SCBWI - QLD's New ARA, Ali Stegert

Ali Stegert has stepped into the big shoes left by Sheryl Gwyther. SCBWI - QLD's new ARA lives on the Sunshine Coast with her husband Paul and two neurotic dogs, Huckleberry and Luna. Ali has served as the sub-branch coordinator on the Sunny Coast and previously assisted Sheryl in Brisbane. Ali writes middle grade fiction and enjoys dabbling in art and design.

When asked about her hopes for the new role, Ali said: "I get a kick out of connecting people. I love creating space for people to shine and grow. I'm looking forward to strengthening the links between the sub-branches of SCBWI - QLD, so our regional members can access career-advancing opportunities."

Farewelling Sheryl Gwyther

SCBWI QLD recently shifted gears into stealth mode, launching Operation WarmFuzzies, our top-secret mission to organise a farewell gift for Sheryl Gwyther, our ARA of nearly ten years. We sneakily contacted members around the State, asking for messages and contributions. The response was fantastic: we gathered enough to give Sheryl gift vouchers for performances at QPAC and a special keepsake book. With the little bit left over, we added a pretty T2 tea set.

The scrapbook-style keepsake book came off a treat. New SCBWI-QLD ARA Ali Stegert, whose favourite form of procrastination is pretending to do graphic design, collated 20 pages of photos, members' messages, and a darling caricature sketch by Anil Tortop. For the title, we borrowed a line from Shakespeare, one of Sheryl's passions: These Brisk & Giddy-Paced SCBWI Times. Ali uploaded the designs into a hardcover photobook to create an extra special keepsake for Sheryl.

We presented Sheryl her gifts and keepsake book at the recent SCBWI QLD State Conference and experienced a memorable moment of hilarity: one of Ali's now infamous typos made its public debut. On the cover. Doh!

SCBWI Vic celebrates 2019

SCBWI VIC had a wonderful final event in November, followed by our traditional Christmas drinks.

We heard from three wonderful speakers: Miriam Rosenbloom from Scribble publishing, illustrator Liz Duthie and writer and editor Lorna Henry.

The photo below shows some of the SCBWI VIC people who have published books or won awards in the last few months, and it was lovely to celebrate with them and all the other creators who are part of our supportive community of children’s book writers and illustrators. We are looking forward to hosting more great events in 2020.

Caz Goodwin

Children's Author

SCBWI ARA Victoria