Events & News

Upcoming Events

November 15th: Texas Book Festival – Austin, TX

  • Read Me A Story Tent
  • 11:30 AM – 12:00 PM
  • Signing Time: 12:15 PM

You can also follow me on Instagram for announcements on future events!

Storytimes

I love doing storytimes! If you’re interested in having me join you for a local (Austin) event, I offer two options for a $150 fee:

  • Storytime + Craft: I’ll read one of my picture books of your choosing and lead the group in a craft or activity sheet exercise associated with the book.
  • Storytime + Q&A: I’ll read one of my picture books of your choosing and do a Q&A with the audience (up to 20 minutes).

Are you a library? I offer a limited number of free storytimes each year to libraries in the Austin area. Please reach out via my contact form to make a request.

Are you a bookstore? I also offer a limited number of free storytimes and book signings each year. Please reach out via my contact form to make a request.

Author visits

I’m not currently doing author visits, but if you are interested, please reach out via my contact form to make a request. I’ll get back in touch and will also let you know when I intend to do them.

News

12×12 Featured Author – September 2026

What do baseball and being an author have in common? Failure, or in the publishing industry, rejection! As authors, we must find a way to accept rejection as a normal part of the process and find ways to move past without it impacting the trajectory of our careers. I give a few tips for things that have helped me stay focused on the future and not any rejection(s) I’ve faced.

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12×12 Podcast

My debut picture book, MAC & CHEESE: THE ORIGIN STORY landed at #1 on the New York Times best seller list at the same time another 12×12 author’s book (BUTT OR FACE by Kari Lavelle) landed on the list! Listen to how we got there, how we found out, and a whole lot more!

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Simply 7 with Michael Benner and Alison Hawkins: Mac & Cheese: The Origin Story

An interview with Jena Benton Lasley on the inspiration and creation of MAC & CHEESE: THE ORIGIN STORY.

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12×12 How I Got My Agent

12×12 is a community of picture book authors and illustrators who are challenged to write 12 picture book drafts in 12 months. Most importantly, the community supports each other through encouragement, accountability, and information sharing to help each other improve their craft.

My story about the process I used to identify and sign with an agent, and what I learned along the way!

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