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!

Susan Hood, 2017 E.B. White honoree, is the author of more than 200 children’s books including ADA’S VIOLIN and DOUBLE TAKE. She is offering a picture book manuscript critique for an aspiring picture book author.Opening bid: $50
Auction ends:Thursday, September 7, 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!





Anne Marie Pace and her agent Linda Pratt of the Wernick and Pratt Agency are offering a tag-team critique of a picture book manuscript. The winner will send Anne Marie a picture book manuscript within 30 days of the end of the auction. Anne Marie will provide an in-depth critique. After she has returned the manuscript and critique to its author, the author has 30 days to revise the manuscript, at which time the manuscript can be submitted to agent Linda Pratt, who will review the manuscript and send a personal response. (Wernick and Pratt generally has a no-response policy.) Please note that this critique is offered for a picture book manuscript only, not illustrations or dummy.
Author Amy Guglielmo (Touch the Art series) and editor Stephanie Pitts of Putnam Children’s are teaming up for a picture book manuscript critique for an aspiring picture book author! Amy Guglielmo will provide a manuscript critique and Stephanie Pitts will provide a short editorial letter. The winner of this auction will also receive a 15-minute telephone conversation with Amy and Stephanie to discuss the critique.
Author Jacqueline Davies is offering a 30-minute Skype visit and a complete hardcover set—signed and personalized—of all five books in the Lemonade War series. Please note—although Jacqueline visits dozens of schools each year in person, she does not usually do Skype visits—so this is truly an experience you can’t get anywhere else! Jacqueline is the author of the bestselling Lemonade War series. Her two most recent books are NOTHING BUT TROUBLE and PANDA PANTS. She lives in a small town in Massachusetts west of Boston, and always longs to be closer to the sea.
Stacy is the author of over ten children’s books, including the 2017 Ezra Jack Keats New Writer Honor Recipient Excellent Ed. Her other picture books include Earth! My First 4.54 Billion Years, Brave, Beautiful, Mr. Fuzzbuster Knows He’s the Favorite, and 101 Reasons Why I’m Not Taking a Bath. She’s also authored the chapter book series Goldie Blox, based on the award-winning toys, and The Dino Files. Originally from upstate NY, she now lives in Kernersville, NC.
Erin Teagan is offering 5 signed copies of her middle grade novel, The Friendship Experiment, plus a two-part skype science session called Putrid Petri Dishes:
Jennifer Latham is offering a full critique of your MG or YA manuscript. Jennifer is an army brat with a soft spot for kids, books, and poorly behaved dogs. She’s the author of Dreamland Burning and Scarlett Undercover and lives in Tulsa, Oklahoma, with her husband and two daughters.
Tara Lazar, author, kidlit blogger, and member of the Rutgers University Council on Children’s Literature is offering a one-hour Skype to discuss your kidlit writing career and answer any questions you may have about the business. Tara is a picture book author, founder of the Storystorm writing challenge, and member of the Rutgers University Council on Children’s Literature. Visit her at