Kidlit Happy Hour

Join New York Times bestselling and award-winning children’s book author Joanna Ho, and children’s book author Caroline Kusin Pritchard as we dive into storytelling - the craft, the industry, the creative life - with fellow kidlit authors, publishing professionals, and folks outside the children’s book world. Storytelling happens in many spheres beyond books, and we will draw insights and connections from all over to improve our craft and lives as writers. Grab a drink, cozy up and explore storytelling with creative minds inside children’s publishing and beyond.

Kidlit Happy Hour is a arts podcast hosted by kidlithappyhour, with 37 episodes on record and a Required Pod Score of 80. PitchCentric scores this show on Booking Probability, Listen Score, and live audience signals refreshed every 24 hours.

kidlithappyhour hosts Kidlit Happy Hour, a arts show with 37 episodes published.

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  Episode #37

  Ep. 37: Dan Santat, Joanna and Caroline on Launch Day, the State of Publishing and Hope

  Jul 15, 20251h 6m

  Dan Santat joins Joanna and Caroline to celebrate the launch of their book The Day the Books Disappeared! They share an honest conversation around the impacts of book banning, challenges within the publishing industry at large, and the need for art that continues to push back. To snag swag and copies of The Day the Books Disappeared signed by both Joanna and Caroline, order from Linden Tree Books To get swag and a signed, personalized copy by Caroline, order from Politics and Prose

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  Episode #36

  Ep. 36: Conflict: Jacqueline Woodson on Organic Discovery and How Picture Books Are the Ultimate Teacher

  Jun 10, 202557 min

  Here are some highlights from our episode with the #1 NYTimes bestselling, National Book Award-winning, former National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature Jacqueline Woodson: Starting stories with questions Writing "quiet" books that speak loudly The wisdom of young people, especially before that wisdom is silenced Deconstructing “show don’t tell” How to write about complicated topics with honesty and hope Separating yourself as a writer from the character and the story The questions Jackie is wrestling with right now Some things that have (and haven’t) changed about publishing Jacqueline Woodson is an American writer of books for adults, children, and adolescents. She is best known for her National Book Award-Winning memoir Brown Girl Dreaming, and her Newbery Honor-winning titles After Tupac and D Foster, Feathers, and Show Way. Her picture books The Day You Begin and The Year We Learned to Fly were NY Times Bestsellers. After serving as the Young People’s Poet Laureate from 2015 to 2017, she was named the National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature by the Library of Congress for 2018–19. She was awarded the Hans Christian Andersen Medal in 2020. Later that same year, she was named a MacArthur Fellow. Links from the episode: Mychal Threet’s “The Library Is for Everyone” shirt via Out of Print The Baldwin Fellowship Program Harbor Me by Jacqueline Woodson Before the Ever After by Jacqueline Woodson The Other Side by Jacqueline Woodson After Tupac and D Foster by Jacqueline Woodson

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  Episode #35

  Ep. 35: Voice: Namrata Tripathi on Jazz Odysseys and the Toothy Work of Excavating Truth

  May 27, 202555 min

  Highlights from our conversation with Founder and Publisher of Kokila, Namrata Tripathi: The power of celebrating not just our communal work, but also ourselves Voice as an essential point of view with no illusion of neutrality How cheap workarounds subvert the hard work of uncovering our own voice The power of words like “intuition” (despite how it may come off as fluffy or weak) Supporting writers in identifying who they are actually in conversation with on the page The lifelong work of knowing how to be more honest with ourselves and the world The priceless bit of publishing wisdom a former boss shared How Kokila’s intentional approach to each facet of publishing is intrinsically tied to the books they put out into the world. Namrata Tripathi is Founder and Publisher of Kokila. Previously, Namrata held editorial positions at HarperCollins, Disney-Hyperion, and Simon and Schuster. She is the editor of New York Times bestsellers Hair Love by Matthew A. Cherry and Vashti Harrison and Antiracist Baby by Ibram X. Kendi and Ashley Lukashevsky; the Newbery Honor-winning middle grade novel The Night Diary by Veera Hiranandani; and the National Book Award Finalists Noggin by John Corey Whaley, Patron Saints of Nothing by Randy Ribay, and The Legend of Auntie Po by Shing Yin Khor. Namrata grew up in Afghanistan, India, Canada, Pakistan, Germany, and Poland, and has happily called New York City home for the last twenty-five years.

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  Episode #34

  Ep. 34: Joanna and Caroline Are Back After a Five-Month Hiatus!

  May 13, 202546 min

  They’re back!!! Here are some highlights from Joanna and Caroline’s first episode after their five-month KLHH hiatus: Joanna’s major recent life events! Caroline’s crisis of faith around her Enneagram number Book launches and Big Book Energy Where Caroline and Joanna have been finding hope recently What’s next for Kidlit Happy Hour Some links from today’s episode: Preorder BECOMING BOBA along with the Jilly Bing doll bundle This American Life episodes: #857 Museum of Now #850 If You Want to Destroy My Sweater, Pull this Thread as I Walk Away #859 Chaos Graph #849 The Narrator

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  Episode #33

  Ep. 33: Voice: Raina Telgemeier on Emotions as Truth and the Power of Emojis

  Dec 5, 20241h 7m

  Here are some highlights from our conversation with the NYTimes bestselling, award-winning cartoonist and graphic novelist Raina Telgemeier: Why hearing her teacher's name was the first time Raina ever considered "voice" One gripe with Judy Blume How her voice has (or hasn’t) changed since middle school Power and difficulty of putting yourself back in headspace of child self Forming three dimensional pictures from memories Why emotional arcs matters more than details Sneak peek behind the scenes of her next graphic novel: The Cartoonist Club Raina Telgemeier is the #1 New York Times bestselling, multiple Eisner Award–winning creator of Smile, Sisters, and Guts, which are all graphic memoirs based on her childhood. She is also the creator of Drama and Ghosts, the adapter and illustrator of the first four Baby-sitters Club graphic novels, and, with Scott McCloud, the co-creator of The Cartoonists Club. Facing Feelings: Inside the World of Raina Telgemeier is based on an exhibition that was held at The Ohio State University’s Billy Ireland Cartoon Library & Museum, and will be published in October 2025. Raina lives in the San Francisco Bay Area.

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