Matt

Tavares

New York Times Bestselling Author

Award Winning Artist & Illustrator

Travels from: Portland, ME

“Tavares’s full-bleed spreads alternate with sepia-toned spot drawings, all beautifully arranged in this old-fashioned but evergreen tribute.” — The New York Times

New York Times bestselling author-illustrator Matt Tavares was born in Boston, and grew up surrounded by books and reading. From the time he was very young, his mother read to him every night, and his family made countless trips to the public library. Years later, as a studio art major at Bates College, he rediscovered his love for picture books, and decided to try to make his own.

For his senior project, Matt wrote and illustrated a story called Sebastian’s Ball, about a boy who caught a magic foul ball at a Boston Red Sox baseball game. Three years later, after much revision, Sebastian’s Ball became Zachary’s Ball, Matt’s first published picture book. Zachary’s Ball went on to win a Massachusetts Book Award Honor, and was named one of Yankee Magazine’s 40 Classic New England Children’s Books.

Since then, Matt has created over twenty more books. Three were named ALA Notable books, three won Parents’ Choice Gold Awards, and twelve were chosen for the Society of Illustrators’ Original Art exhibit. His artwork has been exhibited at the Brandywine River Museum, the Eric Carle Museum, and the Mazza Museum.

When Matt’s not working in his studio on his latest book project, he travels the country speaking and drawing at schools, libraries, conferences, and bookstores. He has presented at the Smithsonian American Art Museum, the White House Easter Egg Roll, and he’s even done a few book signings at Fenway Park.

Matt's Featured Titles

Story Time (grades k-1)

Reading from selected title, followed by a presentation on the process of creating a picture book.
Ends with a drawing demonstration and question time.

Making Picture Books (grades 1-5)

A Presentation on the work that goes into creating a book, focusing on the process of writing, rewriting,
revising, researching and sketching. Ends with a drawing demonstration and question time.

Trying Something New (grades 6 & up, great for teacher/library conferences)

Matt Tavares discusses the times in his career as an author-illustrator when he has ventured outside his comfort zone and tried something new. Whether it’s illustrating a nonfiction book for the first time, trying to illustrate a book where all the characters are cookies, or his latest challenge– creating a 224-page graphic novel, trying something new can be daunting, but always seems to push his work in unexpected directions.

The Making of Hoops, My First Graphic Novel (grades 3 and up)

Author-illustrator Matt Tavares offers a look inside the process of creating his first middle grade graphic novel, Hoops, from idea to finished book, and shares how his initial idea for a nonfiction picture book about a girls’ high school basketball team evolved into something completely different.

Picture Book Illustration Workshop (grades 1-5)

The workshop is for 1 or 2 classes at a time (50 kids or fewer), and takes around 45 minutes. During the workshop, Matt will have the students go through all the steps of illustrating a story. This works best when all students involved have already seen his presentation. One good way to do this is to have one presentation in the morning for three classes, then three workshops, one for each class.

“Matt did a great job of including visuals and showing the process of creating ‘Hoops’ along with weaving in the grit, determination, and courage required. Students loved when he did a live drawing with one of our students. He had our students fully engaged for the hour and was very warm and knew how to relate to our students. It was a wild round of applause when twenty student names were called for the books as prizes that I donated were announced. The follow-up illustration sessions were excellent. Matt provided instruction and then created the vibe of a workshop model and gave direct feedback to students. It was an excellent day! One veteran teacher shared it was the best assembly she had experienced at our school in thirty years. I highly recommend Matt!” — Lawrence Junior High School, 2025

“Matt Tavares is much more than and New York Times Best Selling Author and Award Winning Artist and Illustrator, he is a gifted speaker who can engage an audience of any age with his masterful storytelling. Matt’s enthusiasm for his craft is evident and his journey as a reader, writer, and artist is inspirational.” — Memorial Elementary School, 2025

“Matt was incredibly kind and easy-going, such a pleasure to work with! His session was very well-attended, and our attendees seemed to really enjoy his presentation. He ended with a Q&A which received lots of engaging questions from the audience.” — Virginia State Literacy Association, 2025

“I heard nothing but wonderful things from the staff the the kids about his visit. I thought he was fun and engaging. I also love how different his books are so he appeals to a wide audience.” — Burr Elementary, 2025

“Matt Tavares provided an interesting and fun program for all ages. It was great learning about his process of illustrating and writing his children’s books. Matt worked great with kids of all ages and kept our audience enthralled with his work.” — Olney Public Library, 2025

“Matt captivated the hearts and minds of the students and teachers who attended his presentations! He was personable and informative which allowed the students to feel comfortable and ask him a lot of questions. His positive energy and answers to their questions really confirmed that Matt was meant to be a writer and illustrator!” — Daly City Public Library, 2024

“The students loved seeing Matt’s writing process, especially his home office and drawing tools. They also loved hearing about how Matt does research when creating characters. It was so cool when Matt pulled a volunteer from the audience and drew her as if she were a character in one of his graphic novels!” — Ogdensburg City School District, 2024

“Matt was engaging for all age levels. Kids loved the drawing. The older kids really enjoyed learning more about the creation of Hoops. . . . Thank you to Matt for a great visit!” — Garrison Elementary School, 2024

“Matt Tavares is a wonderful author/illustrator to visit your elementary or middle school. He is very knowledgeable in his craft and can tailor his talk to any age range. He is very flexible and can adapt to changes as they present. I would happily have him back to speak to my students again!” — Epping School District, 2024

“Matt Tavares truly understands how to engage the students. His capacity to captivate the students’ interest across grade levels was impressive. He is very down to earth and willing to participate in fun activities with the kids. Matt is not only a talented author and illustrator, but also inspirational. Thank you for the work you do and time you commit to traveling across the country!” — Hollis Upper Elementary, 2024

“Matt Tavares does a great job of inspiring all ages in the audience with the stories he shared about his writing process. We were encouraged to take risk to try new things like he did with his first graphic novel Hoops (which is amazing!). He used great illustrations from his own work as a testament to how we can always improve our craft. Matt also shared some drawing tips that students were eager to try out. You won’t be disappointed!” — Prairie Trace Elementary, 2024

“I appreciated the fact that he answered the students’ questions directly and continued to reiterate to them what a process writing is even for an established, published author.” — Trantwood Elementary, 2024

“I have had rave reviews about your visit from teachers and students. Your presentations engaged and inspired the students. I have first graders who are able to quote your words because they were listening so intently. A fourth grader commented that you didn’t talk over the students’ heads, but spoke so they understood.” — Gail Nelson, School Librarian

“I don’t think I’ve ever heard such positive feedback after an author visit!” — Laura Phelps, Media Specialist, Union 47 School District

“You could tell from the questions, many from the adults, that the process was of broad interest to a broad range of ages…. Your whole program was just chock full of information and you presented it in a way that kept both the children and adults engaged.” — Nancy Denman, Head of Children’s Services, Duxbury Free Library

“Your slide presentation kept the students interested and focused, and your easy-going manner allowed students to immediately relate to you and want to know more about you…. I sent a letter to Candlewick Press letting them know how much we enjoyed our visit with you and would be happy to recommend you to other interested schools. ” — Laurie Woodfin, Media Specialist, Neary School

“Parents stopped me all over town for several days after the event to tell me how much their children enjoyed it, and how much they liked meeting you.” — Judi Paradis, Robbins Library

“You held everyone’s attention for the entire presentation and the age span was about 5 to 85! … I can’t remember another visiting author captivating young readers more than you did.” — Linda Burke, Children’s Librarian, Mattapoisett Public Library

“Thank you for coming to our school. I loved your presentation you did! I dream of publishing a book of my own some day. I like to write and draw as much as you. Do you think I’ll get a chance to make my own book? A lot of my friends can write more than me but I’m going to persevere. Anyway, thanks again!” — Hannah G, grade 4

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Honors, Awards & Recognition

Great Stone Face Book Award, 2025
New England Book Award
New York Times Bestseller list
USA Today Bestseller list
Indiebound National Bestseller list
3 ALA Notable Books
12 Society of Illustrators The Original Art exhibit selections
6 Lupine Awards (Maine)
3 Massachusetts Book Award Honors
Starred reviews in Kirkus, Publishers’ Weekly, School Library Journal, Booklist, The Horn Book
California Young Reader Medal
The Audrey Geisel Friend of Military Children Award

Media clips

The Horn Book | Publishers’ Preview: Picture Books and Graphic Novels: Five Questions for Matt Tavares

Bates | ‘HOOPS,’ A NEW GRAPHIC NOVEL FROM MATT TAVARES ’97, TELLS A CINDERELLA STORY FROM TITLE IX’S EARLY DAYS

The Press Herald | Children’s book about Santa’s reindeer lands Bates grad on best-seller list

Sports Illustrated Kids | Talking with Matt Tavares, Author of “Growing Up Pedro”

Publishers Weekly | ‘Twenty-One Steps’ Celebrates the Centennial of the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier

Media Kit

By clicking the link below you will be directed to a Google Docs Folder
where you can download author photos and cover images.