Texans love all things Texan, and this month we love writers in particular.
It makes me feel important and appreciated. Woo woo!
I’m just back from my local indie bookstore, BookPeople (2005 Publishers Weekly Bookseller of the Year), and the staff was celebrating Texas Writers Month in style.
The fancy-schmancy table in the BookKids department featured: Too Many Frogs by Sandy Asher, illustrated by Austinite Keith Graves (Philomel, 2005); Buddy: The Story of Buddy Holly by Austinite Anne Bustard, illustrated by Kurt Cyrus (Simon & Schuster, 2005)(see related author interview); Night Wonders by Austinite Jane Peddicord (Charlesbridge, 2005); How To Do Homework Without Throwing Up by Austinite Trevor Romain (Free Spirit, 1997)(see Trevor’s blog); Newbery and National Book Award winner Holes by Austinite Louis Sachar (FSG, 1998); Ninjas, Piranhas, and Galileo by Austinite Greg Leitich Smith (Little Brown, 2003); Both Sides Now by Austinite Ruth Pennebaker; The Puppeteer’s Apprentice by former Austinite D. Anne Love (Margaret K. McElderry, 2003); 19 Varieties of Gazelle: Poems of the Middle East by San Antonian Naomi Shihab Nye (Greenwillow, 2002); Loony Little by Buda’s Dianna Hutts Aston (Candlewick, 2003); Chicka Chicka Boom Boom by the late Bill Martin, Jr. and John Archambault; and Rain Is Not My Indian Name by Austinite Cynthia Leitich Smith (HarperCollins, 2001).
A quick shout out of other Texas writers to know: College Station’s Kathi Appelt; Wimberly’s Janie Bynum; Houston’s Gail Giles; San Antonio’s Peni R. Griffin; Amarillo’s Kimberly Willis Holt; Dallas’ Helen Ketteman; Canyon Lake’s Tim Tingle; and Buda’s Jerry Wermund. Too many more to mention, but perhaps you’ll write in with some names.
Cynsational News & Links
Austin SCBWI has updated its member listings.
The brill Sharyn November has syndicated spookycyn for the thrills and chills of all of you LJ folks. Thanks Sharyn! For those of you unfamiliar with spookycyn, it’s more personal, chatty, and reflective of my journey through works in progress. It’s also where I’m more likely to feature books and authors of, say, gothic fantasy or suspense. Recent posts have centered on: Friday, the 13th; Over and Over You by Amy McAuley (Roaring Brook, 2005); my upcoming gothic fantasy YA novel; Capricorns; Lex Luthor; and of course my ghost. Thanks, Sharyn!