Event Genre: Creative Activity

Mad Libs Mix Up

Fill in the blanks about your favorite graphic novels! Join creator Rebecca Mock to shout your answers in this riotous game of Mad Libs while creators Dave Roman (Unicorn Boy and the Slumber Party of Doom), Debbie Fong (The Faraway Forest: Hester’s Big Dream) and Sofia Warren (Film Nerds) draw your suggestions and scramble their […]

Draw Me A Story

Bring your ideas and help author Emma Mills (The Greenies) craft a story live with illustrator Sarah Nicole Kennedy (The Greenies), author-illustrator Kara Bodegón-Hikino (Squalo & Mage vs. the Rage of the Bakunawa), and the #1 NYTimes-bestselling writer and artist of the InvestiGATORS series, John Patrick Green.

Snack-tastic Silliness with Sam Wedelich!

Join author-illustrator Sam Wedelich as she reads from her hilarious picture book, A Quick Trip to the Store, then guides kids and their grownups in creating their own delicious (or ghastly!) silly cereal or snack design.

Make a Self-Portrait with Jaque Jours

What does your shape look like? In The Muéganos, a family that’s literally glued together comes apart when the eldest daughter breaks off to find her own shape. In this hands-on workshop with author-illustrator Jaque Jours, creator of the 2026 Festival poster, kids make a self-portrait unlike any other, starting from a piece of paper […]

Calm Potatoes and Angry Bananas with Loryn Brantz

NYT Bestselling author-illustrator Loryn Brantz will read her new laugh-out-loud picture book, I am a Spicy Nugget, followed by an art activity where children will create their own emotion-driven characters based on their favorite foods, including bananas and potatoes.

Reading & Draw-Along with Vashti Harrison

Join bestselling author and illustrator Vashti Harrison for a reading of That You Are Here Is No Small Thing, followed by a live drawing demonstration and interactive draw-along. Learn about her creative process, and celebrate the joy of storytelling, art, and discovering that your presence in the world is something extraordinary.

Storytime and Craft with Author Angela Quezada Padron

Fresh off the World Cup, join author Angela Quezada Padron in an interactive read aloud of her soccer-themed book, Lucía’s Goals. Create finger soccer characters and cheer on Lucía as she strives to become the best soccer player in town and achieve her goooooooals!

Create Like an Illustrator with Xindi Yan

Join Xindi Yan, the NYT Bestselling artist behind the beloved Grandpa Grumps series, for a grump-tastic celebration of her newest book, Schooltime Grumps! Get a behind-the-scenes peek at how Xindi turns sketches into storybook magic, then settle in for a read-aloud of this funny, heartwarming story about understanding and navigating relationships at school and in […]

A Whale of a Tale: Painting the Big Picture with Manuel Marsol

Join prize-winning picture book maker Manuel Marsol in a painting workshop and read-along based on his new book Ahab and the White Whale. He’ll dive into the secrets behind his book and teach you how to bring your own great sea creatures to life. And with any luck, you’ll be able to find the great […]

Create Your Own Envelope Book! With Lorraine Nam

Join I’m So Happy You’re Here: A Celebration of Library Joy illustrator Lorraine Nam to learn how to make a simple envelope book. Using paper, envelopes, and glue, you’ll create a one-of-a-kind book to take home. Fill it with special treasures like your library card, bookmarks, notes, or other keepsakes. We’ll flex our creative muscles […]

Fantastical Floating Food Sculpture

Join authors and illustrators Pooja Makhijani (Bread Is Love), Steph Stilwell (Slice of Nice), and Tina Cho and Cindy Kang (Kimchi Fridge) in creating a hanging sculpture based on your favorite foods! Unleash your creativity to make mobiles using your favorite treats as inspiration.

Otherworldly Origami with Sam Ita

Join author, illustrator, and origami master Sam Ita in a workshop based on his new graphic novel Aya and Her Magic Cat. Aya and her magical cat Neko use the ancient art of origami to solve – or, at times, cause – everyday problems. Learn how to turn paper into tiny animals in a few […]

The Literary Lounge (In Person)

Literary Lounge is a welcoming gathering for book lovers and the book-curious alike. Spend time in community through Rapid Reads (speed-style book chats), a DIY Bookmark Station, Design a Book Cover, and a Book Xchange where you can swap a gently loved book for a new read. Enjoy music, connect with fellow readers, discover your […]

Find Your Creative Balance: An Equinox Writing Workshop (Virtual)

Dive into the creative energy of BKBF week with a free, online writing workshop inspired by the Fall Equinox! We will gather on Zoom at the exact time that the Sun hits the equatorial line and get inspired by the equal hours of day/night, with equinox-themed writing prompts to help us find the balance in […]

New York Times Spelling Bee Live

Do you start your mornings playing The New York Times Spelling Bee? Join us live at the Brooklyn Book Festival and play along together! Hosted by Everdeen Mason, Executive Editorial Director of NYT Games, we’ll open this year’s Brooklyn Book Festival, bringing together word lovers of all ages to play together in real time. We’ll […]

Drawing through the Cosmos with James Yang

Join author and illustrator James Yang for a journey through the cosmos. In A Universe Big and Small: A Story About Carl Sagan, Yang takes readers on an adventure through the cosmos and shows us the universe through the eyes of a curious young Carl Sagan. Join Yang in a step-by-step drawing and collage workshop […]

Sumi Ink Painting with Jacqueline Tam – Powerful Like a Dragon

Join artist and illustrator Jacqueline Tam for a demo on sumi ink techniques and discover how different line strokes can express dragons with unique personalities. What does a powerful and courageous line look like? What about a quiet line? With her art inspired by landscapes and elements of the natural world, Tam’s breathtaking illustrations in […]

Create Like an Illustrator with Sarah Hwang

Join Sarah Hwang on a step-by-step illustration journey from sketching to final coloring, similar to how she created her book Gertrude Gish on a Dish on a Fish. She’ll also include a reading of her book to spark your imagination and get you drawing along! Hwang is part of the new Seuss Studios line of […]

What Makes A Feast for a Monster?

Join Meritxell Martí and Xavier Salomó, the creators of the flap book, A Monster’s Meal,  for a read-aloud of this delicious menu of monster meals. Then grab some markers and draw your favorite monster — scary or friendly — and its favorite feast (to be revealed under a flap). 

Magic in Your Pocket?… art & storytime with Kristin Mahoney

It’s magic. Rocks become chairs for fairies to sit on, and flower petals are transformed into perfume in A Pocket Full of Rocks, a beautiful picture book by Kristin Mahoney. Grab a paint pen and join Mahoney for a creative project with natural materials including painting acorns and creating a drawing based on what you […]

Sylvia Chen – Tricky Chopsticks

Jenny Chow is struggling to use chopsticks. With the Chow family’s Annual Chopsticks Challenge fast approaching, Jenny is determined to master her chopstick skills and wow her family. Follow along with the author, Sylvia Chen, and learn how to use chopsticks, plus try fun chopstick challenges for all levels!

Comics and Play with Rachel G. Payne

Enjoy a boisterous read-aloud of Let’s Rumble! A Rough-and-Tumble Book of Play and energetic play activities with author and children’s librarian Rachel G. Payne. Kids can make their own rough-and-tumble comics. Parents will learn why rough-and-tumble play is good for kids! Learn how to rumble (safely) with your siblings in this unique story about play.

Pictionary

Play along with some of the most talented players out there! Watch and guess as author-illustrators Debbie Fong (The Faraway Forest: Wally’s Route), John Patrick Green and Steve Behling (InvestiGators: Case Files) play the party game classic Pictionary! Hosted by Calista Brill (Creaky Acres), this interactive game is sure to get the whole family involved!

Are You Smarter than an Author?

An interactive quiz gameshow! Perfect for kids, tweens, and adults! Test your trivia knowledge against middle grade novelists Grace Lin (The Gate, the Girl, and the Dragon) and Nick Bruel (Bad Kitty Party Animal), with our host Craig Kofi Farmer (A Method for Magic and Misfortune).

Brooklyn’s Biggest Fall Reading Party is Here – And You’re Invited! (In Person)

Connect with fellow book lovers at an outdoor reading party hosted by Reading Rhythms, City Point, and Downtown Brooklyn Partnership! Enjoy quality time to read in the iconic Abolitionist Place, with live ambient music and the chance to meet others who share your love of books. Bring any book you love—paperback, hardcover, or digital—and settle […]

Collective Art-Making Under Repression and the Politics of Spectacle (In Person)

Radix Co-op presents a dialogue on art-making under state repression. We will feature a screening of Guy Debord’s Refutation of All the Judgements, Pro or Con, Thus Far Rendered on the Film ‘The Society of the Spectacle,’ followed by a discussion featuring Zein El-Amine (Is This How You Eat a Watermelon?), Kamelya Omayma Youssef (A […]

Radical Histories: A Roundtable of Korean/American Authors (In Person)

Moderated by Jane Yong Kim, Korean American authors Alice Sola Kim, Cathy Park Hong, Ed Park, Gina Chung, and Hannah Bae discuss their work in relation to the spirit of radicalism in the Korean diasporic imaginary as exemplified by the latest installments in Kaya Press’ Magpie Series for Korean Literature in Translation: Djuna‘s speculative fiction […]

Back to School in Bed-Stuy (In Person)

Join READ 718, Brooklyn Book Bodega, and House of SpeakEasy for a back-to-school event celebrating young readers. United by a shared mission of building community, increasing book access, and fostering a love of reading, we invite families and book lovers to kick off the Bookends series. Featuring: readings, crafts, and giveaways at READ 718’s center […]

Read Around the World: Connecting Cultures Through Storytime (In Person)

Join Global School Brooklyn for a vibrant multilingual book event for families, featuring a rotating schedule of read-alouds in English, Spanish, Russian, Portuguese, Creole, German, and Chinese. Enjoy hands-on arts and crafts and browse a curated selection of children’s books in multiple languages. Meet Alyssa Reynoso-Morris, Emma Otheguy, Aitalina Romanova, Denise Adusei, Arlène Elizabeth Casimir, […]

Cartooning In Action with Jorge Cham

Watch illustrator Jorge Cham (Oliver’s Great Big Universe: Volcanoes Are Hot!) in action as he creates cartoon portraits – maybe of you – on the spot and creates a drawing for you to bring home. See a master doodler at work.

If You Find a Leaf: Art & Storytime with Aimee Sicuro

Join author and illustrator Aimee Sicuro to create leaf collages. Inspired by the color and shape of each leaf, you can create a drawing that imagines what else your leaves could be. Join Aimee for a reading of If You Find a Leaf and a brief Q&A about how this book was made.

The Magic of Color: Exploring Pigments & Art  with Steven Weinberg

What is Color? The Global and Sometimes Gross Story of Pigments, Paint, and the Wondrous World of Art author Steven Weinberg will lead children through an exciting introduction to color theory and pigment making—plus some good old-fashioned coloring, too! Materials will be provided so participants can color in pieces of art that are found in […]

Puppet Making Workshop with Vojtěch Mašek

Vojtěch Mašek, a writer from Prague and Czechia, presents the adventurous and humorous story of Puppet, Plum Pit, Plum, Plank and Back to Puppet, which won the Ragazzi Award at the Bologna Children’s Book Fair. During the workshop, children will be able to create their own puppet, which was formerly a plank, plum, and plum pit, […]

Customize Your Kicks

Design your own sneakers with award-winning creator C.G. Esperanza (Kicks in the Sky) in this craft activity, where kids and parents can color, sticker, and dream up their own fresh kicks to hang up!

Little Crafts, Huge Fun! 

Get creative! Write and illustrate a wee, mouse-sized book with Margaret McCartney and Jodi Levine, authors/illustrators of Mousetown. Mini blank book and a tiny shopping bag to carry it home provided!

Create Your Own Pop-Up Card

Make a pop-up greeting card with author-illustrator Cat Min! Cat will read her book The Little Toymaker and teach you how to make your very own dynamic pop-up card from construction paper, glue, and colored pencils.

Exploring Shapes and Shadows

Author Bruce Handy and illustrator Lisk Feng read their book, There Was a Shadow, and lead a dynamic art and poetry workshop exploring shadows, light, shapes, and color.

Tear, Glue, and Snip Your Way to Your Dream Home

Join Taiwanese illustrator Lian-En Lin and design your very own dream home! Using papers of different shapes, thicknesses, colors, and transparency, you’ll tear and paste to bring your imaginative ideas to life. Inspired by Lian-En Lin’s picture book Home, get ready to draw, color, and create collages, and let your creative juices flow!

A World of Living Colors with Jason Logan

Jason Logan, author of Make Ink and How to Be a Color Wizard, will host a workshop of Living Colors. Experiment with non-toxic foraged art supplies, including local rust, acorns, beet juice, and other finds while learning the science, art, and magic of color! All ages. Bring your curiosity.

Genre & Exploding Form presented by the Whiting Foundation

Join us for a discussion with Anthony Cody (Borderland Apocrypha) and Nana Nkweti (Walking on Cowrie Shells), writers who are dissolving genre boundaries to bring new life to familiar literary forms. Moderated by Lincoln Michel (The Body Scout).

Understanding Computer Security Principles With Legos and Chocolate

Computer security is one of the most misunderstood technologies.  Bring the kids and learn the principles that are used to design secure systems by examining structures built with Legos that were designed to protect chocolate pieces.  By seeing physical designs with different flaws, participants will be able to understand how design problems lead to weaknesses […]

Create a Magnetic Ice Skating Diorama with Lorraine Nam

Join Lorraine Nam, illustrator of Wei Skates On, for a magical and wintry project. Participants will create their own ice skating rink diorama and figure skating Wei. This inspirational picture book about facing your fears and finding the joy in sports, no matter the outcome. Space limited.

Storytime and Drawing with Nikki Grimes and Brian Pinkney

Join Nikki Grimes and Brian Pinkney for A Walk in the Woods. Author Nikki Grimes will lead a storytime and share how the picture book came to be. Co-illustrator Brian Pinkney will then lead attendees in a map-drawing activity, encouraging them to find treasure in their own backyard.

Poetry and Banner-Making with Josh and Matt!

Some letters can’t be delivered in the usual way… What extraordinary journey will you imagine the letter taking? Join poet Matthew Burgess and artist Josh Cochran for a collaborative poetry & banner-making workshop, inspired by their picture book Sylvester’s Letter.

Wordless storytelling with Balint Zsako!

How do you tell a story without using a single word? This was artist Balint Zsako’s challenge when creating Bunny & Tree, a 184-page wonder of purely visual storytelling. Act and draw to communicate wordlessly in this fun workshop with Balint!

Print with Antique Wood Type

The beloved Kelsey letterpress returns! Come print real antique wood type on a vintage Kelsey letterpress with Dikko Faust of Purgatory Pie Press. Travel back in time and make your own BKBF Children’s Day keepsake.

Crayons! Oil Pastels! Create with Illustrator Marika Maijala

Finnish children’s book illustrator Marika Maijala will share Rosie Runs, her “triumphant escape story” of a racing dog who dreams of forests, meadows, hares, and freedom. She will guide an interactive drawing workshop in which kids can use crayons and oil pastels to create their own beautiful works of art.

Create Animals with Christopher Silas Neal

Join award-winning illustrator Christopher Silas Neal, co-creator of the Over and Under picture book series, this time exploring the rich, interconnected ecosystem of the ocean in Over and Under the Waves! Create pictures of your favorite animals using cut paper, glue, and markers and colored pencils. Learn how simple shapes, a few wiggly lines and […]

What’s in Your Head?

Join Brazilian author Ana Matsusaki for a captivating reading of The Collector of Heads. After the storytime, kids are invited to an introspective exploration of their own heads through an imaginative art activity inspired by the artwork of the book, combining drawing and collage.

Fold, Cut & Pop! Make a Book! 

How to Make Books and Making Books with Kids author Esther K. Smith and Jane Sanders who illustrated Making Books with Kids will show you how to fold, cut and pop your own book. Then YOU can draw + write your story!

Artist in Action: Award-winning illustrator Elisha Cooper

Watch a children’s book artist at work! Or, attempting to work. Elisha Cooper will try to create an ink & watercolor illustration before your eyes (a painting of a large dog, sitting under a tree, from his new book Emma Full of Wonders). Will he mess up? Possibly, yes! He will discuss how he makes […]

Zine-making for Personal & Community Storytelling (In Person)

Zines are handmade books, typically created by hand with basic materials–paper, scissors, pens, and ideas. Zine-making can facilitate the development of personal and community-based storytelling. Join the Brooklyn Community Pride Center’s Zine-Making Workshop in partnership with Booklyn, Inc. Brooklyn Community Pride Center; 1360 Fulton Street, Ground Floor, Brooklyn, NY 11216 – wheelchair accessible https://www.lgbtbrooklyn.org/

New York Waterfront Diary at The Invisible Dog Art Center (In-Person)

Join photographer Sophie Fenwick, along with Sean Corcoran, curator of prints and photographs at the Museum of the City of New York, writer Eddie Joyce, oral historian Nicki Pombier, and poet Silvina López Medin in conversation. They will be touching on common themes echoed in Fenwick’s unique and evocative portrait of New York’s changing waterfront, […]