Highest highs: Me and a room full of middle schoolers at a school visit in November 2022, organized by We Need Diverse Books and Writers and Artists Across the Country. Every student in the photo is holding their own copy of my nonfiction book for readers age 11 and...
On Writing for Kids and Teens
My Debut Picture Book, “Red and Green and Blue and White,” Gets a Starred Review from Publishers Weekly!
The photo of me above was taken just after I'd seen the actual picture book for "Red and Green and Blue and White" and held it for the very first time. And the screen shot of the Starred Publishers Weekly Review is just... amazing. I started writing picture book...
Queer KidLit Creators – 2021 Fall/Winter Schedule of Gatherings By and For Queer-Identified Writers, Illustrators, and Translators of Books for Kids and Teens
We started in February 2021, gathering monthly on zoom to connect as a community. Members of the community have added a study hall (working in community at the same time), a listserve (to stay in touch between the monthly meetings, and a critique corner (a safe place...
An Interview with Adria Karlsson About Highlights Foundations’ New Transgender Scholarship for Picture Book Storytellers
“Two scholarships will be awarded annually, providing full tuition plus a $300 travel stipend for a Transgender person pursuing the craft of picture books.” I was delighted to connect with Adria to find out more about this newly established scholarship. Here's our...
More Wisdom, Inspiration, and Moments from SCBWI’s “The Big Five OH” Conference
Highlights and take-aways for me included: “White space to leave room for your reader.”and“Until you find yourself on the page, you’ll go looking for yourself in all the wrong places.” – Richard Peck (from Richard’s SCBWI Master Class) “A good lesson does not make a...
Wisdom and Inspiration from “The Big Five OH!” SCBWI Summer Conference, part 1
Not blogging the conference was really tough, but I still collected a bunch of helpful quotes and moments in my journal. Here are a few: Malinda Lo’s helpful question when revising: “What emotional impact do I want readers to have when reading my book?” (And apply to...