I’m still pinching myself about signing with Ammi-Joan Paquette at Erin Murphy Literary Agency. I’ve always known Joan and Erin are amazing, but I wasn’t expecting the close-knit, ultra-supportive group of EMLA clients who totally sweeten the pot. I set about trying to read all of their books and was thrilled to discover fellow nonfiction (and fiction!) author Audrey Vernick. I knew I wanted to get to
We had an all too rare sunny summer day yesterday, so the family and I walked to the library (mostly to drop off oodles of books), and then we went shopping at our local independend bookstore in honor of Save Bookstores Day. My daughter was consumed by a book we had just bought at the Friends of the Library used bookstore
I first met Riley Carney on Twitter. As you can see in her profile, she’s 18, has published 3 books (so far), and founded a nonprofit organization for children’s literacy. Pretty amazing, huh? I knew right away she was somebody I wanted to follow! Loads of other people do, too, so today we’re getting together to throw a SURPRISE Twitter
I didn’t think SCBWI Western Washington’s 2011 conference could get any better than it was on Saturday, but yes, it could! Sunday started a little later (thank goodness, after all that dancing!). On Sunday, April 17, we started out by celebrating our awesomely talented and dedicated advisory committee. And they celebrated us with a great big surprise presentation! Before we even had
Yes, the SCBWI Western Washington’s 20th Annual Writing & Illustrating for Children conference was over a month ago. I’m finally coming down from the high that weekend always leaves me with–and recovering from the hard work and long hours that go into organizing it. So, I thought I’d share some of the high points (for me) here. On Friday, April 15, 2011,
You may remember back in February when I reviewed TOM THUMB: THE REMARKABLE TRUE STORY OF A MAN IN MINIATURE by George Sullivan. Sullivan has written more than 100 nonfiction books for children and young adults, and he was kind enough to email me directly after the review! Isn’t that sweet? I was so tickled, I decided to take advantage of the situation to
In my most recent issue of Social Studies and the Young Learner (Volume 23, Number 4, March/April 2011) from the National Council for the Social Studies, there’s a brief article entitled “The Uncompromised Curriculum: Videos of Teachers Teaching Social Justice Issues,” by Debbie Sonu. Debbie talks a bit about how difficult it for today’s teachers to include social justice lessons despite narrow, test-focused curriculums. She
Children’s Book Week has been celebrated through the United States since 1919 with appearances by authors and illustrators, parties, storytelling, and other book-related events in schools, libraries, bookstores, etc., and this year it takes place May 2–8! Don’t you just love that poster (above) created by the talented Peter Brown? I do! You can order one for yourself right here.
START IT UP by Kenrya Rankin is a must-have resource for teen (and even middle-grade) readers who wish to start any kind of business, whether it be for profit, nonprofit, or mixed. The book is clearly written and easy to understand, yet includes a wealth of information for young entrepreneurs. The design is clean and functional, with pullouts for quick tips, anecdotes, quotes, and
I just pre-ordered my copy of WHAT YOU WISH FOR: A BOOK FOR DARFUR, and I am so looking forward to reading it. Coming from Penguin Group’s G.P. Putnam’s Sons in September, 2011, the book is a collection of YA poetry and short stories written by various authors, including Cornelia Funke, Meg Cabot, R. L. Stine, John Green, Ann M. Martin,