SCBWI Conference Ruled!

This past weekend I went to the SCBWI (Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators) of Kansas, Let's Make Magic Conference.  Most of the conferences I have attended have been through the romance genre and general writing themes and this was my first that was more juvenile school and library based. 

I liked it.  I really liked what I saw, learned and experienced.  If you have some interest in these areas, I recommend joining the group. I attended Saturday and from Mike Jung's (Geeks, Girls, and Secret Identities) Opening Keynote on "Togetherness" to Jay Asher's Closing Keynote of his twelve year publication journey to becoming an author of the book (Thirteen Reasons Why) now on the New York Times bestseller list for two AND a half years, I found the whole experience to be positive.  Editor Arthur Levine was entertaining as a Penn and Teller-esque assistant to Mike Jung's speech and during the joint song and dance.  He was also quite informative and professional, but it was great to see his humor too.  My breakout sessions were Jay Asher quite effectively explaining "How to Inject Suspense Into Your Novel", Mike Jung's "Voice" which made several concepts more clear, Agent Mary Kole clarified how to accomplish, "Writing Irresistible YA and MG Fiction.  The First pages critiques by the professionals were interesting to see what the professionals agreed about concerning the pages provided by attending authors and what they didn't.  I did wish mine had been reviewed, but not enough time.

I left with some great contacts, some new books to read, helpful knowledge, a plan to attend more of these events!

Some blurbs of info I liked from some of the people I named above.

Trust your editors and agents to know what they are doing.  They are your collaborators.

Suspense Killers: Bad dialogue, too much description, unnatural motivations....

When brainstorming, the first solution you come up with is what others will too.  Pick something else.

Ask-What kind of experiences are the characters going through on a daily basis?  Tone of piece...

YA publications are up 30%.  Contemporary is good right now.

Tons of News

Wonder what I do now that I am retired from teaching?

Time for catch up and preview of writing and speaking activities.

This has been some of my September and October so far.

I attended the Moonlight and Magnolias Conference in Atlanta at the beginning of the month.  Met wonderful writers, heard Julia Quinn speak again, won multiple fabulous gift bags, and got two requests for full of my book Mirror Images. 

I also visited Savannah with my husband and came up with an idea for a YA series.  I am taking an on-line class about how to write a series that has been quite helpful. 

I have attended a writing retreat, club meetings, and critiques and am going to a conference this weekend for children and MG and YA authors.  This will be a new venue to explore.  I have judged a couple of writing contests and contacted numerous editors to send entries on to them.

I also have helped out former co-workers with contest judging and planning units and lessons.  And I found a way to put lessons on line and receive money for them.

I also have been speaking as a storytime reader at the local library and am scheduled to do a reading for my grandson's after school program and act a pioneer storyteller for our school on November 2.  Coming up with a pioneer costume for that one.  I have tried not to have clothes like that in the past.  At readings sometimes I just read books or poems, or I sing (sorry, it is bad) or  I use puppets, and I usually write some type of audience participation event.  I also have written plays and readers theaters too.

Tomorrow I will be at the Holden Library from 5:30-7:00 giving a program on "What it takes to be a writer."  I will talk about the different genres, how to write books, and ways to be published. 

On Thursday, I will be facilitating a discussion on the novel, "To Kill a Mockingbird" at 7:00 at the Holden Library.

On November 1 and 27 I am available from 4:30-7:00 to discuss novel writing and tips at the Holden Library in honor of Nanowrimo (National Novel Writing Month.)  People of all ages are invited to utilize the library to meet the word count challenges of the national program.

I have even managed to write and edit during this time. 

Let me show you some of my tricks!

The formatting doesn't work the same when I transfer my flyer to the blog, but the information is the same and it is what I am up to these days.   Check below for details about my writing workshop for students (and it is good for adults too)!  I also am continuing to speak about writing and other topics and still do readings at libraries and for groups of all ages.  It is a good place for me to be working at a writer, editor, and speaker. 

 This October..

 TRICKS  to make writing a TREAT!

*Want to get your students motivate to write more effectively?

*Want students to appreciate that good writing requires the 3 P’s?                                           (Preparation, persistence, and PRACTICE.)

*Want to sneak in some objectives & common core standards?

It isn’t really MAGIC, but it can be accomplished…

in a workshop that’s entertaining, cheap, & bursting with TRICKS used by authors. Workshop is tailored to meet your school’s needs in age and skill level of participants and building schedule. It also serves as a great preparation activity for November’s NaNoWriMo (National Novel Writing Month).* 

   Local Writer, Editor, & Speaker, G. Aliceson Edwards, uses her twenty-six years of teaching literature and writing experience and budding author know-how in her interactive workshop, TRICKS to make writing a TREAT, by presenting practical tips and tricks to make writing more manageable to apply skills in school and in today’s publishing market.

Students will do interactive activities to enhance own bag of writing TRICKS!

*Differentiate among genres to produce those characteristics to aid developing own style.

*Apply story structure techniques and common literary devices during workshop and beyond. 

*Recognize the good practices of writers working in today’s market for own writing goals.

For more information about available dates, workshops costs, or to ask questions email  galicesonedwards@earthlink.net   

Not interested in a workshop now? Check out Student Writers Program. http://www.nanowrimo.org/en/ywp