About InkandescentKids®
August 2026: A Note from Hope Katz Gibbs, founder and publisher
Out of the mouths of kids — For more than a decade, I have planned to launch an online publication that gives voice to kids K-20. They are the future, and the future is now. It is critical that they learn to think critically and creatively and have the opportunity to raise their voice about the world they are inheriting. As an award-winning journalist, publicist, and author, I am honored to have the ability and opportunity to reach out to families around the world with this invitation.
We are on a mission: From Kindergarten to College, students around the globe are invited to become writers, authors, illustrators, photographers, podcasters, videographers, and join our editorial production staff. Through their work, we want them to tell each other — and the grown-ups who are leaving the world in your hands — what you are thinking, feeling, experiencing, and wishing.
In the last year: Since launching the magazine on Aug. 8, 2025, we have gathered hundreds of articles by kids, for kids. Many grandparents have learned about this opportunity and shared powerful essays by the young people that they love. College students looking for advice on how to build their careers have reached out, and I invited them to write an essay for our readers. You’ll find two dozen columns filled with their work in the sidebar, right. And on the homepage you’ll find our bimonthly themed issues with the Article of the Day at the top, and beneath, articles that our students and staff have written to fit the theme.
To celebrate our first birthday on Aug. 8, 2026: From noon to 4pm, we are hosting a massive children’s book fair at Elaine’s Literary Salon, located at Elaine’s restaurant in Old Town, Alexandria.
- Guests will meet more than 30 authors, and sponsors, student artists, and musicians will be selling their work.
- We are also featuring a Family Photo Booth with our photo director AnnaGibbs.com.
- Our Inkandescent video producer, Nelson Benavides, will be shooting footage of the event and turning it into a film for us.
- Rachel, our student ambassador, will be in charge of our craft project and teach our guests how to make tissue paper flowers — the theme of our magazine. “Make a flower, take a flower, and leave one for our bouquet,” she says.
- Plus, there will be a complimentary buffet filled with kid-friendly food from Elaine’s award-winning menu.
- Our editor, Ellen Smith, has created a printable version of the online magazine that features a bi-monthly theme. Families are invited to subscribe for just $30 for the year for 6 issues that will delivered as a pdf in their email inbox. Subscribe at the party for a $5 discount, and get a free Inkandescent Kids tote bag (a $10 value).
- At the party, students can also sign up for one or more of our six journalism classes (see details below).
Here’s what we are cooking up for 2026 and beyond:
- Students from Kindergarten to College are invited to submit work, or take a class to be published online and in the print publication. Click here for details about submitting your work for $3/piece.
- We are also launching our classes where students work one-on-one with our award-winning team to learn to be a journalist, photographer, illustrator, video producer, and podcaster. These range from 2 to 4 one-hour Zoom sessions, for $75/session.
- If you’ve ever wanted to be part of a newsroom, our editor will teach students the art of editing, copyediting, proofreading, layout, and design. This class is 6 sessions.
Hope Katz Gibbs is the founder of Inkandescent® Inc. — a PR + Publishing Co., which she launched in 2008. Hope and her team have represented hundreds of entrepreneurs, mostly women, using the 8 Steps to PR Success™ model she explained in her 2014 book, PR Rules: The Playbook – The Entrepreneur’s Guide to Supersize your Small Business.
From creating a stunning website (with the help of designer Michael Glenwood Gibbs and website developer Max Kukoy, who you will meet below), the Inkandescent team also creates powerful podcasts for InkandescentRadio.com (thanks to the dedication of producer Brandi Wilsker who removes every hiccup from the audio track), and educational videos published on Inkandescent.tv (with the skill of producer Nelson Benavides, founder of Beloved-Visuals.com).
The company also publishes two monthly magazines: InkandescentWomen.com and BeInkandescent.com, a health and wellness magazine that shines a light on the business of Mind, Body, Spirit, Soul, and Heart. Click here to learn more about Hope’s work as a journalist for The Washington Post, USA Today, Costco, the National Press Club, and more. Contact Hope by email.
Ellen Smith is our Inkandescent Kids Editor. She earned her master’s degree in Early Childhood Special Education from The George Washington University in 2008. As a classroom teacher, homeschool tutor, and parent, Ellen loves empowering students of every age and diverse abilities. Ellen is also a freelance writer and fiction author.
She has published four novels: Reluctant Cassandra (2015), Every Last Minute (2017), Any Second Chance (2020), and All Kinds of Time (2025). When she isn’t writing or teaching, Ellen can usually be found curled up with a cup of coffee and a good book! Learn more about Ellen and her work: ellensmithwrites.com
Alexandra Kuehn, Director of Sales. Alex is helping us spread the word about the work we are doing to families around the country and bringing sponsors to the project. Your support enables us to expand our reach and work with more kids!
She was born and has lived in Maryland for most of her life. From a young age, she loved to write and read and was often found buried in a book. Her favorites ranged from “The Velveteen Rabbit” and “The Little Prince” to anything by RL Stine. After spending a brief time living in Louisiana, she developed a love of all things New Orleans. She now lives in Stevensville, MD, a small town on the Chesapeake Bay, with her husband Jeff and two beautiful daughters, Harper and Vivienne. Learn more: plumbennybooks.com
Libby the Lunchbuddy is her first children’s book.
Anna Paige Gibbs is Inkandescent Kids’ chief photographer. She has been a professional photographer and videographer since graduating from VCUarts in 2017. Anna says, “I’m a photographer & videographer based on the East Coast — but that won’t stop me from traveling to wherever you are, especially if you’re somewhere I’ve never been. I specialize in weddings, events and all kinds of portraiture, but there’s usually a camera glued to me regardless.”
Her love for photography began at age 9 when I received my first camera: a tiny Coolpix point-and-shoot, which I adorned in stickers and used to catalog my entire world.
“This erupted into a passion for finding interesting ways to document the world around me, and led me to study art at the Corcoran College of Art + Design and earn a BFA in Photography and Film from VCUarts. I think of my practice as if I’m documenting the white between the brick; the in-between moments that make a story whole. My aim is to create imagery that reminds people how they felt in a particular moment, and how beautiful it was – imperfections and all. My approach to client sessions is intuitive, collaborative, and (I think!) fun – I love connecting with people through this work and never take it for granted. I use the best equipment available to me, and hold pre-shoot consultations with clients to get a better understanding of their vision and preferences.” Learn more about Anna and her work: AnnaGibbs.com
Nelson Benavides has been the video producer of Inkandescent.tv since 2014. Born and raised in Springfield, VA, he is a graduate of the kinetic imaging program at Virginia Commonwealth University, the #1 public arts school in the country.
Based in Richmond, VA, Nelson has produced hundreds of videos for Inkandescent™ Inc., ranging from a series of Kids’ Cooking Classes to a feature about Alexander Hamilton, and a ditty called Happy Feet featuring Irish dancers from the 60-city tour Rockin’ Road to Dublin.
Nelson also creates videos for the company’s monthly shows: Truly Amazing Women TV and BeInkandescent Health & Wellness TV. Click here to watch his Sizzle Reel!
Max Kukoy is Inkandescent’s web guru. A Washington, D.C.-based freelance developer/designer since 2000, Max earned his master’s degree in Environmental Science from the University of Oklahoma in 1993. He then started working in public health and environmental policy at nonprofits in Washington, DC.
After a few years of policy work, he started working on his organization’s website, and that led to many more websites, many more clients, and a specialization that continues to grow every year. Max has been the chief website developer on InkandescentPR.com since first working with Hope Katz Gibbs in 2006 to launch her first website, www.HopeGibbs.com. He is an avid swimmer and faithful uncle. Click here to learn more about Max.
Michael Glenwood Gibbs is the art director of Inkandescent Inc. He designs the company’s websites and promotional materials and also creates illustrations for our business magazine, BeInkandescent.com.
A freelance illustrator and designer since attending Pratt Institute as a photography and illustration major in the mid-70s, his award-winning artwork has appeared in Newsweek, Time, The New York Times, The Washington Post, Worth Magazine, Consumer Reports, Harvard Business Review, and publications for United Airlines, Verizon, IBM, Sears, American Airlines, CitiGroup, and Oracle.