I was happy to share my wonderful experiences and the things I had learned at the recent IBPA conference in Chicago with the NCPA members that attended the meeting last night.
Once again, thank you IBPA for awarding me a scholarship! Attending the conference on April 3-7 in Chicago was an enriching experience.
Watch this book review of Jaxon! He nailed it again! This boy is a pleasure to watch as he gives a great review on Michael H. Lester's first children's book. According to his grandma, Carol Raisfeld, he doesn't like being coached on what to say. This book by Michael H. Lester is the second non-self published book that Purple Cotton Candy Book Arts has published. I'm so proud of this book because the author and I really worked hard to make it as perfect as we wanted it to be. Of course, nothing really is perfect. There is always something we could have done better. Just like in launching the book there were two things that I overlooked: 1.) Make sure that the book launch event on Facebook is "public" and not "private". Whenever I asked someone to check out the link to the book launch event, I am sometimes told that he/she couldn't view anything. Why? Because he/she was not invited. If your event was made "public", this would never be a problem. 2) Speaking of invitation, you are only allowed to invite 500 people. Make sure that you invite first the people who you think will attend. For more tips, I have a post here on my website that talks about how to launch a book event on Facebook. Here's the poster I made to advertise the book launch. Hosting the book launch online was fun. I believe it was a success! We got the exposure we needed and Michael had a few sales. Well, even if he only had a few, I think just people knowing that he has a children's book out there and that I collaborated with him through my imprint Purple Cotton Candy Arts is already a marketing investment. Because of the online book launch, I had an inquiry and a possible book publishing contract. I think 56 attendees is not bad at all! I managed to come up with 30 engaging posts to keep the guests glued to the event, two of which are the most favorites - the book trailer that I created and the most-awaited interview with Michael H. Lester. I hope you enjoy this book trailer! Below, you will be able to watch me with Michael, my first time as an interviewer in front of a camera. This video was taken the night before the online book launch. If you missed the LIVE book reading of Zoobooloo: With Filipino Translation on Facebook, you can watch it here ~ Zoobooloo: With Filipino Translation was translated by Angelo Ancheta and published by Purple Cotton Candy Arts. This book is dedicated to the kids of Eskwela Natin. It's available on Lulu.com. http://www.lulu.com/shop/christine-l-villa/zoobooloo-with-tagalog-translation/paperback/product-23950114.html
I'm still overwhelmed with joy! My eyes are blurry with tears as I look back at these wonderful memories which I will treasure forever. These pictures were taken at the book reading event last February 8 at the Nicanor P. Garcia Elementary School in Makati, Philippines. Aside from reading my latest book Zooboloo: With Filipino Translation, we had games, face painting, lunch packs, and free school supplies and books for the kids. Zoobooloo: With Filipino Translation was translated by Angelo Ancheta and published by Purple Cotton Candy Arts. I am so grateful to my brother Perry Villa for providing these awesome banner and balloons for me. I showed a sample of how I wanted them to be and he did more than enough. Thank you so much to Andrea Villa, my niece, for making the banner more appealing and visible! It felt so good to have my family supporting me. These are pictures of my brother Perry Villa, my sister-in-law Luchi Villa, my niece Andrea Villa, and my two best friends Dianna Olegario and Lene Adiova. They were my fantastic volunteers during the event! Included in the pictures below are my other volunteer and former schoolmate Ruby Torres and the staff of U!Happy Events. If you need help with organizing your events, this non-profit organization will do a superb job for you. All you have to do is fill up their form "Create You Own Event" and the rest is worry-free! My event is posted here on their website - http://uhappyevents.com/ate-christine-celebrates-with-nicanor-elementary-school/ Finally, I met my very talented illustrator Kathrina Iris in person. I am proud to say that both of us have completed 6 children's book together! Here are more pictures during the event. Just click to enlarge the photos. These moments warmed my heart! The best part was knowing that they appreciate me sharing some time with them. Thank you so much to EVERYONE who supported my project, Help Chrissi Educate Filipino Kids! https://www.gofundme.com/help-chrissi-educate-filipino-kids Thank you for trusting me and believing in me. This would not have been possible without your help. I want all of you to know that you had made so many kids at the Nicanor P. Garcia Elementary school very happy. I'm sure this was also an amazing and an unforgettable experience to them. Thank you so much to my family - Villas, Gallaghers, Reyeses, and the Quisumbings. U! Happy Events, you are simply awesome! U! God bless you all! Thank you so much Lester Gallagher, Donna Gunst-Musselman, Sonja Wilke, Perry Villa, Luchi Gopez-Villa, Andrea Villa, Inna Villa, Shloka Shankar, Elizabeth Alford, Maria Montecillo, Jocelyn Reyes, Ed Bremson, Debbie Strange, Katrina Lim Quisumbing, Hazel Phillips, Manny Reyes (Claire Reyes), Carol Raisfeld, Terri Hale French, Tia Haynes, David John Terelinck, Susan Furst, Susan Burch, Paresh Tiwari, Adelaide Shaw, Kirsten Cliff Elliot, Paul David Mena, Gillena Cox, Ruth Aniceto-Lim, Charu Asperin, Martha Magenta, Pat Geyer, Laura Davis, Michael H. Lester, Claire Vogel Camargo, Kathabela Wilson, Paul R. Berger (Jane Berger), Beth Reyes-Quismundo, Olegario Dianne, Lene Adiova, Ruby Teresa Torres, Kathrina Iris, U! Happy Events, the kids of Eskwela Natin (to whom I am have dedicated the book) and many others!
SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT: As the founder of Purple Cotton Candy Arts (www.purplecottoncandyarts.com), I am proud to announce the publication of my first non-self published book, a picture book written by Alena Hansen. In celebration of her first book, I am happy to give away two copies of her book. All you have to do is leave a comment here or on the Purple Cotton Candy Arts Facebook page. https://www.facebook.com/purplecottoncandyarts/?ref=settings Two most responsive winners will be picked on Christmas day! Alena Hansen's book is available on Amazon here. https://www.amazon.com/dp/1732989702/ref=sr_1_1?s=amazon-devices&ie=UTF8&qid=1545452213&sr=8-1&keywords=alena+hansen Enjoy the book trailer! I am so blessed! I thank the Lord every day for paving the way to a more professional publishing business. Last December 12, I received an email that I've been awarded the NORTHERN CALIFORNIA PUBLISHERS & AUTHORS’ affiliate scholarship to attend the Independent Book Publishers Association's (IBPA's) Publishing University 2019! I'm attending the conference in Chicago in April 2019!!! I thank the Lord every day for paving the way to a more professional publishing business.
I am so honored and grateful to see my name among other more accomplished authors and publishers. Here are all the winners of the 2019 IBPA Publishing University and their short bios. https://www.publishinguniversity.org/scholarship My short bio: Christine L. Villa (www.christinevilla.com) is the founder of Purple Cotton Candy Arts. What started out as a small business to explore her creativity in the field of arts and crafts, later expanded into self-publishing her children’s picture books. As a graduate of one of the courses offered by the Institute of Children’s Literature, “Writing for Children and Teenagers (2010),” she has been inspired to write for children and pursue her dream of publishing. Christine has published eight children’s book titles since 2014, one of which won first place in the 2018 edition of the Northern California Publishers and Authors (NCPA) Book Award Competition. If she is not busy attending NCPA meetings and speaker presentations, she is immersed in her duties as social media director, webmaster, and photographer of the group. Recently, Purple Cotton Candy Arts started offering publishing services to other aspiring children’s authors and publishers, so her days are also filled with tasks such as editing, collaborating with illustrators, and creating eye-catching book trailers. Aside from being a recognized children’s writer, Christine is also a gifted poet. Her passion for haiku and tanka writing has resulted in the publication of her work in some of the most renowned online and print journals worldwide, has garnered her a few awards, and has seen her bring out her debut full-length collection of Japanese short-form poetry entitled The Bluebird’s Cry. She is the founding editor of Frameless Sky—the very first DVD haiku and tanka video journal that is a collaboration of art, poetry, and music. In early 2019, she is set to launch a haiku book by another author under her own imprint, Velvet Dusk Publishing. Christine is looking forward to attending the IBPA Publishing University in order to network with others who are also learning the ropes of the publishing business. She is grateful for the opportunity to personally get her questions answered by experts and to learn valuable tips on developing concrete marketing plans. Christine Villa accepts the IBPA Publishing University Scholarship on behalf of Northern California Publishers & Author From October to December, I enjoyed being a vendor in some of the crafts fairs in Sacramento and other nearby places. My greatest joy was when I knew my books were going home to a child's heart. Here are the pictures that I took during the craft fairs. Annual Craft Boutique and Bake Sale by Grace Church Vine St. Mercantile by St. Rose of Lima Arts & Crafts Festival at Elks Lodge, Riverside Blvd. Annual Arts and Craft Fair at Rusch Park Community Center Annual Holiday Arts and Crafts Fair at Good Shepherd Catholic Church Blacktop Theater, Rocklin These two pictures were not at a craft fair. These were my last book sales of the year made during the Author Display of NCPA at Denny's, Auburn Blvd.
I didn't expect to receive a bunch of thank you letters this afternoon. I was over the moon! I couldn't believe how much I had inspired so many of the students. I'm ecstatic that I had also helped them in their story writing. I will treasure these forever!
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