The Bookseller Conference - CBN panel event On Monday 2nd October 2023, Children’s Books North were at The Bookseller Children’s Conference and took part in a panel event - Northern networking: Creating Connections through Children's Books North. The Bookseller Children’s Conference is an annual event, aimed at bringing together those working across all areas of children’s publishing. CBN co-founder Tilda Johnson was joined by CBN members Ashley Thorpe, Hiba Noor Khan and Penny Neville-Lee, and discussed the growth of the CBN network; from conception and the need to fill a gap in Northern networking opportunities, to real-world outcomes and individual career benefits of engaging with a regional network.  We had such a great day talking about creating connections outside of London! Hiba Noor-Khan, Tilda Johnson, Ashley Thorpe and Penny Neville-Lee. Hiba Noor-Khan, Ashley Thorpe, Penny Neville-Lee and Tilda Johnson.  Panel moderated by Philip Jones.

   Northern Highlight Bethan Clarke Where are you based, and how would you sum up the place in three words?  I’m based in a small village just outside Macclesfield in Cheshire. I would describe it as quiet, green and friendly. What is special to you about working with children's books, and what is your favourite thing about it? All of the magic! To me, especially as I’ve grown older and now see it through a ‘grown up’ lens, childhood is a time where the possibilities are endless, where things are viewed and experienced for the first time, and as a child a lot of that can be magical. The world can also feel huge and scary, and books and stories can help to make sense of all of it. Or can take you out of the world entirely and transport you to a place that only you can experience in a particular way. Picture books are essentially magic in print. The words and the illustrations all come together and create stories to make readers laugh or help them understand something, to l...

Northern Highlight Jennie Roman Editor Where are you based, and how would you sum up the place in three words?  I work from a chilly outbuilding at home, which is a thimble-sized cottage in a village near York. Working from home feels special to me and I'd sum it up as calm, colourful and cosy. It's a good backdrop for thought. What is special to you about working with children's books, and what is your favourite thing about it? I never stopped reading children's books and I love to advocate for their importance for readers of all ages to anyone who will listen, but their central magic is of course how they can affect children and broaden their imaginative horizons and instil in them all the good stuff that modern life perhaps threatens to erode. To be part of the process that puts books in children's hands – and working hard to make them as good as possible – has never got old for me. Tell us about the most recent book you've worked on or come across in your jo...