Did you miss Darcy Pattison's novel revision retreat when she was here a couple of years ago? Or didn't have a novel drafted then, but now you do? Darcy only does a few of these around the country each year, and here's your chance to catch her reasonably nearby. She'll be at Stonefly Lodge in... Continue Reading →
Quote of the day: Toni Morrison
"We die. That may be the meaning of life. But we do language. That may be the measure of our lives."--Toni Morrison
Professional Series meeting: Margaret Nevinski and Erik Brooks
Are you ready for Tuesday's meeting? We have two great speakers lined up. Mini-Session: CULTURAL AUTHENTICITY IN FICTION with Margaret Nevinski.When we write outside our own ethnic culture, how can we provide an authentic experience for young readers? Or can we? Cultural authenticity in our fiction involves complex issues of cultural appropriation, relationship to a... Continue Reading →
100 things about a novel
Alexander Chee waxes poetic about the way novelists work. Here's the first few things:Sometimes music is needed.Sometimes silence.This is probably because a novel is a piece of music, like all written things, the language demanding you make a sound as you read it.Sometimes I have written them on subways, missing stops, like people do when... Continue Reading →
Speak up for librarians
A librarian sent this our way. These people need our voices, so if you have time, please consider speaking up in support of their work: The federal jobs bill was introduced this morning in the Senate, and despite a $20 billion provision for public service jobs, library workers are left out. A vote might come... Continue Reading →
Early-bird registration for SCBWI-WWA confernce ends 2/9!
It's been just three weeks since SCBWI Western Washington launched registration for our 19th Annual Writing and Illustrating for Children Conference, but:we're already over 60% sold out, many of the additional opportunities are very nearly full, and there are just a few days left to claim the special early-bird discount! We want to see you... Continue Reading →
Congratulations to Brenda Guiberson!
LIFE IN THE BOREAL FOREST by Brenda Z. Guiberson (Henry Holt and Company) is on the recommended list for the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) Orbis Pictus Award for Outstanding Nonfiction for Children. Congratulations, Brenda! BTW, Brenda didn't send us this little tidbit, so we're glad we caught it. Please remember to send... Continue Reading →
Help critique a student’s work
Leigh F., a Senior at Cornish College of the Arts, is doing a thesis on how children cope with their parents having cancer. The final product will be a children's book she writes and illustrates.She would like people to critique her work on Feb. 11 from 10:00-10:30 a.m.Contact her at leigh4prez AT gmail.com for information... Continue Reading →
Good news for Clare Meeker
Her CHARGE AHEAD book, which was commissioned by KPBS public television in San Diego as part of a national Raising Readers grant to promote reading in the schools, had a celebrity launch in December. Three members of the San Diego Chargers football team read the book to an audience of kids and to Sesame Street's... Continue Reading →
Paul Schmid Wonder Book launch
On Feb. 24 at 7 p.m. Secret Garden Bookshop is celebrating the launch of THE WONDER BOOK, illustrated by our own Paul Schmid (and written by Amy Krouse Rosenthal, who is no slouch herself).Check out Paul's work here--is it any wonder he took our chapter's top illustration prize a couple of years ago?Here's what Suzanne... Continue Reading →