June 2025

Join us in celebrating our members' news!

Good News !

Links to share your news!

#Draw

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Tonya Duncan Ellis Presenting at SCBWI Summer Virtual Conference!

Author Tonya Duncan Ellis is presenting at SCBWI's Summer Virtual Conference. See Tonya at the "Ins and Outs of Author Publishing - A Self-Publishing Panel," starting at 11:30 a.m. CT on Saturday, August 2. The virtual conference takes place July 31-August 3. Register on SCBWI's website.

Houston's Cathey Nickell is in the news

An article by Cathey Nickell was published in the May/June issue of IBPA's print magazine, called Independent, which is mailed out to 3,600 homes. Her column, "How do you Sell Books to Schools through Author Visits," received a two-page spread, and will be repeated soon on their online site as well. IBPA is the Independent Book Publishers Association, founded in 1983 to serve the indie publishing community

Have News? Share It With Us!

Submit author & illustrator news for the next newsletter by the 25th of each month via this form. Event submissions for member book launches and signings can be added to our regional calendar! Please be sure to include the date, time, and location.

Spotlights

Are you a published author? Are you an illustrator working hard on your craft? Would you like to be featured in one of our monthly newsletters and website? Get your bio & cutest headshot ready and complete the short application.

Authors, c lick here.

Illustrators, click here.

Applications are now open! Got more questions? Email Kaye!

#DrawThis Prompt!

The May prompt is: Oops!

Every month we develop a long list of potential #scbwiDrawThis prompts to choose one word or phrase that will challenge our illustrator members to dig deep and draw. Our goal is to find words rooted in a unique action, mood, point of view, or character theme. We also hope this practice will help you develop new art for your growing portfolios. Share your work with us! We want to see what you create!

#scbwiDrawThis

Illustrator Gallery

Adding your illustrations to your SCBWI profile is a great way to showcase your talents, build a portfolio, and connect with industry professionals.

Visit: https://www.scbwi.org/galleries to view the SCBWI illustrator gallery.

Regional events that look too good to miss

You can scroll through all virtual SCBWI events by clicking here

Crystal Kite Awards 2025 is open for book submissions!

They Built Me for Freedom is in the running for an SCBWI Crystal Kite award, and our own Tonya Ellis would love your support! (You'll find it in the Texas/Oklahoma category) Each year SCBWI recognizes great books from around the world. The Crystal Kite Awards are chosen by other children's book writers and illustrators, making them the only peer-given awards in publishing for young readers.

Submit your votes here!

Once you've voted, you can proudly display your page on your socials!

Price with membership: $15

for both: $25

Virtual Retreat

June14, 2025

Join New Mexico for one or both of their virtual workshops, geared especially toward illustrators! In the first session, Mirka Hokkanen will help you take your character designs from bland and stiff to charming and energetic, using the personality of your character to guide its design and give it energy and using shapes to explore character design--plus five tips on how to draw characters consistently. In the second session, borrowing techniques from cinema, Stan Yan will show you how a graphic novelist approaches sequential storytelling, from writing, to storyboarding, to process for comic strips, picture books, graphic novels and more. Choose one session or register for both! These sessions will be recorded and available to registered attendees for 30 days

Learn more here

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