By: Natasha Wing,
on 11/29/2010
Some of my writer friends had new books come out this year so I wanted to give a shout out to them in case you're stumped as to what to give your book-loving children or relatives this holiday.
By: Natasha Wing,
on 6/29/2010
Now that I'm a Colorado author, I've been surfing the web (is that term still used? Sounds old.). Anyway, I've been looking at ways to network and for Colorado literary organizations and came across a few book awards, hoping, dreaming, that one day one of my books will be considered. A girl can dream, can't she?
In the meantime, I found some writers I know on the book award lists! Fort Collins author, Laura Resau, won the Colorado Book Award for her YA novel, The Indigo Notebook. The 19th annual Book Awards were held in Aspen last Friday. The Colorado Book Awards is one of the oldest state book award programs in the country and recognizes outstanding contributions by Colorado authors, editors, illustrators and photographers in multiple categories: anthology/collection, biography, children's literature, creative non-fiction, history, fiction, genre fiction, general non-fiction, juvenile literature, pictorial, poetry and young adult literature. Way to go, Laura!
And my friends, Mary Nethery and Kirby Larson, were the runner-up team for the 2010 Colorado Children's Book Award in the Picture Book category. Hurray for Two Bobbies! More good news: their book, Nubs: A Mutt, a Marine, and a Miracle, is nominated for the 2011 award. So if you're a Colorado library or school who wants to be involved in the voting process, check out the link above and it'll send you to the nomination form. The books that win are chosen by the kids of Colorado, so it's quite a special award.
I'm so proud of all three of you!
By: Natasha Wing,
on 6/6/2010
Mary Nethery signed her new book, The Famous Nini: A Mostly True Story of How a Plain White Cat Became a Star, at Eureka Books last Saturday, and a kitty from the Humane Society was on hand to greet the attendees. In support of the Humane Society and in celebration of Adopt a Cat Month, Eureka Books is giving a free copy of Mary's new book to those who adopt a cat from this shelter. Your new cat will love to hear the story of Nini over and over again.
By: Natasha Wing,
on 5/27/2010
School ends today for elementary kids in Fort Collins! (Did I tell you I moved to Fort Collins, Colorado?) And the weather this Memorial Day weekend is supposed to be sunny and in the 70s to 80s. Summertime is here! Which means families will be taking vacations and kids will be enrolling in summer camps. Summer is also a great time to read books for pleasure - and prizes! Check out your local library to see what's in store for their summer reading programs.
And if you're looking for a special read, my friend, Mary Nethery, is signing her new book about a charming cat who lives in Venice at Eureka Books during Arts Alive on Saturday, June 5th. The illustrations by John Manders are beautiful, too. I can already picture it as a Disney movie! Be sure to pick up a copy of The Famous Nini: The Mostly True Story of How a Plain White Cat Became a Star, and give it to your favorite cat-loving person.
I have a new book coming out at the end of the summer called How to Raise a Dinosaur. It's my first novelty book! I'll keep you posted when the release date nears. In the meantime, you can order my other books through the widget in the column to the right.
Happy reading!
P.S. If you're a writer in Fort Collins, let's get in touch.
Revision update: Halfway through chapter 10 of 29. Goal: To be finished by the end of the month.
Kirby Larson
Today, I’m thrilled to have an interview with Newbury Honor winner Kirby Larson. I met Kirby at the Austin SCBWI conference, where she gave an awesome talk about her journey from unpublished writer to her current success and all the peaks and valleys in between. I asked her to answer a few questions on research, both the research she did for her fictional Hattie Big Sky (2007 Newbury Honor book) and the research she nows does for her non-fiction books. She also talked about writing with a partner and writing on your own.
But, before we get to Kirby’s wisdom, tomorrow I’m at the Houston SCBWI conference with another incredible lineup: author Cynthia Leitich Smith, Balzer & Bray/HarperCollins assistant editor Ruta Rimas, Henry Holt creative director Patrick Collins, Simon & Schuster senior editor Alexandra Cooper, Scholastic senior editor Lisa Ann Sandell, Harvey Klinger agent Sara Crowe and National Geographic Children’s Books editor-in-chief Nancy Feresten. So check in next week for reports from the conference.
And now, onto Kirby…
You said at the Austin SCBWI conference that you did a lot of research for Hattie Big Sky. Can you tell us about the work you did and how the research helped you develop the idea for the book?
KL: I was an abysmal student of history so I knew nothing about homesteading in the early 20th century, nor even about WWI. I initially thought I might be doing something like a more grown-up version of the Little House books. But when I became aware of the tensions and prejudice of those part
Thanks, Tash! Being a Colorado author sounds delightful, but I wish you were still a California author because I miss you! Can't wait to see your new book, How to Raise a Dinosaur!