January 13, 2010
Yes, there’s a week for everything, but this one makes a lot of sense! Check out No-Name-Calling. It starts in two weeks, which will give you time to hone your skills.
Which somehow takes me to Peter Pan, a book that I just love. I always wanted to be Peter, never Wendy. After all, who had the best adventures? But would Peter participate in No-Name-Calling? I think not. And really, he was pretty much a pain in the neck. His way or no way. So why is he so attractive? Maybe Peter’s the epitome of the classic lit bad boy. Hmmm.
December 21, 2009
I’m pleased as well as honored to be the New Voices interview on Cyn Smith’s blog Cynsations . Take a look and wander through her archives if you aren’t familiar with her blog. It’s chock-full of just about everything having to do with kidlit.
December 12, 2009
A huge thank you to Erin Murphy from the Erin Murphy Literary Agency.
Boy, oh boy do I appreciate everything you do.
Thanks!
October 28, 2009
No one seems to have heard of the poem by Eugene Field. This is kind of amazing to me sine I think I’ve known it forever.
Wynken, Blinken and Nod one night
Went off in a wooden shoe.
And they fly. And catch stars. And the soporific rhyme is perfect for bedtime.
Here’s the interesting thing — Eugene Field was from Chicago, where I live, and there’s a very cool statue of him at the Lincoln Park Zoo, which is something else no one seems to know about. I’ve asked around and everyone says. “Who?” and ”At the zoo? Where?”
Field worked for the Chicago Daily News in the late 1800s. As a sideline, he wrote verse — and he published over a dozen books. Many of them we illustrated by Maxfield Parrish.
Aside from the statue in Lincoln Park, there’s a park and a fieldhouse named after him in Chicago’s Albany Park nieghborhood.
Now browse through Serendipity Market and see which story is about Wynken, Blinken and Nod. And then, check out Mr. Field himself!
September 26, 2009
I just got my first two fan letters! Cool. They were from local seventh graders and were sweet and complimentary.
I also just found out that I picked up a lovely review in the August issue of VOYA (Voice Of Youth Advocates).
And lately I’ve been thinking of lost books — those wonderful old ones that never seem to surface on lists but are just so great. Right now I’m rereading Gone Away Lake by Elizabeth Enright and it’s probably the 30th time I’ve read it. And it still holds up and holds together and I love it.
Another one is To Nick from Jan by Julie Campbell Tatham, the person who wrote all those Trixie Belden books (which still kind of work, too) and the Ginny Gordon books. To Nick from Jan is a prototypical teen romance and I read and re-read it and I don’t really even like teen romances.
Check them out!
August 14, 2009
Through the generosity of HarperCollins I now have a cool microsite on their site. Take a look — it was a lot of fun to put up. And there should be a new photo shortly! Headshot day is August 21st — talk about nervewracking.
http://www.harpercollins.com/authors/33476/index.aspx
