SCBWI-MI 2026 Fall Webinar: Take A Leap! with Ruth McNally Barshaw & Charlie Barshaw
Aug 23, 2026
Online event
SCBWI-MI is excited to leap into fall with a fantastic webinar:
Take a Leap -- What never works and what sometimes works for writing, art, school visits, marketing, and surviving the author life
It’s a tough time in the children’s book trenches right now, with school budget cuts, publisher shrinkage, tariffs and inflation, and readers who aren't reading.
Take a Leap is a steadying light on the horizon, an argument for hope and persistence even when things look bleak.
Longtime author/illustrator Ruth McNally Barshaw will share highs and lows of a career in children’s books, what works to get through it and what definitely does not work.
Ruth and her author husband Charlie will share resources and short exercises to help you figure out where you are and where you want to be.
Join them on Sunday, August 23 at 6 pm. Bring questions.
Registration opens August 1st at 8:00 am (est) and closes August 22nd at noon.
- $15 for Premium Members
- $25 for Preview Members
(This webinar is non-refundable. The recording will be available to view for 30 days)
Ruth McNally Barshaw
Ruth McNally Barshaw wrote and illustrated the six Ellie McDoodle Diaries, a highly illustrated middle grade novel series with Bloomsbury. She illustrated four books for ages four to twelve and also wrote four funny short stories for an app for ten-year-olds. She received her first sketch-journal from a prescient art teacher at age 15 and has been keeping journals ever since (now numbering hundreds). She's worked as an illustrator since freshman year at Michigan State University. She and author-husband Charlie live in Lansing and travel extensively presenting in schools.
Charlie Barshaw
Charlie wrote seven short stories for mid-grade readers which were published by Amazon Rapids. He has also composed interviews of SCBWI-MI writers and illustrators for The Mitten Blog. But mostly he has accompanied his author/illustrator wife Ruth to hundreds of school visits and presentations, and met fascinating teachers, students and other writers along the way.