Regional virtual events

Registration ends October 4, with program dates November 10-13, 2025: Bring your "greatest hits" for critique with some of our "greatest hits" faculty! Spaces available with Tracy Shaw of LBYR for PB Dummy Reviews and Portfolio Reviews.

October 4, 2025 (registration closes September 28): Writers and illustrators are invited to a full day of speaker presentations, critiques, pitches and mingling with fellow creatives! We'll have agents, an editor, an art director, published authors and an illustrator. This hybrid event is both in-person at Cal State Fullerton and via zoom. Attendees will have access to the videos for 30 days following the event.

October 6, 2025 (registration closes October 5): Sit down with Feiwel and Friends Senior Editor Kat Brzozowski to get to know her during this informal webinar. She'll chat with local author Elayne Crain about how they've worked together on Elayne's new book, There’s Something Odd About The Babysitter, what Kat looks for in submissions, and what she's seeing in the children's lit market lately. She'll answer general questions and will talk briefly about what she'll share with participants of our 2025 Write in the Woods Retreat in November. Don't miss it! The webinar will be recorded for participants unable to join live.

October 7, 2025 (registration closes October 6): Looking to grow your creative presence online, but not sure where to start? This webinar is designed for kidlit creators who want to use Instagram and Pinterest with more intention. We’ll explore the pros and cons of each platform and how to build visibility in a way that feels sustainable and authentic. You’ll learn tips for crafting engaging content, uncover hidden opportunities on Instagram, learn how Pinterest can quietly drive long-term traffic to your website, and more.

October 7, 2025: Panelists will share insight and tips on marketing and booking your programs. Deena Viviani will talk about what makes a good program for library. Kim Norman examines the life/work balance of creative time against the demands of school visits. Annette Whipple will share how she promotes her programs and her outreach to schools and other venues.

October 9, 2025 (registration closes October 8): In this 2-hour workshop, discover the key to plotting and revising a cohesive, satisfying novel through the intersection of plot structure and character development. In this interactive workshop, you’ll be introduced to a variety of storytelling structure tools from the basic three act structure to the more complex Save the Cat Writes a Novel by Jessica Brody. Each storytelling guide will be applied to Star Wars: A New Hope to see how guides overlap and intersect with each other, and attendees will have the chance to experiment with applying these tools to their own work during the workshop portion of the presentation. A limited number of PB, MG & YA critiques available at an additional cost.

October 11, 2025 (registration closes October 8): Make your story stand up and out with Story Skeletons! In this structure based workshop, we will explore the elements that make a good picture book or other story (and appear in most successful stories) and discuss examples, thereby strengthening the story from head to toe! The workshop includes an actual story skeleton handout to follow when needing a solid story base to flesh out with words. A writing exercise and discussion of attendee examples will be followed by an “Ask the Author/Editor” session. A submission opportunity is attached to this workshop.

October 14, 2025: Let’s Get Graphic! In this webinar, author-illustrator Jonathan Roth will provide an overview of this ever-expanding art form and give lots of creator tips on how to write, format, illustrate and submit your ideas. This webinar will be geared toward writers and/or illustrators (you don’t have to do both!) of all kidlit genres and subjects.

October 18, 2025: Join us for a 90-minute workshop on Saturday, October 18, 2025, 2:00-3:30 pm CST with Julie Downing, and learn how to develop characters for picture books through presentations, activities and Q&A.

October 15, 2025: Whether you're an illustrator or an author, it's crucial to think early on about your manuscript in its intended format: as a picture book! Rachel Orr at Prospect Agency will help you find joy in paginating your text and pondering page turns, which can help you think about your story in a whole new way. This process will allow you to spot problems and discover solutions that you may have overlooked before. Rachel will also speak briefly about the general pacing and shape of novels. Don't miss it!

October 16, 2025: Join Creative Director Joann Hill for an evening all about elevating and finessing your illustrations. She will share examples from her decades-long career of things to avoid that can make your art seem too conventional and not memorable/distinct. She will share examples of illustrations that WOW! and enhance the story.

October 18, 2025: In our Meet the Publishers workshop, Kade Dishmon, Assistant Editor, Holiday House, and Madison Pelletier, Editorial Director, Mayhem Books and Mischief Books, will share the history and mission of their publishing houses and what they are acquiring. They will answer questions about the publishing process, securing a book contract, writing a strong proposal, navigating submissions to publishers, and the current state of publishing. Attendees will receive submission guidelines and can view the recording for thirty days.

October 19, 2025 (registration closes October 18): What does pacing really mean? What does it mean for a picture book to be “snappy”? And how does plot function in picture books, anyway? In this jam-packed session, we’ll take a dive into a mentor text, examining character, plot, design, and other elements that make up a well-done narrative picture book. Sylvie Frank, Senior Executive Editor at Flamingo Books (Penguin Young Readers), will take us through our “paces” with well-seasoned insights and examples. You’ll come away with advice and strategies from a top children’s book editor—plus a picture book dummy (or maybe a stack of them!).

November 1, 2025: From book dummy query letter to the final product on the shelf, what exactly happens?! And what are the best tactics to use for that submission? Tracy Shaw, Art Director at Little Brown Books for Young Readers, will take you through each step starting with how best to submit your picture book dummy, through what to expect when your book is in the hands of a publisher. You’ll learn about what you’re involved in as well as what you’re not, and what to do after the ink has dried.

November 3, 2025 (registration closes October 30): Creating a picture-book-dummy is the first step toward publishing a book that could have a profound impact on a child’s life. Picture-book-dummies are reviewed in-house by professional editors and art directors who have deep experience with the craft of constructing books. Don’t let your heartfelt storytelling and art be upstaged by novice typography and book design. In this talk we’ll go deep, but not too deep. After all, you’re aiming to become published, not to become a professional book designer. Instead, a carefully curated selection of just-right best-practices and pro-tips have been packaged specifically with author/illustrators in mind. Learn to make your picture-book-dummies shine!

November 3, 2025 (registration closes November 2): For young readers, the jump from reading picture books alongside caregivers to reading middle-grade books on their own can be a huge leap. This is a vital time in childhood development, but since the pandemic, we’ve seen kids struggling more and more with making this transition and reading for fun independently. Thankfully, there are many different kinds of books that can help bridge this gap—including beginning readers, chapter books, longer-form picture books, and even early reader graphic novels. In this presentation, we’ll talk about the transition readers make from picture books to middle grade stories, the different kinds of books for this age group, and how writers can craft stories for that stick with kids and help to turn them into life-long readers. A limited number of critiques are also available at an additional cost.

November 8-9, 2025 (registration closes November 7): This November, we’re kicking off a first-ever 24-hour New York kidlit creation marathon to get us ready for SCBWI's Winter Conference! Join kidlit writers and illustrators on Zoom to work on your any of your ideas with support, prompts, check-ins, from RT Volunteer hosts and other kidlit creators. Share your progress and maybe even create a little social media buzz! So please join us, it is open to all!

November 8, 2025: Natascha Morris, Senior Agent with Tobias Literary Agency, will share her professional advice and experience on the art of developing compelling Pitches and using them to create opportunities for getting a second look from Agents, Editors and Readers. Season Ticket Holders will receive a link to submit a pitch for the speaker to possibly use during their presentation.

November 11, 2025: Join prolific picture book author Valerie Bolling to learn how your stories can benefit from having multiple layers to attract the attention of agents and editors.

November 13, 2025 (registration closes November 12): Picture books and middle-grade novels will always be beloved mainstays in the world of children’s literature. Yet it’s exciting to see the new categories that have arisen in order to bridge the gap between these two genres. From early readers and chapter books—to a wide range of illustrated and paneled graphic novels—there’s more of a selection now than ever for any level and interest, especially for those kids who might not be so inclined to crack a spine. Rachel Orr of Prospect Agency will trace the journeys of several projects from her author and illustrator clients that have landed in this space—some intentionally, but many serendipitously. She’ll also provide some tips for forging one’s own way into this new frontier. A limited number of critiques are also available at an additional cost.

November 13, 2025 (registration closes November 12): If you've ever thought about attending an artist or writer's residency to focus on your craft, but don't know where to start - or are overwhelmed with all the options available - this webinar is for you! Fine artist and illustrator (and Kansas/Missouri Illustrator Coordinator) Lindsey Dunnagan will shine a light into this world for you. She will go over how to find and apply to these residencies, how to prepare your materials, whether it's worth it to pay for a residency, and more! This event will take place over Zoom on Thursday, November 13th from 6-7 pm and will be recorded. FREE for members/ $5 non-members

December 6, 2025: 2025 Debut Children's Literature Authors and Illustrators Share Their Different Experiences.

December 7, 2025: Virtual Only Chapter Meeting Season Ticket pays for all chapter meetings September 2025 through April 2026 and discounts on other chapter events (EX: Mentorships and Intensives). Those who purchase a Season Ticket between Sep.-Dec. will receive recordings of the meetings they missed.

February 28, 2026: Agent Hillary Fazzari will be sharing hands-on editing strategies to polish First Chapters that hook agents, editors and readers, using examples of projects she personally represented and First Page submissions from attendees. You will also get an agents overview of the parameters and importance of a well-written synopsis when submitting novels – which more agent and editor submission guidelines are now requesting.

March 14, 2026: It’s an exciting time when you’ve finished a publishing project and are ready to query! But if you’re feeling a little lost on where to get started, we’ve got you covered. Literary agent and author, Sandra Proudman, will dive into the parts of a query letter + samples, her top ten tips for writing a standout query, the best ways to utilize and come up with comparative titles, and more in this 80-minute panel. There will be ample time for Q&A, so bring your questions and be ready to talk all about queries!