2008 Events

Chapter & Verse: a book club for adults discussing children's lit

Please join us on January 15th for a book discussion near Lake Minnetonka. Enjoy a Caribou hot chocolate or latté, then we'll settle in for discussion of a picture book and novel at 7:00 pm. First we'll take a look at River of Words: the story of William Carlos Williams by Jen Bryant, illustrated by Melissa Sweet (picture book). Then we'll discussThe London Eye Mystery by Siobhan Dowd (novel for readers 11 and up). At 8:30, feel free to look around the store, taking advantage of the 25% discount on your entire purchase offered to book club participants between 6:00 pm and 9:00 pm on the evening of the book club.

Vicki Palmquist leads the book club—our avid book club members engage in spirited discussion. If you'd like to join us, please reserve a chair by contacting Nancy Caffoe, children's book buyer at The Bookcase.

Chapter & Verse takes place at The Bookcase of Wayzata, 607 East Lake Street, Wayzata, Minnesota. 952-471-8341. This book club is co-sponsored by The Bookcase of Wayzata and Children's Literature Network.

Upcoming book discussions:

February 19, 2009: How I Learned Geography by Uri Shulevitz (picture book) and Madapple by Christina Meldrum (young adult fiction).

March 19, 2009: Washington at Valley Forge by Russell Freedman (nonfiction).

April 16, 2009: Mudville by Kurtis Scaletta (middle grade fiction).

CLN Workshop:
Creating and Managing a Web Presence for Authors — Web 2.0

We get questions all the time asking "what kind of website should I have?" "what about blogs, wikis, banner advertising?" "is my website okay?" "what else should I be doing?" and more. So many people have concerns about the best way to approach being on the web ... and many of us have no idea what's available or how to best use the web to help us.

In this workshop, participants will learn a ten-step process for envisioning a Web strategy and turning it into a reality, discuss the difference between a website and a web presence, and explore the new opportunities for marketing and networking using "Web 2.0" technologies. Participants are invited to bring the URLs of their own and other authors' websites to critique and discuss.

Kurtis Scaletta is an instructional technology consultant at the University of Minnesota with ten years of experience in Web and multimedia development. He specializes in Internet communication and collaboration tools like blogs, wikis, and social networks.

Lunch will be provided, but it will be a working lunch. Cost is $160. Workshop is open to CLN members only.

If you'd rather pay by check, send us an e-mail and we'll tell you how.

Open to all CLN members. Workshop takes place at CLN Headquarters, Maple Grove, MN. Directions will be provided after you sign up for the workshop. Space is limited, so register early.

Available Across the USA

This workshop, as well as "Promotion Without Tears" and "How to Publicize Your Book," are available to CLN members throughout the country. If eight people in your area are ready to attend, we'll bring the workshop to you, making arrangements for the facility, food, and everything else. Just send us an e-mail with the names of the eight people who wish to participate and we'll take it from there. Plans for the workshop must be made at least two to three months ahead of the workshop date.

Matchmaking Your Manuscript: Find the Right Publisher

Sign up today for this online workshop ... the first-ever for CLN! But no need to worry, the teachers have done this before.

Do you have a manuscript ready to submit to a children's book publisher? Are you feeling overwhelmed by the process? The children's book universe is complex and can appear impenetrable to unpublished writers. This 6-week online course will help you gain the knowledge and confidence to create a submissions plan for your manuscript (and your other manuscripts in the future). We will guide you step-by-step through the submissions process and show you how to improve your chances of publication.

This class will cover: researching publishers ... understanding the children's book marketplace ... identifying market trends ... writing query and cover letters ... exploring other routes to publication (agents, contests, magazines) ... and creating your submission package.

And the best feature? Two published children's book writers will provide individualized feedback on your cover letter and submissions package!

Taught by CLN members Lisa Bullard and Laura Purdie Salas, both of whom have received high marks from previous workshop participants.

It's the perfect way to participate in a workshop. No need to leave home, you can do it during the time of day that suits you best, and there's you can think about your responses ... you don't have the pressure of sitting in a classroom. If you haven't taken a class online before, no need to worry ... there will be plenty of instructions on how to do this once you've registered.

Workshop dates: January 26 - March 2, 2009

Participants: Maximum of 15, minimum of 6. You should have a children's book or YA book manuscript that is ready to submit to a publisher.

Fee: $250, and we'll include a Green Circle membership in Children's Literature Network. If you're already a CLN member, the workshop fee is $200 with your 20% member discount.

Let a writing friend know about this workshop!

If you haven't joined yet, we encourage you to register for this workshop and welcome you as a new CLN member!