Author Interview: Shirin Shamsi Reminisces on Her Writing Journey & Winning the South Asia Book Award

By Suma Subramaniam

I am thrilled to welcome Shirin Shamsi to Cynsations today!

Congratulations on winning the South Asia Book Award! How has winning the award changed or affected your creative life? What hasn’t changed?

Thank you Suma. It truly is an honor that means so much to me.

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Kidlit Caravan Authors Kimberly Wilson, Robyn McGrath & Suma Subramaniam Discuss Their Sophomore Books

By Suma Subramaniam

Cynsations welcomes Kidlit Caravan members, Kimberly Wilson, Robyn McGrath , and Suma Subramaniam today!

Why did you write this picture book?

Kimberly: A Dollar’s Grand Dream, illustrated by Mark Hoffmann and published by Page Street Kids,

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Guest Interview: Book Dash Increases Book Ownership for Children in Africa … & Beyond

By Elisabeth Norton

Spotlight image: Book Dash teams creating books at the Bologna Children’s Book Fair in Italy: Job Mubunya (Kenya), Fiske Nyirongo (Zambia) and Jess Jardim-Wedepohl (South Africa)

At the 2023 Bologna book fair, I had the pleasure of meeting two creators who were attending on behalf of an organization called Book Dash.

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Guest Post: Sandra Nickel & Kathi Appelt on Picture Book Magic & Big Bear and Little Fish

By Sandra Nickel & Kathi Appelt

Spotlight image: Sandra Nickel and Kathi Appelt talking at the Château de Chillon in Switzerland in 2019, photo by Ken Appelt.

After receiving her MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults from Vermont College of Fine Arts, Sandra Nickel studied an extra semester with Newbery Honoree and two-time National Book Award Finalist,

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Author Interview: Laurie Goodluck Reflects on her Influences & Forever Cousins

By: AJ Eversole

Today on Cynsations we are chatting with Laurie Goodluck. I had the pleasure of meeting her during We Need Diverse Book’s Native Writing Intensive in its debut year, 2020. Seeing her career move forward since that time has been absolutely beautiful.

What is the heart of Forever Cousins?

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New Voices: Melissa Coffey & Kristin Wauson on SCBWI’s Role in their Journeys

By Gayleen Rabakukk

Featured image: Melissa Coffey signing advance copies at the 2022 Texas Library Association Conference.

Today I’m pleased to welcome two Austin authors to Cynsations, Melissa Coffey and Kristin Wauson. Melissa is the debut author of Fridge-Opolis, illustrated by Josh Cleland (Little Bee Books,

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Kidlit Caravan Authors Debbie Zapata, Donna Cangelosi, Margaret Aitken, Rebecca Gardyn Levington & Robyn McGrath Discuss Picture Book Journeys

By Suma Subramaniam

Today, I’m thrilled to welcome Kidlit Caravan authors Debbie Zapata, Donna Cangelosi, Margaret Aitken, Rebecca Gardyn Levington, and Robyn McGrath to Cynsations.

Kidlit Caravan is a troupe of authors and author-illustrators with debut picture books headed your way in 2022.

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Native Voice: Natasha Donovan Talks About Her Artistic Journey

By: AJ Eversole

I am happy to welcome Natasha Donovan to the blog today! Natasha is the illustrator of children’s books such as Classified: The Secret Career of Mary Golda Ross, Cherokee Aerospace Engineer by Traci Sorell (Lerner, 2021) and the forthcoming A River’s Gifts: The Might Elwha River Reborn by Patricia Newman (Lerner,

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Reflections on Cover Design with Author Suma Subramaniam & Illustrators Sandhya Prabhat & Shreya Gupta

 

By Suma Subramaniam

I’m honored to be in conversation with my artist-collaborators and share the inside story of the cover-design process for our upcoming debut fiction and nonfiction picture books, Namaste Is A Greeting, illustrated by Sandhya Prabhat (Candlewick, October 2022), and She Sang For India: How M.S.

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