Category Archives: Author’s Perspective

Achieve Book Nirvana with SCBWI-L.A. at the L.A. Times Festival of Books

10 Wednesday Apr 2019

Posted by in Author's Perspective, Tips and Tools

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by Jerry Mahoney

If you’re like me, your main problem with books is that there are never enough of them. Libraries and bookstores are nice, but can’t there be more books? Lots, lots more? Well, prepare yourself, because there’s a place where squijillions of words will surround you in a warm, wonderful embrace that will satisfy all your literary cravings.

Yes, it’s just about time for every Southern California book lover’s favorite weekend: the L.A. Times Festival of Books! Meet some of your favorite authors, sit in on panels, and network with professionals from all over the publishing industry.

With tons of exhibitors, A-list authors in every genre, and over 150,000 visitors every year, the L.A. Times Festival of Books is the country’s largest literary festival, and it’s free!

As always, SCBWI will be there in force. Continue reading →

#KTChat with Author/Illustrator Bethany Barton: In Defense Of Your Day Job

20 Wednesday Mar 2019

Posted by in #KTChat, Author's Perspective, Illustrator's Perspective, Tips and Tools

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By Bethany Barton

Editor’s Note: Award-winning author/illustrator Bethany Barton spends her days working in film and TV, currently in the prop department at ABC’s Black-ish. Her newest book, I’m Trying to Love Math, hits stores this July. And Bethany is not only making herself available to chat with you this Friday (3/22) for an hour beginning at 12PM, but she is ALSO SCBWI-LA’s mentor! So if you’re an illustrator or author/illustrator, you can apply to be her mentee! And no matter what you’re writing, today’s chat topic about day jobs will encourage you, make you laugh, and start a lively conversation! And now, take it away, Bethany…

I hear it all the time from authors and illustrators: “I wish I could make books full time… but for now I’m JUST (insert self-deprecating tone) a bartender/teacher/accountant/etc.” 

We’re all wonderfully complex human beings and that “day job” is a part of our story….so why do we feel the need to apologize for it? Maurice Sendak did toy-store window displays. JK Rowling worked as a secretary and translator. As long as there have been authors and artists, they have had day jobs and side hustles.

And I’m here to suggest we stop apologizing for them.

Consider this a call-to-arms to embrace our day jobs and, dare I say, even celebrate them?! Here are some quick reasons why:

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Author Michelle Markel on the Changing Nonfiction Picture Book Industry and Your Place In It

15 Friday Mar 2019

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MICHELLE MARKEL is a successful writer and a local SCBWI member! She’s the author of Brave Girl: Clara and the Shirtwaist Makers’ Strike of 1909, which won the Bank Street Flora Stieglitz Straus Award and the Jane Addams Children’s Book Award for Younger Children, and was also chosen as an NCTE Orbis Picture Honor Book. Her recent titles are Balderdash!: John Newbery and the Boisterous Birth of Children’s Books and Out of This World: The Surreal Art of Leonora Carrington.

CHRISTINE VAN ZANDT: Welcome to Kite Tales! Your career has included a number of popular narrative nonfiction books as well as some fiction. How is the industry changing?

MICHELLE MARKEL: The field of narrative nonfiction has busted open. There are now books about little known historical events, unsung heroes, and underrepresented groups (women and people of color). Editors are interested in expressive language, innovative artwork, and uncommon formats. They’re looking for creative “hooks” to grab young readers. If you love telling stories, and love nonfiction, this is your moment.

CVZ: What’s your writing process for your biographies? Continue reading →

Author Tamora Pierce on Writers Day, Connecting with Fans, and Diversity in Fiction

06 Wednesday Feb 2019

Posted by in Author's Perspective, Writers Days

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Tamora Pierce is a New York Times and Wall Street Journal bestselling author of more than 28 fantasy novels for teenagers. She’s the winner of the 2013 Margaret A. Edwards Award for Lifetime Achievement in Young Adult Literature, the RT Book Reviews Career Achievement Award, and the 2005 Skylark Edward E. Smith Memorial Award for Imaginative Fiction.

Her latest work includes Tortall: A Spy’s Guide (2017) and 2018’s Tempests and Slaughter, the first in a three-book Tortall series.

She answered some questions about her work and the upcoming Writers Day, where she will be a keynote speaker and faculty.

ERLINA VASCONCELLOS:  You’re on several social media sites and have a robust website with the most thorough author bio I’ve ever seen. What motivates you to be so visible and open with the public? Do you have personal guidelines or a philosophy for social media?

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Authors Lee Wind and Alexis O’Neill on Meeting Your Readers and Writing the Hard Stuff

23 Wednesday Jan 2019

Posted by in Author's Perspective, Writers Days

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Alexis at a school visit.

This year’s SCBWI-L.A. WritersDay boasts some fantastic faculty members, all dedicated to helping attendees get to know the kids, editors, and others who make up their target audience. Two of those faculty members are former SCBWI Regional Advisors and current authors, Alexis O’Neill and Lee Wind. Alexis is a veteran teacher, author, and popular school visit presenter. Her books include The Recess Queen, Loud Emily, The Kite That Bridged Two Nations, and more. Lee is the author of the young adult novel, Queer as a Five-Dollar Bill, named a BookLife Prize Semi-Finalist, one of Publishers Weekly’s Top Five Independently Published Middle Grade and Young Adult Books of 2018, and is the founding blogger and publisher of I’m Here. I’m Queer. What The Hell Do I Read?, an award-winning website about books, culture, and empowerment for Lesbian, Gay, Bi, Trans, Questioning and Queer youth, and their Allies. And it’s our lucky day because both of them agreed let us pick their beautiful brains leading up to Writers Day!

SARAH PARKER-LEE: We’re so excited to have you both as faculty this year! Alexis, whose column for the SCBWI Bulletin, “The Truth About School Visits,” has been helping members since 2006,is doing a breakout session about new research on school visits. Interacting with readers is a universal experience for kid lit authors. Can you both tell us about one of your most meaningful ones? Or one of your early blunders, so we can learn from your mistakes?  Continue reading →

Story Coach and SCBWI-CenCal Workshop Leader Lisa Cron on Plot vs. Story and Why Backstory is Crucial to Both

04 Friday Jan 2019

Posted by in Author's Perspective, Central Coast, Tips and Tools, Tri-Regional News

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By Ann Rousseau Smith, SCBWI CenCal News Liaison

Lisa Cron, story analyst, speaker, UCLA Extension Writers’ Program instructor, faculty member of the School of Visual Arts MFA program in New York City, and author of Wired for Story and Story Genius, will be leading a workshop, Wired for Story: Becoming a Story Genius with Story Coach Lisa Cron, on Saturday, February 16, 2019, in Santa Barbara.

Lisa has worked as a story consultant for Warner Brothers and the William Morris Agency. As a story coach, she has helped writers, nonprofits, educators, and organizations master the power of story.

Lisa agreed to answer some questions ahead of her February workshop.

ANN ROUSSEAU SMITH: We are looking forward to your visit to the SCBWI CenCal region. What is a story coach? Continue reading →

#KTWriteOn with Author Andrea J. Loney: Use Childhood Memories to Brainstorm New Story Ideas

02 Wednesday Jan 2019

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The year’s first #KTWriteOn writing prompt is brought to you by Andrea J. Loney, author of Bunnybear and Take a Picture of Me, James Van Der Zee! Andrea was a SCBWI-LA PAL mentor for 2018. Follow her on Twitter, @AndreaJLoney, or at AndreaJLoney.com.

By Andrea J. Loney, author

Happy New Year, SCBWI writers! 2019 has given us a fresh new page to start scribbling down our creative plans. One of my favorite January activities is brainstorming new story ideas. I use several different techniques, but like New Year’s resolutions, this technique is based on lists.

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Author Mary Jo Hazard: How to Find, and Write For, a Niche Market

05 Wednesday Dec 2018

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By Mary Jo Hazard

img_0134.jpgPeacocks have lived on the Palos Verdes Peninsula since 1924, but no one ever wrote a book about them until I did in 2010. Since then, The Peacocks of Palos Verdes has sold over 4,000 copies — identify a niche market and you can do it too! Read on for my road map on how it worked for me.

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10 Inspiring Kite Tales Quotes from 2018

14 Wednesday Nov 2018

Posted by in Author's Perspective, Illustrator's Perspective, Tips and Tools

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nick-morrison-325805-unsplash.jpgI’m always grateful for the community and connection that comes from being a member of SCBWI. There’s no shortage of people willing to share advice, tips, and knowledge. And lucky for us, so many in the kid lit community have shared their stories and wisdom on the Kite Tales blog.

Whenever I need a creative boost, I like to reread Kite Tales posts for nuggets of inspiration.

Here are some of my favorite quotes from Kite Tales stories this year. Hopefully they’ll inspire you too as you set your 2019 writing goals. Read on and click the links to see the full posts. Continue reading →

Working Writer’s Retreat 2018: Revisions, Connections, and Karaoke

24 Wednesday Oct 2018

Posted by in Author's Perspective, Illustrator's Perspective, Tips and Tools, Writers' Retreat

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By JESSICA CHRYSLER and KATYA DOVE

WWR_EditingSeshThis year’s Working Writer’s Retreat brought together writers of all skill levels and backgrounds to the Holy Spirit Retreat Center in Encino, Sept. 28-30. From actors to teachers, newbie writers to seasoned veterans, participants had something to gain from the faculty and each other. In workshops, writers were grouped by category and genre and had ample opportunity to mix and mingle throughout the weekend, including a karaoke party.

Faculty included agent Nephele Tempest, agent Victoria Wells Arms, Delacorte Press associate editor Kelsey Horton, Harper Collins assistant editor Stephanie Guerdan, and author E. Katherine Kottaras.

In this post, writer and illustrator Jessica Chrysler and writer Katya Dove share a conversation about their experiences at the retreat.

Jessica Chrysler: It was so great to see you again at the retreat this year, Katya. As much as I love getting to know new people, it’s always nice to find friendly faces. Every year the organizers try to change up the panels and workshops, so I’d like to know, what was the highlight of your weekend?

Katya Dove: I thought the critique sessions were amazing. Listening to other writers read their work, sharing my own, and bonding over words was by far one of the most powerful experiences. There’s so much talent among the attendees. I was blown away by how focused and committed everyone was. Though I must say, the karaoke party brought out a whole new side to fellow writers and faculty—a wild and vivacious side!

WWR_KaraokePartyJC: I have to agree on the karaoke! It’s always my favorite part of the retreat since it gets everyone out of their quiet, writerly shell. I also really enjoyed the presentation by Katherine Kottaras on “The Joy of Revising.” It’s important to love revision as part of the writing craft and it felt like everyone had similar challenges when facing editing demons. It was great to share and learn different strategies to tackle those obstacles. Continue reading →