Lit Story Fest Fun!

TeMika Grooms, far right, and Lit Story Fest fun!

SCBWI Southern Breeze jumped in with both feet at a recent event! We were pleased to be one of the sponsors and we hope Lit Story Fest will become a regular in our community. Here's TeMika Grooms to tell you more:

Lit Story Fest, a literature and storytelling festival, was held the week of September 24th – 29th, 2018 at DeKalb County Libraries. This community focused event was envisioned and created by TeMika Grooms with a mission to Light the Way to Literacy by providing access to books through enlivened spaces and entertainment.

The festival featured local authors' talks, live storytelling for all ages, and visual art exhibits showcasing quilts by the Brown Sugar Stitchers, a Flat Rock Archives historical talk, and children’s book illustrations by Laura Freeman, Kelsi Jackson and TeMika Grooms. Children’s Literary Day at Stonecrest Library also featured interactive miming by the Gateway Mask Theater, live storytelling, an authors' panel on diversity in children’s literature and a teen poetry slam.

R. Gregory Christie, Cheryl Clark, and Kelsi Jackson

A highlight of the event was the Illustrators Showdown featuring R. Gregory Christie and Kelsi Jackson as they battled over a picture book manuscript. SCBWI Critique Group Coordinator, T.K. Read, served as the judge to choose the manuscript with the highest conceptual and illustrative potential. The winning manuscript, Kaysha and Grandma Omi's Golden Crown of Jewels by Cheryl Clark, was announced and read live as the artists created on-the-spot sketches in less than an hour. TeMika Grooms narrated the work and talked about critique groups, art direction, and the inner workings of visual storytelling.

Storytelling, through literature, visual art and spoken words, was brought front and center with the Lit Story Fest programming. Community support for this festival goes toward reading initiatives through 1000 Books Before Kindergarten.


TeMika Grooms is Illustrator Coordinator for SCBWI Southern Breeze. You can find out more about upcoming illustrator events and opportunities in our region at the Southern Breeze website.