Asia in the Heart, World on the Mind

In the video below, Candy Gourlay shares pictures and books from the recent Asian Festival of Children's Content (AFCC) in Singapore and the National Book Development Board Little Lit Fest in Manila! And in this blog post "Meems" reflects on attending the AFCC as a Malaysian writer. YES, I AM TRYING TO MAKE YOU JEALOUS. But only because I want to hang out with you at next year's AFCC and Little Lit Fest. ~^o^~

{Steph Su delivering her keynote speech at the 2013 AFCC} Last month, I was in Singapore for the 2013 Asian Festival of Children's Content (AFCC) . I hope to share more blog posts (and other social media posts) about my time there, but I would like to start with my favorite session: "Getting the Most Out of Blogging" by very popular blogger Steph Su . This was the first year the AFCC had a day dedicated to AFCC Seminars, and there was a blogging track in it, which my fellow blogger Liyana Othman and I helped put together. "Getting the Most Out of Blogging" was Steph Su's keynote speech for the blogging track. She shared her blogging journey and the many insights she has picked up along the way, focusing on blogging and the self, blogging and friends, and blogging and professional success. {me and fellow blogger Liyana Othman} Maintaining my blogs isn't easy: One, it takes a lot of time and effort, especially because I try to pro

The Asian Festival of Children's Content (AFCC) Seminars are sessions that focus on specific aspects of the literary community and this year’s seminars are on young adult literature, the translation of children’s books, and blogging!  Of course I am writing this post to invite all of you to attend the blogging sessions. =D The AFCC Seminars are on Monday, May 27, and the first blogging session (9:15 - 10:15 a.m.) is a presentation from Steph Su entitled "Getting the Most Out of Blogging." Steph is a ROCK STAR in the YA book blogging world and you definitely don't want to miss her presentation. I'm moderating the next blogging session (10:15 - 11:15 a.m.), "Blogging - Today and Tomorrow," a conversation on the future of blogging and the blogging journeys of Steph Su and Candy Gourlay . While Steph is a rock star in the YA book blogging world, Candy is a rock star in the author blogging world and I am honored to be their moderator. The last blogg

The shortlists are up for the inaugural SingTel Asian Picture Book Award , an annual award for an outstanding unpublished picture book with a distinctly Asian theme. Here is the shortlist for SingTel Asian Picture Book Award – Author, and here is the shortlist for SingTel Asian Picture Book Award – Illustrator. Congratulations! :o) The winners will be announced at the Asian Festival of Children's Content in Singapore.   [Thanks to Naomi Kojima for the tip!]

In one month, it'll be the 2013 Asian Festival of Children's Content (AFCC) in Singapore! The 2013 AFCC is: The Preschool & Primary Teachers Congress Date: May 25 (Saturday) For: Primary, preschool, and kindergarten teachers; parents; librarians; and language specialists The Parents Forum Date: May 26 (Sunday) For: Parents and children; primary, preschool, and kindergarten teachers; and librarians Seminars Date: May 27 (Monday) For: Writers, illustrators, translators, BLOGGERS (!!!), and industry professionals The Writers & Illustrators Conference Date: May 28-29 (Tuesday-Wednesday) For: Writers, illustrators, publishers, librarians, literary agents, distributors and retailers, translators, teachers, and other professionals related to children’s content The Media Summit Date: May 29 (Wednesday) For: Producers, television and film executives, commissioning editors, comic artists, screenwriters, authors, publishers, app developers, animators, filmm

The Book Illustrators Gallery (BIG) of the Asian Festival of Children’s Content (AFCC) aims to showcase the work of Asian illustrators and artists to promote them to a wider audience. You are invited to submit artwork that has appeared in children’s books, audio products, video products, comics, or games, published between January 2012 and March 2013. You can submit a maximum of five pieces of artwork. Send digital copies in jpeg/jpg format to afccbig@gmail.com for consideration, with “AFCC BIG 2013 Submission” as the email subject. Please include the following information in the submission:     Name     Designation / Company name (if applicable)     Mailing address     Phone number / Mobile number For each illustration please include:     Year of production     Title of the illustration     Title of the work in which the illustration appeared     Actual size of the illustration (in cm)     Thumbnail sized picture of the work in which the illustration appeared T

Are you a writer of Asian descent with a children's story inspired by Asia? Then please submit your story to the Scholastic Asian Book Award (SABA)! The winner of SABA gets a plaque, S$10,000, and his/her manuscript will be considered by Scholastic Asia for publication. The first and second runners-up of SABA will receive plaques and editorial advice from Scholastic Asia. Click here for the rules and regulations of the award and more information on how to enter. The deadline for entries is October 21, and the results will be declared at next year's Asian Festival of Children's Content in Singapore.

Press Release: The Ken Spillman and NBDCS AFCC Subsidy Once a year, participants come to the Asian Festival of Children’s Content (AFCC) in Singapore to meet and mingle with writers, illustrators, publishers, editors, and producers of excellent children ’s content. To assist Filipino children's book creators to access regional opportunities, Australian children’s author Ken Spillman has made available a grant of ten thousand pesos (P10,000.00) to help defray the expenses of attending the AFCC held annually in Singapore. To qualify, applicants must have published at least one full-length work for children or young adults. Evidence of the published work may take the form of a PDF file attached to the application or a link to the site where the work is sold. Applicants are also asked to submit a resumé and a maximum of 500 words explaining how attendance at the AFCC might be expected to contribute to the applicant’s development and profile as a writer. A state

You guys doing anything Saturday afternoon? =D Let's hang out with illustrators and talk about the key points the Philippine delegates took away from the third Asian Festival of Children's Content !

Links, links, links! * Click here for a report on the very active Filipino reading community - it's my last post as the PaperTigers June guest blogger! * Author Candy Gourlay was one of the first to blog about the 3rd Asian Festival of Children's Content (AFCC) in Singapore. Read her posts here . * Little, Brown editorial director Alvina Ling blogged about the AFCC and Book Expo America (BEA) here . Meeting Alvina was one of the highlights of the AFCC for me! =D *major fangirl spazzing* * Illustrator Blooey Singson summarizes the AFCC here . * Here author Trevor Kew shares key points he took away from the festival.

All of the sessions I attended at this year's Asian Festival of Children's Content (AFCC) inspired me to read more, blog more, teach more, and generally work more for children and teens and the books they enjoy. But three of the sessions in particular really hit me hard! Applying Asian Folktales and Fine Art Traditions to Picture Books Presenter: Yoko Yoshizawa , Illustrator, Japan During Yoko Yoshizawa's presentation, I was reminded of what I live for: creative people and their work and sharing their work. I was so amazed by Yoko's love for and dedication to folktales, folk art, and naive art. Some countries or cultures cannot publish their folktales or art because of political or economic reasons, and Yoko works hard, even uses her personal funds, to introduce some of these tales and art to Japan through children's picture books. When she discovers a great folktale and is impressed by the folk art or naive art in its place of origin (for example Chiang Mai, Thai

Every year, the Asian Festival of Children's Content (AFCC) in Singapore sets up a wonderful bookstore for the festival attendees. This year, the bookstore was the best it's ever been because it was run by Bookaburra , a specialist children's bookseller in Singapore that believes in "good books and even finer children." There was a greater variety of the latest children's and young adult books from all over the world and the people from Bookaburra were doing a great job hand-selling. This, of course, was dangerous for the wallets of all the festival attendees! While in Singapore for the AFCC, I made sure to visit Woods in the Books , an independent picture book shop for all ages. The shop had a well-curated collection of new and classic board books, picture books, comics, and graphic novels from around the world. The Sunday afternoon I was there, there were so many customers: artists, families with very small children, and young professionals (I could even h

I am PaperTiger 's guest blogger for the month of June! For my first PaperTigers post, I report on how the Philippines was the country focus of this year's Asian Festival of Children's Content (AFCC). Please click here to read my report! A week after the AFCC ended, the Philippine delegates already missed each other (and the delegates from other countries!), so we decided to have a little reunion. Over Mexican food and drinks, Tahanan Books editor Frances Ong, author Russell Molina, blogger and illustrator Blooey Singson, author-illustrator Jomike Tejido, author Candy Gourlay (through FaceTime because she was in the UK!), and I reminisced on the AFCC and planned on hanging out together much more often. Adarna House marketing officer Vanessa Estares and illustrator Isabel Roxas were with us in spirit! I am so proud of the success of the Philippine booth and the Philippine speakers at the AFCC! And I congratulate the organizers of the AFCC for the success of the entire event

Last week, I took a little field trip down to the office of Tahanan Books , a publisher committed to nurturing young people's passion for learning with books that celebrate Philippine culture and history. That's Josie, the sales manager. ~^o^~ I was excited because it was my first time at the Tahanan office and I was meeting with Tahanan editor Frances Ong to talk about the Philippine booth for the Asian Festival of Children's Content (AFCC) ! Isn't she a cutie?! We talked about illustrations we could display. . . Books to bring. . . Then over "Wicked Truffled Mac n' Cheese" we talked more about the booth for the AFCC and the possibility of the Philippines hosting the AFCC one year. (Okay, okay, I admit we actually started planning it.) If you will be at the AFCC in Singapore, May 26-29, please visit the Philippine booth. Meet authors, illustrators, publishers, and book reviewers from the Philippines! Check out our books and illustrations! Books of wonde

Some exciting new things for the 2012 Asian Festival of Children's Content in Singapore: This year the festival has a country focus, and the country to be highlighted is none other than the Philippines! If you have been curious about Philippine children's books, this year's festival will be the perfect opportunity to hear from and network with some Filipino writers, illustrators, and book reviewers. I'd most especially like to invite you to attend the two panels I am facilitating, "Trajectories and Themes in Children's Literature from the Philippines" and "The Art & Science of Writing Book Reviews: Online vs. Print." In "Trajectories and Themes," popular author-illustrators Russell Molina and Jomike Tejido will be sharing the special features of Philippine children's books and trends in the local market, while Candy Gourlay and Isabel Roxas will be sharing their success stories as internationally-recognized children's book

It's almost that time of the year again: the Asian Festival of Children's Content (AFCC) at the Arts House in Singapore! The 2012 AFCC is for the entire community of children’s content creators. The schedule for the festival is as follows: * Primary & Preschool Teachers Congress - May 26 * Parents Forum - May 27 * Asian Children's Writers & Illustrators Conference - May 28 and 29 * Media Summit - May 29 * Media Mart & Rights Fair - May 26 to 29 Speakers include Leonard S. Marcus, children's literature critic, author, and historian; Alvina Ling, editorial director at Little, Brown Books for Young Readers; Suzy Lee, artist and picture book extraordinaire; Margarita Engle, poet, novelist, and journalist; Candy Gourlay, Jomike Tejido, Russell Molina, and Isabel Roxas, all popular and award-winning Filipino children's book creators. You MUST be at the 2012 AFCC, to learn from top-notch authors, illustrators, editors, publishers, educators, and book reviewer

There is an article here about the panel discussion on blogging that I was part of at the 2011 Asian Festival of Children's Content in Singapore. =D Please do read it!

I attended several interesting and helpful sessions at the 2011 Asian Festival of Children's Content (AFCC) in Singapore - which was a combination of the Asian Children’s Writers and Illustrators Conference, the Asian Children’s Publishers Symposium, the Asian Primary and Preschool Teachers Congress, and the Asian Children’s Media Summit - but these were my favorites (aside from these sessions of course): * I attended two super organized and super informative presentations by Kelly Sonnack, children's and young adult literature agent at Andrea Brown Literary Agency, Inc. . In "The Role of an Agent and De-mystifying the Publishing Process, Cradle to Grave," Kelly explained everything from the roles and responsibilities of a literary agent to the typical path a manuscript takes to publication and the main deal points in a publishing contract. Very enlightening! In "The Children's Market: What Has Changed and What Sells Now," Kelly spoke in detail about m

The highlight of the Asian Festival of Children's Content (May 26-28 in Singapore) was the Singapore Children's Literature Lecture and Awards Presentation Ceremony . The lecture, entitled "Society, Culture, and Children," was delivered by José Ramos-Horta , the President of East Timor, a recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize (1996). . . and a children's book author! President Ramos-Horta had a special guest with him: Luis Soriano, founder of Colombia's Biblioburro , a traveling library that distributes books from the backs of two donkeys. I got teary-eyed when I realized who the President's guest was. I remember reading about Luis Soriano in the New York Times back in 2008 - this was when I was feeling burnt out from all my work and studies in English language and literature - and feeling so inspired and hopeful and refreshed. I never imagined I would be in the same room as my hero AND a Nobel Peace Prize winner! After President Ramos-Horta's lecture a