We hope you have been enjoying the fabulous autumn weather and that it has brought fresh ideas and inspiration. Each of our speakers on Saturday 10 May at Library at the Dock, Melbourne, shared inspirational stories and insights. We heard from member speakers author Helen Chapman and illustrator Annabelle Hale.
Our guest speaker was James Layton, Publisher of Larrikin House.
The afternoon started off with a warm welcome from ARA, Caz Goodwin. Then we enjoyed our usual Show & Tell. Congratulations to each of our wonderful members for sharing their latest book news with us.
Our first speaker was Helen Chapman, an established children’s educational author of over 100 fiction and non-fiction books published worldwide. Helen shared how her goal of inculcating a love of reading in hesitant readers has resulted in writing fun informative books and exciting fiction to engage both hesitant and keen readers. Helen’s books are enjoyed for their humour, creativeness and for their direct appeal. Her time spent living and working in the US and UK brings depth and an international flavour to her writing. Helen’s favourite genres are non-fiction with a twist and historical fiction based on personal accounts. Her talk was titled, If it was easy, everyone could be an author and touched on mistakes made by Helen and editors, and strategies to prevent them, including illustrations. She also spoke about how to keep writing despite individual circumstances such as sickness and family commitments. Helen’s advice was that there will never be the right time to write so there is no point in putting it off.
Caz Goodwin holding one of Helen Chapman’s particularly special titles, “Deadly Waters”.
Next we heard from Annabelle Hale, an author/illustrator of children’s books. She loves creating fun characters and using bright colours to make people smile. Annabelle’s first book Baby Days, written by Nicola Philp, is one of the books included in the Victorian Government's Baby Bundle initiative. In 2023 Annabelle was the winner of the SCBWI Australian Picture Book Illustrator Award (Emerging Category). For the past year Annabelle has been the Nillumbik Literary Artist in Residence, working out of the Eltham Library. Annabelle’s debut picture book as an author/illustrator, The Bin Monster, will be published in 2025 with Affirm Press.
Annabelle shared her personal experiences on her journey to becoming an author/illustrator, and how her illustration style has evolved over time. Annabelle shared the advice that we must each take responsibility for our careers and the importance of recognising our shortcomings so that we can grow.
We took a break for afternoon tea and networking, then our final speaker for the day was James Layton of Larrikin House. James has been selling books to schools for more than 30 years and publishing them since 2019. Known for publishing books that are first and foremost focused on fun, Larrikin House also publish books that push boundaries, challenge stereotypes and hide the veggies! Larrikin House publish all kids' books and has started publishing adult commercial fiction. They are looking for manuscripts that are on brand and looking to work with creatives who understand the Larrikin vibe. James was a reluctant reader as a child, and believes that engaging kids in books from an early age is key in creating life-long readers. James generously shared what goes on inside Larrikin House and how they publish for kids and not the gatekeepers. James’ advice was ‘don’t be mediocre’.
To finish off there were two book prizes from Helen and Annabelle. James drew names from the hat. Congratulations to the lucky winners!
Thank you to our committee for their organising and to everyone who attended to make the event another special one. It was lovely to see many first-timers at the event. We hope to see you again at the Professional Development Day on 26 July!
