It's a momentous time for the 12 x 12 membership and so we bring you a momentous podcast episode!

During the first week of August 2026, not one but TWO 12 x 12 member books were on the New York Times Bestseller List for Children's Picture Books (August 2, 2026). Considering that any book currently in print from Dr. Seuss. Maurice Sendak, and Margaret Wise Brown to award-winners and everything released this year, it's quite an accomplishment to land on the bestseller list.

Congratulations go to 12 x 12 members Kari Lavelle and Michael Benner!

Published by Sourcebooks Explore, Kari's nonfiction picture book BUTT OR FACE landed at number 7 after being in print for 3 years. Illustrated by the incredible Alison Hawkins and published by Orchard/Scholastic, Michael's picture book MAC & CHEESE: THE ORIGIN STORY debuted at #1 the week it came out!!

Two very exciting journeys starting at two very different places. Today, we hear how these bestsellers came to be!

Here's what you'll discover in this episode:

• How Julie & Kelli found out about TWO members being on the NYT Bestseller List
• Who helped BUTT OR FACE land on the list
• What books you're competing with to get on the list
• The role Michael's publisher played in getting MAC AND CHEESE to the #1 spot
• How funny books attract sales
• How YOU can help an author make it on the bestseller list
• The importance of pre-order sales
• How Barnes & Noble supports pre-orders
• What's a frontlist title vs. a backlist title
• The surprising ways Michael and Kari found out the news
• Why BUTT OR FACE doesn't have an illustrator
• Puns for the win!
• The origin story of MAC AND CHEESE: THE ORIGIN STORY
• The different ways a book can find an audience
• What does it mean to be a publisher's "lead book"
• How Kari and Michael stay true to themselves when writing
• What's involved with having a special edition of your book for Barnes & Noble
• What it was like when Michael saw Alison's illustrations
• A look at the fun event kits created for MAC & CHEESE
• What it's like to work on a book that becomes a series and how to balance your creativity between projects
• The fun of read-alouds
• What books Kari and Michael wish they would have written

Books mentioned in this episode:

• BUTT OR FACE by Kari Lavelle
• MAC & CHEESE: THE ORIGIN STORY by Michael Benner and Alison Hawkins
• WE MOVE THE WORLD by Kari Lavelle and Nabi H. Ali
• ODE TO GRAPEFRUIT: HOW JAMES EARL JONES FOUND HIS VOICE by Kari Lavelle and Bryan Collier
• MILK AND COOKES: THE PERFECT PAIR by Michael Benner and Alison Hawkins
• E-MERGENCY by Tom Lichtenheld and Ezra Fields-Meyer
• WHILE WE'RE HERE BY Anne Wynter and Micha Archer

Links mentioned in this episode:

• See the video for this episode on YouTube
• Picture Book Summit's Home Page

If you enjoy the podcast, please like, subscribe, and review so other kidlit writers can find us!

Have questions for us or ideas for future episodes? Leave us a quick voicemail here.

Thank you for listening!

Kelli Panique has been working behind-the-scenes at events for creatives for almost 15 years now. As a regular part of her job, she contacts and coordinates with speakers for events and has discovered things you can do to make working with you a breeze.

Here's what you'll discover in this episode:

• Why you need an author website—even if you're not published yet
• What to put on your website if you're not published yet
• Why hosting a blog can be useful to you as a writer
• Combining your interviews and reviews with research on the industry
• The benefit of interviewing authors
• Ideas for for posting on social media as a pre-published creator
• What to put on your About Me page
• Where to put your Press Kit on your website
• Should your bio be written in first person or third person?
• Do you need a short bio or a long bio?
• What kind of photos to have in your press kit
• How to name your photos
• The importance of having downloadable book cover images
• What someone needs from you when they book you for an event
• Where to put your social media links
• Where to find a great example of a press kit
• What a "sell sheet" is and why you might need one
• A tool to connect with bookstores and schools
• A few options for making your press kit accessible

Links mentioned in this episode:

• Lisa Stringfellow's Essentials of an Author Website - 25% off for podcast listeners
• Vivian Kirkfield's website
• Susannah Hill's website
• Julie's Press Kit page
• Picture Book Summit's Home Page (Press Kit downloadable in the footer)

If you enjoy the podcast, please like, subscribe, and review so other kidlit writers can find us!

Have questions for us or ideas for future episodes? Leave us a quick voicemail here.

Thank you for listening!

Author and independent editor Emma Walton Hamilton shares the story of her latest collaboration with her mother, Julie Andrews. Emma not only chats about the inspiration for SHY, but also how they tweaked the true story of a real-life dog who liked to sing into to a fun, kid-friendly picture book.

Here's what you'll discover in this episode:

• How to take real-life events and turn them into picture books
• The quirks of the real dog behind the inspiration
• The connection to her current dog
• The thread of true story in most of her picture books
• How pushing the envelope can take the story to the next level
• Jane Yolen's advice to not let the truth get in the way of a good story
• Why it's hard to let go of our real-life experiences when writing a story
• Encouraging kids to have the courage to shine
• Starting at the ending and working backward in the story
• Adding kids or child-like characters to make the story kid-friendly
• How two people can be inspired by the same thing and come up with two very different stories
• What's next for Emma

Links mentioned in this episode:

• Picture Book Summit 2026! Emma is presenting at this year's event. Get $100 when you register before 8/27/26.
• The Complete Picture Book Submissions System created by Emma and Julie to help you create a submission package that will land you a book deal. Get the free training here.

Books* mentioned in this episode:

• Shy by Julie Andrews, Emma Walton Hamilton, and Eva Byrne
• Waiting in the Wings by Julie Andrews, Emma Walton Hamilton, and EG Keller
• The Enchanted Symphony by Julie Andrews, Emma Walton Hamilton, and Elly MacKay
• Music Plants Hope by Tonnye Fletcher and Natalia Bruno
• After the Fall by Dan Santat

Find these books and more in the 12 x 12 Bookshop!

If you enjoy the podcast, please like, subscribe, and review so other kidlit writers can find us!

Have questions for us or ideas for future episodes? Leave us a quick voicemail here.

Thank you for listening!

After their 12 x 12 webinar about establishing successful agent-client relationships, agent Rachel Orr and her clients (and 12 x 12 members) Tasha Hilderman and Suzy Levinson stayed for an after-party podcast episode to talk about the fun things about writing and working together.

Here's what you'll discover in this episode:

• Unexpected inspiration
• Why Suzy's mantra is "Follow the fun!"
• Why it's important to find the writing style that fits you
• Thinking about what books you read that make you want to write
• What Rachel loves about the variety projects she reads as an agent
• When and if you should take trends into account when writing
• Evergreen themes
• The importance of writing what you love
• How Rachel leverages rejections to find out what editors really want
• Formulaic vs. non-formulaic
• One of Rachel's favorite writing exercises
• How Tasha makes her manuscripts less predictable
• How working within parameters can be freeing
• The What If Game
• How Rachel develops submission lists and how much input her clients have in the process

Links mentioned in this episode:

• Picture Book Summit 2026! Get $100 when you register before 8/27/26.
• How to Set Up and Sustain a Successful Agent/Author Relationship Webinar with Rachel Orr, Tasha Hilderman, and Suzy Levinson - Get 25% off!

Books* mentioned in this episode:

• Dinos That Drive by Suzy Levinson and Dustin Harbin
• Lights at Night by Tasha Hilderman and Maggie Zeng
• Mini Golf Fun! by Tasha Hilderman and Kaly Quarles
• Gorilla Vanilla by Tasha Hilderman (coming in 2027!)
• Animals in Pants by Suzy Levinson, Kevin Howdeshell, and Kristen Howdeshell

Find these books and more in the 12 x 12 Bookshop!

If you enjoy the podcast, please like, subscribe, and review so other kidlit writers can find us!

Have questions for us or ideas for future episodes? Leave us a quick voicemail here.

Thank you for listening!

As a past 12 x 12 webinar speaker, Alyssa Reynoso-Morris brought us Getting the Gig! A jam-packed webinar with ideas and tools to use to land more speaking gigs and supplement your author income.

In today's podcast, we talk about how to get the most bang for your buck as you begin visiting schools and book speaking gigs, funny author visit stories, and more!

Here's what you'll discover in this episode:

• Where to focus your efforts if you're just starting author visits
• Which events pay the author more
• Which events sell the most books
• Alyssa's process for reaching out to bookstores, schools, and conferences
• How many inquiries she sends per week and how many turn into bookings
• How many visits she gets from referrals at other events
• Her experience working with a booking agent
• How her experience learning to read late in elementary school influences how she writes for kids today
• How she keeps the read-aloud aspect in mind as she writes
• Funny stories from school visits
• Why authors have to diversify their income streams

Links mentioned in this episode:

• 25% off Alyssa's webinar: Getting the Gig
• Alyssa's resources for writers

Books* mentioned in this episode:

• Bold, Brilliant, and Latine by Alyssa Reynoso-Morris and Sol Cotti
• Gloriana, Presente: A First Day of School Story by Alyssa Reynoso-Morris and Doris M Rodríguez-Graber
• Plátanos Are Love by Alyssa Reynoso-Morris and Mariyah Rahman
• The Bronx Is My Home by Alyssa Reynoso-Morris and Kim Holt
• Pieces of Home by Alyssa Reynoso-Morris (debuting April 2027)
• The Last Cuentista by Donna Barba Higuera
• Kindred by Octavia Butler
• Watercress by Andrea Wang and Jason Chin

Find these books and more in the 12 x 12 Bookshop!

If you enjoy the podcast, please like, subscribe, and review so other kidlit writers can find us!

Have questions for us or ideas for future episodes? Leave us a quick voicemail here.

Thank you for listening!

In early 2026, Daria Peoples gave a webinar about Rainbow Arcs and plotting the internal and external arcs of your story in a way that can save you time in the drafting process and help you see holes in works-in-progress. In this episode, we talk to Daria directly after the presentation, and we dig a little deeper into some of the aspects of the webinar and give each other a little therapy along the way.

Here's what you'll discover in this episode:

• The power of writing—whether you get published or not
• Writing and illustrating without an audience
• Creating no matter the outcome
• How your writing impacts you
• What happens when a book resonates with your readers
• The responsibility of writing for children
• How kids get to the heart of the matter
• Self-care when writing and illustrating tough topics
• Making changes based on Daria's plot arc for internal and external emotions
• How other people around us can see the themes of our work before we do
• What's next for Daria

Links mentioned in this episode:

• 25% off Daria's webinar: Rainbow Arcs

Books* mentioned in this episode:

• This Is It by Daria Peoples
• Hello, Mister Blue by Daria Peoples
• America, My Love, America, My Heart by Daria Peoples
• My Love for You is the Sun by Julie Hedlund and Susan Eaddy
• I Got Next by Daria Peoples

Find these books and more in the 12 x 12 Bookshop!

If you enjoy the podcast, please like, subscribe, and review so other kidlit writers can find us!

Have questions for us or ideas for future episodes? Leave us a quick voicemail here.

Thank you for listening!

In 2025, Chiara Colombi gave our most asked-about webinar called "What Kidlit Creators Need to Know About AI."

Chiara works with an AI data privacy firm and was able to break down what we as creatives need to know about this technology to use it wisely and to protect ourselves and our work.

Now, a year later, Chiara returns to give us an update about AI and children's publishing—and it's not all bad news!

Here's what you'll discover in this episode:

• Why Chiara is the perfect person to give us insight into AI from a creator's perspective
• How her writing led her to work in AI
• Why you should learn about how AI works—even if you never use it
• What's going on with the Anthropic AI lawsuit
• How AI is affecting different industries
• Why there are reasons for hope
• Publishers want human-created text and art
• The importance of human translators
• Discussions about AI at Bologna
• Market analysis by AI - Yes or no?
• Using AI in your marketing
• Publishing contracts and AI
• AI Detection Tools Used by Publishers

Links mentioned in this episode:

• 25% off Chiara's webinar: What Kidlit Creators Should Know About AI
• AI and Publishing: FAQ for Writers from Jane Friedman
• 023: Julie in Bologna
• Authors Guild AI Model Contract Clauses

Books* mentioned in this episode:

• Rocket Ship, Solo Trip by Chiara Colombi and Scott Magoon
• Rocket Beams, Lunar Dreams by Chiara Colombi and Scott Magoon
• Your Name is a Song by Jamilah Thompkins-Bigelow and Luisa Uribe

Find these books and more in the 12 x 12 Bookshop!

If you enjoy the podcast, please like, subscribe, and review so other kidlit writers can find us!

Have questions for us or ideas for future episodes? Leave us a quick voicemail here.

Thank you for listening!

In this episode, Kelli Panique chats with Kari Lavelle (pronounced CAR-EE) and Lindsay Leslie. Their writing friendship began when they were both just starting to write picture books, bloomed as they critiqued each other's work, and continues to blossom as they do author visits together! Could having an author visit partner be the key to your success? Find out how this partnership works in today's episode.

Here's what you'll discover in this episode:

• How they met and when they started writing
• The role their friendship played when times were tough
• The number one recommendation they give aspiring writers
• Why writing friendships are important outside of critique groups
• The challenge of debuting books and author visits during the pandemic
• What's a booking agent and how they work
• Determining the value of your author visit and what to offer
• Why they started doing author visits together
• How their visits work even though one writes fiction and the other writes nonfiction
• How they involve the kids in their presentations
• What has evolved in their visits over the years
• The difference between presenting to younger grades versus older grades
• The surprising preferences of younger readers versus older readers
• Their tips for reigning in an excited audience
• Funny things that happened during author visits
• Their advice for writers just starting with author visits

Links mentioned in this episode:

• How Now Booking
• Lindsay Leslie on Instagram and Bluesky
• Find Kari Lavelle on Instagram and Bluesky

Books* mentioned in this episode:

• Gus Hearts the Bus by Lindsay Leslie and Geeta Ladi
• So You Want to Build a Library by Lindsay Leslie and Aviel Basil
• Dusk Explorers by Lindsay Leslie and Ellen Rooney
• Butt or Face by Kari Lavelle
• We Move the World by Kari Lavelle and Nabi H. Ali
• Ode to Grapefruit: How James Earl Jones Found His Voice by Kari Lavelle and Bryan Collier

Find these books and more in the 12 x 12 Bookshop!

If you enjoy the podcast, please like, subscribe, and review so other kidlit writers can find us!

Have questions for us or ideas for future episodes? Leave us a quick voicemail here.

Thank you for listening!

In this episode, Julie gives an overview of picture book hooks and why they are so important in today's children's publishing market.

Here's what you'll discover in this episode:

• The importance of having multiple hooks in your picture book manuscript
• The influence of the publishing market on hooks
• The definition of hooks in picture books
• Why agents and editors are looking for multiple hooks or entry points
• The difference between hooks and layers
• Are agents and editors only looking for high concept books?
• Kid-facing hooks vs. Adult-facing hooks
• Different categories of hooks in picture books
• Julie's Hook, Line, or Stinker workshop at Picture Book Summit 2026

Links mentioned in this episode:

• Get the 12 x 12 Guide to Picture Book Hooks HERE.
• Get the 12 x 12 Guide to Layers in Picture Books HERE.
• Join Julie at the online Picture Book Summit 2026 HERE.

Books mentioned in this episode:

• Stalagmite and Stalactite by Drew Breckmeyer
• Dalmartian by Lucy Ruth Cummins

Find these books and more in the 12 x 12 Bookshop!

If you enjoy the podcast, please like, subscribe, and review so other kidlit writers can find us!

Have questions for us or ideas for future episodes? Leave us a quick voicemail here.

Thank you for listening!

Author Debbie Davey won a spot on the podcast by donating to Publishing for Minnesota! (Thank you, Debbie!)

In this episode, Debbie shares her experience with self-publishing two picture books.

Here's what you'll discover in this episode:

• Why she chose to self-publish
• What company she used to self-publish
• How she sold her books
• Where she found her illustrator
• Whether or not it's okay to use AI
• What steps she took to find her writing voice
• How she funded her books
• The influence her dad had on her writing
• How she recouped her investment on her first book
• What she wants kids to get out of her books
• Reasons to self-publish vs. pursuing traditional publishing
• Debbie's advice to writers thinking of self-publishing
• What she did to get her books in bookstores and libraries
• How distribution works
• Her willingness to research and keep learning throughout the publishing process
• The importance of taking courses
• Getting feedback and revising
• The importance of putting the best work out there—whether self-publishing or traditionally publishing
• Her work in teaching English at Outschool

Books mentioned in this episode:

• A Walk in Town by Debbie Davey and illustrated by Diana Florescu
• The Holiday Stroll by Debbie Davey and illustrated by Diana Florescu
• Grandpa Green written and illustrated by Lane Smith

Find these books and more in the 12 x 12 Bookshop!

If you enjoy the podcast, please like, subscribe, and review so other kidlit writers can find us!

Have questions for us or ideas for future episodes? Leave us a quick voicemail here.

Thank you for listening!