Program Details
This program will take place over 3 Sunday afternoon sessions.
This form must be submitted with a work sample to determine eligibility to participate in this intensive coaching series.
If selected to participate, you will be sent a link to register for the event. You must complete registration within the time specified to hold your spot on the list.
Sessions will be held at from 2-5 PM on the following Sundays:
June 9
July 14
Aug 04
The total cost of the program (9 hours of coaching) is $150.
All sessions will be held at Epiphany Lutheran Church, 1350 Peachtree Industrial Blvd, Suwanee, GA
The sessions will not be recorded, so please plan to attend all 3 if you register for the program.
No refunds can be issued if you miss sessions.
Session One: June 9, 2024
2-5 PM ET
Bring one, two, or three picture book ideas. After selecting one, you will learn strategies to shape that idea into a kid-friendly, important, and unique idea.
Next, you’ll think through what you want to say. How do different writers plan, plot, or organize before they draft?
The final step that day will be to write like the wind and get an initial draft completed.
Session Two: July 14, 2024
2-5 PM ET
You will read your draft and hear celebrations of the strengths.
You will practice strategies for strong word choice, pacing, show/don’t tell, voice, dialogue, and fluency.
You will have time to revise and identify the strongest part of your second draft.
You will also learn how to use mentor text to refine your manuscript at this stage of development.
Session Three: August 4, 2024
2-5 PM ET
You will read your second draft and hear celebrations of your strengths.
You will practice additional revision strategies and go even deeper into mentor text to study layout, length, and visual appeal.
You will select 4-5 possible titles for your manuscript and write a pitch.
About the Faculty
Lola M. Schaefer is an author of children’s books and a national writing consultant. She travels across the country sharing her love of reading and writing in schools, at conferences, and at workshops. For the past thirty years, she has informed and inspired teachers and students on the craft of writing and the implementation of writing workshop.
Lola is the author of more than 275 books for children including picture books, easy readers, novelty books, classroom books and informational texts. Her picture books have received critical acclaim with such awards as: ALA Notable Children’s Book in LA, a Charlotte Zolotow Honor Book, the Children’s Choice Book Award, NSTA Outstanding Trade Book for Children, the Zena Sutherland Award for Literature, an Orbis Pictus Award Recommended Book, and the Missouri Show Me Award. Many of Lola’s titles are now available in Russian, Swedish, French, Korean, Japanese, Chinese, Turkish, and Spanish.
As a writing consultant, Lola has worked in hundreds of schools across the country. She shares effective classroom strategies on writing workshop, the craft of writing, and genre structures. Lola offers classroom demonstration lessons, as well as general presentations on craft mini- lessons and the art of writing.
Lola was a classroom teacher in grades K-7 for eighteen years, as well as a graduate-level college instructor, offering classes on writing in the elementary classroom. She received her B.S. in Education and her M.S. in Education from Indiana University. She is a member of the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators. Lola lives with her husband Ted in the mountains of north Georgia near the start of the Appalachian Trail.
Note: Space is limited.
This is not a workshop for people who are beginning their journeys as picture book writers, but a collaborative effort for those writers who have completed at least 2-4 picture books. You can be published, or not. To apply for a spot in this intense coaching workshop, please submit the first 150 words of a completed picture book with a pitch of no more than 40 words.