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Reviews–Do They Matter?
I hope so, because BookSpeak! is definitely getting more buzz than Stampede! did. But Stampede got some lovely posts online from wonderful poetry people, a nice review in Booklist, and was a Minnesota Book Award Finalist. And it didn’t matter, sales-wise. I’d pull out my royalty statements for proof, but they’re so tear-stained I probably
Focusing in on My Word of the Year
Each year, I choose an annual theme, an idea I originally got from Steve and Vicki Palmquist of Children’s Literature Network. But it’s been so hectic lately I haven’t yet chosen mine for 2012. Which should be a good clue. I need to FOCUS! There are lots of ways I need to apply this theme
Poetry Friday: In Praise of Music, Dishsoap, and Pictures (by students)
Last week, I went to Marshall, MN, for a young writers conference. Kids from all over southwestern Minnesota came to the university there for a day of writing fun. It was an uneventful drive on a sunny, warm, January day (in Minnesota?!) through farm country. Becky Fjelland Davis gave a rousing keynote describing different writing
BookSpeak! A Proud Poetry Nerdie
In a few days, the Cybils finalists will be announced, and I’ll have six weeks to talk poetry books with my delightful co-judges! I’m excited to learn which books the first-round judges selected. Meanwhile, it was fun to have BookSpeak! Poems About Books named as a Poetry Nerdies winner (one of five–check them all out
A Done Deal Comes Undone
Last Wednesday, I mentioned that I was waiting to hear from a regional press about a possible nonfiction book assignment. I heard Thursday that I didn’t get the assignment. I’m bummed, but their reasoning made sense. I had been personally referred to the editor as a perfect fit for a book they had in mind.
Happy Holidays!
Cards are extra exciting for me since Lerner used art from my forthcoming book, A LEAF CAN BE…, for its holiday cards this year. They sent me a box to use for myself, so most of my people are getting a card with Violeta Dabija’s wonderful art on it!
We Are Woven (my Gift Tag poem)
I’ve posted before about Gift Tag, the new poetry e‑thology edited?and published by Sylvia Vardell and Janet Wong. It’s only $2.99 (buy it from the link on poetrytagtime.com), a complete bargain for poetry lovers (and perhaps a converter for?kids who aren’t already poetry lovers). Today, I thought I’d share my poem. We each chose a
Poetry Friday: If a Tree Falls (by me, from BookSpeak!)
This post was originally scheduled to run November 18, while I was in Chicago. I apparently didn’t schedule it properly, because nothing published. But better late than never–here it is! ——————————————————————————— I’m in Chicago attending the NCTE convention tonight and tomorrow! In a panel called Poetry for Paupers tomorrow morning, organized by Poetry for Children’s
Chicago–Whew!
I got home last night from my whirlwind trip to Chicago for NCTE. Wow. I spent Wednesday and Thursday and Sunday with my daughter, Maddie, who came with me for college visits and fun (2 college visits, 2 hotels, 11 miles walked on Thursday, Cloud Gate, Field Museum, shopping on the Magnificent Mile, eating our
Poetry Friday Roundup: Starry Beach
Welcome to Poetry Friday! This is my first time hosting here at my new (and still being decorated) bloghome on WordPress, and I’m happy you’re here! Here’s a poem I wrote earlier this year. It’s part of a batch of seashell poems I wrote to submit to a themed magazine. None were accepted, but I’m
Happy Birthday, BookSpeak!
Today is the pub date of my second poetry collection with Clarion! Happy Birthday, BookSpeak! In BookSpeak!, 21 wild, wacky, and winsome poems showcase the magic on a single bookshelf. Characters plead for sequels, book jackets strut their stuff, and a raucous party starts when the lights go out at the bookstore! You can watch my book trailer
Great News on Eight Great Planets!
I received the very fun news last week that one of my books, Eight Great Planets (Picture Window Books, 2010), won the 2010 Eugene M. Emme Astronautical Literature Award — Children’s Category. This is one of my Science Songs books, which each cover a curriculum area via a song written to the tune of an
The Loudest Quiet
I wanted to play in The Miss Rumphius Effect poetry stretch this week, which was about scale and magnitude. My dog, Captain Jack Sparrow, was sick last night, and it made me go into worrying mode. Here’s a poem that swam around my head as I was falling asleep last night. The Loudest Quiet The
Circling Around
I’ve been working on a fiction shared reader of fewer than 150 words. It has to be a journey, use a certain phonetic sound throughout, rhyme, and include the basic shapes. Whew! What a puzzle to work all that in. I turned in a draft yesterday (instead of an outline, because I couldn’t figure out
Quotation Motivation: Can’t or Won’t?
“The man who does not read good books has no advantage over the man who can’t read them.” ~Mark Twain, attributed We place a lot of emphasis on literacy, and rightly so! But this quotation made me think of how many people read only for functional reasons (work reports, sports scores, etc.) but who
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Are You Looking For?
Go to my Poetry page for:
- National Poetry Month projects through the years
- Small Reads Roundups (poems grouped by topic)
- Introductions to several favorite poetry forms