Craft and Creativity Books
5 Kinds of Nonfiction: Enriching Reading and Writing Instruction with Children’s Books, authors Marlene Correia and Melissa Stewart (2021)
Anatomy of Nonfiction by Margery Facklam and Peggy Thomas (2011)
Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert (2015)
The Hero with a Thousand Faces by Joseph Campbell (1949)
The Power of Fun by Catherine Price (2024)
Publish: Find Surprising Success Self-Publishing Your Children’s Book by Darcy Pattison (2026)
Reimagining Your Nonfiction Picture Book: A step-by-step revision guide by Kirsten W. Larson (2023)
Save the Cat! The Last Book on Screenwriting You’ll Ever Need by Blake Snyder (2005)
Writing Children’s Books for Dummies by Lisa Rojany-Buccieri and Peter Economy (2005)
Writing for the Educational Market byLaura Purdie Salas (2012)
Web Links and Resources
Introduction
Cappiello, Mary Ann. “#KidsLoveNonfiction.” The Classroom Bookshelf. School Library Journal, February 14, 2022. https://theclassroombookshelf.com/2022/02/14/kidslovenonfiction/.
Cole, Aimee, Irene Picton, and Christina Clark. “Children and Young People’s Non- Fiction Reading and Environmental Engagement a National Literacy Trust Research Report.” National Literacy Trust, November 2022. https://nlt.hacdn.org/media/documents/Non-fiction_and_the_environment_2022.pdf.
Long, Cindy. “What Do Students Want to Read? It Might Not Be What You Think | NEA.” www.nea.org, April 3, 2024. https://www.nea.org/nea-today/all-news-articles/what-do-students-want-read-it-might-not-be-what-you-think.
Mangelson, Jessica. “Teen Reading Statistics: Benefits of Reading Parents Should Know – FamilyEducation.” www.familyeducation.com, June 28, 2023. https://www.familyeducation.com/school-learning/subject/reading/teen-reading-statistics-benefits-of-reading-parents-should-know.
NCTE. “Position Statement on the Role of Nonfiction Literature (K–12).” National Council of Teachers of English, January 19, 2023. https://ncte.org/statement/role-of-nonfiction-literature-k-12/.
12×12 Challenge. http://www.12x12challenge.com
Chapter 1
Carrie Finison’s Children’s Magazine Writing Tips. https://www.carriefinison.com/for-writers/magazine-writing-tips/
Highlights Submissions Guidelines. https://highlights.submittable.com/submit
National Geographic Kids Submissions Guidelines. https://www.nationalgeographic.com/pdf/kids/NGK-Submissions-Guidelines-2021.pdf
Nonfiction Picture Book Word Counts. https://kirstenwlarson.com/2024/03/09/results-nonfiction-picture-book-word-count-survey-for-debut-authors/
ATOS Analyzer Tool. https://www.renaissance.com/resources/atos-analyzer/atos-analyzer-tool/
Chapter 2
Melissa Stewart. “Q&A with Sara Levine: Writing Flower Talk: How Plants Use Color to Communicate.”https://celebratescience.blogspot.com/2019/03/q-with-sara-levine-writing-flower-talk.html
Melissa Stewart. “Behind the Books: What the Heck is Informational Fiction?” https://celebratescience.blogspot.com/2016/10/behind-books-what-is-heck-is.html
Robert F. Sibert Informational Book Medal. https://www.ala.org/alsc/awardsgrants/bookmedia/sibert
Historical Novel Society. “Guide: Defining the Historical Fiction Genre.” https://historicalnovelsociety.org/defining-the-genre-2/
Chapter 3
12 Days of Christmas with Julie Hedlund. https://juliehedlund.us5.list-manage.com/subscribe?u=aab60cef8942e06ee01dee7b2&id=61b26e855c
Bullet Journaling for Writers. https://www.12x12challenge.com/bullet-journaling-for-writers/
Paperage Notebooks.https://paperage.co/collections/write
Kirsten Larson. Staying Organized and Motivated During Difficult Times: Lessons from Writing Through Crisis. https://www.24carrotwriting.com/-blog/staying-organized-and-motivated-during-difficult-times-lessons-from-writing-through-crisis
Chapter 4
Smithsonian Magazine The Daily Newsletter. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/newsletters/20231117-daily/
The History ChannelThis Day in History. https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/
Science Daily. https://www.sciencedaily.com
National Geographic Newsletter.https://www.nationalgeographic.com/related/96df2041-01c5-3bd5-8510-e39c48c03cea/newsletters
500+ Things that Kids Like. https://taralazar.com/2007/11/04/199-things-that-kids-like/
Chapter 5
Next Generation Science Standards. https://www.nextgenscience.org
National Social Studies Standards. https://www.socialstudies.org/standards/national-curriculum-standards-social-studies-introduction
Publishers Weekly Children’s Bookshelf. https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/email-subscriptions/index.html?email=sdiaz@sjga.com
Publishers Marketplace. https://www.publishersmarketplace.com
Chapter 6
Researching with Microsoft OneNote. https://kirstenwlarson.com/2023/09/20/researching-with-microsoft-onenote/
Using the OneNote Phone App for Research. https://kirstenwlarson.com/2023/10/20/using-the-onenote-phone-app-for-research/
Kirsten’s Scrivener videos on YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL0gEpFMQRUOz_jU7AawcrEPMXq0yc59hc
Try Scrivener (affiliate link). https://www.literatureandlatte.com/scrivener-affiliate.html?fpr=kirsten18
Taking Notes While Reading. https://learningcenter.unc.edu/tips-and-tools/taking-notes-while-reading/
Chapter 7
Library of Congress Ask a Librarian. https://ask.loc.gov
Chapter 8
Google Advanced Search. https://www.google.com/advanced_search
Google Advanced Image Search. https://www.google.com/advanced_image_search
TinEye. https://tineye.com/
Founders Online. https://founders.archives.gov
Digital Public Library of America. https://dp.la
Library of Congress Chronicling America. https://www.loc.gov/collections/chronicling-america/
Library of Congress Collections. https://www.loc.gov/collections/
JSTOR. https://www.jstor.org
Google Scholar. https://scholar.google.com
Bielefeld Academic Search Engine. https://www.base-search.net
Academia.edu. https://www.academia.edu
ResearchGate. https://www.researchgate.net
USA.gov. https://www.usa.gov
NASA Image and Video Library. https://images.nasa.gov
NOAA Digital Collections. https://www.noaa.gov/digital-collections
National Archives Catalog. https://catalog.archives.gov
Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Online. https://www.loc.gov/pictures/
USGS Publications Warehouse. https://pubs.usgs.gov
Chapter 9
Independent Researchers Available for Hire. https://www.archives.gov/research/hire-help
Chapter 10
JSTOR’s AI Research Tool. https://about.jstor.org/research-tool/
Elsevier launches ScienceDirect AI to transform research with rapid mission-critical insights from trusted content. https://www.elsevier.com/about/press-releases/elsevier-launches-sciencedirect-ai-to-transform-research-with-rapid-mission
Perplexity Partners with Wiley to Power Educational AI Search. https://www.perplexity.ai/hub/blog/perplexity-partners-with-wiley-to-power-educational-ai-search
Melumad, Shiri. “Learning with AI Falls Short Compared to Old-Fashioned Web Search.” The Conversation, November 19, 2025. https://doi.org/10.64628/aai.eqghtgf5t.
Brody, Jessica. “How I Prep My Novels (Step by Step),” 2022. https://www.jessicabrody.com/2022/11/how-i-prep-my-novels-step-by-step/.
Google Translate. https://translate.google.com/?sl=fr-CA&tl=en&op=translate
Chapter 14
Stewart, Melissa. “If There’s No Hook, There’s No Book.” Nffest.com, February 4, 2020. https://www.nffest.com/2020/02/if-theres-no-hook-theres-no-book.html.
Larson, Kirsten W. “Revision Tip: Unwriting Your Draft – Kirsten W. Larson.” Kirsten W. Larson, February 20, 2023. https://kirstenwlarson.com/2023/02/20/revision-tip-unwriting-your-draft/.
Chapter 15
Melissa Stewart’s blog series, Nonfiction Authors Dig Deep. https://celebratescience.blogspot.com/search/label/Author%20Purpose
Chapter 16
Susanna Hill’s Making Picture Book Magic course. https://susannahill.com/for-writers/making-picture-book-magic/
Chapter 18
Transitional Words and Phrases. https://writing.wisc.edu/handbook/transitions/#1
Chapter 20
Common Core English Language Arts Standards. https://www.thecorestandards.org/ELA-Literacy/
CASEL’s SEL framework. https://casel.org/state-resource-center/frameworks-competencies-standards-and-guidelines/
Chapter 23
Dark Horse Comics script format and specifications. https://images.darkhorse.com/darkhorse08/company/submissions/scriptguide.pdf
Should You Submit Your Work to Agents or Editors? https://janefriedman.com/query-agents-editors/
When to Submit to Publishers Without an Agent. https://nathanbransford.com/blog/2018/05/when-to-submit-to-publishers-without-an-agent
How to Write a Chapter Book Series by Christine Evans. https://bethandersonwriter.com/2022/03/25/behind-the-scenes-how-to-write-a-chapter-book-series-by-christine-evans/
Start Here: How to Write a Book Proposal + Book Proposal Template. https://janefriedman.com/start-here-how-to-write-a-book-proposal/
How to Write Samples for the Educational Market. https://www.annettewhipple.com/2025/01/how-to-write-samples-for-educational.html
Work-for-Hire Children’s Book Authors and Illustrators Facebook group. https://www.facebook.com/groups/1079736329240743
Indie Kids Books Substack. https://www.indiekidsbooks.com