What a pleasure it is to once again host Jo Watson Hackl for Friend Friday. Jo is not only a lovely person and fabulous writer with a fondness for blackberries, she has a huge heart. Her concern for others lead her to find a way to stretch the story of Smack Dab in the Middle… Read more »
There are not many Friend Friday guests with whom I have wrestled a scorpion, but Sara Fujimura is among that select group. I met Sara in the Arizona desert some years back, when I was on the faculty of an SCBWI retreat. I was so impressed by her work ethic and and her positive demeanor… Read more »
I can’t remember when I first attended the Humboldt County Author’s Festival, held every other year in Eureka, California but it is one of my favorite book-related events. Not only do I get to meet kids in that out-of-the-way corner of the Golden State, I strike up friendships with lovely people like today’s guest, Carlene… Read more »
What a treat to host the talented Lori Mortensen today in celebration of her latest book, Nonsense: The Curious Story of Edward Gorey (Versify/Houghton Mifflin Harcourt illustrated by Chloe Bristol). Her essay is a reminder of how potent those early connections with literature can be sometimes leading to — in this case — a wonderful… Read more »
Do you remember the old chewing gum commercials: “Two, two, two mints in one?” This Friend Friday is definitely a DoubleMint day! I met fellow dog-lover Ginger Wadsworth at the Humboldt County Author Festival years ago; Craig Orback is practically a neighbor of mine. How wonderful that the two of them teamed up for a… Read more »
Any friend of Jane Kurtz’ is a friend of mine and, as you’ll find out from today’s guest Jennifer Richard Jacobson, Jane is not only her friend, but partner in crime. I am in awe of the writing commitment they made to one another, which you’ll read about below. This commitment, along with Jennifer’s willingness… Read more »
A big shout out to Dana Sullivan for introducing me to the work of Julie Hampton. I was thrilled when Julie agreed to be my Friend Friday because illustrators are less frequent contributors to this blog (a situation I would love to change, hint, hint). And I am always grateful when someone shares about their… Read more »
A huge thank you to Andrea Wang (a recent Friend Friday guest) for introducing me to Sheri Dillard, so that we could celebrate the publication of Sheri’s first picture book, Cowhide-And-Seek, illustrated by Jess Pauwels (Running Kids Press) today for Friend Friday. I always love learning about a particular book’s story seeds – and Sheri’s… Read more »
When it comes to friends, it’s hard to think of a dearer one than Ann Whitford Paul. Ann is the reason I am a writer and how lucky I am to have had the benefit of her wisdom. In my humble opinion, Ann is the Queen of picture books and her wildly successful “If Animals”… Read more »
Hope. What a sweet and delicious concept. Frankly in the past two years, I’ve needed more than a drop of it. So when I was invited to read Keith Calabrese’s manuscript, upon hearing the title, I immediately accepted that invitation. One of the drawbacks of being a writer (sadly, Dear Reader, there are one or… Read more »