I had the lovely fortune to be seated next to Kevin Scott at the Inside Story, sponsored by SCBWI Western Washington, hosted by The Neverending Bookshop, at the Bellevue (WA) Public Library this past spring (if you are a local teacher, librarian or bookseller, you need to attend this event!). I was so touched by Kevin’s… Read more »
Even though I’d hardly known Diana Lopez for five minutes, when I asked her to be a Friend Friday guest, she immediately said yes! It was at a Scholastic event with lots of conversation and other authors; we sort of had to shout across the table to one another to be heard. But I was… Read more »
When I count my blessings, I count among them wonderful creators for kidlit who — no matter how famous and busy and award-winning– graciously agree to be one of my Friday Friends. Such is today’s case with special, special guest (I’m nearly fainting here) Nikki Grimes. As in recipient of the 2017 Children’s Literature Legacy… Read more »
I met Barb Kerley through my writing partner, Mary Nethery. The two of them were in a critique group together and when I had the opportunity to attend the Humboldt County Author Festival for the first time years ago, Mary was eager for Barb and I to meet. I cherish our friendship, and admire her… Read more »
I met the incredibly energetic Beth Bacon through the Vermont MFA program, even though she and I are practically neighbors here in the northwest. Beth gave a reading from a heart-stopping short story she’d written, one I will truly never forget, and we’ve stayed in touch. (She even recruited me to be one of the… Read more »
I never tire of hearing stories of book creators’ road to publication. Amy O’Quinn has a great one to tell about her experience, one which began by asking a simple question of an editor. What I especially loved about what she’s shared with us today is that the same engine of curiosity about a particular… Read more »
Emily Whitman is in the house! We both had sand between our toes the first time we met, at a now-defunct writing retreat at Cannon Beach, Oregon. Then, that retreat was moved to Reed College and I sat in on the most miraculous session, facilitated by Marla Frazee. Marla had recruited writers to submit works… Read more »
I discovered romance in a nursing home. The Warner Home, the facility was called. I was fifteen years old, and every Saturday and Sunday, from 7:30 to 3:00, I worked there. At breakfast and lunch, I waited tables, serving the wealthy residents (all women) on their left-hand sides and clearing the dishes from their… Read more »
My darling friend and Butterfly Sister Augusta Scattergood (Making Friends with Billy Wong) suggested I ask her friend Rob Sanders to be part of Friend Friday. Of course I said yes! The whole purpose of this feature is to shine the spotlight on as many new books and their creators as possible (that’s a not-too-subtle… Read more »
Today’s Friend Friday guest, Frances Wood, and I bonded over birds. I am an amateur (VERY!) birdwatcher and, after meeting one another at the now-defunct Whidbey Island Writers Conference, Frances gifted me with a copy of her beautiful Brushed By Feathers: A Year of Birdwatching in the West. It turns out that we not only… Read more »