Highlights from the 2003 SCBWI Fall Retreat

Return to L’Auberge

by Rachel Eugster

The 5th annual SCBWI-Canada retreat took place on a gorgeous autumn weekend in September, 2003. Fourteen participants from all over Ontario and Quebec convened at L’Auberge de Pionniers in Mattawa, in a return visit to the site of the 2001 SCBWI-Canada retreat.

Following introductions, the group got right down to business with manuscript critiques in the central lodge. With a whole weekend stretching ahead, the task of fitting in fourteen critiques didn’t seem too daunting, and the assembled company stayed together rather than breaking into smaller groups.

On Saturday morning, author Marilyn Helmer presented the feature talk, “The Writer Who Wears Many Hats-Exploring Different Genres.” Marilyn traced her career as a children’s bookauthor and storyteller from its beginnings in a love of antique silver spoons. Upon discovering, as a young mom, that research she had conducted for her own pleasure could be turned into a magazine article, she realized that she had found a calling she could pursue while staying home with her children. Since then, she has never missed a chance to explore new avenues in writing. From her first published piece for children (a poem called “Sly Fly”), to the series of joke books she is currently producing, she has tried her hand at every possible genre for all age groups, including adults. Along the way, she has turned a single word (“ornery”) into a picture book, a mysterious designation (“moon-cussers”) into a ballad, and her affection for Carl Sandburg’s poem “The Cat” into the award-winning picture book Fog Cat.

At the outset, Marilyn set herself two goals: to write from 8:00 to 12:00 every day, and to make at least three submissions every month. She entered every contest that came along, winning first prize with an adult story early on, which netted her a home computer. Marilyn has written fiction and non-fiction, poetry, ballads, puzzles, jokes, picture books, early readers, magazine articles, short stories, re-told folk tales, and chapter books.

“What makes a writer-in addition to talent-is perseverance, dedication, and hard work,” Marilyn said, “-and, every once in a while, plain, simple good luck.” To illustrate this, she described how an

article entitled “Put a Sock in it, Mr. Edison,” with which she wonsecond place and $100 in a science contest, led to a book series. When the article ran, her editor at KidsCan Press just happened to see it.

Marilyn described the ups and downs of a writing career. The first story for children she published was “Just One Puppy.” “The pay was enough to take the family out to dinner,” she said. “At MacDonald’s. If we all had a Happy Meal.”

When her first picture book was published, she thought she’d finally made it, and was heartbroken when it was not a commercial success. But her next picture book, Fog Cat, garnered all the recognition her first did not, and went on to win four awards. But even so, all of Marilyn’s next few submissions to KidsCan were rejected.

“Behind every published work, my rejected ones lurk in the depths of my file cabinets. This is just part of a writer’s life,” she said. “Don’t let rejection get to you. Accentuate the positive, eliminate the negative.

And don’t forget that genres don’t necessarily have borders,” she added. “An article for adults can become a story for kids. You can write on any subject for children.

“When it comes to writing, hats have been very good to me,” Marilyn concluded, donning a hat-of-many-hats that she had created specifically for speaking on this topic.

Following Marilyn’s talk, the group broke for lunch, and then reconvened outdoors on the dock for more critiques. This time, the illustrators took their turn, showing their work in the bright (and hot!) sunlight. This session was followed by an afternoon of free time for canoeing, hiking, working, chatting, even napping.

After a wonderful dinner of Cajun catfish cooked by lodge hosts Rick Bazzo and Ann McClure, critiques were concluded in a final session in the lodge.

On Sunday morning, Elizabeth Ulin gave a fascinating workshop, “It’s Not Too Taxing, Really,” in which she discussed tax benefits for writers and illustrators. Elizabeth’s talk was thorough and clear.

Much of it came as news to most of the participants, while even those for whom it was familiar territory walked away with some new tips. Even those not yet earning money with their work were convinced to start itemizing and filing their expenses against the day when they can use them as deductions.

The group’s final action was to head home inspired and recharged-ending the weekend with reluctantance, to be sure, but already looking forward to next year.