A look at how Aaron Reynolds and Peter Brown grow their beloved Creepy picture books into early chapter books — and why spooky stories work year-round for young readers.
Category: Book Reviews
The 2025 Writers’ Rumpus Year in Review
Before we close the book on 2025, I welcome you to peruse my annual Writers’ Rumpus Year in Review. As with my first review post back in 2017, my goal for 2025 is to showcase the breadth and depth of our offerings from our talented contributors with a single post from each. Click on a date link below, and you’ll be magically whisked to the complete post, no sleighs or reindeer required!
FROM IDEA TO IMPACT: WRITING SEL PICTURE BOOKS
Guest Post by Danna Smith What are SEL Picture Books? An SEL picture book teaches children about emotions, life skills, and empathy. Creating one can
Interview and Inspiration with Tenacious #Kidlit Author Pam Vaughan
Pam Vaughan is one of the most supportive creators in the kidlit community. She cheers everyone on with her positivity. It came as no shock
Recent Reads Roundup
There have been so many great books released this past year, I had to squeeze in one more multi-book post highlighting some of my favorites.
New in Picture Books: Hello, Tobi! by Andrea Cáceres
Hello, Tobi (Candlewick, 2025), by Author/Illustrator Andrea Cáceres had me at hello. Literally. The cover is a playful invitation, with an illustration of Cáceres’s 15-year-old
Interview with Kimberly Tso, Debut Author of TIC-TAC-TOE CHICKEN…and a GIVEAWAY!
Kimberly, it’s my pleasure to welcome you to Writers’ Rumpus! Congratulations on your debut picture book, Tic-Tac-Toe Chicken, published August 19, 2025 by Third State
Writing Across Genres & Empowering Indie Authors: Author-Publisher Donna L. Martin
I met children’s author and indie publisher Donna L. Martin through a #BookHero school library book drive I coordinate every March with fellow kidlit authors
Interview with Ainissa Ramirez, author of SPARK … and a giveaway!
Spark – Jim West’s Electrifying Adventures in Creating the Microphone is the first nonfiction picture book biography in the Black Innovators Series by MIT Kids Press, an imprint of Candlewick. Today is this remarkable book’s birthday, and I’m honored to welcome talented author Ainissa Ramirez to Writers’ Rumpus.
Interview with Nonfiction Kidlit Author Amy Cherrix…plus a TRIPLE giveaway!
Guest Post by Janet Daniels I met Amy Cherrix at Simmons University in 2008, when we began our master’s programs through the Center for the
Picture Book Review: CASSINI’S MISSION by Katie Venit
This highly recommended picture book tells the true story of one spacecraft’s unexpected search for life beyond our planet.
Show and Tell: Back to School Books
September may be shouting “Back to the books!” but let’s be real— kid-lit writers (hi, that’s us) never actually put them down. The shelves keep
Writing About a Living Person: A Conversation with Author Danna Zeiger and Dr. Kathleen Friel
If you’ve been keeping up with our wildly engaging Writers’ Rumpus blog this summer, then you’ve already become well-acquainted with debut author Danna Zeiger and
Interview with #Kidlit Writer Rebecca Gardyn Levington on Finding Forgiveness
Hello readers! The dog days of summer are winding down. It’s in the 60’s in New England as I write this! I love summer sunshine,
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