Who is ready for WriteOnCon? You know we are! For those who can’t wait until next week, I am going to give you a sneak peek into my presentation about neurodiversity. The entire presentation will be shown on Sunday, February 23, 2020, from 12:00 – 12:30 pm EST. Of course, if you get an extended ticket, you can view all events throughout March 22, 2020. … Continue reading Writing Neurodiverse Characters Responsibly
WriteOnCon 2020 is right around the corner, Friday, February 21st – Sunday the 23rd. This year, Halli and I will both be speaking at the conference, so we wanted to share info on the talks we’ll be giving as well as topics we’re excited about in the line-up… Continue reading WriteOnCon 2020 – An Online Kidlit Writers’ Conference
Do you like to solve mysteries? Know an amateur detective? Need a series for reluctant readers? The What Happened Series is the answer. And SHOWTIME SABOTAGE is the perfect place to start. Green Valley Middle School’s theater students knew their production of Pirates and Lost Boys was cursed. After months of snow days, chicken pox, and flaring rivalries, they have finally made it to opening … Continue reading Recommended: SHOWTIME SABOTAGE by Verity Weaver
The thing I loved about this book was the genuine characters. My favorite might be Dawson, the martial arts guy planning to stage a karate brick-break to recover from his embarrassing flop… Continue reading Recommended: FITNESS FIASCO by Verity Weaver
This past November, I did my first ever NaNoWriMo! I’ve always wanted to try and have followed others’ tweets and posts about it with envy, but November has historically been too busy a time of year for me to take on an all-consuming project like writing an entire novel in 30 days. In 2019, though, the stars aligned, and I decided to dive in. THE … Continue reading Reflections on My First NaNo
Since we started blogging, members have written front-list books with big 5 publishers and work-for-hire books. Some have become Pitch Wars mentees and/or Pitch Wars mentors. Some now offer critiquing/writer coaching services… Continue reading This Blog Is Under Construction!
Can posture improve your writing? This was a question I pondered when author Amber Smith visited me for a few days. In my efforts to be a good host, I kept trying to encourage her to write in “comfy” spots, like my soft couch or a beanbag chair outside. She confessed she had to sit upright at a desk or table to feel like she … Continue reading MYC: Sit Up Straight!
First pages of a manuscript are tough to get right. Advice generally encourages writers to jump into the action to hook readers, but readers need a certain amount of information first in order to care about the people or events. I’ve written about this before in my post “Let the Main Character Drive the Bus,” and now I’d like to come at it from a … Continue reading MYC: The Hook & the Backpedal
What is WriteOnCon? It’s an online kidlit writing conference. In recent years, Seabrooke Leckie and her team have expanded it to cover picture book critiques and also to include live workshops, vlog presentations, blogs on writing craft and pitching to agents… Continue reading We’re Speaking at WriteOnCon!
We hear about yet another animal whose population is in danger in the news every day. The recent reports about the significant decline in our bird population came out just as I was finishing BUGS IN DANGER, an upcoming nonfiction book by Mark Kurlansky (releases 11/12/19). Yes, bugs, an importance food source for birds, are in trouble too. We’re probably all aware that our monarchs and bees are … Continue reading Dear Citizen Scientists– 7 Books to Inspire!
Inspired by the real-life “flash mob” violence that struck Chicago in 2011, Every Stolen Breath is a fast-paced and immersive thriller… Continue reading Recommended: EVERY STOLEN BREATH by Kimberly Gabriel
Welcome to Windows & Mirrors, where we feature books that provide us windows to lives outside our own and mirrors to our shared common human experiences. This week we are featuring ONA JUDGE OUTWITS THE WASHINGTONS by Gwendolyn Hooks and illustrated by Simone Agoussoye. The title is a great description of this new fascinating picture book biography. Ona was an enslaved girl who lived with her … Continue reading Featured: ONA JUDGE OUTWITS THE WASHINGTONS by Gwendolyn Hooks
