Updating & Re-Envisioning: Jingle Dancer, Indian Shoes, and Rain Is Not My Indian Name

By Cynthia Leitich Smith

What an honor it’s been to revisit my first few books and to re-envision them for today’s young readers:

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New Voices: Meredith Davis & Nicole Valentine On Being An Author

By Gayleen Rabakukk

I’m thrilled to introduce two debut authors to the Cynsations audience today. I met both at Vermont College of Fine Arts several years ago while we were all working on MFAs in Writing for Children and Young Adults. Both write middle grade, but their books are very different, illustrating the depth and diversity that exists in children’s literature.

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Native Voices & Visions: Sherri Maret & Merisha Sequoia Clark on The Cloud Artist

By Traci Sorell

Today I’m excited to feature an inspiring Choctaw duo–author Sherri Maret and illustrator Merisha Sequoia Clark–who crafted The Cloud Artist, a bilingual Choctaw-English fiction picture book (RoadRunner Press, 2017).

The story centers on a young Choctaw girl who creates art using clouds, and it has been well received since publication.

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Author Interview: Writing & Marketing for Multiple Age-Levels

Author Interview: Writing & Marketing for Multiple Age-Levels

By Robin Galbraith

In today’s world of author branding how do you market yourself if you’re interested for writing for more than one age level?  What are the joys and challenges of working across age levels? Are agents still willing to work with someone who doesn’t commit to just one age level?

These are the questions I asked five currently publishing authors: Hena Khan

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Intern Insights: How Lenore Appelhan’s Friends Created A Wonderful Book Launch Under Difficult Circumstances

By Robin Galbraith

Putting together a fabulous book launch is tricky for any author. But what if the author has a family tragedy just a few weeks before their book comes out?

At the beginning of the year, Lenore Appelhans, author of the delightfully clever YA novel The Manic Pixie Dream Boy Improvement Project (Carolrhoda Lab),

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Guest Post: J. Albert Mann on Choosing Fiction Over Nonfiction to Write Margaret Sanger’s Life

By J. Albert Mann

The Choice Between Fiction or Nonfiction

Choosing is what writers do. We choose our subjects, our characters, our point of views. If you write fiction, you are literally responsible for every horrible event which befalls your characters because they’re all your choices.

But there are choices in nonfiction,

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Author Interview: April Lurie on Brothers, Boyfriends, and Other Criminal Minds

Author Interview: April Lurie on Brothers, Boyfriends, and Other Criminal Minds

April Lurie on April Lurie: “I’m a Brooklyn girl. When I write, I’m back in my old neighborhood reinventing my teenage life. But for the past fourteen years my husband and I have been raising our kids in Austin, Texas–a fabulous city with a vibrant and supportive children’s and young adult writers’

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