New Cynsations Reporter for New England Helen Kampion

By Gayleen Rabakukk and Stephani Martinell Eaton

We are thrilled to welcome Helen Kampion to Cynsations as a reporter covering the New England area.

Helen is very active in the children’s-YA literature community and we’re excited about the posts she will contribute!

Welcome, Helen! You’ll be covering the New England youth literary scene.

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Heart & Spirit: Carol Coven Grannick on Depth of Emotion in Writing Character

By Carol Coven Grannick

During the time I’ve been a Cynsations Reporter for “Heart and Spirit,” my now-debut middle grade novel in verse, Reeni’s Turn (Regal House, 2020), popped up in numerous Cynsations columns as a work-in-progress.

It’s been quite a journey for Reeni and me, with plenty of obstacles,

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New Voices: Remy Lai & Cory Leonardo Reflect on their Middle Grade Debuts

By Stephani Martinell Eaton

Remy Lai, author and illustrator of Pie in the Sky (Henry Holt, 2019) and Cory Leonardo, author of The Simple Art of Flying (Aladdin, 2019) reflect on the debuts of their middle-grade novels. For both, finding fellow writers as mentors or critique partners along the journey proved invaluable.

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Cynsations Intern: Stephani Eaton on The Joy of Writing

Cynsations Intern: Stephani Eaton on The Joy of Writing

Stephani Eaton, photo by Tanya Odom

By Stephani Eaton

When I was in second grade, I wrote a poem about an impending storm that pleased my dad so much that he hung it in his office. It stayed there for years.

I recently asked if he remembered what it said and he rattled off: “This dark and rainy noon will soon pass the sunset of time.”

I had to laugh at the melodrama of my seven-year-old self.

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Guest Post: M.T. Anderson on the Premier of “The Great Gilly Hopkins” Film

Guest Post: M.T. Anderson on the Premier of “The Great Gilly Hopkins” Film

By M.T. Anderson

The Vermont children’s book community had an incredible treat on Oct. 7 at the Stowe Cinema 3Plex in Stowe, Vermont:

We all descended on a movie theater in Stowe where Katherine Paterson had opted to hold the premiere of the film adaptation of her National Book Award-winning middle-grade masterpiece,

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