Raise your hand if you are aware of the We Need Diverse Books campaign. Many of us don’t realize how few books are either published or marketed with characters that represent diverse communities. Here are some sad stats about this: http://blog.leeandlow.com/2013/06/17/why-hasnt-the-number-of-multicultural-books-increased-in-eighteen-years/ Of course we all want to see ourselves in the books we read. But… Read more »
Once again, I’m excited to participate in Tara Lazar’s Picture Book Idea Month (PiBoIdMo) extravaganza that kicks off November 1st. She’s pulled together an amazing cast of inspiring people in the world of children’s books and I can’t wait to start my next 30 days with their insights. Plus, during PiBoIdMo I give myself permission… Read more »
Don’t miss this 90 minute live webinar with noted author, former teacher, and school visit expert, Suzanne Morgan Williams. Fees are: $25 for current SCBWI members, $30 for not-yet-members, and free to Michigan P.A.L. members. It will be great for illustrators, pre-published, and seasoned presenters. The best school visits are age appropriate, energetic, engaging, and add value to the curriculum. How do you design amazing presentations? Gain confidence in your performance, teaching, and negotiations? How do you get schools (or more schools) to hire you? Handouts, exercises, and the online presentation will help you plan programs based on your strengths, your books, and students’ needs. Suzanne Morgan Williams will share her best tips for connecting with schools and negotiating fair deals. If you’re serious about giving presentations that leave schools buzzing, tune in. The webinar will end with an optional online question and answer time. Homework and supplemental information will be forwarded to registered participants prior to the live event. Your link to the webinar will be active for three months after the event. Click below to register! Seats are limited and filling quickly… Register
My current events-junkie hubby brought this short article to my attention (Akira Okrent, The Week online 10/14/14). We all know that word meanings morph over time, but I hadn’t thought about how the role of punctuation is changing, too. Poor little comma… http://theweek.com/article/index/269689/the-secret-emotional-lives-of-5-punctuation-marks
Anastasia Suen I’m excited to share my news that the Mentor Monday series is open for business again! The feedback from this series was always positive and my enthusiasm for the topic has never waned. So…once a mid-month on a Monday, I’ll share an interview with people in the children’s literature community on the topic… Read more »
If you’ve forgotten for just a split second why we write children’s books for younger children, watch this. Trust me.http://www.inquisitr.com/1520551/watch-b-j-novak-bring-a-room-full-of-kids-to-roaring-laughter-with-the-book-with-no-pictures/
According to Heather Gilmore, LLMSW, a children’s therapist, books have amazing benefits in addition to increasing brain power! Check out Heather’s benefits below. Let’s all help make books accessible to a child. http://pro.psychcentral.com/child-therapist/2014/09/bibliotherapy-5-benefits-of-books-for-kids/#
In 2013, I was lucky enough to receive a grant from SCBWI to pursue a writing project involving coast Redwood trees. Recently, I visited Redwood National and State Parks and made a brief video about my way-too-short time there. Be sure your audio is turned on, relax, and enjoy the magnificence of these very real giants… http://animoto.com/play/7EIRj8Axpl1d0pHpbTu0Fw
I’m happy to announce the first day of A Cool Summer Tail Blog Tour. The book launched this spring, but since this is an informational fiction children’s book about how animals adapt to heat, it seemed appropriate to save the tour until the temperatures got nice and steamy. We all know how hard it is… Read more »
One of my many happy booksigning moments… Shutta Crum, Michigan author extraordinaire (MINE!, Thunderboomer, Dozens of Cousins, etc), tagged me to participate in the ongoing Writing Process Blog Tour. Shutta’s effervescence is her calling card, and just underneath it lies gobs of talent as a writer, poet, child whisperer, storyteller, mentor, and role model. I… Read more »
Sharing insights on writing children’s books and the publishing industry, and offering trinkets for creators and educators because you rock.
