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Showing posts from June, 2014

NJ SCBWI Conference - Recommended Picture Books

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I had the best weekend at the NJSCBWI Conference. My brain is so full, I can barely make sentences... but it only takes basic zombie skills to type up a list of the books I heard recommended by editors and agents.  I'm sure many of you are looking for summer reads, so enjoy! (I'm actually looking for some brains to eat...isn't that a weird craving?) Picture Books By Author/Illustrators Green , by Laura Vaccaro Seeger No Fits, Nilson ! by Zachariah Ohora The  Twins Blanket , by Hyewon Yum The Curious Garden,  by Peter Brown Penguin and Pinecone , by Salina Yoon Zombelina , by Kristyn Crow Island: A Story of the Galápagos ,  by Jason Chin LittleTug , by Stephen Savage All Kinds of Kisses , by Nancy Tafuri  Crankenstein , by Samantha Berger Awesome Dawson , by Chris Gall Pirate, Viking and Scientist , by Jared Chapman Me, Jane , by Patrick McDonnell I came home with this beauty from Sudipta Bardhan-Quallen The Best-Ever

The Writer's Path

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I'm in a frantic period right now - combination of school almost out, summer fun beginning with camping this weekend, and my NJ conference next weekend. For me this is a peak time, where I push myself on revisions, start thinking about summer submissions, and daydreaming about sharing book-love with an agent.   But with the excitement of a conference comes the post-conference-collapse-on-the-couch. And with the excitement of submissions often comes the dreaded-rejection-letter. So I needed to take a moment this morning to remind myself of the journey I'm on and embrace its peaks and valleys. With the help of Sharpie, I present: I had no idea when I wrote that first word what an exciting adventure writing would be! Yes the lows are totally turds-in-the-pool, but the highs make it worth the swim. (Not my best metaphor, but successfully explains the high rates of cholera among writers.) Ahh, take a deep breath, focus on the long term, and write on!

Waking my Creative Self on an Imaginary Tractor Ride

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My kids hosted an inspiration session yesterday for me which was much needed to break up the routine of prepping for the NJSCBWI conference in two weeks (squee!!) Sometimes my anal-nerdy-financial-analytic self takes over, and I make binders, research agents, prepare my journal, etc. These steps are important, but if I forget to feed my creative self before a conference, well then it's all for naught. I was sitting in the living room, minding my business, when I realized I was on a tractor ride. "You should buckle up," my 4yo said. "Can you do it by yourself?" "Um, yep. Click. Click . Hmph. I can't get this last buckle."  I had slept 9 hours the night before for the first time in months, so I put a little more into my role play than usual.  "I'll help you. Click. See? It was easy."  4yos have a way of letting you know you've been condescending in the past. "Thank you. Where are we heading?" "