Award-Winning Children’s Book Author

Get to Know Joann Howeth

It all started in grade school – Joann recalls getting herself into tight corners with complete fabrications at show-and-tell; conspicuous whoppers that no one believed. This storytelling behavior became the soundtrack of her life, prompting her to attempt writing her first novel at age 12.

Teachers must have recognized a minutia of talent beneath her proclivity for whopper-telling, because she received lots of praise for her writing along the path to college. Yet she didn’t take the encouragement seriously and instead of majoring in creative writing or journalism, earned her degree in English Literature, thinking she was going to teach high school. When that idea flopped, she changed course and found employment in the jewelry industry where she spent many happy years as a gemologist, designer, and goldsmith.

And what happened to that prevaricator, you ask? She’s alive and well.

Having revisited her dream of becoming a published author every decade of her life, shaping it to fit around jobs, and family, and errant mishaps, Joann’s dream has finally come true. A long-term member of the SCBWI and the winner of a handful of awards, she makes her home in Montana, colloquially known as “Big Sky Country,” where she and her husband raised their daughters and have been life-long domestics for a handful of cats. Currently, a black cat named Ghost haunts their home.

- Lemon meringue pie
- Art museums
- Bagpipe music
- Waterfalls
- The honking of migrating geese
- Tagging a railroad car
- Pulling a fire alarm (when there’s no smoke)
- Tail-light designer

What stories my awards were for and what they meant to me

The first award I won for my writing was in 2013. I had only been writing for a year and was very green having just begun this journey of “learning” the craft of writing for children. Looking back, I laugh because this story was all wrong. It was way too long and wordy. Not even remotely child centered, its protagonists were two old men—a Jeeves and Wooster parody, which I thought was hilarious. I placed tenth out of ten; last place but in the periphery of the winner’s circle a step up from an “honorable mention.” It felt like victory! Someone or a few “someones” had read my story and deemed it notable. It was the reassurance I needed that just maybe I could write after all. This award was what kept me going.

I continued submitting manuscripts to the Writer’s Digest annual competitions, but didn’t win again until 5 years later when Fiona, a story about a firefly, won an honorable mention.

More encouragement arrived in the shape of an honorable mention in 2021, which I received for my story about a camel named Neville.

Entering contests became a habit, and I eagerly searched them out. It was a way I could get my work in front of professionals, a way I could see if my current WIP resonated with anyone. Writer’s Digest wasn’t the only contest I submitted my stories to, but it became a barometer for me.

It was in 2023 when I captured 9th place for THE MOLLYS B. in the Writer’s Digest Annual Competition that my career started to take off. This one meant a lot to me because it gave me the confidence to earnestly begin submitting the story to agents and editors.

Then in 2024, I won 1st place for SOMETIMES in the Writer’s Digest Self-Published Book Awards. With the help of a hybrid publisher in the UK, I had self-published this story the year before and never entertained the idea that much would come of it. It’s a very specific story with a very specific place in the world; a tale about a little girl dealing with her mother’s mental illness, its intent was for use in schools by school nurses and counselors. I was shocked that it had risen to the attention of the judges.

This first acknowledgment of its merit was reinforced later that year when it placed as a Semi-finalist in the 2024 North Street Book Prize. I was delighted and humbled.

Submitting to contests and winning a few awards has been an important aspect of my writing career. They have helped me find an audience, but more importantly, they have helped me brave the fear of letting strangers read my work. As writers, isolated and safely tucked up in our own worlds plotting away on our stories, the risk of self-exposure is minimized. Our stories can’t begin to live, however, until we grant them access to the sunshine.

School Visits

Joann has a track record of participating in school reading programs.

A classroom with a teacher holding a sign with a cow's face, standing in front of a smartboard displaying a book cover titled 'The Molly's B'. Several children are seated at desks, one child raising their hand, others listening and looking at the tea

A woman dressed as a witch with a large black hat and pearls stands at the front of a classroom, speaking to a group of children seated at tables. Another woman dressed in a costume with black bunny ears and holding a sign that says 'MOO' stands near

A young boy and an older woman having a conversation in a classroom, with bookshelves and educational posters in the background.

Two women dressed as farm animals standing in a classroom, one as a cow with black ears and a Moo sign, and the other as a witch with a large black hat and black arm cuffs, holding a book.

Group of children and adults standing in a classroom, holding creative posters and artwork.

A group of children sitting on the carpet in a classroom, listening to a woman reading a book aloud. The woman is seated in a rocking chair, showing the children colorful illustrations from the book. The background includes educational posters and vi

A classroom with students working at tables, a teacher sitting on a stool, and a whiteboard with writing and a projector screen are visible.

A classroom full of elementary school children and their teacher, holding up colorful books they have read. The children are smiling and posing for the photo, with some sitting at desks and others standing. The whiteboard behind them has some writing

Two women standing in front of a bookshelf in a library. The woman on the left is wearing a large black hat with white feather and black fur trim, a pearl necklace, and a red cardigan. The woman on the right is wearing glasses, a pink jacket, and a s

Joann reading a picture book to a group of kindergarten children sitting on the carpet in a classroom.

Two women are standing at the front of a classroom, dressed as cows, smiling and clapping. A young girl with long red hair is sitting at a desk in the foreground, with water and school supplies on her desk. Classroom posters and charts are visible on

Close encounters with Some of My Favorite Creatives

We all have our heroes. I’ve been lucky enough to meet some of mine. Having walked ahead of me, the recounting of their own journeys inspired me as a beginner and continues to do so. It’s the reminder that we all have to start somewhere.