You will also note a special announcement video on our homepage tomorrow, with Graeme Base talking about the Royal Australian Mint coin celebrating his 35th anniversary of Animalia. Please share news of this as they are an incredibly valuable partner of the CBCA —it is the first year of a five-year partnership. We will open a competition page on our website tomorrow which should be shared during CBCA Book Week and beyond (up to November). They are offering an amazing prize, a bag and coin, for each student in the winning classes, or families! Two for each State. Now roar with this one! We have generously received Graeme and Penguin Random House’s blessing to print a postcard with the glorious “lazy lions lounging in the local library”. This will be available from our CBCA e-store in packs of 10 for $10.00, so please support this fund-raising for your national organisation. Perfect for writing to pen pals during “iso”. We will also have a limited number of the gold plated coin and book, and the coin available for sale on our e-store. Stay posted.
The awarded authors and illustrators and their publishers will gather for a virtual online “After Party” at 6pm, your presidents, 2020 judges and directors, along with the Awards Sub Committee have all been invited. I hope to see you there to toast the winners and honour book recipients. It is all credit to Karys McEwen and Jane Moore for this additional organisational feat. Thank you!
We will keep you posted on the media coverage around our awards. We’re optimistic major national papers will be picking this up, all indications are pointing in the right direction at this stage—god knows we all need some good news stories.
If you do have access to Books & Publishing Weekly newsletter (the Blue newsletter), you will see Robyn Emerson managed to place an article on the 75 year history of the CBCA Book of Year Awards for us. (This piece will also be placed on our website).
https://www.booksandpublishing.com.au/articles/2021/08/18/191681/celebrating-75-years-of-the-cbca-book-of-the-year-award/
The newsletter though mentions a specific campaign supported by the Australian Society of Authors and the Australian Booksellers Association, which was a quick campaign born last week to support the writers and illustrators who need sales! Children’s publishing sales have dropped compared to this time last year. So, we must do what we can to rally them. A final reminder when sharing our BOYA and CBCA Book Week on your social media the hashtags to use:
#CBCA2021 (Awards and Shortlist posts)
#cbcashortlist2021 (Shortlist posts)
#OWNWOW (CBCA Book Week posts)
#BOYA75years (75th Anniversary of the BOYA posts)
#cbcareview and #cbcareadingtime (Reading Time posts)
Many organisations are approaching us with very quickly-conceived campaigns and events to try and support us, and leverage their own business and organisations during these weird times. This is a rapidly changing landscape, so we appreciate you flagging any that may not be respecting our “branding” or artwork and any you think are doing an amazing job. The Partnership Sub Committee have a big job ahead of them to refresh our approach to partnerships next year.
As you are aware, we had also planned to present the Nan Chauncy Award to Jan Nicholls in Adelaide at our announcement. This also had to be cancelled. It is now being presented to Jan at the WA CBCA Branch Book Week Dinner, the Chair of CBCA beaming in to read the citation (well not really beaming in, it has been recorded). Now to be clear, if you talk about this, we have been informed by Nan’s family directly, we have Kay Allport’s word for it, that we pronounce “Chauncy” as “Chancy”, rhymes with Clancy. All cheers though to Jan!
After next week, when we can all take a breath— we will be revving you all up again. Announcing CBCA Book Week theme 2022 publicly on September 1, because it is appropriate on the first day of spring and Indigenous Literacy day, with Jasmine Seymour’s artwork.
We will also start to talk about our National Conference in 2022, by the same name as the theme.
... And we will also be calling for an important meeting of the Branch presidents to discuss two projects we need your feedback and support on. You will hear from us for a date.
Take care all, here’s cheers to a NEW WORLD! we know many of you are over being locked up...
Pick up the phone and talk to me or anyone on your committees.
Wendy Rapee
Chair
