Adriana Domínguez Workshop

It’s Not a Trend: #OwnVoices as a Publishing Imperative

Today we bring you our second workshop for Picture Book Summit Special Edition: Finding Your Voice on October 3, 2020. No Summit with the theme of “Finding Your Voice” would be complete without an examination of #ownvoices. Agent Adriana Domínguez brings a unique perspective having worked with authors, illustrators, and editors alike on bringing more diverse voices to the publishing industry.

Adriana is presenting It’s Not a Trend: #OwnVoices as a Publishing Imperative

Agent Adriana Domínguez will discuss the importance of stories from people whose voices have long been suppressed, and that representation is not just about who appears in books, but from whose perspectives the stories are told. The session will cover what #ownvoices is (and isn’t), what progress has been made to increase diversity in children’s publishing, and the work that is yet to be done.

What is #OwnVoices?

As described by the School Library Journal, “#OwnVoices is an adjective that describes a book, not a person. By definition, writing about a person who shares your identity makes your story #OwnVoices, and the point of the hashtag is to identify characters who are marginalized.” The article goes into greater depth here: Six YA Titles that Epitomize #OwnVoices. (The examples are YA, but the definition applies across the publishing industry.)

Why is this important? The number of books published with diverse characters and/or written by diverse authors is very low—too low. Check out the annual statistics from the CCBC here and from publisher Lee & Low here. We believe children of all backgrounds should be able to see themselves and their families in the books they read.

More about Adriana

We’re thrilled to bring Adriana’s voice to you this year. First off, she’s a fantastic agent. You may have even seen her on one of our previous agent panels.  In case she’s new to you, here’s a little primer on Adriana:

Adriana Dominguez has 20+ years of experience in publishing. Prior to becoming an agent, she was Executive Editor at HarperCollins Children’s Books, where she managed the children’s division of the Rayo imprint. Before that, she was Children’s Reviews Editor at Críticas magazine, published by Library Journal. Adriana has performed editorial work for both children and adult publishers. She is also a professional translator, a member of the Brooklyn Literary Council that organizes the Brooklyn Book Festival, and one of the founders of the Comadres and Compadres Writers Conference in New York City. Adriana is based in New York.

Adriana represents children’s books for all ages. She has a long trajectory of publishing underrepresented authors and illustrators, and welcomes submissions that offer diverse points of view. Books that she has edited or represented have been awarded the Pura Belpré Medal, the Coretta Scott King Honor and the MPIBA’s Reading the West Award among others and been finalists for the National Book Critics Circle Award and the NAACP Award. Her list includes national and international bestsellers, and titles counted among the “Best of the Year” by Amazon, Kirkus Reviews, School Library Journal, The New York Public Library, The Chicago Public Library, Parents.com, Salon.com, and others.

Learn More

This year, Adriana completes our lineup and joins our Superstar Speakers Sophie Blackall, Lesa Cline-Ransome, and Peter Reynolds and workshop presenter Betsy Bird at Picture Book Summit Special Edition: Finding Your Voice.

Join us for the LIVE online conference October 3, 2020. For a limited time, you can register at the Early Bird price of $147. (That’s $100 off this year’s regular price!)

Click this button to see the full program and register today!

This Early Bird offer is only available through August 12, 2020.  Don’t delay. Register today!

We can’t wait to see you there!