Promoting My Peeps With Panache

It’s been a busy time, I have to say. 2016 has started off with a bang! Along with a surge of new Educator Guide opportunities and other cool deals, I’ve been happily promoting for both of my beloved writing communities’ upcoming events.  I’ve had my nose buried in Photoshop, Wordpress, and Hootsuite for weeks!

SCBWI-MI has kept me hopping as the Social Media Maven touting the ever-so-awesome roaring twenties-themed Wild Wild Midwest Conference 2016 being held in Naperville, Illinois from Friday, April 29 to Sunday, May 1. This isn’t your run-of-the-mill-everyday conference, mind you. No way. You see, six Midwestern SCBWI chapters have joined forces to host a shindig to beat the band. Get this – 600 participants, 35 speakers, 40 sessions, 8 intensives, portfolio reviews, critiques, contests and a costume party! It’s going to be SUCH FUN! I cannot wait. Registration opens Monday, Feb. 1. 

And, then there’s the event that is super-close to my heart – The VCFA AMR being held on campus in Montpelier from June 16 to 19th. Oh, how I love coordinating this homecoming! I so enjoy touching base with alums all over the nation. Being that we have a new two track registration option this year, I have a feeling I’ll get to be in contact with even more of my MFA brethren. Want to know more about the AMR? Feel free to download an informational flyer here. It’s pretty darned swanky. I tell you.

Registration for the VCFA WCYA Alumni Mini Residency will opens on Friday, Feb. 12. Two weeks from now my inbox will be bursting and absolutely nothing will make me happier!

Adventures of a Debut Author - In Gratitude for...

I’m including this commercial announcement for the Vermont College of Fine Arts Writing for Children and Young Adults program as part of my Adventures of a Debut Author posts because I owe a great deal to the school, the staff, and the incredible faculty there. At VCFA, I discovered my voice, my passion, and I found my agent at the AMR! Hallelujah! Saints be praised!

An observation I’ve made over the years is that many successful writers continue to support organizations that helped them along the rocky road to publication. Be it SCBWI, a local writing group, or other esteemed writing programs, some of the finest authors and illustrators I know seem to find a way to “dance with the one that brought them.” While I’ve got a lot of two-stepping down the bumpy road to publication success ahead of me, I plan on demonstrating my gratitude to VCFA and SCBWI by chipping in any way I can.

Read the little ditty below if you’d like to know more about the upcoming VCFA WCYA Alumni Mini-Residency. If you have any questions at all, shoot me note and I’ll be glad to answer it!

Hey, alums! Hope to see you there!!!!

The annual WCYA Alumni Mini-Residency, known as the AMR, is a weekend conference that mirrors the VCFA residency experience while focusing on the professional aspects of one’s writing career.  During the event attendees participate in a Master Class presented by the industry’s finest award-winning authors; interface with editors and literary agents; are coached by publicists; attend lectures and workshops led by VCFA faculty members; and are given multiple rich opportunities to elevate their writing careers to the highest level possible.

Every year WCYA alumni – from recently graduated to those from residencies long passed – return to campus for inspiration, collaboration, and in celebration of one another’s successes. The dates for AMR 2016 are June 17 to 19. Registration opens on February 15.

Please take a moment to review the AMR 2016 information posted on the VCFA website. You’ll find that the faculty and programming planned for this summer’s event is incredible. Whether you’re pre-published or have a series of books with your name proudly printed on the spine, the WCYA Alumni Mini-Residency is perfectly suited to support your writing career, no matter where you are in the publishing business.