3 Quotes Heard at a Kidlit Conference
SCBWI, the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators, is an international professional organization for authors and illustrators of children’s books (kidlit). It’s been a part of my life since I first joined the Austin chapter in 2014, back when I’d published my first picture book (almost by accident) and figured I’d better figure out how this whole kidlit thing worked! In 2016, I was a finalist for the chapter’s conference writing award. In 2018, I won it. In 2020, I moved to Charlotte, and, life upended, clawed my way back into the work. And in 2022, this very weekend, that work got 5 votes of confidence from agents and editors I respect and admire at the SCBWI Carolinas Fall Conference.
Now, I have a ton of (exciting!) work to do on that project. But first, I want to share three quotes I took from the conference. Fitting for the writing life and, well, life.
“You are putting beauty deliberately in the world. That is what artists do.”
“The truth is, if you master the rule, you can break it.”
“I refused to give up. It’s the only thing I have that might be different from other writers.”
Before I go…
I tend to be drawn to the lonely people in a room, but when I moved, I found myself to be one of them. Big thanks to these four authors who, by voluntarily welcoming me so warmly, became my first connections to my new community:
Megan Hoyt, Author of Bartali’s Bicycle, the Greatest Song of All and others
Halli Gomez, Author of List of Ten and others
Michelle Nott, Author of Teddy, Let’s Go! and others
Kimberly Wilson, Author of A Penny’s Worth and others
Conference day one. As the remnants of Hurricane Ian blow by outside.
