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The New Jersey SCBWI annual conference approaches. Are you attending? I hope so!

As excitement builds for the event, so does anticipation for what will be offered at the Silent Auction this year.  Plus, there will be critiques to bid on, offered by our generous NJ-SCBWI published members, as well as editors and agents. Great opportunities for writers! All proceeds go to the scholarship fund.

Donations are needed and being accepted up until the conference dates. Let me know if you would like to be a part of these auctions. Your participation will be most appreciated! There will be a Power Point Presentation with slides of what is donated and by whom. At your earliest convenience, let me know what you are bringing, and include a picture, please.

If you would like to donate but are unsure what to do, consider making a basket. Each year, the Whispering Pines Writer’s Weekend Retreat has a silent auction featuring baskets made and donated by the attendees. Always fabulous! First, you pick a theme, and then fill a basket or container to your heart’s desire. Add ribbons, colorful tissue, and whatever else to make the presentation pop. Finish off with a creative sign listing the contents of your basket. Each year, I love putting together the baskets I donate to both regions: NE-SCBWI and NJ-SCBWI.

Don’t you want to have fun? AND, this year, WE ARE HAVING A CONTEST FOR THE MOST CREATIVE BASKET/CONTAINER! Every conference attendee will get to vote on their absolute favorite, most creative basket being offered in the Silent Auction. The lucky winner, who kindly donated a basket/container will receive a $25 gift certificate to Barnes & Noble.

Now that I have your creative mind thinking about the challenge, here are some suggestions:

1. A Relaxation Basket for Weary Writers – include a bottle of wine, or two, bubble bath, chocolate, more chocolate, an eye mask, and perhaps a relaxation CD.   2. Basket of All Things Dinosaur – (for those writers with young children or grandchildren) include dinosaur books, dinosaur toys, perhaps a dig-your-own dinosaur fossil.  3. Think Pink, Pink, Pink For Those Precious Princesses in Our Lives – include a crown, nail polish, a princess book, etc.  4. I Got Another Rejection, Now What? -  a ‘no’ button, a box of kleenex, stamps and envelopes for sending the submission right back out into the world, chocolate, bubble bath, and a mirror to look into, which has the words Only Your Manuscript Has Been Rejected, Not You.  5. Basket of Award Winning Children’s Books

These are only examples to help you with ideas. Now, what can you come up with?

If you are attending the conference, please partake in the Silent Auction. You could look as happy as Carlyn Beccia is in this photo after her winning streak at Whispering Pines.

So start thinking about basket themes, and I look forward to hearing from you! Thanks for all the generous