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Tag Archives: mentorship

Announcing the 2025 SCBWI-L.A. Mentorship Contest Winner!

11 Wednesday Jun 2025

Posted by Judy Y Faulkner in Contests & Grants, Los Angeles, Mentorship Contest, Tri-Regional News

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Julia Edwards, mentorship, Mentorship Award, MG, middle grade, novel, Sherry Shahan, writing, Writing awards

In March, we invited writers to apply for a six-month mentorship with one of our Published and Listed members, and we received a record number of entries! This year’s mentor, Sherry Shahan, joins us to announce the winner and discuss her selection process.

by Sherry Shahan

What a pleasure to spend time with this year’s mentee submissions, written by accomplished playwrights and actors, teachers, artists, music lovers, well-published poets, and other creators. While genres and approaches differed, each writer presented realistic characters with heartfelt desires. Their unique personalities shined through. Stepping into their characters’ worlds at the beginning of their transformations was a remarkable, emotional experience.

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Treasure Chest: April 2025

02 Wednesday Apr 2025

Posted by Eori Tokunaga in Contests & Grants, Great News!, PAL, Toot Your Horn!, Treasure Chest, Tri-Regional News, Writers Retreat, Writers' Retreat

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Alaska Writers Guild, April Halpin Wayland, authors, Coffee with the Authors, Comic Orange, Eori Tokunaga, Fall Harvest, Great News, Highlights Foundation, illustrators, Kids Book Conference, Los Angeles Times Festival of Books, Mark Parsons, mentorship, middle grade, PAL, poetry, published, SCBWI Alaska, SCBWI community, SCBWI events, SCBWI members, SCBWI University, Sherry Shahan, Shiho Pate, tabling, Toot Your Horn!, UCLA Extension, volunteer, Wendelin Van Draanen, workshop, Writing Conference of Los Angeles, young adult, zine

Events, Opportunities, and Resources happening now and coming soon for the Tri-Regions and beyond

Check out more resources at the end of the post!

APRIL 9
Register to attend Writing Poetry for Children with April Halprin Wayland through UCLA Extension! “In three hours of lecture, group participation, and individual writing time, you learn the basics of writing poetry for children, play with different forms, and learn to hear children’s poetry with new ears.” This class is free to attend and will take place on April 9, 2025, from 12:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m. Pacific Time. Click here to save your spot!

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Can a Mentor Be the Boost You Need to Succeed?

19 Wednesday Mar 2025

Posted by Judy Y Faulkner in Contests & Grants, Los Angeles, Mentorship Contest, Tri-Regional News

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Cassandra Federman, contest, Edward Underhill, illustrating, mentorship, Monica Mancillas, publishing, Sarah Gottlieb, Sherry Shahan, writing

As the 2025 mentorship contest deadline approaches, SCBWI-L.A.’s Contest Coordinator checks in with a few past winners who’ve gone on to score major successes…

by Brenda Scott Royce

2020 Mentee Edward Underhill’s adult debut is in bookstores now

A few months ago, I was perusing the new release display in my local bookshop when a title called The In-Between Bookstore caught my eye. (I’m a sucker for any book about books, libraries, or bookstores!) I stared at the author’s name for a few moments before it struck me why it seemed so familiar—Edward Underhill won SCBWI-L.A.’s mentorship contest in 2020. The manuscript he worked on with mentor Nicole Maggi, Always the Almost, was published in 2023 by Wednesday Books, an imprint of Macmillan. Ed summarized the mentorship for Kite Tales in 2021, concluding: “Nicole’s mentorship gave me gifts I didn’t even know I needed, and I would not have gotten here without it.”

The In-Between Bookstore is Ed’s adult debut, and it’s garnering rave reviews (and a cover blurb by mega-bestseller Jodi Picoult!). Seeing it on the bookshelves made me wonder about other past mentorship contest winners. How many are enjoying similar achievements—and did their mentorship experience contribute to their success? I reached out to a few to find out. 

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SCBWI-L.A.’s Mentorship Contest Is Now Open!

12 Wednesday Mar 2025

Posted by Judy Y Faulkner in Contests & Grants, Los Angeles, Mentorship Contest, Tri-Regional News

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authors, contest, Jaime Zollars, Kristin Marine, mentorship, Sherry Shahan

**Note: The SCBWI-L.A. Mentorship is a six-month program that alternates between various categories of writing and illustrating. In this post, our 2024 winner, illustrator Kristin Marine, shares her experience with the program and last year’s mentor, Jaime Zollars. The 2025 mentor will be announced at the end of the post.**

by Kristin Marine

I applied for the SCBWI-L.A. Mentorship Contest in 2024. I had a portfolio on my website, a few written stories, and a book dummy. I felt pretty good when I reached out to illustration agencies in search of representation, but I heard more than once that I wasn’t quite “ready.” I wasn’t sure what ready looked like, and I hoped a mentor might help me figure it out.

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Treasure Chest: March 2025

05 Wednesday Mar 2025

Posted by Eori Tokunaga in Contests & Grants, PAL, Treasure Chest, Tri-Regional News, Writers Retreat, Writers' Retreat

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Tags

authors, Comic Orange, illustrators, Los Angeles Times Festival of Books, Los Angeles Zoo, mentorship, middle grade, PAL, Paula Yoo, published, SCBWI Art Day, SCBWI community, SCBWI Don Freeman Grant, SCBWI events, SCBWI Karen Cushman Late Bloomer Award, SCBWI members, SCBWI Work-In-Progress Award, Sketch Safari, tabling, volunteer, workshop, young adult

Events, Opportunities, and Resources happening now and coming soon for the Tri-Regions and beyond

UPDATE – EVENT NEXT WEEK! MARCH 25

Award-winning author Matthew Burgess, Caldecott Medalist Doug Salati, and three-time Caldecott Honoree Marla Frazee will join forces for Illustrating the Power of Poetry!, a conversation about collaboration, the power of poetry and the process of illustrating poems for children. This free event takes place on Tuesday, March 25, 2025, beginning at 7:00 p.m., at Once Upon a Time Bookstore, 2207 Honolulu Avenue, Montrose, CA 91020. After the conversation, the creators will be available to sign books. “This gathering would be beneficial to teachers, librarians and anyone who works with children to inspire their creativity.” For more information, visit Once Upon a Time.

OPEN NOW
Join your friends and peers at the 2025 Art Day: Illustrators and Writers Connect, SCBWI SoCal! This one-day hands-on workshop runs from 9:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. at the Laguna College of Art & Design on March 15, 2025. Our fun-filled day near the ocean will include warm-up exercises, “draw off and hands on activities,” as well as presentations from award-winning authors and illustrators.

OPEN NOW
Sign up today for the SCBWI-LA Sketch Safari at The LA Zoo! Pack your drawing materials and wear your comfiest walking shoes as you trek the Los Angeles Zoo with illustrator Alexander Vidal on Saturday, March 29, 2025, from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. The cost of registration also includes admission to the zoo. “While this is a sketch event, writers are welcome to share the fun for story inspiration!” Although the event is only two hours long, folks are more than welcome to spend the rest of the day at the zoo!

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Treasure Chest: January 2025

03 Friday Jan 2025

Posted by Eori Tokunaga in Contests & Grants, Critique Day, Industry Conferences, PAL, SCBWI Mentorship Program, Treasure Chest, Tri-Regional News, Writers Retreat, Writers' Retreat

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12x12, authors, CenCal Writers Retreat, Charlotte Huck, Comic Orange, Critique Day, Great News, Highlights Foundation, illustrators, indie-publishing, mentorship, National Council of Teachers of English, NCTE, Next Generation Indie Book Awards, PAL, published, SCBWI Annual Winter Conference, SCBWI community, SCBWI events, SCBWI members, scholarship, theater, Theater Camp, Toot Your Horn!, virtual critique, workshop

Events, Opportunities, and Resources happening now and coming soon for the Tri-Regions and beyond

OPEN NOW
Make sure you register for the in-person 2025 SCBWI Winter Conference in New York City and book your stay soon! “Special rates of $215 per night (plus tax) are available for attendees on single and double rooms. A limited number of rooms are available at this rate up until January 6, 2025.” Click here to learn more! For those who are unable to attend the in-person conference in New York City, the Virtual Winter Conference 2025 will be taking place February 21–22, 2025.

OPEN NOW
Join us at the beautiful Laguna College of Art & Design on March 15, 2025 for 2025 Art Day: Illustrators and Writers Connect, SCBWI SoCal! This “one day hand-so workshop for illustrators, picture book writers, graphic novelists and author-illustrators” will include “presentations, interactive activities and off-site written critiques.” Registration is now open so click here to sign up!

OPEN NOW
Register for the 2025 SCBWI SoCal Tahquitz MG-YA Writers Retreat! This “four-day small-group intensive writer retreat” will take place from May 1, 2025 to May 4, 2025 in Idyllwild-Pine Cove. “You’ll be able to hone your craft and polish your manuscript with the guidance of industry professionals.” Spots are going very quickly so sign up today!

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­­­Be an SCBWI Mentor in 2025! But first … a word from our 2024 mentor

11 Wednesday Dec 2024

Posted by Judy Y Faulkner in Contests & Grants, Los Angeles, Mentorship Contest

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Illustration, Jaime Zollars, Kristin Marine, mentorship, publishing, SCBWI community, SCBWI members

by Jaime Zollars

When I saw last year’s call for SCBWI mentors, I was instantly motivated to apply. I credit the SCBWI with my first successes as an illustrator, and I miss teaching and mentoring college students (something I did for several years before going back to full-time freelance work). It seemed like an exciting opportunity to share some of the knowledge I’ve learned along the way and to give back to the organization.

Mentee Kristin Marine and her mentor, Jaime Zollars, express a shared love for books at the CenCal 2024 Writers and Illustrators Day

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Treasure Chest: September 2024

04 Wednesday Sep 2024

Posted by Eori Tokunaga in Contests & Grants, Illustrators Day, Treasure Chest, Tri-Regional News, Writers Days, Writers' Retreat

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authors, banned books week, Book Festivals, Book Fests, CenCal Writer's Day, Events, Fall Harvest, grants, illustrators, Los Angeles Kids Book Festival, mentorship, OC Children's Book Festival, publishing, Rare Books LA, SCBWI community, SCBWI events, SCBWI Impact & Legacy Fund, SCBWI members, We Need Diverse Books, Working Writer's Retreat, Writers & Illustrators Day

Events, Opportunities, and Resources happening now and coming soon for the Tri-Regions and beyond

OPEN NOW
Registration for the popular SCBWI Los Angeles Working Writers Retreat is now open! Join fellow writers from September 27–29, 2024, at the Holy Spirit Retreat Center in Encino “for a weekend of immersive writing, critique, revision and camaraderie.” This annual retreat will have plenty of quiet work spaces, social evenings, and even group critique sessions led by four publishing industry professionals! Spots are filling up very quickly!

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­­­Calling All Illustrators: Be a Mentor in 2024! But first, a word from our 2023 mentor…

25 Wednesday Oct 2023

Posted by Michelle Lin in Contests & Grants, Los Angeles, Mentorship Contest

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authors, Cara J. Stevens, Jeff Creely, mentorship, publishing, SCBWI community, SCBWI members, writing

by Cara J. Stevens

I’ve been a member of SCBWI since the late ’90s, when I gave a talk on writing for children via a new platform at the time: the World Wide Web. Since then, I have been involved with SCBWI on and off throughout the years as my career took me in and out of the children’s writing world.

Last year, as I did my annual check-in at the last-100-days-of-the-year mark, I looked back on the amazingly good fortune I’ve had in working with many editors and publishing mentors. As I planned ahead for the coming year, I decided to make 2023 a year of giving back to the children’s writing community. Within the course of the next one hundred days, I embarked on a journey to self-publish a guide to writing picture-perfect picture books, started a picture book writing podcast, and reconnected with SCBWI.

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Attention Picture Book Writers: SCBWI-L.A.’s Mentorship Contest Is Now Open!

04 Wednesday Jan 2023

Posted by Jessica Chrysler in Author's Perspective, Contests & Grants, Mentorship Contest

≈ 1 Comment

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contests, illustrators, Joseph Taylor, mentorship, picture book, Sarah Gottlieb, SCBWI members, writer

by Sarah Gottlieb

About this time last year, I was drowning in “champagne rejections.” I had a wonderful but complicated idea and had spent a lot of time working on a manuscript and query letter. What was causing agents to write complimentary emails but not take the plunge? Or worse, to say, “Call me if someone makes you an offer!” I knew I had a great idea—the agents said as much—but I didn’t know why they wouldn’t bite. 

I thought of all of the writers I’d met and wondered if a mentor could help. I checked SCBWI-L.A. to see if they had any information on mentorships and, to my delight, this very mentorship contest was open for submission. AND the mentor was Joseph Taylor, the editor of MUSE, the children’s science magazine. I couldn’t believe my luck. 

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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.

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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!

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