The Inspiration of Finn's Feather with keynote speakers Rachel Noble and Essie White

A touching observation from Roving Reporter, Shaye Wardrop during the SCBWI 2019 Conference Dinner Dance on the special relationship with US agent Essie White and Australian author Rachel Noble.

Rachel Noble

‘Never ignore the stories that come from your heart,’ says author Rachel Noble as she tells us the story behind the publication of her debut picture book Finn’s Feather.

I don’t think there’s a dry eye in the room as Rachel talks about the heartbreak of losing her darling boy, Hamish, and her passion and determination to honour him through her words.

After exploring different genres and using writing as therapy, the idea for Finn’s Feather came in a perfect moment. After rushing home to write it down, Rachel tells us she found a feather waiting for her on the front step and she knew she had found the story she was searching for.

My throat is full of rocks and tears well in my eyes as I listen to Rachel speak. She is passionate and strong and brave and amazing, and Finn’s Feather is a powerful and special picture book that helps kids understand death and loss in the most gentle and heart-warming way.

“STORIES HELP KIDS NAVIGATE EMOTIONS - AN AUTHENTIC STORY WILL HELP YOU HEAL”

It is a book for every home, every school, every library, and I urge you to find a copy and experience the powerful and magical story for yourself.

Rachel introduces the crowd to her literary agent, Essie White, of Storm Literary Agency, and Essie tells us how she met Rachel and her work.

Essie says, ‘stories can heal’ and ‘the importance of good literature cannot be understated’, and the crowd nods in understanding, knowing exactly what she means.

Essie tells us she ‘believes so much in the transformative power of literature’, that ‘an authentic story will help you heal’, that ‘stories help kids navigate emotions’.

She is so right, and we all sit quietly and ponder on these insightful words as she talks about her experience and extensive involvement in children’s literature over her career, about her love of books and her belief in the power of books to teach and guide children through their lives.

Essie leaves us with one more thought — one more piece of advice I will never forget.

Essie says,

‘this isn’t a profession; it’s a vocation. Do your best work because the best people in the world are waiting.’

Thank you Rachel for sharing your journey with us all, and thank you Essie for your amazing insights and powerful advice.

Shaye Wardrop

#SCBWIsyd

Pitch Perfect: Pitch to Publishers

How does a pitch become a published book?

Illustration courtesy of Liz Anelli - the Panel

The room is filled with the sounds of chattering friends and strangers introducing themselves. Six industry professionals sit on the stage in a line.

I am aware of the eight people sitting in the front row to the right of the stage, papers in hand, not chatting as much as the rest of the room. My heart beats faster for these eight incredible people. Pitching in front of anyone isn’t easy, but pitching in front of more than 200 people takes some serious courage.

Our emcees, Tracey Hawkins and Nicole Godwin, hush the crowd from the stage and introduce the session. This is Pitch Perfect: Pitch to Publishers.

The Rules:

• Three minutes (exactly) to pitch your work and read an extract

• Timekeeper waves at 2.5 minutes

• Timekeeper waves frantically at 3 minutes

• Each industry professionals provides feedback on the pitch

The Judging Panel:

• Lisa Berryman (HarperCollins)

• Claire Halifax (Scholastic)

• Maryann Ballantyne (Black Dog Books)

• Brian Cook (The Authors’ Agent)

• Donna Rawlins (Walker Books)

• Special guest Christina Booth (author and illustrator extraordinaire)

Things kick off with a success story from the last SCBWI conference pitching session. Super talented Christina Booth tells us the tale of a manuscript from her bottom drawer that had yet to find a home. When the last SCBWI pitching opportunity arose, she knew it was time to resurrect The Tiger’s Tale.

With some polish and extensive research on how to pitch a book to a panel, Christina pitched what would become One Careless Night, a stunning and haunting tale about the last thylacine.

After we are all wowed by Christina’s experience (and are all secretly searching on our phones to find out when we’ll be able to get her amazing book — it comes out June 2019 by the way), Tracey Hawkins calls, ‘and we’re off and running’, and indeed we are.

Things move really fast. The eight pitchers take the stage, one by one, and entertain us with exciting, thrilling, mysterious, hilarious and heart warming stories.

We hear tales of dragons and mysterious shadows, a family about to star in a reality TV show, a body swapping orangutan, a boy faced with a difficult family situation and very tough times, a courageous girl searching for her lost spark, a historical tale of family, mystery and a girl with some mammoth challenges to overcome, siblings tackling life with a sick mum and a life of hard work in a factory, and a girl who discovers a rhino washed upon a beach.

There’s a mix of middle grade, young adult and a picture book, and each is different and striking and moving. I laugh and giggle and smile and breathe deep and cry just a little as I listen to beautiful writing and wonderful stories I can’t wait to read in full.

After each pitch, the judging panel gets their chance to comment. We hear: ‘love your writing’, ‘great storytelling’, ‘so much fun’, ‘started with a bang’, ‘timely and hilarious’, ‘I’d like to read more’, ‘you’re really owning this’ and ‘the voice was beautiful’.

Through it all, there are snippets of advice that stick out in the feedback:

• Make sure the set up for your story isn’t too complicated

• Give thought to the age of the protagonist and make sure they are the right age for the target market

• Know where your book sits in the market

• Balance your descriptions

• Read from chapter one when pitching so judges get to hear the introduction of characters and the set up of the story

• You can never have too much nose picking and bum scratching!

Cate Whittle, Dee White, Heather Gallagher, Jo Burnell, Grace Bryant, Sheryl Gwyther, Cristy Burne and Neridah McMullin, you are all masters of words. Thank you for sharing your stories with the entire SCBWI community. Your bravery and talents are gargantuan and we all applaud you!

Shaye Wardrop

#SCBWIsyd

Sneak Peek into a Manuscript Critique with Roving Reporter Shaye Wardrop

Shaye Wardrop Roving Reporter / Manuscript critiquee

It’s okay. Take a breath.

I tell myself these words, but it does nothing to quell my excitement and anxiety as I walk down the long carpeted ramp to the critique room at the SCBWI conference.

There I sit with fellow excited/terror-filled SCBWI pals, and we quietly chatter as we read over our work and check on the time every 30 seconds.

Helen Alker is here. Thank god for Helen. She calms everyone down as she ticks us off the list and shows us where we will be sitting when it’s ‘Our Time’.

Everything runs like clockwork. We line up and we enter the room, dashing to our allocated table to sit side by side with the publisher or editor or agent who will assess our work — our heart and soul typed on paper.

As soon as I sit down, I relax.

A wave of calm washes over me and I remember that this is just a conversation. Publishers and editors and agents are just people. People who know more about writing and publishing then me, sure, but they are people just like everyone else.

A critique is an opportunity to get feedback from someone who knows the business, knows books, knows good story. I am hungry for this knowledge, so I sit back and listen, write notes and enjoy the conversation.

The room is abuzz for the next 15 minutes as we all chit-chatter away. I don’t notice anyone around me and I hear no other words than the ones for me.

Then, as quickly as it began, it ends. My 15 minutes is up, and I leave with a mountain of scribbled notes and a smile on my face.

I’m smiling because those 15 minutes were gold. I’m not a published author, and what I presented in my critique still needs some work, but I am now one step closer.

There are limited opportunities to get one-on-one feedback from industry professionals, and I feel lucky to have had this experience to learn and grow as a creator. These moments always make us grow, no matter how the critiques turn out. There is always something new to learn.

I leave the room and sit quietly on a bench to rewrite my notes so they make sense for later. Of course, I think of a million questions I should have asked when I was in there, but I’ve got them written down for next time.

And there will be a next time (and probably another and another), because no matter how nerve-racking critiques can be, they are an important part of the journey.

Massive thanks to everyone involved in making these amazing opportunities possible.

Thank you to the organisers who coordinate manuscripts and portfolios before the event. Thank you to the helpful ushers (Helen and everyone else who helped on the day) who stand at the door for hours and keep time and make sure things run smoothly. Thank you to the publishers and editors and agents who read our work, prepare notes and give us support and encouragement to make our creations the best they can be.

Shaye Wardrop

#SCBWIsyd