On Saturday October 30, SCBWI
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For this event, SCBWI New
England is teaming with the
For information and a simple registration form, 2010Encore.pdf, print it, fill it out, and mail it in. Additional information on the workshops and presenters is below. The registration deadline is October 15th.
Workshop Descriptions
"Writing Within and Without Genre"
As writers, we often hear about "genres," such as teen romances or sports stories. Many critics treat "genre novels" as separate from "literary novels." So what does it mean to write within a genre, and is that what readers and publishers want from us? In this workshop, J.L. Bell examines how to understand your readers' expectations for a certain type of story, and how to work with those expectations to both surprise and satisfy those readers. After analyzing the rise and fall of various genres, the workshop will close with advice on how to keep genre storytelling from becoming generic.
"It's a Great Time for Nonfiction"
Because the Internet now makes straightforward facts so readily available, it pushes authors and publishers to be more creative and innovative than ever before as they craft and design nonfiction texts. Melissa Stewart shows how to play with structure, voice, and word choice to take your nonfiction manuscripts in exciting new directions. It's a great time for nonfiction!
"Maximum Potential: How to Make Your Manuscript into the Book It Wants To Be"
For all those who are sick of waiting for inspiration, here are tips and techniques for dealing with an unplanned stopping place. Writer and editor Lisa Papademetriou will help you explore your characters, tighten your plot(s), and make your scenes more compelling. You will discover both your strengths and weaknesses, and find ways to use them to create your best work.
"Brave New Words: Using Writing Prompts to Tap Unexplored Resources" (1-hour workshop)
This will be a hands-on workshop focused on inspiring writers to explore writing in new genres, tap memory for stories, use observation to find inspiration and have FUN. While some writers dismiss writing exercises as a waste of time, Jo Knowles's former students have expanded on writing prompts to write novels, publish essays, and discover talents for genres they'd never tried before. Participants will need to bring pen and paper and be prepared to write up a flurry of brave new words.
"Matchmaking 101: Choosing the Right Publisher"
Everyone wants to get published--does it matter by whom? The answer is a resounding yes. Publishers have different publishing climates, editors have different editing styles and preferences, and marketing and sales teams each bring something different to the table. How can you sort out the best place for your work? When the odds of publishing are so stacked against you, can you really afford to be choosy about whom you work with? And what role does size play in all this? Is your book better off at a big New York conglomerate, an imprint of a big conglomerate, or at a smaller independent house? In this workshop, Yolanda (Leroy) Scott examines the opportunities and challenges of these publishing models and explores the factors inherent in matching the right manuscript with the right editor at the right house at the right time.
Encore 2010!
Rhode Island College
October 30, 2010
Speakers' Bios
J. L. Bell is a writer, editor, and historian. For young readers, his published work includes the nonfiction book Soap Science, historical articles, and short stories. As an acquiring and freelance editor he has worked on a wide range of books, including two New York Times bestsellers and a National Book Award winner. He has presented workshops on the craft of writing at SCBWI New England conferences and ENCORE! sessions, and reviewed books for The Horn Book and the New England Quarterly.
www.ozandends.blogspot.com
Jo Knowles is the author of the young adults novels Lessons From A Dead Girl, Jumping Off Swings, and Pearl (coming Spring 2011). Her books have made numerous lists, including YALSA Quick Picks, BBYA, New York Public Library Book for the Teen Age and Bank Street College's Top Children's Book. She teaches writing for children in the MFA program at Simmons College (via the Eric Carle Museum).
www.joknowles.com
Lisa Papademetriou is the author of numerous books for young readers, from picture books to literary novels for young adults. Her titles include the Accidentally Fabulous series, Sixth-Grade Glommers, Norks, and Me (a Family Fun Best Book of the Year), and the New York Times bestselling Rani In the Mermaid Lagoon. Lisa has worked in an editorial capacity at Scholastic, HarperCollins Publishers, and Disney Press. 2011 will see the publication of her YA novel, Siren's Storm. For more of Lisa's titles and reviews, check out her Website.
www.lisapapa.com
Yolanda (LeRoy) Scott is editorial director at Charlesbridge. She has edited over 100 titles and has worked with authors such as Eve Bunting, Tony Johnston, Kathryn Lasky, David McPhail, Linda Sue Park, Jane Yolen, and the late Martha Alexander. She is a former executive board member of the Foundation for Children's Books and the founder of Pubs in Pubs, a networking organization for children's publishing professionals. She is a frequent speaker at writer's conferences and represented US publishers on a panel at the 2008 SCBWI Bologna Biennial Conference in Italy. She has been a children's literature speaker and mentor at Boston College and Simmons College and was a judge for the 2008 and 2010 Boston Public Library Children's Writer-in-Residence Program. When Yolanda isn't editing, she performs as a singer and actress in the Boston area.
www.charlesbridge.com
Melissa Stewart is the award-winning author of more than 100 nonfiction books for young readers and a member of the SCBWI Board of Advisors. Her picture book, Under the Snow, was a Charlotte Zoltow Award Highly Commended Title, a Massachusetts Book Award Nominee, a Maine Chickadee Book Award Nominee, and a New Hampshire Ladybug Picture Book Award Nominee.
www.melissa-stewart.com
New England SCBWI has a Twitter account @nescbwi featuring news and information about the upcoming 25th Annual New England SCBWI Regional Conference. Please follow us and help spread the word!
Retweets always welcome.
The workshop committee of New England SCBWI welcomes proposals for the 2011 Spring conference, "Celebrating Milestones." There is a lot to celebrate, as this is the 25th annual regional conference in New England and the 40th year of SCBWI itself.
As always, the conference will have a strong focus on craft. We will also celebrate history and traditions in SCBWI, in our stories and artwork, and in our lives. Let's set aside a weekend to celebrate large accomplishments, tiny steps along the way, and milestones yet to come.
This is one of the largest regional SCBWI conferences, and we welcome proposals from everyone. We also encourage artists and writers of color, those who are differently abled, and others from underrepresented groups to propose conference workshops.
Newbery Medalist Sid Fleischman died this week, a day after celebrating his 90th birthday. Sid was a speaker at the SCBWI New England Conference in 2007, where he inspired us with his words and wowed us with his stage magic. Sid was also the namesake for the Sid Fleischman Humor Award, given each year by SCBWI to honor work in the genre of humor.
Sid will be missed, but his talent lives on through such works as The Whipping Boy, The Ghost in the Midday Sun, Jim Ugly, The Abracadabra Kid, and many more, including a much-anticipated biography of Charlie Chaplin coming in April 2010 from Greenwillow.
The Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art is hosting an open house for librarians, and has graciously extended the event to include our membership as well. There will be free library materials (perhaps suitable for a library near you), afternoon refreshments, and two presentations.
RSVP ASAP to (413) 658-1126
This summer The New England NEWS, the bi-monthly regional newsletter for the New England regions, will be going to an online-only edition. This change will allow us to offer the newsletter for free to New England SCBWI members through the main SCBWI website. The NEWS will be reformatted to a more modern format and will continue to include valuable marketing reports, informative articles about writing and illustrating for children, updates about activities and events in our area, and more.
Watch this space for more updates and information, coming soon!
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