Welcome to the MG/YA Opportunities post! Find all of the monthly opportunities on the MG/YA support page! All opportunities listed are available to anyone with an internet connection.
REFLECTION ON SEPTEMBER
Lexi’s OCTOBER GAME PLAN
LOOKING AHEAD
Does your local writing organization, SCBWI region, etc. host virtual events that are available to anyone with an internet connection? Would you like them listed here? Please share the info in the comments, or use our Contact Form.
To see all the monthly opportunities, what’s available all year long, and what’s coming up the rest of this year, visit the MG/YA SUPPORT resource page.
Hey writers,
I hope the month of September provided creative energy and time to write! I invite you to join me in sharing your goals as we enter this next season!
I invite you to:
- Pick one resource or opportunity. Think about what you’re working on right now and pick something that will help you make progress with that work!
- Share your experiences with resources over the last month and what opportunities you want to pursue in the next month in the comments!
Will you join me on this journey?
REFLECTIONS ON SEPTEMBER
In SEPTEMBER, I worked through the second fourth of highlight’s “Seize the Reader,” course. I am thinking deeply about my characters in new ways!
What did you accomplish this month? Don’t forget to share in the comments!
Lexi’s OCTOBER GAME PLAN
This month I want to continue the journey of revising. I am going to continue my journey into the Seize the Reader,” course. With teaching starting back up, I am having to pick and choose where I put my creative energy! Here are some opportunities I wish I had time for!
- Write Now! (Free for newsletter subscribers!) September through December 2022. There’s nothing like a regular meeting time and space to keep your writing commitments honest. Our Write Now! groups offer the support you need to show up and work each week.
- Kidlit GN Pitch Event (free) an annual for MG writers and illustrators of graphic novels. October 5th, 2022
- Fall Writing Frenzy (free)
Write 200 words inspired by one of the contest photos, and submit it during the specified times (to come for 2021). Prizes! Hosted by Lydia Lukidis and Kaitlyn Leann Sanchez. - Halloweensie Contest (free)
- Write a 100-word Halloween story appropriate for ages 12 and under, following prompt for the current year. Prize for the winner. Hosted by children’s author Susanna Leonard Hill.
- We Need Diverse Books Mentorships (free)
- Pairs ten writers and illustrators who belong to underrepresented groups with experienced children’s book creators for year-long mentorships. Applications are open October 1 – 31 for the following year.
- Show (Don’t Tell) Revision Workshop ($)
Learn how to bring readers deeper into the world of your children’s book story and your query letter pitch by showing (not telling) in this 4-week workshop for picture book to YA authors. Includes Zoom recordings and a private Facebook group. Oct 1, 8, 15, 22, 2022. Led by author and developmental editor Anastasia Suen.
What will you accomplish this month? Let’s celebrate each other in the comments!
REGISTER IN OCTOBER, HAPPENING LATER:
Keep an eye on some FUTURE opportunities you might want to register for early:
HIGHLIGHTS FOUNDATION COURSES($)
- Line Editing Your YA or MG Novel (Fall 2022) This six-week online course offers the skills to revise and enrich your novel, and features live sessions with faculty, structured assignments, community interaction, and goal-setting.
- Shape Your Story: A 6-Week Novel Intensive with Author & Agent Linda Epstein November 3 – December 15, 2022. Mold your novel into the story only you can tell with senior agent, writer, and poet Linda Epstein.
THE LOFT– Here are two that caught my eye! There are lots of fall opportunities listed!
- Trust Your Writing: How to Listen to What Your Draft is Telling You We want readers to trust the writer and writers to trust the story. For that, writers need to trust their process. But how can you when you’re not sure what you’re doing? This class offers guidelines to provide more secure footing as you navigate writing or revising a full draft, regardless of genre. Learn the dos and don’ts of writing character descriptions and dialogue.
- Writing Difference: Strategies for Developing Diverse Characters in Fiction “To really engage with craft,” Matthew Salesses writes in Craft in the Real World, “is to engage with how we know each other.” In this class, we’ll approach craft through a collective and constructive lens, exploring how we can thoughtfully write more diverse characters into our fiction. Using generative concepts, we will unpack ways of writing characters across not only our cultural and racial divides but also our spectrum of differences, including gender, age, socioeconomic background, and sexual orientation.
- KSMO SCBWI Middle of the Map November 3rd, 2022. The KS and MO Annual Conference with impressive online sessions!
- Webinar: First Pages Webinar with K November 1, 2022. The first page of your manuscript can hook an agent or editor right away – or turn them off immediately. In this webinar, Kat Brzozowski, Senior Editor at Swoon Reads/Feiwel & Friends, gives live feedback on anonymous first pages from picture book, middle grade, and young adult fiction manuscripts.
- Hello Email List, It’s Me, Again Digital Presence, a FREE Webinar Series
- We Really Do Care… a lot November 15th, 2022. A bookmaking conversation with editor, Neal Porter; illustrators, Juana Martinez-Neal and Molly Idle; author, Julie Fogliano; and art director, Jennifer Browne.
Alright! Now it’s your turn. Share your reflections on SEPTEMBER and game plan for OCTOBER below in the comments!
Does your local writing organization, SCBWI region, etc. host virtual events that are available to anyone with an internet connection? Would you like them listed here? Please share the info in the comments, or use our Contact Form.
Months of a Year Banner Illustrations by Lexi Donahue Featured Image Line Art by Valenty, Can Stock Photos
WRITERS' RUMPUS 
The Write Now! event looks interesting.
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