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REGISTER FOR SCBWI UNIVERSITY

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SCBWI Member Videos: How to Apply for Awards and Grants

2024

Mid Atlantic (D.C./Virginia)

Amazon

What would you do if someone stole your lunch? In Briana and the Bologna Bandit, Briana has to decide how to handle just that.

But this isn't just a book about a thief, this is a book about jumping to conclusions, showing empathy, and making new friends.

Briana and the Bologna Bandit

Martin moved to the Valley cabin where his dream to open an official horse racetrack was becoming real.  He grew with each new experience: flying to Wyoming, meeting a cowboy, selling his horse business, socializing at the Lodge, teaching his grandchildren, and opening his home to a veteran made Granddad’s life fuller than he ever imagined. His life’s journey and opening a new racetrack inspired his grandchildren, Wendy, Allie, Todd, Megan and Brody, to challenge themselves and imagine a new journey of their own with Ryan.

The Critter Family: Chasing Our Dreams!

Allie, Todd, Megan, and Brody spend the summer with Granddad at the cabin. They learn from Granddad that taking chances helps them learn, grow, and pursue ventures. Their summer is filled with surprises including more foals born.

Granddad Martin’s dream is doing what Denny wished, that the finders of Denny’s treasure use the cabin and land to make their lives better. Granddad Martin’s dream has a chance to make his love for horses and racing happen in the Valley. Along the way, Granddad shows his grandchildren how to believe in themselves and take chances.

The Critter Family: Time for Ventures!

Challenges come with moving! Brody’s transition to a new school is frustrating when kids find out about his critters. Megan gathers her wits at school when she has unexpected company! The family gets an unusual, unwelcome surprise one night at the ranch from school kids! Todd just wants to learn more about flying!

Meanwhile, Granddad Martin arrives from New York and ends up managing the Dunn Ranch, the children, and the critters! Martin travels back to Wyoming with four others. Martin meets some cowboys which starts a great friendship and sets him on a path changing his future!

The Critter Family: Circle of Friends!

Read along as a father and daughter, plus an adorable teddy bear, work together to bake bread! The bond between father and daughter comes to life as they work together to produce a tasty treat! Daddy Bakes Bread also shows the process involved with baking bread and that time and teamwork are key!

Daddy Bakes Bread

The world is not perfect. However, how can we make it better? Carter dreams of how he would use his superpowers to make the world a better place to live for everyone. From a child's perspective, he describes the positive changes he would make within different situations that we all have experienced or seen across the world. FUN FACT: The author used his son Carter as the main character. He wanted his son to see himself in a children's book and know anything is possible.

My Superpowers

A surprise visit with friends from Florida who had  a recreation vehicle (RV) made it easy for the Dunn family to make the road trip to Wyoming to visit friends before school starts!

The family and friends were amazed that the western mountains were larger than imagined. They were all anxious to explore and take advantage to visit a raceway, attend a rodeo, and pan for gold! Their adventures didn’t stop there. This family with big hearts were challenged to rescue wild western critters and take them home to Virginia! Their mischievous and sneaky critters even had fun out west!

The Critter Family: To Wyoming and Back!

The Dunn family spent a few weeks at their new home before heading for the mountains. Their new wild critters got along with their pets, so they were packed up for the trip too!  Since these new critters live outdoors, did it matter how many they had? 

The cabin area gave the family a chance to discover how clever the critters were. Especially when several new Valley area critters were added to the family in the mountains! These clever animals and their mischief ended up finding a treasure.

The Critter Family: Exploring the Shenandoah!

In The Critter Family: The Fun Begins!, a family with three pets moves from New York to Virginia.  What begins as a family including a retired racehorse, a greyhound dog, and a cat, ends with the addition of five more critters. One-by-one, these five critters find their way into the family’s activities. They join the pets in what becomes the critter family. From being discovered to being rescued, the critters find a lifestyle of fun, friendship, safety, and service to the whole family! This is the first book in a series.

The Critter Family: The Fun Begins!

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