Part of a series introducing the Mentors for the 2019-2020 SCBWI-WWA Mentorship Program. This post introduces two Middle Grade Mentors, Kirby Larson and Kim Baker. To apply for the mentorship program visit here: https://wwa.scbwi.org/2019-mentorship-program/. Application Deadline: July 30, 2019.
Mentor: Kirby Larson
Kirby Larson is the acclaimed author of the 2007 Newbery Honor Book, Hattie Big Sky, and its sequel, Hattie Ever After. In addition to the Dogs of WWII series– which includes Duke,Dash (Scott O’Dell Historical Fiction Prize), Liberty, and Code Word Courage— she has written The Friendship Doll, The Fences Between Us and Audacity Jones to the Rescue andAudacity Jones Steals the Show (an Edgar award nominee).
With good friend Mary Nethery, Kirby has written the award-winning Two Bobbies: A True Story of Hurricane Katrina, Friendship and Survival (illustrated by Jean Cassels) and the New York Times bestseller, Nubs: The True Story of a Mutt, a Marine and a Miracle. Follow her on Twitter, @KirbyLarson, Facebook, @KirbyLarsonAuthor, or read my blog at kirbylarson.com/blog.
Q: Why do you like to mentor aspiring writers?
It gives me a chance to repay the generosity and support I’ve experienced in the book creator community.
Q: What does being a successful published professional look like to you?
A writer who is in her chair (often with a four-legged friend in lap) 5-7 days a week, putting words on the page no matter her mood or the disorganized state of her junk drawer.
Q: What can a mentee expect from your mentorship?
Kindness and honest critique of their work; my goal is to help my mentee tell their story in the strongest way possible as they alone were meant to tell it.
Q: What are you reading?
Lots of nonfiction (for research); Born to Fly, by Steve Sheinkin; and wonderful middle grade novels such as The Night Diary, by Veera Hiranandani, as well as the very sweet picture book, Ghost Cat, by fellow mentor Kevan Atteberry.
Q: What are you working on these days?
I am working on a nonfiction novel set in 1929, as well as two nonfiction picture book manuscript collaborations with my friend Mary Nethery.
Mentor: Kim Baker
Kim Baker’s first middle grade novel, Pickle, about a secret middle school prank society, has been selected for many reading lists and was a Children’s Choice Awards Book of the Year finalist, one of Mamiverse’s Top 50 Latinx Children’s Books, and the recipient of the SCBWI Crystal Kite award. She is a former SCBWI Western Washington regional advisor, teacher, and crisis counselor. Her next middle grade novel, The Water Bears, about wishes, maybe-magic, and a taco truck, will be out April 2020 from Wendy Lamb Books/Random House. See more at www.kimbakerbooks.com.
Why do you like to mentor aspiring writers?
One of the best parts of this business is being in a position to scaffold new voices. Opportunities to help developing writers reach their potential is one of the most rewarding parts of belonging to a writing community. What an honor! And I’m a story nerd. I like to break down plot and structure components to figure out how it works and what can be done to really polish prose.
Q: What does being a successful published professional look like to you?
Heh. I don’t know if I’ll ever feel like a successful professional, but it looks like I get to read a lot of books, talk to writers young and old about finding their voices, hang out with book lovers, get paid to make things up, occasionally (read: frequently) work in my pajamas, and set my own hours. On the flip side, it means struggling with self doubt, uncertain outcomes, balancing creative and business obligations, and deadlines. But it’s still worth it.
Q: What can a mentee expect from your mentorship?
Support, thorough, honest critique, and candid answers to publishing questions. I love to talk about craft and story. And I love to advocate for writers to find their place in the market.
Q: What are you reading?
Middle grade-wise, my favorites this year have been Kekla Magoon’s The Season of Styx Malone, Kate Allen’s The Line Tender, Ann Braden’s The Benefits of Being an Octopus, and I got to read an early copy of Celia Perez’s Strange Birds: A Field Guide to Ruffling Feathers, out in September. On the adult side, I really enjoyed Goodbye, Vitamin by Rachel Khong and just picked up Karen Russell’s newest story collection, Orange World and Other Stories.
Q: What are you working on these days?
Yesterday I sent back the final edits (!) for The Water Bears, my April 2020 middle grade release (Wendy Lamb Books/Random House). Now I’m drafting my next manuscript (middle grade, of course) while researching a secret project.