Kelli Panique – Top 10 Picture Book Summit Moments

Wow! Ten years of Picture Book Summit. I guess it’s true what they say that time flies when you’re having fun. I hope you’ve been enjoying our team’s top 10 lists this week. If you missed any of them, you can find Emma’s here, Katie’s here, and Julie’s here.

When this journey started, I was a picture book novice to say the least. Katie and Julie asked me to come onboard because I had experience in customer service and online conferences. (Back then we still had to explain what a web room was and how it worked. THAT was my job!) As that background person, my memories skew a little differently from the rest of the team, so if you’re a lover of behind-the-scenes peeks, I think you’ll enjoy my Top 10 List.

1. It worked!

Mac Barnett was our last Superstar Speaker of the day at our very first Summit. Once he logged in and his camera and mic worked. It was a HUGE sigh of relief for me and the rest of the behind-the-scenes team. (Shout out to Aaron and Kristin!) Then there was the surge of adrenaline realizing that WE DID IT! That Summit was immediately followed by online toasts and celebratory beverages! (In fact, all Summits are immediately followed with this kind of celebration!)

2. “Do you want to see my studio?”

Yes, please! When Julie and I did our tech check with the late beloved Tomie DePaolo, he offered to take us on tour of his studio. First off, Tomie was just a big beautiful light in this world. Even through a video screen, his smile lit up the room and his eyes twinkled in that special way of someone who is truly happy to see you. So, he loaded up his laptop and took us round his studio and gave us the grand tour. He laughed and giggled as he showed us around. It was such a special moment and Julie and I could not believe our luck! I still have the email he wrote me after the Summit signed with x’s and o’s. He was a gem of a human being.

3. Behind-the-Scenes with the Stars.

So many of our Superstar Speakers have generously shared their spaces with us. Sometimes, they are broadcasting directly from their studio and other times they share that space in their slides. We’ve seen shared creative spaces in Brooklyn, renovated 100-year old barns, spaces with natural light, studios in backyard out-buildings, and studios in other countries. Seeing how they organize their spaces, the things they choose to hang on their walls, and the books they keep on their shelves provides even more insight into their craft and is just pretty cool.

4. Singing with Stephen Swinburne

Stephen Swinburne taught a workshop on STEAMpower: Bringing Nonfiction to Life. He is so truly fascinated by each of his subjects. That childlike curiosity has served him well as a picture book author. But the thing I remember most about his presentation was at the end when he pulled out his ukulele and say us a song that he sings to kids at the end of his author visits. He sang, “Bye, bye, kids! I hope you have a good day! Don’t forget to read!” I teared up thinking that might the only time some of those kids hear someone tell they hope they have a good day and what that must mean to them. Thinking about how passing on our own positivity can impact those around us has really stuck with me all these years.

5. Mesmerized.

Picture Book Summit is an online Summit and it takes place in an online web room. So, saying that during some presentations you can hear a pin drop seems like an odd metaphor, but I swear it’s true. The top two times I had this feeling was watching Sophie Blackall and Kate DiCamillo. There was no chat going on. No texting between Founders. No questions coming into the Q&A. All of us were glued to the screen and hanging on every word of these two amazing women. Sophie’s presentation was about her creative process and really how every part of her life fuels her creativity—where she works, her family, little collections of things that call to her. It was fascinating, inspiring, and magical.

Kate DiCamillo opened her heart and shared her doubts and fears from when she first started out. She shared the vulnerabilities of being an author and the many contradictions that go along with living that creative life. And, yet, she encouraged us to keep going and to keep writing. None of us wanted this one to end and I know Emma felt like she was interrupting a sacred space when she came on for Q&A. I’ve never seen anything live online quite like it. It was a transcendent experience.

6. Jennie Dunham’s Happy Dance.

Agents, they’re just like us. Jennie Dunham of Dunham Literary walked us through the life of a literary agent including what the submission process looks like from the time they receive your submission to when they make an offer of representation to an author to when an editor makes an offer for a book deal to what happens after the book is published. In a fun role-playing bit, Jennie reenacted how she would respond to a call from editor who wants to make a deal on a manuscript. She was very professional and took copious notes. She then hung up her pretend phone and burst into her happy-agent-we-got-a-deal dance! It was the best!

7. Jon Klassen’s Unique Point of View

Jon Klassen cracks me up and I’m so glad he’s coming back this year. This Caldecott-winning illustrator revealed during his Using Your Fear presentation that he doesn’t like to draw characters doing anything. An illustrator who doesn’t want to draw characters doing things? It kinda blew my mind. Now when I look at his work, I see he created his own distinct style by not making his characters do anything. He worked within the confines of his fear, stayed true to himself, and made a career out of it. Avoiding the things he didn’t want to do forced him to be creative in other ways.

8. Nikki Grimes

Nikki Grimes gives me goosebumps. Her poetry readings are phenomenal but it was listening to her tell the story of how A WALK IN THE WOODS became a picture book is a story I will never forget. What started as a project between Nikki and beloved illustrator Jerry Pinkney turned into a love letter from a father to a son when Jerry’s son Brian Pinkney completed the illustrations after Jerry’s passing. It’s such a special book and I highly recommend reading it if you haven’t already.

9. Peter Reynolds

Peter Reynolds was one of our Superstar Speakers during our Covid Summit in 2020. His message was all about how the world needs each of our voices and we should be encouraged to be creative and let our voices be heard. And if that weren’t enough, he stayed for our closing dance party and drew a little doodle for us in real time. What a magical moment.

10. You can call me “Mum.”

At last year’s Summit, I had the honor of introducing the iconic Julie Andrews. It was all I could do to form words with my mouth, but I managed to not flub anything up and she could not have been kinder. She even said I could call her “Mum.” Then watching Emma interact with her mum and to witness the special connection they have with each was just lovely.

Bonus: Being Each Other’s Greatest Cheerleaders.

Working with Emma, Julie, and Katie has been such an enriching experience. Not only have I learned way more than I ever thought there was to know about picture books, I’ve also watched these ladies navigate life and business. I’ve learned from them every step of the way. We cheer each other on when we try new things, pick each other up when it’s been a bad day (or year), and celebrate each other’s successes—big or small. It’s been one of the great joys of my adult life to call these women my friends.

Now we invite you to experience a little Picture Book Summit magic at our 10th Anniversary Picture Book Summit!

Picture Book Summit 2024

Perfect 10: Going for Picture Gold!

October 5, 2024

Early Bird Registration ends 9/6/24!