Press Release Fun: The 7th Annual Picture Book Summit, 2021

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE      Contact:  Kelli Panique – support@picturebooksummit.com

YUYI MORALES, JON KLASSEN HEADLINE PICTURE BOOK SUMMIT 2021

Portion of Proceeds to Benefit Little Free Library’s

“Read in Color” Initiative

The lineup for the 7^th annual Picture Book Summit, the world’s largest online picture book writing conference, has been announced. The event will stream globally on Saturday, October 2.

This year’s Summit is headlined by two picture book superstars – Yuyi Morales (Caldecott Honoree and recipient of Golden Kite Medal, the Christopher Award, the Jane Adams Award and numerous other honors) and Jon Klassen (winner of the Caldecott Medal and the Kate Greenaway Medal and bestselling author with more than 2.7 million copies of his books in print).

Discounted Early Bird registration is now open at PictureBookSummit.com

Attendees will also enjoy instructional workshops from:

• Editor/Educator Laura Backes: Rules Schmules: How to Break the Rules and Get Away with It

• Authors Emma Walton Hamilton & Julie Hedlund: Pitch Perfect: Fine-Tuning the Voice in Your Pitch

• Author Rob Sanders: Mind Mapping Your Way to Authentic Stories

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Agent/Editor Panels will include:

• Eileen Robinson, Executive Editor and Consultant to the Publisher, Reycraft Books
• Helen H. Wu, Associate Publisher, Yeehoo Press
• Naomi Krueger, Acquisitions Editor, Beaming Books
• Adria Goetz, Martin Literary Management
• Emily Forney, BookEnds Literary
• Stefanie Molina, Ladderbird Literary Agency

Meet the Superstars:

Yuyi Morales was born in Xalapa, Mexico, the city of flowers and springs. After migrating to the US in 1994, she struggled with English and loneliness in a culture foreign to her but found solace in public libraries, where she read children’s books with her son and discovered a renewed interest in stories and art.

She is now the author and illustrator of many books for children, including the New York Times bestseller Dreamers, Nino Wrestles the World, and she is a six-time winner of the Pura Belpre Medal for an outstanding work of literature for children that best portrays, affirms, and celebrates the Latino cultural experience. Other honors include the Americas Award, the Golden Kite Medal, the Christopher Award, the Jane Adams Award, and the Tomas Rivera Award. In 2015, she received the Caldecott Honor for her book Viva Frida.

Jon Klassen is the author-illustrator of This Is Not My Hat, winner of the Caldecott Medal and the Kate Greenaway Medal, the first book to receive both honors; and its companion books, I Want My Hat Back, and We Found a Hat, and The Rock from the Sky. He also illustrated two Caldecott Honor Books, Sam and Dave Dig a Hole and Extra Yarn, as well as Triangle, Square, Circle, and The Wolf, the Duck, & the Mouse, all written by Mac Barnett.  There are over 2.7 million copies of his books in print.

Klassen’s work has received many awards and accolades. The New York Times Book Review says, “no one does perturbed animals better,” and The Los Angeles Times remarks “The hallmark of Klassen’s work is what is not shown but rather left to the imagination.” Klassen’s work has appeared in Kung Fu Panda, Coraline, and The New Yorker. 

Since its inaugural year, Picture Book Summit has donated over $35,000 to literacy-based charities. A portion of proceeds from this year’s event will benefit Read in Color, a new initiative bringing diverse books to Little Free Library book-sharing

boxes around the world. Read in Color distributes books that provide perspectives on racism and social justice; celebrate BIPOC, LGBTQ, and other marginalized voices; and incorporate experiences from all identities for all readers.

The full day’s lineup, along with registration information, can be found at http://PictureBookSummit.com

Now in its seventh year, Picture Book Summit is a collaborative project by the founders of Just Write for Kids, 12 x 12 Picture Book Writing Challenge, the Writers’ Block, and Children’s Book Insider, the Children’s Writing Monthly. 

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The annual event is a world-class online conference focused on giving working and aspiring picture book authors in-depth and actionable instruction of the highest quality. It’s about direct learning from the greatest picture book authors on the planet, from the comfort and safety of home.

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