Children's Writers & Illustrators invade San Francisco!

Learning is an important part of the life of any author. Even though writers write all the time, there is always more to learn. Never is that more true than when an author wants to try his or her hand at a new genre. And one of the most challenging that I know of is children's books. They seem like they should be easy, right? They're for kids, they're short, and it's really about the pictures anyway, so they can't be that hard to write...

Wrong. Good children's literature is incredibly nuanced, requires very deep collaboration between author and illustrator, and has to grab and hold the attention of a child as the audience, and the parent as a reader. Or, if the book is for an older child who can read on his or her own, then the book needs to full on compete with the digital world for attention. No simple task.

If you or someone you know is an aspiring or skilled children's literature author in the Bay Area, this weekend is a special treat. Book Passage is hosting a stellar 4 day long conference. Book Passage is probably the best place for ongoing author education in and around San Francisco, and they have a great summer series going on. 

This conference will offer workshops for authors looking to create children's literature. It will also be a place for authors to meet editors, agents, and publishers.

There will be some amazing people there speaking and running the workshops. Here are some excerpts from the bios at Book Passage:

• Andrea Alban: Author of nine books, including the YA novel, Anya's War, (shortlisted for China's 2012 Panda Awards and an ALA honor award), and the bestseller The Happiness Tree.
• Mac Barnett: Author of several critically-acclaimed picture books, including Billy Twitters and His Blue Whale Problem, Guess Again!, Extra Yarn, and Oh No!: Or How My Science Project Destroyed the World. He also writes the Brixton Brothers series of mysteries. Mac is the founder of the Echo Park Time Travel Mart, a convenience store for time travelers, and serves on the board of 826LA, a nonprofit writing and tutoring center.
• Sam Barry: Marketing director of Book Passage. Co-author of Write That Book Already!.
  

• Shirin Yim Bridges: Award-winning author and publisher of children’s books. Her first picture book, Ruby's Wish, was named a "Best Children’s Book" by Publishers Weekly and won the Ezra Jack Keats Award. It has been translated into seven languages. Her second book, The Umbrella Queen, made Time/CNN’s "Top 10 Children’s Books 2008."

Interested? Head over to their registration page to get involved.

Image source:  Book Passage conference page