Regional Advisor
Tracy
Barrett
Assistant Regional Advisor
Patricia Wiles
Illustrator Coordinator
Alison Lyne
***Scroll down the page for information about our 2009 Editor's Day, scheduled for June 27.
2009 Midsouth Fall Conference
Friday-Sunday, September
25-27
**NEW LOCATION: Embassy Suites Hotel-Vanderbilt, 1811
Broadway, Nashville
Faculty –
Kaylan Adair, Associate Editor,
Candlewick Press
Patrick Collins, Creative Director, Henry Holt
Caroline B. Cooney, Award-winning Author
Shelli Johannes-Wells, Marketing Expert
Cheryl Klein, Senior Editor, Arthur A. Levine Books (Scholastic imprint)
Michael Stearns, Agent, Firebrand Literary Agency
Click here to download the brochure and registration form.
Use the links below to download information about the conference contests for writers and illustrators:
2009 Midsouth Conference
Illustrators Contest
* The contest judge has provided two manuscripts for the contest. Entrants
must choose one page from one of the manuscripts to illustrate.
Manuscript 1
Manuscript 2
2009 Midsouth Conference Fiction Manuscript Contest
For more information about the conference or the contests, contact conference coordinators Genetta Adair, Sharon Cameron, or Susan Eaddy.
Send conference registration and fees to:
Genetta Adair, SCBWI-Midsouth
P.O. Box 396
Cordova, TN 38088
Activities include:
September 25th – Second Annual Dessert Party/Book Signing in the hotel restaurant area from 7-9 p.m.
September 26th – Workshops, First Pages, and more from 8 a.m.-6 p.m., plus a special Yoga session from 8-9 p.m.
September 27th – Workshops, First Pages, Illustrator Art Screenings, and more from 8 a.m.-noon.
What to expect from the Saturday evening Yoga Session: This yoga class takes place after dinner and so the first half hour of the class will be very gentle movements, either standing or seated in a chair. The class will be in three segments, and you are welcome to stay for all three or to leave after the first or second segment. Here is a loose outline of what to expect:
1) The Five Minute Yoga Break, for People Who Sit Too Much (about ½ hour)
We’ll explore yoga poses (asana) and breathing practices (pranayama) which can serve as an energizing “take five” during your typical day of sitting in front of the computer. This section of the class will end with a brief guided meditation to help you relax, focus, and balance.
2) Yoga Flow (about ½ hour)
While writing or illustrating, you may experience many moods which become reflected in your body’s posture. An antidote of yoga might help you break free from whatever is blocking your progress. For example, a good dose of Warrior’s Pose will help you focus your intentions and give you the power you need to work through a hard scene. Although this segment of the class will also be gentle and suitable for beginners, we’ll be exerting our bodies slightly more. We’ll explore two flowing sequences of yoga poses, the Warrior and the Golden Seed. Each sequence takes less than two minutes and works beautifully as an energizing Yoga Break during a day of sitting.
3) Opening up to Questions, Sharing, and more Yoga Asana (10 minutes, minimum)
For anyone who would like to stay longer, we can explore more about these and other yoga asana. If you would like assistance with a pose or if you want to stay longer to explore more challenging asana, this is an open time. For those of you who already know a lot about yoga, you will probably want to stay through this segment of the class.
About Wanda:
Wanda Collins Johnson is a registered yoga teacher (RYT 200) in hatha yoga with further training in Yin yoga. If you would like to ask a question or leave a comment, or if you’d like to see recent examples of her art and writing, please visit her website at http://wandacollinsjohnson.com.
Dessert Party and Book Signing, Friday, September 25, 7 p.m. to 9 p.m.
Embassy Suites-Vanderbilt (restaurant area)
1811 Broadway
Nashville, TN 37203
Participation is limited to the first twelve, fully registered authors and illustrators to send in their book titles (limit 5) and ISBN numbers by July 18. Books will be provided by Davis-Kidd Booksellers, and must be available through Ingram.* Participants may be from any region, but must be SCBWI members, PAL level, whose complete conference registration and fees for the 2009 Midsouth Fall Conference have been received. A participant’s slot will not be confirmed until complete registration materials (including fees) and titles and ISBN numbers have been received. Participants’ books will also be made available in the conference bookstore.
Send book titles (limit 5) and ISBN numbers to Sharon Cameron.
*Participants should be certain all titles are actually available through Ingram before sending in titles and ISBN numbers.
SCBWI-Midsouth Editor's Day
Featuring Liz Waniewski, editor at Dial Books
8 a.m.-4 p.m. Saturday, June 27
Joseph-Beth Booksellers
Lexington Green Circle
Lexington, Kentucky
Cost: SCBWI members, $55 ($60 if received after May 16); nonmembers, $65 ($70 if received after May 16).
Liz Waniewski has edited titles such as Keena Ford and the Field Trip Mix-Up by Melissa Thomson and Frank Morrison, Boost by Kathy Mackel, The Homeschool Liberation League by Lucy Frank, and The Brooklyn Nine by Alan Gratz. She also edited Ladybug Girl by Jacky Davis and David Soman, which hit the New York Times best seller list for 22 weeks. She has been at Dial for seven years.
Liz will discuss:
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The submission process
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The top ten reasons a manuscript is accepted or rejected
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The need for a captivating query letter
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Current industry trends
Click this link to download the
registration form and read information about first page critiques.
(You must have Adobe Reader to download the file.)
Questions? Contact Randi Lynn Mrvos or Debbie Cochran.
Do not contact Joseph Beth with questions about the workshop.
EDITOR’S DAY AGENDA
8:00-8:30 a.m. -- Meet and greet
8:30-10:00 a.m. -- Liz will discuss the top ten reasons she would consider a
manuscript submitted by an unknown author without an agent. She will also delve
into the agent issue (should you have one or not), and share the top reasons she
would ditch a manuscript.
10:00-10:15 a.m. -- Q & A
10:15-10:30 a.m. -- Break
10:30 a.m.-12:00 p.m. -- Anonymous first page critiques read to the whole group
12:00-1:00 p.m. -- Lunch
1:00 p.m.-2:30 p.m. -- Liz will share advice on how to submit your work,
including tips on how to write a query letter and a "hook" that interests an
editor. She'll also review current trends in the marketplace.
2:30-2:45 p.m. -- Q & A
2:45-3:50 p.m. -- Anonymous first page critiques read to the whole group
3:50-4:00 p.m. -- Door prize winner announced. Liz has agreed to do a
line-by-line critique of a picture book manuscript or the first chapter of a
longer work. She will work out the details with the lucky winner.