Authors & Illustrators Wild About Kidlit!
Today is a very exciting day here on the blog. I have Ryan Van Cleave here with me, who, if you don’t know, is a bit of a writing and poetry rock star. And some of what he does, you may actually not know, because he has ghostwritten many books (in addition to those under his own name) and coaches and mentors many writers behind the scenes.
It had been about a year since my debut picture book, Counting to Bananas (Flamingo Books, April 2022, illustrated by Estrela Lourenço) had been acquired. My editor, Cheryl Eissing, emailed to say her team was exploring the idea of Banana possibly carrying a picture book series. Was I interested? I had never thought about writing a sequel and, as a debut author, never imagined I would be asked to. But was I interested? Seriously? Of course I was bananas about it!
Jewish American Heritage Month is a time to celebrate Jewish contributions across American society, and there are many to choose from!
Jessica Brody is a superstar in the kidlit world! With her incredibly busy schedule, I’m thrilled she’s here to talk with us about her new middle grade novel, Amelia Gray is Almost Okay. And trust me, her replies are every bit as clever and entertaining as the main character in her amazing book.
Contributors who post on WritersRumpus.com have been honoring Asian American and Pacific Islander authors, illustrators, and cultures since way back in 2014! This openness certainly includes the other categories of diverse books, but the focus this month is on AAPI books.
Ask any successful kidlit writer how they succeeded, and chances are they’ll tell you about their writing communities. In this reblog, Carol Gordon Ekster shares the many ways she benefits from the yearly 12 x 12 Picture Book Challenge, one of the most well-respected and supportive online writing communities in the kidlit world.
Last week, Publisher’s Weekly reported that the first quarter numbers were in for a number of major publishers, and those numbers were . . .
I am so pleased to have Jennifer Raudenbush here with me today so we can talk about a very magical picture book she has written called In the Palm of My Hand. The words and illustrations (by Isabella Conti) are just gorgeous, and they meld together to create a mindful, meditative, and quite existential experience for the young reader.
Welcome to the MG/YA Opportunities post! Find all of the monthly opportunities on the MG/YA support page! All opportunities are available to anyone with an internet connection.
I had the unique opportunity to interview author Jennifer Chambliss Bertman and illustrator Holly Hatam about their new picture book, A Good Deed Can Grow: a visually rich, engaging, and empowering picture book with separate stories in text and illustrations. It was such an honor to ask them about their process and journey together!
in literary terms, the four-letter word EVEN is primarily used to provide emphasis, and once invited into sentences, can infect multiple sentences without a writer’s conscious intention.
The subject of this post is JUST, a four-letter word that sneaks into sentences without invitation. Learn when to let it stay…and when to hit DELETE!
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