An Interview...with Moi!

Children's author Robin Dobson interview with me this morning! Click here to read about Blackberry Banquet and writing in rhyme. Robin is also giving away two signed copies of my book!

What I found to be delightfully surprising is that Robin created a math activity to go with Blackberry Banquet, where she uses the Montessori Division Board. Why was this surprising? Robin had no idea that I hold an AMI (Montessori) Teaching Diploma and taught Montessori preprimary classes for twenty-two years. Now, that's serendipitous!

         

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=  FUN!



Picture Book Article in PW

Here's a great article from Publisher's Weekly as a follow-up to the October NYT article that stirred up so much controversy about the state of picture books in today's market. I think this much better addresses the issues facing picture books.

Enjoy!

Check Out This Article

Check out this article from Hunger Mountain by Nikki Grimes. She speaks to such an important topic, and just about says it all. People need to hear this.

Especially now.

Wow, another week has already rolled by? Where IS the time going?

I'm getting my second packet ready to submit on Monday, going over all the final checks. I only had one scare, when ALL of my files were missing from my flashdrive (yikes!!!). Why on earth they would not open on my laptop but would open on my desktop is a mystery to me. I've never had such a love/hate relationship as I do with computers.

On a lighter note, this website came across the Ventura/Santa Barbara listserve this week; kind of fun to look at and play around with, especially if you're concerned with words going the way of the Dodo. It's not for the fottopees of the world (or maybe it is...).

Happy Labor Day!

Check Out These URLs

This week, two URLs came to me from my SCBWI Listserve that are well-worth looking into.

The first one was shared by Barbara Beitz. It's a great site called Beyond Little House that's dedicated to the Little House books written by Laura Engalls Wilder. For fans of this classic series, this is a must-see. I adore these books, even though I never knew of them as a child. It wasn't until I took a children's literature class in college that I discovered them. So, check it out. You'll get all goose-bumpy and sentimental and leave feeling good inside.

The other URL was shared by Alexis O'Neill. This is is a must-read article for yet-to-be published writers regarding The Seven Biggest Myths of Publishing. I nodded my head through the whole article--"Uh-huh. Yep, been there, done that. Oh, how true!" Thanks to Anastasia Suen and Alexis for spreading the word about this one.

One last one I've been meaning to share comes from the website of Cynthia Leitich Smith. Cynthia has a section called, Kit Lit, where her cats have reviewed cat-themed picture books (for reals!). This is so clever and fun to read, especially if you're a cat lover.

Enjoy!

Website Face Lift!

I'm so proud to announce that my website has recently undergone a major face lift. Pleeease come on over for a visit!

Illustrator and website designer Kathryn Hunley deserves the credit. Didn't she do a fabulous job??? I couldn't be happier with it!

Blackberry Banquet Reviewed on Katie's Literature Lounge

Katie's Literature Lounge has posted a review of my picture book, Blackberry Banquet (Sylvan Dell Publishing). This is a nice blog for folks who are interested in children's book reviews. I especially like how Katie ties her reviews into themes (I'd bet that comes from her teaching experiences--this is something I can totally relate to). This week, she posted a list of past reviews that tie into National Wildlife Week.

Crawl, hop or jump on over for a look!

PW Interview with Graham Salisbury

Hey folks! Check out this interview from Publisher's Weekly with children's author Graham Salisbury.

I'm a huge fan of Mr. Salisbury. I love his writing style, the way he connects with boy readers, his strong tie-ins to nature and his page-turning novels. Plus, he's ultra-cool because he grew up in Hawaii (his Hawaiian heritage is evident in his writing). I had the pleasure of meeting him at an SCBWI summer conference years ago (while it was meaningful for me, I'm sure he doesn't remember me!).

He's not only a fabulous speaker, but he's also a genuinely nice person. And now he's written a series for 7-12 year old boys titled Calvin Coconut.

Happy reading!

Book Bites for Kids

I just finished with my live interview with BlogTalkRadio's Book Bites for Kids, hosted by Suzanne Lieurance. What a treat it was and how quickly our 30 minutes flew by! I found myself laughing a lot (nerves? or am I really that happy all the time? or is it just that us authors don't get out enough?). Regardless, if you had a chance to listen, I hope you enjoyed it. In a couple of days, I'll post a link to the archived interview, for anyone who would like to hear it.

In the meantime, please give the BlogTalkRadio's Book Bites for Kids website a visit--there are so many terrific things to hear!

Editorial Anonymous Publishing Definitions

Check out Editorial Anonymous's blog posts she's got going on. She giving some publishing definitions that are quite informative. We hear these terms a lot, but sometimes don't understand what they are exactly.

Thanks E.A.!

Ideas for School Visit Writing Activities

Check out this post on Jill Corcoran's blog. Jill talks about school visits and gives concrete lessons for writing activities to do with students. Jill is an award-winning poet, so naturally her focus is on poetry!

Search Me!

I was just surfing the web, reading some of my blog faves, when I read about "branding" on Anastasia Suen's blog. I thought this new site that she pointed out, "Search Me", was so cool that I wanted to point it out. What a great way to see how the web defines you! Not only does an assortment of categories come up when you search your name, but when you click on a category, a series of web shots come up, which show where you've been featured. Very cool--I'm so glad Anastasia blogged about "branding" and this new site!

Authors & Illustrators Stand Together for Children

Wow.

Over one thousand authors and illustrators (and counting) taking a stand.

Check this out.

Sound Advice from A Real, Live Publicist

Sara Dobie, publicist for Sylvan Dell Publishing, was a guest blogger last week for All Book Marketing. Sara gave authors some sound advice on how to promote books and generate buzz about its release. If you dig even further into the site, you'll also find lots of other good information and tips on book promotion. Check it out!

Oops! Missed a Stop

How does that old saying go? Well, slap my face and call me silly! Yesterday, it was pointed out to me that Valarie Giogas, author of In My Backyard (Sylvan Dell Publishing), had hosted me on her blog as part of my book blog tour a few days ago. Thank you, Valarie, for bringing it to my attention! :-}

Valarie had asked me some really fun questions for the interview, so please hop on over to her blog for a look (scroll down to June 13)!

Thanks, Valarie!

BLACKBERRY BANQUET Blog Tour: Stops #5

I woke up today to find that my cyber-tour bus had stopped at two places; Anastasia Suen's blog, Picture Book of the Day, and a Anne Marie Nichol's blog, My Readable Feast.

But wait, you might say. Didn't Anastasia feature your book yesterday? Well, yes, sort of. Yesterday, she posted an interview with me on her blog, but today she focused on my book for her blog, Picture Book of the Day. Because it's a rhyming text, she thought it worked nicely with Poetry Friday as well. Here, she cleverly takes a closer look at books and gives readers two mini-lessons that accompany the book. What a fun way to stretch your imagination and practice your writing. Thanks, Anastasia!

My Readable Feast is a delightfully fun blog about family cooking and children's books. How can anyone go wrong with that combination? Yesterday Anne Marie featured Blackberry Banquet, along with the blackberry smoothie recipe that is included at the end of the book. Today, she gave us a second helping of goodness by offering another recipe to munch on while reading Blackberry Banquet; Blackberry Cake! And mmm-mm! It looks yummy! (it might even cause me to squeak or yip!) I'm definitely trying this one :-).

Please check out both sites, as they've both offer a unique ways to extend Blackberry Banquet beyond the joy of reading it to a child. And I'll tell you, its terrific to bond with books and create a true appreciation for stories where our kids are concerned!

BLACKBERRY BANQUET Blog Tour!: Double Stop on Day #4

Wow, not only did Anastasia Suen blog about Blackberry Banquet today, but illustrator Sherry Rogers has also hosted me on her site. Wowie! Check out the interview here.

Sherry is an illustrator with a cute, whimsical style that's perfect for so many picture books. Bright colors, smooth lines and a playfulness are her trademark. Her latest book is Kersplatypus (Sylvan Dell Publishing). You can see the book trailer here.

Thanks so much for hosting me, Sherry!

BLACKBERRY BANQUET Blog Tour: Stop #4, Anastasia Suen's Blog

This morning I was delighted to see that Anastasia Suen posted a three-question interview with me. And she even included a photo of the plush bear that accompanies Blackberry Banquet (he's just so cute!). Please head on over to Anastasia's blog to see what it's all about!

Anastasia is a prolific children's author with one hundred six books published (that's not a typo--106!). One of her recent books is Wired (Charlesbridge) a picture book about power and electricity. What I love about this book is that it was inspired by driving down the road, observing the power lines, which goes to show that ideas can come from the least expected places!

Thanks for the interview, Anastasia!

BLACKBERRY BANQUET REVIEW: Berry Tasty!

Blackberry Banquet has received its first review, done by BookBuds online reviews. Please check it out and see what they're saying about this sweet summer pick!

Blog Tour Stop # 2: Elizabeth Dulemba

Check this out everyone: illustrator extraordinaire Elizabeth Dulemba has posted an interview with me on her blog today! Elizabeth is a fellow berry-picker (and lover). I mean, she must be to have stepped on a Copperhead snake in her efforts to pick sweet, delicious blackberries :-).

Her latest books are Paco and the Giant Chile Plant (RavenTree Press), Ready for the Day! and Ready for Bed! (Free Spirit Publishing).

Please head on over to Elizabeth's blog to read more about Blackberry Banquet and learn more about Elizabeth (check out her art!).