2010 is 2/3 over! I figured it was a good time to check on my writing goals for this year (not including any of my work-for-hire writing or hourly work I do) and see how I’m doing. Various changes over the past few months have affected my time, energy, and income level, so it’s a […]
Always a Runner-Up, Never a Bride
I’m back from a two-day mini-vacation with my husband (yay!) and I’ve got some good news to share! I was named an Honorable Mention for the Loft McKnight Fellowship, a much-coveted annual award here in Minnesota. The winner, Debra Frasier, gets $25,000 (hence the coveting!). The Honorable Mentions (my crit group partner Connie Van Hoven, Lynne […]
Making Your Poems or Book Interactive for School Visits and Readings
Last fall, I wondered how to make the poems in Stampede more interactive for readings with young kids. For either pre-readers who can’t read the entire poem up on a screen or for settings where there’s no screen available. I got some great ideas from you guys (thanks!) and did some brainstorming on my own. I’ve been […]
How I Spend My Writing Days
Wildly busy and varied, that is! In an effort to share with beginning writers and also interested readers just what one full-time writer’s life is like, I kept a diary of my work days for one week in December. Today, that diary is up at David L. Harrison’s blog. And last week, there was an […]
Thanks for Nothing, Jon Scieszka!
The new National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature will be announced tomorrow, and today, bloggers are taking time to thank Jon Scieszka, the outgoing ambassador. (Outgoing in both meanings of the word.) Here are just three of his books I absolutely love: I could go on and on, but one of my goals for 2010 […]
How Did I Do on My 2009 Theme? Fail!
Each year, besides setting all kinds of concrete goals/schedules/to-do lists, I choose some kind of theme to focus on and work toward throughout the year. How did I do on my 2009 theme? Well, it took me a few minutes to remember what it was. That should tell you the answer right there. Turns out […]