Book Launch!

You are invited to celebrate the launch of

Frances Cherry's 'Kyla' published by Scholastic

6pm, Thursday 5th March 2009
The Children's Bookshop Shop 26, Kilbirnie Plaza, Wellington
RSVP by 2nd March 2009: The Children s Bookshop Ph: 04 387 3905

or email: childbkwgtn@xtra.co.nz

Congratulations Fleur!

Wellington writer Fleur Beale wins ‘much-loved’ book award with psychological thriller.

A tense psychological thriller, I am not Esther, has won the 2009 Storylines Gaelyn Gordon Award for a Much-loved Book for its Wellington author, Fleur Beale.

Congratulations Fleur from all of us at the WCBA!

Happy New Year!

We hope you had a good break and are now refreshed and ready to indulge in another year of Childrens Literature in. Interest has been rolling in for the Conference and you can expect more detailed information mid Feb. We will send it out to those who have expressed interest in the first instance so if you haven't already done so, hit that send button now so you get first in for registration when it is open. There are limited spaces so and we expect they will go fast.

In the meantime, if you are at a loose end and wondering how to progress that tricky bit in your Young Adult novel you have tucked away, the NZSA has the evening for you:

AGM 9th Feb, Wellington

After a short AGM, there will be an extended panel discussion on How to write (and how not to write) a great sex scene. Confirmed speakers are Kate De Goldi (young adult fiction novelist) and Leda Swann (romance novelist and member of the Romance Writers’ Association).

The panel will discuss such issues as how to make such a scene truly romantic in romance fiction and how far to go (and how far not to go) in teen fiction. For more information about the panel, see websites such as www.bookcouncil.org.nz/writers/degoldikate and www.ledaswann.com. After their opening presentations, which will include examples of scenes that work (and which really, really don’t), there will be time for questions and an open discussion of this challenging aspect of the craft of writing.

Kate De Goldi is the author of Sanctuary; Love, Charlie Mike; Closed, Stranger; Clubs: A Lolly Leopold Story; Uncle Jack; Billy: A Lolly Leopold Story; Little Nan; Like You, Really; and The 10 pm Question

Leda Swann is the author of Captive; Mistress; Polly’s Game; Stand and Deliver; The Price of Desire; Sugar and Spice; Parlour Games; School for Virgins; Lessons in Seduction; Rainlashed; Sunlit; and Ice on Her Wings

A not-to-be-missed Wellington literary event...

The AGM of the Wellington Branch of NZSA (PEN New Zealand Inc) is being held at 7.30 pm in the Upper Chamber at Toi Poneke Wellington Art Centre, 61-89 Abel Smith Street, Wellington on February 9.

BREAKING NEWS! CONFERENCE!

SPINNING GOLD- The New Zealand Children’s Book Writing and Illustration Conference will take place at Capital House, Melrose, Wellington in 2009, September 18 (2pm)-20th (5pm)
Run by the Wellington Children’s Book Association, there will be opportunities for emerging and experienced Writers and Illustrators to learn new skills, network and take their craft to The Next Chapter- into the 21st Century.

The core strands in the conference will be:

• New Technologies-Escape beyond the pen, the paper and the ‘puter.

• Business –The money and how to legally keep as much as you can.

• Marketing and Promotion- Getting your name out there... Beyond Traditional Marketing.

• Professional Development- Publishing without paper- Ways to live without getting a real job.

There will be Master Classes, Workshops, Publishers, Agents, Panels and Informative Keynote Speakers.
There will be social events and a built in trip to a mystery location.
The venue, Capital House, is in an affordable location for a residential conference set in large grounds overlooking the harbour. Bed and Breakfast living in at the conference will be optional (but we recommend it) Come for a day or for all three.
Early bird registrations will open in April 2009
Spaces are limited to the first 80 people!
If you want to register your interest and get on our mailing list for updates and advance warning of registration opening dates... Contact the Wellington Children’s Book Association by email.
the.wcba@gmail.com

Kids Lit Stars at the Cross

Well it was a great Quiz night at the Southern Cross with spot prizes, much laughter and scratching of heads to find the right answers and a huge amount of creativity as shown by the results of Limerick competition. We gave everyone the first line:

There was a keen writer from Taita….

We thought they were such fun that they should be published. You should note that none of the authors are identifiable by their team’s name and there was a fair amount of wine involved in the creative process.

The winning limerick team Where the Wild Hair Is channelled alcohol:

There was a keen writer from Taita

He drank as he wrote and got tighter

He drank gin, he drank wine

He ate grapes off the vine

And his writing got shiter and shiter.

Les Blancs knew what desperation is:

There was a keen writer from Taita

Who set fire to his tale with a lighter,

The manuscript burned

No money was earned

So his purse strings got tighter and tighter.

Edward and the Cullenary Delights aimed for literary success:

There was a keen writer from Taita

With his eye on the Pulitzer Prizer

But where talent lacked

His punch it did pack

He found victory; he was a fighter!

The Cherubs penned an important lesson on the value of editing:

There was a keen writer from Taita

Who suffered a heavy all-nighter

As she stumbled on home

She was struck by a tome

Which she wished was a few chapters lighter.

The T.Team went for a bodice ripper approach:

There was a keen writer from Taita

Who found fairytales could excite her

She loved Humpty, Prince Charming

But oh, ‘twas alarming

When the Dragon and George did ignite her!

And the Quizlits were ever mindful of the hips.

There was a keen writer from Taita

Who wanted to be slightly lighter

She gave up on food, which ruined her mood

And made her manuscript triter.

So on that note, we’d like to say thank you to everyone who came to the night and made it such a lot of fun and huge thanks to Johanna Knox, Margaret Cahill and Dylan Owen for coming up with the questions and to Louise Davies for organising the room and the food. The Southern Cross is a great venue and they generously donated a dinner voucher as part of the prize pack. The committee members of the WCBA all worked together to make this a great evening and now it is over we are working on the Conference plans.

We will be making an announcement here on Monday, so check back in then and open your diary to pencil in a weekend in September you won’t want to miss.

Christmas Quiz Night!

We can hardly believe it- December is upon us which means just one thing... the Kid's Lit Quiz Night!
Get a team together or come and make up one with others on the night. We'll provide the yummy nibbles and dish out spot prizes. A great evening for lovers of Children's Literature and a fun night out.
Click the image on the right to bring it up in a larger window, print it out, stick to your fridge, brush up your trivia and tinsel and come along!

$10 at the door. RSVP to the.wcba@gmail.com or the Children's Bookshop ph: 3873905

Winner- Jack Lasenby Award

The winner of this year's Jack Lasenby Award is Sand King by Peter Friend,a story set around a sand-castle competition at Lyall Bay. The judges felt that although some of the other pieces were more polished, the imagination expressed in Sand King, the strength of the voice and even the writing style were more expressive and had a spark that other stories were missing. Sand King was not without faults, but the heart of the story was strong, it was imaginative in a way that few of the entries were, and it left a lot for the reader to infer.

The judges also decided to highly commend three other stories, which were (in no particular order): Boxing On by Kathy Taylor, Tararua Biscuits by Robin Fleming and Pop and the Crusty Demon by Sharon Stratford. These were all heartwarming and appealing stories based around realistic relationships.

About the Judges

Vince Ford

Vince Ford is an award winning Children’s Book writer and a 2008 Judge for The New Zealand Post Children’s Book Awards. His latest work, the Chronicles of Stone series is a departure from his previous work. Set in the Ice Age in the States it follows the journey of twins, Souk and Trei, as they strive to capture secrets that could change the lives of their people. In the words of Graham Beattie, "I foresee a big, promising international future for the Chronicles of Stone trilogy and for Vincent Ford as a writer for teenagers and beyond. Be sure to bring it before any teenage readers you know, they will not be disappointed."

Philippa Werry

Philippa is a children’s writer who has written over 100 stories, plays, poems and articles for the School Journal and other educational publishers. Her stories have also been broadcast on National Radio. The great chocolate cake bake-off (Scholastic, 2007) was included in the Storylines list of notable books for 2007. Her most recent book, Enemy at the Gate (Scholastic, 2008) is a children’s novel set in Wellington at the time of the1936 polio epidemic.

Margaret Cahill

Margaret is a children's series editor at Learning Media where she reads and assesses a great many children's stories every year. She is the editor of Greg O'Brien's Montana Award winning history of the School Journal,

A Nest of Singing Birds.

Margaret is a past convenor of the WCBA, an occasional writer, and an enthusiastic champion of children's literature.