Recently, I’ve been writing short books for an educational publisher. There are no advances or royalties for this kind of writing. It’s flat-fee, work-for-hire writing and the writer gets a lot of input from the editors and series “authors” who, in this case, are big-name educators. This kind of writing can be an amazing teacher….
Category: children’s literature
It’s a Journey…not a destination
I’ve been writing stories lately for a work-for-hire project that requires the writer to outline a number of very important things about the tale…before it’s been written. The editors want a synopsis that describes the character and the plot with as many juicy pertinent details as possible. That way of crafting a story goes against…
Hooray! Big Eclipse on the Way
By now most people have heard that there’s a rare event happening across a swath of North America on August 21. It’s a big big deal and my friend writer/illustrator Nancy Coffelt has created a fantastic kids’ guide to the big event called The Big Eclipse. From Amazon, here’s the scoop: “Readers will learn what causes eclipses,…
The Problem with Series
I love series…and I hate series. A great series has characters and settings to fall in love with and get to know. There’s edge-of-your-seat anxiety as the plot heats up and unfolds, and you can’t wait for that oh-so-satisfying conclusion. Here’s what sets my teeth on edge: a great series has a completely satisfying conclusion…
Chai and Chi
One of the most interesting parts of working in cafés is the opportunity to overhear conversations. This afternoon, the background “music” for my pot of eggnog chai (total yum!) was a Portlander who was fretting over how badly his “chi” was affecting his ability to grow his business. If he could just get his chi…
Highlights and Me
I’ve met many a writer who first broke into print by publishing a story or an article or a craft or a recipe in Highlights for Children. I was not one of them. It was not for lack of trying. I sent many a tale across the desks of the likes of Christine French Clark…
Who Will You Thank?
I just finished reading Libba Bray‘s Going Bovine. What a ride! It’s about a teen who gets mad cow disease and goes on the road trip of his life in search of a cure. If you’re up for physics mixed with myth mixed with music and don’t mind a bit of head-spinning along the way,…
Bespectacled & Bookish 