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.

Continue reading
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.

Continue reading
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

Continue reading
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,

Continue reading

Shape Your Story, Part Three: Summon the Middle School Teacher in Yourself

March 24, 2015 Alumni & Guests

By Carrie Charley Brown As you might have noticed from Shape Your Story, Part One and Two, using a formula can often springboard me smack

Audiobooks as Leisure Time: Part II

March 20, 2015 Alison Potoma

In Part I of Audiobooks as Leisure Time, I discussed considering the hours I spend in the car commuting back and forth to work leisure time.

3 Secrets to School Visit Success

March 17, 2015 Kirsti Call

Schools visits are magical…most of the time. My very first school visit started with technology issues. After struggling for half an hour, I decided to give

Meet book marketing expert, Deborah Sloan

March 13, 2015 Carol Gordon Ekster

REMEMBER, NOBODY BUYS A BOOK THEY HAVEN’T HEARD OF.* Read this interview with children’s book marketing expert, Deborah Sloan, to find out how to get

Why Does it Take Sooooooo Long for a Book to Come Out?

March 10, 2015 Alumni & Guests

There are two questions I get most often from well-intentioned family and friends. The first is “You must be so rich now that your book

Writing Devices: Pros and Cons of Connectivity

March 6, 2015 Joyce Audy Zarins

Mobility increases productivity. Although you write B.I.C. (Jane Yolen’s famous rule #1 on writing: keep your “Butt in Chair”), that chair now has wings. With