Hello friends!

My high school graduate, date night cooking classes, my beloved office mate Chloe (RIP)

Happy summer! ☀️

Outdoor Office Update

Most mornings, you’ll find me parked on my sectional outside with coffee and my computer—before the heat kicks in.
✔️ I swapped out bulky furniture covers for cushion storage boxes and now there's so much less dust! (Find them here at WayFair.)
Sadly, my outdoor officemate Chloe (pictured top right) is no longer with me. It’s a little lonely without her. She will be missed.

Novel Progress

On the back patio, I finished the scene-level revision of my adult romcom spy thriller!
Next steps:

Review characterization + arcs (romance arc, character arc)
Read dialogue aloud
Full read-through before sending to beta readers

I also learned new Scrivener tricks—like labels and keywords—to organize this draft. Super helpful! I can already see where I have too much space between beats and need to trim, and places a character has been off the page for too long.
👉 Check out Gwen Hernandez’s article on Scrivener metadata.

Switching It Up: Writing by Voice

Next project: returning to a nonfiction picture book idea I first brainstormed in 2012 (hello, first year of the 12x12 Challenge!).
This time, I’m trying something new: dictating my first draft using this free dictation course from Sarah Elisabeth Sawyer.
I'm hoping this helps me find more butt-out-of-chair writing time. Wish me luck!

Summer Joys

I’m feeling grateful for all the good things this season:

High school graduation 🎓 (pictured top left)
Date night cooking classes (pictured middle)
Evenings at the Hollywood Bowl
And so much more

It’s flying by already!

Read on for:

A New Book Deal: Shape of Our Stories, illustrated by Lauren Tamaki (Chronicle books)
Free Research Webinar: MONDAY, JUNE 23 at 4 p.m. (You must register unless you're in my Insiders group! I've shared the link there.)
Reimagine Insiders Office Hours: July 9 at 3 p.m. Eastern
Next podcast drops July 4 featuring Patricia Newman on conference proposals and presentations
July 2025 New in Nonfiction List

Happy writing and revising!

Kirsten

Struggling to find reliable sources for your nonfiction project? Join me for a free, hands-on webinar where I’ll show you how to make the most of your local and digital library resources. You’ll learn how to:

Search the catalog like a pro
Use subject headings to expand your research
Tap into databases—even from home
Get hard-to-find titles through WorldCat and interlibrary loan
Work with librarians to access archives and materials

🗓️ Monday, June 23, 7 p.m. Eastern
💻 Zoom (replay available for 30 days!)
🎟️ Free with registration
BONUS: Includes a printable checklist—5 Things to Try in Your Local Library

👉 Sign up here: https://writers.kirstenwlarson.com/b/diggingdeeperone

July Insider Office Hours: Nonfiction Concept Books (spare text, lots of back matter)

This is a graphic for the Reimagine Insiders Paid Community — **Join us!**

Let's talk about spare nonfiction with loads of back matter! Think books like A Stone is a Story (Booth), Water is Water (Paul), I Am Smoke (Herz). I'll share lessons from crafting This is How You Know (out in September). Bring a favorite book to share, and we'll analyze and see what makes these books tick. I'd love to have you. Learn more about my Reimagine Insiders community here.

Next podcast episode, plus transcripts

Tune in for the next episode of the Nonfiction Kidlit Craft Conversations podcast (on Youtube as well as Apple Podcasts, Spotify, etc.) with author Patricia Newman dropping July 4. Patricia is a presentation pro, and she'll be sharing her tips on conference proposals and presenttions. I hope you'll listen. And if you do, I'd appreciate it if you rate and review on Apple podcasts to help other nonfiction fans discover the show.

Click here to get the full transcript for my June interview with author Michelle Cusolito on radical revision. Catch up on all past episodes here.

New in Nonfiction

Roundup of July New Releases

Here's the latest roundup of the newest juvenile nonfiction books released by U.S. publishers. You'll find the full list of 81 books in Edelweiss by clicking the link below.

See the list