Every year for the last four years I have attended the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators conference in New York City. This year was no exception. The conference is a great way to meet new people in the industry, hear inspiring talks, and stay in touch with what is going on in the business. The hilights for me this year were, Brian Selznick talking about his latest book, Susan Cooper's Keynote, and Katherine Paterson's Keynote. I also attended two exceptional breakout sessions. One given by Chad Beckerman, on the art of jacket design, was a fantastic insight into the marketplace of YA jackets, as well as giving everyone some great tips on what makes a "striking" jacket. Mac Mcool gave an equally engaging talk on graphic novels. It was a very interactive breakout session as there were a few people in the audience who were also in the business of publishing graphic novels. And let's face it, the line between picture books and graphic novels is getting blurred every day.
Saturday night was the annual New York Showcase, where illustrators can submit a piece of children's book art for display, and industry proffessionals come and check it out. This year I entered one of the paintings from my next book, "Moonpowder" and was pleasantly suprised to win the Grand Prize for the second time! (I won it in 2004 as well) Thank you SCBWI !!
3 comments:
Congrats again for your win! I love the colors in that illustration and the beautiful transition in the sky with the nice warm-cool contrast! Super!!
Congratulations, John! That is so cool! Good luck with your new book promotion.
I was lucky enough to see your painting at the SCBWI Winter Conference, and I have to say I'm not too surprised you won. Congratulations!
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