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.
My weekend was full of gushy pumpkin guts, fresh-baked bread, ripe red apples, and yellow river leaves. For this, I am thankful…
Montreal’s Atwater Market — always a feast for the senses!
This bakery (above & below) was the model for the patisserie in my MG Contemporary novel that’s making the rounds right now. Needless to say, my research was extensive!
On one bright fall hike each year, we always collect a few leaves to press. These are sleeping between the pages of my phone book now. On Thanksgiving, we’ll shake them out to decorate the table and remember the smells of late October…
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…
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.
First of all…it snowed in the Adirondacks Saturday night, so my drive down Interstate 87 to the Chronicle Book Fair in Glens Falls, NY was stunning — blazing red, orange, and yellow fall foliage, mixed with sugar-snow mountaintops in the distance. I arrived at the book fair content that the views alone were worth the two-hour drive. It was icing on the cake when the Dog Ate My Homework Bookstore sold out of SPITFIRE and then went on to sell a bunch of my backup copies, too. I loved signing books and chatting with all the kids, teachers, history lovers, and librarians who stopped by my table. Truth be told, though, I had two favorite guests…
One was the young man who bought SPITFIRE early in the day and had me sign it for him, then proceeded to settle down in the lobby to read, stopping back every hour or so to let me know where he was in the book. He made my day…
And so did the lady who stood by my table for a while, looking down at the cover of the book. Finally, she spoke.
“You know, they made a movie of that book,” she said, pointing to it.
“Well, no,” I told her, “They didn’t, actually. This is a new book.”
“Yes, they did,” she insisted.
“Well, maybe they made a movie of another book with the same title,” I said. “That could be…”
“Nope,” she said, tapping the cover of SPITFIRE again. “It was that one. Katherine Hepburn starred in it. She was great.”
How about that?? I am honored, to say the least.
I was solo for this book festival, since it was a long day for the family, so I don’t have my usual photo album, but here are a couple pictures.
Here’s my table (minus me…taking the photo). This was a HUGE book festival. Imagine 120 setups like this. That’s how many authors were there!
And here I am with Joseph Bruchac, an author whose work has inspired me for a long time. Joe was kind enough to read SPITFIRE before it was a book and say the nice things about it that are now printed on the back cover. It was great to have his new books signed for J and E at today’s festival.
And there’s more SNOW news…. Robert’s Snow: For Cancer’s Cure officially kicks off this week! You can visit the participating bloggers listed below to read all about the children’s book illustrators who have donated their time and talents to create incredible, original, wooden snowflake ornaments to raise money for the Dana Farber Cancer Institute. You can bid on your favorite snowflake, knowing that the funds raised will help to fight cancer. On Saturday, members of my middle school writers club and I will feature Judy Schachner, creator of the amazing SKIPPYJON JONES series! You’ll even have a chance to win a signed copy of one of her books and a SKIPPYJON JONES doll! Be sure to stop by on Saturday to meet Judy and see her incredible snowflake.
Here’s a schedule for the rest of this week’s illustrator features & interviews:
I went to the post office after school today to mail the manuscript for the option book from my SPITFIRE contract. This, despite the fact that I am still finishing up some revisions.
Why? Because there’s a bit of a time issue. The book is about Samuel de Champlain’s voyage from Quebec to Lake Champlain in 1609, and there are big, big happenings being planned in NY, VT, and Quebec for the Quadricentennial in 2009. That’s not so far away in the world of publishing. My editor, who knows all of this, asked to see what I have so far. I am hoping that this is a good sign, but it was still painful to stuff the thing in that Priority Mail envelope knowing that there’s more work to do. I had an almost overwhelming urge to leap over the counter and snatch it back out of the bin, but I decided that would have scared the post office lady too much.
So the manuscript is gone. Think good thoughts for it, okay?
Five things they don’t tell you about having your first book published…
1. You will not have time to eat lunch for a few weeks. You will get used to this and will keep bananas in your car to make up for it. When you forget about one of them, fruit flies will come and hover around your steering wheel, but rest assured, this is part of being a published author.
2. You will say things like this to your spouse: “Honey, guess what? My Amazon.com sales ranking is 31,472 right now!” By the time you have finished explaining what this means (that someone — probably your Aunt Betty– bought two books) your sales ranking will be 487,249.
3. People will stop you in hallways, hardware stores, and bathrooms to ask: a) When do I get my free copy of (insert title here)? b) Can you have your editor publish my book?
4. You will not suddenly feel wise and gifted in all things writing. You will continue to write chapters, go to bed, and wake up in the middle of the night in a panic that you may be hit by a bus before you have time to revise.
5. There will be wonderful moments of signing books and talking with kids who love what you wrote. And there will be moments like this one, when a fellow teacher told me about a phone call he got at his house.
“Hello, is this Mr. C?”
“Yes,” he said.
“Did you lose a copy of SPITFIRE?”
“Well, no, I didn’t lose a copy. But I do have some copies in my classroom that I’ve loaned out to students.”
“Oh. Because I just ran over one on Lynde Street. It has your name in it.”
(Happily, said copy only suffered minor tire marks and was returned slightly weathered to Mr. C’s classroom library the next day. But still… )
By the way…Sunday will be one of those lunchless days. I’ll be at the Chronicle Book Fair at the Queensbury Hotel in Glens Falls, NY from 11-4.
I’m reading from SPITFIRE, participating in a panel discussion on historical fiction, and signing books.
I’ll be set up next to the Dog Ate My Homework Bookstore table. (Isn’t that the greatest name?) If you live near Glens Falls, please stop by and say hello!
I cross-posted this at Verla’s…but just in case I don’t run into you there…
What are your favorite revision strategies that teachers might also encourage students to use when revising writing in a classroom setting?
Reading out loud? Post-it notes? Critique partners? Bring it on!
I’m giving a presentation on revision at the New York State English Council Conference in NYC this November. It’s called “Walking the Walk: How Teacher-Writers Can Encourage Student Revision.” As part of that presentation, I’ll be talking about how teachers can use the concept of “mentor authors” in their classrooms. (This doesn’t involve you interacting directly with students; it simply means that teachers use excerpts from your work to talk about and model specific writing skills & strategies.)
My hope is to put together a PowerPoint presentation that teachers can use in their classrooms to share some of YOUR favorite revision strategies with their students. Sometimes, a revision suggestion coming from a favorite author has more clout with kids than a suggestion that comes from a teacher. I’m going to share the presentation at the workshop and make it available for download on my website so teachers can access it to use in their classrooms.
Are you game to be featured as a mentor author? If so, please respond to this post and tell me about one specific revision strategy you like to use. Let me know what it is and if it’s a general strategy or one that’s specifically useful for novels, non-fiction, poetry, picture books, magazine articles, etc. I’ll choose a good selection of these to use in the presentation. I’ll include your advice to students, along with a link to your website, your picture, and a picture of your books if you’re published, in the multimedia presentation. (To keep things simple, I’ll grab these from your website unless you object.) This is a general session at NYSEC, so authors for all ages, from PB to YA are welcome!
If you respond to this post, I’ll assume it’s okay for me to feature you in the presentation unless you tell me otherwise. It’s a great way for you to provide help to young writers and to make teachers & kids more aware of your work. Thanks!
After a book-signing in Medina, NY (and a really fast lunch scarfed down in the car on the NY Thruway), we arrived at the Pat Rini Rohrer Gallery in Canandaigua for a second Saturday event. This one featured the original SPITFIRE cover painting (which I hadn’t seen before this weekend!).
We signed another 65 books at the Canandaigua event and basked in the beautiful setting. The gallery has a show on called “Small Works…Small Wonders,” and I found myself getting lost in the paintings whenever we had a break. My mom, Spitfire cover artist Gail Smith Schirmer, has a number of paintings in that show through November 3rd. But there’s one small work in particular that’s gone…
We were asked to feature writer/illustrator 
