Panel: The Outlook for Children’s Publishing in 2026

 

Mina Chung is a New York born and bred designer and crafter, and like a true new yorker, complains about the weather four seasons long. She  got her start designing children's books at Sterling Publishing, then spent over a decade developing her craft and love for picture books at Dial Books/Penguin Random House. Mina joined the stellar team at Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group in 2021 and is now the art director for their children’s book imprints: Baltzer+Brey, Farrar Straus Giroux Books for Young Readers, Feiwel & Friends, Henry Holt Books for Young Readers, and Roaring Brook Press.

TeMika Grooms is a Georgia-based writer and illustrator creating stories with a belief that all children should be able to see themselves as the hero within the pages of a book. In 2021, she was selected as an Illustration Mentee in the We Need Diverse Books Program and was a member of the first cohort for the Highlights Foundation and The Brown Bookshelf Amplify Black Stories program.  She is the illustrator of several children's books, including Put Your Shoes On & Get Ready! by Senator Raphael G. Warnock, Getting Us to Grandma's by Nadia L. Hohn, and A Century for Caroline by Kaija Langley.

TeMika is in her 3rd year of leading the panel. She always learns a lot from the panelists. She’s a writer and illustrator and also the design and illustration leader for SCBWI. It’s taken her 20 years to get to where she is in publishing, so she has a great deal of experience and wisdom in this space. Be prepared for the journey. It won’t be the same for everyone, but be prepared. The questions she prepared for this panel are to help you on your path and to help with your journey.

TeMika asked the panel to introduce themselves. She asked them to describe themselves as people, since that would inform the art that they work on, and she also asked them their favorite books growing up.

Mina Chung is an art director at Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group. She started right out of school as an assistant at Sterling. She was 'accidentally' placed in the children’s books department, which ended up being an auspicious. Working with the artists reminded her of her childhood as a latchkey kid spending a lot of time in libraries. She spent a great deal of time in the picture book section. These were her huge influence on her. She went to school for design and illustration and there’s a correlation between design and illustration. 

Mina's favorite book is the The Stinky Cheese Man and Other Fairly Stupid Tales; she loves the amazing design and illustrations, she also likes Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark.

TeMika asked, in an era that’s STEAM and AI focused, where does that leave humanities and the arts? She also asked, how important do you think is the work  we’re doing here in attending the conference? Temika notes that on top of all of the active work the conference-goers are doing, coming to the conference is also it’s community building that you normally couldn’t get. 

TeMika's next question to the panel of industry professions is how they are finding artists to work with? She suggested that if you're an artist and you don't have a website or social media, you can use your SCBWI page as a platform to show your art. 

Ever since Mina became an AD, she’s been trying to see work physically. She goes to thesis shows, in-person reviews, etc. She doesn’t want to only rely on an agent. She wants to see what’s out there, who’s out there. Mina really enjoys the conference portfolio reviews.She really also likes Substack. Instagram posts don’t do it for her anymore, so she likes to see longer form process notes from artists. It takes her back to the older blogging days.

TeMika asks the group, what are they looking for currently, about trends in the industry, and about hearing and receiving feedback. 

The group lamented about not getting a lot of fun rhyming books anymore. 

Are Goodreads and reviews helpful? It's all helpful. They primarily would help with the algorithm and Search Engine Optimization.  

TeMika asked, if a book doesn’t have strong sales early on, is it possible for books to succeed? 

No, it’s never too late. Books hit at different times. 

TeMika was in a Facebook group where people ask for books on a topic. She saw that this picture book I getting mentioned, so she notified the author about a potential bump.

TeMika got into entrepreneurship. What do you like to see in self-promotion?

Mina: Artists working with a platform that they’re comfortable with. Promotion is a muscle. It doesn't necessarily get very easy, but it gets less uncomfortable. The more you do it, the more you notice the results of it. She has a friend who’s shy. So her friend started social media posts with an illustrator of her self instead of her photo. This character helped her be more outspoken and comfortable with doing live events and book signings. An alter ego. Whatever works. 

TeMika asked about business: one piece of advice for business success as an author illustrator...

Mina: Time management is important. A book takes so long and people have day jobs. If you don't know how to manage your time, you'll sign up for more than you can handle and you'll get nothing done. Knowing how to manage your time and how to give attention to your work is very important. 

TeMika then says that Those were softball question.Let’s talk about the world today. She asks for suggestions for people who want to talk about all of the things going on the world. Do you want to see it? How do you want to see it?

The group answers, no topic is off limits. Balance social commentary with welcoming, warm story. But, don’t be overly didactic. 

One last question: you’re already superheroes. We want SCBWI members and creators to know that their work can shape the world. If you could describe yourself as a superhero, what would your power be? 

Mina: She would want to be a really good illustrator and change the world through art. Beyond that, she doesn’t want any other powers. 

Can't make it to the In-Person Winter Conference in New York City, join us online at the Virtual Winter Conference featuring inspirational talks, industry panels and deep-dive Creative Labs, taking place in February of 2026. Videos of all sessions are available to watch for approximately 30 days after the event.