Write and Illustrate a Picture Book

The Calendar of Events booklet has just been released by the Gold Coast Libraries. It's full of interesting and fun-filled activities for Gold Coast residents in the months of June to August.

It caught me by surprise to find my workshop advertised on page 9 as a full page promotion. So I thought I'd share it with you.

Now if you live on the Gold Coast it's free and I promise you a full day of creative enlightenment. You will read, view and understand picture books from a completely new perspective.

It is not necessary to be able to draw to participate in this workshop. Here are the details:

Ever wondered how to go about illustrating a children’s picture book? This workshop will take you through the process step by step as you learn to develop a visual narrative to a supplied text (or your own). From sketching preliminary roughs, developing characters, storyboarding, page layouts, creating a dummy book to preparing artwork for submission, all areas will be covered, including how to approach a publisher.

Join me on the 23rd August 2011  from 10am to 4pm at the Elanora Library.

Phone the library to book yourself in  on (07) 55 811 671.

Elanora Library

The Pines Shopping Centre

Guineas Creek Road

Elanora 4221

Gold Coast

My Radio Debut

As promised, here at last is the link to my debut on radio.

A few weeks ago Pond Magic was chosen to be the first Book of the Month for 2011 in ABC 91.7 Gold Coast 's Book Club with the lovely presenter Nicole Dyer.

And so one sunny Friday morning I turned up at the ABC 91.7 studios beautifully dressed and coiffed for my 'live' radio interview. Joining me was Stephanie Laverie who had won a copy of Pond Magic and the opportunity to meet the author and review the book live on air through ABC 91.7's Facebook page . - No pressure for me!

Nicole Dyer, Angela Sunde and Stephanie Laverie

Some of you will know that my sister, Nadia Sunde is also a radio presenter. So naturally, I went to her for advice...

"Put on your happy voice," she said. "Speak with a smile on your face the whole time and the listeners will 'hear' that smile."

I took that on board. Just like when teaching, you cannot show your fear. Luckily Nicole Dyer has the knack of making her guests feel relaxed and at home, so I was soon chatting away in my 'happy voice' with remnants of a Kiwi accent.

The segment went for 12 minutes of which an edited 5 minutes (plus a written review) has been published on the ABC 91.7 website. If you'd like to have a listen to the stories behind Pond Magic, my inspiration and how I came to be published, pop over to the link below and scroll down to the audio file.  You'll also get to hear my ... voice. (Scary, I know).

"March Book Club Review: Pond Magic. How do you turn creative ideas of yours into a book that will not only grab a child's attention but keep them hooked? " 

Building your Author Brand

Recently I gave a presentation 'Building your Author Brand' to the Prana Writers group on the Gold Coast. The Prana Writers came together as a group three years ago when we were all successful applicants for a Gold Coast City Council initiative called 'Write That Book'. Under the mentorship of international award winning author, Louise Cusack, the members of our group spent one year completing a novel and the following year editing it. The second year was possible through a Regional Arts Development Fund grant.

This year we have continued to work together towards achieving our goals. At our last meeting I wished to share with the group the experience and knowledge gained from the publication, marketing and promotion of my first book, Pond Magic.

‘Author branding’ is a term I first heard a couple of years ago at a writers’ conference. The concept made complete sense to me; the author is the brand. And while many writers may find self-promotion daunting, I took it on with gusto.
 
But just what is a brand and how do you create an author brand? Someone once told me it is:

‘a promise, an experience and a memory.’

  

Recently a writing friend complimented me on my website. As I encouraged him to create his own, he said: “Oh no, I don’t have a product.” The truth is you don’t need a product (or a published book) to promote your author brand. In fact the earlier you start the better. As a writer you are already producing ideas readers may find interesting. You are self-employed – a one man band. And, unless this is a hobby for you, you should begin to look upon your writing as a business and yourself as a professional. Once you do, walking into a pitch session with a potential publisher or agent will be so much less intimidating.

So just how would I describe my author brand?

Fun, creative, flamboyant, international

and above all…

professional.

Now, think of five words to describe yours…

I am available for Author Talks and Creative Writing workshops for adults and children.

Contact: angelasunde@live.com.au