By Francine Puckly

​It’s one thing to rearrange deck chairs on the Titanic and quite another if we were to have done this on the famous Stella Polaris in its heyday or perhaps today on the Seven Seas Mariner. Instead of a futile exercise, you’re grabbing a new perspective on an already-amazing creative journey.

I returned last night from the SCBWI Winter Conference in New York City. I spent four long, sleep-deprived days listening to inspirational lectures by authors, illustrators, agents and publishers about the fabulous things happening in children’s publishing, brainstorming ideas with colleagues for our personal projects as well as the efforts of our writing organization, and reconnecting with old friends and making new ones over mugs of tea and glasses of wine.

This morning I pondered those nuggets of hope and inspiration I acquired over the weekend while I sipped my cup of tea. Then I rearranged my writing world. I moved my writing desk from a snow-blocked window to one that provided a different view, I deleted the first two chapters of my novel to leave room for a new perspective, and I wrote down the first five things I wanted to change this week. New views. New perspectives. New energy. And with renewed focus, I began to write and tackle those goals.

What did I learn this weekend? I learned to listen to others and allow them to fill my well. I learned that it’s critical to network and meet new people with new ideas. I realized that no matter how hard it is to budget for workshops and leave my family behind, it’s essential to invest in education. And I found out it’s necessary to put my refreshed mind to work immediately before losing the positive influences.

Even though you might not have gone away for the weekend, take some time today to look at what feels too familiar or no longer provides the inspiration it once had. Rearrange a few deck chairs. Make a quick list of things you can refresh right now. It might be as small as purchasing a new journal and indexing the pages as Laura Vaccaro Seeger does to keep track of her ideas, registering for a class or workshop that you didn’t think you could justify, or merely moving a desk to a new room or window to watch the birds or falling snow. Once you’ve done that, take out your favorite pen or brush and add some splash to your project.

Francine

The registration for NESCBWI's Anual Spring Conference opens tomorrow, February 4 at noon. Do you plan to go? Why should you?

This is why we go:



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Francine:
SCBWI has been a large part of my life since I joined my first critique group back in 2006. Registering and attending the annual spring conference is one of the main writing highlights of my year. It begins with the excitement of choosing my workshop selections from the smorgasbord of options offered each year (oh, the possibilities!), and it culminates on the conference weekend with three glorious days spent learning new aspects of the craft and engaging in heartfelt conversations over lunches, dinners and evening glasses of wine and tea. Yes, most years it requires an act of God to pry me away from my family demands for three days, but I've never regretted the time spent among my fellow writers and illustrators or the effort it took to get me there! The craft discussions and key note talks replenish my writing well, and the camaraderie amongst my colleagues sustains me through the deadlines and projects that lie ahead.  

Amanda:
When I first got serious about writing, I had no idea where to start. I had a good, solid picture book manuscript, a beginning to a novel, and a bunch of cute ideas. A friend of a friend suggested I join SCBWI. After a  Google search, where I learned about the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators, I became a member just in time to sign up for one day of the Spring conference. 
 Like a giant wave that is both majestic and terrifying, that day overwhelmed me. I walked away with a deep conviction of how little I knew. I walked away in awe of the process involved in making a book and with my head bursting with new information. I walked away with an insatiable hunger to learn more, grow more, WRITE MORE!
And so, I return every year to discover those things that I still do not know; to learn and be inspired by amazing authors; to rub shoulders with agents and editors and put faces with names; to volunteer and serve; to connect with like-minded people who share my passion for words and stories and books; and to fill  my writer's cup. So I can pour out stories onto pages for another year.
Oh, and that solid picture book manuscript that got this whole thing started. Not so solid. I learned that too.

Kelly:
    "Seems like a lot of mice scrambling for a small piece of cheese,” I commented to the stranger setting next to me at the SCBWI conference. I was overwhelmed looking at the crush of SCBWI conference goers heading to their next seminar.
    “It’s a big piece of cheese,” she replied.
    “Really?” I asked. “Say that again.”
    She did, and then she started our support group, is my partner in 24 Carrot Writing and without a doubt the most wonderful reason to go to the SCBWI conference.
    You will find inspiration from the wonderful speakers and enhance your craft at the informative workshops, but the best reason to attend an SCBWI conference is the opportunity to connect with a fellow writer.  Strike up a conversation with the writer who sits down next you – you may just find your Francine! 


  Annie feels so strongly about conferences as a way to connect with others in the writing community, she wrote a whole post about it here.


Hope to see you in Springfield,MA April 24-26! Go! Sign up!