SCBWI Austin

Up next, our illustrious creative and art directors. We’re so excited to welcome them to our upcoming 2026 Austin SCBWI Mini MFA Conference: Community, Passion, and the Persistence of Art! Please welcome Creative Director Sasha Illingworth and Art Director Kirk Benshoff!

Early bird registration opens on June 14 at 9 a.m. CT. Learn more and register for updates here: https://www.scbwi.org/events/2026-austin-scbwi-conference

Calling all illustrators: Meet the conference faculty who can’t wait to share their knowledge on illustration! First, our keynote speaker, author-illustrator Don Tate! Also joining us, author-illustrators Anoosha Syed and Kat Fajardo. We can’t wait to see what amazing things they’re going to teach us.

Early bird registration opens in just a few weeks on June 14 at 9 a.m. CT. Learn more and register for updates here: https://www.scbwi.org/events/2026-austin-scbwi-conference

Now, we’re excited to introduce our next group of conference faculty, our authors! We can’t wait to welcome Britta Jensen and Romy Natalia Goldberg!

Early bird registration opens on June 14 at 9 a.m. CT. Learn more and register for updates here: https://www.scbwi.org/events/2026-austin-scbwi-conference

What better way to close out Mother’s Day than by celebrating our May Illustrator Spotlight, Yvonne Weng! 🌷

Yvonne is an Austin-based comic artist whose playful, slice-of-life comics are inspired by the everyday chaos of parenting, pets, and family life. Through humor and visual storytelling, she captures the little moments that make life memorable.

Read her thoughts below, and be sure to follow her on socials or visit her website to see more of her comics and illustrations! ✨

“I make playful, silly drawings and comics pulled from real life — usually starring my young kids and cats. Visual storytelling is a deep love of mine, and something I’m always working to get better at. I like finding the humor in everyday moments, and I hope that comes through in my art. My goal this year is to artistically explore more, build up a portfolio, and see where it takes me.”

Fabulous brainstorming session today on character, plot, and theme from at the monthly meeting!!

Now it's time to spotlight the amazing editors for our upcoming 2026 Austin SCBWI Mini MFA Conference: Community, Passion, and the Persistence of Art! Welcome to AZ Hackett, Vanessa Aguirre, Ruqayyah Daud, Carina Licon, Gabbi Calabrese, Matt Phipps and Tamara Grasty.

Early bird registration opens on June 14 at 9 a.m. CT. Learn more and register for updates here: https://www.scbwi.org/events/2026-austin-scbwi-conference

At our monthly meeting this Saturday, May 9 at 10 a.m. at BookPeople, come with ideas, and leave with inspiration! Author, poet and Typewriter Rodeo member and author and filmmaker both struggle with having too many ideas and no clue where to start.

This presentation will include a host of brainstorming and plotting exercises. Whether you’re a writer or illustrator, we’ll help you figure out which ideas most excite you and what steps to take to go from idea to finished manuscript.

Are you ready for a first look at the amazing faculty for our upcoming 2026 Austin SCBWI Mini MFA Conference: Community, Passion, and the Persistence of Art? Introducing our agents, Jackie Kruzie, Kayla Cichello, Jemiscoe Chambers-Black, Anjanette Barr, Amy Bishop-Wycisk, Alyssa Jennette, Carter Hasegawa, Stephen Barr, Sidney Boker and Tianna Kelly.

Early bird registration opens on June 14 at 9 a.m. CT. Learn more and register for updates here: https://www.scbwi.org/events/2026-austin-scbwi-conference

At our monthly meeting this Saturday, May 9th at 10 a.m. at BookPeople, come with ideas, and leave with inspiration! Author, poet and Typewriter Rodeo member Rebecca Bendheim and author and filmmaker Marissa Macy both struggle with having too many ideas and no clue where to start.

This presentation will include a host of brainstorming and plotting exercises. Whether you're a writer or illustrator, we'll help you figure out which ideas most excite you and what steps to take to go from idea to finished manuscript.

https://www.scbwi.org/events/atx-may-mm-activities

Whew! What an amazing busy day at such a fabulous event, we loved having our local authors sign books for kids.

Mark your calendars! Registration for our conference opens on June 14th!

The Austin conference is a jam-packed 1-day conference with a mix of class, socials, panels, and awards. We provide opportunities to connect with faculty through first-look sessions, virtual critiques and pitch options. For illustrations, we have a portfolio showcase, along with both illustrator and writer mentorships.

The conference kicks off the evening of Friday, Sept. 25 with an industry mixer for attendees, published authors, and industry professionals to mingle. Then we gather early on Saturday, Sept 26 near UT at the Thompson Conference Center for a full day of learning, networking, and connecting. We provide lunch, snacks, & parking!

Register for conference updates here: https://www.scbwi.org/events/2026-austin-scbwi-conference/register-info