This KidLit Events listing focuses on webinars, courses, and conferences that are accessible for a majority of people. Most are online, but I have included larger in-person events. I update this list continually, so please let me know if I am missing or incorrect information.
THE KIDLIT WEEKLY: You can now receive weekly KidLit events in your Inbox
every Thursday morning for the following week.
You can find now and sign up for The KidLit Weekly on Substack!
JAN | FEB | MAR | APR | MAY | JUN | JUL | AUG | SEP | OCT | NOV | DEC
DESCRIPTION OF EVENT CATEGORIES
Webinar: a single session class online
* Cities noted refer to location of in-person events.
Workshop: one-to-two session intensive
Online Course: multiple-session class online
Online Program: longer-term or ongoing programs
Conference: multiple courses within a single event
Hybrid Event: in-person event with an online option
Contest: submission opportunity where winner(s) are selected
Pitch Event: opportunity to pitch projects to editors/agents
Challenge: timed event set to accomplish a certain project(s)
Blog Event: special blog series that run for a short period of time
AUGUST 2026
(1-10) KIDLIT FIREFLY MENTORSHIP APPLICATIONS
Online Program: KidLit Firefly
(9) CRITIQUE GROUP RENAISSANCE with Melissa Manlove
Webinar: SCBWI Wisconsin
(9) SHOW DON’T TELL FOR YOUNG READERS with Miranda Paul
Online Workshop: Storyteller Academy
(9-12) WRITING SHORTER: WHY (AND HOW) LESS CAN BE MORE
Milanville, PA: Boyds Mills
(10) KIDLIT FIREFLY MENTORSHIP DEADLINE
Online Program: KidLit Firefly
(11) MG/YA OPENING PAGES with Hannah Hill
Online Course: Inked Voices
(11-13) PICTURE BOOK ESSENTIALS
Online Workshop: Boyds Mills
(11-13) GRAPHIC NOVEL STORYTELLING: WHERE WORDS MEETS PICTURES MEETS READERS
Online Workshop: Boyds Mills
(12) PICTURE BOOKS R&R with Carina Licon
Online Course: Inked Voices
(12) AN EVENING WITH AUTHOR ANDREW HACKET
Webinar: KidLit Firefly
(15) HOW TO WRITE FOR YOUNG READERS
Webinar: Grubstreet Center for Creative Writing
(15-20) THE WHOLE NOVEL WORKSHOP RETREAT
Milanville, PA: Boyds Mills
(17) PICTURE BOOKS R&R with Carter Hasegawa
Online Course: Inked Voices
(18) PITCH POWER: THE PRACTICE OF ONE-LINERS
Webinar: KidLit Firefly
(18) THERE’S NO ONE WAY TO STEAM
FREE Webinar: STEAM Team Books
(18-20) BUILD YOUR PLOT: STRUCTURES & STRATEGIES
Online Workshop: Boyds Mills
(19) DE-MYSTIFY VOICE WITH SIX KEY CONCEPTS
Webinar: SCBWI Germany | Australia
(20) WRITING AN IRRESISTIBLE QUERY
Webinar: Good Story Company
(20) FIRST PAGE CRITIQUE with Editor Michele McAvoy
Webinar: KidLit Firefly
(20-23) IGNITE YOUR WRITING IN THE EDUCATIONAL MARKET
Milanville, PA: Boyds Mills
(22) WRITING STRONG VOICE: HOW TO RECOGNIZE IT AND ACHIEVE IT
Webinar: SCBWI Texas Houston
(22) 5 TOOLS TO FIX YOUR CHARACTER ARCS
Webinar: The Writing Barn
(22) THE POWER OF TWO: DIRECT COLLABORATIONS BETWEEN AUTHORS & ILLUSTRATORS
Webinar: SCBWI Nevada
(22) CRACK THE CODE: REVERSE ENGINEERING THE GRAPHIC NOVEL
Webinar: San Francisco South
(22) DOODLES AND DRAFTS
FREE Webinar: SCBWI Indiana
(22) DRAWN TO STORY: CRAFTING CHARACTERS AND CRAFTING SMILES
Webinar: SCBWI Pennsylvania East
(22) PICTURE BOOK LIVE EDITS with Carter Hasegawa
Webinar: SCBWI Arizona
(24) STORY OPENINGS INTENSIVE
Webinar: SCBWI Germany | Austria
(25) THE HISTORY OF CHILDREN’S LITERATURE
Online Course: Whale Rock Workshops
(26) STORYSNOBS PITCH CONTEST
Webinar: Good Story Company
(27) WRITING THE GRAPHIC NOVEL with Mickey George
Webinar: Writing & Illustrating for Young Readers
(27) CRAFTING AUTHENTIC INVISIBLE REPRESENTATION IN CHILDREN’S BOOKS
Webinar: SCBWI Pennsylvania East
(27) EARLY BIRD DEADLINE FOR PICTURE BOOK SUMMIT
Online Event: Picture Book Summit
(27) STARTING OUT WITH GRAPHIC NOVELS
Webinar: SCBWI Germany | Austria
(27) CRAFTING INVISIBLE REPRESENTATION IN CHILDREN’S BOOKS
Webinar: SCBWI Pennsylvania East
(27-30) CELEBRATING ASIAN AND ASIAN AMERICAN STORIES
Milanville, PA: Boyds Mills
(29) PATHS TO PUBLICATION KIDLIT PANEL
Decatur, GA: SCBWI Southern Breeze
(30) HOW TO ADD HUMOR TO YOUR PICTURE BOOK
Webinar: KidLit Firefly
SEPTEMBER 2026
(2) FROM IDEA TO SKETCH TO DUMMY
Online Course: Boyds Mills
(3) PICTURE BOOKS with Celia Lee
Online Course: Inked Voices
(3) CAPTURING YOUR MAIN CHARACTER’S PERSPECTIVE IN NARRATION
Webinar: SCBWI Pennsylvania East
(7) LYRICAL LANGUAGE LAB – FALL SESSION
Online Course: Renee LaTulippe
(8) CHILDREN’S BOOK WRITING I
Online Course: Gotham Writers
(8) STORY OPENINGS: BEYOND “ONCE UPON A TIME” with Tina Tocco
Webinar: SCBWI New Mexico
(8-10) #PITCHDIS
Pitch Party: X and BlueSky
(9) LANDING WORK-FOR-HIRE CONTRACTS
Webinar: Whale Rock Workshops (Direct Link TBD)
(9-30) REVISION ROADMAP
Online Course: Boyds Mills
(10) PICTURE BOOKS with Elizabeth Lazowski
Online Course: Inked Voices
(10) REQUEST, REVISION & RELEASE with Author Lizzie Brooks and Editor Stephanie Wheeler
Webinar: KidLit Firefly
(10-13) KIDLIT CHUCKLE CHALLENGE
Contest: Link Coming Soon!
(12) WRITING FOR THE CHILDREN’S MAGAZINE MARKET
Online Workshop: Write2Ignite
(15) #LATINXPITCH
Pitch Party: X and BlueSky
(15) GET TO KNOW HI-LO: THE BOOK, THE COOK, THE HOOK
Webinar: SCBWI Canada West
(15-17) RHYMING PICTURE BOOKS: FROM FORCED TO VERSE
Online Workshop: Boyds Mills
(16) FEELING IT: CREATING EMOTIONAL DEPTH IN YOUR NOVEL
Online Course: Whale Rock Workshops
(16) EDITOR ASK ME ANYTHING PANEL
Webinar: Good Story Company
(16) CREATING EMOTIONAL RESONANCE IN PICTURE BOOKS
Webinar: SCBWI England North
(16-19) PICTURE BOOK AUTHORS AND ILLUSTRATORS RETREAT
Milanville, PA: Boyds Mills
(17) WRITING IRRESISTIBLE FIRST PAGES
Webinar: Good Story Company
(17) CREATING FANTASTICALLY GREAT NONFICTION BOOKS
Webinar: SCBWI England North
(18) PITCH PERFECT: THE PRACTICE OF WRITING ONE LINERS
Webinar: KidLit Firefly
(18-19) AUTHOR AND THE ROUNDTABLES
Asheville, NC: SCBWI Carolinas
(19) ILLUSTRATOR, MG, AND YA DAY – LIVE
Lancaster, PA: SCBWI Pennsylvania East
(19) PERFECT PITCHES
Webinar: SCBWI Arizona
(19) CHILDREN’S WRITERS OF THE HUDSON VALLEY CONFERENCE
Poughkeepsie, NY: Children’s Writers of the Hudson Valley
(20) LET’S MAKE A SCENE: WRITING NONFICTION SCENES with Candace Fleming
Webinar: The Writing Barn
(21) FROM UNI PROJECT TO TWO BOOK DEAL
Webinar: SCBWI England North
(23) JUST DO IT: FINISH YOUR DRAFT
Online Course: Boyds Mills
(23) PICTURE BOOKS with Jamie Gelman
Online Course: Inked Voices
(24) PICTURE BOOKS with Rob Broder
Online Course: Inked Voices
(24) PITCH PERFECT: HOOK AN AGENT/EDITOR
Webinar: KidLit Firefly
(26) WRITING EMOTION IN PICTURE BOOKS with Rob Sanders
Webinar: The Writing Barn
(26) 2026 MINI MFA CONFERENCE
Austin, TX: SCBWI Texas Austin
(26) WRITING BOOKS FROM THE INSIDE OUT: PICTURE BOOKS
Online Course: SCBWI Nebraska
(26) PICTURE BOOK ACQUISITIONS CONFIDENTIAL
Webinar: SCBWI Indiana
(26-27) COMPOSING COMMUNITY, CAREER, AND CRAFT
Nashville, TN: SCBWI MidSouth
(30) HOW TO ADD HUMOR TO YOUR PICTURE BOOK
Webinar: KidLit Firefly
OCTOBER 2026
(1-4) MIDDLE GRADE WRITERS RETREAT
Milanville, PA: Boyds Mills
(3) PICTURE BOOK SUMMIT
Online Event: Picture Book Summit
(3) FALL HARVEST WRITERS AND ILLUSTRATORS DAY
Fullerton, CA: SCBWI Southern California
(3-4) RECONNECT AND RECHARGE RETREAT
Warm Springs, GA: SCBWI Southern Breeze
(4) MIDDLE GRADE OPENING PAGES with Miloni Vora
Online Course: Inked Voices
(4) FALL HARVEST: COMMUNITY GARDENS
Online Conference: SCBWI Illinois
(4-18) EXPLORING POINT OF VIEW
Online Workshop: Whale Rock Workshops
(5) MIDDLE GRADE WRITING PROCESS
Webinar: SCBWI England North
(5-7) PURPOSEFUL PAGE TURNS: CREATING MOMENTUM IN PICTURE BOOKS
Online Workshop: Boyds Mills
(6) WHOLE NOVEL WORKSHOP: MG & YA WRITERS
Online Course: Boyds Mills
(6) MG & YA OPENING PAGES with Kristin Ostby
Online Course: Inked Voices
(6) CHILDREN’S BOOK WRITING I
Online Course: Gotham Writers
(6-27) DIVING INTO PICTURE BOOKS with Editor Matt Phipp
Online Course: Boyds Mills
(7) REVISING YOUR NOVEL IN VERSE
Online Course: Boyds Mills
(7) CHILDREN’S BOOK WRITING II
Online Course: Gotham Writers Workshop
(8-10) ENGAGING STORIES CONFERENCE
Green Lake, WI: SCBWI Wisconsin
(9-11) SKIPPING STONES WRITERS & ILLUSTRATORS RETREAT
Perrysburg, OH: SCBWI Ohio North
(10-11) LETTERS & LINES CONFERENCE
Golden, CO: SCBWI Rocky Mountain
(12) PITCHES AND PICTURE BOOKS with Kat Brzozowski
Online Course: Inked Voices
(14) CRAFTING THE POETRY NOVEL FOR YOUNG ADULTS
Online Course: Writers.com
(14) CHAPTER BOOKS with Alison Weiss
Online Course: Inked Voices
(14) CRITICAL QUESTIONS: GETTING TO THE HEART OF YOUR STORY
Online Course: Whale Rock Workshops (Direct Link TBD)
(15) QUERY CRITIQUE with Agent John Rudolph
Webinar: KidLit Firefly
(16-18) NEBRASKA FALL RETREAT
Red Cloud, NE: SCBWI Nebraska
(17) WRITING A MANUSCRIPT THAT AGENTS & EDITORS CAN’T RESIST
Webinar: The Writing Barn
(17) FALL WRITER’S SUMMIT
Olney, MD: SCBWI Maryland | Delaware | West Virginia
(18-23) WHOLE NOVEL WORKSHOP RETREAT
Milanville, PA: Boyds Mills
(20) BUILD YOUR AUTHOR BRAND WITH NEWSLETTERS
Webinar: Whale Rock Workshops
(20) WRITING YOUR CHILDREN’S BOOK with Lesley Parr
Online Course: Bloomsbury Writers & Artists
(20-22) WORLDBUILDING 101 with Emma Dryden
Online Workshop: Boyds Mills
(21) PICTURE BOOKS with Catherine Laudone
Online Course: Inked Voices
(22) WRITING IRRESISTIBLE PICTURE BOOKS
Webinar: Good Story Company
(23-26) EARLY READERS AND CHAPTER BOOKS RETREAT
Milanville, PA: Boyds Mills
(24) PACKAGING YOUR IMAGINATION CONFERENCE
Toronto, Canada: Canadian Society for Children’s Authors, Illustrators, and Performers
(24) ONE PLUS ONE CONFERENCE
New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers University Council on Children’s Literature
(24) TAKE TWO! DEVELOPING CINEMATIC EYE FOR ILLUSTRATORS
Webinar: SCBWI Southern Breeze
(26-27) MIDSOUTH REGIONAL CONFERENCE
Nashville, TN: SCBWI MidSouth
(26-29) NOVELS IN VERSE RETREAT
Milanville, PA: Boyds Mills
(27) LEAVING SPACE FOR THE ILLUSTRATOR WITHOUT LOSING YOUR VISION
Webinar: The Writing Barn
(27-30) R(EV)ISE AND SHINE RESIDENCY
Marlboro, VT: R(ev)ise and Shine
(29) EDITOR EVENT with Kat Bzozowski
Webinar: KidLit Firefly
(30) BIG SUR CHILDREN’S WRITERS WORKSHOP
Cape Cod, MA: Big Sur Children’S Writers Workshop
NOVEMBER 2026
(1-6) CABOOSE FARM RETREAT
Sabillasville, MD: Whale Rock Workshops
(2) PICTURE BOOKS with Erika DiPasquale
Online Course: Inked Voices
(3) PICTURE BOOKS with Sheila Fernley
Online Course: Inked Voices
(4) #QUESTPIT
Pitch Party: QuestPit
(5) HOW CHILDREN’S PUBLISHING WORKS
Webinar: SCBWI England North
(5-8) POETRY PALOOZA
Milanville, PA: Boyds Mills
(6-8) WESTERN WASHINGTON CREATIVE RETREAT
North Bend, WA: SCBWI Western Washington (Direct Link TBD)
(8-14) MASTER SKILLS WORKSHOP
Sabillasville, MD: Whale Rock Workshops
(10) AN EVENING WITH AGENT EMILY KEYES
Webinar: KidLit Firefly
(10-12) PICTURE BOOK APPROACHES: CONCEPT BOOKS, BIOGRAPHIES, & MORE
Online Workshop: Boyds Mills
(12-15) QUERY LETTER INTENSIVE
Online Workshop: Boyds Mills
(13-14) YALL FEST BOOK FESTIVAL
Charleston, SC: YALL Fest
(14) BEYOND THE PAGE CONFERENCE
Phoenix, AZ: SCBWI Arizona
(19) EVALUATING YOUR WIP AND MOVING FORWARD
Webinar: The Good Story Company
(30) WRITING THE MIDDLE GRADE
Webinar: SCBWI England North
DECEMBER 2026
(1) CREATING & RAISING PERSONAL STAKES
Webinar: Whale Rock Workshops
(1-3) PICTURE BOOK REVISION: PLOT, PACING, CHARACTER & MORE!
Online Workshop: Boyds Mills
(2) EDITOR EVENT WITH WENDY MCCLURE
Webinar: KidLit Firefly
(27) ROCK YOUR WRITING GOALS
Webinar: Good Story Company
JANUARY 2027
(8) CHILDREN’S NOVEL SECOND DRAFT WORKSHOP
Online Course: Anastasia Suen
(15) 2026 BOOK AWARDS DEADLINE
Contest: Seasons of KidLit
(28-30) CAPE COD CHILDREN’S WRITERS WORKSHOP
Cape Cod, MA: Andrea Brown Literary Agency
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