If you’re thinking of attending a SCBWI British Isles conference, or are just curious about what it’s like, read on!

SCBWI stands for the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators. It’s pronounced “scooby” as in “I don’t have a scooby how that is pronounced” (or “Scooby-doo” which is “clue” in rhyming slang). Their conference was held Nov 3-5th 2023 in Manchester (UK). As you might know, I’m making my own books for children, I love learning, and I love talking with other creatives, so I hoped this would be the ideal event for me. I was not disappointed.

Friday

The “Friday Fringe” kicked off with a ‘Sketch and Scrawl Crawl’. I believe this involved dotting about art galleries and museums sketching things although I wasn’t able to arrive in time for that. But I did make it to the Friday night social in Brewdog pub. I went in knowing absolutely no-one and feeling suitably nervous.

But the SCBWI people know what they’re doing – as part of registering the very friendly folks asked if I’d been before. When I said no, they immediately introduced me to a bunch of other people, and all of a sudden I had a gang! I wasn’t a Lone Ranger anymore!

The food was lovely and plentiful, the drinks were good, and the chat was even better. It was a lovely night and a great way to ease into the conference. I now had people who I would know when I went into the official start of the conference the next morning.

If you’re attending as a newbie, I highly recommend attending the Friday night social if you can.

Saturday

Saturday had a packed schedule, with 2 keynote speeches. There was one in the morning from an author (Robin Stevens) and one in the afternoon from an illustrator (Ed Vere). These were both followed by breakout sessions. In the late afternoon there was a Blind Date-esque pitch-off battle with aspiring authors pitching to agents from behind a screen, 3 at a time for each age category.

Throughout the day we were well catered for with teas, coffees, pastries, and lunch provided.

The breakout sessions were a mix of lectures and workshops with 4 options for each session. There were options for writers, options for illustrators, and options suitable for everyone.

One of the most beautiful parts of the exhibition was the Illustrators Sketchbook Exhibition. We submitted our works in advance alongside the preparatory sketches. The SCBWI Illustrator conference team selected works for the exhibition then put them up for display. There was also a table for portfolios, and another table for business cards. It was such a gorgeous display.

After the pitch battle, we had a short break and then went into the mass book launch and conference dinner. For the dinner we were invited to dress up although it wasn’t mandatory. This lovely bunch of creatives did not disappoint:

Sunday

Sunday was another packed day! We started with the Society Outstanding Contribution awards, followed by a keynote that took the form of an interview with Hilary Delamere, a retiring literary agent who gave a fascinating retrospective. That was followed by another set of fantastic morning and afternoon breakout sessions.

After the afternoon breakout session, there was just time left to take down my illustrations, have a quick cuppa and say my goodbyes before it was time to catch the train back up to Edinburgh.

The conference also included book signings, book sales, and 1-on-1 sessions with members of the publishing industry! It was PACKED.

It was also the friendliest conference I’ve ever been to and I’ve left it with a bunch of new pals. My brain has been buzzing with creative inspiration ever since. If you are interested in creating books for children then I highly recommend the SCBWI British Isles conference.