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NaNoWriMo is no more, but I like having a writing challenge with a deadline, so in October 2025 I created KidLitWriMo, a 30 minute writing challenge for #kidlit writers.

I always had to adapt NaNoWriMo’s 50K word count goal because most of the children’s books I write aren’t that long. That’s why this challenge counts time, not words.

Q. How does it work?
A. Write 30 minutes a day and post your writing time in our private Facebook Group.

Q. How can I join?
A. Log in to Facebook and click the blue Join group button on the upper right. Then agree to our 3 group rules:

1. Tally your writing time
Post a tally of your daily writing time.

2. No hate speech or bullying.
Make sure everyone feels safe. Bullying of any kind isn’t allowed, and degrading comments about things like race, religion, culture, sexual orientation, gender or identity will not be tolerated.

3. No promotions or spam
Give more than you take in this group. Self-promotion, spam and irrelevant links aren’t allowed.

If you and I are not connected yet, please visit my Facebook profile and connect. (You can’t join the group from a page, it only allows profiles.)

Q. What is the goal?
A. The goal is to tally your daily writing time.

If you write 30 minutes a day for 30 days, you will have spent 15 hours writing your book!

That’s what we did when we started in October 2025. At the end of the month, one of the writers asked if the group could stay open longer, so I asked the group if they want to continue the challenge in November with the popular *weekday* writing schedule, and they said yes.

It’s up to you! If you write everyday, log in each day and let us know. If you only write on the weekdays, log in Monday – Friday instead.

Q. When can I start?
A. We’ll start again on January 1, 2026. A few days before we begin, log in to Facebook and ask to join the private KidLitWriMo group. After I see your request, I can add you to the group. Then Facebook will send you a message saying that you are now a member of KidLitWriMo.

I look forward to writing with you in KidLitWriMo!

Explore how published #kidlit authors actually “show and tell” their board book – YA stories in the January 2026 Show, Don’t Tell #kidlit Revision Workshop with TWO 60-minute ONE-to-ONE developmental critiques for the same manuscript in Google Meet.

Show, Don’t Tell #kidlit Revision Workshop Syllabus

01. Tell Me a Story

Show, don’t tell is standard writing advice, but like so many pithy sayings, it’s not quite accurate. To fully understand a story, readers need context, they need information — and in a story, information is told, not shown. To write a complete story, you need to show and tell the story.

02. Read as You Revise

In this workshop, I use comps from each children’s book category (board book – YA) to show you how published writers show and tell in their books. I invite you to do the same. Find books like yours to see how published authors show and tell a story.

03. Study Story Beats

A story beat is the most basic part of a story. It’s the smallest part of a story that you can see.

04. Check the Voice

How can you use all three voices – your writer’s voice, the character’s voice, and the story’s voice – in your book?

05. Watch the Time

Time is an essential part of every story. How you show time in a book changes as your readers grow older.

06. Show and Tell

The difference between showing and telling is the difference between scene and summary. Scene shows readers a picture they can see. Summary uses the author’s words to tell readers something about the story. There is a time and a place for both.

Workshop meetings take place during my office hours: Wednesday – Saturday 9:00-11:30am and 1:30-4:00pm (Pacific Time). The calendar app will only show your time zone.

After you sign up for your FIRST 60-minute meeting, the calendar app will send you:

A confirmation email with the Google meeting code
An instructions email with the login to the private workshop site
An instructions email for your SECOND critique

If something comes up and you need to change your critique time, just use the Reschedule button at the bottom of your confirmation email. The calendar app will send both of us the new time and Google meeting link for your critique.

I look forward to working with you in the New Year!

Category: craft

KidLitWriMo begins again on January 1

January 2026 Show, Don’t Tell #kidlit Revision Workshop