This is the first in a year-long series of blog interviews I’ll be hosting with my fellow 2009 Debut Authors, called "How They Got Here." It should be an especially helpful series for teens who write, teachers, and anyone who wants to write for kids. 2009 debut authors will be dropping by to talk about…
First of all, congratulations are in order again. Two more of my fellow 2009 debut authors have books on the shelves! I cannot wait to read these two! Congratulations, Sarah MacLean and Erin Dionne! I also want to let you know about a series of blog interviews I’ll be hosting with my fellow Debs, called "How…
This weekend, I attended Kindling Words, a retreat for published authors, illustrators, and editors of children’s books. KW is a little difficult to describe because the whole is so much more than the sum of its parts. There were workshops and readings and informal discussion. There was also painting, yoga, South African drumming, a January…
I spent Thursday at the NYS English Council Conference in Albany, giving presentations on historical fiction and revision, chatting with other writers on a children’s literature panel, and signing copies of Spitfire and Champlain and the Silent One. The fabulous Merritt Bookstore handled book sales for the conference & took terrific care of the authors –…
What sounds like a circus act is actually the reality of having several different projects going on at once, all at different stages. Out on submission, revising, copy editing, Lately, when I sit down for my writing time at night, I have to ask myself… What’s on my desk right now, and what’s off it?…
I’m giving two presentations at the NYS English Council’s annual conference later this month, and I wanted to ask my LJ author friends for some input. My presentation called Historical Fiction as a Bridge to Content Area Literacy focuses on high interest historical fiction with solid historical content as well as nonfiction picture books and middle…
Look what the UPS guy brought this week! He looked at me a little funny when I hugged him. Do you suppose most people don’t do that? Champlain and the Silent One, my historical novel about an Innu boy who travels with Samuel de Champlain on his 1609 voyage to encounter the Iroquois, is officially out…
Guess what?? I’m going on a field trip tomorrow! (I know that makes me sound like a third grader, but I love field trips just as much as a teacher as I did when I was a kid.) We’re taking our 7th graders to the river to release the baby salmon that they raised from…
Talk about an interested, enthusiastic group of readers! I spent a terrific day with the 4th, 5th, and 6th graders at Ogdensburg’s Madill Elementary School last week. They had great questions during my visit and sent me even more questions & comments today, and I promised them a blog post. Curious minds want to know……
Inspired by a few recent posts offering advice on school visits, I’m adding one of my own shortcuts to the list of tips for LJ writer friends. SurveyMonkey is a free, online tool that allows you to create surveys that you can send to teachers and librarians after a school visit. I used the site…
