What an amazing day to get totally inspired!
It was an early start to a jammed packed day of illustrator and writer workshops:
First up was Jeremy Tankardof “Grumpy Bird” fame. I’ve seen Jeremy around a couple of times at monthly CANSCAIP meetings (to be honest – he’s hard to miss since he towers over the mostly middle aged female audience). He spoke about his journey into children’s publication. What impressed me most was his tenacity and belief to push forth and challenge the norm for new/unpublished illustrators. The best part was speaking to him one on one at the end of the day and having my copies of Grumpy Bird and BooHoo Bird signed. Thanks for the tips Jeremy, and now I have two more books to add to my growing picture book collection!
I thought I’d switch things up in the second and third sessions with Creative Non-Fiction presented by Kathy Kacer and Writing Mysteries for Boys presented by Shane Peacock. Both workshops were packed with helpful tips and tools to shape your story. The day ended with a light hearted “inspiring” keynote address by Kenneth Oppel. I didn’t take any notes down during this session – just sat back and enjoyed the good laughs of Kenneth spoofing himself. What a great sense of humor!
This was my fourth time attending this annual day of workshops. Already can’t wait for next year!