Katapult - Edition 7 - July, 2018

Welcome to Katapult!

July is one of my favourite months of the year! Both my children were born in July so it’s like Christmas at our house. Cards, balloons and wrapping paper can be seen everywhere. One party is sadly over, but we still have one more to go.

It’s a beautiful, sunny day as I write this newsletter today - something we haven’t seen enough of around here recently - we are water-logged! 

So what’s been happening at my desk since the last time we had a chat? Plenty!

What’s Up?

CBCA NSW Branch Inc Newcastle Sub-branch Meeting: 

Our latest meeting featured Ed Wright from The Creative Wordshop. Ed shared with us how his business is helping local writers of all ages and experiences improve their writing skills. 

Puppy Update: 

Our puppy, Ivy turned four-months old on the 28th June. She has certainly claimed her spot in our family and we adore her. The good news is she is 100% clear of any health issues and we managed to avoided surgery last month for a reoccurring abscess. She is happy and busy - just the way puppies should be. We’ve completed puppy school now and things are going well. Fingers crossed they stay that way! I could waste time looking at her all day long - similar to when you bring newborns home. I just wish she would stop stealing things and chewing them! She's so cheeky.

And of course I have a picture book story plan thanks to her puppy antics with a box.

Kids and YA Festival: 

I attended the biannual Kids and YA Festival last weekend hosted by Belinda Murrell and Writing NSW (formally the NSW Writers Centre). Lots of engaging and entertaining panels filled the day with inspiration and hope. I was lucky enough to have been chosen to pitch a picture book manuscript to a panel of three children’s publishers during the last session (Scholastic, Hachette, HarperCollins). Two of them wanted to see the manuscript after the pitch. I've sent it off now so cross your fingers for me :)

I love catching up with all my writing and illustrating friends from afar at events like this. It's such a warm and friendly community!

Photo 1: Belinda Murrell in conversation with Jacqueline Harvey

Photo 2: Dub Leffler, Sarah Davis (chair), Aura Parker, Kirli Saunders and Paul Russell

Photo 1: Dub Leffler

Photo 2: Me, Marian McGuinness, Belinda Murrell, Lindy Batchelor

Photo 1: Jacqueline Harvey (chair), Tim Harris, RA Pratt and Oliver Phommavanh

Photo 2: Kate Forsyth, Jane McCredie (Writing NSW), Belinda Murrell

Bookings for Books Week School Visits:

If you’d like me (or Kirrili and I as an author/illustrator team) to come to your school, shoot me an email so we can organise one that is perfectly designed for your school’s needs. Preschools, Primary Schools and High Schools welcome!

I'm also represented by: 

The Children's Bookshop Speakers Agency

Greenleaf Agency (Greenleaf Press)

Upcoming Events

I’m doing a monthly story time event at Harry Hartog, Kotara until the end of the year. My July visit is on Wednesday, 11th July at 10:30am - first week of the school holidays.

All my 2018 story time dates can be found here.

We are going to see Andy Griffiths and Terry Denton on stage taking about their latest release, The 104 Storey Treehouse during these school holidays. Andy is my hero and I can’t wait to see both of them on stage. They released a second show in Newcastle recently. Tickets for the second show can be found here.

Publishing Update

I’ve been working with Kirrili and our publisher this week on all the draft internals of Up To Something due for release May next year (EK Books). OMG! is all I can say. Our book is coming together beautifully. We tweaked a few pencil lines here, and a few words there to make it the best book it can be. Kirrili is now ready to splash the colours around and start the final illustrations. We can’t wait to share this one with the world!

I’ve also seen some draft internals of No Baths Week today, due for release early 2019 (Big Sky Publishing). These are full of magic too. Cheri Hughes is a very clever chook. 

My fifth picture book, Isla’s Family Tree (third one with EK Books) has found a home on an illustrator’s easel who is busting to help my words jump off the page with the help of beautiful illustrations. I saw some of the concept drawings this week. My heart is singing. Her full identity will be revealed soon. This will be a 2020 release.

I know … when it rains, it pours! All three books in the one week! I have three beautiful illustrators working on my stories at the moment and I feel like the luckiest author in the world!

Anything to Share?

The Hunter Writers Centre is hosting a children’s writing workshop with Sue Whiting on the 11th Aug from 9:45am. If you'd like to join us, please follow the link here.

Recent Book Purchases?

Teacup by Rebecca Young and Matt Ottley (This one took my breath away.)

Errol by Zanni Louise and Philip Bunting (This one is simple and cute but clever.)

Where can you find me on social media?

I’ve made it easy. Just click on the live links below and like or follow me.

Website

Blog

Facebook

Instagram

Twitter

My YouTube channel

Feel free to leave a comment or drop me an email: author@katrinamckelvey.com

I’d love to hear from you!

Some photos of my winter Camellias I popped onto Instagram last week. 

I love receiving drawings from my daughter.

CBCA NSW Inc. Northern Sydney Sub-branch 'Lunch with the Stars' Event

I was invited to participate as a 'star' in the CBCA NSW Inc. Northern Sydney Sub-branch's annual

Lunch with the Stars! 

I didn't realise how lucky I was until it all unfolded yesterday.

Mark Thomason, Serena Geddes, Kate Forsyth, Paul Russell, Belinda Murrell, Wendy Fitzgerald, Kaz Delaney, P.J Tierney, Oliver Phommavanh, Marjorie Crosby-Fairall, Tonya Alexander, Jacqueline Harvey, Andrew Cranna, Debra Tidball, Yvette Poshoglian, Katrina McKelvey, Jill B. Bruce.
(Absent from photo: Jess Black, Wendy Blaxland, Susanne Gervay, Lesley Gibbes, Jan Latta)

For this extraordinary event to happen, it took a combination of the following things:

Belinda Murrell - event founder, organiser, and key speaker

Wendy Fitzgerald, president of the Northern Sydney Sub-branch and her sub-branch team

The Grand Hall of the International College of Management, Sydney (ICMS)

A stunning day in Manly

22 authors and illustrators

23 tables of children

200+ children, teachers, and librarians and 

5 Room to Read ambassadors and Zac the Yak

Tables dotted the room with decorations just waiting for the children to surround them.

Event booklets were placed everywhere so children could study their favourite 

participating authors and illustrators and learn about some new ones.

 I had the most amazing honour of sharing my table with 

children from Stewart House. 

From their website:

Every year 1,800 public school children attend our safe haven next to Curl Curl beach at no cost to their parents or carers.  During a 12 day stay they are provided with dental, optical, hearing and medical screening and treatment. 

Children participate in educational programs and excursions designed to develop their social and emotional skills, build self-esteem and improve their overall well-being.  

This experience provides children with a much needed break from their current circumstance.  Our children are inspired to see beyond the present and to have real hope and positive aspirations for their future. 

Children in the care of Stewart House attend a specific purpose school onsite for 8 days of their 12-day stay.   The NSW Department of Education and Communities provides infrastructure and staffing support for this school.

These children were also gifted a new book of their choice from the Northern Sydney Sub-branch.

 Once the buzzing room settled, Belinda Murrell spoke of her life, family 

and writing career. She was very animated, interesting and inspiring.

Then Room to Read ambassadors Belinda Murrell, Jacqueline Harvey, Oliver Phommavanh, Kate Forsyth, and Susanne Gervay promoted the Room to Read project with some help from Zac the Yak! 

http://www.roomtoread.org/Australasia

Then illustrator, Andrew Cranna, creator of 'The Bloodhound Boys', sent the room 

in a spin with crazy illustration challenges. The kids had a blast doing these.

Lunch was served soon after. We were very hungry after so much fun.

Following lunch, the children made a mad scramble to the book shop and book creators for autographs. I've never signed my name so many times in such a short amount of time. 

I sure felt like a 'star'!

 A few familiar book friends made an appearance as well. 

I would love to have the same travelling schedule as these three ladies!

What a privilege it was to share my new yet-to-be-released book, Dandelions (one month to go!), 

writing journey and writing tips with such beautiful children at this truly grand event. 

It will go down as a very memorable one for me.

I find it hard to describe how I felt with all these clever children in such a grand building 

and in such a special location. I would definitely jump at the opportunity to do it all again 

- including the 4:45am get-up and journey to and from Newcastle!

 Congratulations to the organising team from the CBCA Northern Sydney sub-branch. 

It always takes a team of people to make an event this size successful. 

I hope we can make the CBCA Newcastle 'Lunch with the Stars' event in November just as amazing.

High Tea with Belinda Murrell at Wallsend Library

Dressing up with my daughter to attend a literary High Tea with Belinda Murrell at Wallsend Library was an absolute highlight for us during Book Week this week.

As my daughter and I arrived, we were greeted by an excited Belinda, immersed in images from Belinda's very popular Lulu Bell series, and encased in a beautifully decorated room, with books and splashes of colour everywhere. The scene was set for a lovely afternoon. 

First stop: the bookshop! Belinda then snuggled into Lara (our Lulu) and signed her new books. They had a lovely little chat.

Then Lara discovered the colouring in (and coloured in happily while wearing pearls of course).

Next we ate lots of beautiful, fresh strawberries (while colouring in).

Then we listened to Belinda as she shared her writing life and her family with us. Following this we participated in fun Lulu Bell quizzes and games. Our table even won some prizes.

More sweet treats arrived followed by a photo opportunity with Lulu Bell. This cutout has travelled the country. She looks like she needs a rest.

Thank you Wallsend Library for hosting, Belinda Murrell for sharing her wonderful stories, and Julie Swane for providing such a lovely experience. I enjoyed spending some precious time with my daughter as we shared our love of books. 

We look forward to jumping into Lulu's adventures involving pirates and turtles soon.

Happy Book Week 2015. Let's make books light up our world!