Regional virtual events

April 24, 2024: Learn about other ways you can be present online, create visibility for your work, and support other kidlit creators if social media isn’t your thing or feels like a lot of work that doesn’t energize you. This session will include a series of questions for brainstorming other venues and strategies for online engagement that are a good fit for you and can be undertaken at a slower pace. If you love social media, this session can help broaden your reach and create more content to share. Recording will be available to registered participants for a month after the event. PLEASE NOTE - You must register before the event in order to have access to the video.

April 24 (registration closes April 23): Today's children possess a range of abilities. Learn ways to offer a rich and inclusive reading experience for all in this zoom presentation. Beth Bacon speaks to authors Karen Kane and Jenn Bailey to discuss storytelling strategies and techniques for creating an enriching reading experience across the spectrum.

April 26 (registration closes April 25): Learn how to work with editors professionally on your middle grade novels! This masterclass, run by experienced editor Wendy Shakespeare, will show you top tips on working with children’s fiction editors and understanding the standard editorial process in trade publishing. This masterclass is for those who want to understand how to work with fiction editors in children's publishing.

May 19, 2024 (if you are booking from outside New Zealand, check the day and time for your local time zone) Can you tell a book by its cover? Book covers are hugely important in the making of a book. Sometimes shortcuts are taken and images are used from within the book for the cover - this often falls flat, and is a lost opportunity in visually beginning the story before the first page. In this event you will learn what works and what doesn't in making book covers that are not only engaging but stand out on booksellers shelves. With Lisa you will explore; iconic book covers, the element of colour, our crazy brains and how we visually read images & text, typography: finding the perfect font, names – author or illustrator: who comes first? plus many other topics to do with book cover design. Ideal for authors, illustrators and those looking to self-publish.

May 4, 2024 (registration closes May 3): Come join us for a virtual one-day conference! MayFest features a keynote speaker, an editor panel, an agent panel, an art portfolio showcase, and more.

May 4-5, 2024 (registration closes May 3): Join us online or in-person May 4-5 in Austin, Texas for opportunities to learn your craft, boost your career, get feedback on your work, and meet and make friends with fellow children’s book writers and illustrators. The schedule includes 3 keynotes, the always popular publishing panel, 8 intensives, and 16 breakouts along with critique and pitch opportunities for all of our attendees, including those joining us online!

May 11, 2024 (registration closes May 10): Join us for SCBWI San Francisco/South’s Spring 2024 Scholar-in-Residence Presentation: "Don't Forget Grandma!: How to Include Grandparents and Elders in Your Work" by Addie Woolridge. Many young people live in intergenerational households and communities, which makes including grandparents and elders in your work a great way to help readers connect with your stories. Author Addie Woolridge will share how and why she writes flawed, funny, and fabulous grandparents. She'll also share research on how grandparents and elders are most frequently portrayed. Finally, Addie will dive into tips and tricks that you can use to include grandparents and elders in your work. FREE for premium members! $5 for non-premium.

11-12 May, 2024 (register by 19 April): You've got a book coming out. Your dream is coming true. But why does the idea of self promotion, school visits and launching your book feel like a nightmare? Time to sign up for SCBWI British Isles' famous BOOK LAUNCH BOOT CAMP. Two Days of everything you ever needed to know about launching a book for children and young people. Award-winning authors Candy Gourlay, Sara Grant and Mo O’Hara PLUS panels of industry insiders will get you up to speed. Sign up for two days of ideas, information and inspiration! The sessions will be recorded and the recordings will be available to rewatch until the 11th of June 2024.

May 13, 2024 (registration closes May 12): Mike Malbrough will share his insights into creating memorable characters and offer advice on how to keep them consistent throughout a project. In a presentation that will sharpen up some of our drawing techniques and take us into the world of puppet theatre, Mike will take us on a sweet and lively journey from idea to characters that can last. Topics covered will include- Idea Generation and Free Sketching, Drawing with Shapes and Consistent Anatomy in Space, Finding and using References, Consistent Color and Technique, and Finding a Visual Voice.

May 14, 2024: Sometimes, a story idea you might have is better suited for a different category. A picture book idea might be better suited as a chapter book, or an early reader, or a board book. But how do you know? And how do you tackle a new category? Writing across more categories means more opportunities to create and sell stories. Author and illustrator Vicky Fang talks about how to expand your storytelling skills to different categories, including board books, picture books, early readers, graphic novels, and chapter books. She’ll share her process for diving into a new category, as well as basic information to get familiar with each one. She’ll also provide insights into her overall approach to crafting and pitching.

May 14-June 14 (registration ends June 12): Author and Publishers Weekly book reviewer Susan Metallo shares her experience analyzing voice in prose, poetry, and illustration as well as her own harrowing journey from having manuscripts repeatedly rejected by agents who “didn’t love” the voice to creating the voicey YA novel that landed her an agent and a book deal. A recording will be available for 1 month after the live webinar.

May 14 (registration closes May 11): The query letter is crucial to your submission journey, but they give writers an endless headache. How to boil down all of your hard, creative work into 250 to 450 words? Let a former literary agent guide you through what an irresistible cover letter is—and isn’t—and how to pull yours off with style and flair. This workshop involves a presentation covering query basics and best practices, including submission strategies.

April 27: Are you ready to take your query letters from good to great? In this one-hour event designed to elevate your querying skills, author and editor Nadine Pinede will critique and analyze 3 query letters, then answer your questions. Drawing from her background working for a literary agent, children's publishers, and as a contest judge, Nadine will pinpoint common mistakes and provide practical solutions to make your queries shine.

June 6: While everyone approaches revision a little differently, you can learn a lot from hearing how writers--from picture book to nonfiction to YA--have attacked specific challenges. In this webinar, Editor Elizabeth Law will be including examples from books she's worked on and quoting from interviews she's done with writers on their process. Included in the talk will be a few tips for getting unstuck as well.

June 15, 2024 (registration closes June 14): Join us for a virtual day especially for PALs. From promo videos to book launch parties, we'll talk all things marketing in the morning. Come back in the afternoon for a deep dive into school visits. Half day and full day tickets available. A variety of marketing and school visit consultations are also available at an additional cost.

July 9. 2024: Nancy Churnin will share craft techniques that will show you how to make stories about true events compelling and emotion-filled.

August 17, 2024 (registration closes August 15): In this presentation, Deb Gonzales will unveil the transformative power of Pinterest in book marketing, highlighting its evergreen appeal across genres. Tailored to elevate an author or illustrator's connection with their intended audiences on the platform, participants will discover that Pinterest is the perfect place for all book creators no matter what their stage in the publishing journey may be.

August 27 (registration closes August 26): Join us for this webinar with acclaimed author Donna Gephart and Learn techniques and tips to create funny children’s books, from picture books through young adult novels. Discover which types of humor work best for various age groups. Tap into your inner child with lively examples, fun exercises and practical advice that will inspire you to write side-splitting humor for the younger set. A limited number of critiques is also available.