Registration for 20th Anniversary Conference now open!

This year we are happy to combine our annual spring conference with the 20th Anniversary celebration of our MD/DE/WV SCBWI region!

When:  Saturday, March 23, 2013

Where: The Bishop Claggett Center, 3035 Buckeystown Pike, Adamstown, MD 21710

What else: We will open with a special Dessert Reception on Friday, March 22, 2013 at the Holiday Inn & Conference Center, 5400 Holiday Drive, Frederick, MD 21703 from 6:30 to 9:00 PM.  Don’t miss this chance to celebrate our region’s anniversary and to schmooze with our speakers and conference attendees!

Featured Speakers:

T.A. Barron grew up in Colorado ranch country and traveled widely as a Rhodes Scholar.  He is the winner of the 2011 de Grummond USM Medallion for “lifetime contribution to the field of children’s and young adult literature.”  His highly acclaimed, internationally bestselling books include The Lost Years of Merlin (now being developed into a film), The Great Tree of Avalon (a New York Times bestseller), The Ancient One, and The Hero’s Trail, plus nature books about Colorado wilderness.  Founder of a national prize for heroic kids, he loves to write and hike in Colorado.  Visit www.tabarron.com.

Paul O. Zelinsky’s illustrations have won wide acclaim and many awards, including the Caldecott Medal for his retelling of Rapunzel and three Caldecott Honors, for Hansel and Gretel, Rumpelstiltskin, and Swamp Angel. He illustrated Z is for Moose, one of only two 2012 children’s books to receive six starred reviews from the six major review journals. Known for the variability of style and genre in his books, Zelinsky says “I am recognized for being unrecognizable.”

Stephen Mooser is the author of more than 60 books for children including picture books such as The Ghost With The Halloween Hiccups; nonfiction: Into The Unknown-Nine Astounding Stories; Series: The Creepy Creature Club, The All-Star Meatballs, The Treasure Hounds and Goofball Malone, Ace Detective; and such humorous middle grade novels as Elvis is Back and He’s in the Sixth Grade, and It’s a Weird, Weird School. His latest project is Class Clown Academy, a middle grade book and interactive website www.classclownacademy.com

He is the co-founder (with Lin Oliver) of the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators and currently serves as its President.

Jill Santopolo is an Executive Editor at Philomel Books, an imprint of PenguinGroupUSA. She is also the author of The Nina, the Pinta and the Vanishing Treasure (Scholastic, 2008) and The Ransom Note Blues (Scholastic, 2009). She holds a BA in English Literature from Columbia University and an MFA in Writing for Children from Vermont College. In her not-so-spare time, she teaches fiction writing at McDaniel College and is an MFA thesis adviser at The New School.

Sylvie Frank is an associate editor at Paula Wiseman Books, an imprint of Simon & Schuster. She has edited books for all ages, including Brianna on the Brink, a debut YA novel by Nicole McInnes. Sylvie is always looking for original voices, relatable characters, and strong plots. As a child, her favorite books were Roald Dahl’s Matilda and William Steig’s Brave Irene.

Ammi-Joan Paquette is an agent with Erin Murphy Literary Agency, representing all types of children’s and YA literature. She is also the author of the picture book The Tiptoe Guide to Tracking Mermaids (Tanglewood, 2012), and the middle-grade novel Nowhere Girl (Walker, 2011). She is particularly drawn to richly-rendered, unforgettable characters and settings, as well as tightly-paced, well-plotted stories with twists and turns that keep you guessing right until the end. For more, see ajpaquette.com.

Evelyn M. Fazio is an award-winning publisher with three decades of experience in book publishing. She has worked at Prentice Hall, Simon & Schuster, Random House and Marshall Cavendish, and was the founding publisher of WestSide Books. Evelyn also worked at the book distributor Baker & Taylor, setting up their e-books acquisitions program in which she worked with publishing houses across the spectrum. She has been a literary agent and freelance editor for many years and taught high school before working in publishing. Evelyn holds an M.A. in History from the University of Connecticut and a B.A. from the University of Bridgeport. She is the co-author of seven nonfiction books, six of which make up the Staying Sane series published by Da Capo Press. Although she has extensive nonfiction experience, YA and middle grade fiction are Evelyn’s favorite genres.

For complete details about schedule for the day, manuscript critiques or portfolio reviews, lodging arrangements, cost, and online or mail-in registration, visit our regional website at http://mddewvscbwi.org.

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