Good News!

Filed in About the Books / Comment

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Hurry out to your local bookstore and grab the Sept/Oct issue of Michigan History Magazine.  On page 49, you’ll find my article, When Cuba Came to Marquette, about the role of the Holy Family Orphans’ Home in Operation Pedro Pan.  Thank you, Dr. Tony Madrigal, Carlos Naumann, Luis Piedra, and Richard Ryan, for sharing your stories with me and readers everywhere.
 

don’t try this at home

Filed in A Writing Life / Comment

fyi, if you see lkots of typos in my work 4 the nxt two months, please frgive me.  new, SHARP cutco knives + stubborn avocado pit = a cut throuhg my lrft hand, surgery to repair   sensory nerves and one-hnded typig for a lng time.  grrr.  

SCBWI National Conference. Wow.

Filed in Events and Opportunities / Comment

I was lucky to be able to attend the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI) http://www.scbwi.org/ national conference this past Friday – Monday in Los Angeles and I’m still smiling about it.  It was an amazing experience to be in the same orbit as the “A List” of authors, editors, and agents in the children’s book world.  My master class with Linda Sue Park http://www.lindasuepark.com/ was a life-changer.  Her thoughts about middle grade novel writing were concrete and inspiring.  Plus she’s just so approachable and giving with her craft. I highly recommend any opportunity for a class with her at the podium.  My advice?  Start saving your pennies now for the SCBWI national conference in August 2011.  But don’t wait till next August for a conference! The SCBWI-Michigan conference will be held this October 8-10.  Check out the lineup and register at http://kidsbooklink.org/.  See you there! 

Check this out!

Filed in Resources / Comment

Just wanted to pass along information about two new children’s books featuring characters who lived through the beginning of Castro’s revolution:  The Red Umbrella by Christina Diaz Gonzalez (Random House/Knopf) and My Havana:  Memories of a Cuban Boyhood by Rosemary Wells and Secundino Fernandez illustrated by Peter Ferguson (Candlewick).

Reviews of both books are glowing.  Check ’em out — and ask your local librarian to add them to their collections.

Long time no blog

Filed in A Writing Life / Comment

Lest you think I’ve been sitting around eating bonbons instead of writing, I’m here to say “nope.”  There has been a lot going on at the desk in the photo on your right.  I received the critique of my midgrade historical novel from Stacy DeKeyser (www.thejustifiedline.com and www.stacydekeyser.com). She identified areas I can tighten and rework and I’ve been busy doing just that.  I continue to enjoy and learn from my interactions with people in the Pedro Pan community and hope to have a final draft for their review in 4 weeks.  Wish me luck.   

Don’t Miss This!

Filed in Resources / Comment

A television documentary, Escape From Havana:  An American Story, premieres Thursday, May 27 at 9PM ET on CNBC.   This one-hour show is narrated by Meredith Vieira, co-anchor of NBC News TODAY and highlights the success stories of four members of Operation Pedro Pan.  Pass the word.  And the popcorn…

Moving forward one tiny baby step at a time…

Filed in A Writing Life / Comment

Just wanted to share I’ve sent my completed draft of Exile (chapter book) to Stacy Dekeyser for a professional critique (check her out at http://stacydekeyser.com/ and http://www.thejustifiedline.com/).  After I complete her suggested revisions, I’ll ask my new friends in the Pedro Pan community to read the manuscript and comment from their perspective.  I’m really looking forward to their insights.  Special thanks today to Alberto Magin Martinez Sanchez for sharing his collection of photographs and memories.  Every time I see a face that belongs to a name I’ve read, I understand more clearly and connect more deeply.  
 
For my writer friends:
“Do not wait for inspiration to strike.  Inspiration is only ever granted to those who work hard.”  
                                                                  — Zoe Heller, author    

My good fortune

Filed in Research / Comment

The research for my article (for a history magazine about the role of the Holy Family Orphans’ Home in Operation Pedro Pan) has been so interesting.  I’ve been to the Catholic Diocese of Marquette archives, I’m a regular in the historical files at the Peter White Public Library, and I’ve searched every piece of information I can find online.  (I’ll use this research for my chapter book, too.)  But the very best part of doing this article is connecting with the Cubans who lived here.  The “Marquette boys” have been generous with their time and have shared openly about their experiences at the Home.  I am really enjoying meeting them.  

Everytime I see a photo of the Home during its’ time as a shelter for children and compare it to the way it looks today, I realize it is a travesty that the building, and all the voices it holds, may be lost forever.