events & picture books salon

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upcoming picture book salons:

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Date: Monday, February 2nd, 2026
Speaker: Payal Doshi

Topic: Creating Immersive Worlds with Authentic Cultural Representation

Time: 7 – 8 pm (Central)
Location: Virtual

Facebook event: facebook.com/events/2103279123756751

Zoom link: us02web.zoom.us/j/87209710333?pwd=DAMuCrhd45fbouEnjsfWfOP0AAEatO.1
Meeting ID: 872 0971 0333
Passcode: 637423

Every writer needs to build the world their story is set in, be it a contemporary, historical, or fantastical setting. But how does one create a setting in which the reader can escape into and become fully immersed?

Whether you’re a writer from an underrepresented cultural background or thinking about including a character/s from an ethnicity or cultural background different from your own, we will discuss strategies for weaving cultural details into the fabric of your story to enhance the plot, characters, and setting. In this session, we will go through some do’s and don’ts to consider when including cultural representation, look at examples from Payal’s own work as well as excerpts from other novels for inspiration in creating immersive worlds, and highlight ways in which you can authenticate the representation to avoid the pitfalls of ‘poor’ representation.

We will have several copies of REA AND THE BLOOD OF THE NECTAR to give away to attendees. More about Payal here: payaldoshiauthor.com

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Picture Book Salon is FREE and public. RSVP on the FB page or through the contact link.

This activity is made possible by the voters of Minnesota through a grant from the Minnesota State Arts Board, thanks to a legislative appropriation from the arts and cultural heritage fund.

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Some recordings of previous Salons can be found on our Facebook group page, or on YouTube with these links:

December 2025 (Sun Yung Shin: REVOLUTIONS ARE MADE OF LOVE)
November 2025 (Sarah Warren: BIG FEAR)
April 2025 (Magdalena Mora: LIGHT & SHADOW)
May 2024 (Pat Zietlow Miller: CUT THE FLUFF)
March 2024 (Colleen Muske: GROWING A BOOK)
February 2024 (Joyce Sidman: WRITING THROUGH WINTER)
October 2023 (Kurtis Scaletta: GRANNY REX”: A BOOK SIX(TY MILLION) YEARS IN THE MAKING)
May 2023 (Zaynab Abdi: GREEN CARD VOICES)
April 2023 (Tasslyn Magnusson: FIGHTING BOOK BANS)
March 2023 (Laura Purdie Salas & Yvonne Pearson: CREATING AND PERFORMING LIBRARY STORYTIMES)
February 2023 (Cori Doerrfeld: “BENEATH” THE COVER)
April 2022 (Dr. Artika Tyner: WRITING FOR JUSTICE)
March 2022 (Kayla Harren: STORYTELLING WITH CHARACTER, COLOR, AND LIGHT)
November 2021 (Stephen Shaskan: GRAPHIC CHAPTER BOOKS & SERIES)
October 2021 (Phyllis Root, Liza Ketchum, Jackie Briggs Martin & Claudia McGehee: “BEGIN WITH A BEE” COLLABORATION)
April 2021 (Angela Whited & Kara Forde: BOOKSTORES & THE PANDEMIC)
November 2020 (Carol Hinz (Editor at Lerner): PICTURE BOOKS & THE PANDEMIC)
October 2020 (Dara Beevas (Wise Ink): INDIE AUTHOR REVOLUTION)

Picture Book Salon BOOK BASH event, June 2023 – Left to right: Molly Beth Griffin, Loretta Ellsworth, Yvonne Pearson, Billy Thao, Monica Rojas

Picture Book Salon with Lerner Publishing, June 2024 – Speakers left to right: Shaina Olmanson (editor), Ty Chapman (author), Karlyn Coleman (marketing)

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