Mazza Memories - A Conference You Should Know, Really! by Kathy Halsey

While many GROG buddies took to the Georgia mountains for the WOW Retreat, I traveled the byways to Findlay, Ohio for the Mazza Summer Conference. My conference goals this year included new venues and getting beyond my comfort zone. The Mazza Museum at the University of Findlay has amassed the largest collection of original picture book art in the WORLD! Many children's writers know of the Eric Carle Museum, but not this hidden gem. One can visit anytime of the year, tour the museum, attend educational programming, shop the gift shop, and see the Havens Resource Center that lends themed and artist story kits to teachers. 

Stellar Keynotes and More

Attendees were treated to morning and afternoon keynote speeches by these luminaries: Chris Barton, Rosemary Wells, Barney Saltzberg, Marie-Louise Gay, Lizzy Rockwell, Steve Light, Lita Judge, Elly McKay, Randall de Seve, Steve Swinburne, Jim Averbeck and Jason Chin. During our evening hours, we dined with the authors who were very kind and approachable. I sat across the table from Rosemary Wells one evening and next to the President of the College and her husband at a haunted mansion another night. Book buying, autographing, selfie snapping, and breakout strands filled the other hours. The writing strand is included in the affordable price. Professor of Education and children's writer Melissa Cain facilitated our week of writing. Our amazing author/teacher for the week was best seller Sherri Duskey Rinker! Two hours daily with Sherri and Professor Melissa Cain, plus a critique with them both made this writer ecstatic. 

Shazam! The Writing Strand

Most of the writers focused on picture books, yet our group included middle grade writers and published nonfiction writers such as Michelle Houts. Sherri orchestrated an amazing array of kid lit professionals who skyped with us, too. Our guests included editors, illustrators, agents and Caldecott winners. I missed a few of these sessions due to my pullout presentation, Nonfiction Is Bewitchin'. (This is where I moved out of my comfort zone, but my audiences seemed to enjoy my sessions.) 

For the sessions I did attend, here's a round-up of some writerly wisdom:

1. Brendan Wenzel told us to let all ideas surface. This freedom let him play with the concept for THEY ALL SAW A CAT. (We all 

saw the F&G of this book!)

2. Molly Idle assured us that kids are so smart that we, as writers, just need to tell the story, they will get the message easily.

3. Neither Molly nor Sherri Duskey Rinker felt it was essential to have an agent for your first book. We should be working on our writing.

4. Agent Lori Kilkelly suggests that if one is new to submissions, send out a manuscript to just a few agents at first. Wait to see if there is feedback, then do another round of submissions. 

5. Lori also shared some heartening information for beginners. She believes that "writing is muscle memory. Look at your earlier writing, it may feed your work now. That effort and craft is never a waste."

The Mazza Summer Conference was food for my writer's soul in so many ways. I even received some encouraging words on my manuscript critique from Sherri! (Of course she found my beginning in the middle of my story.) Check out this stream of flickr pictures to see more. But wait...I haven't yet shared the twenty-three pages of handwritten notes from the keynotes! On September 22, I'll post more Mazza Memories, and meanwhile, circle your calendar for mid-July, 2017 for a trip to Findlay, Ohio.

Meet GROGger Kathy Halsey ~ by Patricia Toht

Here at the GROG, we writers come in a variety of flavors. 

If I had to choose one flavor to describe my fellow GROGger, Kathy Halsey, it would be super-duper-confetti-cake-wonder-cream. (Okay, I cheated with all of the hyphens, but Kathy is all that!) Here's your chance to get to know her a bit better.

When did you first know that you wanted to be a writer? What drew you to writing for children?

Kathy: Since I was a child, books surrounded me. Both my parents read to us - MIKE MULLIGAN, MILLIONS OF CATS, and LYLE, LYLE CROCODILE, among other classics. Newspapers, Time, National Geographic, and Smithsonian magazines were everywhere.

After many years as a 7^th grade English teacher, I acquired certification as a school librarian and fell in love with books all over again. I experienced the power that reading had for K-12 students, the right book for the right reader, and I wanted to wield that power that writers have.

Now I write stories that I wish had been there for me as a child – biographies of women who knew no boundaries, adventure stories, and humorous tales to make kids laugh. Being a kid isn’t always easy. I advised many a student as an educator about big life issues, and I know they need to laugh.

 What inspires you to write? How do you come up with ideas that you want to write about?

Kathy: After my first PiBoIdMo (Picture Book Idea Month) in 2011 with the amazing Tara Lazar, I found that ideas surround me and can pop up daily. I enjoy coming up with titles, and I carry a notebook in my purse for brain bursts. The sheer exuberance, honesty, and lack of artifice in children inspire me. They are society’s truth tellers.

I carry a notebook, too, Kathy. What a shame if those ideas slipped away before we wrote them down!

Can you share your author history with us? How long have you been writing?

Kathy: I wrote poetry in 5^th grade, kept a journal off and on since I was 12, and was accepted into a juried master class in poetry at Ohio State. Writing to publish began in earnest 2.5 years ago when I hit a certain birthday ending in zero. I joined SCBWI, hit Facebook, and joined every group I could for writing challenges and information. My 15 years as a school librarian gave me the deep reading background all writers need.

What authors have mentored you?

Kathy: At my first AZ SCBWI meeting, I was blessed to meet Dianne White (author of BLUE ON BLUE), who became my first mentor and part of a face-to-face critique group in Phoenix. Ada Kent, friend, librarian, and former Newbery committee member, encouraged me to go to The Mazza Museum Summer Conference in Finlay, OH, several years ago. They instituted a writers’ track that year, and Ohio author Michael J. Rosen gave me my first critique. Alayne Kay Christian, Miranda Paul, Dianna Aston, Kristen Fulton, and my agent Jodell Sadler have all made an amazing difference in my writing! My writing buddies include a myriad of GROGgers, and Pamela Courtney, Jackie Wellington, and Pam Vaughn. They inspire me.

Kathy and fellow GROGgers
kicking up their heels with Kristen Fulton

If you could invite any author or illustrator to dinner, who would it be?

Photo by manhhai

Kathy: My dad introduced me to Robert Benchley and James Thurber. I’d love to chat with Thurber. We both love dogs, went to Ohio State, and I am doing research on him for a biography now. I adore his illustrations and dry humor.

Tell me about the reading program you started at the indie bookstore in AZ.

Kathy with illustrator Lynne Avril
at Changing Hands Bookstore

Kathy: I’m always in bookstores, and I noticed how adults often looked lost when choosing books for kids. I reached out to Gayle Shanks, the owner of Changing Hands Bookstore, an indie that’s been around for 40 years, volunteering  to do book talks for adults. Her sister, another former educator, also had the same idea, and the Grandma’s Club took off!

This rewarding experience gave me a chance to hone my public speaking skills, read tons of new books from picture books to middle grade, and connect with local authors. When I go on my first book tour (I think big – Julie Hedlund taught me that), I know that Changing Hands will welcome me with open arms.

What else would you like to share with our GROG readers?

Kathy: Believe in yourself.  Surround yourself with people who share your goal to be an author. Look for opportunities – make them happen. Be bold, brave, and generous to others in the field. Remember, children’s writers write for the noblest audience there is! Give them your best.

Kathy and me at the SCBWI LA Conference,
affirming that two GROGgers are better than one!

I'm so glad to learn more about you, Kathy! Thanks for giving us a taste of your life, and best of luck with your writing.

The Write Conference for You by Kathy Halsey

On your mark, get set, GO! Conference season began with a bang yesterday with SCBWI LA registration. SCBWI LA and NY are the annual "big kahuna" events of the season, and I am lucky enough to attend the LA event this August 1-4. We writers have few resources and lots of choices for professional development, so how do you decide what is the WRITE conference for you?

Begin Small

Go "big" or go home isn't always the case. I worked my way up to attending a large conference. Being a newbie and only having less than a year under my belt, I dreamed of LA last year but didn't feel I had enough experience to take advantage of all that was offered. Instead, I spent my time and money at a smaller venue that still had a big bang for the bucks. Hidden in Findlay OH is a fabulous conference with a small writer's tract at the Mazza Museum which house the LARGEST COLLECTION OF PICTURE BOOK ART IN THE WORLD! Yes, I'm shouting because many folks know about the Eric Carle Museum, but the Mazza Museum is a fab find for families, writers and illustrators alike. You'll want to sign up for their monthly email newsletter, too, even if you are too far away to visit.

  
Here are a few teasers entice you to put this conference on your radar:

• Enrollment in the writing strand is free w/registration (You must attend for the full week.) 
• Registration is flexible-choose one day for $75 or the entire week for only $225 - a steal
• Frugal folks can opt to stay in student housing and walk to all sessions on the University of Findlay campus. I did this and felt like a college "girl" again!
• There are 2 keynote sessions a day and we're talking pb royalty, folks...and you can go out to dinner nightly with these keynoters
• This year Mazza hosts Bob Staake, Laura Seeger, Lynne Avril, Margery Cuyler, David Shannon, Loren long, Jarrett Krosoczka, Aaron Reynold, Pamela Zagarenski, Mike Wohnoutka & David Slonim!!!!!!!! (Yes, excessive exclamations)
• During the writer's strand, you'll have access to a published writer for several days as the artist-in-residence. In 2013 Michael J. Rosen ate with us and even critiqued an ms of our choosing for 15/20 minutes, all FREE.  

Other Thoughts and Tips

After you get your feet wet at a smaller venue, look to your state and if you are a SCBWI member, attend your annual conference or a SCBWI conference in a neighboring state. 

Then you are ready to tackle the big kahuna at the national level!

To make your first big conference better, I have these tips:

• Room with others from your state/region/critique group
• Carpool if possible or coordinate flights and share a cab
• Set up a meet & greet with "your tribe"-I plan to meet with my fellow RhyPiBoMo-ers, WOW nonfiction peeps, and, of course, my fellow GROGgers! 
• Divide and conquer with your writing buds - do not all go to the same sessions, multiply your effect by divvying up sessions and sharing handouts, ideas later!

So what conferences are you attending this season? Comment on the GROG and share your conference tips, too. See you in LA and also at Kristen Fulton's WOW Retreat for nonfiction in July!