Using Writing Challenges to Move a Story Forward

The Internet is full of writing challenges: NaNoWriMo, StoryStorm, 12x12, and more*. And those writing challenges are a great tool for moving your story forward.

*The various writing challenges are explained in more detail at the end of the post.

My debut picture book, FREAKY, FUNKY FISH: ODD FACTS ABOUT FASCINATING FISH, is the result of several writing challenges. In November 2012, I was participating in Tara Lazar’s PiBoIdMo while at Disney and wrote down Idea #32 “fish in a zoo” after seeing how many fish were named after animals. In 2013, I used that idea and wrote a first draft of a fiction story called NOT A GOLDFISH as a part of Julie Hedlund’s 12x12 challenge. That book never sold. But, in spring 2018, I was brainstorming topics for a rhyming, nonfiction picture book and I remembered all the strange fish from that earlier book and thought that might be a fun topic. I joined Paula Yoo’s NaPiBoWriWe and wrote a new draft about odd fish. After a few months of revisions, I sent it to my agent. In January of 2019 I had my first offer on a picture book! FREAKY, FUNKY FISH came out in May 2021.

My upcoming picture book, WIND IS A DANCE, is also the result of a combination of writing challenges. First, I came up with the idea during PiBoIdMo in November of 2015. For Idea #18 I wrote, “Lyrical NF book about wind—different types? (Similar to WATER IS WATER.)” In February 2016, The Lyrical Language Lab Alumni Group on Facebook had a “poem buddy” challenge in which we emailed poems to each other throughout the month. I decided to take my PiBoIdMo idea and wrote poems on wind. Eventually, I revised and strung those poems together to create a picture book. That book found a home with Kids Can Press and WIND IS A DANCE comes out on October 1st.

Other writers have also found success with writing challenges:

Katrina Swenson’s upcoming debut picture book, LOVE, GRUMBLE, is the result of a writing challenge. Katrina says, “The story started out as a Susanna Hill Valentiny story in 2018. I got an honorable mention and was so encouraged. . . I flushed it out into a full-length manuscript, and then revised it a billion times before earning a PB Chat mentorship with it in 2020 where I revised it some more.” In 2022, Katrina signed with an agent. LOVE, GRUMBLE sold in 2023 and will be released Fall 2026. 

Kelsey Gross also has a success story from Susanna Hill’s contests. Kesley says, “At the end of November 2020, I was already thinking about writing a winter solstice book when Susanna Leonard Hill announced the guidelines for the Kidlit Holiday Writing Contest. That year, all entries had to focus on “helping”. The line, I can help to shine the light! came to mind, and soon I had a draft featuring this repeated line.” Kelsey was a finalist in the contest and she lengthened the story before submitting it to her agent. In January 2021 her agent subbed WINTER: A SOLSTICE STORY and it soon sold to Paula Wiseman/Simon and Schuster. It came out in 2023. 

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Lisa Katzenberger’s picture book, IT WILL BE OK: A STORY OF EMPATHY, KINDNESS AND FRIENDSHIP, was inspired by this fun photo she saw on Twitter. In January 2017 she wrote her first draft of the story for Julie Hedlund’s 12x12. A few years later, through an SCBWI opportunity, she submitted the story to Sourcebooks. The editor acquired it and it came out in 2021.

Not only do writing challenges provide momentum to get words down on paper, they also help writers find community. Over the 10+ years that I’ve been writing, I’ve participated in many challenges including ones for revision, for studying mentor texts, etc. I not only moved my stories forward with these challenges, I also made some great friends. 

While some of these writing challenges have fallen by the wayside, if you’re looking for a challenge to help your writing and can’t find one, consider creating your own! All of these challenges started out with a writer who had an idea to help other writers. Maybe a new one started by you can help others find success, too.

Here is a bit more about the challenges mentioned in this post:

Tara Lazar’s PiBoIdMo (Picture Book Idea Month) used to be every November and just for picture book writers. But in 2017 Tara moved it to January, renamed it Storystorm, and is open to writers for all ages, not just picture books. More info can be found here: https://taralazar.com/storystorm/. Participating in it is free.

Julie Hedlund’s 12x12 is a challenge for picture book writers to write a rough draft every month for a year. But it's so much more than that. Membership includes a community forum, webinars, opportunities for critiques, and more. There are different levels of memberships at different price points, with the highest level providing submission opportunities to agents. More info can be found here: https://www.12x12challenge.com/membership/.

Paula Yoo’s NaPiBoWriWee (National Picture Book Writing Week) was a challenge to picture book writers to write one rough draft every day for one week. While it no longer happens, her website still has great posts from when it ran from 2009 - 2019. Check it out for some inspiration! https://napibowriwee.com/.

The Lyrical Language Lab is an online class taught by Renée LaTulippe. After the course, you can join the Alumni Group on Facebook. In 2016, Renée created a "poem buddy" challenge. While there aren't always challenges with this group, the class is top notch if you want to learn more about writing lyrically. More information can be found here: https://www.reneelatulippe.com/lyrical-language-lab/

Susanna Leonard Hill’s Writing Challenges: Susanna is an author who hosts holiday-themed writing challenges on her blog for Valentine’s Day, Halloween, and the December Holidays. More info can be found here: https://susannahill.com/for-writers/contests/

©Yanka Photography

Debra Kempf Shumaker started reading at the age of four and hasn't stopped since. She grew up on a small dairy farm in Wisconsin but now writes picture books from her home in the suburbs of Northern Virginia. She is the author of FREAKY, FUNKY FISH (2021), TELL SOMEONE (2021), PECULIAR PRIMATES (2022), and the upcoming WIND IS A DANCE (October 1, 2024). 

Debra is a member of SCBWI, several critique groups, and also a co-host of #PBPitch, a Twitter pitch party for picture books. Debra reviews picture books on Instagram every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, firmly believing there is a picture book for every reason, every season, and every age. Visit her online at www.debrashumaker.com, on Twitter or X at @ShumakerDebra, on Instragram at @debrakshumaker, and Bluesky at @debrakshumaker.

#NY22SCBWI (The SCBWI Annual Winter Conference 2022) Will Take Place Online February 11-13, 2022

Save the dates!

The conference theme: Creating and Selling Successful Children's Books in 2022

Keynotes for the Winter 2022 SCBWI Winter 2022 Conference will Include Brian Selznick, Paula Yoo, Kelly Yang, and Vanessa Brantley Newton

Some already scheduled highlights:

Friday evening, February 11, will be a rare keynote from the one and only Brian Selznick, creator of THE INVENTION OF HUGO CABRET and WONDERSTRUCK, whose latest book KALEIDOSCOPE was called a “lockdown masterpiece” by the New York Times. 

The entire day Saturday, February 12, will be packed full with keynotes and panels. Keynotes will be from Kelly Yang, the New York Times bestselling author of FRONT DESK and winner of the 2019 Asian Pacific American Award for Children's Literature; Paula Yoo, whose YA non-fiction book, FROM A WHISPER TO A RALLYING CRY: THE KILLING OF VINCENT CHIN AND THE TRIAL THAT GALVANIZED THE ASIAN AMERICAN MOVEMENT won the 2021 Boston Globe-Horn Book Award for Nonfiction; and New York Times best- selling illustrator for THE KING OF KINDERGARTEN, Vanessa Brantley Newton.

Interspersed between the keynotes will be three panels featuring 15 industry professionals. The topic of each panel is Recipes for Success in 2022 and will feature individual presentations from five editors, five agents, and five art directors, whose relevant and timely observations will provide a guide for creating and selling children’s books in the current environment. 

The cost for the main conference is $150. Multiple scholarships will be available, and announced by the time registration opens on December 2.  

Sunday, February 13, features an optional full morning session, which will be offered for an additional fee. During the morning, editors and agents will offer intensive sessions in which they will detail their process, their house, and their wish list. Lucky attendees will get to select two sessions to attend, and will be invited to submit queries to the leaders of BOTH sessions they selected. The additional fee for that morning is $150, and space will be limited. 

Sunday afternoon, however, is a free illustrators' event and is included with the cost of the conference and open to all attendees.

Also included in the basic conference registration are peer critiques, an orientation, and multiple socials. We fully expect enrollment to be fast and furious, so mark your calendar with the registration date. The full program and schedule will be posted on the SCBWI website on December 1.

Hope you'll join us!

Illustrate, Translate, and Write On,
Lee

Register Now For "Celebrating Asian Voices" - Free for SCBWI Members

This is going to be awesome! SCBWI #OwnVoices: Celebrating Asian Voices will take place on Thursday May 20, from 1pm-2pm Pacific.

Six children's book creators will discuss the role their Asian or Pacific Islander identity plays in the writing and art they create as well as the importance of overcoming stereotypes and providing positive representation.

The amazing panelists will be:

Julie Abe

Julie writes middle grade fantasy and YA romance, with the most recent book out being book two in the series, Eva Evergreen and the Cursed Witch

Eva Evergreen has fulfilled her dream of earning the rank of Novice Witch, and discovered the chilling truth behind the mysterious Culling -- the violent magical storm wreaking havoc across Rivelle Realm.

Revealing the truth, however, proves to be a difficult task and soon the culprit is at large. To make matters worse Eva learns what might be the horrible truth behind her pinch of magic and her mother's own mysterious connection to the Culling and rogue magic.

With her spirits at an all-time low, Eva must muster up the courage to prove her mother's innocence and learn to believe in her own magic, if she wishes to put a stop to the Culling once and for all.

Samira Ahmed

Samira's latest book is Mad, Bad, and Dangerous to Know

It’s August in Paris and 17-year-old Khayyam Maquet—American, French, Indian, Muslim—is at a crossroads. This holiday with her parents should be a dream trip for the budding art historian. But her maybe-ex-boyfriend is probably ghosting her, she might have just blown her chance at getting into her dream college, and now all she really wants is to be back home in Chicago figuring out her messy life instead of brooding in the City of Light.

Two hundred years before Khayyam’s summer of discontent, Leila is struggling to survive and keep her true love hidden from the Pasha who has “gifted” her with favored status in his harem. In the present day—and with the company of a descendant of Alexandre Dumas—Khayyam begins to connect allusions to an enigmatic 19th-century Muslim woman whose path may have intersected with Alexandre Dumas, Eugène Delacroix, and Lord Byron.

Echoing across centuries, Leila and Khayyam’s lives intertwine, and as one woman’s long-forgotten life is uncovered, another’s is transformed.

Mike Jung

Mike's most recent book is The Boys in the Back Row

Best friends Matt and Eric are hatching a plan for one big final adventure together before Eric moves away: during the marching band competition at a Giant Amusement Park, they will sneak away to a nearby comics convention and meet their idol-a famous comic creator. Without cell phones. Or transportation. Or permission. Of course, their final adventure together is more than just that-really, it’s a way for the boys to celebrate their friendship, and their honest love and support for one another.

Emily X.R. Pan

Author of the New York Times bestseller, The Astonishing Color of After

Leigh Chen Sanders is absolutely certain about one thing: When her mother died by suicide, she turned into a bird.

Leigh, who is half Asian and half white, travels to Taiwan to meet her maternal grandparents for the first time. There, she is determined to find her mother, the bird. In her search, she winds up chasing after ghosts, uncovering family secrets, and forging a new relationship with her grandparents. And as she grieves, she must try to reconcile the fact that on the same day she kissed her best friend and longtime secret crush, Axel, her mother was taking her own life.

Alternating between reality and magic, past and present, hope and despair, THE ASTONISHING COLOR OF AFTER is a novel about finding oneself through family history, art, bravery, and love.

Dow Phumiruk

Dow has illustrated picture books including "Counting on Katherine: How Katherine Johnson Saved Apollo 13" and "Maya Lin, Artist-Architect of Light and Lines." Check out illustrator's Dow's website for some amazing art. 

Paula Yoo

Paula's latest book is the nonfiction YA "From a Whisper to a Rallying Cry" 

A groundbreaking portrait of Vincent Chin’s life and death and the civil rights case that took America’s Asian American community to the streets in protest of injustice. Vincent Chin’s legacy inspires today’s generation to continue speaking out and fighting back in solidarity against hatred and racism. Because our history, our stories, our contributions – and our voices – matter.

and the session will be moderated by Alvina Ling, VP and Editor in Chief, Little, Brown Books for Young Readers.

Some details: Any current SCBWI member can register for a workshop. The first 5,000 people to sign up will receive a confirmation email with a Zoom link and instructions on how to attend the webinar live. Once registration has reached the 5,000-person limit, the workshop will be closed. Members who cannot attend live will be able to watch a video recording of the webinar on the SCBWI website twenty-four hours after the conclusion of the event.

Get all the details, and register for the workshop here.

Illustrate, Translate, and Write On,
Lee

Paula Yoo Gives Us The Scoop on National Picture Book Writing Week

SCBWI member Paula Yoo writes Young Adult novels and picture books.  She created NaPiBoWriWee four years ago, and here she tells us all about it:




Check out NaPiBoWriWee here, and as Paula says,

Good Luck, Everyone!

Illustrate and Write On,
Lee

Fun with Skype: TeachingAuthors Giveaway, School Visits & Blog Interviews

The TeachingAuthors are currently offering a contest via their blog to encourage teachers, writers and librarians to try a six-word memoir writing workout and then comment about the experience. The winning commenter/teacher gets the choice of a 30-minute Skype author visit from one of the TeachingAuthors or a prize package of 6 of their books, autographed. (The TeachingAuthors include April Halprin Wayland, Carmela Martino, Esther Hershenhorn, Jeanne Marie Grunwell Ford, JoAnn Early Macken, and Mary Ann Rodman.)

I love the fact that these authors are encouraging teachers to engage students in writing, giving a group of students the chance to engage with an author, and, in turn helping the authors build their audience among teachers, librarians and students. Win, win, and win. (If you know teachers or librarians who would be interested, be sure to send them to the blog.)

I also dig the idea of the virtual school visit via Skype. This is nothing new idea, of course--there are authors who've been doing it successfully for some time now. (TeachingAuthors offer a couple of cool links in their contest post--one with tips on conducting virtual visits, and another that links to a Skype Author Network.)  But I still think it's pretty cool that authors can visit any classroom that's techy enough to host them, anywhere, at any time. It's less travel for authors, less expense for schools, and more opportunities for students and authors to connect. Again win, win, and win. (And something to explore for you authors and illustrator who haven't done so. Check out the Skype site for more info. You may already have all the equipment you need.)

I also like what Angela Fox is doing on her blog The Amused Critic. She's got a series of Skype interview with authors and editors (including Elizabeth Law, Lisa Yee, Paula Yoo, and Adam Rex. Angela seems to have a bias toward interview subjects who also have 3-letter last names. Hmmm.) Here's an interview with E-Law swiped from The Amused Critic. Check out the blog for more and enjoy the wonders of Skype.