Once we decided on our theme, we knew we needed truly out-of-this-world superstar speakers. We asked ourselves, who makes us think about creating picture books in a whole new light?
Just look at a few of the art pieces Eric and Terry have created for children’s literature:
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Who wants new picture books? Silly question, right?
If you’re reading this blog post, you probably love picture books as much as we do. That means you’re in luck because it’s time for our annual Picture Book Summit Book Bundle Giveaway! This is your shot to win one of three out-of-this-world book bundles with books from this year’s Superstar Speakers and workshop presenters! Enter to win these six picture books!
Mr. Watson and Mrs. Watson live ordinary lives. Sometimes their lives feel a bit too ordinary. Sometimes they wish something different would happen. And one day it does, when someone unpredictable finds her way to their front door. In a delightful origin story for the star of the Mercy Watson series, a tiny piglet brings love (and chaos) to Deckawoo Drive — and the Watsons’ lives will never be the same.
It’s a little out of fashion to buy a pet cloud, but Lizzy doesn’t mind. She’s not looking for a big one or a fancy one, just one that’s right for her. And she finds it in Milo.
Soon, she’s taking Milo out on walks with her family, watering Milo right on schedule, and seeing Milo grow and grow. But what happens when her pet cloud gets too big for Lizzy to handle?
Generating ideas for lots of picture books is one key to success! That’s why we did a whole Mini Summit on Where the Ideas Are. In this three-part series, we’ll share ways to generate ideas, assess ideas, and develop ideas. While we can’t tell you exactly where to get your next great idea, Katie Davis can give you tips for harvesting the ideas that are cropping up all around you.
Today’s episode was originally part of our free yearly Mini Summit! Be sure to add yourself to our notification list to hear all about our upcoming events. Plus, you’ll receive our favorite revision strategies just for signing up. Click here.
Listen here:
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That’s when we asked ourselves, who would we ask to speak at Picture Book Summit if we knew they wouldn’t say no?
Who was at the top of that list?
Kate DiCamillo.
So, we took a chance, crossed our fingers and toes, and asked THE Kate DiCamillo to be a Superstar Speaker at this year’s Summit. And (you may already know the exciting ending to this story…) she said YES!
Kate has written some of the most beloved children’s books of this generation including Because of Winn-Dixie, The Tale of Despereaux, as well as the picture books Good, Rosie!, A Piglet Named Mercy, and La La La. Whether she’s writing picture books, chapter books, or novels, Kate DiCamillo knows how to write in a way that resonates with young readers and we could not be more honored to have her speak to you writer-to-writer at this year’s event.
Here’s a bit more about Kate’s presentation coming to a computer near you on October 8th:
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Over the last seven years we’ve donated over $37,000 to:
You can find out more details about our previous charity partners on our Charity Partner page here.
This year we are pleased to announce we will be donating again to San Juan Community Library in San Juan, Puerto Rico!
Here’s a little bit about the San Juan Community Library from their Executive Director Connie Estades:
“Now in our 35th year, San Juan Community Library is a treasured and vital resource for adults and children from all walks of life. Equally important, our patrons and visitors are from cities throughout Puerto Rico. We currently house 32,000 hard copy books, 7,000 ebooks and audio books, and 45,000 ebooks from the public domain. We are excited to share that during the last three years we circulated a combined total of 42,323 hard copy and digital titles (and that includes the year of the four-month lockdown!). We accomplish these goals with a volunteer staff, a paid part-time executive director, a board of directors, invaluable help from the municipality of San Juan, and the generosity of our members and donors.
Many people have told us that they discovered their careers here at our library, among them librarians, teachers, and authors. Libraries hold more than dreams and books; they hold the power to impact lives for the better.
Thank you so much for your support over the past several years. Thanks to your generosity we have added current fiction titles for young adults and children to our digital branch and to our hard copy titles. We would not have these titles without you! We are grateful that you have joined our library’s efforts to provide San Juan and communities from all over Puerto Rico with a lending library open to the general public. Together we provide our island with great books, information, and life-changing opportunities.
Thanks…for this amazing opportunity. We are forever grateful!”
Here’s a quick tour of the San Juan Community Library:
After seeing the devastation of the library during Hurricane Maria, we reached out to the team at the San Juan Community Library to see if we could help in their recovery efforts. Here’s how they used our 2018 donation:
A local Eagle Scout even built a bookcase to house books purchased with our Picture Book Summit donation:
We never could have imagined when we started eight years ago that we would have our own bookshelf in a library! That bookshelf and all those books were made possible by our Picture Book Summit attendees! Because of you, we’ve been able to help the library recover and provide them with even more titles for kids to read and discover new worlds.
Seeing how diligent the team at the San Juan Community Library was with our donation and just how much of an impact our donation made on them, we are thrilled to partner with them again for 2022.
These winners get a Summit + Submissions Ticket to Picture Book Summit 2022 – The Write Stuff: Creating Picture Books That Are Out of this World!
Do you have the right stuff for writing picture books? This year’s speakers can’t wait to share their secrets for reaching the publishing stars!
Over the next week, we’ll fill you in on all the juicy details of each presentation for this year’s Picture Book Summit!
We can’t wait for these sessions and we’ve crafted them so you’ll leave this year’s Summit with actionable steps you can take to write manuscripts that are ready for lift-off—whether you write fiction or nonfiction. So, let’s get started with our Superstar Speaker presentations!
It’s the culmination of our 2022 Caldecott Breakdown series as we dive into this year’s Caldecott Medal Winner, WATERCRESS!
If you missed our previous discussions, you can still catch them at the links below.
In today’s video, we are honored to share with you the stunning picture book WATERCRESS, written by Andrea Wang and illustrated by Jason Chin.
Here’s a brief description:
“Driving through Ohio in an old Pontiac, a young girl’s parents stop suddenly when they spot watercress growing wild in a ditch by the side of the road. Grabbing an old paper bag and some rusty scissors, the whole family wades into the muck to collect as much of the muddy, snail covered watercress as they can.
At first, she’s embarrassed. Why can’t her family get food from the grocery store? But when her mother shares a story of her family’s time in China, the girl learns to appreciate the fresh food they foraged. Together, they make a new memory of watercress.
Andrea Wang tells a moving autobiographical story of a child of immigrants discovering and connecting with her heritage, illustrated by award-winning author and artist Jason Chin, working in an entirely new style, inspired by Chinese painting techniques. An author’s note in the back shares Andrea’s childhood experience with her parents.”
Click the video below and listen in as Julie Hedlund shares some behind-the-scenes insight from Jason Chin about this remarkable story. READ MORE
Welcome to the fourth video in our 2022 Caldecott Breakdown series. Today, we soar to new heights with MEL FELL. If you missed our previous discussions, you can still catch them at the links below.
In today’s video, we jump into Caldecott Honor Book MEL FELL written and illustrated by Corey R. Tabor.
Here’s a brief description:
“Readers will delight in turning their book sideways and upside down to follow Mel on her journey from downward fall to triumphant flight in this tale of self-confidence and taking a leap of faith.
An especially enjoyable and satisfying read-aloud!
Sometimes, you might fall
down,
down,
down,
before you learn to fly
up,
up,
up…”
Click play to join in the fun of this charming book with Katie Davis and the Picture Book Summit Team.READ MORE
