Bright's First #KidLitArt Bootcamp in NYC!

This past Saturday, Bright descended upon the unsuspecting librarians and patrons of the St. Agnes branch of the New York Public Library for our KidLitArt Bootcamp!

As we readied the coffee and pastries, aspiring children’s book illustrators began to arrive, excited to hear words of wisdom from Bright’s founder and managing director, Vicki Willden-Lebrecht, as well as Bright senior trade agent Anne Moore Armstrong, associate art director at HarperCollins Chelsea C. Donaldson and veteran children’s bookseller Tina Sorrentino.

We started the day off with a conversation between Vicki and Bright agent James Burns. Vicki shared stories of her early days as an agent and what she looks for in a portfolio, as well as the ideal artist-agent dynamic.

Anne took the floor next, offering solid pointers on ways to improve one’s portfolio and make it more appealing to the well-trained eyes of Bright agents. Many notes were scribbled at lightning speed during this portion of the event.

After a brief interlude for (of course!) more coffee, we were back in force with Chelsea, who gave us a peek behind the scenes at HarperCollins and what goes into creating a book once it’s been acquired by a publisher.

We rounded out the presentations with a word from Tina Sorrentino, master bookseller at Manhattan haven of children’s literature, Books of Wonder. She had plenty of insight and humor on what sets certain books apart once they have finally arrived on shelves.

Then, it was on to the portfolio reviews: a unique opportunity to have some face-to-face quality time with the agents themselves.

We had a rollicking good time at St. Agnes, as there is nothing we love more than sharing a love of illustration and picture books with others. Many thanks to the speakers and to all of the illustrators who attended; your genuine enthusiasm truly inspires us!