrap up!

Clockwise from top right: Lin Oliver, Laurie Miller, Julian Petri, Jill Corcoran, and sign language interpreter Brian Truitt.

Lin wraps things up, agreeing with Elizabeth Partridge, 

"We hold the future in our hands, because we hold the children in our hands." 

Jill Corcoran from the Smithsonian zooms back in for the finale, saying of Elizabeth's keynote, "I have chills..." And she invites all of us to come to si.edu as we research our future books. 

Lin shouts out to conference organizer Laurie Miller, conference zoom producer Julian Petri, and the entire SCBWI staff, the event's sign language interpreters, and all of us attendees for taking two days for this experience, telling us:

"We believe every single one of us has the capability to great work, we're a community, and we support each other."

Authors Panel: Creative Approaches to Writing Nonfiction

Moderated by Lin Oliver, the panelists are Nathan Hale, Kevin Noble Maillard, Elizabeth Rusch, Steve Sheinkin, Melissa Stewart, and Carole Boston Weatherford.

top row, left to right: Lin Oliver and sign language interpreter Brian Truitt
2nd row, left to right: Elisabeth Rusch and Nathan Hale
3rd row, left to right: Kevin Noble Maillard and Carole Boston Weatherford
4th row, left to right: Steve Sheinkin and Melissa Stewart

Observing that as writers of nonfiction we're "Not just conveyers of information, we’re interpreters of information," Lin introduces the panel. Highlights from the panelists include:

Nathan Hale

Nathan tells us about his Hazardous Tales series, graphic nonfiction. And even his nonfiction cartoon in last Sunday's New York Times Book section. 

Using a live sketchbook on screen, Nathan tells us about his process, research to manuscript to images to include in the story.

"I'm constantly looking at pictures so I can have my drawings do the explaining for the readers."

With examples, Nathan tell us that "Cartoons and visuals pack an amazing punch when it comes to nonfiction."

For Hazardous Tales series, Nathan explains how he created narrators, four fictional characters, including one that asks simple questions to help him tell his stories.

"When you pack action and excitement into all this information that's being presented, it removes the barriers to entry" and young readers "jump right in."

 

Kevin Noble Maillard

Kevin recounts the call telling him his debut Fry Bread had won the ALA's Robert F. Sibert Informational Book Award, and how he learned that it was an informational award - not a nonfiction award. That we can have "books that are nonfiction that are informational, but we can have informational books that might not be nonfictional."

He speaks about layering in art, and in writing. Creating new levels of meaning.

And how he and Fry Bread's illustrator, Juana Martinez-Neal, collaborated to imbue every part of the illustrations with meaning. 

Elizabeth Rusch

Elizabeth opens by saying, "One of the reasons I love nonfiction is it is limitless."

She tells us about the Google test - can kids easily type into Google and get the same information you're wanting to portray? If so, you need to dig deeper. "Think about how to offer more."

Elizabeth walks us through, as an exercise, a number of the questions she thinks about when she's interested in writing about a topic.

Can you somehow tell a story with a character, with a narrative arc, what do they want, what obstacles do they face, what's the climax? She tells us about her informative fiction Glacier on the Move book, the story of a Glacier named Flo who wants to visit the sea. Which is what glaciers do! "Think about the narrative arc."

Another question Elizabeth suggests we ask ourselves: "Is there anything new in this area you want to write about?" And then ask yourself, "would kids find this interesting? Do kids need to learn this?"

Steve Sheinkin

Steve talks about writing narrative nonfiction. He recalls another Benedict Arnold book coming out while he was writing The Notorious Benedict Arnold: A True Story of Adventure, Heroism & Treachery and how his editor assured him "You do your book" -- and how that saved him. He wanted to write a page-turning action adventure. A 300 page middle grade nonfiction with no pictures.

"The beautiful thing about nonfiction, the kids that like reading Nathan Hale's books totally like this, too." 

On openings, Steve speaks about immediately jumping into the action. "You're going to go through four or five different ones..." Saying eventually, with enough research, maybe towards the end of the writing, "you'll hit on that scene that tells readers what the book is about" and is dynamic.

He starts with writing the exciting things first, and then sprinkles the information (like salt into soup) readers need to know.

If you're not sure if idea is good enough, ask yourself "what's the ending? What's the climax?... If I don't know the ending before I start, I would never start."

Melissa Stewart

Melissa speaks of her expository nonfiction picture books, including her upcoming picture book Summertime Sleepers: Animals That Estivate 

Unlike narrative nonfiction which tells a story or experience, expository nonfiction explains something - either a broad overview of a topic, or for narrowly focused books on STEM concepts, like animal adaptations. "It can have pretty much any structure you can think of."

"Instead of reading it from page to page, cover to cover, beginning to end, expository nonfiction can be approached in many ways." 

Melissa shares examples from a number of her own works, including Pipsqueaks, Slowpokes, and Stinkers: Celebrating Animal Underdogs.

She points out uses of secondary texts, and text structures like lists, opposites, and the use of onomatopoeia, strong verbs, synonyms, repetition and alliteration, and voice.

Melissa also tells us about big picture revision - "trying to figure out the structure of the book" and then, the word choice, "smaller revisions."

Carole Boston Weatherford

Carole speaks of her book Unspeakable: The Tulsa Race Massacre, sharing that "I borrowed from fairy tales" to give kids something familiar to hang onto, like a security blanket, but also to show that Tulsa, before the massacre, is now vanished history. That was erased by the violence.

She considers how including song titles "creates a built in soundtrack" and that "I fall back on oral traditions quite a bit." 

"Sometimes I challenge myself to create in a particular form."

Carole talks about working on multiple books at a time, making lists, and that she now footnotes her sources as she goes. "It's better for me to have the references in the manuscript," as fact-checking sometimes happens a year and a half after writing.

She tries to keep her writing "top of mind," balancing it with her day job. 

**

The discussion has the panelists address questions on revision, handling violence in books for young readers, their process, and much more!

 

The Editors Panel!

top row: moderator Lin Oliver, sign language interpreter Brian Truitt, and Carol Hinz
middle row: Emily Feinberg, Kandace Coston, and Melissa Manlove
lower row: Sydnee Monday and Farrin Jacobs

Moderated by Lin Oliver, the panelists discuss what they're publishing and why, and then answer some audience questions.

Highlights include:

Kandace Coston, Assistant Editor, Lee & Low Books:

Kandace is looking for "strong female protagonists...unapologetic women who have been overlooked by history" but "whose contributions to society cannot be ignored."

Kandace speaks of POC and native creators and other underrepresented communities, and how Lee & Low's New Voices contest has for the last 20 years worked to create a path to publication for those creators and stories. (One of her responsibilities now is to read the hundreds of submissions that come in for the contest.)

She discusses the demand for greater diversity, and how "writing nonfiction can become a form of activism."

She recalls watching Hidden Figures in the movie theater, and the impact the true story of a brilliant group of Black women mathematicians might have had on her if she'd seen it as a young person.

Nonfiction is "an opportunity to break stereotypes... and the story of how our country is more multifaceted than we know."

Emily Feinberg, Editor, Roaring Brook Press

Emily shares about some of the books she's published, starting with picture books, and considers the through-line of many of the books she's worked on.

If Sharks Disappeared is a series that started as an infographic that Emily saw online, and then contacted the illustrator.

She cautions that she doesn't do a lot of picture book biographies as they can seem "wikipedia-ish," but then speaks of "Secret Engineer: How Emily Roebling Built the Brooklyn Bridge" as an example of how to do it right.

For older readers, she encourages playing with how a story is told, like the transcripts of sourced quotes in “Bringing Down a President: The Watergate Scandal.” 

Emily says her goal with nonfiction is 

"To give young readers the tools they need to be part of the conversation... To impart knowledge in way that sticks."

Carol Hinz, Editorial Director, Millbrook Press & CarolRhoda Books at Lerner

Carol is looking for “books that spark my curiosity, and that I think will spark the curiosity of parents, educators, and most of all, young people.” 

Carol shares categories and titles she publishes, including picture books that address science concepts in fresh ways, topics that may be be unexpected or "difficult," and middle grade nonfiction picture books on environmental themes (especially highlighting scientists of color and underrepresented backgrounds.)

She mentions science literacy, saying "the pandemic has made it clear what a poor job we've done with this in the US." She would love to see some novel approaches to help young people become more scientifically literate.

Overall, Carol says that about nonfiction, she loves "just how much is possible, in terms of topics and approaches," with Point of View and voice.

Farrin Jacobs, Editorial Director, Little Brown Books for Young Readers

Farrin discusses how Malala's story lent itself to spinning off to other formats, taking an anecdote from Malala's autobiography and making a picture book, and now even a chapter book. 

She speaks about how if its not a "big person with a big platform" then they're "looking for a story that will be picked up" for things like all-school reads and state lists and "have that long tail."

It's "all about stories and characters," and she talks about big idea books, and telling underserved stories.

Farrin says, "we're reaching readers when they're still developing" so she wants stories that help develop empathy, with "characters who feel and think."

Melissa Manlove, Senior Editor, Chronicle Books

With nonfiction, Melissa tells us that "you can do so many things."

And Melissa challenges us to ask ourselves, "What can I do that is new? What can I do that is surprising, and inspiring to kids?"

Sydnee Monday, Assistant Editor, Kokila/Penguin Random House

Sydnee explains that she's "Focused on publishing subversive, entertaining narratives" and especially the stories of Black, Indigenous and Queer people.

One example Sydnee mentions is the upcoming "Not Everyone Is Going To Like You" by Rinny Perkins

She speaks of self-sufficient marginalized communities, and using her list to celebrate underrepresented subjects and audiences. She's looking, in particular, for YA nonfiction.

Thanks to all the editors!

Lin Oliver's welcome to the Nonfiction Workshop

SCBWI's Lin Oliver (top), and sign language interpreter Jennye Kamin

Lin (top) welcomes the audience of 757 attendees (plus 27 faculty)! 325 of we attendees are published, a total of 1,543 books to our credit - as Lin puts it, "that's a school library!" We come from 49 states in the US (including the District of Columbia) and 21 countries around the world.

Lin shares with us how this conference came about, with the help of nonfiction author Melissa Stewart, editor Melissa Manlove, and Jill Corcoran, Director of Licensed Publishing at the Smithsonian.

Jill (whose background includes being an author and a literary agent) introduces the first keynote speaker, Eduardo Díaz, Director, Smithsonian Latino Center.

The Agents Panel Begins!

The Agents Panel at #SCBWISummerSpec

A screen shot of Lin Oliver (top left, moderating) and the panelists Regina Brooks (top right), Linda Camacho (center left), Brooks Sherman (center right), Rosemary Stimola (lower left), and interpreter Jennye Kamin (lower right.)

Jeff Kinney in Conversation with Henry Winkler and Lin Oliver

Jeff Kinney is the author of the wildly successful Diary of a Wimpy Kid series and lives in Massachusetts, where he owns a bookstore, An Unlikely Story. Twitter: @wimpykid

Lin Oliver is the co-founder and executive director of SCBWI. She is also the author of over forty children’s books. With Henry Winkler, she writes the New York Times bestselling series Hank Zipzer: World’s Best Underachiever, which has sold over four million copies. Their chapter book series, Here’s Hank, is also a New York Times best seller. This year marks the launch of their new comedy series, Alien Superstar, from Abrams Books, which debuted at #5 on the New York Times best seller list. Lin’s collection of poetry, illustrated by Tomie dePaola, the highly praised Little Poems for Tiny Ears is a perennial for babies and toddlers. The fifth and final volume of her Fantastic Frame chapter book adventure series from Penguin Workshop is a Christmas, 2019, release. A much-credited film and television writer- producer, Lin is also the recipient of the prestigious Christopher Award and the Eric Carle Mentor Award. Learn more at www.linoliver.com or follow Lin on Twitter @linoliver, or on Instagram @linoliver22.

Henry Winkler is an Emmy Award–winning actor, writer, director, and producer who has created some of the most iconic TV roles, including the Fonz in Happy Days and Gene Cousineau in Barry. In partnership with Lin Oliver, they have written over thirty books for children, including the HANK ZIPZER and HERE’S HANK series, which has sold over four million copies. Their newest collaboration is the ALIEN SUPERSTAR trilogy from Abrams. Twitter: @hwinkler4real

---

A screen shot of the conversation between Henry Winkler (top left), Lin Oliver (top right), Jeff Kinney (lower left), interpreted by Brian Truitt

Jeff is speaking from a hotel, on his physically distanced book tour. Here's a picture of the long trident he uses to pass books to young readers!

Henry puts it so profoundly, Jeff's selling over 200 million books is amazing: "From your imagination to the page to the kids' imagination."

Jeff shares that kids in China think of the characters in his books “as friends of theirs.” He's focused on stories about teachers, bullies, pets, homework.

Lin follow up with a question about creating characters that are so lovable, and Jeff explains that he originally thought he was writing the books for adults. It was the publisher who decided it was a children's book series. "The humor needed to stand on its own." There didn't need to be a 'lesson'. And so, it wasn't watered-down. The character, "warts-and-all" is what makes it so relatable to kids.

Jeff considers that there's a "bit of an edge" to his Diary of a Wimpy Kid books. "Kids recognize edge." They want to get away from the 'lesson' books and so, when his character Greg does something that gets another kid in trouble, and Greg's mother tells him to do the right thing, and the right thing for Greg is to let the other kid take the fall, that subverts expectations. (and that's funny.) And then Greg's mom takes him out for ice cream. That's causing kids dissonance. (and that's funny, too.) And then, eventually, Greg does the actual right thing.

Jeff says that he's always walking that line, wanting to avoid putting out stories that are bad for the world with the need, as he puts it: "I want to be truthful."

After 20 years of writing, Jeff finished mining his own childhood memories, and tells us that now he has to "create memories." He uses a system called "systematic inventive thinking."
Step 1: take an object, and list its components.
Step 2: use tools on each component: Subtraction, Task Unification, Multiplication, Division, and Attribute Dependency.
He uses it for humor.

An example: They fly by plane. Jeff lists the components of a plane. wings, pilot. Then he uses the tools. Take away wings. take away pilot. How do you get humor? Jeff made his character Greg a pilot in a fantasy sequence, the plane hit turbulence and since Greg didn't know how to solve the problem, he parachutes out of the plane.

Jeff tells us that for each book he writes hundreds of pages, 300-700 jokes. Then he gets it down to best 200 and starts writing.

There's so much more discussed - here's just few more gems from the conversation:

"Humor is my craft. Sometimes I hit, sometimes I miss, but I always try." –Jeff Kinney

"Truth is always funniest." –Henry Winkler

"For Henry and me, if we're laughing, the kids will be laughing." –Lin Oliver

Thanks, Jeff, Henry, and Lin!

#SCBWISummerSpec: Judy Blume in conversation with Lin Oliver

Judy Blume and Lin Oliver kicked off Saturday with a wide-ranging and honest conversation about the joys and challenges of storytelling, and the importance of keeping it real.  Some highlights from their delightful conversation follow below.

Blume sometimes wishes she'd had a children's lit community like SCBWI. She started out as a young mother and wife, though "I never considered myself a housewife." The "inciting incident" that prompted her writing career? Blume says she was just "desperate for a creative outlet", so she wrote. She started out with a "terrible" rhyming picture book called "You, Mom, You" -- that she also tried to illustrate. While You, Mom, You didn't exactly work out, Judy Blume, children's author, was on her way and did not look back. She joined a writing class at NYU, where she was fortunate to have a supportive teacher, and read and read. Books like Harriet the Spy by Louise Fitzhugh and Jennifer, Hecate, Macbeth, William McKinley, and Me, Elizabeth by. E.L. Konigsberg inspired her to write novels. Blume went through two years of rejections before her first book, Iggy's House, was sold. "Determination is as important as talent," said Blume. During that period of rejection, "I was always writing." She sat at the kitchen table, wrote, submitted, got rejections, cried, and wrote some more.

Blume, who says her editor Dick Jackson would tell her "You know more than you're showing me," in first drafts, pointed out that she never starts actually writing "until it's been percolating for a long time...months to years, even." She lets her stories simmer. She's a big believer in notebooks. "I never approach writing a book without a notebook." Each of her books has a notebook, where she jots down everything about character, setting, dialogue, any and everything that comes to mind. She tells young people that the writing process is a bit like creating and putting together a jigsaw puzzle -- making the pieces, painting and colouring them, putting them together. "My mind is messy...it's cluttered," she added. While she occassionally does some planning and light outlining (for books like Blubber and the later Fudge stories, for example), she loves being surprised by the writing process. When Oliver asked if she had an inner critic, Blume answered: "Do you know any writer who isn't incredibly insecure?" She reflected on her early career where she was less self-conscious "because I didn't know anything" and more recent times, when "I can write my own bad reviews." Inner critic or no, Blume is adamant that they can't be around during the writing process. "You have to write without fear," she said. That fearlessness and authenticity are a hallmark of Blume's storytelling. "You have such an incredible honesty," said Oliver. Blume said that she told herself early on to be honest. As a child, she'd hated when adults kept secrets from children, and vowed to tell the truth in her stories. To write with emotional honest, "you have to dig...put yourself inside" your memories, and engage all of your senses as you do. "When you write for kids...you have to really be on their side."

"When you write for kids...you have to really be on their side."

Blume, now a bookstore owner (Books and Books in Key West, FL), encourages all writers to "read, read, read, and read" to learn and be inspired. She acknowledged that while she has often been able to use humor to write about difficult topics, the pain and unrest of the current moment can make it hard to be inspired. "I have always been able to write through the worst times," but Judy Blume has struggled to create over the last few months. Oliver added that sometimes writers have to "forgive ourselves" and other times "discipline ourselves." When writing about challenging or "uncomfortable" topics, Blume advises not to start with the issue, but with "character, approach it from inside of your character." Blume, whose books, like Are You There God? It's Me Margaret, have been challenged and seen as "controversial" by some, added that writers have to knock both the critic and the censor from their shoulders. Reading, she points out, "helps us get to know one another." Writers should primarily "tell the best story you can tell...and it's going to work sometimes." Blume feels fortunate that she entered. the business in ignorance, and advises writers not to think, but "just go for it, write...get into your own story, your own characters," to "get into the zone." Oliver agreed that that type of losing self-consciousness and inhabiting the story is key to success, and the enduring success of Judy Blume's body of work is certainly a testament to that.

Lin Oliver's Welcome to the 2020 Online Summer Spectacular

Lin Oliver (top) welcomes the community (including you!)
Jennye Kamin provides sign language interpretation.

From her dining room table, Lin shares that doing this 49th annual SCBWI conference digitally (due to COVID-19) has opened so many doors. There are 4,800 of us attending, gathering around Lin's table virtually over the next four days, talking about children's books!

4,800! A record (by far!) for SCBWI conferences. 1,600 of us are published (one-third!)
We come from every US state, and from 48 other countries around the world.

Lin reminds us that every session will be recording and will live on the SCBWI website for the entire month of August (so if you miss one, or want to re-watch one, that's where to go.)

She also suggests we all check out the SCBWI bookstore - 2 books by each faculty member, as well as books written and illustrated by our fellow attendees!

There's the online portfolio showcase - over 450 artists have submitted their portfolios! "The work is incredibly beautiful, so browse, and reach out to people."

And don't forget the meme contest!

All those links are in the conference attendee packet - which you can access by signing in at scbwi.org

Everywhere else, #SCBWISummerSpec is the hashtag.

Lin introduces Philip Pullman and Arthur A. Levine, and we're off on the adventure of the next four days...

#SCBWIdigital workshop: Laurent Linn and Cecilia Yung present "Two Art Directors Talking: The Theater of Picture Books"

Today's full workshop title is "Two Art Directors Talking: The Theater of Picture Books - The Art of Bringing Visual Elements Together For Storytelling."

Our experts are Laurent Linn (Art Director, Simon and Schuster Books for Young Readers)
and
Cecilia Yung (Art Director and Vice President, Penguin Books for Young Readers).

Both Laurent and Cecilia are also on the SCBWI Board - so giving back to this community (including the 1,200+ of us watching live) is something they do with heart and passion.

Lin introduces them, saying that they both create picture books that are "as much works of art as they are books."

Clockwise, from top left: Lin Oliver, Laurent Linn, and Cecilia Yung

Laurent opens by speaking of how it's not just one thing, "It's everything coming together to tell a good story."

In reference to our current global pandemic, he says,

"Stories and art have survived through every catastrophe of civilization... Now is the time, not just the world needs your stories, but we - I'm a writer and illustrator also - we need to tell our stories."

Cecilia begins by discussing the inner life of the character or story, which transforms how we the reader see ourselves, and/or the world.

She suggests questions we should ask ourselves:

The most important question is "why?"
Who is your reader?
What is the take-away?
What is your difference - that unique something that only YOU can do to distinguish this book from all the other picture books that have been published?

They dedicate today's workshop to Tomie de Paola - calling him a master who "used the book as a stage."

Read Lin Oliver's remembrance of Tomie dePaola here.

Walking us through visual examples from books they've art directed, they teach us different principles.

From Misty Copeland's nonfiction picture book "Bunheads," illustrated by Setor Fiadzigbey, Cecilia shows us the drama and theater of the illustrations.

Notice the top left page, where Misty is so dedicated she shows up early to practice but her friend is already there in the studio! Cecilia speaks more of how the illustrations in the book show that friendship, and the competition between them that drove each dancer to excel.

From the fiction picture book "Sulwe" by Lupita Nyong', illustrated by Vashti Harrison, Laurent points out how even the sky is a character:

"Nothing should be generic," He advises us, adding, “Often the more specific makes it universal.”

They speak and show examples from many more picture books, discussing character design, costume design, controlling the direction of a reader's eye, getting to the heart of the emotion, narrative, and so much more.

There's a Q&A that ranges from white space to compositional tools (line composition, color composition, and light/shadow), to the selection of an illustrator.

It's a master class in how two brilliant art directors look at and think about picture books and the illustration of picture books.

Thank you, Laurent and Cecilia!

Stay safe, all.
Lee

p.s. - Did you miss it? The video is available for 30 days to SCBWI members here.

#SCBWIdigital workshop: Henry Winkler and Lin Oliver "How We Write Children's Books and Why"

New York Times bestselling authors Henry Winkler and SCBWI's own Lin Oliver have published 35 books together! Today, they shared the key ingredients of writing humor for kids and gave us insight into their collaborative process and what motivates them to reach out to children.

Both Henry and Lin shared their backgrounds, and how they met over a fateful lunch... leading to 18 novels in their Hank Zipzer middle grade series, and then a series of chapter books (also the stories of Hank, for a younger age, where Frank hasn't yet been diagnosed with dyslexia), published in a typeface that helps kids with reading issues decode the page.

They discussed their collaborative process and its connection to both of their backgrounds in television.

Henry holds up a copy of his and Lin's latest book, Alien Superstar

And we got tips!

Some highlights of Henry and Lin's tips for writing humor:

"Make yourself laugh." Write what you think is funny - not what you think kids will find funny. As Henry puts it, "When we write from our center, it connects with someone else."

And there are so many kinds of humor: Observational humor, character humor, wordplay, slapstick, jokes...

Another tip on humor:

"Don't be general. comedy comes from specific details."

They then shared examples of funny details from their books. Like the mole shaped like the statue of liberty (without the torch) on the face of Hank's school principal.

Or, as Lin put it for another example, "It's the coconut soap that makes it really funny."

They shared tips on Dialog, Book Series, Creating Plot, and Creating Heart and Warmth. Henry did some acting exercises to illustrate their points, and Lin shared some writing exercises she uses as well. Henry gave a brief reading to show what it means to write with heart – such a sweet moment. There was also a Q&A, touching on critiques, how to best handle a lesson you want your story to convey, and so much more!

Final tip to share here:

Writing a Book Series: Rule #7: Series readers want to be part of a recurring group of friends. Develop each member of your cast and characters fully.

It was an informative, inspiring, funny(!), and heartfelt session.

Thank you, Henry and Lin.

Stay safe, all.
Lee

p.s. - Did you miss it? The video is available for 30 days to SCBWI members here.

Lin's Intro and Welcome to #NY20SCBWI

Lin Oliver, SCBWI's Executive Director, welcomes the packed ballroom, telling us a little about the next two days, and ourselves:

We are 842 strong (they turned away hundreds of people who had wanted to attend.)

We're from 45 states, 17 countries. 350-some of us are published. 400-some of us write and/or illustrate full-time. "That's the dream," as Lin says.

And with jokes and heart, she introduces the conference kick-off Keynote, Kate Messner!

Welcome and Introduction: Lin Oliver

SCBWI executive director Lin Oliver

Sporting a brand-new hip, SCBWI co-founder, executive director, bestselling author, and all-around wonder Lin Oliver kicked off the conference.

She gave information to get us all oriented, as well as a few entertaining statistics:

• The first conference was 48 years ago, and 35 people attended. Rooms cost $11 a night, or $13 if you wanted a deluxe room with a balcony. 
• There are 1,159 people signed up for the conference (not including Lin).
• 427 are published and 732 are pre-published. 
• Attendees come from countries all around the world, as well as 47 states (South Dakota, Delaware, and Arkansas). 
• 400 are professional authors or illustrators.
• 102 teachers and librarians are in attendance.
• A variety of other professions are represented: agents, art directors, editors, film directors, actors, actresses, waiters, lawyers, parents, photographers, graphic designers, nurses, psychologists, environmental scientists, food scientists, singer-songwriters, real estate brokers, economics, architects, and more. 

"We represent all professions, all walks of life, and all ways of being," Lin said.

Then the faculty entered and made book recommendations for all of us, choosing books that affected them profoundly.

Here's a smattering:

• Beloved by Toni Morrison (Cecelia Yung)
• Snugglepot and Cuddlepie by May Gibbs (Mom Fox)
• The Art Lesson by Tomie DePaola (Alexandra Penfold) 
• Are You There God, It's Me, Margaret by Judy Blume (Debbie Ridpath Ohi)
• Outline by Rachel Cusk (Simon Boughton)
• Wild Geese by Mary Oliver (a poem) (Sara Sargent)
• The Golden Compass by Philip Pullman (Tiff Liao) 
• The Success Principles by Jack Canfield (Donna Beasley)
• So You Want to Talk About Race by Ijeoma Oluo (Adib Khorram)
• Hurricane Child by Kacen Callender (Beth Phelan)
• House on Mango Street by Sandra Cisneros (Renee Watson)
• Charlotte's Web by E.B. White (Meg Medina) 
• An Indigenous People's History of the United States adapted for young people by Jean Mendoza and Debbie Reese and (Phil Bildner and Linda Sue Park)

The Official Welcome From Lin Oliver to the SCBWI 2019 Winter Conference

Welcome!

There are 788 of us at this sold-out conference, with many hundreds on the waiting list. 240 attendees with published books. From 14 countries and 44 U.S. states, all bringing our own backgrounds and experience to children's publishing.

**Note that with the new format of this conference, we've streamlined the blogging, which is being brought to you by Lee Wind and Adria Quiñones. The full SCBWI Team Blog will be back for the SCBWI 2019 Summer Conference, August 9-12, 2019 in Los Angeles!**

Adria Quiñones (left) and Lee Wind

The Golden Kite Awards Are Being Livestreamed on Facebook on the "Gold Carpet" - What a kickoff to #NY19SCBWI

Jim Averbeck interviews SCBWI's Lin Oliver

Check out the livestream on SCBWI's Facebook "Fans of SCBWI" page by clicking here to watch all the excitement!

And yes, WELCOME to The 2019 SCBWI Winter Conference!

The Editors' Panel is About to Begin!

Moderated by Lin Oliver, the panelists are:

Left to right: Krista Marino, Amanda Maciel, Elizabeth Law

Left to right: Laura Godwin, Namrata Tripathi, Francesco Sedita

Tha Agent Panel Begins!

Lin Oliver (far left, at podium) moderates the agent panel, with (from left to right): Erin Murphy, Molly O'Neill, Kirsten Hall, Brooks Sherman, and Marietta Zacker.

The Agents Panel!

With Lin Oliver moderating, the panelists are (from left),
Jennifer Laughran, Andrea Brown Literary
Tricia Lawrence, Erin Murphy Literary
Alexandra Penfold, Upstart Crow Literary
Quressa Robinson, D4EO Literary
Kate Testerman, KT Literary

Lin Oliver's Welcome To #LA17SCBWI

It's a funny, warm, and charming welcome to the 1,150 attendees of the 2017 SCBWI Summer Conference in Los Angeles.

Some interesting statistics on us: 668 pre-published, 433 published (and yeah, Lin acknowledges we're not necessarily all math people…)

We're from 12 countries, and 44 U.S. states.

From breath workers, to spin masters, from a fish veterinarian, to people working in health care, from stay-at-home parents, to a "professional wizard," we span occupations and realms, all with a passion for creating stories for children and teens.

Welcome! (And welcome as well, for those of you following along virtually.)