Finding Jewish Joy: An intensive mini-course on writing picture books

SCBWI Israel presents...

Finding Jewish Joy: An intensive mini-course on writing picture books

Online: October 28 – November 11 (extending to Nov 18 if the course fills up)
Mondays 6:30 – 9:00 p.m. in Israel
12:30 – 3:00 p.m. in Toronto (Eastern Time) for the first week, then 11:30 – 2:00 p.m. after that, due to the clock change.

Notes: Initially registration is open only to SCBWI members, but on Wednesday, Sept 25, registration opens to everyone.

First readings will be sent out Oct 21 (and I start making the schedule of when your pieces will be due a couple weeks before that – so please sign up as early as possible! Space is limited ~Brian)

Get ready to roll up your sleeves and polish your picture book manuscripts until they gleam. For this course, you’ll be asked to bring in two of your manuscripts for detailed feedback. Usually, this will be two different picture book manuscripts, but it could be just one and then a revised version. 

Our theme is “finding Jewish joy,” but your stories don’t need to be all sweetness and light. We can find joy in any manuscript we create as long as it’s genuine and touches on the lives of our readers or tickles their imaginations.

Besides critiquing pieces, we’ll have short discussions/lectures addressing the needs of the group. In addition to learning how to critique your own work and receiving constructive suggestions about your writing, you’ll discover that the greatest benefits come from seeing how your classmates approach and critique a piece of writing and how they write and re-write.

This is a highly dynamic, interactive course for serious writers – but we think you'll have a lot of fun, too!

Instructor Brian Henry has been a book editor and creative writing instructor for more than 25 years and has a particular interest and love for Jewish Kid Lit. He publishes Quick Brown Fox, Canada's most popular blog for writers, taught creative writing at Ryerson University (now Toronto Metropolitan University), and has led workshops everywhere from Boston to Buffalo and from Sarnia to Saint John. 

Brian is also the author of a children's version of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (Tribute Publishing), but his proudest boast is that he has helped many of his students get published.  

Read reviews and pieces about ~ or inspired by ~ Brian's various writing courses, workshops, and retreats here (and scroll down).

As a writer, Brian mostly writes commentary. For his recent work, see here (and scroll down). But he also writes about Jewish books, particularly books for young people. See here (and scroll down).

Fee: for SCWIBI member: $100 U.S. For the general public: $140 U.S.

To register, go here and click on the green Register for Event button, then on the new screen, click on the green Purchase button down in the bottom right-hand corner: https://www.scbwi.org/events/pbminicourse

FAQs

Is this mini-course in English or Hebrew?
This and all other SCBWI Israel events are in English unless otherwise stated.

What does SCBWI stand for?
The Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators.

Is this for picture book or middle grade writers?
This mini-course will focus exclusively on picture books.

Do I have to live in Israel to participate?
This mini-course is open to all SCBWI members, regardless of where they live.

Do I have to be a SCBWI member to participate?
After September 25th, if space permits, we will open this mini-course up to non-SCBWI members as well.

Do I have to be Jewish to participate?
All SCBWI events are open to anyone, of any ethnicity or religion. It might help if you write "Jewish stories" or "Jewish picture books." But you get to choose how you define those terms!

What forms of payment do you accept?
For your convenience, you can now pay via the SCBWI site using any internationally recognized credit card.

What currency will I be paying in?
All program pricing is now listed in $US (US dollars). The payment gateway may offer you the option of paying in your local currency (e.g. converting the cost to shekels if you live in Israel). This is beyond our control. Please contact us at Israel@scbwi.org if you have any questions about paying for this event.

 What other events does SCBWI Israel have going on?
Glad you asked! Hope to see you at another event soon.

What else does Brian Henry have going on?
Check out all his upcoming on-day writing workshops, four-day retreats, and weekly classes here.