I’m way behind on my Blogger Awards, so here’s a little catch-up: Thanks to Lisa Gail Green for the Mommy Blogger award. I love it! This is likely the only Mommy-related award I will receive this summer, as I’m perfecting the art of yelling at my kids (“Stop fighting or the computer’s off for a week! I swear I mean it this… Read More
Rebecca Carlson is a MG writer and blogger, a tremendous critique partner, and a fellow advocate for putting more science in kidlit science fiction. She is on her way to Hawaii (to live!), but promises she will soon write more of that story I want to read (hint, hint). AND she is my first guest poster this summer! Science Fiction for Breakfast by… Read More
My recent post about helping fellow authors by leaving Amazon (and B&N) reviews, prompted a great question from commenter Margo: Does the number of reviews on Amazon actually help an author’s sales or boost his/her rating? Boosting sales and boosting ratings are related but not the same thing. First, a primer on how Amazon operates (much of this was a revelation… Read More
A great post at Ramblings of a Wannabe Scribe talks about supporting other authors and got me thinking (always a dangerous thing). Lately, I’ve made an effort to retweet reviews and such for authors that I know and love and want to succeed. It’s not enough to simply write a good book, people need to know about it, so I’m… Read More
Thanks to blogger friend Bane’s suggestion Monday, I’m opening Ink Spells up to guest posts to fill those Tuesday/Thursday slots which will sit vacant and lonely over the summer. If you are interested in guest posting, please email your post to susankayequinn@comcast.net. Ink Spells is all about middle grade (ages 8-12) books – writing them, reading them, getting the little… Read More
Summer. That lazy, sweltering time of chasing butterflies, digging in sandboxes, spraying your brother with the hose, and nearly dying from boredom. That was the summer of my youth, but now it’s a hectic shuffling of kids to classes and activities, having little friends drop by, and making excursions to the pool, all while trying to decide whether hot dogs… Read More
Ink Spells is taking a brief hiatus while my mom comes to visit. We will be talking about books and writing and Mighty Mite’s birthday, and hopefully not sweltering in the Chicago heat. I leave you with this thought, until Monday, lovely readers: There are so many different kinds of writing and so many ways to work that the only… Read More
I have three boys with three different learning styles and paths to reading. If you believe there is only one way to teach a child to love books, I urge you to have more than one child. And then try to teach them to read. This great post and discussion at Imagination Soup (what a great name!) got me thinking… Read More
As I mentioned before, Rick Daley over at the Query Slushpile is holding a contest to discern whether it’s easier to write a query or the first 5 pages (I’m changing my answer to: the pages), and also to debunk the idea that a novel premise can be “stolen.” Writers were supposed to write a query and the first 5 pages of… Read More
When I was ten, I wrote a letter to the editor for Memorial Day. I remember it because it was the first time I had seen my name in print, in the newspaper. I wish I had saved it, but I’m sure I used 10-year-old language to say “thank you” to all the men and women who had given their… Read More
I’ve been TAGGED by the lovely and vivacious Sheri over at Writer’s Ally, which means you answer the TAG questions 5 times and TAG 5 other bloggers. Because it’s too much fun to resist, I’ll answer the questions, but I leave it to you all to consider yourselves officially tagged! Answer each question (once) in the comments, if you dare! Question 1: Where… Read More
I reminded my kids about the “paying it forward” concept about a month ago. I had sorted through all the old computer games and educational software that they had outgrown, put all 52 zillion of them into a zippered CD case, and was packing it up to ship off to a friend with four kids under five. When my boys asked what I… Read More
Thanks to Readatouille for this great link to Screen Actor’s Guild members reading picture books on-line. Storytime Online features name actors reading great books. My favorite: Betty White reading Harry the Dirty Dog (one of our all-time favorite picture books) They also have suggested activities to go with the story. While these books are not targeted to the advanced readers ages 8-12 that Ink… Read More
Writing a book is a horrible, exhausting struggle, like a long bout of some painful illness. One would never undertake such a thing if one were not driven on by some demon whom one can neither resist nor understand. ~George Orwell Most days writing is a joy. But there are days, especially when I feel the words won’t obey my commands… Read More
My husband recently took my young adult love story on a trip with him to read (he hadn’t read it before, and generally doesn’t read my writing). He’s a tremendously good egg for reading it (he wanted to show support for my writing), but I kinda cringed. It’s a love story. He doesn’t read much in the first place, and… Read More
Worm Burner and Team USA – You. Are. Awesome! Congratulations on taking the Under-10 Soccer Championship, persevering through ninety degree temperatures and multiple games per day! You and your fellow 3rd and 4th grade soccer demons played hard and well and earned that trophy that is about as big as you are. I almost lost my voice, screaming by the sidelines,… Read More
Here at Ink Spells, I’ve tried to give parents some content guidelines to help in choosing books for their kids. Even so, finding good books is a constant challenge as my kids are always reading faster than I can keep up. There’s three of them after all; it’s hardly fair. Usually I check the AR guide first, to see what the “target”… Read More
A Ning is an online group where like-minded people share information and support each other in their common endeavors. It’s like Facebook for professionals. Not too long ago, I joined the YAlitchat Ning, a group for YA writers that grew out of the #yalitchat hashtag discussions on Twitter. For non-Twitter-ites, that’s like a scheduled discussion that occurs on Twitter, where… Read More
A RL friend asked me whether Gone With the Wind would be suitable for her advanced-reading 10 year old. I pointed her to some reviews, but basically said that it was a teen book due to content, and it might be best to wait until she was a teen, or read it with her to help her process the sexual… Read More
Can you believe there was a study about what cats do with their time? Answer: 22% of the time looking out the window. Not having the benefit of a person-cam or taking any scientific data, I tried to figure out how much time I spend Twittering, blogging, writing, shuttling kids to various destinations, folding laundry. I got halfway through the… Read More
We’re still mired in The House of Plague. Slow moving … lots of moaning … occasional screaming … yeah, I think I’ve become a zombie. Today I bring you yet another fabulous group blog (methinks this is a trend nowadays, where authors who write in a similar vein join together to promote their works, and the genre): The Spectacle Authors… Read More
Mighty Mite is sick. I’m sick. The couch is a cozy, but not very happy place. And so I will simply share the news of a new blog that you all should check out: The League of Extraordinary Writers It’s a group blog of five debut (2011) writers, who all share a love of (and have written a book about)… Read More
The gracious Adam Heine has allowed me to guest post on his blog Author’s Echo today. You can find me talking about The Fiction of Writing over there! Happy Monday!
As I venture forth into a new genre (Steampunk, see Matthew Delman’s treatise on the subject) for a contest, I found myself desiring to break the laws of physics in favor of fashion. Bad scientist! I know. Now, there are some rules you can break in genre fiction, and some you cannot, and it’s important to know which ones. Once I figured… Read More
“The worst enemy to creativity is self-doubt.” ~Sylvia Plath Given how Ms. Plath ended her life, there is a solemn overtone to that quote. Following yesterday’s post on the bravery of writing, I thought of the many things that keep us from putting words on the page. High on my list are the distractions of everyday life: Twitter (oh my… Read More
Writing has always has been an act of bravery. Words carry power, and the writers that use their words to resist oppression – like Vaclav Havel, whose extensive resistance to the Communist regime in Czechoslavakia inspired a human rights award – deserve our awe and support. The freedoms we take for granted, including Free Speech, were hard won by people willing to wield… Read More
Rick Daley, over at the Public Query Slushpile Blog (which I hadn’t visited before, too enamored of his personal blog My Daley Rant), is hosting a contest for writers: write a query and the first 5 pages of a novel based on the following premise: Our protagonist has found evidence that the government is being lured into war. If the… Read More
Playing laser tag with your three munchkins on Mother’s Day = awesome. Just in case you were wondering. Mighty Mite and I finished How to Train Your Dragon – the book, not the movie – this weekend. Now the book is never the same as the movie, but this is the first time I’ve found a book where the story… Read More
The sun blinds me as I listen to the shrieks and laughter coming from the maze of giant hedges. A stolen moment of solitude finds me fishing a pencil from my son’s backpack and searching for white space on the Arboretum map. I scratch a thought, a story (beginning, middle, end), a whisper of character. The other moms find me and… Read More
I struggle with endings. Whether it’s a flash fiction or a novel, I have a hard time finding that perfect resolution that leaves the reader (and writer) with a satisfying feeling deep inside. Coming up with zingy last lines or satisfying scenes seems less challenging: those are tiny morsels of yumminess, not the entire meal, which needs to be balanced… Read More
An awesome list of favorite books for 6th graders from Mary Ann at Great Kid books … straight from the kids’ mouth! At the end of the year, she gathers up the books kids say they liked the best. Since my TBR list is a mile-long already, I forced myself to pick two from each category to put on the… Read More
A friend of mine heard author Michael Sullivan speak at a local library on “Boys and Books,” and knew I would have enjoyed his talk about keeping boys reading. So, I cyber stalked him and found his lovely website called Boy Meets Book, which is a fabulous resource for finding books for boys, sorted by age, from preschool to high… Read More
Thank you to Ruth of Readatouille for bestowing this upon Ink Spells: That is what I look like most of the time, although there’s usually more stuff crowding my desk. Many of my blogger friends deserve the Prolific Blogger Award for having daily (or more!) tidbits of awesome, but I will pass it on to these three: Book Crazy: Jennifer… Read More
I’m guest posting over at the esteemed Secret Archives of the Alliterati site today, talking about the Fermentation of a Writer. So, for serious ruminations, check me out over there. For the furry silliness, see below. Or maybe we’ll just let kitteh rest over the weekend. p.s. pictures from here
I recently discovered Goodreads (see the cool widget on the sidebar –>). I love that it gives me a place to track what I’m reading, chat with other readers/writers about books, and best of all: the TBR list. Finally, I have a spot to keep all those titles that I would love to read. If only I had time. It… Read More
I’ve been thinking a lot about flash fiction. Flash fiction stories tell a complete tale – conflict, tension, resolution – but in less than 1000 words, sometimes as little as 100 words. Flash is a distillation of plot to its barest essentials. I love this quote: “Plot is the mechanism by which your protagonist is forced up against her deepest fears… Read More
Nathan Bransford, literary agent extraordinaire, recently asked if the query process still works – queries are the one page summary that writers submit to agents or publishers, outlining their book and credentials. At the same time, I stumbled across the awesome new plaything that is Google Search Stories! So why not combine the two? In a Web 2.0 era when… Read More
Yes, that’s still me —> see new profile picture <— The old one was, well, old. This week, I’ve joined a wacky blog hop adventure sponsored by Crazy for Books, and if you’re a book blogger visiting you know just what I mean: So far on the hop, I’ve visited: Emily’s Reading Room (YA fiction) Imagination in Focus (MG/YA fiction)… Read More
Ever wonder what’s inside those young adult (YA) books? Well, you might be surprised, probably shocked if you are a parent. Ink Spells’ purpose is to help review books for the middle grades (ages 8-12) with content advisories and ratings. Why? Because advanced readers often read way ahead of their grade level, and finding appropriate reading material became a mission… Read More
Fans of Rick Riordan’s The Lightning Thief will be excited to learn he’s starting a new series (The Kane Chronicles) with Book 1: The Red Pyramid, to be released May 4th, 2010. Dark Omen and Worm Burner both read and loved the entire Percy Jackson series, and are eagerly awaiting the new book, where Riordan tackles another ancient mythology: Egyptian… Read More
I talked before about seeing this slim little tome and buying it immediately, intrigued by the young author and the overpowering cuteness of the contents inside: “If you want to start a conversation with a girl, first you have to say something like “hi.” If she says “hi” back, you are off to a good start.” “If you are in elementary… Read More
The wonder that is Twitter helped me stumble across this new promotion by Penguin Books: We Give Books Essentially, if you read one of their on-line books, they will donate a free paper book to a non-profit literacy center. You read, they read, we all read – it’s all good! You can choose which non-profit you want to support, including… Read More
I was feeling a little sorry for myself, that I’ve not had much time to write lately. Real life activities, a sick kid at home, a neglected to-do list a mile long, and I wondered why I kept trying to jam 26 hours worth of stuff into a 24 hour day. Then I read about an amazing man and the… Read More
I’ve added a Twitter button (at right), and actually started tweeting (not just lurking). I’m still undecided about whether Twitter is worth the time invested, but there are definitely benefits that I had overlooked before. Starting with #yalitchat For the Twitter newbies like me, this is a “thread” of sorts, where a conversation is “hashtagged” so you can follow anything… Read More
The buzz of a thousand hidden insects filled the air, but that wasn’t the sound Nylee was straining to hear. Her ears flicked in the direction of a rustle of leaves that was entirely too close. Her stripes hid her well against the dappled tree trunk, but even the bio-richness of the jungle couldn’t disguise her smell. She leapt from her tucked hiding spot,… Read More
My real life has gone to Crazy Town, and I need to go help put out the fires. Assuming Crazy Town doesn’t turn into the Island of Dr. Moreau, I will return tommorrow with more Ink Spells. Matt, does this qualify as Scientific Romance? Or is there not enough steam?
This weekend I toured Fermilab with a bunch of elected officials from around the country, here for the National School Board conference. Being on the school board, I sometimes get to do cool stuff like that. One of the school board members asked the scientist, who was leading a Q&A, what happens when anti-matter and matter collide – which is… Read More
Thanks to The Mute Robot! This was too awesome to pass up, but I leave it to Matthew at Free the Princess to analyze. Happy Monday!
This great article (thanks Dawn!) talks about how the future of Children’s Publishing is also the future of publishing. Just as our future hinges on having our kids grow up and save the planet from our follies, the publishing world depends on young readers growing up and becoming, well, older readers. And perhaps an indication of what those older readers… Read More
No, thank you. I’ll take some of that awesome Starbucks tea, though. Here’s a cool video (thanks Beth Revis!) of the Espresso, which makes books rather than coffee, but is awesome nonetheless. This kind of Print on Demand tech is what’s changing the game. “The Espresso Book Machine can produce paperbacks in variable combinations of trim sizes between 4.5″ x 5.0″… Read More
The revolution of e-books can’t come soon enough for me. There is a great SF book called Achilles’ Choice that I recently pulled off my shelf, intending to use it in a blog posting, but when I searched B&N to link to it, I found it was out of print! Sadly, Larry Niven and Steven Barnes’ awesome little 1991 tome is unavailable, except through… Read More
I have a library theme going here … With the advent of the iPad and e-readers quickly becoming a reality, it is sometimes difficult to keep pushing the technology in your fiction forward – so that in a couple years, when you are published (we hope! we hope!), the technology will not have already become old hat. Yet, dreaming up… Read More
What the … ? I look waaay scarier as a Na’vi than I do in real life. Eeek! Go make yourself blue. But my Na’vi name, Niktaq’a is all kinds of awesome. What did you think of the movie? I was in love with the beauty of it, and bitterly disappointed by the paper-thin characterizations and trite ending. So much… Read More
Unable to compete with Google renaming itself after a midwestern capital, and Gmail in VowelFail mode, I reserved my funnies for April 2nd. I love the library. It’s not just a source of books and information (not to mention e-books, DVDs, audio books, online access and Story Hour), but a source of entertainment as well. Thanks to Mary Calhoun Brown… Read More
If you are old enough to know that 2 bits refers to two coins which together equal 25 cents, you’re probably not reading this blog. Then again, 2 bits has achieved stardom in The Urban Dictionary, so who knows? Over Spring Break, I trooped all my boys down to get their moppy hair cut (which cost substantially more than 2… Read More
With the kids home for a solid week (that would be 9 days, including the weekends. Yes, I was counting) the questions were coming fast and furious. God Bless teachers because they have to answer these questions all day long! The small sampling: Worm Burner (8): “How does that work?” *points to old fashioned scale serving as decor at a restaurant* Mom’s… Read More
This. Book. Is. Fabulous. I could leave it there, but I’m a writer. Leviathan by Scott Westerfeld is the first book I’ve read to completion on the nook. In spite of the nook’s irritating tendency to lock up when I’m showing it off to interested passers-by, the nook reading experience was effortless, comfortable, and just plain cool. Dark Omen actually… Read More
First, I must say this: Guitar Hero Rocks! I discovered Guitar Hero at the arcade over Spring Break and spent an embarrassingly large number of tokens rockin’ out to “Hit me with your best shot!” Since I barely tolerate arcades as a hideous waste of time and money, I think I stunned my husband and kids. Good. Need to keep… Read More
Still trying to decide if I like it …
Thanks to Olga for this sign awesomeness! We may be slow, but the turtle usually gets there before the hot wax drips down. *back to vacation mode*
The Friends of Irony. If this was an actual club, I would be conniving to obtain membership. Perhaps submitting pictures of my cats or making pathetic attempts at humor. Lucky for me, you can simply subscribe to enjoy the ironic riches of their site. Schrödinger’s Barbershop see more Friends of Irony From the passing swipe of having your wayward main character read Paradise… Read More
I couldn’t be more happy for my friend Beth Revis, fellow blogger and young adult science fiction author who just got a THREE BOOK DEAL with Razorbill, an imprint of Penguin! I’m not simply deliriously happy for HER, but I am giddy for the genre of young adult science fiction, which I fully expect her book to resurrect out of… Read More
Top ‘o the morning to you from the Quinn household on this fine St. Patrick’s Day! /Irish-ness Ink Spells hasn’t reviewed the Wimpy Kid series yet, and apparently I’m woefully behind, because they’ve already got a movie going for this mega-selling series. Which means fun cool stuff to play with! GO HERE, to reincarnate yourself in a wimpier form. It’s silliness,… Read More
An excellent post over at Writing It Out talks about fears in writing: the fear of failure only being eclipsed by the fear of success. Every writer understands that fear of failure, but what about “success?” Any success brings expectations with it: Oh, you’re a published author? You must be rich, famous, and most of all fabulously talented. Living up to… Read More
This blog posting from Stephanie Conlon’s blog made me think about how I came to love science. Stephanie’s post talks about a study that shows future scientists are created early, before Junior High. The early grades are a time when students’ natural curiosity about the world either grows into a love of science or is squashed. I believe that lack of exciting science in… Read More
It’s okay with me if Google takes over the world, if they keep doing stuff like this. Happy π day! That is all.
Nothing makes you cry (tears of laughter) like The Onion: How Will The End Of Print Journalism Affect Old Loons Who Hoard Newspapers? I have to admit that there is a stack of newspapers sitting on my bay window, waiting to be read. I’m almost certain none are more than a week old. Do you cling to the papers of… Read More
Do you ever get trigger happy in the bookstore? Me too, which is why I have to ration my visits to a frequency that my credit card can support. However, today I was the victim of a drive-by book plug that had me reaching for the Barnes & Noble Buy Button in under 30 seconds. I literally didn’t wait until… Read More
“How you begin a sentence determines its clarity; how you end it determines its rhythm and grace.” – Joseph M. Williams in Style: Lessons in Clarity and Grace I wish I had read that sentence much earlier in my writing escapades. But perhaps we hear things when we are ready for them. Williams’ simple yet powerful directive for writing resonated… Read More
Is it just me, or are the new Artemis Fowl covers super awesome? Worm Burner agrees with me. He received Artemis Fowl: The Time Paradox for his birthday and I braced myself for the polite “Thank you” that I had hopefully trained into him for accepting a gift that he already owned (we have the entire series). Instead, his eyes… Read More
“The Erec Rex series is the best!” “No it’s not! Ranger’s Apprentice is way better!” “No way.” “Yeah, and there’s more books! There’s Ruins of Gorlan, The Burning Bridge, Icebound Land, Battle for Skandia, Sorcerer of the North, Wrath of the Bloodeye, Siege of MacIndaw, and Erak’s Ransom.” “Erec Rex has a lot of books too! There’s Dragon’s Eye, Monsters… Read More
Yes they do! Today’s post title is stolen from the name of a blog I just discovered via the crazy guys at Boys Rule Boys Read. They highlighted a post in which Deborah Ford, awesome teacher and librarian, posts on her blog Libraries Matter a fine, fine list of the top Books for Boys of 2009. Not only is this an… Read More
I’ve been giving thought lately to what books I buy. I’ve found that I mostly purchase non-fiction, although I mostly read fiction. However, my fiction habit is fed by the library, or lately, borrowing from my kids (who have an extensive library of their own). I’ve gone through several mad book buying phases in my life (although my husband will… Read More
I attended a seminar at the local community college last night on how to publish your novel. It was interesting because I think I was the most informed person in the room, and for one reason only: my relentless reading of publishing and writer’s blogs. The sources of information available on the internet today are literally astounding. And overwhelming. And… Read More
We took a look. We saw a Nook. On his head he had a hook. On his hook he had a book. On his book was “How to Cook.” We saw him sit and try to cook. He took a look at the book on the hook. But a Nook can’t read, so a Nook can’t cook. SO… what good… Read More
Writing is a huge learning curve. When I started writing fiction (yo! dog! that was only a year ago!), I thought my writing learning curve would look something like this: Note the smooth lines, the graceful arc of reasoned learning, as I climb the mighty mountain and eventually reach that satisfying plateau of knowledge attained. Yeah. Right. This is what… Read More
My mom is visiting today. Three or four times a year, she travels 1500 miles just to come see me. Well, okay, maybe she’s coming to see her grandchildren, too. Possibly even my husband. Outside of my husband’s incredible support, my mom is the most fervent supporter of my writing dreams. All writers should have someone that believes in them, encourages… Read More
This is all kinds of funny people. I did some very unlady-like begging to get this award, just so I could pass it on to my manly blogger-type friends. Check out the crew (Master Jedi Zack, Darth Corder, and Carl) at Boys Rule Boys Read! blog, who are the creators of this fab award. The trio is funny, and get-out crazy… Read More
Is it just me, or has the world become ridiculously complicated? Now, I’m a huge fan of the complex: I studied fluid mechanics, whose differential equations are almost as complicated as those fascinating constructions used in physics (my other love). Math was always my favorite subject, especially when it zoomed off into infinite series and tortured integrals and mated with… Read More
The kids are counting on you. Ruthlessly stolen from Janet Reid, who stole it from Stephen Parrish, who snitched it from … you get the idea. Pass it on.
Writing is perseverence. Writing is Ideas + Skill + Luck. Writing is striving, and learning, and craft. Today, for me, writing was an act of creation. I love first drafts! That first moment where all the pieces – the sketchy outline, the dramatic moment, the bit of dialogue rumbling around in your brain – come alive under your fingers. Little… Read More
Play nice. Use the Golden Rule. If you can’t say something nice . . . I tell my children these things all the time, and I try to live them as well, although being a parent can make that a challenge (Why? Because I say so! I’m the parent! Sigh.) I also try to blog respectfully, not just on Ink Spells, but… Read More
Although this blogs is targeted to middle graders (ages 8-12), we want to keep kids reading well into their teen years as well. Growing out of the Suggested Reads for Middle Graders list, these books are ones that are more appropriate for teens. Some caution is still in order, though, as what is appropriate for a 16 year old, may… Read More
Over the weekend, I saw two favorite books rendered into visual media – both film and stage. It was fascinating to see the differences between them. Amid an impressive ad campaign, The Lightning Thief debuted in theatres this weekend. Worm Burner’s class went en masse to see the movie after school (because his teacher is just that cool). He and Dark… Read More
Blogger friend Rebecca sent this to me, and it’s made of awesome, so I had to pass it along. Now you probably have to be either 1) a lover of all things science fiction, kitschy or not, or 2) an admirer of the Periodic Table or 3) BOTH (bonus points), to get the true belly laugh out of this one…. Read More
I’m guest-posting today over at the fab Writing It Out blog by blogger-friend Beth Rivas. Beth is a speculative fiction writer for teens, and also a teacher (yay!), and has graciously allowed me to rant, er, post over at her blog. I talk about what a Thinking Book is, why advanced readers like them, and why you might want to… Read More
This list of suggested reads for middle grade (ages 8-12) readers started with Natalie Whipple’s readers, and a post here about Keeping Boys Reading, continued on with suggestions from The Rejectionist and the many great commenters here at Ink Spells, and then went even further with great recommendations from a thread on Nathan Bransford’s blog. While this started out as a boy-oriented… Read More
First: We have a theme of writing posts going this week. I promise the book reviews will resume shortly. Second: Contest ALERT! Writerly friends, the fabulous Guide to Literary Agents blog is hosting a contest, so hasten over there if you have a completed MG or YA novel you would like to submit. Prizes: critiques by agent Jennifer Laughran with… Read More
Mighty Mite (age 6): “Mommy, have you published your book yet?” Me: “No. Thank you for asking.” Head *meet* desk. I’m with Winston Churchill on this one: “Writing a book is an adventure. To begin with, it is a toy and an amusement; then it becomes a mistress, and then it becomes a master, and then a tyrant. The last… Read More
Well, I should have seen this coming. Stephen King’s got a new book (thanks for the tip, Dad!), available only on Kindle or audiobook, about the demon e-reader, dragging you into the ninth hell of literary evil. Thereby neaty encapsulating the rampant, raging fears of the publishing industry and writers about e-books. Oh, the rich, sweet irony! Thank you, Mr…. Read More
Since I speak a tiny amount of Spanish, and a passable amount of English, you would think all my main characters would speak English. Yet, for some reason, I’ve been drawn to MC’s that speak more than one language, and have found ways to fold that into my stories. In one young adult story, my MC was fluent in Polish… Read More
Twilight is so last year. So says my 14 year old niece. She points out that real vampires don’t sparkle, as evidenced by this (Daybreakers): Decidedly not hot. Except for maybe that guy with the gun. Hot sparkly vampires are apparently being replaced by hot fallen angels. For evidence, just see this book cover (Hush, Hush): Holy cats, who turned… Read More
I’ve got shiny new blog skills, and I’m not afraid to use them! I’ve updated the Books Reviewed list, in an easier to download format, which coincidentally is easier for me to update as well. You can zoom-in, print, hyperlink to the review . . . it’s kind of awesome. A reminder about the ratings: RL = Reading Level Ink… Read More
A real life friend asked for some suggested reads for her advanced reading 2nd grader with a RL of 4.7. While this blog is focused on advanced readers ages 8-12, I’ve spent a lot of time digging up great reads for that 5-8 age category as well. Fortunately, most of the books in the lower reading level ranges are appropriate for… Read More
Thanks go to Steven for the funnies! Who knew cats were so literary? And because cats have imagination, too . . . Happy Weekend!
The idea fairy, of course. Mighty Mite (age 6) was tasked with completing 4 lines of written work, resembling a paragraph, for his Wednesday Writing homework. If the teachers thought using alliteration would make the 1st grader more excited about writing, they were wrong. Might Mite loathes writing. Abhors it. Would rather roll his eyes at me for a half… Read More
Do you know how there are days where time is a slippery eel that escapes your grasp, no matter what you do? When you stay up waaay past midnight, and only the kittens are up scampering around and everyone, including your spouse, has ditched you for dreamland, because you’re obsessively trying to finish that chapter? And then, a mere seconds after your… Read More
I happened upon a great post decrying the dearth of science fiction novels nominated in the Cybils Awards (Children’s and Young Adult Blogger Literary Awards). Out of 134 nominations, only 11 could be considered “real” science fiction – books that relied on science, not fantasy. Given that I’m writing a middle grade science fiction novel, this confirmed what I had observed on… Read More
Common Sense Media lauded a study on kids and media by the Kaiser Family Foundation, with the sobering conclusions that: Kids are using more media, and have discovered the time dilation effect that I’ve been searching for, packing over 10 hours of effective media use into 7 hours, via multitasking Preteens (ages 8-12) stand out for their heavy usage Kids… Read More
Kidlitosphere is a collection of children’s lit bloggers, as well as librarians, parents, and other suspects. One of the fabulous things about kidlitosphere is their searchable database of book reviews, giving you easy access to a reasonably detailed review of books you may be scoping out for your child. While most book reviews do not give explicit content guidelines, as… Read More