The book building program that’s getting busy nurturing budding young authors — EducationHQ
An inventive new WA book building program empowering children to write, illustrate, design and showcase their own picture books, graphic novels and chapter books, has proved a big success.
Storytelling plays a vital role for primary school-age children by fostering their imagination, promoting creativity, enhancing language development, and building their emotional intelligence, and this was all front of mind for award-winning junior fiction author Kristy Nita Brown when she began piecing the program together several years ago.
The Book Builders Challenge takes students on a journey from ‘idea to bookshelf’.
Over Terms 2 and 3, 350 Year 4, 5, and 6 students across four Perth schools have participated in 20 hours of hands-on workshops led by Brown and some of the state’s most celebrated authors and illustrators, including Gabriel Evans, Kylie Howarth, HM Waugh, Kathryn Lefroy, Alison Mutton and Ash Harrier.
“This is the second year I’ve delivered the Book Builders Challenge in schools, and the books this year are stunning,” Brown shares.
“There is so much heart, care and soul in every one of these books, from the creative covers and imaginative adventures to heartfelt dedications and hilarious blurbs.”
Through stories, children are introduced to new vocabulary, different perspectives, and important life lessons, however the most powerful part of the Book Builders Challenge, according to Brown, is when students see their books printed and on display.
“They realise their voice matters, and that they can produce books that they can share with the world,” she says.
“They hadn’t realised how easy it was to make a book and how easy it was to be an author.”
Designed to align with the WA curriculum across English, Arts, and Technologies, students explored every step of the creative process.
From brainstorming ideas, word building and drafting stories, to illustrating, editing and designing their books, students worked through each stage with professional guidance.
Some of Western Australia’s most celebrated authors and illustrators, including graphic novelist Kylie Howarth, pictured above, presented a total of 20 hours of workshops for students.
They also learned how to write blurbs and author bios, budget for printing and promote their work, before submitting their stories to a judging panel of publishing industry professionals, giving them a real-world understanding of how books are made and shared.
After months of work, more than 300 completed books were proudly launched across four community events.
More than 800 parents, teachers and community members attended the book launches, held at the Town of Victoria Park Library and the South Perth Community Hall.
The judging panel included the likes of Nat Amoore, James Foley, RJ Timmis, and Alex Allan, CEO of Fremantle Press. Winners and runners-up were announced at the launch events.
Students’ books were professionally printed and sold on the day, with all proceeds donated to each school’s Parents and Citizens Association.
Ninety-four percent of students involved in the Challenge completed a first draft, with one school achieving full participation.
Feedback was overwhelmingly positive, with 82 percent of students saying they enjoyed the program, and 85 percent reporting they learned a lot about publishing.
Principal of Manning Primary School, Hayden O’Mara, who’s students participated in the Challenge, said it had been an “extraordinary opportunity” for his students.
Authors and illustrators, including from left, Kristy Nita Brown, Gabriel Evans and HM Waugh, have helped students explore every step of the creative process.
He said working with real authors and illustrators had sparked a genuine love for storytelling in his students.
“At Manning, we are always looking for ways to make learning meaningful, and this program has done exactly that,” O’Mara said.
“Students are writing for an audience, with purpose and passion. Seeing the pride on their faces as their ideas come to life has been a real highlight of the year.”
Brown, who has also worked variously across film, music and education at different times across her career, says the authors’ and illustrators’ involvement had been key to the project’s success.
“Authors go into schools and libraries, it’s part of their job really, that they present, so I go along and I attend all of their workshops and canvas and look for authors and illustrators who are really great at presenting to kids. I hire them and teach them how to deliver my program.”
She says each of them has brought something special to the classes in the Challenge.
“They bring all the knowledge that I don’t have,” she says.
“So for example, Kylie Howarth is releasing her third graphic novel. I write chapter books, so a lot of my knowledge is around how they’re structured and how you develop a story, but Kylie comes in and shows the difference between that and a graphic novel, because it’s actually structured quite differently. The stories are developed more according to the panels.”
The impact of the program is undeniable. Ninety-four percent of students completed a first draft, with one school achieving full participation.
Brown says the authors’ involvement has also boosted the name of the Challenge because it’s not just her in the classroom but a whole group.
“We’re probably at the top of our game, releasing books all the time and have established names.
“The teachers are super excited when our authors come into the classroom and the principals love it because it’s a media opportunity as well as a learning opportunity.”
Following the success of the 2024 pilot and the expanded 2025 program, Brown hopes to see the Challenge continue to grow and possibly be available in schools on the eastern seaboard.
“I’m also looking at combining with city councils to do a youth writing award … it needs to be a funky youth-centred product, but it is about opening publishing houses in your school,” she says.
“So there’s a couple of different ways – there’s the online component, there’s the book resource component, there’s getting into council area and running youth awards, and then there’s actually entering the schools.”
The 2025 Book Builders Challenge and launch events were made possible through the support of the Department of Creative Industries, Tourism and Sport via the Creativity for Schools Grant, a City of South Perth Community Development Grant, and generous contributions from Acton Belle, Crow Books, Fremantle Press, Hawaiian, The Literature Centre, Officeworks, Geoff Baker MLA, and the Hon Hannah Beazley MLA.
To find out more or register a student, teacher, principal or school for future programs, visit www.kristynitabrown.com.au and click on the Book Builders Challenge tab.
