Hoot! I'm beyond excited about my latest book deal.
From Publishers Weekly.
"Virginia Duncan at Greenwillow has acquired two picture books by Too Purpley! author Jean Reidy; the stories feature Specs, a not-so-clear-sighted young owl who explores the world with his friends. Book one is scheduled to release in summer 2016; Erin Murphy at Erin Murphy Literary did the deal for world rights."
I'm enrolled in Katie Davis's Video Idiot Boot Camp. And while I haven't had time to dive into a larger project, I've had a little fun with some quick and easy tools introduced in her class.
Here's a little Animoto gem created in about 15 minutes for FREE.
For more information on Katie's fabulous online Video Idiot Boot Camp, check out
http://videoidiotbootcamp.com/
Hooray! Today the
TOO PRINCESSY! Board Book makes its royal debut. And to celebrate, I have 3 ways for you to win some super-cool prizes.
1. Tweet or retweet the following message exactly as it appears below:TOO PRINCESSY! board #bookbday RT anytime on 2/19 for a chance to win a board book, bag and t-shirt. http://ow.ly/hQrh5 #tiarafail
2. Enter my Goodreads giveaway anytime between now and 3/1/13 for a chance to win one of two autographed TOO PRINCESSY! board books.
3. Come on over to my TOO PRINCESSY! Boredom Buster Blog where you can conquer cabin fever one idea at a time. Submit an idea of your own to be entered to win a $100 gift card and other prizes.
Thanks for stopping by!
Here's a great way to connect children's authors and readers, and it's a WIN-WIN-WIN for schools, authors and school book fairs everywhere!
AUTHOR SPOTS FOR SCHOOLS!
Author Spots are
FREE mini-commercials created by children's authors that schools can broadcast to promote their
book fair to kids and parents.
I'm not talking about anything fancy here - just a 30 second to 1 minute webcam, YouTube video of a children's author giving a shout-out about his/her books along with a
personalized promotion for a school book fair. It might be something as simple as:
"Hi, I'm Jean Reidy, children's author! I'm super excited that TOO PURPLEY! is coming to the Abraham Lincoln Elementary book fair. (MAYBE ADD MORE ABOUT THE BOOK HERE) Don't forget to stop by and check out all the awesome books on sale. GO LIONS!"Author Spots could be shown in morning video announcements, during library time, in the classrooms, at PTO meetings, at the school entrance, or loaded on the school's website ... the possibilities are endless.It's simple! Here's how it works:Teachers, Principals, and Book Fair Volunteers: Review the authors and their books listed below and decide who might be a good fit for your school book fair. Authors who have books specifically at Scholastic Book Fairs are noted with an "S" after their name. Their names link you to their website. Choose a few options because not every author will be available at all times. Then contact one or more -- can you imagine a whole week of AuthorSpots? -- of the authors below requesting a FREE AuthorSpot. If the author agrees, tell the author how you'd like it personalized - school name, school mascot, etc. And when the video is posted, the author will send you the link. It's as simple as that.
Children's Authors and Illustrators:If you're interested in recording Author Spots for Schools, e-mail me your name, your 5 most recent book titles, genres and your website link and I'll add you to the list. Send your information to reidy(dot)jean(at)gmail(dot)com. If you know that one or more of your books is offered specifically at Scholastic Book Fairs, please let me know, and I'll put an "S" after your name. Then, when a school contacts you, record your Author Spot, upload it to YouTube and send the link to the school. If you'd like to participate but
you'd prefer to record only one generic book fair promotion video that ANY school can use, let me know. I'll start a separate list and link to your video. If we get enough authors participating, I'll even host a website specifically for
Author Spots.The following authors are interested in promoting your book fair! And here is just a sampling of their books. Please check their website for contact and other information.FICTION PICTURE BOOKS:Jean Reidy (S) - TOO PURPLEY!, TOO PICKLEY!, TOO PRINCESSY, LIGHT UP THE NIGHT, TIME OUT FOR MONSTERSMirka Breen - THERE'S A TURKEY AT THE DOOR Liz Garton Scanlon (S) - ALL THE WORLD, THINK BIG, A SOCK IS A POCKET FOR YOUR TOES, NOODLE & LOU, HAPPY, BIRTHDAY BUNNY!Judith Snyder - WHAT DO YOU SEE?, STINKY FEET Audrey Vernick (S) - SO YOU WANT TO BE A ROCK STAR, IS YOUR BUFFALO READY FOR KINDERGARTEN?, TEACH YOUR BUFFALO TO PLAY DRUMS NONFICTION PICTURE BOOKS:Alison Ashley Formento (S) - THIS TREE COUNTS, THIS TREE 1-2-3, THESE BEES COUNT, THESE SEAS COUNT Audrey Vernick (S) - SHE LOVED BASEBALL, BROTHERS AT BAT MIDDLE GRADE FICTION: Ruth McNally Barshaw (S) - THE ELLIE MCDOODLE SERIES Mary Bartek - FUNERALS AND FLY FISHING Mirka Breen -THE VOICE OF THUNDER Jennifer Nielsen (S) - THE FALSE PRINCE, THE RUNAWAY KING Audrey Vernick (S) - WATER BALLOON Danette Vigilante - THE TROUBLE WITH HALF A MOON MIDDLE GRADE NONFICTIONCynthia Levinson - WE'VE GOT A JOB YOUNG ADULTPenny Blubaugh - BLOOD AND FLOWERS, SERENDIPITY MARKET J. Anderson Coats - THE WICKED AND THE JUST Peter Salomon - HENRY FRANKSAnd if an Author Spot is not enough ... So many authors, including me (see my
Time Out for Teachers page), do
free 15-30 minute virtual visits with schools. And that's FANTASTIC! You can find that
list right here on Kate Messner's blog or check out the
Skype an Author Network. Wishing you a VERY successful book fair!
Jean
Hah! Look at that face! AWKWARD!
But if you click PLAY, you can help me fix that.
Then, get excited, because you'll hear how TOO PURPLEY! is one of the books coming to your Scholastic Book Fair and how I can help you promote your Fair.
A
Skype school visit is just one idea. How about another?
I'm happy to record a
video commercial customized to your school - that's right with your school name, maybe your mascot, your principal's name, a teacher or two and even your school cheer (this could get dangerous!) - promoting your Scholastic Book Fair. Then I'll post it or send it to you directly for you to use however you like.
The possibilities are endless here. Let's work together toward the best Bookfair EVER!
Just
e-mail me and let's start planning!
... posted
right here!Congratulations to all!
And don't forget to explore all the ideas for some cabin-fever creativity!
Hi friends,
I'm getting so excited for my October 11th release of LIGHT UP THE NIGHT. And over the next few weeks, I'll be chatting with some awesome folks online. I hope you can join me at one or more of my blog tour stops.
October 11 - Sharing Our Notebooks http://www.sharingournotebooks.amylv.com/ Amy Ludwig VanDerwater
October 12 - Tamson Weston Books http://tamsonweston.com/blog/ Tamson Weston
November 4 - Writing for Kids While Raising Them
http://taralazar.wordpress.com/ Tara Lazar
Swooning!
LIGHT UP THE NIGHT [KIRKUS STARRED REVIEW!]
By Jean Reidy; illus. by Margaret Chodos-Irvine
The coziest of quilts becomes a rocket ship in this gorgeous, mesmerizingly rhythmic read-aloud that explores a boy’s small place in a vast world. Sporting star-spangled pajamas, the not-too-sleepy astronaut wraps his red-and-white quilt around his shoulders and zooms off into outer space. The slow-building rhyme echoes the cumulative structure of “The House That Jack Built”: “These are the planets that circle the sun, / which hides its face when the day is done, / while stars glow bright / and light up the night, / in my own little piece of the universe.” The soothing rhythms and comforting refrain are just right for very young ears, and the geographical terms will stretch young minds. During the boy’s fanciful flight, his aerial view of Earth includes hemispheres, continents and countries—eventually zeroing in on his own town, house, street and bed. Caldecott Honor–winner Chodos-Irvine’s colorful illustrations are fun and friendly, from the retro linocut spot art of the boy in his bedroom (“This is me”)—to dramatic full-bleed spreads that capture the expansive galaxies, complete with a smiling moon, animal constellations, planets and four-eyed aliens. The richly textured mixed-media artwork—incorporating various printmaking techniques and what looks like cut-paper collage—offers many clever self-referential moments and something new to discover with each reading. A dreamy-yet-instructive ode to the universe. (Picture book. 2-6)
LIGHT UP THE NIGHT [HORN BOOK REVIEW]
by Jean Reidy; illus. by Margaret Chodos-Irvine
Before bedtime, a young boy plays with his toys—vehicles of all kinds, from a truck to a spaceship. He quietly identifies himself by saying, “This is me,” captioning a small spot art illustration surrounded by white space. Why so small? Because, as listeners soon discover, he’s part of something big. His mother tucks him in, but he doesn’t go straight to sleep. Instead, he takes his blanket, transforms it into a rocket ship, and soars off into the vastness of the heavens. Thus begins a cumulative tale that takes him out of this world (“These are my galaxy stars so bright— / they light up the heavens late at night”) and back again to his “own little piece of the universe”: “This is my room, with my name on the door, and my dinosaur lamp, and my rug on the floor.” Soft assonant sounds soothe the cumulative rhyme that parallels nighttime routines through its repetition and structure. Visually, the most important object in the book is the boy’s best bedtime companion: his blanket. Reproduced on the endpapers, the blanket first swaddles the book and then the boy as pieces of it morph into the vehicles that transport him. Double-page spreads of bright but not overpowering collages depict his journey, while the opening and closing actions (of going to bed and going to sleep) are shown in smaller wordless panels, bringing the story full circle. Betty Carter
And it's oh so pink.
TOO PRINCESSY! comes out in January 2012 from Bloomsbury and you can preorder it here. Find out more at http://www.jeanreidy.com/TOO_PRINCESSY.html.
By: Jean Reidy,
on 7/1/2014
I'm getting so excited for my October 11th release of LIGHT UP THE NIGHT. And over the next few weeks, I'll be chatting with some awesome folks online. I hope you can join me at one or more of my blog tour stops.
Swooning!
And it's oh so pink.
Nice book cover video!
funny video! thanks for sharing!