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Debbie Ridpath Ohi reads, writes and illustrates for young people. Every once in a while she shares new art, writing and reading resources; subscribe below. Browse the archives here.
I tweet about the craft and business of writing and illustrating at @inkyelbows. If you're interested in my art or other projects, please do visit DebbieOhi.com. Thanks for visiting! -- Debbie Ridpath Ohi
I created this set of comics to help break the ice when I attended my first SCBWI conference (or at least the first in a long time) in 2009, knowing that 99% of the people there wouldn't know me. I was WAY nervous.
I'm reposting the comics here in case they help anyone else. Feel free to repost individually or as a set anywhere online, as long as the goal is to help promote the SCBWI or to help kidlit writers and illustrators new to conferences.
My advice for anyone who feels nervous about attending for the first time, or is normally very shy and introverted and not great at meeting new people:
1. Be brave and make the first move. You'd be surprised at how many other attendees feel exactly the same way as you do. Introduce yourself to people you sit beside, stand in line with, notice standing alone.
2. TAKE BUSINESS CARDS. Yes, even if you aren't published yet. We're all going to meet a lot of people over the weekend, and taking away a business card from an encounter or introduction will help the people you meet remember you.
3. Have realistic expectations. Don't expect to be "discovered" at the conference.
4. In my experience, you're much more likely to meet new people if you're alone. If you're always chatting and hanging out with the same person or people, you're not as approachable. I'm not saying that you SHOULDN'T hang out with people you like, of course! Just keep in mind that as a group, you're probably not going to meet as many new people as someone who is by themselves.
I asked the attendees of last night's get together what they were working on, if they had any news to share, or just brief bio info and here's what they told me:
Trouble in the Hills YA launched this past fall; non fic called The Big Green Book of the Big Blue Ocean will be out from Kids Can Press this winter, and then a second YA contemp called How to Survive Absolutely Anything will be out from Fitzhenry and Whiteside in March. Currently writing two new Quiz Books for Scholastic and season 3 of Planet Echo, a science tv show. More news on new contracts next month!
"Found one of my NaNoWriMo mauscripts from 2010 and it's better than I remember, so I've revived the project. It's been rattling around in my head for a while so I'm excited to dive back in."
"My illustrated book, Winter Science, is out (Scholastic) and my non-fiction humor middle grade book (which I also illustrated) will be out in the spring, called Kid Confidential (Bloomsbury)."
Jeff is shopping some novels around and in theory, one is coming out soon. "It's called Evil Eye, about a disembodied floating eye that's totally EVIL." It was Jeff's first Torkidlit tweetup!
Excited to be able to say that I'M BORED comes out THIS YEAR (woohoo!). I'M BORED is a new picture book by Michael Ian Black, illustrated by yours truly, coming out from Simon & Schuster Books For Young Readers in Sept/2012. Also looking forward to the March/2012 launch of TOMO: Friendship Through Fiction - An Anthology Of Japan Teen Stories. I have an illustrated short story in this collection. Proceeds from the sales of Tomo will go to organizations that assist teens in the quake and tsunami hit areas.
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If you're a middle grade or young adult author and would like to find out about upcoming meetups, please join our group on Facebook:
Thanks so much to Claudia Osmond for hosting the holiday meet up for the Toronto Middle Grade & Young Adult Author Group! I had a fantastic time: so many great conversations, good food and lots of kidlit/YA talk.
Click the right- and left- arrows to see the slideshow of my iPhone photos:
Hm...just noticed that Squarespace's Gallery feature forces ALL the photos in horizontal mode, which means you're not seeing the full photo in some cases. To browse all the photos, do visit my 2011-12 Torkidlit Holiday Party Flickr set.
Another highlight from Lost Weekend: the conversations. They sprung up everywhere and without warning, while we were painting, sitting by the fire, helping David in the kitchen, over meals, while we were out walking.
Topics frequently revolved around children's book illustration but also writing, family, food, travel, other work…in other words, LIFE.
As the weekend progressed, it became clear to all of us that this was about so much more than just kidlit illustration info and new business contacts. It was also about mutual encouragement and sharing, bonding and appreciation.
And um, food. Lots and lots of good food. :-)
Each of us ended up taking away something different. One aspect I especially enjoyed: getting to spend more time with people I knew mainly online. It was fun rooming with Andrea Offermann, who had flown in from Germany. She had arrived the week before for an art show at ThinkSpace Gallery.
Some of the newer Mentees I had only been in contact with via Facebook and had only met briefly in person.
And it was such a treat to finally spend time with Bonnie Adamson, co-founder of Kidlitchat and founder of the KidLitArt chat on Twitter. We had run into each other at SCBWI conventions, but usually only had time to exchange a few words before hurrying off to the next workshop or keynote talk.
And that was another thing I LOOOVED about Lost Weekend. We had a chance to slow down and get to know each other in a much more casual environment than a convention. Although David had some activities planned for us, the schedule was flexible and adjusted to the group dynamic.
Another of many highlights: getting to know David's son, Ariel Diaz. Not only is Ariel a talented artist but his quirky humour and dry wit enhanced the weekend for all of us. You can see samples of his work at his site: turbogrease.tumblr.com.
I can't imagine what it must have been like, having a horde of women descend on your house for an entire weekend! Ariel handled it well. :-)
On the last evening, David hosted a party for not only our group but some of the local artists and industry people. We helped David with food prep but he did the bulk of the work. If it had been my house, I would have been super-stressed about all those people showing up for dinner but if David was, he sure didn't show it.
Great to see Erin O'Shea; Erin was one of the first Mentees in 2009 (in the red sweater below):
We had a table where some of our portfolios, postcards and business card were on display for people to peruse:
I was also happy to see Jen Rofé from Andrea Brown Literary Agency at the party; Jen had given my YA novel a great critique at the SCBWI Summer Conference in L.A. (and nominated it for the Sue Alexander Award!) and I loved her energy. She gave us all some excellent advice during the evening PLUS --not sure if it's public news yet so am not naming names yet-- is going to be representing one of the Mentees!
[Edited December 8, 2011: Yay, it's official. Eliza Wheeler has just signed with Jen Rofé. CONGRATS to both of you!!]
There was so much relaxing downtime and casual conversation that I didn't realize how much useful children's book illustration info I had absorbed during the event until I got home. I had learned something that could help me in my own craft from every Lost Weekend attendee, from new techniques to try, process tips, digital tech (I sooo want Christina Forshay's drawing tablet!!), attitude inspiration and encouragement, how-to advice and practical industry info.
We've been in touch since Lost Weekend, rehashing some of the memories from those magical few days, following up on tips and advice, exchanging recipes (ok, they've all been David's recipes…and they're making me hungry!!). Plus we Mentees are starting to gradually ramp up our website at:
KidLitArtists.com
Please do bookmark us; we'll be adding more Mentee bios and organizing our post schedule. Stay tuned for lots of great info and news for children's book illustrators! Plus you can find us on Twitter at @KidLitArtists; Juana Martinez-Neal has started to help with that account. And please do Like our KidLitArtists Facebook Page; you can find updates to most of our blogs as well as main blog.
And finally, a huge THANK YOU to David Diaz for inviting us to be part of this incredible Lost Weekend! As I mentioned before, this wasn't an officially sanctioned SCBWI event but rather something that David put together on his own, opening up his home and devoting a big chunk of time (including prep) for our group. We were all blown away by his generosity.
And thank you also to the SCBWI for bringing us all together in the first place! If you're interested in children's book writing and illustrating, you NEED to join this organization if you haven't already. More info: http://www.scbwi.org
As some of you already know, I was thrilled to be picked for the SCBWI Illustration Mentorship Program at last year's Summer Conference in LA. Thrilled as in "can this really be happening to me" thrilled, especially when combined with the offer from Simon & Schuster Books For Young Readers to illustrate Michael Ian Black's new picture book, I'm Bored.
The six of us got together during the conference, just to chat and get to know each other a little better: Eliza Wheeler, Andrea Offermann, John Deininger, Kimberly Gee, Ashley Mims and me. We discovered (to our mutual relief, I suspect) that we all got along very well, and we decided to launch our own website at KidLitArtists.com.
We also kept in touch via group email about what we were all up to, shared successes and disappointments, critique and encouragement. We hung out when we attended the same SCBWI events.
At the SCBWI Summer Conference this year, some of us were joking with Caldecott-winning children's book illustrator & SCBWI Illustration Mentor David Diaz, saying we'd love to snoop through his studio (I believe it was Eliza who was nervy enough to suggest it). David surprised us by saying it was a great idea. In fact, he sent out an invite soon after the conference, and said he wanted to invite some other mentees as well.
And so LOST WEEKEND was born!
Sadly, not all the 2010 and 2011 Mentees could make it to Lost Weekend (we missed you guys!). Here's the attendee list:
Note: This wasn't an officially sanctioned SCBWI event but rather an act of generosity by David. I admire his courage, inviting a bunch of strangers into his private home. I think he was a tad nervous at first, wondering what he had got himself into.
(Above: piece by David Diaz)
Some of us stayed at the hotel, some at David's. I loved David's house with its high ceilings, full of light and color. There was art everywhere, including many gorgeous and interesting pieces by David and his son Ariel.
David did most of the cooking…and he's really good at it! My mouth is watering even as I type this, remembering these home-baked popovers fresh out of the oven, light as air and slathered with fresh cream, jam or savoured plain:
Here are just some of the other things we feasted on during the weekend:
German pancakes, scrambled eggs with sautéed spinach, smoked bacon, sausage.
"Sin-cleansing" French pressed coffee.
Handmade pasta, with an Putanesca Sauce with Hot Italian sausage
Salad with goat cheese, candied walnuts, crasins, and white balsamic vinegar dressing
Sformata di Ricotta
Oven roasted garlic
Fresh bread
Jambalaya rice with sausage, mushrooms, grilled tri-tip
Pumpkin pie
Chocolate chip coconut brownies
Apple raspberry crumb pie and ice cream.
I'm pretty sure I left Lost Weekend heavier than when I arrived.
Plus Bonnie introduced me to Pickled Okra (yummmmmmmmmmmm):
which go wonderfully in these:
I loved the buzz of activity in the kitchen as we chopped and stirred under David's tutelage, conversation and laughter (a LOT of laughter) filling the house.
Even food shopping was fun:
I discovered Von's, which is apparently a chain grocery story in California. "V-a-u-g-h-n-s," said David, when I asked him how to spell it. I believed him and started writing it down until I heard the others sniggering. Kidlit illustrators can be so MEEEEEAN. :-D
We spent a lot of time just chatting in front of the fireplace. We each gave a brief demo of how we worked, talking about our process. It was funny, really -- each one of us basically felt like our own process was SO boring yet when it came to seeing how the others did their work, we were each fascinated. Lots of kidlit and art talk and picture book writing talk, plus browsing of each other's portfolios.
On Sunday, the weather cleared up so we decided to go walking on the beach. SUCH a nice change from Toronto weather!
We left our shoes in a pile on the beach:
David reassured us that no one would steal them. :-)
And holy cow, I know it sounds like a cliché, but it felt SO GREAT to walk barefoot along the beach!
and we saw pelicans:
and hang gliders:
David took us to the Self-Realization Fellowship Meditation Garden, with its beautiful gardens and koi ponds:
We got in trouble from a security guard in the gardens when we laughed too much as we tried to get this photo taken:
Darned noisy kidlit illustrators!
Above: David let us snoop through some of his archives from earlier in his career
It was fascinating to see some of David's earlier work, and hear his explanations of how and why he changed his illustration style. We also got to see sketches and drawings from Mother Earth Watches (working title, will change), his upcoming book with Chronicle Books (tentative publication date: Spring 2013).
David taught us a new technique: taping down a framed area on masonite, painting a background texture/color using acrylics, then a layer of matte medium (or at least I had to do this since my base layer of acrylic was already so textured), then drawing in conte, then spraying with a fixative.
Some of us (hand waving here) didn't normally work with acrylics, so were a bit nervous about the process. BUT it ended up being a lot of fun as well as enlightening -- it was good to push beyond our normal creative comfort zones, especially in a safe and encouraging environment like the one at Lost Weekend.
Also very cool to see the different approaches everyone took in their projects.
Andrea Zuill, who drove to David's, brought some of her paintings later in the weekend for us to look at. I LOVE her work! She also brought a print for each of us as a gift. Here's the one she gave me:
Just got back from a 10 day trip to California and Texas. In California, I attended Lost Weekend: an amazing creative weekend hosted by Caldecott-winning illustrator David Diaz (see above photo). After that, I attended BoardGameGeek with my husband: a five day (yes, I said FIVE DAYS) board gaming convention.
I'll be posting more about Lost Weekend here in Inkygirl, and am posting about BGG in my board gaming blog.
Right now, however, I need to unpack and then catch up with some e-mail...
We talk about everything from the craft and business of writing to renovation hell stories and family updates. Plus a whole lot of other stuff that I can't possibly post publicly, of course. :-) Anyway, I asked the attendees of last night's get together what they were working on or if they had any news to share, and here's what they told me:
Thanks to author Lois Peterson for inviting me as a guest to the Festival Of Trees event today. I had a ton of fun wandering around the event, seeing authors give workshops and talks, attending some of the awards ceremonies, chatting with other attendees.
And WOW, I've never seen kids SO EXCITED ABOUT BOOKS. Seriously. The audience reaction reminded of a rock concert crowd...except these kids were cheering and screaming about BOOKS. How cool is that? So inspiring and exciting.
For those who aren't familiar with the Forest Of Reading project, it's a program where students read a selection of books nominated by professionals from schools and public libraries across Ontario, and then vote for their favorite. Unlike most literary awards, these awards are chosen by young readers.
Congrats to all the Forest Of Reading nominees and winners!
I had a lot of fun at last night's tweetup of the Toronto Area Middle Grade & Young Adult Author Group. We've moved to a new location: The Bedford Academy near Avenue Road and Bloor. The place has a laid-back pub atmosphere; I recognized it from when I attended the National Cartoonists' Christmas party (Canadian chapter) a couple of years ago.
Claudia Osmond, Nelsa Roberto, and I treated Maureen McGowan to dinner in celebration for her birthday before the official tweetup started. I think I might make a habit of showing up early for the tweetups to have dinner with other earlybirds; I find it gets a bit noisy later (I sometimes found it a challenge hearingthe person across the table).
Anyway, here's a list of the people at last night's gathering:
I'm participating in Writers For The Red Cross, and am donating a selection of my writer greeting cards as well as a hand-drawn doodle and handwritten instapoem to the winner of the bid. Read more here. Bidding doesn't start until the event officially kicks off on March 1st.
About the event, from the site:
This online event celebrates Red Cross Month (March 1-31). It is intended to raise funds and awareness for the Red Cross and its work in communities across the country. We’re auctioning off publishing-related items and services donated by authors, publicists, agents, and editors. We’ll also have daily guest posts from authors about “What the Red Cross Means to Me.” All donors who give over $25 will also be able to select one free book from a range of books donated and shipped by publishers for the event.
To find out more about Writers For The Red Cross and about the other participants, organizers and bookstore partners, please visit the Writers For The Red Cross site.
When I first saw the word "takeaways" in people's conference reports, I was confused. What were takeaways? Were they giving out free food?!? I was even MORE disappointed that I had missed the event!
But no, takeaways are key messages you've learned at a conference. They can vary from person to person, depending on their own situations and experiences.
I'll be posting more details about my takeaways from various panels and workshops, but overall my main takeaways were:
1. What's most important: STORY and CHARACTERS. Some panelists listed both while others just listed story, but the message was the same. It doesn't matter what format a book is in if the story sucks. Voice and style can help make good writing, but aren't nearly as important as having a story and characters that the reader cares about.
2. Do the work. Get it written. Don't get too obsessed with the process, or networking and promoting, or all the other extras that can be good but NOT if they're keeping you from doing the work. This is something that has really hit home for me, which is why I'll probably be easing back somewhat from social media. (Ok, I'll still be posting a lot compared to some people, but it'll be easing back for me!)
Both of these apply to both writers AND illustrators -- I'll be interpreting the takeaways from an illustrators' point of view and posting them in the SCBWI Illustrators' Mentees Blog soon.
Not sure how many of you used Inkspot or subscribed to Inklings back in the early days of the Web (whoa, that sounds so ANCIENT now, doesn't it?) but one of my columnists was Mark Fowler. Mark did the ASK THE LAWYER column. SOOOO great to finally meet Mark in person.
I strongly advise you to check out Mark's blog, which has a ton of great info for writers. Mark says he is also open to suggestions about topics he should blog about, but says that he's unable (for legal reasons) to answer questions that are specific to your own situation e.g. individual advice.
Mark is also on the board of The Center For Fiction, the only nonprofit in the U.S. solely dedicated to celebrating fiction, working every day to connect readers and writers.
Anyway, check out the view from the floor where he works:
THANK you, Mark, for taking the time to get together!
Instead of my usual general writer comic, I've posted a Q&A comic as part of the Reader Q&A on Writer Unboxed. Topic: SCBWI conferences/workshops as being a good choice for beginning writers interested in kidlit/YA.
One of the biggest challenges of attending an event like the SCBWI Summer Conference, I found, was having to pick between simultaneously scheduled workshops.
A former editor at Harcourt, Halverson already had a wealth of editorial experience when she began writing her first novel while pregnant with her triplet sons. In her Ultimate Checklist workshop, she consolidated years of expertise into ten simple tests.
I've always appreciated those who post "takeaways" after they attend conventions: nuggets of wisdom that they took away from the event. Everyone's takeaways are different because everyone has different levels of experience and goals.
I'm going to be sharing mine over the next little while, as well as linking to any others that I can find. If you have takeaways or convention reports of your own to add, feel free to post in the comments section!
Jon Scieszka: Tales Of A Picture Book Writer: Do's, Don'ts, Maybes
- Look up the top 100 books listed by School Library Journal and read them.
- Don't do what someone else does. Do what YOU connect with.
- Read bad books, which can be educational.
- Read children's trade publications and kidlit blogs.
- Most picture book manuscripts by new writers can be improved by cutting length by half.
- Don't try to follow the market.
- Read everything in your field that you possible can: library, bookstore.
- Learn and read in prep but once you start to actually WRITE, then forget about trying to follow every rule and industry blog, and just focus on WRITING.
- In retrospect, Jon is glad that his early submissions got rejected.
Many thanks to the SCBWI for the Illustrator Mentorship Awards; the six of us learned SO MUCH at our mentorship sessions on the weekend. We also had fun hanging out with each other, exchanging tips and advice, and we plan to keep in touch after we all go home.
In fact, we've decided to launch a joint online project soon...stay tuned!
[Update: Since the news appeared yesterday in Publisher's Marketplace, I figure I can announce it here -- Congrats to Megan Crewe, who just signed for a THREE-book deal with Disney-Hyperion! Yay, Megan!]
Megan Crewe, at the tweetupWent downtown yesterday for the monthly tweetup of the Toronto Middle Grade and Young Adult Writer Group. As usual, I had a ton of fun as well as learning a lot about the publishing industry.
Last night, I recall feeling a bit tired and glancing at my watch, thinking it was around 9 pm... and being shocked to find out it was 10:30.
Derek Molata, Ian Keeling, Rob Weston
This may seem like nothing to you, but I'm so not a night person and am usually in bed by that time.
Adrienne Kress and I wield our vegetables.
The mix of attendees changes every time because of everyone's schedules. This time around, I met Derek Molata for the first time. Derek's a YA/adult science fiction and fantasy writer and (like most of the Torkidlit types) is on Twitter.
Really nice guy and wow, interesting publishing industry stories to tell (!).
Cheryl Rainfield, Jo Swartz & Megan Crewe talking with Adrienne Kress.
I feel very lucky to be part of such a great group. Everyone is so supportive and encouraging of each other. Thank you, Claudia!
Megan Crewe's GIVE UP THE GHOST has been nominated for the Sunburst Award For Excellence in Canadian Speculative Fiction.
Cheryl Rainfield had a great time in ALA, and has had a ton of great feedback about her newly launched SCARS. Librarians say that teens love the book. Plus not only has SCARS been nominated for ALA/YALSA's QuickPicks and Stonewall awards, but also for ALA's Rainbow List.
Lesley LivingstonLesley Livingston's WONDROUS STRANGE has been shortlisted for the Sunburst Award For Excellence in Canadian Speculative Fiction, nominated for the first annual Teen Read Awards as Best Canadian Read, and won (!) the Young Adult Canadian Book Award. There was some other good news, too, but I forget it...maybe another Torkidlit person could help me out here.
To find out more about Torkidlit, please visit the Torkidlit website. You can see more photos from last night's event in my Flickr set.
Debbie Ridpath Ohi tagged 
Anyway, here's a list of the people at last night's gathering:
