Today, I’m excited to introduce you all to Kaz Windness, author and illustrator of the Time-Traveling Chickens and Bitsy Bat series, among others.
Hi Kaz. Welcome to Read Your Writes Book Reviews. How are you?
I’m doing great and having the best, most busy fall of my career. Thank you for inviting me to talk with you and meet your readers.
You’re welcome. I had the pleasure of reading your latest releases, Bawk to the Future and Bitsy Bat, Snow Star. I am now a fan, especially of Bitsy. I love her so much.
Awww! Bitsy Bat is me, so that means you love me, too, yes? And I love you right back!
Aww. Bawk to the Future is the first book in your Time-Traveling Chickens series. I say this in the best way possible. It was cheesy. I think when my kids were 6-7, they would have loved this book. Honestly, they probably would have still loved the book at ten. I loved the characters' names, which definitely helped with the humor. How did you come up with the idea for it?
We here in the Time Traveling Chickens universe prefer the term “corny,” but yes! It is by far my weirdest, wildest, most fun and obnoxious book, with more chicken puns than you can shake a tail feather at.
The idea for the series was something my kids and I came up with over a plate of dino-shaped chicken nuggets. They are older teens now, but Nugget and Tenders and Dr. Dipping-Sauce are all characters they came up with when they were in elementary school. Mr. Kernel was my husband’s name idea for the Big Chicken nemesis. We are all storytellers, so it’s fun that something we invented together became a real book series. Thanks for chicken it out!
Lol. I can’t with you right now. I just had to wipe my eyes. Okay. Give me a second. Bitsy Bat, Snow Star is the third book in your Bitsy Bat series. I’m a first-time reader, and I wasn’t aware that Bitsy was autistic. I just thought she was a little “kid” experiencing snow for the first time and realizing it was too cold and wet and just not for her. Why do you think it’s so important to introduce kids and adults to characters who are autistic?
I also think of all the characters in these books as real kids.
Bitsy is coded autistic, and as I mentioned earlier, she is me. I came up with the idea for the Bitsy Bat series as my oldest child was getting their autism diagnosis, and I was discovering that I was autistic too. I wished there were stories that centered the autistic character, showed them in a positive light, and made it easier to be accepted at school. Especially girl characters. Those were very hard to find.
The first book, “Bitsy Bat, School Star” is about Bitsy’s first time going to school. She discovers that she’s the only bat in a classroom for nocturnal animals. She needs accommodations and understanding to thrive and finds a way to advocate for herself, using a special star activity that can be taken into real classrooms. “Bitsy Bat, School Star” was just featured on the new season of Reading Rainbow, and everyone on that episode identifies as autistic. It is a very proud moment for me. Positive representation is huge!
Of course, you can enjoy the books without knowing Bitsy is autistic, but they are also great ways to introduce differences like autism. There are activities and lesson plans at BitsyBat.com.
Congratulations on being featured on Reading Rainbow! As I said, I’m in love with Bitsy, and I just need more of her. Please tell me there are more books coming.
As long as there is more demand for Bitsy, there will be more Bitsy books. By sharing “Bitsy Bat, School Star,” “Bitsy Bat, Team Star,” and “Bitsy Bat, Snow Star,” you are assuring that there will be more Bitsy!
Out of all the characters in your Bitsy Bat series, which one is your favorite to draw and why?
I love drawing all of the characters, but bats are my favorite animal. I love drawing Baby Bat, of course, but Bitsy Bat is for sure my favorite.
What’s your favorite part of the creative process?
Coming up with a character, usually as a drawing, and having a good story idea for them is the most fun part. Completing a whole story is much harder. That’s why so many people have an idea for a book, but not so many have a completed manuscript. They might even sell out to generative AI, which is ultimately not satisfying, and only exists because it’s made from stolen writing and art. I would never sacrifice my precious human creativity to AI. It’s the process that matters. Doing the work, having breakthroughs, feeling the joy and satisfaction of having made something with your own two hands—it’s the best feeling in the world. I want everyone to have that experience.
There are three main steps to creating a book:
1. Make it exist. (That means finishing the manuscript.)
2. Make it make sense. (Edit until it does. Get good feedback from trusted readers.)
3. Make it good. (More editing. More feedback. More work. But worth it! And readers deserve good books made by real humans who have experienced life just like they have.)
Kaz, thank you for taking the time to answer some of my questions. I’m going to be a favorite in my household because I get to say I talked to you. Thank you!
It’s been my pleasure. Please say hello to your household for me!
Genre: Children’s Graphic Chapter Book
Release Date: August 25, 2026
Star Chapter Books are the perfect bridge for kids moving beyond beginning readers but not yet ready for longer chapter books. With short chapters, bold two-color illustrations, and fast-paced, funny stories, these confidence-building books make reading fun and rewarding.
Two chicken friends accidentally time travel back to the age of the dinosaurs in this first tale in the rollicking Time-Traveling Chickens series from Theodor Seuss Geisel Honor–winning author-illustrator Kaz Windness!
Nugget and Tenders are super-big, super-smart, talking chickens. When evil scientists trap them in a time machine, they land in the age of the dinosaurs. Not ones to be easily discouraged, these adventurous avians see their chance to change the course of chicken-kind. Can they change the past and get back to their future—or is the duo doomed to be a dinosaur’s dinner?
Each Star Chapter Book is 112 pages long, divided into six to eight short chapters with illustrated panels on every page to keep kids engaged from start to finish. This highly visual early chapter book format supports the transition from leveled readers to chapter books, making Star Chapter Books a perfect fit for independent reading, classroom libraries, or shared story time.
Look for more Star Chapter Books adventures to help kids grow confident and develop a love of reading, including the chickens’ next adventure, Nugget and Tenders’s Eggcellent Adventure!
Purchase Bawk to the Future from:
(Affiliate Links Used)
The Time-Traveling Chickens Series:
Nugget and Tenders’s Eggcellant Adventure (Book 2) releases November 24, 2026
Genre: Children’s Picture Book
Release Date: October 27, 2026
Bitsy Bat experiences her first snow and discovers it’s okay for friends to not always like the same things in another charming follow-up to Bitsy Bat, School Star from Theodor Seuss Geisel Honor–winning author-illustrator Kaz Windness.
When Bitsy wakes up to see her first-ever snowfall, she’s excited to try out wintry activities with her friends at school. But sledding turns out to be harder than she thought, and making snow angels and snowmen leaves her feeling cold and wet. Bitsy tries to pretend she’s having fun…until a friendly snowball fight pushes her over the edge.
She retreats inside the school, worried her friends won’t like her anymore once they find out she doesn’t love the snow like they do. But a surprise is waiting for her—Enzo Owl and Mo are inside too! They don’t like snow either and would rather read in the cozy nook. Bitsy comes up with an indoor activity for a snowy day—making paper snowflakes—that just might give her the courage to be honest with her friends.
This third story in the Bitsy Bat series is told from an autistic perspective and celebrates how our differences make each of us shine brightly on our own and among friends.
Purchase Bitsy Bat, Snow Star from:
(Affiliate Links Used)
The Bitsy Bat Series:
Places to find Kaz Windness:
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