I am so pleased to welcome author-illustrator Isabella Kung to discuss her journey to publication and to share her inspiration for her debut picture book No Fuzzball! (Scholastic, 2020).
What first inspired you to illustrate for young readers?
I always loved reading children’s books and the love only grew as I aged.
Picture book author Sue Ganz-Schmitt had two new picture book releases last fall, and both contained storylines that embrace differences and fostered inclusion.
In That Monster on the Block, illustrated by Luke Flowers (Two Lions, 2020), which won the 2020 Northern Book Lights Award for Humor, Monster learns that his new neighbor is not a greedy goblin,
Continue Reading Author Interview: Sue Ganz-Schmitt on Vulnerability in Picture Books »
How does being a college professor and the mother of a young child influence the topics you choose to write about?
I call myself JaNay Brown-Wood, Author & Educator. These titles go hand-in-hand because I feel that I use my books and writing abilities to educate while also using my education to pull inspiration for what I write.
Often, my books have an element of learning to them.
Continue Reading Awesome Authors: JaNay Brown-Wood on Disguised Learning with Books »
One thing writers struggle with is getting their work to measure up to publishing standards. I am pleased to introduce our Cynsations readers the debut authors Stacy Hackney, author of Forever Glimmer Creek (Simon & Schuster, 2020), and Lily LaMotte, author of Measuring Up, illustrated by Ann Xu (HarperAlley,
By Cynthia Leitich Smith and Kim Rogers
Cynsations Native Books Reporter Kim Rogers’s poem, “What is a Powwow?” and her short story, “Flying Together,” appear in Ancestor Approved: Intertribal Stories for Kids, edited by Cynthia Leitich Smith (Heartdrum, 2021). The anthology is a collection of intersecting stories and poems set at a powwow that bursts with hope, joy, resilience, the strength of community,
Continue Reading Authors Interview: Cynthia Leitich Smith & Kim Rogers on Ancestor Approved »
Today I’m pleased to introduce Cynsations readers to Hollis Kurman, whose debut picture book, Counting Kindness: Ten Ways to Welcome Refugee Children, illustrated by Barroux (Charlesbridge, 2020), has been released in six countries so far this year, with two more countries planned for 2021.
Hollis and I talked about the international aspects of her book,
Continue Reading Author Interview: Hollis Kurman Highlights Human Rights in Her New Picture Book »
By Erik Talkin
I had been the talented “nearly” man for a while, with a middle-grade that was purchased by a mid-level publisher that promptly decided to get out of the MG market before the book was published.
This was followed by a novel that went to the final stages of acquisition with a major publisher, before the marketing department decided that series were out that week.
Continue Reading Guest Post: Erik Talkin on Finding the Book You Are Uniquely Qualified to Write »
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.
Continue Reading Guest Post: Melissa Stewart Shares How Nonfiction Writers Dig Deep »
I recently talked with Andrew Rushton, Associate Publisher with NordSüd Verlag (Switzerland), and Beth Terrill, Editor, NorthSouth Books (U.S.), to learn more about publishing in two different markets. In the above photo, Beth Terrill and Lulu the dog are enjoying a good story.
For people who are not familiar with NordSüd Verlag (NorthSouth Books, in the U.S.), can you tell us how the company developed a publishing presence in both the Swiss and the U.S.
Continue Reading Industry Interview: Andrew Rushton of NordSüd Verlag & Beth Terrill of NorthSouth »
A big welcome to middle-grade debut authors, Kelly J. Baptist and Jess Rinker. Both authors share with us how the people around them influence their writing as well as moments along their journeys to publication.
Kelly Baptist
What first inspired you to write for young readers?
I think it was when I was reading Laura Numeroff’s If You Give A Mouse A Cookie,
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