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October 29, 2020
On Listening to Your Gut Instinct When Editing Your Work
First, there’s that twisty churny feeling that crawls across your skin when something doesn't feel right. It’s similar to the feeling that can arise when you are walking home late at night and you ...
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October 29, 2020
"It Is Okay to Go Inside of Yourself Even if it Scares You" Poet Joseph A. Dandurand on Opening Doors
Perhaps Richard van Camp said it best about prolific and powerful poet Joseph A. Dandurand's writing when he commented "Good Lord—what a voice!" Dandurand's 13 collections of poetry have consistently ...
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March 08, 2021
On Giving Myself Permission Not to Write
I know I have to write it. The essay I’ve been trying to write for a year and a half.I will be in the grocery store or out in the muck of a hike dripping with sweat and a sentence of it will come to ...
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April 29, 2022
May Writer in Residence Mark David Smith on His Macbeth Inspired Witch-Detective Series for Kids
If you read Macbeth and thought (like us) "less political scheming and more of those fabulous witches, please", you're in luck because teacher and writer Mark David Smith's The Weird Sisters: A Note, ...
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November 28, 2016
Kid Lit Can: What’s So Funny about Kids’ Books? Part 1
A few weeks ago, while thinking about topics for this blog, I came to a startling realization: I’ve never hosted a funny Q and A blog. With funny authors. About funny children’s and YA books. Never.Why ...
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April 05, 2025
Every Ingredient in Our Ancestors' Kitchen by Willie Poll Thrums With Meaning and Tradition
Métis activist and storyteller Willie Poll has deep connections to her community and traditions, all of which is on full display in a beautiful new picture book from the author. Poll's poetic voice ...
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August 21, 2024
Jennifer Maruno and Vivian Rosas Illustrate the Power of Peaceful Action in Momma's Going to March
Peaceful activism has long been a tool for meaningful change, and many young people are now seeing these actions with great frequency, especially as they grow up in a world where social media carries ...
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February 20, 2024
Make-believe and Melodrama Create Comedy in the New Picture Book, The Only Lonely Fairy
Make-believe and melodrama collide to create a heartfelt comedy in The Only Lonely Fairy (Pajama Press), the new picture book by Lana Button, illustrated by Peggy Collins. A story about emotional ...
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August 12, 2021
"There is Power in Sharing Ideas" Bree Galbraith's Hold That Thought Encourages Kids to Let Their Ideas Shine
In the middle of the night, Finn feels something strange and exciting. Something forming slowly, getting sharper and clearer each moment: it's an idea. And the idea fills Finn with a thrilling kind of ...
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August 24, 2022
"I Want Children To Be Proud of Who They Are" Kuljinder Kaur Brar on Her Debut Picture Book
What's in a name? A lot, especially if people don't get it right. When Saajin starts his first day of school in Kuljinder Kaur Brar's My Name Is Saajin Singh (Annick Press, illustrated by Samrath ...