It's Nearly CBI Conference Time!

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The Children's Books Ireland (CBI) annual conference is coming! This fantastic weekend long event is happening on the 24th & 25th of May this year, and am I ever excited! (Just a bit...) This year, as ever, the line-up of speakers is incredible. And the buzz any childrens' literature enthusiast gets from just being there will sustain you for an entire year (guaranteed!)
The theme of this years' conference is "The F Word: Failure". Let's face it; failure stories are far more interesting than success stories and I'm sure we will all be listening most attentively for the moment when each speakers builds through the struggle to that one moment. It's something we all go through....again and again and again....
Have a look at this taster of what's in store. With all that's on offer, how can you NOT want to be there!:
http://www.childrensbooksireland.ie/conference-and-events/

  • A keynote address from Laureate na nÓg 2014-2016
  • A debut writers panel featuring O’Brien Press author Sheila Agnew (Evie Brooks: Marooned in Manhattan), Irish novelist Sarah Moore Fitzgerald (Back to Blackbrick) and American novelist Leslye Walton (The Strange and Beautiful Sorrows of Ava Lavender).
  • Author of the controversial When Mister Dog Bites, Brian Conaghan
  • Performance poet and children’s author Laura Dockrill (Darcy Burdock)
  • Irish language legend and festival director, playwright, teacher and children’s books author Patricia Forde (Mise agus an Dragún etc)
  • Creator of books for the very small Leslie Patricelli (Yummy Yucky etc)
  • lllustrator David Mackintosh (Marshall Armstrong is New to Our School etc)
  • Award winning novelist Jane Mitchell (Chalkline etc)
  • German writer Kirsten Reinhardt (Fennymore and the Brumella)
  • Creator of Dirty Bertie David Roberts
  • Irish based illustrator Steve Simpson (Cáca don Rí etc)
  • Historical fiction writer Elizabeth Wein (Code Name Verity etc)                                                         

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