by Nancy D. Lewis, New York - Metro Regional Advisor

The 8th Annual SCBWI Winter Conference in New York City opened on Saturday, February 10, 2007, to a room of 1000 people from 44 states and 9 countries. Award-winning author Susan Cooper was the first keynote speaker. She encouraged the attendees to exercise and inspire their imaginations by reading. Read everything. She also suggested they go back to their childhoods to a time when their imagination put them inside a book and connected them to the imagination of the person who wrote the book. By using that connection to tell a story or paint a picture, writers and illustrators can capture the imagination of today's reading children.

Robie H. Harris' award-winning picture books and nonfiction books have been connecting to children and teens for years. However, because many of her books are considered controversial, she has often had to fight censorship so that her books can continue to offer information that is timely, up-to-date, and scientifically accurate. She hopes that writers and illustrators will not be afraid to create books that might be controversial and that they will make decisions based on the best interest of the child -- no matter what pressures come their way. If a work is honest, accurate, and not exploitative, then children should have the right to read it.

Bestselling author Ann Brashares also encouraged writers not to shy away from topics and to write stories with both substance and pleasure. She counseled against worrying about commercial aspects during the creative process as this may cause a writer to write what he or she thinks people want, rather than the story he or she has to tell. When writing The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, Brashares freed herself from worrying about who would buy her book so she could spend time in her characters' heads, to know what they know, to let them be sad when they needed to be sad, and to let them be happy when they needed to be happy. Concentrating on the story and being absorbed by it helps the writer create a book that will absorb the reader.

Who will buy a book is the question that absorbs the members of the panel moderated by Susan Salzman Raab (Raab Associates, Inc.). The panel included Robert A. Brown (Books, Bytes & Beyond), Ruta Drummond (Borders Group, Inc.), Mary Grey James (Ingram), and Brian Monahan (Barnes & Noble).  Each of them discussed his or her process for choosing the books they think customers will want to buy. This process usually starts 5-6 months before the books are published. In addition, the panelists encouraged writers and illustrators to be active in selling their own books. Learn how to talk to children in a way that is both educational and entertaining. Contact local bookstores, which might help set up school visits, as well as sell books. The Internet gives writers and illustrators the power they did not have before. Creating a Web site can help form a fan base that will be loyal to the books for years to come.

After the panel, there was a surprise "stealth" speaker. Well-known author Jane Yolen offered advice on revising.  When receiving a revision letter from his or her editor, the writer should read it, put it away, read it the next day, talk to a friend, and relax in a bath. Writers should give themselves time to recognize that the revision letter is pointing out problems in the manuscript. Once they are ready, they should be careful not to take the easy way out and do only what they think the letter suggests. Writers should remember that the book is theirs, with all its faults and successes. They know their characters and stories best, so they will know best how to fix the problems.

In addition to these main sessions, there were morning and afternoon breakout sessions that focused on creating and submitting such genres as picture book, fantasy, graphic novels, and mass-market series. The day ended with an Art Display of 150 pieces on view for attendees, editors, and art directors. Many of the pieces were available for purchase through a silent auction.  Congratulations to the Art Display winners -- 2nd runner up Wilson Swain, 1st runner up Lisa Falkenstern, Grand Prize winner John Rocco, and Tomie dePaola Award winner Brian Gerrity.

Click here for images of the 2007 Winter Conference Art Display Winners.

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by Nancy D. Lewis, New York - Metro Regional Advisor

The SCBWI Winter Conference continued on Sunday, February 11, 2007, with book browsing. Publishers exhibited a selection of books from their current lists, providing attendees the opportunity to get a sense of what has been published, as well as the different types and styles of book each company publishes.

Sunday's opening speaker was Brian Selznick. The Caldecott honor recipient, illustrator, and author described the long six months before he got the idea that became The Invention of Hugo Cabret. He did not realize until afterwards that the six months were really a gift, giving him time to read a lot of books and to think about the book as an art form. He wanted the book to be the most important element of telling the story, to make the page turns part of the story, and for the reader to feel that the characters had touched the physical book itself. 

For each book, we have to dare failure and mediocrity, Katherine Paterson told the attendees in the conference's closing keynote. Paterson also said that most of us are afraid that if we reveal ourselves as we truly are, we will be despised. In Bridge to Terabithia, Paterson, who has been awarded the Newbery Medal twice and is the 2006 recipient of the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award, went to the deepest, darkest place of her soul and revealed it, and readers have responded to it for the past 30 years. She recommends we use the trip inward to bring out our deepest fears and passions; even laughter must come from deep within ourselves. If we care passionately for the story and for the people of the story, then it is worth risking failure.

The conference ended with cake, song, door prizes, book signings, and a renewed desire to rise to Paterson's closing challenge: "Now go home and DARE.

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