Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators - Golden Kites

Kevin Sharp is a Palo Alto, California-based writer. He is the author of After Dakota, a young adult novel set in 1980s America. As part of Kevin Sharp's commitment to children's literature, the Palo Alto resident is a member of the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI). 

The Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators supports the professionals who help create books for children and young adults. Established in 1971, this non-profit organization connects more than 22,000 writers, publishers, and educators from around the world. Members work together to support their industry, recognize exemplary writing, and promote children's literature.

The SCBWI also makes an array of grants and awards available to exemplary authors and illustrators. These include the Golden Kite Awards, the only children's literature award selected by a panel of industry peers. Golden Kite Awards honor winners in five categories, ranging from picture book illustration to nonfiction writing. Nominations for the 2018 awards will open July 1, 2017 and close on December 5, 2017.

Kevin Sharp’s Short Work “The Place I Belong”

A resident of Palo Alto, California, Kevin Sharp has established a reputation as a lyrical writer of fiction, based on works such as his novel, After Dakota. Kevin Sharp has also published a number of shorter works on sites such as Fiction Attic, including the 2016 piece “The Place I Belong.”

Beginning with the sentence “My life changed when I turned seven,” the Palo Alto author writes of a boy who lives with his single mom in a Flagstaff, Arizona, mobile home and wishes each birthday for a full-scale Batmobile and for his father to return home. His mother has a number of dates, but the boy never fully approves of them and lacks a male role model in his life. 

This all changes when the boy’s mom starts taking her dates to the trailer for dinner and the boy has regular awkward exchanges with the men, which are best summed up in the phrase, “It was nice meeting you. Sort of.” Everything changes again on a momentous day when the boy receives a call from his distantly remembered father from a phone booth.