Welcome to SCBWI California: San Francisco North and East Bay!
SCBWI SF North & East Bay serves Alameda, Contra Costa, Lake, Marin, Mendocino, Napa, Solano, and Sonoma counties. We're a diverse and vibrant community of writers and illustrators focused on creating children's literature. Through workshops, critiques, networking events, and our Oktoberfest conference, we help each other grow as creators and storytellers. You can select your events of preference and receive announcements just for those events.
Events
November Sketchbook Club
Looking to socialize with fellow creatives and get some sketching in at the same time? Then come join us for a cozy Saturday Sketchbook Social! See what everyone has been up to as we share wins, hang out, and warm up our hands with some guided, no pressure sketching exercises.
Alameda County Monthly Writing Time
Join us for a relaxed and supportive writing session to make progress toward writing goals, build a habit, or just write alongside your SCBWI community. This is a welcoming space where you can show up exactly as you are. You can share what you are working on or simply join quietly and write. It's up to you and how you are feeling. Open to members and non-members from Alameda County and beyond!
School Visit Networking Group - November 2026
Do you have questions about school visits? How do you find gigs? How much should you charge? How do you make your presentations fun and engaging? Join the discussion! We'll share resources and exchange ideas. RSVP to the meeting via this
PAL EVENT! Submission Studio: Writing Stronger Queries, Strategizing Submissions, and Ten Ways to Translate “No” to “Yes!”
PAL MEMBER EVENT! This event is exclusively for PAL members (members with at least one book published with a traditional publisher--other books can be self-published) of all children’s book categories, looking to perfect their submission package and strategy. Your host will be Deborah Halverson, award-winning author of Writing Young Adult Fiction for Dummies and Writing New Adult Fiction, as well as books for teens and young readers.
Regional Resources
Tapestry of Voices
An initiative in SCBWI North/East Bay for those who want to REACH, INCLUDE, and BELONG by committing to: • Create children’s literature that reflects the rich tapestry of the world and the diversity of all the people who live in it. • Celebrate all voices, and finding ways to center under-represented voices in our professional conversations, organization, and work. • Support each other’s careers across all identities and experiences.
Find A Speaker
A resource for: Anyone looking to book an author/illustrator speaker for school visits, bookstore, library, conferences, workshops, and other events, in-person or virtual. If you're a member of our region, you can fill out the form to list your availability to speak at schools, libraries, and other venues
Critique Groups
Explore the new SCBWI Critique Groups. You can join a group or create your own and invite others to join!
