Lin Oliver, SCBWI's Executive Director, and Stephen Mooser, SCBWI's President, start us off with laughs, warm hearts and some great statistics.
1,235 people are here!
From 19 countries, including the USA.
Lin mentions how, looking at the faculty of this 43rd Annual Summer Conference, it struck her that many of the people who will be on her side of the podium this time around were once in our chairs - they were attendees.
The conference faculty do their annual parade, entering to Pharrel William's Happy … and share their one-word-for-us-to-savour-and-contemplate.
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| Lin grooving on down as the conference faculty enter past her, to the crowd clapping along |
From Meg Medina's "Bienvenidos" to Cecilia Young's "Transform" it's a mix of a word poem and a round of speed-dating,
Linda Sue Park: "Fierce"
Tim Federle: "Optimism"
Lamar Giles: "Persevere"
Meg Rosoff: "Rebel"
And Randy Morrison's "Lacuna - the missing portion in a book or manuscript."
And so many more.
It's thought provoking… inspiring… and a wonderful start to our conference!
SCBWI Head Office is packed with the life of children’s illustrators and writers across the globe.
Crystal Kite awards packed and ready to send to award winners from Australia to Hong Kong to France;
Sarah Rutenberg attached to her laptop working at all hours answering SCBWI questions;
illustrations lining the walls;
award winning books piled in Steve Mooser’s Office;
the creative Director Sarah Baker designing posters just before the new baby arrives;
Lin Oliver getting ready to speak at the American Librarian Association mega event in LA;
Chelsea Mooser meeting new designers for SCBWI;
- it’s a vibrant life.
SCBWI is a partner of the National Year of Reeading 2012 Australia.
Love being part if it.
Steve is welcoming us to the 12th annual winter conference in New York--a tough trip for a lot of people thanks to the crazy snow.
He's promising to make the conference worth our while (apparently he has some sort of deal going with Mother Nature). Oh, wait. That wasn't it--Lin Oliver shoveled the runway at JFK. What a lady.
Steve is reminding us to pay attention, get to know people, network, and have a good time.
The good time begins with a patented Lin Oliver chicken breast jokeTM. She's telling us about the upcoming 40th annual summer conference in Los Angeles, where it is warm and dry. The organization has come a long way in 40 years. There were only about 30 people at the first conference, and Lin's mom cooked the chicken.
Lin just polled the crowd. About 60 percent of 1,100 or so people in the room are here for the first time, and Lin is welcoming the newcomers to our warm and supportive community (seriously--we're like a fur bra).
After telling us about the conference bookstore (where we can get books to be signed by the incredible faculty), she introduced our first keynote speaker, Lois Lowry.
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