Welcome to KidLit Cares, an online talent auction to benefit the Red Cross relief effort to help communities recover from Hurricane Harvey and related flooding. Agents, editors, authors, and illustrators have donated various services to be auctioned off to the highest bidder, with donations being made directly to the Red Cross disaster relief fund. You can read more about KidLit Cares here. Now, on to the auction!

Leslie Bulion is offering a Skype visit of up to 50 minutes that will include a presentation geared to reader interest and plenty of time for Q and A. This donation includes a set of 9 of her books (science poetry and/or novels in any combination)!
Leslie combines science, humor and poetry in her gruesomely funny, award-winning science poetry collections Random Body Parts: Gross Anatomy Riddles in Verse, At the Sea Floor Café: Odd Ocean Critter Poems and Hey There, Stink Bug! and her upcoming romp through the recycler food web, Leaf Litter Critters. Leslie’s other books include The Universe of Fair and two more humorous, science-infused novels for young readers.
Opening bid: $50
Auction ends: Tuesday, September 5, 2017 at 9pm EST.
Any bids submitted in comments after that time will be void. (Please note: bidding at the last second isn’t a good idea. Websites get overloaded & there’s always a chance that your bid might not post on time. So please bid your best offer with plenty of time to spare.)
If you’d like to bid on this auction, check the current high bid and place a higher bid by leaving your name and bid amount in the comments, along with some way to contact you (email, FB or Twitter…I’m not fussy.) Winners will be notified when the auction ends and should be prepared to make an online donation to the Red Cross Hurricane Harvey Disaster Relief fund in the amount of the high bid at that time. After you’ve made your donation, you’ll forward your receipt to me, and I’ll put you in touch with the person who donated the service you won so that the two of you can work out the details about how and when. All services will be provided at the convenience of both the person making the donation and the auction winner, but this should happen within three months of the auction’s end unless something else is agreed upon by both parties.
Good luck, and thanks for bidding!





Nanci Turner Steveson has donated a one-hour Skype visit with 6 signed books (3 each Swing Sideways and Georgia Rules) plus 30 bracelets and/or bookmarks.
Jacqueline Houtman is offering twenty (20) signed hardcover copies of The Reinvention of Edison Thomas and a 30-minute Skype visit. (US addresses only, please)
Brian Farrey is offering a manuscript critique (up to 50,000 words) of either a MG or YA novel. This critique will include a letter with big picture notes and detailed margin notes in the manuscript itself. Brian is the acquiring editor at Free Spirit Publishing and the author of several YA and MG books. His most recent title is THE SECRET OF DREADWILLOW CARSE.
Amber R. Duell, debut author of the young adult fantasy romance Fragile Chaos, is offering a 30 minute Skype chat/Q&A with a school, library, or book club as well as a signed paperback of her novel.
Jennifer Laughran is a senior agent at Andrea Brown Literary Agency, the largest and oldest children’s book only agency in the US. She’s offering a query and full picture book critique (or first 10 pages of a MG or YA), with a 15-minute phone consultation.
Megan Frazer Blakemore will offer a manuscript critique of 25 pages (plus a 1-2 page synopsis) of your YA or MG novel, plus signed copies of three of her books. Megan is the author of five middle grade novels including The Water Castle and The Firefly Code, as well as three young adult novels, including the upcoming Good and Gone. She is a school librarian in Maine where she lives with her family.
Author Ali Benjamin has donated a classrom, library, or book club Skype visit, up to 1-hour, with 10 signed/ personalized books included.
Marieke Nijkamp has donated a full critique (up to 100k words) of a YA manuscript, any genre. Marieke is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of This Is Where It Ends (Sourcebooks Fire) and the forthcoming Before I Let Go.
Brian Herberger is offering ten signed copies of his novel