I had a fantastic experience! Listening to Stephen Fraser, Emily Feinberg, and Joanna Cardenas was eye-opening. So, what did I learn? The best piece of information was hearing that often times editors and agents pay little attention to the query letter! Whew! I spend so much time perfecting my letters and worrying about their content. I’m going to back off a little now and just relax. The manuscript is read first by many editors and then the query letter will be glanced at if necessary. I like that!
I was thrilled to purchase a copy of The Watermelon Seed and have it signed by Greg Pizzoli. I collect Caldecott, Newbery, and Theodor Seuss Geisel Award books. Getting them signed is an extra special delight to my collection!
Oh, and of course the ice cream sundae that I made and ate was delicious!
EasternPennPoints 
Welcome to the blog, Nadine! Thanks so much for contributing your thoughts.
I agree with you that it was good to know that our faculty members didn’t put too much stress on the cover letter for picture books. Makes sense to me to be much more focused on the manuscript itself. I went to a conference last year where the editors were very focused on the letter and wanting you to put all sorts of details and selling points in….I guess it just goes to show there’s a lot of variation amongst editors and agents!