• Home
  • About
  • #KT250 Contest Info
  • #KTIllustrates
  • #KTChat Event Info
  • Submissions

Kite Tales

Kite Tales

Tag Archives: nonfiction

Ask an Editor: All About NaNoWriMo

16 Wednesday Nov 2022

Posted by Christine Van Zandt, author of A BRIEF HISTORY OF UNDERPANTS in Ask an Editor, Tips and Tools

≈ 3 Comments

Tags

authors, Chris Baty, MG, middle grade, NaNoWriMo, nonfiction, novels, writing tips

“Ask an Editor” is a forum wherein SCBWI members submit questions that are answered as part of our quarterly Kite Tales blog.

Hi Christine—This time of year it seems so many writers are participating in NaNoWriMo. What exactly is that and is it worthwhile for kid’s book writers? I’m writing a middle-grade novel.—Jo, Encino

Continue reading →

Share this:

  • Email
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Reddit
  • Pinterest
  • Tumblr

Like this:

Like Loading...

Calling All Illustrators: Be a Mentor in 2023! But First … a Word from This Year’s Mentor

26 Wednesday Oct 2022

Posted by Jessica Chrysler in Contests & Grants, Mentorship Contest, Tri-Regional News

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

illustrators, Joseph Taylor, mentor, mentorship, nonfiction, PAL Illustrators, Sarah Gottlieb

by Joseph Taylor

Editor’s Note: Mentorship proposals are now open to PAL Illustrator members of the Los Angeles Region for the 2023 Mentorship program! Read on to find out more about this rewarding experience and how you can help champion the next mentee!

A few months after starting a new job as editor of Muse magazine, I got the chance to focus on book writing with 2022 SCBWI-L.A. mentee Sarah Gottlieb. I was grateful to SCBWI-L.A. for offering a mentorship focusing on nonfiction for the first time and delighted to get the chance to work with Sarah.

Continue reading →

Share this:

  • Email
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Reddit
  • Pinterest
  • Tumblr

Like this:

Like Loading...

Crossing Borders and Letting Go with Mitali Perkins

28 Wednesday Sep 2022

Posted by Jessica Chrysler in Author's Perspective, Writers Days

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

authors, editing tips, Hope In The Valley, intercultural, middle grade, Mitali Perkins, nonfiction, picture books, plotting, SCBWI events, Writers Day 2022, writing tips, young adult

Joining us as keynote speaker for Writers Day 2022 is Mitali Perkins! An explorer of boundaries both physical and literary, she has written books for all ages of young readers, including You Bring the Distant Near (nominated for a National Book Award) and Rickshaw Girl (adapted into a film by Sleeperwave Productions) and the upcoming picture book, The Story of Us (Beaming Books, 2022). She seeks to make readers laugh and cry, all while opening their hearts to understanding the mysteries of the wider world.

Jessica Chrysler: Welcome Mitali, and thank you for taking the time to interview with Kite Tales! As an author of picture books, YA and nonfiction for adults, your work crosses categories as fluidly as you explore the theme of crossing borders. What inspires you in your work? And what gives you that spark to take on the next project?

Continue reading →

Share this:

  • Email
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Reddit
  • Pinterest
  • Tumblr

Like this:

Like Loading...

Lisa D. Kerr, Picture Book Author and Spotlight Speaker

03 Wednesday Aug 2022

Posted by Farrha Khan in Author's Perspective, Central Coast

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Lisa D. Kerr, nonfiction, nonfiction picture book, picture book, picture book author, Wake Sleepy One

by Ann Rousseau Smith, SCBWI CenCal News Liaison

Lisa D. Kerr is the debut author of Wake, Sleepy One: California Poppies and the Super Bloom, illustrated by Lisa Powell Braun (West Margin Press, April 2022), a nonfiction picture book about the California poppy super bloom. The story includes details such as the life cycle and plant parts of poppies, the desert habitat and its food web, as well as some early California history.

Lisa was a Spotlight Speaker at SCBWI CenCal’s How to Pitch to an Agent event on July 10. She took a moment to answer some questions for Kite Tales.

Continue reading →

Share this:

  • Email
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Reddit
  • Pinterest
  • Tumblr

Like this:

Like Loading...

Just Do It! Enter the 2022 SCBWI-L.A. Writers Day Contest

13 Wednesday Jul 2022

Posted by Jessica Chrysler in Contests & Grants, Writers Days

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

Christine Van Zandt, contests, Erica Rich, middle grade, Nicholas Ponticello, nonfiction, picture books, poetry, SCBWI events, SCBWI members, Toni Gallagher, Writers Day 2022, young adult

by Brenda Scott Royce

Why do we enter writing contests? Prizes are awfully nice, and hearing your name announced as the winner is a definite thrill. But perhaps even more motivating is the validation that comes with recognition of your work. There’s nothing like learning that the speck of an idea you plucked from thin air and coaxed into shape over weeks, months, or maybe even years, actually has wings and can fly. 

Continue reading →

Share this:

  • Email
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Reddit
  • Pinterest
  • Tumblr

Like this:

Like Loading...

The 2022 SCBWI-L.A. Nonfiction Mentorship Contest Winner Is…

09 Wednesday Mar 2022

Posted by Farrha Khan in Contests & Grants, Mentorship Contest

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

2022 winner, contest winner, Joseph Taylor, mentorship, news, nonfiction, writing contest

by Brenda Scott Royce

SCBWI-L.A. is thrilled to announce the winner of the 2022 Nonfiction Mentorship Contest!

The competition was steep and the submissions enticingly diverse, making the decision a difficult one for mentor Joseph Taylor.

Continue reading →

Share this:

  • Email
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Reddit
  • Pinterest
  • Tumblr

Like this:

Like Loading...

Mentorship Contest Now Open!

15 Wednesday Dec 2021

Posted by Jessica Chrysler in Contests & Grants, Mentorship Contest

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Cricket Media, Joseph Taylor, mentorship, nonfiction, writing contest

by Brenda Scott Royce

Writers: Do you have a great idea for a nonfiction project noodling in your brain? A work-in-progress that needs a little nurturing before being sent out into the world? If so, I implore you to consider applying for SCBWI-L.A.’s Nonfiction Mentorship Contest. This amazing opportunity pairs you with a dedicated, experienced mentor for a six-month period that can be absolutely career changing! Past SCBWI-L.A. mentees have landed agents and publishing deals.

The deadline for submissions is January 26 — so you can channel your New Year’s Resolution energy into preparing your submission.

Continue reading →

Share this:

  • Email
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Reddit
  • Pinterest
  • Tumblr

Like this:

Like Loading...

Interview with Nonfiction Picture Book Author Christine Van Zandt

19 Wednesday May 2021

Posted by Farrha Khan in Author's Perspective, Tips and Tools

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

A Brief History of Underpants, Christine Van Zandt, nonfiction, nonfiction picture book, picture books, published, publishing

Christine Van Zandt is a Los Angeles writer, editor, and longtime SCBWI volunteer. She’s a familiar name here on Kite Tales, previously as the Editor and now as a regular contributor. Her debut picture book, A Brief History of Underpants, will be published in June, though that wasn’t the initial plan . . . read on to get the scoop!

FARRHA KHAN: Welcome to Kite Tales! Congratulations on your picture book, A Brief History of Underpants. Why was your publication pushed from April to June?

Continue reading →

Share this:

  • Email
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Reddit
  • Pinterest
  • Tumblr

Like this:

Like Loading...

An Interview with STEM Author, Kristen Nordstrom

28 Wednesday Apr 2021

Posted by Jessica Chrysler in Author's Perspective, Central Coast, Tri-Regional News

≈ 9 Comments

Tags

Biomimicry, CenCal, Eiji Nakatsu, interview, Kristen Nordstrom, Mimic Makers, nonfiction, Paul Boston, STEAM, STEM

by Ann Rousseau Smith, SCBWI CenCal News Liaison

Kristen Nordstrom is the debut STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) author of Mimic Makers: Biomimicry Inventors Inspired by Nature, illustrated by Paul Boston (Charlesbridge Publishing, July 2021). The picture book profiles ten real-life scientists, engineers, and designers who copy nature to create amazing new technology. Thank you, Mother Nature!

Kristen teaches biomimicry and other topics to elementary-school students in a gifted science program, and is a member of NSTA, the National Science Teaching Association. She has written innovative curriculum, and has been honored with two writing awards from SCBWI for outstanding STEM manuscripts. Kristen took a moment from her busy schedule to answer some questions for the Kite Tales blog.

Continue reading →

Share this:

  • Email
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Reddit
  • Pinterest
  • Tumblr

Like this:

Like Loading...

Attention Non-fiction Writers: SCBWI-L.A. Mentorship Contest Opens April 19!

21 Wednesday Apr 2021

Posted by Jessica Chrysler in Contests & Grants, Mentorship Contest

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

contests, Edward Underhill, Joseph Taylor, mentorship, narrative nonfiction, Nicole Maggi, nonfiction, writing

by Edward Underhill

Editor’s update (6/1/21): The deadline for the SCBWI-L.A. 2021 Mentorship Contest has been extended to June 18, 2021! Get your entries in ASAP!

In March 2020, my partner had just moved her work home for the foreseeable future, my day job was suddenly paused while everyone scrambled to set up remote work, and Los Angeles was entering lockdown. With the roads suddenly quiet outside and more time on my hands, I decided to take a risk and submit my newly finished YA novel for the SCBWI-L.A. Mentorship Contest with mentor Nicole Maggi.

Continue reading →

Share this:

  • Email
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Reddit
  • Pinterest
  • Tumblr

Like this:

Like Loading...
← Older posts

Search This Blog!

  • View scbwilosangeles’s profile on Facebook
  • View SCBWISOCALLA’s profile on Twitter
  • View scbwila’s profile on Instagram

Enter your email to have new posts sent to your inbox!

Join 3,221 other subscribers

Resources, News, SCBWI Membership

SCBWI Membership


SCBWI-L.A. Events


SCBWI-CenCal


SCBWI-SoCal


LitMingle Calendar


Webinars


Critique Exchange


PAL Members

Blog Contents

My Tweets

What is SCBWI?

Founded in 1971 by a group of Los Angeles-based children's writers, the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators is a non-profit, 501 (c)3 organization. There are currently more than 22,000 members worldwide, in over 70 regional chapters writing and illustrating in all genres for young readers, making it the largest children's writing organization in the world.

Member Benefits

Members of SCBWI receive exclusive access to tools, information, and industry professionals as well conferences, workshops, and critiques. Click HERE to find out more. Join us and take your writing to the next level!

Blog at WordPress.com.

Privacy & Cookies: This site uses cookies. By continuing to use this website, you agree to their use.
To find out more, including how to control cookies, see here: Cookie Policy
  • Follow Following
    • Kite Tales
    • Join 460 other followers
    • Already have a WordPress.com account? Log in now.
    • Kite Tales
    • Customize
    • Follow Following
    • Sign up
    • Log in
    • Report this content
    • View site in Reader
    • Manage subscriptions
    • Collapse this bar
 

Loading Comments...
 

    %d bloggers like this: