2025 Illinois Spring Recordings BY REQUEST

From Passion to Profession: Middle grade author Millie Florence will share her writing journey and ways she promotes her books.

Welcome to the Classroom! Thoughts on writing for the educational market. Sara Latta has written several books for middle grade and YA readers, including Body 2.0: The Engineering Revolution in Medicine (Twenty-First Century Books, 2020); Black Holes: The Weird Science of the Most Mysterious Objects in the Universe (Twenty-First Century Books, 2018); Smash! Exploring the Mysteries of the Universe with the Large Hadron Collider (Graphic Universe, 2017), and Scared Stiff: Everything You Need to Know about 50 Famous Phobias (Zest Books, 2014). She lives in New York City with her husband and children.

"Turn that Page! Tackling the Pacing of Your Picture Book: Is your manuscript submission-ready? You’ve transformed your idea into a story. Poured work into pieces, like character, setting, and arc. Found an opening hook and satisfying resolution. Oh, how you’ve wordsmithed! Before you hit “SEND,” take one more step! Your manuscript might feel perfect on paper, but does work well within the confines of 32 pages? Join author Patricia Toht as she delves into pacing, page turns, and illustration consideration. Bring a picture book manuscript and learn how to make two different types of dummies (picture book mock-ups) in this hands-on workshop."

Should I self-publish or go traditional? Karla Clark has done both! She will explain the pros and cons, showing expenses for self-publishing. Clark always dreamed of being an author and an artist—and she feels blessed to be both. Inspired by her storyteller father, she has written ten books, including three novels, a short story collection, and six picture books. She is a member of SCBWI, the Rockford Arts Council, and the Society of Midland Authors and serves on the board of the Arc of Winnebago, Boone & Ogle. A nominee for Rockford Woman of the Year and the Rock Valley College Alumni Hall of Fame, Karla received Boylan High School’s Alumni Excellence Award in 2019. She lives in Rockford, Illinois, with her husband and son. When not writing, she creates and sells decoupage collages and digital art.

Flash writing is the haiku of prose and the building block to your picture book or novel-in-progress. In this 1-hour workshop, Jane Hertenstein will explain the form of flash and how it can impact our writing. We will explore the world of flash and memory triggers, what to leave in and what to leave out, and how to reach an emotional center.

Join Ivan Taurisano, Associate Editor at Abrams Children’s Books, for a discussion and Q&A session about the "unseen doors" of children’s book publishing. Together, we will explore the less obvious paths that writers can take to increase their chances of securing a book deal. The session will cover various topics, including traditional publishing, self-published works, work-for-hire contracts, licensed projects, and intellectual properties. If you've ever wondered about alternative ways to begin or advance your writing career, you won’t want to miss this presentation! Ivan Taurisano is an Associate Editor at Abrams, specializing in children's licenses and intellectual property. His work includes novelty books, board books, graphic novels, and select MG and YA titles. He has collaborated on several successful series and brands, such as How to Catch, Little Heroes, Big Hearts, Sesame Street, Disney, Tokidoki, and Pokémon. Ivan moved from Rome to the US almost ten years ago to pursue a career in children’s book publishing, and his guiding principle is that a child whose life is transformed by a book is one step closer to becoming an adult who will change the world.

Join Dan Cramer of Page Turner Literary, Vicky Weber of Creative Media Agency, and Alexandra Weiss of Azantian Agency for your chance to peer into the publishing world. They answered our questions about how they discover new talent, guide clients through the maze of creativity, and curate the most enchanting literary collections. Now's your chance to uncover the secrets from the other side of the mirror! Conversations took place over Zoom on May 9th. Recordings will be available through June 26th.

Join NaShantá Fletcher of Cottage Door Press, Wendy McClure of Sourcebooks, and Alex Robertson of Northsouth Books for your chance to peer into the publishing world. They answered our questions about how they discover new talent, guide clients through the maze of creativity, and curate the most enchanting literary collections. Now's your chance to uncover the secrets from the other side of the mirror! Conversations took place over Zoom on May 9th. Recordings will be available through June 26th.