WRITERS' RUMPUS

HOW TO MIDDLE GRADE

July 21, 2026 Alumni & Guests

Hi! My name’s James Ponti, and I write Middle Grade book series such as City Spies and The Sherlock Society. I’m excited to share some pointers with you, but only with a major caveat. I know a bunch of writers and we all do it differently. I’m not talking plotting vs. pantsing, but radically different approaches.

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SKIPSHOCK by Caroline O’Donoghue: A Master Class in World Building

July 14, 2026 Laura Fineberg Cooper

For writers of fantasy, science fiction, and romance, this genre-blending novel is a master class in how to create details and imagery that pull readers into the plot and keep them riveted from first page to last, and importantly, leave them eager for more.

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Writing Side by Side: Adriana Mather and James Bird on Books, Family, and Finding the Magic

July 7, 2026 Hilary Elizabeth Margitich

Writing is often described as a solitary pursuit. Most of us spend our days alone with our thoughts, our characters, and a blinking cursor. Yet

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Celebrating America’s Birthday with a talented author/illustrator team!

July 3, 2026 Marcia Strykowski

We’re just in time to celebrate America’s 250th birthday with Roxanne Troup and Jennifer Doehring. They have a beautiful new picture book, Happy Birthday America,

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Finding Your Views

October 25, 2016 Alumni & Guests

By Dana Nuenighoff A few days ago, I watched an interview with Emma Watson and Lin-Manuel Miranda from back in March. If you are unfamiliar

Establishing a Writing Routine

October 21, 2016 Alison Potoma

The school year has started. Long gone are those endless days of summer where thousands of words flow out of me at my leisure. Being

Kid Crazy and the Kilowatt King Book Review

October 18, 2016 Kirsti Call

Kid Crazy and the Kilowatt King brings energy into the picture book world with vivid words and illustrations.

In Memoriam: Liz LeSavoy

October 14, 2016 Marianne Knowles

Writers’ Rumpus has lost one of our own. I was surprised to discover, when I looked back through our writing group’s attendance lists, that Liz

Hazel Mitchell’s debut as author/illustrator with the picture book, TOBY

October 11, 2016 Carol Gordon Ekster

Carol Gordon Ekster: I had the good fortune of highlighting Hazel Mitchell’s illustrative talents in another interview here at Writers’ Rumpus a few years ago.