It’s hard to believe that autumn is here! That means that Editor’s Day 2015 is right around the corner. It will be held at the Titan Theater, California State University Fullerton (located inside the Titan Student Union) on Saturday, October 3.

Our wonderful editorial speakers include: Erica Finkel – Editor at Abrams Books, Taylor Norman – Assistant Editor at Chronicle Books, Becky Shapiro – Associate Editor at Scholastic Books, Jeffrey Salane – Editorial Director of Little Simon – Simon & Schuster Children’s Publishing Division and Kristine Brogno – Children’s Design Director at Chronicle Books. They will be joined by our terrific local talent: Jennifer Grey Olson, Spotlight Author/Illustrator, Henry L. Herz, Spotlight Author and Rodolfo Montalvo, Spotlight Illustrator. The delightful Sara Sciuto of Fuse Literary Agency (formerly Foreword Literary) will be joining us for panels and pitches. Our speakers will be focusing on craft so if you plan to join us be prepared to take lots of notes!

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We hope everyone is enjoying summer, but it’s time to mark your calendars for our upcoming Editor’s Day on October 3, 2015 at Cal State University Fullerton!

Editor’s Day is packed with plenty of opportunities for our attendees, including Manuscript Critiques, Pitch Sessions, a pre-conference Friday night Illustrator’s art exhibit, First Pages Panel, Portfolio Displays, Promo and Tear Sheet Critiques, lunch with the editors, PAL Book displays, book signings, and book giveaways. Don’t miss out on this fabulous chance to connect with industry professionals!

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Spring Greetings from Francesca and Q,

It’s often said that good things come in threes. In the last two Kite Tales we’ve introduced you to two wonderful authors—Marcie Wessels and Elana Azose—who each found a home for their first published picture book through our SoCal Editor’s Day. The third author in this talented trio is Michael Mahin. Michael earned his Ph.D. in American Literature at Claremont Graduate School. He went on to become a professor at San Diego State, a budding screenwriter, and the lead guitarist in an ‘80s cover band called Neon Nation. Michael is a bundle of talent, and we were fortunate to have him speak at several of our events. It was at Editor’s Day that Michael added published picture book author to his long list of credits. Michael agreed to give us an update, and it seems that there is a new book on the way! Here’s what he had to say.

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The end of the year is fast approaching, and we can now curl up by the fire and enjoy the memory of a wonderful Agent’s Day in the OC. Our guests included authors Marci Wessels and Marianne D. Wallace, and agents Lori Kilkelly of Rodeen Literary Management, Sean McCarthy of McCarthy Literary, Christa Heschke of McIntosh and Otis, Inc., and Charlie Olsen of Inkwell Literary. As a special treat, our illustrators and picture book authors enjoyed a session with Suzanne Cruise, Licensing Agent and President of Cruise Creative Licensing.

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