Snow, Showcase, & Buzz

We had a blizzard!

Here's the view looking down our front steps.

And here's our back yard--note the snow shovels!

Out & About

In spite of the snow, ten Wisconsin SCBWI members gathered together for the Wisconsin Authors’ and Illustrators’ Showcase yesterday at the Wisconsin State Reading Association 2011 Convention. We presented brief excerpts of our school visit programs to an enthusiastic audience. Our chapter also staffed a booth loaded with information about SCBWI membership and members’ books and school visits.

In the back row, from left to right: Sandra Ure Griffin, Bonnie Leick, Renee Graef, Jacqueline Houtman,
Lisa Moser, and Laura Schaefer. In the front row: Ann Angel, Deborah Lynn Jacobs, Carol Schwartz, and me.

Blogosphere Buzz

Alice Pope’s SCBWI Children’s Market blog reports that the Amber Brown Grant application deadline has been extended to March 1. The grant, named after a beloved character created by author Paula Danziger, brings a guest author to a school that cannot otherwise afford to do so.

Here's information on the grant from SCBWI.org: "One school will be rewarded with an all expense paid, full day visit by a well respected children’s author or illustrator. The chosen school will also receive a $250 stipend to assist in creating this memorable event to celebrate reading, learning, and children’s literature and $250 worth of books by the visiting author. Additionally, one runner up school will be selected and rewarded with books valued at $250." Click here for the application. Good luck!

Last August, Esther interviewed Newbery Honor Medalist Patricia Reilly Giff. Random House generously donated two sets of books (Number One Kid and Big Whopper) to give away to two lucky TeachingAuthors readers. One of our winners, Pat Zietlow Miller, posted these kid-reader reviews on her blog, Read, Write, Repeat: Inside the Mind of a Children’s Book Lover:
KID REVIEW: Cora (age 7 ) rates Number One Kid.
KID REVIEW: Julia (age 8) enjoys The Big Whopper.

Thanks for passing on the books, Pat! We’re glad your readers enjoyed them!

JoAnn Early Macken