Catching up with distant friends (so many wonderful writers and illustrators hail from Perth) and making new ones. The 2014 Australian-New ZealandSCBWI Conference might just be the most inclusive place on earth.
The Illustrators Showcase. It was spectacular. I still have a severe case of artistic talent envy.
Professor Ernest Bond’s Session Going to the Common Core USA. I was impressed with how a list of ten conceptual points became concrete understandable points when paired with an analysis of an appropriate picture book. I even discovered one I have to have – Last Laughs Animal Epitaphs ( J. Patrick Lewis and Jane Yolande)
Tania McCartney and Kathryn Otoshi’s session Getting into the Marketplace. Informative and heart-warming. Tanya is a one-woman dynamo whose unerring vision of herself as a writer/illustrator and dedication to achieving that dream was inspiring. Kathryn’s beautiful picture books and the wonderful success they have had in schools as anti-bullying resources was inspiring too. So that was the message for this session. Be inspired.
The Pitch Sessions. Where two good friends nailed it and each attracted an editor’s attention.
Performance Poetry by Stephen Whiteside. Stephen read a laugh-out-loud poem from his new book The Billy that Died with its Boots On
Book Launches. For the first year in my six years as an author I haven’t had a book to launch (family health issues) but I really enjoyed being part of someone else’s launch. I bought two books:
Crocand Platypus (Jackie Hosking and Marjorie Crosby-Fairall). This a rollicky read-along rhyme to the meter of The Owl and The Pussycat. It was a rollicky launch too! I’m going to give this signed book as a thank you gift to Balgownie Public School library when I visit later this month. Not only were they gracious when I cancelled three!! times due to family ill-health, but they re-booked me as soon as I resumed school visits. I appreciate the support.
Woodlands Whiskers: A New Pet (Gabriel Evans). This beautiful lift-the flap board book is the perfect gift for newest beautiful person in my family – Annabel Louise. I think it might just be her very first book. I’m sure when she’s a bit older she’ll love the mouse Gabriel Evans drew on the back.
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