I dressed up as Abigail Smith for Halloween on Saturday.  She’s the main character in SPITFIRE — a young girl who disguises herself as a boy to fight in a Revolutionary War naval battle on Lake Champlain.  In the first chapter of my historical novel, Abigail steals a rowboat and arrives to meet Benedict Arnold’s fleet on the lake, looking cold, disheveled, and soggy.  Since it poured rain during the Burlington,  VT Halloween Parade, I was particularly authentic, giving out temporary tattoos, with my hair soaking wet.

Afterwards, it was blessedly warm, dry, and cozy at Borders, where I gave a presentation to about 15 people who braved the weather.  I took my work cap off and shared my secret…that I was really a girl disguised as a boy.  (They promised not to tell General Arnold!)

The kids in attendance were real history lovers, and they taught me a few things, too. 

And of course, they were excited to reach into Abigail’s haversack to check out some artifact replicas and find out about life on an 18th century gunboat.

When Abigail was done answering questions, the kids had some things they wanted to ask the author of SPITFIRE, so I “went to get her” while one of my helpers passed out samples of hardtack.  (Only one man wondered why I was changing my clothes in the Classical Music aisle.)

Rain or shine, Burlington’s Church Street Marketplace sure knows how to throw a party.  Marketplace Events Coordinator Becky Cassidy and Borders Sales Manager Kristine LeMay were fantastic to work with and made the rainy day seem a lot brighter. 

After the presentation, I went downstairs to sign copies of SPITFIRE.  I’m still surprised when I show up for events and they have signs up, like I’m an author or something.

What you don’t see is the other side of this rack, where there’s a picture of

, who had signed copies of A BAD BOY CAN BE GOOD FOR A GIRL at Borders the week before my visit.  Do you think Tanya and I look alike?  I had never noticed the resemblance, but…

      

One man kept looking at one side of the rack, then looking at me, then looking at the photo on the other side.  Finally, he crossed his arms and frowned at me, so I helped him out.

“I’m that one,” I told him, pointing to my side of the sign.

“I thought so,” he said, “but you look a little like her, too. Not that that’s a bad thing…”

Maybe Tanya and I will have to do an event together some day and really confuse the guy…

Charlotte Miller is my new hero.

Not because she refuses to let a man solve her problems.  Not because she tries so hard to save her family’s woolen mill. Not even because she steps forward with courage in terrifying circumstances.  She’s my hero because she finds herself in a situation that is, by all accounts, dire, and never once whines about it being unfair. Though her story is a take on the classic Rumpelstiltskin story, Charlotte is no typical fairy tale girl.

When her father is buried in the first pages of A CURSE DARK AS GOLD, Charlotte is plunged into a world of hard work, broken down machinery, troubled finances, and ancient curses.  Does she complain?  Does she say, “How come I have to answer for the mistakes of all these men?”  Nope.  With pluck and courage, compassion and commitment, Charlotte forges ahead to set things right – no matter whose fault it all was in the first place. 

We could use more heroines like Charlotte Miller – and more authors like Elizabeth Bunce, who weaves Charlotte’s harrowing story into a rich, colorful tapestry that’s difficult to let go of when the last page is turned.

I’m giving a presentation on historical fiction at November’s NYS Reading Association Conference, and I originally borrowed this ARC to note examples of how writers of historical fantasy weave factual details into their novels.  When I finished reading CURSE, though, my notepad was blank.  Not because there weren’t examples.  There were plenty of them – from the details of the woolen mills of the early Industrial  Revolution to the country folklore of that time.  It’s just that I…umm…forgot to write them down. 

That, my friends, is the mark of a great story.

*sighs, picks up pen, and goes back to take those notes*

October must be contest month in the kidlit blogsophere because I can’t remember a time when I’ve seen so many offerings.  Cool ideas, too — here’s a roundup for those of you with lottery dreams…

Being a teacher, I guess I’m especially partial to Jama Rattigan’s Apple-for-the-Teacher contest over at her blog, Alphabet Soup.  She’s offering up a copy of Sarah Miller’s MISS SPITFIRE, which is amazing, and the APPLE COOKBOOK, which makes me hungry just looking at it.

Jo Knowles (

) is having a Figure-Out-My-Contest-Contest at her LJ.  Come up with the perfect contest for Jo, and you could win a signed first edition of LESSONS FROM A DEAD GIRL.

Curtis Brown agent Nathan Bransford has a Best First Paragraph Contest running on his blog, with a Thursday night deadline.  He’s offering manuscript and query critiques as prizes.  (Even if you’re not at that stage in your career, it’s worth heading over to check out some of the entries!)

Heather Brewer, author of EIGHTH GRADE BITES, is giving away 13 of her extra-special vampire hoodies for Halloween.  She still has a few left, so check out her blog, Bleeding Ink, to enter.

I’m sure I haven’t listed them all, so if you have a contest running, too, feel free to post a link in the comments section.

And finally, have you seen the contests popping up with the Robert’s Snow: For Cancer’s Cure illustrator interviews?  A number of the amazing illustrators who donated snowflakes for the auction have also signed books and prints as contest prizes to help draw traffic to the auction site.   Kris over at Paradise Found, has compiled all of the Robert’s Snow contest links on her blog.

Be sure to check out this week’s illustrator features, too!

Monday, October 22

• Mark Teague at The Miss Rumphius Effect
• Sharon Vargo at Finding Wonderland
• Christopher Demarest at Writing and Ruminating
• Rose Mary Berlin at Charlotte’s Library
• David Macaulay at Here in the Bonny Glen

Tuesday, October 23

• Carin Berger at Chasing Ray
• Marion Eldridge at Chicken Spaghetti
• Sophie Blackall at not your mother’s bookclub
• Erik Brooks at Bildungsroman
• Brian Lies at Greetings from Nowhere

Wednesday, October 24

• Elisa Kleven at Rozzie Land
• Consie Powell at Becky’s Book Reviews
• Jimmy Pickering at Shaken & Stirred
• Frank Dormer at What Adrienne Thinks About That
• Sheila Bailey at Lizjonesbooks

Thursday, October 25

• Julia Denos at Interactive Reader
• Rebecca Doughty at A Chair, A Fireplace & A Tea Cozy
• Brian Floca at A Fuse #8 Production
• Margaret Chodos-Irvine at readergirlz

Friday, October 26

• David Ezra Stein at HipWriterMama
• Juli Kangas at Sam Riddleburger’s blog
• Ginger Nielson at Miss O’s School Library
• Margot Apple at Jo’s Journal

Saturday, October 27

• Julie Fromme Fortenberry at Your Neighborhood Librarian
• Sarah Dillard at The Silver Lining
• John Hassett at cynthialord’s Journal
• Abigail Marble at Please Come Flying

Sunday, October 28

• Ashley Wolff at A Chair, A Fireplace & A Tea Cozy
• Barbara Garrison at Brooklyn Arden
• Kelly Murphy at ChatRabbit

I’m partial to books with strong girl protagonists, so I loved Mitali Perkins’ RICKSHAW GIRL.  Naima is a young girl growing up in Bangladesh, living a life marked by both her family’s poverty and her appreciation for color and beauty.  As the best alpana painter in her village, Naima has a unique gift — a gift that she initially sees as irrelevant to her family’s financial problems.  But Naima is a spitfire – a girl who can’t settle for fitting into the mold her society has created for her. 

Perkins’ exploration of gender roles and the creative thinking challenging those roles in modern day Bangladesh is both poignant and accessible to young readers.  Her themes of self-determination and community are presented within the context of a story that has beautiful sensory language, vivid characters, and some great surprises along the way.

“Oh, I’m Skippyjon Jones, and I bounce on my bed; And one or six times, I land on my head!!!”

Today’s illustrator feature for the Robert’s Snow: For Cancer’s Cure Fundraiser is none other than Judy Schachner, created of the beloved Skippyjon Jones series and many more fantastic books for kids and kids at heart.

Blogger’s Note:  I’m a children’s author and a middle school English teacher, so my students are collaborating on our series of illustrator profiles! Today’s feature is courtesy of the 6th, 7th, and 8th graders of the SMS Writers Club!

We were asked to feature writer/illustrator Judy Schachner here to help raise awareness of the Robert’s Snow fundraiser.  Robert’s Snow raises money for cancer research at the Dana Farber Cancer Institute.  Judy was kind enough to agree to an interview and has donated a signed copy of one of her books and a Skippyjon Jones doll to a lucky blog reader!

Thanks for joining us, Judy!  We love Skippyjon Jones, so we were so happy that you created a snowflake. Why are you involved in the Robert’s Snow fundraiser?

Because it feels good to give. And because I lost my mother to cancer when I was young and then later my stepmother.

Could you tell us about your snowflake for this year’s auction?

This is the third snowflake I’ve painted. It’s the second time I’ve painted my cat Skippyjon Jones (with mittens on his ears). It’s done in acrylics.

What led you to become an author/illustrator?

A huge love of drawing, painting and storytelling that I’ve done since I was a very little girl.

What other career dreams did you have when you were younger?

I was too shy to star on Broadway, I didn’t have the math grades for nursing, and too many bad habits to be a nun so a life in art was my only choice.

Many of your illustrations go along with stories that have some humor. How come?

I love “funny” but other books of mine are quite different – Yo Vikings, The Grannyman, Mr. Emerson’s Cook, and Willy and May.

The Skippyjon Jones books are so popular, and we wonder if that’s partly because the name is just so much fun to say. How did you come up with Skippyjon’s name?

Cats should always have more than one name. SkippyjonJones is what my cat called himself.

We just learned that your real Skippyjon Jones, your own Siamese cat,  passed away recently, and we’re so sorry.

Skippyjon died in September. I can’t tell you how sad I am.  Here’s a picture of him in his younger days.

So he was the inspiration for the Skippyjon Jones books?  How did you create the stories?

Skippyjon’s character is like a good stew. You start with a big pot. Then add a very funny brother named Kevin, who was famous in our house for his over-active imagination. Add a handful of Siamese cat named Skippy, one basement with a bumblebee in it, and a tussle in the litterbox. Finally a dash of Antonio Banderas.

Which came first for this series of books — the story or the illustration ideas?

I like to work in dummy form right from the beginning. Pictures fill in the spaces where the words aren’t working and vice-versa. I usually think of a title right away and almost always have my beginning sentence. It’s the rest of the book that’s a problem.

Of the books you’ve illustrated, do you have a favorite?

Yes, Yo Vikings, it’s about my children and it’s based on a true story.

Now a few rapid-fire questions…
If you had to choose a favorite author and a favorite book of all time, what
would they be?
To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee.

Your favorite food?
Angel Food Cake

Favorite thing to do in your spare time?
Read, re-arrange the furniture, and kiss my cats.

Favorite time of year?
Give me snow!!

Bring on the snow!  Judy Schachner’s snowflake is featured in Auction #3, which runs from December 3-7.  If you would like to bid on a snowflake for Robert’s Snow, click here to check out Judy’s creation and the others.

If you’d like to be entered in a drawing to win a signed copy of one of Judy’s books AND a Skippyjon Jones doll, here’s what you need to do.  Simply visit Auction #3, and then come back here and leave us a comment to tell us about a snowflake that you love.  We’ll enter your name in the drawing, and a member of the Writers Club will draw one lucky winner out of a hat to win a signed book and doll.  (Note: If you don’t have an LJ account, please make sure you leave your name.  It’s tough to enter “anonymous” in a drawing and even tougher to track her down if she wins…)

Be sure to check out today’s other Robert’s Snow illustrator features…

• Linas Alsenas at A Wrung Sponge
• Theresa Brandon at The Shady Glade
• Karen Katz at Whimsy Books
• Sally Vitsky at Shelf Elf: read, write, rave

Have you ever given a presentation, and NO ONE wants to ask a question during the Q and A?  I hate that.  But I LOVED visiting with the Oak St. School 3rd graders today.

You’d think 75 kids packed into a small classroom might be a little chaotic.  It wasn’t.  

You’d think 75 third graders squeezed together like puppies in a basket might be noisy.  They weren’t. 

Those Oak Street kids are fabulous listeners, friendly hosts, and some of the best question-askers ever.  Here’s a sampling of our conversation:

How long did it take you to read and learn about everything so you could write your book?

About a year and a half.  I loved doing all that reading and learning, and then the writing was fun, too.

How long did it take colonial guys to make a fire with that flint and steel you showed us?

I guess it would depend on how good they were at it.  I think it would take me a very long time!

Yeah, you only got a few  sparks.

What made you want to write this story, in particular?

I live on Lake Champlain, and I always look out at the water and think about what happened here years ago — all the battles and the people who lived here before us.  I wanted to tell their story.

Sometimes, I go camping on Valcour Island, where your story happens.  Have you ever been camping there?

Yes, I have. It’s pretty, isn’t it?  My family likes to have campfires there and roast marshmallows.

I like s’mores.

Me, too!

Hey, how did they make things shoot out of that powder horn you showed us?

They didn’t make things shoot out of it. They used it to store their black powder so they could fire their muskets and cannon.

Oh. (disappointed look).  Nothing ever shot out of it?

Nope. Sorry.

Do you know my sister?  She goes to the  middle school.

Yes, I do.  She’s nice.

At that point, I had to leave the rest of the questions unanswered to go back to the middle school, where that particular sister and a few other siblings were waiting for 3rd period English to start.   I was sorry to leave with hands still in the air, but I’ve promised to follow-up with an email or another blog post.  I have no doubt there were some future researchers and authors in that audience today!

I got an email this week from Mr. Smythe, my high school English teacher who read about SPITFIRE in a newspaper clipping someone mailed him.  He’s proud of me.

You have to understand — Mr. Smythe wasn’t just any teacher.  He was that teacher.  If you’ve survived high school and lived to tell about it, you know what I mean.  The teacher who makes you believe you can do better.  The teacher who makes you work harder than you’ve ever worked and makes you love every minute of it.  

Long before I met Harry and Hermione, Mr. Smythe introduced me to Hermia and Helena, Lysander and Demetrius, and their magic was no less charming.  Mr. Smythe had a way of bringing those old stories to life, making them feel as urgent and real as the upcoming prom.  And when we wrote for his class, we wrote with passion. Language mattered.  It mattered with an intensity that burned long past the end of 9th period…and burns to this day.  Thanks, Mr. Smythe.