Summary and a few takeaways from SCBWI Canada East "The Art Of Story" Fall Conference in Montreal - by Debbie Ridpath Ohi

With Laurent Linn, my art director from Simon & Schuster Books For
Young Readers, at Montreal children's bookstore, Babar-En-Villes.

Just came back from SCBWI Canada East's "The Art Of Story" convention in Montreal, where I was on the faculty (my first SCBWI faculty position!).

Giving my keynote! Photo: Urve Tamberg.

For my full convention report with lots of photos, read my 3-part blog post series: Part 1 - Part 2 - Part 3.

The lightning rod analogy I used in my keynote seems to be popular (yay), so I want to make sure that it gets properly attributed. As I mentioned in my keynote, my Torkidlit friend and YA author Maureen McGowan came up with it, not me (in an interview for my Inkygirl blog). And it's so true!

For those who weren't at my keynote, Maureen compares success in the publishing industry to being hit by lightning. While you can't control WHEN lightning will strike, you CAN make bigger and better lightning rods.

Penguin Random House editors Jill Santopolo & Bonnie Bader with
Caldecott-winning illustrator David Diaz.

As I mentioned in my reports, SCBWI regional conferences are a great opportunity for aspiring children's/YA book writers and illustrators who find the national conferences too intimidating. So often at the bigger conferences, faculty tend to get mobbed at the end of their sessions. :-)

At SCBWI Canada East's event, you were much more likely to find yourself in situations where you could chat with faculty.

Casual socializing Saturday night for attendees included Linda Pratt (of
Wernick & Pratt Agency), editors Jill Santolopolo and Bonnie Bader
(Penguin Random House) and art director Laurent Linn (Simon & Schuster BFYR).

Here are just a few takeaways from the convention:

- Both Jill Santopolo and Bonnie Bader mentioned the importance of a having a unique cast of supporting characters in novels for young people.

- Illustrators: Before approaching a possible agent, Linda Pratt advises that you check the portfolios of the agency's current clients to see if any of the art is similar to yours. If it is, then they're less likely to take you on as a client. (From Debbie: Writers can also benefit from this advice as well.)

- Know the rules before deciding to break them. - Laurent Linn.

- Embrace your process. - David Diaz.

Jill Santopolo, Linda Pratt, Bonnie Bader and Laurent Linn during Sunday's Q&A.

For those out there wondering why publishers usually keep picture book authors from interacting with the illustrators during the process, Laurent had some great insights.

He points out that authors often feel ownership over their stories, and some don't realize that creating a picture is a 50:50 collaboration with the illustrator. If authors had input during the illustration process, they'd be more likely to pressure the illustrator over details. And as a writer, how would YOU feel if the illustrator standing over your shoulder as you wrote your story? 

Anyway, it was a wonderful event and I strongly encourage you to check out the SCBWI Canada East website for more info about their members and upcoming events, as well as your own regional conference.

And if you're not already a member of SCBWI, why not? :-)

For my full SCBWI-Montreal conference report: Part 1 - Part 2 - Part 3.

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Debbie Ridpath Ohi writes and illustrates for young people. Her illustrations appear in I'M BORED, a picture book written by Michael Ian Black and published by Simon & Schuster Books For Young Readers. For more info about her upcoming books with Simon & Schuster BFYR, HarperCollins Children's and Random House Children's, see her Books page.

On Twitter: @inkyelbows.

MiG Writers: Meeting In Person For The First Time At The SCBWI Winter Conference

Only a couple of weeks left until the SCBWI Winter Conference in NYC! I'm so looking forward to the event, not just because of the amazing faculty line-up and programming, but also because it will be the first time that all members of our MiG Writer group meet in person!

I've met Andrea Mack and Carmella Van Vleet once before and look forward to seeing them again, but I haven't yet met Christina Farley, Kate Fall or Susan Laidlaw in person.

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I started attending SCBWI conventions regularly in 2009. I was so nervous about not knowing anyone there, and about having to go up and introduce myself to strangers. I'm an introvert at heart (I suspect many creative types are), so I decided to do some prep ahead of time to make things easier at the event.

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This prep included:

1. Networking online ahead of time on the SCBWI message boards and other social media. I didn't hide the fact that I was a nervous newbie.

2. Doing some comics about being nervous.

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Turns out I wasn't the only nervous newbie! Plus the veterans were generous in offering advice on how make the conference more enjoyable. I also made plans ahead of time to get together with others:

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But not TOO many plans! I wanted to leave flexibility for hanging out with people I had met at the conference.

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I also read over posts people had written about conference etiquette and tips on how to meet (and how NOT to meet) others in the industry. But the most important piece of advice, I found, was to HAVE REALISTIC EXPECTATIONS:

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Also: to have a clear idea of what my goals were for the conference. And again, make those goals realistic. 

One of my goals for this conference coming up: To meet the other MiG Writers in person.

Can't wait. :-)

p.s. If you'd like to see all my SCBWI Newbie Comics, see this blog post.

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Debbie Ridpath Ohi writes and illustrates for young people. She illustrated I'M BORED by Michael Ian Black (Simon & Schuster Books For Young Readers), which was chosen as a New York Times Notable Children's Book Of 2012. Debbie is currently working on two more books for S&S. Blog: Inkygirl.com. Twitter: @inkyelbows.

Back from the SCBWI Winter Conference. Now what?

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I just got back from the SCBWI Winter Conference in NYC. Whoa -- what an amazing, inspiring event. Just before the conference, I also visited my publisher at Simon & Schuster Books For Young Readers about I'm Bored and other projects. I'll be posting about both events in my Inkygirl blog, with (likely way too many) photos.

But the main message prevalent throughout: no matter what the format, what promoting I do, what process or techniques I use, it's the CONTENT that matters most in the end. In the end, a good story and strong characters trump all.

So while my head feels so full of all the wonderful information and advice I learned during the event, I know that most of all, I need to get my butt in my chair and do more WRITING.