A BIG Thanks to SCBWI-NE!

I had a really, really great time at the SCBWI-New England conference this past weekend. I gave two workshops; one about my approach to writing graphic novels and one about my approach to illustration. It was an interesting experience for me because I had to examine what it is I do (mostly on an intuitive level) and organize it in a way that people other than me could hopefully understand. The feedback I received was very good, so I think it went well.

On Sunday I gave a joint 4-hour Illustration Academy workshop with Yolanda Scott (editorial director, Charlesbridge), Ann

Stott (art director, Candlewick) and author/illustrator David Hyde Costello (click on the link for a look at David in his studio). We couldn't have done it without help from Casey Girard who made everything run smoothly. It was an intense experience for all of us, but I think it also went very well. Heck, I was inspired.

And you can't beat the finale that Yolanda and David worked out... a literal showstopper of a number about the combination of words and text.

David, who is as cool and nice a guy as you could possibly meet, brought an extra uke for me. It added to the shall we say celebratory atmosphere that rocked the Courtyard Marriott on Friday night. SCBWI people are a very social bunch.

Thanks to Casey for the pix. More pix and general round-ups can be found at the conference Twitter page.

In addition to my co-Illustration Academy team, I met and/or re-met a ton of fantastic people including but certainly not limited to Jo Knowles, Frank Dormer, Cynthia Lord, Kate Messner, Abigail Halpin, Mitali Perkins, Cynthia Leitich-Smith, Dawn Metcalf, Kelly Fineman, Jennifer Morris, Kat Black, Deborah Sloan, Michelle Henninger, Anne Sibley-O'Brien, Anna Boll, John Bell, Jennifer Carson, Anindita Basu Sempere, and a host of very cool attendees. Thanks to everyone for making this such a blast.

One of my favorite things about the conference was that I had the chance to meet for the first time in person two authors that I've had the honor to work with: Ann Stott (Always) and Jeanne Birdsall (Flora's Very Windy Day).

SCBWI-New England Conference Registration!

Ahoy, New Englanders (or Yankees, if you prefer)! Registration for the SCBWI-New England conference starts on Monday, February 8th. The conference will be held from May 14-16 in Fitchburg, MA.

On Saturday, I'll be teaching two workshops (one on illustration, one on writing graphic novels). On Sunday, I'll be joining illustrator David Hyde Costello, editor Yolanda LeRoy, and Storm in the Barn designer extraordinaire Heather McGee in an epic 4-hour Illustrator Academy workshop.

Also on the conference bill are Marla Frazee, Allyn Johnston, Jo Knowles, Kate Messner, Jennifer Morris, Kara LaReau, Kelly Fineman and many, many more (seriously, this line-up is pretty impressive).

Conference details (including faculty bios and workshop descriptions) can be found HERE or if you prefer your info in Tweet form, you can find it HERE.

It should be a lot of fun. Hope to see you there.

SCBWI Fall Philly Conference

I'll be speaking at this year's Fall Philly Conference of the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators (eastern PA chapter). Details are not up on the website yet, but when they do go up, they should be here. Registration ends August 25th, but it's limited to 140 people, so you might want to register soonish.

Five years ago at this very conference, I showed my portfolio to a Simon & Schuster art director who then showed it to Richard Jackson who then hired me to illustrate my first picture book. So, illustrators, be sure to bring your shiny shiny portfolios and sign up for the optional review!