By Kathi Appelt
This interview includes plot spoilers for Sisters of the Neversea by Cynthia Leitich Smith (Heartdrum, June 1, 2021). You may want to bookmark and return to it after reading the story.
Cover art by Floyd Cooper (Muscogee); from the promotional copy:
Lily and Wendy have been best friends since they became stepsisters.
Continue Reading Guest Interview: Kathi Appelt & Cynthia Leitich Smith on Rebirth in the Neversea »
At age 8, Aslan Tudor arrived in North Dakota to help stop a pipeline. Aslan and Kelly’s book, Young Water Protectors (CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform, 2018), is about his experiences in the Oceti Sakowin Camp at Standing Rock.
From the promotional copy:
“Learn about what exactly happened there,
Happy New Year and welcome back to Cynsations!
We love bringing you upbeat and useful information and inspiration about the children’s-YA literature community, writing, illustration, and publishing. And we are particularly excited about what we have lined up for you in the coming months.
As always,
I am so pleased to welcome Elisa Boxer, author of The Voice That Won The Vote: How One Woman’s Words Made History, illustrated by Vivien Mildenberger (Sleeping Bear, 2020). Today Elisa shares her thoughts on writing for children and the importance of each voice.
Continue Reading Interview: Elisa Boxer on Writing, Voting & the Importance of Each Voice »
What an honor it’s been to revisit my first few books and to re-envision them for today’s young readers:
Thank you, Cynsations readers, for joining us in the 16th year of this blog! We are so grateful to you all for reading, sharing and supporting our efforts. You’re the whole reason we’re doing this.
Thanks also to those of you who submitted questions for Cynthia over our winter hiatus. Full disclosure: Some of the wording was changed to fit the style of this blog.
Today we welcome Lee & Low editor Louise May to Cynsations to share her insights into poetry anthologies, working with Lee Bennett Hopkins, and I Remember: Poems and Pictures of Heritage, edited by Lee (Lee & Low, 2019).
Congratulations on I Remember: Poems and Pictures of Heritage!
Continue Reading Editor Interview: Louise May on I Remember: Poems and Pictures of Heritage »
After twelve years of writing and hundreds of rejections as I learned to write, I can’t quite believe my first novel is coming out in just eight weeks.
My biggest struggle had always been my characters. I read dozens of character craft books and asked for advice from character gurus like Coe Booth and Sandra Nickel.
Continue Reading Guest Post: Abigail Hing Wen on Character Development the Brutally Hard Way »
By Kim Rogers
Today, I’m excited to welcome Kevin Noble Maillard to Cynsations. Kevin is a professor of law at Syracuse University, a journalist, and a member of the Seminole Nation. His debut picture book Fry Bread: A Native American Family Story is illustrated by Pura Belpré-award winner and Caldecott Honor-recipient Juana Martinez-Neal (Roaring Brook/Macmillan,
Continue Reading Native Voices: Kevin Noble Maillard on Writing Fry Bread »
Both Nikki Barhtelmess, author of The Quiet You Carry (Flux, 2019) and Laura Sibson, author of The Art of Breaking Things (Viking, 2019), revisited personal memories to write authentic stories of teens.
Nikki Barthelmess
What first inspired you to write for young readers?