More About Srividhya Venkat (She/Her)
Languages: English, Hindi
Srividhya Venkat hopped, skipped, and jumped careers until she found her most cherished one – writing for children. Her writings celebrate nuances of her love for her culture and country of origin, India.
Srividhya began her children's writing career in India in 2016 and made her U.S. debut in 2021. While her most recent picture book, GIRLS ON WHEELS, is a Junior Library Guild selection, DANCING IN THATHA'S FOOTSTEPS won the South Asia Book Award 2022, and THE CLEVER TAILOR was one of Evanston Public Library’s 101 Great Books for Kids in 2019. Srividhya is an active member of the Society for Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI). When not reading or writing, she loves to listen to music, tinker with new recipes, and explore the world outside her window. She now lives in the Chicago area with her family. You can learn more about her at srividhyavenkat.com.
You can find Srividhya online at:
Srividhya’s strengths are…
Srividhya’s strengths are in big picture analysis of manuscripts, line edits, lyricism through literary devices, cutting the fluff, crafting pitches, being goal-oriented, and a cheerleader for co-creators.
What Srividhya is looking for…
Srividhya is looking for a mentee who:
• is passionate about writing for children and is in it for the long run
• is dedicated, and willing to put in the effort to develop essential skills
• wants to be traditionally published • writes a variety of picture books
• is willing to take feedback to improve manuscripts.
A Note from Srividhya:
“Be true to yourself and write from the heart.”
Srividhya’s Picture Books
Girls on Wheels, illustrated by Kate Wadsworth
The Clever Tailor, illustrated by Nayantara Surendranath
Dancing in Thatha’s Footsteps, illustrated Kavita Ramchandran
Srividhya’s Upcoming Picture Books
SEEKER OF TRUTH: KAILASH SATYARTHI’S FIGHT TO END CHILD LABOR, written by Srividhya Venkat, illustrated by Danica da Silva Pereira (Little Bee Books, Summer 2024)
If Srividhya created a Visual Wish List, it would be made up of…
*Unless otherwise stated, the below serves as a wish list only. Each mentor is excited about the opportunity to find a manuscript they can’t stop thinking about. Please apply if you think you’d be a good fit.
Where Three Oceans Meet, by Rajani LaRocca and Archana Sreenivasan
Nana, Nenek & Nina, by Liza Ferneyhough
A Song of Frutas, by Margarita Engle and Sara Palacios
I Have Seven Dogs, by Molly Horan and Dana Wulfekotte
This Story Is Not About a Kitten, by Randall de Sève and Carson Ellis
Thank You, Omu!, by Oge Mora
Ganesha Goes Green, by Lakshmi Thamizhmani and Debasmita Dasgupta
Lion on the Inside: How One Girl Changed Basketball, by Bilqis Abdul-Qaadir, Judith Henderson, and Katherine Ahmed
The Oldest Student: How Mary Walker Learned to Read, by Rita Lorraine Hubbard and Oge Mora
The Moon from Dehradun: A Story of Partition, by Shirin Shamsi and Tarun Lak
Srividhya is a good fit for…
Fiction
PB biographies
Family/Intergenerational stories
Cultural stories
Lyrical stories
Stories with heart & humor
Folktales
Authors who write a variety of picture book stories
Srividhya is not a good fit for…
Rhyme
Books about illness, dementia, or grief
Who can apply to Srividhya? Unagented authors only.
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