Carla M. Pacis

  

Above: Carla with fellow SCBWI members Lin Flores in Manila and Madonna Davidoff in New York 

Was the SCBWI New York Conference Worth the Expense?

2003 April 9 Manila --More than a month has passed since the SCBWI Conference in New York 
and I still remember it clearly. It helped that some of the movie Maid in Manhattan were shot at 
the same hotel where the conference was held and where most of the 600 plus participants were 
booked -- the beautiful Roosevelt Hotel on 45th Street.

Most memorable for me was the lecture Linda Sue Park gave on the craft of writing. Ms. Park is 
not only Korean-American but also the winner of the 2002 Newberry Award for her book 
"A Simple Shard". She began her speech talking about labels,like the Newberry Prize, and how 
they tend to deceive us. They are not what makes a poem, or a short story, or a novel resonate 
and are only good for resumes or introductions. Throughout her lecture, Ms. Park often repeated 
a phrase that has become my mantra and which I now share with my students and anyone 
interested in writing: "the right words, in the proper order in the service of the story." These simple 
words are very deceptive as they hide the fact that to be a good writer, one must work constantly 
and very hard at the craft.

Equally memorable for me was the New York Showcase. For the first time in SCBWI history, 
illustrators were invited to exhibit their work of which 10 would be chosen by a panel of judges 
composed of illustrators, art directors and editors. The ten finalists would eventually be auctioned 
with the entire amount plus US$100 from SCBWI going to the artist. The entire ballroom of the hotel 
was filled with about 250 illustrations. Of those, three, were from Filipinos: Beaulah Taguiwalo, 
Panch Alcaraz and Madonna Angeles.

Madonna was a grade school classmate who I hadn't seen for about 25 years. I didn't even know 
if we would recognize each other. We had gotten together through the wonders of email and 
egroups. I had sent her my story "Pawikan Cove" which she illustrated and sent. Much to our 
surprise and delight, Madonna's work was chosen as one of the ten finalists. The much awaited 
auction finally began. Madonna's name was finally called with great flourish by the auctioneer. Her 
painting was held up by a rather cute assistant. All four Filipinos in the crowd cheered as loud as 
we could. The bidding began. Her painting was eventually won by Lin Oliver's son who seemed really 
happy with his choice. We are now working on a book together which is now with a US publisher.

In between the auction and Linda Sue Park's speech were panel discussions and breakfast sessions 
with editors, authors and artists, reviewers and agents -- all players in the field of publishing. Other 
authors there whose books I am familiar with were Tomie de Paola, who looks like the grandfather 
everybody wants to have and Paula Danziger, who is as funny as her books. Robert Sabuda, a 
SCBWI alumnus, was also there and gave a very inspiring speech on how he started out and came 
to be where he is now. For those who wanted, there were mini-workshop sessions where you could 
read a manuscript or cover letter and get honest feedback.

There really isn't much of a chance to really know anyone but everything is all about children's books 
and publishing. That alone can be inspiring and encouraging. So was it all worth it? Absolutely. One 
never knows what may drop on his or her lap after such a conference. --Carla M. Pacis

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Carla M. Pacis is an award-winning writer who has written and edited several books for children that
include three novels for young adults. She is a lecturer at the University of the Philippines as well as 
a Resident Fellow of Likhaan: U.P. Creative Writing Center. Carla is a founder-member of Kuting or 
Kwentista ng mga Tsikiting, an organization of children's writers in the Philippines. Carla is also the 
editor of Mag-O-Zine, an on-line magazine for children, and the owner of Young Minds, a bookstore 
that specializes in children's books and educational toys.

Below: A portrait of Carla and a photo of the Young Minds bookstore branch in Alabang Town 
Center, Muntinlupa, Philippines

             

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