We’re just past the midway point of WNDB’s 2016 end of year fundraiser. So far, we’ve raised a little over $20,000 so we’re two-thirds toward our $30,000 goal. But we need your help to get the rest of the way.

We are thrilled to have numerous authors commit to matching donations. Gayle Forman offered a $5000 matching donation and our supporters gave generously for a total of $10,000. Heidi Heilig’s promise of a $1500 match led to a total $3000 (her gift plus matching). Heidi’s and several upcoming match commitments are directed to our highly successful WNDB Internship Grant Program.

But non-directed gifts during this end of year fundraiser are very, very welcome as well. Here are the ways your donations will fund greater diversity in children’s literature so that all children can see themselves in the pages of a book:

• The Walter Award (for excellence in diverse fiction)
• The Walter Grant (to provide support for underrepresented authors)
• WNDB in the Classroom (to bring diverse literature into schools and support visits by the creators of those books)
• WNDB Mentorships (to assist marginalized writers on the path to publication)
• WNDB Internship Grants Program (to increase diversity in the publishing industry)

If you’d like to offer a matching donation either directed to a particular program or as a general donation, we’d love to hear from you! Please contact Thien-Kim Lam.

If you’d just like to give, we have two ways of donating during this fundraiser. You can:

• Bid on our silent auction
  • Where we’re auctioning off autographed books and art, author and editorial critiques, and more
• Make a direct gift
  • Via PayPal or
  • Via check made out to “We Need Diverse Books” and mailed to:

WNDB
10319 Westlake Drive, #104
Bethesda MD 20817-6403

Speaking of the silent auction, we’d like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who donated books and services. We’re very grateful for the generous in-kind donations from these authors, illustrators, editors, and agents in support of equity in children’s publishing.