Meet the 12 x 12 2024 Scholarship Winners!

Happy New Year! Our favorite way to start a new year is by announcing our 12 x 12 Picture Book Writing Challenge Scholarship winners!

The 12 x 12 Scholarship Fund started in 2014 when the 12 x 12 community generously donated funds to provide four scholarships in two categories—Diversity and Financial Need—for pre-published picture book authors. Since 2016, our members have donated enough money to fund SIX scholarships per year! The purpose behind these scholarships is to cultivate underrepresented voices in children’s picture books and to provide an opportunity for dedicated writers to join 12 x 12 who might not otherwise be able to. You can find out more details about the 12 x 12 Scholarship Fund on our Scholarship Page.

This year, Julie is donating an additional 20 SILVER Diversity scholarships to ensure even more voices are seated at the kidlit table.

It was a strong year for submissions and our decision was very difficult. If you applied and didn’t win, we encourage you to continue working on your craft and apply again in November. Each of this year’s GOLD scholarship recipients receives a GOLD membership to the 12 x 12 Picture Book Writing Challenge in 2024 and a lifetime membership to The Complete Picture Book Submissions System.

It is with great pleasure, and sincere thanks to the 12 x 12 community, that we announce the 2024 Diversity and Financial Need Scholarship winners.

2024 GOLD Scholarship Recipients

Ana Gascón almost majored in chemistry, but she’s so glad she didn’t. Instead, Ana earned a communications degree, which launched her writing career. She’s worked for small community newspapers, large national magazines, and everything in between. For the past 10 years, Ana has worked as a health and medical content writer for clients such as WebMD and GoodRx Health. (Check out her website at Ana’s Content Studio.) A few years ago, Ana started dabbling with children’s book writing and has been hooked on picture books ever since.

Ana says, “I remember the first time I attended an SCBWI webinar. Linda Sue Park was the speaker, and she said something that resonated with me: ‘Write what you know.’ You’ve probably heard that phrase a million times. But for me, someone who never saw a Latin protagonist in books growing up, those four words were pivotal. It inspired me to write children’s books for kids like me—kids from diverse backgrounds who want to see themselves in the stories they read.”

Angela Blakey is a brand manager, newbie day trader, and African American writer from Atlanta, GA. From supporting school administrators to marketing toys worldwide, kids have always played a role in her life. During her first Zoom with fellow kidlit writers, she thought, “These are my people,” and got to work. She is active in 12 x 12, Storyteller Academy, and a wonderful picture book critique group. Angela’s writing often draws from her background in psychology and her love of science. Through her stories, she hopes to provide a mirror for children of color and those needing social-emotional support.

Angela says, “My favorite school field trip was the annual walk to our local library. Libraries and bookstores have always been magical for me—holding the keys to adventure, information, and creativity. I am grateful that my kids consume books like Sunday morning breakfast. My writing started in response to our shared experiences as a family. I hope to highlight life’s quieter struggles that sometimes go unnoticed. Ultimately, my goal is to nurture joy, comfort, and understanding through my stories.”

Brandy Bellittera is a Kindergarten Teacher with 15 years experience. Her writing dream began when she was in Kindergarten herself, in which she won an award for her short story, “The Magic Pencil”. Her passion continued to blossom and shine in her career of teaching little humans to read and write. Inspired by her students and her children, she decided to actively pursue her dream of writing in 2020. She graduated from the Institute of Children’s Literature, and has published stories in various magazines, including, most recently, Cricket’s Spider Magazine. She lives in Florida with her three children, eight pets, and a plethora of plants. You can visit her at www.theinkedauthor.com.

Brandy says, “As a child, the passion I felt for books was unmatched. I devoured as many books as I could. It became my escape. My way to cope with demons I did not yet fully understand. My passion has not abated. I still to this day never leave my house without a book in my bag. Now, I write for children hoping to share that same passion. I want to make children laugh, grow, and imagine, while feeling safe, seen, and heard.”

Marlee Fuller-Morris is a picture book author originally from a rural town in Northern New York. A love of science and nature led her to a B.A. in Biology from Harvard College and an M.S. in Wildlife and Fisheries from Mississippi State University. A sense of adventure (and a wife in the Coast Guard) led her to a career as an ornithologist, climate resilience educator, and park ranger in eight different states. After becoming a full-time mom, she was inspired to mix science with a little magic and started writing fantastical stories featuring cool critters and creative kids. She is an active member of SCBWI, 12 x 12, and an incredible critique group.

Marlee says, “Books have always been a source of comfort and inspiration for me but, after my daughter was born, I felt like my eyes were newly opened to the incredible world of picture books. I am in awe of how this medium can conjure magic, encourage empathy, and inspire life-long learners in just 32 pages. Now, I write with joy, silliness, and imagination to share the stories of the incredible people, places, and animals I’ve gotten to know across the country.”

Megan Whitaker loves introducing the magic of reading to her elementary reading students. She is a long-time 12 x 12 member and a 2021 PB Party finalist. She writes informational fiction and incorporates STEAM into fractured fairy tales. She is a recent liver transplant recipient and charges into each day with a purpose to live on for her donor. Her students look forward to Friday rhyming read-alouds and begin asking midweek if it is “Story Day.”

Megan says, “I loved ‘Write a Picture Book’ assignments as a kid and still have a 2,000-word masterpiece written in 6th grade about eminent domain! Interests in science, nature, and animals translated into a career in Interpretive Signage but I was pulled into teaching elementary reading by my own kids. I love writing informational fiction and highlighting unusual topics because a child might pounce on something unbeknownst to them and I love knowing I could introduce them to it.”

When not writing for children, Tasmiha Khan writes for adults. She has been published in The New York Times, Washington Post, TIME, National Geographic, Parents, Vox, and Forbes among other international outlets. However, she realized that change begins at a young age and she wanted to pursue publishing picture books where different viewpoints were represented and thereby respected. As an educational coach with over a decade of experience coupled with being a mother of two young boys, Tasmiha possesses a unique perspective that is needed for children, parents, and teachers. She is also a member of the Writing Barn’s Courage to Create Community and a Picture Book Rising Stars Mentee along with a Highlights Muslim Storyteller Student where she is constantly honing her craft through her mentors.

Tasmiha says, “Growing up as a Muslim Bengali woman and daughter of immigrants, there have been very few books that address the nuances of my identity as it relates to my culture and religion. I always craved books that had any resemblance to who I was but it was a challenge to find proper and accurate representation. Thus, diversity impacts my writing career significantly. I want kids to know that they belong and that they don’t need to be part of the mainstream to be part of the fabric of society—my stories express such sentiments.”

2024 SILVER Scholarship Winners

Congratulations to these 20 picture book writers who now have a scholarship to the SILVER level of 12 x 12 for 2024!

Akiko Sekihata
Amy Kwan Mei Cheung
Claudine Pullen
Delano Brown
Gina Saldano-Herrle
Hannah Lorenzo
Itohan Igbinigie
Jasmine Paul
Kiran Nair
Koloud Tarapolsi
Laura Brown
Liz Lazar
Omar Abed
Rae Russon-Le Roux
Reshma Parveen
Sarah Claxton
Sheena Garg
Shireen Hakim
Shyamala Shanmugasundaram
Suhasini Gupta

We will be in touch this week with information on how to take advantage of your NEW SILVER MEMBERSHIP!

Congratulations to this talented group of writers, and WELCOME to 12 x 12!

We’d love to welcome you to 12 x 12 in 2024, too! General registration will be open from January 9 – February 29, 2024.

Returning members, look for registration information in your inbox staring January 6th.