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12 x 12 Contributor

Katelyn Aronson

Born and raised in Southern California, Katelyn worked as a children’s bookseller for 5 years, then studied abroad in England, then became an au pair in Italy before finally settling in Europe for good. Today, she lives in France, works as a bilingual language instructor in Switzerland, and writes both children’s books & poetry–the joy of her existence. She also loves traveling Europe by train with Paris, Italy and Ireland being her favorite destinations. Still, what is life without her family, the California climate, and Mexican food? Rough.

A bit of a lone(r) wolf, Katelyn felt the need to join 12×12 in January of 2016. It changed her life. Not only did she find herself a pack of trusted critique partners, this fabulous community lit such a creative fire under her that she had signed with an agent by May. That’s why she’s The 12×12 Challenge’s #1 Fan. She is “Elf” of 2 categories in the 12×12 Forum: Pitch Perfect (to help you polish your online pitching skills) and Fiction: Character-Driven with Narrative Arcs (to discuss how to craft stories with engaging main characters).

Katelyn is represented by Christa Heschke of McIntosh & Otis, New York and so far has 6 picture books to her name, with Penguin Random House, Page Street Kids, and Candlewick Press.  She’s also published several poems in The Caterpillar and Root&Star magazines. She has a degree in Liberal Arts, a degree in Language Didactics, and a bilingual MA from La Sorbonne University, Paris. 

My Books
Piglette; Clovis Keeps His Cool; Piglette’s Perfect Surprise; Poo-Dunit? A Forest Floor Mystery; When PB Met J; Orpheline

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Interested in Joining the 12x12 Challenge?

Financial Need Scholarship Guidelines

All applications will be accepted via email only between November 1, 2023 – November 30, 2023 at kelli@juliehedlund.com.

Subject line of the email:

  1. 12 x 12 Financial Need Scholarship
 

Please include the following in the body of the email:

  1. An autobiographical statement and career summary in 250 words or fewer.
  2. A short statement describing the nature of the financial need/circumstances in 250 words or fewer.
  3. A sample query letter for the manuscript you are submitting with your application.
  4. Pitches for two additional completed picture books.
 

 Attached to the email:

  1.  The full text of one picture book manuscript, attached as a Word document named as FIN_YourFirstName_YourLastName_Title_of_Manuscript.doc (or docx).