Litquake Festival 2026: Kidquake Author/Illustrator Proposals

Thank you for your interest in the 2026 Litquake Festival! 

Please note: This form is for proposing individual children's book creators to present at Litquake's Kidquake program. If you would like to propose an author for the general festival, please use this form instead.

As part of our annual Litquake Festival, Kidquake consists of two days of talks and meet-and-greets with a diverse array of children’s book creators for grades 1–5, paired with hands-on activities run by authors, illustrators, and interactive educators. Kidquake 2026 will take place October 8 and 9 at the main branch of the San Francisco Public Library; videos or live-streams of the events will reach thousands of additional students from throughout the Bay Area. Each in-person student leaves with a new book, and teachers receive a bag of books and other goodies for their classrooms. For more information about the program, visit litquake.org/kidquake.

Litquake is committed to championing greater diversity in the literary world and promoting as wide a range of writers as possible. Accordingly, Litquake encourages submissions from children's book creators across any and all backgrounds, especially those who have been historically overlooked by the literary world including (but not limited to) individuals who are BIPOC, LGBTQIA+, disabled, neurodivergent, and everyone with a story to tell. 

 What we're looking for: 

• Children's book creators (authors or illustrators) with a book published between October 2025 and October 2026. Kidquake programs are geared toward grades 1–5. 
• Kidquake's assemblies attract 200+ children per session. You don't ned to be a professional entertainer, but we are looking for presenters who ready to enthusiastically share their work in 10 minutes or less with a large group of eager but sometimes squirrely young readers. Consider proposing an activity that might involve audience participation and interaction—past examples include collaborative story-telling, music-making, or an interactive drawing demonstration!
• If a large group presentation isn't for you, consider proposing a 45-minute hands-on workshop for this age group, which will reach a smaller group of 15–25 students per session.
• Not only for locals! We’re opening submissions up to anyone and everyone. If you/your publisher is able to support travel to the Bay Area, let us know that in the form—we'd love to roll out the welcome mat for you!

 Event Details:

• All participants will receive a modest stipend as gratitude for their involvement.
• Kidquake assembly presentations are approximately 10 minutes each; hands-on workshops are approximately 45 minutes. Assembly presentations will also be shared via video or live-stream.
• All participants will have their photos and bios listed online.