Starting a Story with a Concept: Master Class with Agent Mary Kole

Date: Saturday, March 10, 2012
Time: 10:00-1:00
Where: Paris

What Can Happen When You Start a Story
with a Concept

Master Class
Presentation, Exercises, Discussion

As writers, we are usually willing to roll up our sleeves and wrangle with our plots and characters until they feel perfect. But are we willing to do the same to make sure we've got a concept that will hook everyone from agents and editors to readers? Should perfecting the concept maybe even be the first step to writing a great book? Mary Kole, agent with Andrea Brown Literary Agency since 2009, founder of the kidlit.com blog and author of the soon to be released book THE KIDLIT WRITER'S GUIDEBOOK will be leading a masterclass to explore these vary questions.


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Cost:
Masterclass - 70 euros
Critique - 40 euros

To register, please contact : Dana Carey

Professional Series via Video

Thursdays in March
from 9:00-10:00pm

This series makes a wide range of experts available to you and you won’t even have to leave home. Have you heard of librarian Betsy Bird, editor Tamson Weson, plotting strategist Martha Alderson and brand expert Dan Blank???

They’ll all be joining us! Each of our pros will spend an hour showing you how to use their years of experience to improve your skills. You’ll also have a chance to ask specific questions about your work.

This is a four-part series, so registration is for all four sessions. Space is limited to 10 participants. Priority will be given to SCBWI Europe members, but all are welcome.

To register, please contact: Dana Carey

Technical Requirements: If you’ve never participated in a video conference before, it’s as easy as registering, receiving your password and link for the designated website on February 28. Joining us for a technical rehearsal at 8:30pm on March 1 and then jumping into the discussion. No special equipment required other than a computer with a good internet connection.

Dress code: Pajamas are totally acceptable.

Deadline: Register by February 27.
If you have specific questions about something you’re working on, please submit them by February 27 as well.

Critiques: If you want to participate in peer-to-peer critiques after the Professional Series session, we can set aside time from 10:00-10:30 each week to look at manuscripts (a maximum of 10 pages), illustrations or dummies sent in advance as word documents or PDFs. You can schedule your critique when your register.

Cost: 115 Euros. Space is limited, so priority will be given to SCBWI members.

Register: Contact ARA Dana Carey

Schedule:
8:50- 9:00pm Tech Check Available
9:00-10:00pm Professional Conference Video Conference
10:00-10:30 Peer-to-Peer Critique Session

What Makes a Contemporary Classic

Librarian Betsy Bird


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Elizabeth Bird has served on the Newbery award committee and written for Horn Book. She created the children's literary blog A Fuse #8 Production and is currently a children's librarian at the Children's Center at 42nd Street of the New York Public Library system.

Switching Hats: Transitioning from writing to editing (your work)

Editor Tamson Weston

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Tamson Weston is a published children’s book author and editor with over 15 years experience at several publishing houses including HarperCollins, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt and Disney Hyperion. She has edited award-winning books for children of all ages and loves helping help authors, illustrators, agents and publishers bring projects to their full potential

Plotting Strategies

Expert Martha Alder


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Martha Alderson is the author of The Plot Whisperer: Secrets of Story Structure Any Writer Can Master. Martha offers writers proven techniques for creating more focused and balanced and complex plotlines. Her clients include best-selling authors, writing teachers and fiction editors, and Hollywood movie directors.

For more information, please contact: advisor@scbwifrance.com

What: Show & Tell




When: Wednesday, March 16 from 5:30-8:00pm

Where: Klay, 4 Bis Rue St Sauveur
_____75002 Paris, France

Metro: Sentier, Reamur-Sebastabol

Cost: You pay for your own drinks. They have tea, health drinks, wine and cocktails.

For more information, please contact:
advisor@scbwifrance.com

Cocktail Party, Literary Discussion,
and ...

Pitch Session with Agent
________________ John M. Cusick

Join us for a drink and share your thoughts on "The Hook and Heart of a Story". We will be joined by John Cusick, an agent at S©ott Treimel NY. He is also the author of the YA novel Girl Parts.

John will be available to meet with writers individually to evaluate pitches from 6:30-7:30pm. To be eligible to pitch your story, please submit the first 500 words as a properly formatted manuscript page which should include your name, email address and story title in the header.

The deadline for submitting is Monday, March 21 at 7pm.

S©ott Treimel NY opened in 1995 and represents children’s books, picture book through young adult, fiction, non-fiction, and illustration. In addition to handling his own clients, John reads submissions, develops manuscripts, reviews contracts, and aids in contract negotiations. He also manages STNY's international business. He attends the London Book Fair and Book Expo America, and is a member of the SCBWI and an Associate member of the AAR. His young adult novel, Girl Parts, was released by Candlewick in August 2010.

When: April 1, 5:30-8:00pm

Where: Near Opera, Paris.

Cost: 35 euros for SCBWI members,
____45 euros for nonmembers


Spaces are limited. To reserve a spot,
please contact Tioka. advisor@scbwifrance.com

• Writing achievements to date

• Obstacles to writing success ie; lack of confidence, time constraints, rejection etc

• How to overcome these obstacles and feel positive about our writing
  

Then, once everyone is in a nice positive frame of mind, in the second hour we move on to:

• Setting short and long term writing goals

• The 'Agent & Writer' exercise - where people work in pairs pretending to be each other's agents and working out how they would market one another

• Constructing individual marketing plans in order to build a readership - with particular focus upon the internet and the power of blogging and social networks, but also brainstorming unique ways in which each writer can promote themselves and their work - even if they don't yet have a book published.

Barbara McClintock

Spend the evening in the boheme neighborhood of Place St. Marthe and talk with author/illustrator Barbara McClintock, SCBWI members and friends over wine and a light tapas dinner. No host evening.

Reservations required: advisor@scbwifrance.com.

Date: Wednesday, April 2
Time: 7pm
Where:La Sardine
32 rue Sainte-Marthe, 75010
Metro: Goncourt or Belleville
(about a 10 minute walk from both)

For more information, please contact: advisor@scbwifrance.com

Mary Ann Hoberman

Inspiring talk by Children's Poet Laureate
Mary Ann Hoberman
and
dinner by chef Diane Anthonissen
in central Paris.

Cost:
40 euros for members
50 euros for nonmembers

Reservations required:
advisor@scbwifrance.com


Date: Tuesday, Mai 3
Time: 7pm
Where: ...

Retreat by the Sea

Who: Writer & Illustrator Diane Stanley

When: Thursday, May 12-Sunday, May 15

Where: Moelan-sur-Mer

CLICK HERE FOR FLYER





For more information, please contact:
Contact :ARA Dana Carey

Show & Tell Family Picnic

Bring your friends, bring your family
and bring some of your work to share during our potluck picnic to kick of the new season of SCBWI France.

Date: Thursday, June 2
Time: 6:30-9:00
Where:Eiffel Tour, lawn behind the “Pilier sud”

For more information, please contact: advisor@scbwifrance.com

SCBWI EU
Summer Solstice Scrawl Crawl
for Writers & Illustrators
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Date: Tuesday, June 21
Time: Dawn til Dusk (5:49 a.m. to 9:57 p.m.)
Where: all across the EU and further: the Netherlands, Scotland, Ireland, England, Germany, Belgium, France, Spain, Greece, Turkey, Israel .... Specific Scrawl Crawl rendez-vous will be posted soon.
Cost: Free, for SCBWI members
To register: Details to come

Once you get your password for the EU Summer Solstice Blog then post a message to introduce yourself to other Solstice Scrawlers. The blog goes live at dawn on June 21 and you have the entire, very long day to write and sketch then post your work. The theme for the scrawl crawl is Dawn to Dusk so feel free to:

wake up with the sun and use whatever inspiration a solstice sunrise gives you to write a few paragraphs or sketch a new day starting,

use the longest day of the year as an excuse to do a marathon of writing and sketching,

take a few moments throughout the day to think about one of your characters moving through their day or imagine how they might spend the longest day of their lives then write a scene, take down some dialogue, get out your watercolors,

do whatever feels right, but be sure to check in with the blog and post photos of yourself at work, share your thought and share your work.

If you are in Paris, you might want to meet other Solstice Scrawlers for a morning coffee, a mid-day break or a sunset toast. Specific locations will be announced soon.

Registration is now officially open!

Date: December 2-3

Where: Parsons Paris,
located a few blocks away from the Eiffel Tower

Cost: 145 euros for SCBWI members, 195 euros for nonmembers.
Early registration discount extended
to November 6.
On November 7 the full conference rate goes into affect.

There are a limited number of one-on-one critiques with the faculty available. These twenty-minute sessions are 40 euros and a great opportunity to get feedback from a publishing professional. Dummies and portfolios should be brought to the conference. Only manuscripts (10 pages maximum or two picture books) received by November 19 are sure to be reviewed in advance.

SCHEDULE

Friday, December 2, 6:00-8:30pm
Workshops for Illustrators and Writers
Parsons Paris

Saturday, December 3, 9:15-6:00pm
Conference
Parsons Paris
9:15-9:30 Registration
9:30-6:00 Conference (panel, presentations, lunch, workshops and book sale)

Monday, December 5, 10:00am
Children’s Book Fair
Montreuil
10:00-12:20 Montreuil Salon Visit

FACULTY
(Partial List, stay tuned for last minute additions)
Click here for more information (bios)

To register, please contact
ARA and Conference Coordinator,
Dana Carey at: dcarey_ap@yahoo.fr