Category Archives: Los Angeles

Treasure Chest: January 2024

03 Wednesday Jan 2024

Posted by in Central Coast, Contests & Grants, Industry Conferences, Los Angeles, SoCal, Tri-Regional News, Writers Days

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Events, Opportunities, and Resources happening now and coming soon for the Tri-Regions and beyond

Event registration opening soon! From Bud to Blossom: How to Grow Stories and Nurture Creative Inspiration. Join SCBWI Los Angeles for the in-person “Bud to Blossom” Writers Day Conference, March 9, 2024, at the Skirball Cultural Center. An amazing faculty will nourish your creative spirit and encourage your stories to sprout and grow. Already have a flourishing manuscript? Then add an Agent Pitch to your event day! Enter the manuscript contest (see below) for a chance to win a free event plus a free 10-page manuscript review. Come meet fellow SCBWI Los Angeles and Tri-Region members and enjoy a delicious al fresco lunch beside the famous lily pond. See you there! 

*Deadline extended!* Submissions are open now, and January 28, 2024, is the new deadline to enter your work into the SCBWI-L.A. Writers Day Contest. If you plan to attend the March 9, 2024, event (see Save the Date above), you can enter the contest now for the opportunity to receive a free written critique from a member of the event faculty PLUS free tuition to next year’s Writers Day (or equivalent event). The contest is open to all who register for Writers Day, and there’s no additional fee to enter. To quote Vincent X. Kirsch, one of last year’s contest winners, “You can do this!”

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Holiday Message from the SCBWI-L.A. Regional Team

20 Wednesday Dec 2023

Posted by in Community Corner, Los Angeles

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As 2023 draws to a close, we look back and celebrate our connections with friends and industry professionals, enjoying warm memories of events past. We look forward to future joys found in the myriad ways we and our colleagues bring stories to young people everywhere. And we anticipate the fun of offering programming in the coming year that will inspire, energize, and illuminate your creative path.

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Ready, Set, Enter: The Writers Day Contest Is Open!

29 Wednesday Nov 2023

Posted by in Contests & Grants, Los Angeles, Writers Days

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by Brenda Scott Royce

SCBWI-L.A.’s signature event, Writers Day, will be back in 2024—and with it comes the Writers Day Contest, an opportunity for all attendees to enter for a chance to win prizes and public recognition of their work.

Why enter writing contests? Prizes are awfully nice, and hearing your name announced as the winner is a definite thrill. A contest win can get you a step closer to publication. And just entering can be a reward in itself, providing the boost you need to polish your manuscript and send it out into the world.

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Happy Thanksgiving from the Kite Tales Team

22 Wednesday Nov 2023

Posted by in Central Coast, Los Angeles, SoCal, Tri-Regional News

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At Kite Tales, we’re thankful for the writers, illustrators, editors, agents, and volunteers who have contributed to the blog this year. And to our readers, thank you for encouraging us with your comments and helping us grow the kidlit community. We couldn’t do it without you! We’ll be back with more content and a big announcement next week.

For more fantastic content, community, events, and other professional development opportunities, become a member today! Not sure if there is a chapter in your area? Check here.

Illustration by Judy Y Faulkner

­­­Calling All Illustrators: Be a Mentor in 2024! But first, a word from our 2023 mentor…

25 Wednesday Oct 2023

Posted by in Contests & Grants, Los Angeles, Mentorship Contest

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by Cara J. Stevens

I’ve been a member of SCBWI since the late ’90s, when I gave a talk on writing for children via a new platform at the time: the World Wide Web. Since then, I have been involved with SCBWI on and off throughout the years as my career took me in and out of the children’s writing world.

Last year, as I did my annual check-in at the last-100-days-of-the-year mark, I looked back on the amazingly good fortune I’ve had in working with many editors and publishing mentors. As I planned ahead for the coming year, I decided to make 2023 a year of giving back to the children’s writing community. Within the course of the next one hundred days, I embarked on a journey to self-publish a guide to writing picture-perfect picture books, started a picture book writing podcast, and reconnected with SCBWI.

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Meet the Faculty…part 2!

13 Wednesday Sep 2023

Posted by in Agent's Perspective, Editor's Perspective, Los Angeles, Writers' Retreat

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Welcome back to Meet the Faculty! In anticipation of the SCBWI-L.A. Working Writers Retreat on September 29–October 1, we’re getting to know the agents and editors who will be sharing their time and expertise at the event. This week we spoke with agent Sera Rivers and editor Sydnee Monday. Read on to discover what they look for in books and tips for making the most of the retreat!

(And if you’re inspired and would like to hear more from Sera and Sydnee, you can register for the retreat here! Registration will close at 11:59pm on Thursday, September 14.)

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Introducing … The Faculty for the 2023 SCBWI-L.A. Working Writers Retreat

06 Wednesday Sep 2023

Posted by in Agent's Perspective, Los Angeles, Tips and Tools, Tri-Regional News, Writers' Retreat

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Lucy Hamilburg, owner and agent at The Hamilburg Agency

The SCBWI-LA Working Writers Retreat returns on September 29-October 1. There are still some seats left for this popular in-person gathering that puts you in the company of kidlit agents or editors and writing colleagues with a serious commitment to their craft. Our fabulous faculty members are looking forward to it, and they’ve been kind enough to field some mix-and-match interview questions about themselves to help break the ice. Whether you’re attending this year or just curious, there’s plenty to discover in their words.

First up: Lucy Hamilburg, who is a literary agent based in Los Angeles. A former teacher with a goal of motivating young people to love books, she’s now an agent who works to create long-lasting relationships with her clients, editors, and publishers, to amplify diverse voices, and to inspire and sustain life-long readers. Heading the kidlit side of her agency, Lucy represents picture books, middle grade, and young adult fiction. Read on to get acquainted.

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SCBWI Serves Up A Slice of Literary Camaraderie at Booth #826

10 Wednesday May 2023

Posted by in Industry Conferences, Industry News, Los Angeles, PAL, SoCal

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by Annelouise Mahoney

Saturday morning booth exhibitors (l-r) Glenda Armand, R.S. Mellette, Annelouise Mahoney, and Janie Emaus get a thumbs-up from SCBWI-L.A. volunteer Jennifer Pitts (r) as they all prepare to greet festival-goers.

The Los Angeles Times Festival of Books is an annual tradition of literary wonder. It’s the Coachella of book festivals, the largest in the country.

This year, as they do each year, the SCBWI Los Angeles chapter extended an invitation for its PAL members to sell and sign their books at a festival booth. SCBWI SoCal joined the L.A. chapter at the festival for the first time ever, sharing Booth #826. PAL members of the two regions who signed up could choose a two or three-hour time slot for either Saturday or Sunday of the event.

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Down On The Corner At The L.A. Times Festival of Books

14 Friday Apr 2023

Posted by in Industry Conferences, Industry News, Los Angeles, PAL, SoCal

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by R.S. Mellette

The L.A. Times Festival of Books is back in person—and as in prior years, friendly SCBWI members will be there to welcome you to the event.

Like James Brown said, it’s time to “Get up offa that thing.”

If you are reading this, chances are you are an SCBWI member, quite possibly in Southern California. That means you’re interested enough in writing and/or illustrating books that you’re willing to pay dues, go to mingles, take workshops, and generally give of your time and money to improve your craft. On Saturday and Sunday, April 22 and 23, you will have that opportunity at the largest book festival in the country, the Los Angeles Times Festival of Books.

Much of this event is FREE, and SCBWI will be there to make you feel welcome.

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Springing Forward with Kite Tales!

05 Wednesday Apr 2023

Posted by in Central Coast, Los Angeles, SoCal, Tri-Regional News

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by Judy Faulkner and Michelle Lin, Kite Tales Co-Managing Editors

The seasons are changing—at Kite Tales, too.

Jessica Chrysler and Noel Csermak, two stalwart SCBWI Tri-Region volunteers, have recently stepped away from their respective long-time roles as KT’s managing editor and proofreader. If you’ve enjoyed the blog in recent years (as we know so many of you have!), they are two major reasons why.

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