Candy Gourlay

OK, y'all, as I mentioned, I went to see Paul Simon play last night. I found it unexpectedly moving, quite profound actually, and I want to do a short thread about it.

I'll start by saying that, for a whole bunch of reasons, aging & mortality have been much on my mind lately.

A glimpse at my notes from the SCBWI book launch boot camp.

The SCBWI boot camp starter pack

I‘m buzzing after the virtual @scbwi-bi.bsky.social Book Launch Boot Camp with the three powerhouses that are @candygourlay.bsky.social @moohara.bsky.social and @authorsaragrant.bsky.social and wonderful #scbwi peeps.

Highly recommended for anyone seeking inspiration prior to launching a new book!

Thank you, Nicole! Happy #AAPIHeritageMonth!

Thanks for coming, Nadia, so pleased that it all came together!

Thank you for watching! I hope it was super helpful!

One week only! To celebrate our SECRET LIVES OF PICTURE BOOKS event tonight @candygourlay.bsky.social and I are getting the pens out and supporting our local UK indies. You can order signed & dedicated copies of Bear and Hare from bookcornershop.co.uk/product/9781...
Still time to sign up...

@beyondbiasbooks.bsky.social I've only just seen this sweet post! Thank you so much!

Hahaha my grandmother will be turning in her grave!

Yes! My newsletter is called The House of Procrastination 😄

Teen Tiny Memoirs: The Winners of Our 3rd Annual 100-Word Narrative Contest (Gift Article) We invited teenagers to write miniature memoirs about meaningful moments in their lives. Read the 20 winning stories.

INSPIRING! Young writers enter 100 word memoirs in New York Times Teeny Tiny Memoirs competition. Read this for free without a subscription. @nytimes.com www.nytimes.com/2025/02/13/l...

Thanks James! So nice to see you here!

Wow, John, these are amazing

Feelings I need to get rid of and feelings I need to remember I was feeling glum when we did List Comics at @janeporter's weekly comics class

Feelings I need to get rid of and feelings I need to remember. I was having the sads, then I made a comic about things I loved in school visits #kidlituk #kidlit #comics

open.substack.com/pub/houseofp...

That's so helpful. And thanks!

Thank you kindly, John!

It really is! I'm really enjoying SUBSTACK and the relief of longer, more considered thought

Dear Mr Stride, can you please help me and other UK children’s book illustrators? The governing is considering AI policy measures that would make us, as copyright holders, ‘opt out’ if we don’t want tech companies breaching our copyright to train their systems. The big companies then use our own art in competition against us. The UK ought to be proud of its children’s book tradition. Our artwork is exported all over the world, and by giving it away free, we’re ruining the industry. Children will be poorer: there’ll get dumbed-down, mechanical books that have no real person thinking hard about each aspect of them. My colleague Steve Antony described it: “It’s like allowing someone to break into my house and steal my belongings so that they can research, recycle and resell them, unless I stick a label on each and every one of my belongings that says ‘DO NOT STEAL’, even though the objects are clearly not theirs and clearly within someone else’s house. That house bring my copyright. It’s absolutely ridiculous, makes no sense, completely destroys existing copyright laws and insults every single one of us.” Please, could you stand up for us and out copyright? If you could mention our concerns to Feryal Clark, Minister for AI & Digital Governent, and to Chris Bryant, Minister for Creative Industry, Arts & Tourism, I’d greatly appreciate it. Warmest wishes, Sarah McIntyre, Illustrator & Author, Bovey Tracey

A handwritten letter on my illustration work desk to my local MP, Mel Stride, asking him to help UK children's book illustrators keep our copyright during the current AI policy consultation ✍️

@mrsteveantony.bsky.social
@alcs-uk.bsky.social
@societyofauthors.bsky.social
(Typed out in the alt text)

Thanks Lou! So nice to see you here

Happy 8th book birthday to my amazing wife, @fionawritesbooks.bsky.social
Do Not Eat The Egg is out today! 🥳👏😍

Please credit artists!
Cover reveals, using for publicity, using to illustrate a post, reposting, using for a joke - if you don't know the artist take a minute to look them up.
It's really important for the artist, it's the right thing to do - and it even helps in the battle against AI. Thank you!

Bearded man sat at table pondering the book in the post.

The book mentioned in the post on a table in Waterstones.

The book next to a hat.

The Tutkish edition of the book.

Now (still) in paperback! Try #TheWorldsWeLeaveBehind, by me and #LeviPinfold. A strange and shadowy kids book for our times, puzzling over revenge/justice/forgiveness in the dark woods of ethics. An other-people's-shoes machine, with the creepiest art I know. I like it, you/your kids might too...

The latest Read for Empathy collection has been launched. As always, it's full of absolutely superb books, including graphic novels, poetry, picturebooks and non-fiction. The work @empathylabuk.bsky.social are doing is incredibly important. More information here: www.empathylab.uk/rfe

Have we reached peak imprint?

Imprints are great business, but is their prestige and value getting diluted as they proliferate?, asks Sarah Moorhouse 👇 #BookSky

Middle Grade Book Landscape 2024 | Sam Subity A first look at the middle grade books published so far in 2024 with stats on publisher share, genre popularity, point of view, and gender.

Hey Middle Grade book fans! Check out my year-end wrap-up of the MG market, hot off the presses! All the data you didn't know you wanted to know. 🤓

www.samsubity.com/mg-landscape...

The #Carnegies25 longlists are announced 💥 From 119 nominations the librarian judges have selected 35 to longlist, 19 titles for the Carnegie Medal for #Writing & 16 for the Carnegie Medal for #Illustration. Is your favourite on these lists? #KidLitUK https://buff.ly/3CJMtsU

Thanks for the recommendation!

Nice to see you here, Jonathan

Thank you!

So can anyone tell me how to add myself to relevant starter packs ... and any starter packs I should belong to?

Thanks Marie!