Guest Post: Melissa Stewart Shares How Nonfiction Writers Dig Deep

By Melissa Stewart

Many people believe that fiction is creative writing drawn from the depths of a writer’s soul, while nonfiction is simply a recitation of facts gathered from a few standard sources. Nothing could be further from the truth.

To put this troubling misconception to rest, fifty of today’s most celebrated authors for children have come together to share a critical part of the nonfiction writing process that often goes unseen.

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Guest Post: Lindsay H. Metcalf on Anxiety, Creativity & the Pandemic

Albert Whitman & Company

By Lindsay H. Metcalf

I came here to talk about science, advocacy, and truth—themes in my first three picture books, releasing this fall.

My picture books focus on empowering kids with foundations of:

  1. science (Beatrix Potter, Scientist, illustrated by Junyi Wu (Albert Whitman,

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Native Voices: Co-Authors Dr. Debbie Reese & Dr. Jean Mendoza On Writing History

By Kim Rogers

Today we’re chatting with Dr. Debbie Reese (Nambé Pueblo) and Dr. Jean Mendoza (Euro-American, U.S.) about their middle grade book, An Indigenous Peoples’ History of the United States for Young People (Beacon Press, 2019), which is an adaptation of Dr. Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz’s book, An Indigenous Peoples’ History of the United States (Beacon Press 2015).

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A Closer Look at Nonfiction Fest with Author Susan Holt Kralovansky

By Gayleen Rabakukk

Reading the “Best of 2019” lists, I was once again struck by the number of nonfiction titles.  From picture book biographies to science and nature explorations, nonfiction covers every topic imaginable. So when I heard about the upcoming Nonfiction Fest (NF Fest), I wanted to share it with Cynsations readers while there’s still time to register for the free event.

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Career Acheivers: April Pulley Sayre on Thriving as a Long-Time, Actively Publishing Children’s Author-Illustrator

Career Acheivers: April Pulley Sayre on Thriving as a Long-Time, Actively Publishing Children’s Author-Illustrator

By Cynthia Leitich Smith

April Pulley Sayre is a successful children’s author-illustrator with a long, distinguished career.

In children’s writing, maintaining an active publishing career is arguably an even bigger challenge than breaking into the field.

Reflecting on your personal journey (creatively, career-wise, and your writer’s heart), what bumps did you encounter and how have you managed to defy the odds to achieve continued success? 

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