In this episode of the SCBWI Podcast, we are joined by Tracy van Straaten! TRACY VAN STRAATEN, Founder and President Founded in 2019, TvS Media Group LLC  is an award-winning boutique public relations and consulting firm specializing in book publishing, entertainment, and brand management, with particular expertise in children's and young adult media. Founder and President Tracy van Straaten has more than 30 years of publicity, communications, and marketing experience, and she has created hundreds of campaigns for bestselling, award-winning, and debut authors, as well as beloved characte ..read more

In this episode of the SCBWI Podcast, we are joined by Debbie Ridpath Ohi! Debbie Ridpath Ohi is a children’s book author and illustrator who has helped create over 20 books for young people. She loves her job. She is the author and illustrator of I WANT TO READ ALL THE BOOKS, WHERE ARE MY BOOKS?, and SAM & EVA (Simon & Schuster). Her illustrations have appeared in books by Judy Blume, Michael Ian Black, Linda Sue Park, and others. You can find Debbie on Bluesky, SubStack, Instagram, her Bookstagram, Facebook, YouTube, X, https://debbieohi.com/ PreOrder Debbie's Book Here: https://b ..read more

In this episode of the SCBWI Podcast, we are joined by F.T. Lukens! F.T. Lukens is a New York Times bestselling author of YA speculative fiction including the novels Spell Bound, So This Is Ever After (2023 ALA Rainbow Booklist; 2022 Goodreads Choice Awards nominee), In Deeper Waters (2022 ALA Rainbow Booklist; Junior Library Guild Selection), and the forthcoming Otherworldly as well as other science-fiction and fantasy works. F.T. resides in North Carolina with their spouse, three kids, three dogs, and three cats. Buy Otherworldy here: https://bookshop.org/p/books/otherworldly-f-t-lukens/20 ..read more

In this episode of the SCBWI Podcast, we are joined by renowned illustrator/cartoonist/graphic novelist Cece Bell! Cece Bell has written and illustrated many books for children, among them the beloved Sock Monkey books, the Geisel Award-winning Rabbit and Robot: The Sleepover, and the Newbery Honor-winning graphic novel El Deafo. She and her husband, author Tom Angleberger, have also collaborated on the picture book Crankee Doodle and the Inspector Flytrap chapter book series. She lives in Virginia with her family. Check out Animal Albums here: https://animalalbums.com/ Purchase it here: ht ..read more

In this episode of the SCBWI Podcast, we are joined by John Schu aka Mr. Schu! John Schu has made a career out of advocating for the people and things he cares about most: kids, books, and the people that connect them. He was named a Library Journal Mover and Shaker for his dynamic interactions with students and his passionate adoption of new technologies as a means of connecting authors, illustrators, books, and readers. He is the children’s librarian for Bookelicious, a part-time lecturer at Rutgers University, and shares his love of reading with countless educators and students around the ..read more

In this episode of the SCBWI Podcast, we are joined by Richard Jesse Watson! Port Townsend painter, illustrator, and sculptor, Richard Jesse Watson, has received numerous awards and several of his books were New York Times Bestsellers. His paintings hang in museums, corporate and private collections internationally.  Watson is an accomplished artist and perpetual experimenter. He often breaks out of boxes in his quest for originality.  "His work is a process of thinking: …to balance and nod to the extremes on either end of an idea.” Kristin Tollefson, Bainbridge Island Museum of A ..read more

In this Podcast Replay, we are joined by James Ransome, the iconic illustrator of classics like Before She Was Harriet (written by Lesa Cline-Ransome), Uncle Jed's Barbershop, Visiting Day, and so many more incomparable titles. James never does the same thing twice, and in our expansive and focused conversation, we discussed ways of seeing, color and quilts, his mentorship with the great Jerry Pinkney, and how his love of Parliament Funkadelic keeps him experimenting. Follow James on Instagram: jransomillustr Follow James on Facebook: James Ransome Illustration James's Website: https://jamesr ..read more

In this episode of the SCBWI Podcast, we are joined by Kwame Mbalia! Kwame is a husband, father, writer, a New York Times bestselling author, a former pharmaceutical metrologist, and a publisher with Freedom Fire Books, an imprint of Disney-Hyperion. His debut middle-grade novel, TRISTAN STRONG PUNCHES A HOLE IN THE SKY was awarded a Coretta Scott King Author Honor, and it—along with the sequels TRISTAN STRONG DESTROYS THE WORLD and TRISTAN STRONG KEEPS PUNCHING—is published by Rick Riordan Presents/Disney-Hyperion. He is the co-author of LAST GATE OF THE EMPEROR with Prince Joel Makonnen, fr ..read more

In this episode of the SCBWI Podcast, we are joined by Eugene Yelchin! Eugene Yelchin is a graduate of the Academy of Theater Arts in St. Petersburg, Russia where he designed sets and costumes for stage productions until his immigration to the United States.  In Los Angeles, CA, he earned his graduate degree from the USC School of Cinematic Arts after which, he went on to direct television commercials and illustrate advertising campaigns (designing the original polar bears for Coca Cola). His first character designs were for the animated movie Rango, which won the Academy Award for Best ..read more

Theo Baker talks with the chart-busting illustrator and book creator, Vashti Harrison, about how she anticipated success, and built her incredible career. Theo even got in a few questions about experimental film.  For all the latest on Vashti, head over to her website www.vashtiharrison.com, and follow her on Twitter at @VashtiHarrison and Instagram at @vashtiharrison.  For more info about the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators, please visit SCBWI.org.  Support the show ..read more