Romancing the Stars – Sunshine Coast
Date: Friday 29 August 2025
Venue: Immanuel Lutheran College, 126-142 Wises Road, Buderim
Time: 6:00 – 9:15pm
Cost: $28 for Book Links members and College staff | $35 for non-members

(Have your 2025 membership discount code ready to apply at the end of the booking process)

Bookings close Wednesday 27th August at noon.

Discover the books our local authors and illustrators have been creating for children and young adults.

Each creator will give a short introduction to their latest publication in a small intimate circle, before rotating on to the next group.

You have a chance to get inside information about the creation of the books and make contact with potential presenters for your school or library.

Speed date 16 stars.

Buy the latest books from the pop-up bookshop The Little Book Nook.

Enjoy great food and drinks.
Enter raffle and win books in the quiz competition.

Digital PD certificates provided after the event.

BOOK HERE

Starring:
Author/Illustrator and MC: Yvonne Mes

Picture Books Authors/Illustrators: Aleesah Darlison, Caroline Magerl,

Dimity Powell, Heidi Cooper Smith, Michelle Wilson, Laura Bunting, Rosi Ngwenya,

Authors Younger Readers, YA and non-fiction: Annaleise Byrd, Bethany Loveridge,

Brent Wilson (illus.), Carla Salmon, Josephine Moon, Lara Cain Gray, Peter Carnavas, Sarah Pye, PLUS 1 TBC!

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Yvonne Mes is an author and illustrator who writes stories for children and young people with curious minds.
As an early childhood professional with a Bachelor of Children’s Services with many years’ experience, she loves sharing books, stories and art with children in places big and small, of diverse cultures and abilities and of all ages.
Her books are published in Australia, China and New Zealand.
Yvonne is a frequent speaker at schools, literary festivals and events. She is the coordinator of Write Links, the Brisbane based group for children’s authors and illustrators. She buys more books than she can read, comes up with more ideas than she can write or illustrate and has more children than she can manage. But she does try very hard, and best of all, she is NEVER bored. Yvonne is the recipient of the 2024 Book Links Mentorship.

Her most recent book is The Opal Dinosaur, Illustrated by Sylvia Morris (CSIRO 2024)

Find out more about Yvonne Mes.

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Aleesah Darlison is an award-winning author, naturalist, and life-long learner. Aleesah enjoys sharing her passion and knowledge for the natural world and the environment and loves writing books that empower children. Aleesah has written over sixty-five books including picture books, chapter books, novels, and series. She has won or been shortlisted for many awards. Recent titles include Grace the Amazing, Coral, and Clara Capybara.

Find out more about Aleesah Darlison.

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Caroline Magerl was born near Frankfurt in Germany and came to Australia when she was two. She lived on the yacht her family built until she was fourteen. In 2001 Caroline was awarded the Children’s Book Council of Australia Crichton Award for new talent in children’s book illustration for her picture book Grandma’s Shoes (written by Libby Hathorn) and her latest award being the 2021 CBCA Honour Book for Picture Books as author and illustrator of Nop.
She has been a May Gibbs Fellow and received an Australian Society of Author’s children’s picture book grant to work on her book, Hasel and Rose. Nowadays she is a full-time author, artist, illustrator and printmaker. Her most recent titles are Tomato Sandwich and Piano Fingers.

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Dimity Powell loves filling every spare moment with words. She’s the Managing Editor for Kids’ Book Review and writes and reviews exclusively for children with over 30 internationally published stories and digital narratives including the award winning, This Is My Dad (2022), At The End of Holyrood Lane (2018) and the critically acclaimed, The Fix-It Man (2017). The Boy Who Lost His Laugh will be her fourth picture book with EK Books, available early 2026.

Dimity believes in the transformative power of storytelling, the restorative power of chocolate ice-cream and superheroes because she lives near one on the Gold Coast, Australia.

Find out more about Dimity Powell

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Heidi Cooper Smith always loved to draw, but it wasn’t until she had three small children and a towering picture book collection that she decided to try her hand at illustration. Ten years later, she’s been lucky enough to work with a number of publishers on some amazing picture and chapter books. Based in Brisbane, Heidi likes to write whimsical stories in both prose and rhyme. She illustrates digitally using watercolour brushes. When she’s not writing or illustrating, Heidi can be found covered in clay, working as a production potter while she dreams up new characters to bring to life.

Find out more about Heidi Cooper Smith.

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Laura Bunting is a children’s author whose books are renowned for their humour and heart. She strives to create stories that inspire a love of reading, and act as a springboard for big conversations about life, love, ice-cream and everything in between.

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Michelle Wilson is a children’s author, passionate primary school teacher, and busy mum of three, living in the lush Noosa hinterland. A natural storyteller and kitchen raver, Michelle is often found dancing to 90s hits while dreaming up her next picture book. She’s on a mission to make kids giggle – often managing to make herself laugh in the process.

Michelle has published three delightful books for children aged 0–7: Crocs Don’t Do Yoga and Crocs Really Do Yoga (Larrikin House), and The Humongous Humdingle Family and the Tiny House (EK Books). Her stories are heartfelt, down-to-earth, and brimming with the kind of warmth you feel sitting around a fire on a starry night.

Find out more about Michelle Wilson.

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Rosi Ngwenya trades in smiles – whether she’s fixing a tooth or sharing a silly story. A children’s dental practitioner by day and storyteller by heart, she’s passionate about creating joyful, meaningful experiences for little ones. Born in Africa, Tassie-raised, and now living on the Sunshine Coast for the past 10 years, Rosi draws inspiration from nature, science, and the magic of childhood. She’s a collector of pens, sunrises, and short course certificates, and is often found chatting picture books, inspecting teeth, or brainstorming her next idea (sometimes all at once).

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Bethany Loveridge is a passionate arts educator and children’s author-illustrator who has always loved storytelling and the natural world. Her past jobs include youth worker, film and television teacher, curriculum specialist and museum nerd (not the official title).

Bethany has won a suite of awards since she first started writing fiction ‘seriously’. In 2022 she was awarded an Australian Society of Authors/Copyright Agency Mentorship to develop a middle grade manuscript. This story became Bethany’s debut novel, Harper Wells: Renegade Timeline Officer, the first in a trilogy published with Wombat Books from 2025. In 2023, Bethany won the Book Links Mentorship to develop an illustrated chapter book, the first in a series which will also be published with Wombat Books from 2026. She also has a picture book out with Little Book Press next year, which is illustrated by School of Monsters illustrator, Chris Kennett!

Find out more about Bethany Loveridge.

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Brent Wilson is co-author and illustrator of the Frog, Log and Dave graphic novel series (Penguin Random House, 2025). He is also the illustrator of the cult classic children’s picture book Mr Impoppable (Larrikin House, 2023) as well as crowd favourite Koalas Like To… (State Library Queensland, 2020) and the delightful Laugh in the Bath (Little Book Press, 2025). When not working in kid lit, Brent draws for other things like magazines and advertising campaigns.

Find out more about Brent Wilson.

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Carla Salmon is a Lead teacher at Brisbane Grammar School who loves telling stories. Her debut novel, We Saw What You Started, is inspired by her country coastal childhood, where sports ruled and beach campsites were paradise. Much like the students in her classrooms today, her characters lead action-packed lives with plenty of heart and humour. Carla lives in Brisbane, with her husband and two teens.

Find out more about Carla Salmon.

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Josephine Moon has published ten books for adults and most recently launched the first book in a children’s series – Millie and Stella, Best Friends Forever (The Lost Ponies).

Her novels are published internationally (NZ, UK, Ireland, Germany, Norway, Greece), with collective sales over 300,000. He adult books include The Wonderful Thing About Phoenix Rose, The Tea Chest, The Chocolate Promise, The Beekeeper’s Secret, Three Gold Coins, The Gift of Life, The Cake Maker’s Wish, and The Jam Queens.

Jo loves working with beginning and emerging writers in workshops, courses, coaching and manuscript appraisals and is passionate about amplifying #ownvoices stories.

Find out more about Josephine Moon.

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Dr Lara Cain Gray has built her multi-discipline career through roles in libraries and museums, academic teaching and research, in Australia and the UK. In her current position at non-profit publisher Library For All, she delivers cross-cultural and multilingual books to communities where poverty, history or remoteness prevents children’s access to traditional libraries. She is a book reviewer, literary prize judge and public speaker who will NEVER be too old for picture books.

Her 2024 book, The Grown-Up’s Guide to Picture Books, is an A to Z guide to what makes a great picture book great. One reviewer wrote: “No teacher, teacher librarian or library collection, regardless of the age of their audience, should be without this important text.”

Find out more about Dr Lara Cain Gray.

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Peter Carnavas writes and illustrates books for children. His books have been published widely across the world and have won many awards, including a Queensland Literary Award and a NSW Premier’s Literary Award.

His latest book is Leo and Ralph, (Feb 2024 UQP), a novel about friendship, change and an imaginary alien from one of Jupiter’s moons. His earlier picture books are currently being re-released by New Frontier.

Peter also works as a teacher librarian and he lives on the Sunshine Coast with his family.

Find out more about Peter Carnavas.

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Dr Sarah Pye is an award-winning middle-grade author (and avid traveller), passionate about connecting kids to the natural world. She believes it’s the only way to save our planet. Sarah’s latest protagonist, Kai, agrees with her. In Curious Kai Asks Why, Kai and her artistic mum hook up their camper and go in search of REAL scientists and species with answers to her crazy questions. This new book follows on the heels of the Wildlife Wong series which was shortlisted for an Australian Educational Publishing Award in 2022.

Sarah’s school workshops align with curriculum and have been well-received nationally and internationally. Head librarian at Jerudong International School, Brunei, says:

“This Book Week was truly the best experience I’ve had in my 16 years of program management at our school. As a captivating storyteller, Sarah inspired our students across the entire STEAM curriculum, creating a meaningful experience for everyone from ages 6 to 17… Her classroom management was phenomenal… her professionalism and polished speaking were evident … and she kept the students captivated and fully engaged.”

Find out more about Dr Sarah Pye.

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