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Welcome!
For more than 30 years, Kindling Words has been the leading professional retreat for the children’s book world. Traditionally published authors and illustrators and editors hone the tools of their craft, engage in deep conversation with colleagues, and fill the creative well with fresh ideas.
The village of Kindling Words welcomes all traditionally published creators to our intentionally diverse community of children’s book professionals. Come experience opportunities to learn, network, and relax!
What's Coming Up Next?
Kindling Words East 2027 Registration!
Save the date! We are thrilled to share that Kindling Words East will return to Hotel Providence in Providence, Rhode Island, January 21–24, 2027. It’s an exclusive! That’s right, we’ll have the hotel to ourselves, allowing opportunities for even more connection, creativity, conversation, and the kind of community-magic that makes Kindling Words so special. However, we return with a few upgrades! We are happy to share that breakfast will be included this year without raising your cost, giving us one more opportunity to gather and ease into the day!
The application process will be open from Sunday, September 6, 2026 through Sunday, September 13, 2026.
KWE Refund Policy: All tuition & retreat fees paid at registration are non-refundable after December 1. After that point, they will be deposited into the scholarship fund.
“I love KW so much! love learning from, and just hanging out with and bonding with esteemed authors, illustrators, and fellow editors. It is so liberating to attend a conference like that and be there to learn, rather than teach and be pitched to.”
"If I only do one thing each year that is solely for my professional self, it is attending Kindling Words."
"KW West is a nurturing and magical week for delving deeply into your work, in the best of company. With fabulous food, too!"
"My first year at KW I met, for the first time, other people who did what I did, who sat alone in their offices dreaming up stories for children. On the day I arrived, I didn’t know any of them, but after three days of talking, talking, talking, at the dining tables, around the bookshelves, in front of the bonfire, I knew I’d made friends for life. And, maybe more importantly, I knew I had colleagues, people who understood what it meant to write for children. Kindling Words is, for me, the light in winter during which I define my hopes for the new year."
"Some of my favorite memories from Kindling Words are the meals – not because the food was so good (although it was), but because I, the writer-introvert, felt so comfortable to sit myself down at any table, with anyone something I always craved but rarely got at larger conferences. I felt welcome connected to a community of other writers, and by extension, more deeply to myself sounds grandiose, what can I say? It was a grand experience!"