Karen Collum">Australian Children's Author

Happy little Vegemite :)

You may remember waaaaay back in December last year I wrote about how I got my fantabulous agent, the gorgeous Anjanette Fennell from Rick Raftos Management. That post was named The Day that was Made of Awesome Part I, so of course there was a Part II…but it’s taken up until now for me to be able to share it with you. The very same day that Anj took me on as a client, something entirely separate but equally wonderful happened: I got a new contract on a picture book. It would be heady enough to have one of these momentous occasions happen in a day, but to have both of them happen on the same day was quite mindblowing. Yes, I have a contract with Windy Hollow Books and will be working with the amazing Helen Chamberlin on a picture book about an unlikely friendship with beautiful results. Keep reading →

I’m excited to be able to share some photos with you from my recent trip to Manifest Creative Arts Festival held at Avondale College in Cooranbong, NSW a fortnight ago. I was invited to be one of the presenters at Manifest, which was a huge honour. Keep reading →

Image: Danilo Rizzuti / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

I had the absolute pleasure of participating in a Writer’s Digest Picture Book Craft Intensive webinar last week with the amazing agent, Mary Kole. Getting up at 2:45am to attend the said webinar was slightly less pleasurable, however it was absolutely, totally, entirely worth every bit of sleep I didn’t get*. Hooked up live via my computer, I got to hear Mary share some of her insights into picture books and the publishing industry for an hour and a half, while watching an accompanying PowerPoint. It really was just like attending a lecture except that I couldn’t actually see the lecturer; there was no video – just audio and a visual presentation. There was a little box for me to type any questions I had and send to Mary, which I put to good use throughout. Writer’s Digest guarantee that no question goes unanswered in a webinar, however that doesn’t mean they get answered immediately. In our case, Mary had so much amazing-incredible-insightful stuff to share she was struggling to fit it into the 90 minute time frame as it was, so the questions will be answered and sent to us with a link of the lecture which we can access for some time afterwards. And if I had ever questioned the value of investing in my craft, this webinar put any of those doubts safely to rest.

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It’s always surreal when I first lay hands on a book I’ve written and third time round is no exception. WHEN I LOOK AT YOU – MY BOOK ABOUT FEELINGS is another Autumn House* (UK) publication and my author copies arrived at my house just a few minutes ago. To say I am excited is an understatement. Before today I had only seen a few sample illustrations, so I was essentially reading the book for the very first time, even though I wrote it! I’m absolutely delighted with what Lorenzo Sabbatini has done with the illustrations. They are bright and vibrant and amazingly expressive and really do capture the heart of what I was trying to capture with the text. I could go on and on about the importance of teaching kids emotional intelligence skills and how the ability to name and understand feelings is crucial for kids’ (and adults’) well-being, but I won’t. Instead, I’ll let the book speak for itself.

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I got a lovely phone call from my publisher a few weeks ago to say that Samuel’s Kisses had been chosen as one of the feature books for the month of June by The Little Big Book Club. It’s such a thrill for me and what’s even more exciting is that the team at TLBBC have put together some awesome activities related to the book. So pop on over and have a look at their great site.

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I was very excited to have a big box of books delivered today. Fish Don’t Need Snorkels is my latest picture book, published by Autumn House, a small UK Christian publishing house. It is vibrant, beautiful and interactive making it perfect for the preschool age group. My almost-3-year-old twins love it and joined in reading the story from the very first time they heard it. Keep reading →

Serena and I cutting the yummy cake

This is just a really quick post as we’re in the middle of packing up the house and getting ready to move halfway across the country. Throw into the mix a newborn baby and three other kids, not to mention a book launch, and life is a little crazy, but in the best possible way. Keep reading →

I like reading book reviews and they do often influence my buying decisions. Reading a good review makes me excited about a book. But now I’m more than just an observer, reviews are slightly terrifying! I can’t expect everyone to like SAMUEL’S KISSES, however it’s a little daunting to think about other people critically reading my book and writing their honest opinion for the world to see. Keep reading →

What an amazing day I’ve had! The launch was a wonderful success and plain fun to boot. I got to read SAMUEL’S KISSES in public for the very first time and my audience happened to be a group of the cutest 4 and 5 year olds you’ve ever seen. It was a real privilege to witness their reactions to the story first-hand, especially as the book targets this particular age group. The kids were so attentive and giggled in all the right places and were so quiet! That alone tells me they were engaged with the story. It was such a thrill for me and I feel very blessed to be a picture book author. I’ve waffled on enough, so I’ll let some photos tell the story of the launch… Keep reading →

The chocolates are collected, the cupcakes are ordered and the cake is ready to be picked up tomorrow morning. That means one thing: SAMUEL’S KISSES is ready to be launched! In honour of this auspicious occasion, I’m embarking on a one-week pre-Christmas blog tour to talk about all sorts of things related to the writing and publication of my picture book. Keep reading →