This month’s Ink Splat Author Interview features this year’s Inklings Annual Awards.

It honors the individuals we celebrated with Inkys and in our Community Spotlight, and gives a peek into the fabulous keynote from Inklings mentor, and acclaimed author, Amanda Glaze.

Many awards events exist primarily to honor achievement, but each year when our community pauses to celebrate the Inkys and our Community Spotlight, to hear from an inspiring keynote author, what stands out most is the remarkable fabric of our community–how each individual’s voice makes a difference, each act of participation matters.

We are delighted to celebrate every member of our community through this event recap, and also invite you to learn more about Amanda Glaze on her website: amandaglaze.com.

Writing Challenge

In Celebration of Your Creative Growth
As the school year comes to a close, I wonder what you might notice looking back over the past nine months.

• What experiments did you try?
• Where did you push past a seeming limitation, only to discover new territory to explore?
• What are you proud of from this past year? Consider not just what you’ve achieved, learned, or completed, but also how you’ve showed up: perhaps with determination, resilience, kindness, or courage.
• And then, this: I wonder who supported you in your creative journey this year? Who are you grateful for?

Try this: Consider turning your reflection into a tiny creative work to put into your travelogue. This kind of piece, one that tells a bit of your creative story, is just the kind of thing you’ll enjoy looking back on in your travelogue. It helps to tell the story of where you are right now, where you’ve come from, and where you’re heading next, too. You might create a poem, a sketch, or a small scene.

Perhaps you’ll want to write a letter, too, to someone on your gratitude list. I imagine writing and sending that letter will light you up, and receiving your letter will certainly bring light to whomever you write to.

Why does expressing gratitude feel so great?

What you’ll see as you read through the account of this year’s annual awards is not only how honored the Inky recipients felt, receiving their awards and words of acknowledgement, but also how deeply satisfying it was for those who nominated someone to present their award.  When we take the time to say, “You made a difference for me this year, and here’s how that looked and felt to me,” we feel, maybe even more clearly than when the gift was first given, how meaningful this person’s support has been to us. We feel seen, heard, and truly supported.

Last week, the Society of Young Inklings community gathered for our Annual Awards Celebration. We honored writers, mentors, editors, parents, youth leaders, and supporters who have shaped our collective experience over the past year.

The voices of those presenting Inkys and those receiving them have stayed with me. What I saw and heard beyond any specific accomplishment was this: even though writing can seem like a solitary endeavor, writers thrive when they are connected to one another in meaningful community.

And that is what Society of Young Inklings is. Across age and experience, across perspective and differences, no matter what city–or country–we live in, the individuals in our community see one another. We listen to one another. We value each unique voice, and take joy in celebrating the unexpected harmonies those voices make when they’re lifted up together.

A few moments from the evening especially stood out, enough that I wanted to pause our regular Ink Splat routine to highlight them. We’ll absolutely return to learning from authors via their shared insights and strategies in future months. For now, I’m delighted to take a moment to shine the spotlight on our own remarkable community.

Mentorship as Partnership

One stand-out theme of the evening was the deeply collaborative nature of creativity.

Teen editor, Raya Ilieva, was recognized with the Editorial Vision Inky for her thoughtful editorial leadership in Spotlight Ink. In speaking about her experience as an editor, she shared:

“It really feels like a partnership.”

That spirit echoed throughout the celebration.

Micki Mermelstein, presented the Gentle Clarity Inky to her Spotlight Ink editor, Ainsley Lin. Micki beautifully described the experience of receiving thoughtful editorial guidance:

“Ainsley somehow makes honesty feel supportive and growth feel manageable.”

And youth author Maya Mourshed, said of her mentor, Elizabeth Weiss Verdick:

“Behind every blossoming young writer lies a mentor who builds on and expands their ideas and grows their skill.”

Again and again, the evening reminded us that creativity thrives through connection and support. Stories grow through conversation, encouragement, trust, and shared imagination.

Revision as Courage

Throughout the evening, we returned multiple times to the idea that storytelling requires more than inspiration. As writers, we must be willing to persist, even through uncertainty.

While presenting the Creative Perseverance Inky to novelist Johnny Sperl, I said:

“You’re revisiting difficult scenes, and untangling problems that don’t always have clear solutions, and you’re remaining present with the creative process even when the path forward isn’t entirely clear.”

Johnny responded by reflecting on the early days of his writing journey:

“I knew I wanted to write a book… and I had absolutely no idea how to accomplish it. Then perhaps a year later, you stepped in as my mentor and helped me learn how to drive.”

In another moving moment, Spotlight Ink novelist, Kamya Patwardhan, was honored for her courageous revision choices. After drafting an ambitiously long first manuscript, she chose to tighten the text, cutting nearly 30,000 words. Through this process, she thoughtfully shaped her narrative and illuminated the themes and character arcs. It’s deeply rewarding to celebrate writers as they learn that revision is not an exercise in error-correction, rather an opportunity to discover their own voice more deeply.

Similarly, while honoring novelist Averie Newby, we noted her commitment emotional truth in storytelling. Instead of forcing characters into a plot of the author’s choosing, we have the opportunity to listen carefully to who they truly are. In this way, writing isn’t simply an imaginative act, it’s hands-on practice in empathy and deep care.

Community as Creative Practice

We also celebrated the many ways young people in our community contribute not only as writers, but as experience designers, collaborators, and leaders.

Elaine Elizabeth Jinto received the Community Builder Inky for her work building a collaborative space for Inklings writers, now called the Inkwell Collaboratory. This new app includes imaginative tools and creative experiences that extend the core Inkwell experience, and that invite writers to actively share ideas, characters, and possibilities.

While presenting this award to Elaine, Raya Ilieva said:

“She’s always taking initiative to grow the Inkling experience and think outside the box about where we can go next… She really inspires me to want to give back to this community as much as she does.”

Meanwhile, mentor Lisa Riddiough honored writer Cora Perez for the creative community she has cultivated over years of participation in Young Inklings programs. She said:

“Your dedication to your craft, alongside your devotion to your writing community, are the glimmers that make your writing life sparkle and thus lead you to the beautiful body of work that you have produced. You get out what you put in.”

Yes: You get out what you put in.

And so many of our Inklings exemplify this through their determination, hard work, and joy. While we honored 14 individuals with Inkys, and six more through our Community Spotlight, there are so many other Inklings–youth and adults alike–whose contributions make a vitally important difference in the life of our community. And for every bit of effort we each put in, we gain so much, too.

The Cherry on Top

Our keynote speaker, acclaimed author and Emmy Award-winning producer Amanda Glaze, who is also an Inklings mentor, reflected on this very thing, the value of community in a writer’s life:

“Writing can be such a lonely sport… It is so special to have a community that is full of so much support and love and creativity.”

Throughout the evening, I was reminded of how deeply true that is, not only in general, but in lived practice. Community and resonance show up in every Inklings gathering, be that a gathering of two in a 1:1 mentorship, or a group of any size connecting for a youth leadership brainstorm, a Writers Circle, a Spotlight Ink drafting session, a Spilling Ink live session, a community celebration, or even a board meeting. This is a community where individuals explore, stretch our skillsets, and support one another. It’s a place where creative people of all kinds find a place to belong–and to contribute.

Our Society of Young Inklings community demonstrates that storytelling goes beyond creating books or poems or scripts. As writers, we’re learning how to listen, how to collaborate, how to grow, and how to help one another become more fully ourselves.

To every mentor, writer, parent, youth leader, editor, and supporter who shared this year with us: thank you for helping make this community what it is.

We are so grateful that you are part of our unfolding story.

Community Spotlight Honorees:

Oola Breen-Ryan

Beth Spencewood

Dalya Zemrani

Kara Horne

Micki Mermelstein

Naomi Kinsman

2026 Inkys

Cora Perez, The Storyweaver Inky

Kamya Patwardhan, The Visionary Resilience Inky

Maya Mourshed, The Story Alchemist Inky

Ainsley Lin, The Gentle Clarity Inky

Averie Newby, The Courageous Heart Inky

Charlotte Wang, The Mythmaker Inky

Johnny Sperl, The Creative Perseverance Inky

Elaine Elizabeth Jinto, The Community Builder Inky

Elizabeth Weiss Verdick, The Creative Companion Inky

Sreeja Nair, The Steady Support Inky

Saira Kamal, The Imaginative Spirit Inky

Renea Yerger, The Steadfast Creativity Inky

Raya Ilieva, The Editorial Vision Inky

Elizabeth Slavitt, The Keeper of Possibility Inky

Check out The Lies of Alma Blackwell by Amanda Glaze, and all of our recent Ink Splat authors’ works at our Bookshop.org Store.