PUBLISHERS WEEKLY reports that in August the new imprint Harlequin Teen
will issue its first titles. "The imprint will initially consist of
trade paperbacks, hardcovers and digital publications, and it will
encompass a spectrum of genres including fantasy, contemporary,
historical, science fiction and—no surprise—romance." The first two
titles are in that hot category of "paranormal romance."
<<http://www.publishersweekly.com/article/CA6645137.html>>

Harlequin accepts unagented submissions as described at this webpage:
<<http://www.eharlequin.com/articlepage.html?articleId=1403&chapter=0>>
updated March 2009

The class of 2k10 - MG or YA novelists whose books will debut in 2010 (founded as 2k7 by Greg Fishbone) - is seeking participants. The class of 2k9 is chock full of SCBWI members, including 4 RAs. Members must be published in the US by a house listed in CWIM. This is a great way for debut novelists to rise above the fray and jointly promote their books, and class members tend to become life-long friends as well.

Initial inquiries can be made at
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/classof2k10/

Updated March 09

SCBWI Montana Newsletter

Updated Feb 09

Get Ready for our Fall '09 Retreat!
This fall we are holding a retreat at the Boulder Hot Springs in Boulder, Montana, September 25th - 27th. Be sure to grab onto this opportunity to work on the craft of writing and illustrating and to take some important time to dedicate to your work.

Among our amazing faculty this year are:

Julie Romeis is an Editor at Chronicle Books in San Francisco, where she is developing picture books, chapter books, and exciting new gift formats as well as Chronicle's first ever middle grade and young adult fiction titles. Julie began her career in publishing at Bloomsbury Children's Books as one of three women who launched the U.S. children's division in 2001. There she worked on books for all ages, editing titles such as Chicks and Salsa, Ophelia, and The Extraordinary Adventures of Alfred Kropp, which has been published in several countries around the world and been optioned for film. Julie is thrilled to be living on the west coast and working to grow the Chronicle list. She is especially committed to nurturing and developing new and undiscovered talent.

Anica Mrose Rissi is a senior editor at Simon Pulse, a YA imprint of Simon & Schuster. Prior to joining Pulse in 2007, she was an editor at Scholastic Inc. Anica acquires commercial, high-concept, and literary fiction that appeals directly to teen readers. She looks for quirky humor, smart writing, compelling storytelling, and characters that she can't get out of her head. Anica especially enjoys nurturing and building the careers of debut novelists. Her recent acquisitions include The Hollow by Jessica Verday, Crash Into Me by Albert Borris, Pure by Terra Elan McVoy, Nothing Like You by Lauren Strasnick, Beautiful by Amy Reed, Break by Hannah Moskowitz, and Swoon by Nina Malkin. Her previously published titles include What Would Emma Do? by Eileen Cook, GoldenGirl by Micol Ostow, Model: A Memoir by Cheryl Diamond, Alcatraz Versus the Evil Librarians by Brandon Sanderson, and The Year My Sister Got Lucky by Aimee Friedman. A Maine native and a graduate of Yale University, Anica now bakes, sleeps, and flosses in Brooklyn, New York.

Priscilla Burris was born and raised in Southern California, and has been a natural artist from a very early age. Her education experience includes degrees in Fashion Illustration and Early Childhood Education. Priscilla has illustrated numerous books and materials for children, parents and teachers. Her most recent works include The Tale of Jack Frost (Scholastic/Fall 2008), written by Marcia Thornton Jones, and Tu Si Puedes, Gabriela! (HarperCollins RAYO/Aug 2008), written by Dra. Isabel & Eric Vasallo.
Five Green and Speckled Frogs (Scholastic/March 2003), which she wrote and illustrated, and I Love You All Day Long (HarperCollins/Dec 2002), and Daddy All Day Long, both written by Francesca Rusackas.
Priscilla serves as the National Illustrator Coordinator for the SCBWI, and as a member of their Board of Advisors. This position allows her to help other illustrators in the children's book field.
Married for 27 years, she lives with her husband, three children, and Casper, their friendly dog, in Southern California.
Priscilla's Website: www.priscillaburris.com Blog: http://burrisdraw.blogspot.com

There will be plenty of time for writing and illustrating as well as a few in-depth workshops. All our editors and workshop leaders will be on hand throughout the weekend. Please keep this date on your calendar as the number of rooms at the Hot Springs will be limited.

Updated Jan 23, '09

Macmillan restructures, read story at Publishers Weekly online at:
http://www.publishersweekly.com/article/CA6623005.html?nid=2788
Updated December 22, 2008

PUBLISHERS WEEKLY just reported that the executives at the top of
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt have told the company's trade and reference
editors not to acquire any more books. For a while, that is: the firm
told PW this is "not a permanent change," and that some very appealing
projects might be allowed through.
http://www.publishersweekly.com/article/CA6617241.html

Houghton is notable among the big US publishers in having piled up a lot
of debt in recent years as its new owners assembled the company.
Therefore, this new move is more likely the result of the immediate
credit crunch rather than of worries about the economy in coming years.
Updated November 25, 2008

Updates from the Fall Conference
Scholastic Imprints List and Middle Grade List from Morgan Matson

SCBWI adds new level of membership

At the SCBWI annual conference in August, the Board of Directors and Regional Advisors discussed changes to the organization’s membership policies which take into account the increased number of self-publishing options in today’s industry. There’s a division of opinions whether self-published authors/illustrators should be considered on an equal footing with those who are traditionally published.

The solution was to create a new category of membership, PAL (Published and Listed). To qualify, your work must be published or produced by a company on an approved list, which SCBWI is currently compiling. PAL members will be eligible for services such as speaker lists which are sent to school districts and other arts organizations. In our region, we don’t have enough volunteers to provide these services, so it won’t change much for us. Members who move to other regions may notice more of a difference.

To recap, the three levels of membership in SCBWI now are:
•Associate (unpublished),
•Full (published but not on the list)
•and PAL (published and listed).

If your membership status changes, it will be handled during your annual renewal process.

There will be options to appeal if, for instance, you think you should be PAL but are listed as Full. There will be an appeal committee of the Board that will handle any disputes about whether or not an applicant qualifies for PAL membership. Their decision will be final.

To kick off the PAL registration process, members coming up for renewal will not be able to renew until they submit their most recent published title. Some of our current full members will obviously qualify for a PAL membership; others who are published with a vanity press will not. They can, however, remain full members. We will be issuing new cards to PAL members as they renew which will indicate the PAL status. Also, PAL members will be listed in the online look up, so RA’s can check the status of anyone in question.

PAL SCBWI members will receive certain additional privileges, including but not limited to, the ability to be listed on a speakers’ bureau, the ability to have their books sold or displayed at SCBWI events and booths, and admission to certain designated conference tracks or retreats.

Featured Illustrators

Joe Boddy

A freelance illustrator for over 20 years, Joe has enjoyed creating illustration for most of the major book publishers in the United States. He specializes in art for children and has contributed to over 70 childrens book titles, numerous childrens magazines and hundreds of educational early readers.
After 30 some years creating art and loving most of the traditional mediums Joe has discovered the pixel. His current work, both in illustration and fine art, includes the use of this new medium. Which has become an intregal part of his artistic expression.

us@boddyart.com
http://www.boddyart.com/


Josie Fife

Josie was born in New Mexico, where she spent her childhood in the national forests around Albuquerque.
She now lives in Philipsburg, Montana where she shows her work and continues to paint and draw every day. Josie earned a B.F.A. in drawing and painting from the University of Utah. She also shows her work in Seattle, Washington, Salt Lake City, Utah and Flagstaff, Arizona. She has had several solo shows. She has been accepted in many juried art festivals, including the Park City Arts Festival in Utah and the Best of the Northwest in Seattle. Josie has written and illustrated several children’s books that she hopes to publish in the near future. She won the award of excellence in illustration at the annual scbwi conference in Bozeman September 2006. Her website is www.josiefife.com.
Her favorite children’s book is Calico the Wonder Horse, or the Saga of Stewy Stinker, by Virginia Lee Burton.
Josie has worked as lead scenic artist on dozens of feature films and television projects, most recently the film “The Blind Guy” and the television series “Veronica Mars”. She lives with her husband John Nelson in Philipsburg, Montana.


Marie Nagorski - Jones

"My early commercial work was done for the printed t-shirt and embroidery souvenir market. From that position I had the chance to create pieces both whimsical and realistic. In the last few years I have created characters for product ads and illustrations for the giftware market. I enjoy mixing styles in unexpected ways - and learning new traditional and digital techniques with drawing. My goal is to be versatile and become more involved with narrative (book) illustration - and to always have fun with each project I take
on!"