Northern California Storybook & Literature Festival

Roseville's Litfest from 2010 came back again this year on April 14, re-branded as the Northern California Storybook & Literature Festival. This was a free event with a few workshops and panels, but was mainly put on to offer local authors a chance to celebrate their books and connect with readers.

My crit partner Rachel Allen Dillon had a lovely booth setup



And gave a wonderful presentation on writing and illustrating her picture book, Through Endangered Eyes



And fellow Society of Children's Book Writers & Illustrators member Lori Mortensen braved the chilly weather to showcase her picture books



while I went to go watch the Young Adult Fiction panel (left to right: Linda Joy Singleton, Kim Culbertson, and Pamela Johnson [Jennifer Walker was on the panel too but all the pictures of her came out blurry because she was fiddling with her hair--sorry, Jennifer!])



All in all, this was a great local event and I hope they continue to do more of them!

P.S. Rachel Allen Dillon, Lori Mortensen, and Linda Joy Singleton will all have items in the Pens for Paws Auction! Make sure to follow over on the Pens for Paws Auction site if you'd like to bid.

A Bunch of Children's Book Authors Walk into a Bar . . .

Just kidding! This was a completely alcohol-free event where we got together for headshots, and had a group portrait done with props from the Wacky Hat Bag. We are clockwise from left:
Nancy Ashcraft Herman (in the brown)
Rachel Allen Dillon (in the flower garland)
Thelma White (in the dark hat w/red flower)
Lori Mortensen (in the jester's cap)
Christina Mercer (in the boa)
Angelica R. Jackson (in the pirate hat)

And for the record, our mouths are open because we are saying, "Cannibalism!" An inside joke for our critique group (everybody in the photo but Lori). We meet at a local market cafe, and we've gotten some weird looks as people walk by and we're discussing such esoteric subjects as cannibalism, violence, and sex (in the context of our books).