Meet Your Hosts

Kaitlyn Leann Sanchez is a mom, wife, junior high school math teacher, literary agent, & contest host for #SpringFlingKidlit, #FallWritingFrenzy, & #KidlitZombieWeek

In her free time, she loves playing soccer, binge-watching shows, family time & of course reading.

Find her at kaitlynleannsanchez.com and follow her on Twitter @KaitlynLeann17.

Jolene Gutiérrez has been a teacher librarian for the past 29 years and is a wife and mom to 2 young adults, 3 dogs, and 2 fiesty kittens. Jolene is represented by Kaitlyn Sanchez at Bradford Literary Agency and she's the author of the picture books Too Much! An Overwhelming Day, The Ofrenda That We Built, Mac and Cheese and the Personal Space Invader ,  and more coming soon as well as the middle grade nonfiction book Bionic Beasts: Saving Animal  Lives with Artificial Flippers, Legs, and Beaks.

Find her at jolenegutierrez.com and follow her on Twitter and IG @writerjolene.

Sarah Heaton is a CA girl turned PA mom. While her favorite place is still the beach, and her least favorite place is a humid summer, she loves exploring her new home with her husband and 4 kids.  When she’s not writing, she’s staring into the middle distance picturing her next story, ignoring chaos, dinner, and dishes.

Find her at sarahheatonauthor.com and on Twitter and Instagram @sarahheatcreate.

Sarah Meade has loved reading and writing for as long as she can remember. A native upstate New Yorker, she now lives in North Carolina with her husband, son, and daughter. Sarah taught elementary school for ten years, and now she's a full-time mom and a writer. Her work has been published in Hop to It: Poems to Get You Moving, Babybug, Ladybug, Highlights Hello, and High Five. She offers #thursdayreadthroughs for kid lit authors on Twitter.

Find her at sarahmeadewrites.wordpress.com and follow her on Twitter @SarahJWMeade.

When Mike was a toddler, he made up the word PookyHonk. When he grew into a full-grown person, he founded the animated video company – PookyHonk Productions.

Mike is a member of SCBWI, but can’t remember the acronym to save his life. He lives in an old British tavern in New Jersey with his lovely wife, two young kids, two old dogs, and possibly a few ghosts.

Find him at mikeirvinebooks.com and follow him on Twitter @MikeIrvineBooks.

Kristin is a children’s book author/illustrator, art blogger and certified power yoga instructor. If she's not drawing, getting paint in her hair, or balancing upside down, she's probably making an enormous mess in the kitchen. Kristin lives just outside of Austin, Texas. She's a wife and mother of two boys, a dragon (bearded, not fire-breathing) and a big brown "Hank the Cowdog." Her debut picture book MR. THATCHER'S HOUSE released Fall 2022 (Sleeping Bear Press). Kristin is represented by Adria Goetz of Martin Literary Management. 

Find her at kristinwauson.com and follow her on Twitter @kristinwauson.

DK Ryland is an author/illustrator who loves creating funny and subversive picture books. Before she started writing and illustrating, she filmed wildlife in Africa, was a collegiate All-American and professional athlete, and was a teacher and coach. DK received a PBChat mentorship with Cori Doerrfeld in 2019 and was a PBParty finalist in 2020.

Her debut picture book, GIRAFFE IS TOO TALL FOR THIS BOOK, released October 17, 2023 (Page Street Kids). Upcoming releases include: HAVE YOU SEEN MY ACORN? (Flamingo Books, Fall 2024), GIRAFFE’S BOOK IS MISSING A STORY (Page Street Kids, Winter 2025), and THE DANGEROUS ALPHABET BOOK (Astra Young Readers, FALL 2025).

DK lives in San Diego with her super awesome husband, 2 brilliant kids, and far too many pets. Just kidding - there's no such thing as too many pets.

DK is represented by Kaitlyn Sanchez at Bradford Literary. 

Find her at https://dkryland.com/ and follow her on Twitter @RylandDk.