Some images of the first SCBWI NL Conference in Amsterdam

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Fabulous Conference in Amsterdam

We are looking back at an excellent first SCBWI NL conference. I think every single participant loved the speakers, their keynotes, lectures and the hands-on break-out sessions.
I particularly liked Doug Cushman’s opening keynote and his advice to always remember how you started, why you started, and, most important, what drove you to wanting to be a writer or an illustrator. His Space Cat is a terrific illustration of that: written when Doug was 8 years old and published a couple of years ago. As he said: we don’t change that much.

Erzsi Deàk of the Hen&ink Agency enlightened us on what agents and editors are looking for these days. Her breakdown of the buzz at the Frankfurt International Book Fair was insightful and helpful and gave us, illustrators and writers alike, a good view of where and how we can gain the most of our talents.

The morning break-out sessions were hands-on and all about honing our craft.
Sarah Blake Johnson gave an excellent writer’s masterclass on character and plot and sent the attendees out again brimming with ideas, bubbling with new plot twists and turns, and with fingers itching to start writing. If you ever need a writing coach: she’s your woman!
Ben Norland of Walker Books UK was just awesome. The illustrators hung on his every word, taking in as much as possible of his knowledge and his creative talents. How to develop characters, how to present your work, what works and what not were on his list, but also solid and down-to-earth information on what the differences are between showing your work on paper or on screen, and his guidance on how to best present your pieces and dummies.

The Amsterdam weather didn’t let us down: an almost springlike temperature accompanied us to the various lunch restaurants around the venue, and of course to the American Book Center for a demonstration of the Expresso Book Machine. A nifty little piece of equipment that can turn your manuscripts into books in a matter of minutes.

The afternoon started with another round of break-out sessions.
Erzsi Deàk put the writers that attended her masterclass right to work. Revising your work was the motto here and revision means ‘the act of seeing again’. Erzsi truly let her audience see their own work again, through reading and rereading, through changing the POV’s, through listening and through tweaking and polishing. We had to call them twice before they were willing to put their pens down and come to the next lecture.
Doug Cushman told the attendees of his masterclass to imagine one of their characters. After that the participants were to sketch their character six times, each time with a different emotion, ranging from fright to anger and from surprise to smugness. His advice: use a mirror to study facial expressions and to perfect postures and poses!

The app developer Omar Curiëre of OCG Studios was a revelation. With pictures and videos he talked us through the making of Roxie’s a-MAZE-ing Vacation Adventure and the making of Roxie’s Doors, two apps based on the picture books of Roxie Munro. I can safely say that he left the audience in awe. This was not just a pimped digital image of a picture book, this was everything an app should be: thought-out to the bone, well-crafted, interactive and most of all stunningly beautiful.

Martine Schaap of Ploegsma Children’s Books gave us a fun-and-facts insight in the world of Dutch children’s book publishing. What works in the Netherlands and what works abroad. How often do books get translated. What are Dutch publishers looking for and how do they acquire their titles. The Netherlands and the big world our there.

We closed this full Saturday with a panel of speakers, moderated by the founder of the Dutch SCWBI chapter, the gifted translator Laura Watkinson. With thought-provoking questions she led the speakers and the audience a step closer to understanding the complex world of children’s book publishing in a global market.

During the Schmooze, with some well-deserved wine and snacks, two of our members showed their film work. Anne Awh’s ‘Mating Season’ was sweet and quirky. Liesbeth Wieggers short movie featuring a 33-year-old who overcomes illiteracy was lovely and moving. It reminded us once again about why the world needs good writers and illustrators. Room to Read, the organization that works in collaboration with local communities, partner organizations and governments, to develop literacy skills and a habit of reading among primary school children had a stand with information about their work.

Indonesian restaurant Sampurna treated the speakers and the members of the SCBWI to a delicious meal. Ben Norland had a little bonus for us in stock: Joshua Mowll joined us for dinner. His award-winning The Guild of Specialists trilogy has been published in 20 countries. A true example of publishing in a global market.

In short: The Netherlands and the Big World Out There was a fabulous and inspiring conference and most definitely the onset of much more to come!

We thank Steve Mooser and Kathleen Ahrens of the SCBWI for their support and for the grants that made this event possible!

D-Day

D-Day is nearing! We have just a couple more days to go before the first SCBWI NL Conference takes off to sky-rocket us to publishing in a global market.

We are excited and we hope you are, too. Doug Cushman will give the opening keynote. The title of his keynote? In the Beginning Was Space Cat.
Who doesn’t remember the cosmic adventures of the space hero who so effortlessly rivals great space age heroes like Buck Rogers and Flash Gordon. Space Cat was the onset of Doug’s stellar career, and it still is the onset of the reading careers of so many kids. Doug will enlighten us about what it takes to storm the international children’s book market. He will inspire us to do the same, to push forward no matter what and no matter how the tide might seem against us, just like Space Cat and his robot Earl.

So get ready for a day filled with thought-provoking keynotes, inspiring break-out sessions for writers and illustrators, and some excellent networking with colleagues and speakers from all over! Have agent Erzsi Deàk and Creative Writing Instructor Sarah Blake Johnson show you the writing ropes. Immerse yourself in a sea of possibilities handed to you by Art Director Ben Norland and Writer/Illustrator Doug Cushman. Find out about the excellent apps for children’s books made by Omar Curiëre. Let Publisher Martine Schaap initiate you in the international world of children’s books.
We will wrap up with a panel discussion led by the unsurpassed Laura Watkinson, who will grill the speakers until they divulge the secrets of publishing in a global market.

We are looking forward to a wonderful day. Are you?

The NL SCBWI Team:

Rachelle Meyer – Siobhan Wall – Laura Watkinson – Mina Witteman

Last call!

We had the Early Birds, we had the Regular Birds, and now we are inviting the Late Birds to fill those last few seats. We have room for just a couple more writers and illustrators.

The manuscript review slots are sold out, unfortunately, but… we are still accepting requests for portfolio reviews. Don’t miss out on the opportunity to have your drawings, your illustrations and your picture book dummies reviewed by Art Director Ben Norland of Walker Books UK or by world-famous writer/illustrator Doug Cushman!

The conference offers awesome speakers, thought-provoking hands-on masterclasses for writers and for illustrators, excellent opportunity for networking and just good old schmoozing with colleagues from the Netherlands, from France, from Germany, from the UK, from the US! A truly international group of dedicated professionals and inspiring colleague writers and illustrators.

Visit the registration page for more information!

 

A Few More Seats Available!

We are happy to announce that the preparations for the first conference of the SCBWI The Netherlands chapter are in full blast. The registrations are in, the speakers are lined up, the venue is ready!

But…

We have a couple more seats available, so we have decided to extend the registration period until October 8. First come, first serve!
We also have two more spots available for manuscript reviews and some more for the portfolio reviews. So polish up your WIPs and dust off your illustrations, and send them in. Agent Erzsi Deàk and Writing Coach Sarah Blake Johnson are ready to provide you with the most valuable advice on your projects. Submission deadline: 8 October latest!
If you sign up for a portfolio review (by Art Director Ben Norland or Writer/Illustrator Doug Cushman), you can bring your work to the conference. Read all about it on the Submission page.
Just let us know before October 8 if you would like to opt-in for an individual review.

Be quick and register if you want to hone your craft with our writing and illustrating masterclasses and if you want a taste of what is going on in the global publishing industry.

To register visit the Registration page.

 

We have two winners!

Tonight, we had an unbiased party draw two names from the pool of Early Birds and we are happy to announce the two conference attendees who will get their individual reviews for free.

The winners are *drum roll crescendo*

Anne Awh, who won the free portfolio review!

and

Gudrun Cram-Drach, who won the free manuscript review!

Congratulations, ladies.

 

Remember! We are drawing close to our conference registration deadline, which, by the way, is October 1st. We still have a couple of seats left (we do have a definite go-ahead!). Be quick and don’t miss out on the chance to hone your craft and mingle and network with publishing professionals from all over the world.

For those who missed any of the latest news: our program now includes a master class for writers from Sarah Blake Johnson. Rachelle, one of the conference co-conspirators, also had the pleasure of meeting Ben Norland of  Walker Books when she was in London and can promise you that he will indeed be an engaging and thought-provoking lecturer.

The registration details and form can be found here!

 

Win a Free Review at the Conference!

We are drawing close to our November Conference registration deadline, which, by the way, is October 1st.

In order to encourage a few more people to sign up this week, we are offering a special deal. All registrants who sign up between now and Saturday, September 24th will be eligible for a FREE portfolio or manuscript review. One of each will be granted, so do indicate on your registration form which one you intend to sign up for. Of course, the early birds already signed up are included in this draw.

We will announce the winners of the review grant early next week.

If you missed any of the latest news: our program now includes a master class for writers from Sarah Blake Johnson. Rachelle, one of the conference co-conspirators, also had the pleasure of meeting Ben Norland of  Walker Books last week when she was in London and can promise you that he will indeed be an engaging and thought-provoking lecturer.

The registration details and form can be found here!