Are you all ready for a St. Patrick's Day celebration this weekend?

Try your luck at this Leprechaun puzzle.

Or if you'd like to discover how to write a Limerick, check out this information and write an example on a shamrock, no less.

And of course, there are always fun Irish stories to read. In A POT OF GOLD by Kathleen Krull, you'll be sure to find plenty of entertaining shenanigans.

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If you are in grades 3-6, you can enter the BE A SUPER HERO, READ! contest sponsored by Capstone Publishing and DC Comics. All you have to do is write about a super hero in your life--a real one, that is.

Winners get an exclusive tour of DC Entertainment Offices, a tour of Warner Brothers Animation Studio, and a set of Capstone Man of Steel chapter books.

Who is the Wonder Woman or Man in your life? Write about him or her and you may have the chance for some SUPER prizes.

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The March issue GUARDIAN ANGEL KIDS magazine is available free online. This month it features stories, articles, and crafts on nutrition. The online magazine is in a flipbook format, so it's fun and easy to take a peek inside.

For a yummy, nutritious treat you can make yourself, try this recipe for Southwest BLT Rollups. You'll enjoy making them as much as eating them.

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The online literacy site for children, KNOWONDER!, is offering a free book of 30 short stories for children--THE LONELY DRAGON. Just visit their site and register. It's as simple as that. There are also free stories to read and enjoy at their site as well.

Last November, they published my short story, "2 Much Laughter." And my story, "The Dragon Artist's Tale," will be featured in their upcoming print and ebook story collection of princess and dragon stories. Look for that soon!

But today, don't miss this opportunity to get a book that your whole family can share!

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Poetry author, Ken Nesbitt, is ready to judge the 2013 TIME for Kids Poetry Contest. Write a funny poem and enter it for a chance to win a class visit by the author and also have your poem published at timesforkids.com.

But you must hurry! The deadline for entering is March 1, 2013.

Go to the link above to find out all the details and visit Mr. Nesbitt's website, poetry4kids.com, to find out more about the poems he writes. A good way to discover the types of poems Mr. Nesbitt likes would be to check out one of his poetry books from your school or public library. But if you can't do that, here is one from his website you can read--Learning to Fly. 

Good luck!

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HIGHLIGHTS magazine has a Valentine's Day challenge for you with a special hidden picture, "Cupid's Target Practice." Can you find all the objects? The picture makes for a fun coloring page as well. Enjoy!

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VALENTINE'S DAY is only two weeks away now. So if you need to make some special Valentines for the special people in your life, here is a fun craft video from HIGHLIGHTS magazine on making "secret" Valentine cards.

And if you'd like to read a story about two new friends and a super-fancy Valentine's Day card, then please read my story, "The Fool Proof Valentine Plan."

Do you have a plan for Valentine's Day???

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Rich Davis is an amazing illustrator. On his website he demonstrates how to draw a leafless tree. In just over a minute, Rich--with his pen in one hand and his camera in the other--draws a beautiful tree. He brings the blank paper to life as if by magic. Well, if a picture is worth a thousand words then Rich's illustrations speak volumes. Check out the link above and see if you can keep up with his wizard drawing skills.

Then after you've created your own tree, try writing a story around it.
Leaf-it-out, so to speak.
Is your tree in your main character's front yard? Maybe it has a favorite swing attached to it.
Or perhaps your tree is in the middle of a cemetery. Will your main character dare to climb it in the dark at midnight?

Have fun writing and illustrating!

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The Cooperative Children's Book Center (CCBC) recently announced this year's Charolotte Zolotow Award. This award is "given annually for outstanding writing in a picture book published in the United States in the preceding year." This year's winner is EACH KINDNESS by Jacqueline Woodson (Putnam, 2012). The tale involves the treatment (or rather mistreatment) of a new girl at school. One of the offenders realizes the seriousness of her actions too late.

The Jewish Book Council also announced their winning books for 2013. In the Children's and Young Adult category,  MEET AT THE ARK AT EIGHT by Ulrich Hub (Eerdmans, 2012) won first place. When two penguins smuggle their friend aboard the ark, trouble ensues in this humorous picture book.

More children's book awards for picture books will be announced soon by the American Library Association. If you'd like a list of past Caldecott Award winners while you wait for the ALA's latest announcement on January 25th, click here for a link.

So many wonderful books to choose from!

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Congratulations are in order for Darcy Pattison, author of WISDOM THE MIDWAY ALBATROSS, and illustrator Kitty Harvil. The book won the 2013 Writer's Digest Self-Published Book Award in the children's picture book category. The beautifully illustrated book is the story of an albatross who survived the Japanese tsunami. Wisdom has since returned to Midway Island and is now expecting babies!

I hope you have a chance to check out this book, along with others by Darcy Pattison--like DESERT BATHS and PRAIRIE STORMS. She creates lyrical nonfiction reads for young ones sure to delight everyone. I've twice had the opportunity to attend writers' retreats led by Darcy, and she is as amazing a teacher as a writer.

Again, CONGRATULATIONS!

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Best wishes for 2013!

May all your stories this year have happy endings :)

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I received an early Christmas present today with the publication of my seasonal story, THE LOST SHEPHERD BOY, in My Light magazine. I wanted to share the story with you as well. Jack Foster, an amazing illustrator who I know through Guardian Angel Publishing, has created a wonderful illustration for the story. He captures perfectly the excited face of young Tomas discovering an unexpected Christmas treat, while his mischievous kitty, Neto, looks on.

I wish you a joyous Christmas too!

Feliz Navidad!

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Yes, I did finish my middle grade novel during NanNoWriMo last month. Even with Thanksgiving company and holiday celebrations, I managed to complete the fantasy story. I took a few victory laps around my desk to celebrate. Since then, I'm letting the story rest for just a bit before digging in for revisions--and thinking about the third book in the trilogy. A writer's work is never done... Read the rest of this post

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Sorry--no posts this month, but I'm busy churning out a new middle grade novel. I plan to finish the rough draft by the end of the month.
About 30,000 words so far...

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Halloween has always been a fun time of year for me. I love dressing up in costume. It's very much like creating the characters in my stories, only in costume I become a character for real. In fact, I bring some costume pieces along with me when I do school visits and help the students devise new and interesting characters.

So today's post is a collection of interesting Halloween(ish) news I've unearthed of late.

Of course, you know I love libraries, so how cool is a haunted one? That's right, in Deep River, Connecticut, the public library (a former home built in 1881 by a local businessman) has not just one ghost but many. Wouldn't that make for some interesting storytimes?

The American Library Association's GREAT WEBSITES FOR KIDS isn't too scary, but there are a frightfully wonderful number of cool places to visit there. Take for example this website on BATS--the kind that fly in the night. That's kind of spooky.

Or try National Geographic's CAT site. Have you ever seen a cat skeleton?

So I admit, Math was always a little scary for me. That's why I've included this site here called COOL MATH--An Amusement Park of Math and More. Check it out for puzzles, games, and Bubba Man in his awesome Halloween costume.

If all these Halloween antics make you hungry, stop by the For Kids section here on my site and find the recipe for SPIDER SNACKS. Then you can munch along as you do the HALLOWEEN CROSSWORD, lurking just around the corner.

Happy Hauntings!

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Halloween will be here in just two-and-a-half weeks. What a good time to start reading some spooky stuff. Below are two brand new scary tales.

THE BOO! BOOK by Nathaniel Lachenmeyer is a new picture book adventure, complete with its own ghost right inside the book. Do you dare to read it???

TEN CREEPY MONSTERS by Carey F. Armstrong-Ellis delivers a bookful of monsters and mystery on a Halloween quest for treats.

Check out the list on my website for a bagful of other great spine-tingling reads: FRIGHTFUL READS FOR KIDS

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Although books are initially a visual experience, they become an auditory encounter as well when read aloud. So what better way to help introduce young readers to the wonders of music than through well crafted picture books on music. The illustrations combined with the sound sensations of the words create a fun and enlightening experience.

Here are some gems to share with your little ones:

M Is for Music by Kathleen Krull. This alphabet book is a great introduction to musical terms and composers.

Ah, Music! by Aliki. Another introductory book, this one combines lovely illustrations with explanations of musical concepts, including pitch, rhythm, tone, as well as information on conductors, instruments and the history of music.

I Know a Shy Fellow Who Swallowed a Cello by Barbara Garriel. A silly story of a young man who swallows a cello, saxophone, fiddle, kazoo, harp, and a bell. When he belches out the instruments, they emerge with their accompanying sounds.

The Jazz Fly by Matthew Gollub. A fly jazzes up animal sounds to create a hit.
Jazz Baby by Lisa Wheeler. A fun read-aloud that celebrates the sound of jazz.

And one of my grandson and my favorites right now is Baby Danced the Polka by Karen Beaumont. Mom, Dad, and baby can't resist the beat of a polka tune in this colorful picture book. I found a board book edition with fold-outs that make this story interactive for even a one-year-old. And, or course, we (Grammy and Sammy) can't resist dancing the polka as well.

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To celebrate Children's Book Week, Slyvan Dell Publishing invites you to view one of their delightful ebooks for free. Simply visit their website and click on their ebook link. You'll find many titles to choose from, but remember--May 13 is the last day for this special offer.

Ready, set, READ!

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OK, I admit. I've taken a loooong summer break from my blog.

But that doesn't mean I haven't been reading and writing--just doing a lot of babysitting with my adorable grandson. :)

In the meantime, I've had one of my favorite short stories, "Picnic Guests," published in LADYBUG magazine--in their July/August issue. You should be able to find a copy at your local library, hopefully.  Of course, my grandson Sam loves it because it features a dog, Buddy. Sam's first word this summer was "dog." Or more precisely "daw-daw." Yes, he said "dog" before even "Mommy" or "Daddy." But I'm not surprised. His daddy, my son Dan, said his first word quite early at nine months, and it was not "Mommy" or "Daddy" either. It was "Inky," our dog's name.

I'm also teaching Sam sign language, and his first sign was "dog" as well. And already we read books and learn new vocabulary each day at Grammy's. This is such an important tool for children, to be exposed to books and reading at the very youngest age. Sam already has a great attention span with his books--especially books with animals and vehicles in them. He loves anything with wheels.

Well, you get the idea of what I've been doing--besides writing this summer. And I must say, Sam has reminded me that I write for the most amazing readers in the world--KIDS! Hope you had a chance to do some reading this summer. Next post I'll talk about some great books I've been reading.

Let me know any favorite stories you've found this summer.

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I promised I'd tell you some of what I've been reading. Just recently, I've been exploring Darcy Pattison's NOVEL METAMORPHOSIS, Uncommon Ways to Revise.  I had the opportunity to attend a retreat last weekend presented by Darcy. It was a great jumpstart for my novel in progress. Darcy had tons of tips, insider info on the writing business, and lots of encouragement. Just what I needed! Darcy has an amazing website and blog. If you are children's author or want to know more about children's books, I'd advise you to stop by. She has a wealth of info there.

I also studied two books Darcy suggested, SELF-EDITING FOR FICTION WRITERS and THE FIRST FIVE PAGES. Both are writer how-to gems.

As for what children's literature have I been reading--well, I just finished James Treadwell's ADVENT. This is the first book in a trilogy of the Arthurian legend, and it is masterfully written. But it's a YA book for sure. Quite an interesting modern take on the ancient legend.

A favorite picture book I read this summer was PETE THE CAT AND HIS FOUR GROOVY BUTTONS. Simple, sweet, and funny. What more could you ask for in a picture book.

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When parents and teachers work together to create fun and inviting reading opportunities for children, the children will reap the rewards. Here are two interesting articles concerning young readers. In the first, a group of California educators has teamed up with parents to study the issue of family literacy--how to build it. The teachers have expanded their meetings to include parents from across the area. They hope to use the parent's input to make the literacy plan more comprehensive. Bravo to all of them!

The second article I read this week concerning parents actively supporting their child's literary goals concerns a young six-year-old from Staten Island. Isabella Policarpo read over 400 books to earn a trip to Yankee Stadium. She'll be part of a group of eager readers who will go on the field and see their names on the big screen. Isabella's parents helped her check out most of the books from the New York Public library. While they read many of them to her, amazing Isabella did most of the reading herself. Now she reads to her six-month-old sister--just as she was read to by her parents. A little time and effort toward making reading a daily habit in a child's life can go a long way in fostering a strong reader.

Team up with a child(ren) in your life and together you can reach the greatest of literary goals!

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Jumpstart is a national organization which promotes childhood education. They are combining forces with Penguin and the Pearson Foundation all next week and finishing with a record reading day on October 4. The effort helps to reach millions of preschool children "to encourage them to read."

Ladybug Girl and the Bug Squad is this year's Read For the Record book. Millions of copies of the book will be made available. Click on the link above and you can find out more information as well as download activities and a parent brochure. And to find out more about the Pearson Foundation and access to free books, click on the links above.

Happy Reading!

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Some exciting new books for kids are premiering tomorrow, October 2nd.

Madeline L'Engle's 1962 Newbery Award winning, A WRINKLE IN TIME, is being revisited as a graphic novel.

SON by Lois Lowry is the fourth book in her futuristic world that began with THE GIVER, another Newbery winner, and continued with GATHERING BLUE and MESSENGER.

Both these new stories are fantasies. I told you last week about just having finished ADVENT by James Treadwell. That fantasy reminded me of a classic fantasy series by Susan Cooper, THE DARK IS RISING. You should check it out.

All of the above reads have been for YA readers, but another fun fantasy series is THE CHRONICLES OF PRYDAIN by Lloyd Alexander. It's not new, but middle grade readers should enjoy it. Lots of adventure, plus some laughs.

Today is the perfect day to start exploring a new world. Why not open a book and begin your adventure--if you dare!

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