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Intensives Information and Schedules

Advice From A Caterpillar: Attend an Intensive

Friday, January 13th, 9am-4pm.  Eat the mushroom.  Attendance is limited to 25 people each at a cost of $165/ea (includes box lunch).  Go away changed.

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Picture Book - Leveled Readers/Early Chapter Books - Novel

Picture Book: Power Up and Polish Your Picture Book Schedule, with Diane Muldrow and Janeen Mason.

9:00 – 11:30 Janeen Mason delivers an in-depth look at The Power of Story.  Together we'll identify what makes a story live on in the minds of your readers. This lively presentation fosters ideas and techniques that will take hold of your heart and take flight.

11:30 – noon  Q&A

12:00 - 1 pm Lunch

1:00 – 3:30  Diane Muldrow leads the class in developing the art of suspense and flow and the magic of high visual interest.  As an author and editor with Random House Golden Books, Diane brings solid experience and proven exercises that will help you polish your material and make it stand out.

3:30 – 4 pm  Q&A

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Leveled Reader Intensive: Early Chapert Book, presented by Bonnie Bader and Natalie Lescroart of Penguin Group (USA).

9:00 Penguin Young Readers Program

    • A presentation of the new leveled reading program at Penguin
    • Discussion of the levels and our publishing needs

10:00 Write a Reader

    • Participants will be given a list of sight words to use to write a reader (or the concept and the first few pages)

10:30 Break

10:45 Share Stories & Questions

11:30 The Importance of Art

    • Discuss how the art can help tell the story
    • Take one of the participant’s readers and create art specs together to see how art enhances the text.
    • Participants will write art specs for a manuscript that will be handed out.

12:30 Lunch

1:30 Share art notes and questions

2:00 First Chapter Books/Beginning Readers

    • Look at samples – Elephant and Piggie, Poppelton, Amelia Bedilia

2:30 Series/Character/Brand Building

    • Discussion of over-arching themes
    • Activity

3:15 Break

3:30

    • Share activity & Questions

4:00 End

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Novel Intensive: SCBWI YA Novel Intensive "Scenes Under a Microscope: Catching the Attention of Readers" with Marietta Zacker and Dorian Cirrone.

9-10 Tricks for Getting to the Heart and Mind of Your Story and a Discussion of the Current State of the Market (Exercise: Be thinking about the concept and climax of your WIP. We’ll do exercises that will help you write toward a marketable hook.)

10-10:15 First-page critiques*

10:15-10:30 (break)

10:30-noon Poetic Devices That Put Power in Your Prose and a Discussion on Finding the Voice that Touches the Reader (Exercise: Bring a few scenes from your WIP. We’ll work on applying these devices in order to reinforce the voice and themes of your work.)

noon-1 p.m. (lunch)

1-3 Ten Tips for Turning Up the Tension in Your Novel and a Discussion of What is Being Acquired (Exercise: Bring a few scenes from your WIP, at least one with dialog. We’ll work on revising to rev up the suspense and tension in your novel.)

3-3:15 (break)

3:15-3:30 First-page critiques

3:30-4 Q&A

* Bring the first page of your novel if you’d like it critiqued in front of the group.

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