It is my pleasure to share my fellow Write2Ignite team member, Brenda Covert's, debut picture book, Meanwhile Back at the Manger (Ambassador International, 2025). SYNOPSIS Thomas is frustrated with his job in the stable, pushing around hay and cleaning up after the animals. Leaving his stable job behind, he starts a new job, night fishing… Continue reading MEANWHILE BACK AT THE MANGER: A Christmas Picture Book and Giveaway!
This post has been a long time coming. About 16 years long. There have been times when I thought I was ready to submit my middle-grade novel, HALF-TRUTHS. But now I KNOW it. IN THE BEGINNINGFrom the beginning, I imagined a story about a white girl and a light-skinned Black girl discovering that they were second… Continue reading On Submission
Margriet Ruurs was the author expert in the recent issue of Talking Story on "Libraries Without Walls." She has published a plethora of nonfiction picture books so I decided to ask her a few more questions. Here are her answers as well as a chance to win one of her award-winning books, My School in the… Continue reading A CONVERSATION WITH MARGRIET RUURS and a GIVEAWAY
I recently attended a webinar "Feel the Feelings: Crafting Picture Books" with Bethany Hegedus, author and founder of The Writing Barn. As a result, Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) is front and center in my brain. Bethany emphasized that readers should be able to take away kindness, empathy, understanding, bravery, and inclusion after reading picture books. Here… Continue reading TWO FUN PICTURE BOOKS with IMPORTANT MESSAGES: ROCK AND VOLE and WHERE'S MY COW?
Congratulations to Jo Lynn Worden who won Will You Be My Friend? from last week's blog. I have received a number of picture books from publishers recently, so if you love picture books...stay tuned! WOOD, WIRE, WINGS: Emma Lilian Todd Invents an Airplane by Kirsten W. Larson (Calkins Creek, 2020) is a picture book biography that will… Continue reading WOOD, WIRE, WINGS: A Review and a Giveaway
It's always fun to share publishing news with my blog readers--particularly if it's news from one of my own writing friends. I first met Dorothy Price 10 years ago when she joined my SCBWI-Carolinas critique group. I've read her manuscripts and she's read mine. Today I'm thrilled to share her story of how she recently signed with an… Continue reading You Heard it Here First: Dorothy Price signs with Agent, Miranda Paul
Congratulations to the following winners from last week's blog: Deborah Allmand, Jana Leah, and Carol Nelson won BEHIND THESE HANDS. Joyce Hostetter and Sandra Warren won RUN TO THE LIGHT. Danielle Hammelef and Connie Saunders won THE LAST CHERRY BLOSSOM It's amazing what you can learn through picture books. Ticktock Banneker's Clock is another engaging and… Continue reading Ticktock, Banneker's Clock: A Picture Book Review and Author Interview
Within the first pages of Bound by Vijaya Bodach, the reader realizes that this is going to be a book that deals with serious issues. The main character, Rebecca Joshi who was adopted from India at birth, was burned six years earlier over 50% of her body; her older sister, Joy, is intellectually impaired; their mother… Continue reading BOUND: A Review and an Autographed Giveaway
Congratulations to Becky Scharnhorst for winning A Tough Act to Follow and Acting Innocent and to Mel Hager for winning WONDERLAND. One of my favorite stories to listen to as a child was, The Little Engine That Could. The voice of the little blue engine who took on the insurmountable challenge of bringing… Continue reading Plan to Persevere
I'm getting ready to fly up to Philadelphia to visit my new grandson and want to give away another book before I do. This is a short giveaway--I'm drawing the winner on Saturday so the book can be mailed out the following Monday. Get your comments to me ASAP! Two years ago I was fortunate to… Continue reading A Paintbrush for Paco: Backstory, Picture Book Review, and Giveaway