Happy October, dear readers! The year is flying by, and it’s time for pumpkin-flavoured treats, misty mornings, and a mystery novel (or two!). So, without further ado, lets dive into all the fun things happening at Young Adulting this month!
YAing Updates
In our October author spotlight, managing editor Hannah Luppe interviews poet and children’s book author Jordan Scott. He is the author of two picture books, with I Talk Like A River being the recipient of the American Library Association’s, Schneider Family Book Award, which honours authors for the artistic expression of the disability experience. His most recent children’s book My Baba’s Garden.
Understand the workings and market pressures of your genre. Talk to other writers who have published in your genre and ask them specific questions about agents, query letters, editors, presses and so on. If they are willing, ask to see their query letters from when they first started out. Don’t be shy to ask these writers for introductions to editors or agents. This is fairly common, and I find (and hope!) that everyone, no matter how well known, remembers how they first started.
Don’t forget to check out our recorded conversation for extra content!
We’ve also published some marvellous reviews. Here’s a recap:
- “P.T. Barnum claimed that clowns are the pegs on which the circus is hung, which must mean that the future of any great circus is the birth of a baby clown. In Baby Clown, Kara LaReau’s amusing story of the first, rather noisy, days of the Dingling Circus heir, will delight readers. He cries, wails and sobs, and nobody can calm him down. Boffo and Frieda, his beleaguered parents who never remove their clown makeup, tend to his every whim, but to no avail. New parents will likely recognize the futile attempts of this frazzled duo with weary amusement.” Vanessa Bedford Gill reviews Baby Clown by Kara LaReau, illus. by Matthew Cordell
- “Anne, with her affinity for puffed sleeves, extraordinary imagination, and zest for life with her lovely family and kindred spirits, is as inviting and exciting as ever in Anne Dares. This is a perfect chapter book for those new to and familiar with Anne of Green Gables.” Sophia Thomson reviews Anne Dares adapted by Kallie George, illus. Abigail Halpin
As always, check back every Thursday and every other Tuesday for more reviews of upcoming and new releases.
Industry News
The Vancouver Writers Fest is fast approaching! The 36th annual festival takes place October 16 – 22 and offers a variety of virtual and in-person events. Click here to browse and purchase tickets!
FOLD Kids Book Fest takes place from November 1 – November 5 and tickets are on sale now! This is an annual literary festival dedicated to engaging young readers and writers, as well as empowering educators. The festival will include virtual and in-person events. Click here to register!
A reminder that Diaspora Dialogues is offering a Long Form Mentorship for novels, short story collections, creative non-fiction/memoir and invites submissions from emerging writers who currently have a full or near-full draft of a manuscript. The deadline to apply is October 31, 2023. Please see their submission guidelines here.
As always, please do send us your news related to children’s and young adult literature at young.adulting@ubc.ca so we can feature them in future newsletters. Our newsletter is published on the 2nd and 4th Tuesdays of each month. And remember to keep up with us on Twitter and Instagram!
Take care, and happy reading,
The Young Adulting Editors
YOUNG ADULTING 