Taking Your Writing & Art to New Places: Published Authors and Illustrators at Work 2019

September 25 - 29, 2019

Overview

You’ve launched your career – now what? Discuss, dissect, collaborate, and grow.

This workshop is for published authors and illustrators to have time to talk about their careers, challenges, deadlines, and upcoming projects. With this workshop, we are aiming for meaningful conversation about how to continue to push the boundaries of our work. How do we acknowledge the power of our recurring themes and at the same time find ways to break new ground and find innovation?

Please note that this workshop is for published authors and illustrators.
When registering, you will need to include:

Two or more titles of your own published work.
A short paragraph indicating ways in which you hope to grow as a writer or illustrator.

We will confirm your registration for the workshop once we receive this information.

What You’ll Learn

Enjoy presentations and activities intended to spark artistic leaps.
Have time to write, illustrate and collaborate according to your own goals.
Participate in an editor Q&A. We have TWO wonderful editors coming: Neal Porter and Kathleen Merz!
Spend evenings and mealtimes in community, making connections and filling the creative well.
Optional Portfolio/Dummy Review
Optional One-to-One Editorial Consultation
Optional guided meditations from Laurie Calkhoven: to help you center your mindfulness, breath, and visualization, pouring new life into your work-in-progress.

Who Should Attend

All published authors and illustrators are welcome, no matter what their experience level.

Agenda

Day 1
Afternoon
Arrival and check in

Evening
Appetizers and dinner
After dinner: Welcome and introduction to our time together, Jennifer Jacobson

Day 2
Morning
Breakfast
Faculty talk, Padma Venkatraman

Afternoon
Lunch
Faculty talk, Nikki Grimes

Evening
Appetizers and dinner
After dinner: Participant Directed Merriment

Day 3
Morning
Breakfast
Faculty talk, Juana Martinez-Neal

Afternoon
Lunch
Writing/Retreat Time

Evening
Appetizers and dinner
After dinner: Editor Q/A session

Day 4
Morning
Breakfast
Faculty talk, Gareth Hinds

Afternoon
Lunch
Writing/Retreat Time

Evening
Appetizers and dinner
After dinner: Participant Directed Merriment

Day 5
Morning
Breakfast
Faculty talk, Jennifer Jacobson

Afternoon
Lunch and farewells

Resources

Jennifer Jacobson’s website
Juana Martinez-Neal’s website
Video interview with Juana Martinez-Neal
Creative Process with Juana Martinez-Neal
Gareth Hinds’ website
Creative process with Gareth Hinds
An interview with Gareth Hinds
Nikki Grimes’ website
A video interview with Nikki Grimes
Padma Venkatraman’s website
Video interview with Padma Venkatraman on “Story in the Public Square”
Creative Process with Padma Venkatraman
Horn Book magazine interview with Neal Porter
School Library Journal interview with Neal Porter
Coffee Break: A Day in the Life of Kathleen Merz, Managing Editor
Five Questions with Kathleen Merz
Interview with Melissa Sweet, 2018 faculty.
Interview with Ruth Behar, 2018 faculty.
Interview with An Na, 2018 faculty.

Testimonials

“Everyone’s presentations and the week as a whole was just so beautifully crafted, and I enjoyed every second of it. I came in just hoping to have time to work on a few personal projects, and I’m leaving with soooo much more – fixing past projects, so many ideas for new projects, and just a deeper understand of what I want to create!”

“I attended Taking Your Art and Writing to New Places last year. It blew my writing process wide open. I highly recommend it for published authors who need a shot of innovation in the arm and a week of pampering and community that only Highlights and the talented Jennifer Jacobson can deliver.”–Cate Berry

“I think of myself as a very creative author but I was needing to feel coaxed, pushed, nudged in new ways, so I signed up for the first published author creativity workshop and was it ever terrific! Responding to the guidance from the various workshop leaders led me to places I never would have found on my own. I had a breakthrough with a picture book text and also a novel-length project. It was great for spots where I knew I was stuck and also spots where I was stuck and didn’t know it.”–Jane Kurtz