Breaking Into Writing for Children and Young Adults

The South Jersey Writers' Group brings Kidlit Authors to the William G. Rohrer Memorial Library in Haddon Township, NJ.

By MiekeZamora-Mackay

On April 12, 2014, Saturday, at 2:00 pm, the South Jersey Writers’ Group is presenting a free panel discussion on how to write for Children and Young Adults at the William G. Rohrer Memorial Library, 15 MacArthur Boulevard, Haddon Township, NJ.  Published authors of children's and young adult fiction Elisa Ludwig, Alissa Grosso, K. M. Walton, and Alison Ashley Formento will share their experience and insight, talking about the most popular genres, and what it takes to break in.

There will be a Question and Answer portion at the end of the panel.  The authors will be selling and signing their books at the end of the afternoon.

Author's Bios:
  

ELISA LUDWIG studied writing at Vassar College and Temple University, but she wanted to be a writer long before all of that. Technically, since she started writing, editing and publishing The Elisa Bulletin which she printed out on a dot matrix printer and sold for ten cents a pop. She has been pick-pocketed twice, and once caught someone mid-pocket. Other than occasional jaywalking, she’s a law-abiding citizen. She lives in Philadelphia with her husband and son. Her first novel, PRETTY CROOKED, was followed by PRETTY SLY in 2014, with a third installment due out in 2015. You can visit her online at www.elisaludwig.com. 

ALISON ASHLEY FORMENTO is the author of multi-award-winning nature picture books This Tree Counts!, This Tree, 1, 2, 3, These Bees Count!, These Seas Count! and These Rocks Count! (2014). Her debut young adult novel Twigs is published by new imprint Merit Press Books, helmed by The New York Times bestselling author, Jacquelyn Mitchard. Alison has written for publications including The New York Times, The Writer, Parenting and numerous international and regional magazines. She loves visiting schools and libraries and donates a portion of her book sales to AmericanForests.org. www.alisonashleyformento.com

ALISSA GROSSO is a young adult novelist, among other things. Alissa’s books have been published on four continents. She’s the author of the novels Popular (Flux, 2011), Ferocity Summer (Flux, 2012) and Shallow Pond (Flux, 2013). She is a member of  The Class of 2K11, The KidLit Authors Club, The Elevensies and The Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI).

K. M. WALTON is the author of Cracked (Simon Pulse 2012), Empty (Simon Pulse 2013) and the co-author of Teaching Numeracy: 9 Critical Habits to Ignite Mathematical Thinking (Corwin Press 2011) for mathematics teachers K - 8. She is a graduate of West Chester University, with a degree in elementary education. As a former middle-school language-arts teacher she's passionate about ending peer bullying. She gives school presentations on the topic "The Power of Human Kindness." She lives in PA with her husband, two sons, cat, and turtle. Visit the author at kmwalton.com or follow her on twitter @kmwalton1. 

NANCY VIAU, a former teacher and freelance writer, is the founder of the KidLit Authors Club.  She is the author of the picture books Look What I Can Do!(Abrams Books, 2013), Storm Song (Amazon Children's Publishing/Two Lions, 2013), and City Street Beat (Albert Whitman & Co., 2014). Her middle-grade novel, Samantha Hansen Has Rocks In Her Head (Abrams Books/Amulet), was published in 2008. Nancy enjoys giving assembly programs and writing workshops to elementary school students, and in her spare time she hikes, bikes, and travels anywhere her frequent flyer miles take her.



The South Jersey Writers’ Group, founded in 2007, provides networking and development opportunities for local writers. The group meets regularly during the month for topic-based discussion about the craft of writing and the publishing industry.  The group welcomes writers of all ages, background, genre, and experience level.  For more information on the group and when the next membership enrollment will be, visit www.southjerseywriters.com, follow them on Twitter @SJWriters, or like them on Facebook.

In December 2012, the group published their first short story anthology, Tall Tales and Short Stories from South Jersey, which is available in paperback on Amazon, select local coffee shops, independent book sellers and other vendors. It is available in e-book format on Smashwords. Their second anthology will be released in the spring, and a third in the fall of 2014.