In Conversation ... with Emma Mactaggert

In Conversation with 

Emma Mactaggert – Founder of The Child Writes Fund

Tell us about The Child Writes Fund. 

The Child Writes Program nurtures literacy and creativity by giving primary school aged children a voice. It offers students the opportunity to write and illustrate their own children's picture books. These books are published by boutique publisher Boogie Books, complete with ISBNs, a publishing contract and an official book launch!

Copies are donated to places (such as hospitals) where children are in crisis. Every book is also made available for purchase online in electronic form, which means that children can actually receive royalties from the sales of their books! Child Writes is continually developing marketing and commercial opportunities to further increase the rewards for child authors and illustrators, as well as making sure their voice is heard as far and wide as possible.

What is the most surprising thing about publishing?

Even after 15 years hanging out in this industry, I am constantly surprised and delighted about how incredibly supportive everyone is; how ready at hand everyone is to offer encouragement, tips and tricks and suggestions, a shoulder to cry on. Children’s picture books seem to bring out the best in humanity. 

Do you have any writing rituals you can share

I make sure I am in a headspace that is as creative as possible, and that means being as relaxed as possible. I show children how to access their right brains with a drawing exercise, so that may be useful if I have a deadline, otherwise it will be making sure time slows down and I don’t have any upcoming demands upon my time that would distract me.

What is the craziest thing you have done?

Have a catering business in regional New South Wales! I worked in partnership with a really great friend who was an exceptional cook, and it was great that our biggest problem was she was so generous with portions and beautiful ingredients that we barely eeked out a living from it, yet we had the most extraordinary experiences, the most memorable of which was a film catering gig and when, on the day before we started, they changed to a night shoot and we stayed up for 36hours straight watching Geffery Rush and David Wenham in action, we knew we weren’t going to replicate this any time soon!

What writing resources would you recommend?

I am obsessed about Pass It On that is curated by Jackie Hosking. It is an impressively comprehensive look at the industry – events, books, people, and opportunities.

How did you get published? 

I self-published in the beginning. (When you start as a self-publisher and have to learn the intricacies of every step of the process, it is incredibly joyful to have someone whisk away a manuscript and do all the work that is involved with getting a book to market.)

How can we learn more about you? 

  

 

Thank you for joining In Conversation this week. Remember to always 

Dream Big ... Read Often.