You’ve all worked hard getting your entries ready…and it shows! I’m happy dancing for the finalists and am excited for the agent and editor round to start on Monday, March 25. The judges and I love your entries. We can’t wait to share them with agents, editors and art directors…and cheer you on.

I’m sending hugs to those who need them. (((Hugs))) I know how hard it is be hopeful for a contest and not make it in. I remember how crushed I was when I didn’t make it into a mentorship program. But I kept trying and hoping and signed with my agent soon after! Keep writing, revising, taking classes, workshops, etc. And if possible, see if you can get a mentor. The PB Rising Stars Mentorship applications open tomorrow! I hope everyone who didn’t make it into PBParty will go for it. Fingers and toes crossed for you!

It was so difficult whittling almost 1100 awesome entries down–we ended up with even more finalists than ever: 55 finalists and 25 in the Illustration Showcase. Yay! But that still makes over 1000 people we sadly couldn’t place in the finals. This is the hardest part for me. I teared up taking entries out. But we need to in order to keep the agents and editors coming back year after year.

Please know that you are so talented–your entries brought us so many laughs, heartfelt tears, new knowledge, and tons of joy. We had to pass up lots of wonderful ones. I’m so proud of each of you for entering! We hope your manuscripts are way stronger between all the PBParty tips and making sure the first 70 words dazzle. It was an honor seeing that we were the first query for some of you. That’s a HUGE step forward and reason to celebrate.

I hope reading through the entries starting March 25 will help sharpen your writing and query skills even more. So many writers have told us they learned how to write a query from the finalists…which is one of the reasons we keep it open to the public. It’s like taking an intensive in strong beginnings, language that sings, great hooks, amazing writing, and professional queries.

It’s not too early to start working toward next year’s contest! It’s always wonderful seeing writers and author/illustrators getting stronger and stronger every year until they become a finalist. 

Tip: Keep working with your critique groups to make your manuscripts shine as brightly as possible. You can also get fresh eyes each month on the PBParty New Draft Challenge & Critique Train. The next one is March 21 – 23. Maybe the draft you write during the challenge will be the PB that gets you an agent/editor!

When the showcase is over, we’ll put together picture book critique groups for anyone who is interested (even if you didn’t participate in PBParty or are agented).

*Honorable mentions will be shouted out after the showcase ends!

It was exciting to see lots of PBParty honorable mentions in the queries…and some of them are 2024 finalists! Each time you polish up manuscripts and send new hope out, it could be a huge step closer to a YES. And we can’t wait to celebrate with you!

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And now, the moment you’ve been waiting for…

Here are the titles of the 2024 PBParty finalists!

This is the order they’ll appear in the agent/editor round. They’re in different colors below using my fun new headers just to make this long list even more exciting. 🙂

Masha Matryoshka

Mathimals: How Animals Use Math to Survive

Mei and the Meaning of Wabi-Sabi

Amalda Catches Air

Fried Eggs and Coconuts: Funky Animals Named After Food

Aria

The Frog That Would Not Stay Extinct

The No Way Not Okay Not Today Haircut

Home Oh Home

My Earth Has A Voice

Bone Appétit

Mom’s Ocean

No Pictures, Please!

Daddy, Who was that Man? I don’t know but I do

A Whole New Ball Game

Salty: The Story of the Great Salt Lake

Mama, Maya and Me

Not Again, Dragon Chen!

Wonders of the World: How Young Nikola Tesla’s Imagination Led to the Greatest Inventions of All Time

Tricerachops

Ruby’s Sunshower Romp: A Down Syndrome Slice of Life

Ginger and Fred

Pop! Boom! Wow!: When Nature Blows Up

Loud Gib

Everywhere Around Me

Found: Dog

Bicycles Vs. Horses: The Absurd, Outrageous, Impossible Ride of James Moss and Mingo Sanders

The Magic of My Hanbok

Yvette’s Mansion

Song of the River

The House That Mama Built

When We Were Many: The Passenger Pigeons’ Story

The Throwdown In Elf Town

Viking Vacation

Minnie Mae Braved the Storm

The Day Moon Said No

Mei’s Ocean of Words

Shellutions

The Woman Under the El

Ghosts (UN)Wanted

Will She Be There?

Tony Dazzles

Along For The Ride

Incognito Burrito

Different Is…

Hats Off to Penelope

We Are Many

Arlo and the Wish

Anna’s Magical Sketchbook

Night of the Raining Cheese

Pebble

Anything Aubergine

Emily, Etta and Eliza: The Women Who Saved A Million Birds

Scooter and Twitch and the Puddle Snatcher Mystery

The Day The Hiccups Came

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Here are the titles from author/illustrators who will be featured in the Illustration Showcase (each will have a number and two illustrations in the showcase…editors and agents will request by number).

Super Nova: Star Scout

Blame It On The Moon

A Sleuth of Bears

How to Make a Friend (Some Assembly Required)

Get Off Me!

Inky

Woofred and the Perfect Stick

Bigfoot For Dinner

That Day

Puptruck

Mommy’s Treasure Box

Cardboard Bears

Creak Thud Hiss Boom

Playground Pirates

Hagatha’s Big Mistake

The Mathematical Habits Of Rabbits

Zaza’s Perfect Pizza Dreams

Sammie’s Acorn Pancakes

All the Sweeter

The Mostly True History of Pineapple Pizza

For Shenanigans Only

Crowd

Rupert Rainbow loses his colors!

The Accidental Magician

La Casa Azul: The Story of Frida Kahlo’s Muse

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Congratulations!

Even though we don’t include names…you’re all welcome to shout out to the world which entry is yours. You can link to it once it’s up, too!

Please make sure people know comments on entries are only for the agents and editors (but we can all cheer for you on social media). Finalists who would like to reply to a request may comment, too.

If you’re a finalist, look for an e-mail from me within the next few hours! If you don’t see it by 7 am EDT please check your Spam. If it isn’t hiding there, contact me so I can share important information with you. 🙂

One note about the agent/editor showcase that starts on Monday, March 25. Soon after midnight I’ll make the entries go live, one by one, to make sure they’re in the right order. They will probably ALL show up in e-mail notifications if you’re subscribed to my blog. You can easily follow some of your favorites that way…or delete all the e-mails and just look at them on my website. Whatever works best for you. I can’t wait for you to see them!

If you aren’t on the finalist list…what are your next steps? A mentorship? Class? Awesome new goals? I’m crossing my fingers and toes and hope your YES is around the corner.

Huge congrats, PBParty finalists! I’m sending tons of good luck fairy dust your way. How are you going to celebrate?