Welcome to Young Adulting Review!
As the summer is well and truly underway, we hope you’re keeping cool and finding pockets of time to relax with a great book in hand!
As with every monthly newsletter, we have some great information ahead. Read on for a look backwards at our past reviews, some industry updates, events, and job opportunities!
Since our last newsletter…
YAing updates:
- Tatjana Huber reviewed The Island Before No written by Christina Uss and illustrated by Hudson Christie! This picture book tackles the challenges of setting boundaries and learning how to say “no.” Huber shares, “Uss handles this idea with whimsy and depth. Even though narration is used sparingly, it’s poetic and playfully delivered. Uss manages to convey how difficult and uncomfortable saying no can be, but how necessary it is.” To read the review, click here!
- Maia Dueck reviewed Meet Me on Love Street by Farah Heron. This charming YA romance acts as a love letter to Toronto and love itself! Dueck shares that, “At its core, this book centers around community. Heron establishes a well-rounded world full of intriguing and diverse characters. Both Love Street and the surrounding city setting of Toronto are full of life, adding to the robust environment that the characters exist within.” You can see what else she had to say by reading the full review here.
Keep an eye out for our upcoming reviews!
Industry Events and News
Word Vancouver is just around the corner! This year will mark the 32nd year of operation and of celebration for all things story. While the festival won’t begin until September, you can head on over to their website to see the line-up for the fall. From manuscript consultations to pitching tips and tricks, you can see the range of events already on the schedule here!
If you’re looking to get involved, you can volunteer. Word Vancouver already has applications open and they’ve shared that “while most shifts will fall within the regular festival hours (11:00 am – 5:00 pm) volunteers will be needed as early as 7:30 am and as late as 6:30 pm for set up and takedown.” Something to note is that volunteer shifts are 3 hours long with the option of having a longer shift for those interested.
Some volunteer roles include:
- Checking in volunteers and authors
- Information table
- Festival ambassadors to encourage street traffic to check out the festival
- Helping out at the children’s tent
- Assisting authors and attendees in the workshop rooms
- Silent Auction
- Exhibitors area
- Green Room area
- Floaters/Runners (to assist where needed)
If you’re interested, you can apply here!
For all the teen romance lovers out there, VPL has a fun event coming up on July 20th from 5:30-8pm. From the registration page: “Join us for a sweet summer social hangout with workshops, author readings, meet and greets with local romance authors and more! Bring your favourite books to discuss and recommend to the community.
This event features local Mother-Daughter romance authors Jody Holford (AKA Sophie Sullivan) and Kalie Holford, Lily Miller, Lindsay Maple, Hunter Snow, Sara Blaydes, Anthony Nerada, Julia Jarret and Bal Khabra. Joining as well will be moderator Amy H, Amy Pelletier (Perfect Match), Courtney and Lauren from River City Reader Events and Bella from Blossoming Books.”
This is a wonderful way to meet fellow book lovers as well as established authors! You can read more and register here!
On July 30th from 3:45-4:45, VPL is hosting a Virtual Tween Book Club: Pride Edition. This zoom event is open to those between grades 4-7. “Join us online to discover new books and connect with other kids. Fantasy, adventure, laugh-out-loud books and graphic novels – each month has a different focus. For Tweens in Grades 4-7.
This month we’ll be talking about books by 2SLGBTQIA+ authors.”
So, if you want to connect and find new books, register here!
Submissions
- Linda Leith Publishing is open for submissions. “LLP welcomes submissions by new and established Canadian writers working in English in the following genres: fiction, literary non-fiction, including Singles essays, and books for young people.”
One quick, but very important, tip that they share is that ” The best way to judge if your work is likely to be a good fit for LLP is to check out our catalogue and read our books.” So, make sure your work aligns with LLP and then follow the submission guidelines here.
- If you’re over 18 and Canadian, Kids Can Press is accepting the following manuscript submissions:
- Non-rhyming picture books for ages 3–5 / 3–7 / 4–8
- Nonfiction for ages 5–8 / 7–10 / 8–12 / 10–14
- Fiction for ages 6–9 / 7–10 / 8–12 /10–14
- Graphic novels (fiction and nonfiction) for ages 5-8 / 6-9 / 7-10 / 8-12
To find out more, read the full specs here.
- Annick Press is open for submissions!
They share that “Annick Press is currently accepting submissions of picture books, early chapter books, middle grade fiction, YA fiction, graphic novels, and non-fiction for kids of all ages. We also encourage illustrators to submit their portfolios for consideration. Our books aim to empower readers, open minds, and create a lifelong love of reading. They feature contemporary themes (even if the setting is historical) and center kids’ perspectives and experiences.”
So, if you’ve got your manuscripts ready, polish them up and follow the submission guidelines found here.
- Lastly, this year, the 8th annual Unpublished Picture Book Showcase will be taking place and the application deadline has been extended to July 26th! This is open to emerging and established picture book artists and illustrators who are trying to find a home for their unpublished project!
From the dPICTUS website: “Picturebook makers from all around the world submit their unpublished projects to be considered by a large jury of top international publishers. The jury publishers vote independently for their favourites, and the projects with the most votes go into a unique book fair showcase and are presented online to hundreds of publishers in the dPICTUS community. Picturebook projects from our previous showcases continue to be acquired by publishers around the world, and many of the artists have been approached by publishers and agents.”
If this sounds interesting to you, apply and read on here!
Job Opportunities:
- Page Two Books is hiring an Editorial & Production Coordinator!
This indie publisher specializes in non-fiction books and values their small but impressive team, and are ready to bring in someone new.
From their website: “We are seeking a full-time Editorial & Production Coordinator to join our team.
You will play a key role in Page Two’s editorial and production operations, ensuring books move smoothly from manuscript through to publication. As an Editorial & Production Coordinator, you will execute production schedules, coordinate vendors and freelancers, maintain bibliographic records, and provide editorial support across a diverse portfolio of non-fiction projects. You are a highly organized, detail-oriented professional who thrives in a fast-paced environment, communicates proactively, and takes pride in keeping complex, multi-stakeholder projects on track.”
Applications for this role will close July 24th, so, read the full specs, and send in your application soon! Find out more 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. And remember to keep up with us on on Instagram!
Take care, and happy reading,
The Young Adulting Editors
YOUNG ADULTING 