Your Marvellous Mind Pitching Competition Shortlist Announced!

At EK Books and the Children’s Publishing Academy, we’ve always believed that children’s books can offer a powerful form of support and guidance, exactly when it is needed. At their best, they help children feel seen, understood, and less alone, often teaching practical skills; all while making for an entertaining shared read.

That’s why the response to our Your Marvellous Mind children’s book pitching competition has been so deeply encouraging; it directly connects to our mission to publish books with heart on issues that matter and support the creators of these titles.

Over the past months, we received more than 300 entries from emerging and established writers across Australia, New Zealand, the United States, the United Kingdom, and beyond, all responding to a theme centred around neurodiversity, difference, emotional experience and the many extraordinary ways children experience the world. The creativity, vulnerability and imagination shown in these submissions moved us enormously.

The competition invited authors to pitch original children’s book concepts exploring themes connected to neurodiversity and being different in subtle, uplifting and emotionally intelligent ways. We were looking for stories that could speak to children with warmth and authenticity, while also offering hope, empathy and connection to families, educators and communities.

The result was an astonishing breadth of ideas. Across the submissions we saw stories exploring sensory sensitivities, dyslexia, autism, synesthesia, emotional regulation, belonging, creativity, anxiety and self-expression. Again and again, authors demonstrated how powerful picture books can be when they approach important topics through character, humour, imagination and emotional truth.

We would also like to extend our heartfelt thanks to our judging panel, whose generosity, insight and lived experience brought enormous depth to the process:

• Penny Harrison
• Katrina McKelvey
• Elizabeth Misek
• Dimity Powell
• Michelle Worthington

The judges repeatedly commented not only on the quality of the submissions, but also on the emotional honesty and lived experience behind many of the stories.

As Katrina McKelvey observed:

“It was an absolute pleasure to read so many original and dynamic pitch ideas. It’s refreshing that people want to write, illustrate, and publish stories that put typically unseen children in the spotlight, helping communities learn from them about unfamiliar challenges many children experience daily.”

Dimity Powell praised the breadth and originality of the shortlist, noting:

“Standouts displayed a strong sense of appreciation for their subject matter and how to best relay it in a picture book format while offering originality of delivery and content.”

Meanwhile, Elizabeth Misek reflected on the importance of authentic representation:

“Writing for neurodivergent children is a true craft. As an Autistic and Dyslexic person myself, I encourage authors to have multiple conversations with divergent people to get a true understanding of what works and what doesn’t.”

And Penny Harrison struck the same chord:

“It was wonderful to see such a diverse range of pitches that balanced authentic representation with creativity, sensitivity and genuine heart.”

We are now delighted to announce the shortlisted finalists for Your Marvellous Mind. In no particular order:

• Julie Grasso — Pyjama Day
• Liz Bennett — Nico’s Network
• Sylvie Naux — Zion Has Synestheesia
• Bianca Barbaro — Daring Danny: Dyslexic Dynamite
• Dave Clarke — Stephen Goes to Pottery

Congratulations to all shortlisted finalists. The judges are currently completing final deliberations, with the overall winner to be announced soon. All shortlisted projects are also being considered for potential publication opportunities with EK Books.

Finally, thank you to every writer who trusted us with their stories, ideas and lived experiences. The response to this competition reaffirmed something we have long believed at EK Books: children’s publishing has an essential role to play in helping young readers understand themselves and each other with greater compassion, confidence and imagination.