What a busy/fun/interesting/educational/well-fed weekend!
I am back from New York, and I really enjoyed my short trip out there. The majority of the weekend was taken up by the
SCBWI (Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators) conference, held in downtown Manhattan. My main purpose in being there was to look for talented illustrators that would be interested in working with us. Of course, as a bonus I got to meet all kinds of interesting/famous people, and learn more about the children's book industry. A few highlights of the conference itself:
• The keynote speakers were amazing! The last keynote speaker was Katherine Paterson, author of "Bridge to Terabithia." She is an incredibly inspiring woman, and had so much wisdom. She told many stories from her life that have influenced her writing, and YES she did say the upcoming BTT movie is worth seeing. I felt very privileged to hear this 74-year-old Christian woman speak on life and writing!
(Click here for a great interview with her about BTT) Here is a photo of Katherine during her presentation:
• Another speaker of note: Brian Selznick, an author/illustrator. This guy is basically changing the way children's books are made. His latest book,
"The Invention of Hugo Cabret," approaches the story somewhat like a movie - he uses many illustrations to help TELL the story, in addition to just showing it. Some very innovative stuff.
• On Sunday there was an awards presentation, including the Tomie dePaola Award. And who was there to give it out, but
Tomie dePaola himself! I was very excited, because he is the first illustrator whose work I remember recognizing as a child. He's basically a legend in children's books. And after the awards, I met him and got my picture taken with him! It made my day!
In between all this conference stuff we took in a few of the sights of New York. It was so exciting - complete sensory overload! We walked down 7th Avenue and saw Times Square...
... and found out that "Legally Blonde" is being made into a musical! I know you've all been waiting for that!
We also walked down 5th Avenue, where all the fancy designer stores are, and Trump Tower. We went inside Tiffany's (I HIGHLY recommend going there if you're in NYC), and saw lots of rich people in fur coats, walking their little dogs wearing equally fancy coats. We also saw a guy pushing his two cats on top of a cart, but that's another story....
And there's no way I was going to go to Manhattan and stay 2 blocks away from MOMA (Museum of Modern Art) without going there, so we took a quick visit to the museum before leaving. Here's me in front of their cool sign:
I took lots of pictures of the art inside, but obviously I can't go posting those all over the internet, so here is ONE picture, a close up of a Jackson Pollock piece:
Other highlights of the trip included:
• eating the BEST cheescake I've ever had in my life on Friday night.
• eating EVEN BETTER cheescake on Saturday!
• havinng a weird cab driver who took us through Queens to get to the airport
• eating New York-style pizza. SO good!
• eating great steak (I told you I was well-fed!)
All in all, it was a great time! It was like being in a different world for the weekend. I loved visiting and want to go back (with Jason, so we can drool over all the art and design in the city), but I cannot imagine living there. The light from the sky doesn't reach the ground in some places because of the tall buildings - I couldn't handle that! But for a visit, it was awesome.
Happy Valentine's Day!
b
