Membership

Our Mission

Who We Are

Global Regions

Impact and Legacy Fund

Partners

Annual Report

Gift Cards

About

Awards and Grants

Illustrator Gallery

Member Bookstore

Translation in SCBWI

SCBWI at Bookshop.org

Submissions & Showcases

Annual Events

Regional In-Person Events

Regional Virtual Events

Events

The Essential Guide to Publishing for Children

Self-Publishing Resources

Newsletters

Podcasts

The Official SCBWI Blog

Publications

FAQ & Policies

Contact Us

Donate

Privacy Policy

Terms of Service

Cookie Notice

Careers

Discussion Board

Connect & Support

Press

Resources to Combat Book Bans

SCBWI BookStop

Submit a Proposal

Virtual Summer Conference 2025

Annual Conferences

SCBWI at Bologna

SCBWI University

Essential Guide to Publishing for Children

The Bulletin

The Haunted States of America

Facebook

Instagram

LinkedIn

YouTube

Bluesky

Social links

Portfolio Showcase Winners (1).png

Explore SCBWI Portfolio Showcase

SCBWIU Nonfiction series SPOTLIGHT-2.png

Deep Dive Into Nonfiction

2024

California: San Francisco/South

Vern longs to be one of the kids who swoop until their toes touch the sky. He heads to the swings and desperately tries to pump his legs, but he just can't get it. A chance encounter with precocious (and hilarious) Gretchen gives him just what he needs to know, and he finally learns to soar.

A story for every child on the cusp of learning something new who just needs an extra push to get there.

TOUCH THE SKY

A poignant and necessary story about finding hope during difficult times, set in the early days of the Covid-19 pandemic. Hummingbird Season is an honest and healing novel in verse documenting the early days of the Covid-19 pandemic and the things that bring us together.

Archie's life--and the whole world--is turned upside down by Covid-19. Suddenly there are no more Friday night dinners out, no more going to school, no more hanging out with friends . . . no leaving the house at all.

HUMMINGBIRD SEASON

Celebrate how hope can be found in so many surprising moments and places as it fills our lives with beauty and wonder.

A beautiful rhyming text and cozy illustrations remind readers that hope can be found daily in so many aspects of life. From a poppy turning its face to the sun to a firefly lighting up the night. From putting all your effort into learning how to ride a bike, to asking for help to play ball. Hope can be found in so many places--in that shelf full of books waiting to be read, in a dog wagging its tail, and especially when you’re waiting at the window for a loved one’s visit.

WHAT IS HOPE?

A hilarious and heartwarming debut about picky eating, finding your people, and standing proud.In Muffuletta, being good at eating is the key to success. French fries and grilled cheese? Beginner food! Haggis and truffles? Delicacies!After failing a school eating test, picky eater Minerva is placed in the lowest eating track of all: Remedial Eating to Change Habits. RETCH class is full of kids with weird personalities and even weirder food preferences. And to make matters worse, Minerva's best friends, in the Gifted and Gourmet class, no longer speak to her.But soon Minerva finds she is not alone in her pickiness, and forms friendships with her new classmates. And together, they find a way to stand up for themselves—picky and proud!

THE LEAGUE OF PICKY EATERS

Stunningly illustrated by #1 New York Times bestselling artist Vashti Harrison, Hello, Star (written by Stephanie V.W. Lucianovic) is an inspiring story about a love of science and the importance of empathy. When a young girl learns that a bright light in the sky is coming from a dying star, she promises to keep it company until the light goes out. Every night the girl reassures her friend that she is still there.As the years pass, the girl learns everything she can about planets, space, and the universe, inspired by her dimming friend—until she realizes she needs to do something more.

HELLO, STAR

Children love their pets very much—and when the animals die, that loss can be hard to process. The End of Something Wonderful helps kids handle their feelings when they’re hurting and can’t find all the right words. In a warm, understanding, sometimes funny way, it guides children as they plan a backyard funeral to say goodbye, from choosing a box and a burial spot to giving a eulogy and wiping away tears. Most of all, it reassures them that it’s not the end of everything . . . and that Something Wonderful can always happen again.

The End of Something Wonderful: A Practical Guide to a Backyard Funeral

As a child Stephanie Lucianovic lived for years on grilled cheese and created an elaborate system for disposing of revolting food involving bookshelves, holiday centerpieces, and, later, boyfriends. She agonized not over meeting her future in-laws, but over the peaches they served her. As an adult, this picky eater found herself in the most unlikely of circumstances: a graduate of culinary school who became a cheesemonger and then a food writer. Along the way, she realized just how common her plight was. It wasn’t surprising to discover that picky eating is an issue for millions of kids, but who knew there are even support groups for adults who can’t overcome it? Yet remarkably little is known about the science of picky eating, and cultural and historical questions abound. Are picky eaters destined to ascend to a higher plane of existence, and what happens when picky eaters fall in love or go to restaurants? How can you tell if you’re a “supertaster”? How does the gag reflex affect pickiness (and what secrets do sword swallowers impart to help overcome it)? Suffering Succotash is a wide-angle look into the world of picky eating, told by a writer who’s been in the culinary trenches. With wit and charm, through visits to laboratories specializing in genetic analysis, attempts to infiltrate the inner workings of a “feeding” clinic, and interviews with fellow picky eaters and adventurous foodies young and old, Stephanie explores her own food phobias and gets to the bottom of what repulses us about certain foods, what it really means to be a picky eater, and what we can do about it.

Suffering Succotash: A Picky Eater's Quest to Understand Why We Hate the Foods We Hate