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Title: The Knowing Book Author: Rebecca Kai Dotlich Illustrator: Matthew Cordell Publisher: Boyds Mills Press, 2016 Themes: Enjoying the journey, discovery, what we can know, what we don’t know Ages: 7-11 Opening: Before you forget …look up. Synopsis: Inspiring and wise, this story begins and ends with the sky that is always above you. In … Continue reading →

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During the night, between 3rd and 4th September 1946, things were stirring in the basement of the internal medicine department, at the university hospital of Lund, Southern Sweden. A 47-year-old man had been admitted for treatment. His main problem was uraemia (urea in the blood), but he was also suffering from silicosis (a lung disorder), complicated by pneumonia.

The post Nils Alwall: The quiet, unassuming Swede appeared first on OUPblog.

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History can be a hard pill to swallow. It’s easy to choke on a diet of dried up, dusty old facts about dried up, dusty old people. Trouble is, what those folk did in our not so distant pasts was often fascinating and ground-breaking and well worth exploring. So how do you find the right […]

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A while ago, I asked how you all discover books to read. 239 responded. 

Here's what you said:

Q: How do you discover new books to read?

Keep in mind that most of the respondents are kidlit/YA and/or publishing industry people. 71% describe themselves as writers, 16% book bloggers, 13% teachers, 9% librarians, 8% illustrators, 7% editors, 2% publishers, 1% agents.

Word of mouth was the the most popular way that people said they discovered new books to read.

Many said that they discover books by browsing library and bookstore shelves as well as recommendations from librarians and booksellers. Quite a few mentioned Amazon recommendations and NPR. Others mentioned talk shows like Oprah, television interviews, NPR reviews & discussions, publisher catalogs, Audible.com author blogs, individual author blogs, when book awards are announced,  library discards, book clubs, radio reviews, favorite blogs that also recommend books, literature courses, book calendars, books encountered while doing research, panels and discussions at conventions, book swaps, publisher & bookseller previews.

 The goal of these surveys is to help writers in their craft and business, and results are always posted here on Inkygirl.

For past survey results, see the Inkygirl Survey Archives.

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Welcome to the second day of my five day virtual book tour for my book, Marvin Discovers the Beach. Let me say thank you for continuing this journey with me...

When it is time to write the next adventure for Marvin to discover, I choose one of my favorite places to find inspiration. Sometimes, I pick a secluded and comfortable corner of the park close to our house or I take a short drive to the farm where I grew up. The Farm is my place to find inspiration as I reminisce about the adventures I created as a child.

Of course, I take Marvin and Hibou. For they are the one’s that create the adventure and lend themselves to my inner child and imagination. We go for a walk together and as Marvin and Hibou explore, I let my imagination take over. As ideas come to me, I record them on my smart phone.

On the day I choose to sit and write, I typically pick a day when there is no one home and the house is quiet, except for Marvin, Hibou and I. I grab my laptop and smart phone (turn off the ringer), build a nest of pillows on my bed, call the dogs into my room, shut the door and nestle into my pillow nest and start creating. If anyone were to listen outside the door, I am sure they would think I am nuts; as I talk to Marvin and Hibou while creating the story out loud as I type notes on my computer.

For me, writing on the computer is more convenient. I can share my documents between my laptop and IPad and I can keep all my drafts all in a secure place.

The length of time it takes to write each story varies. It could take an hour or four hours. I have discovered that it depends on how inspired I am to write the specific adventure and how strong my inner child is on that specific day. I do not leave a story open on the first draft. I like to finish the adventure on the first day.

After a couple of days, I go back to the first draft of the story and read it. I will make adjustments and add or subtract details. My first audience for the new adventure is my husband and sons. I read the story aloud to them and watch their reactions. Sometimes, halfway through the story, I will stop and change a small detail or sentence and start over again. With their suggestions and ideas, the story is completed. Of course, in my little circle of picture book critics, my family; my grand-daughter has the last word about the story before it goes to the editor.

My little process takes about a week. I could create faster; yet I have found this is the best “routine” for me. I create better when I am relaxed and embracing the moment.

To discover more about Marvin (and me) visit www.marvindiscovers.com

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by Craig Moodie, author of Into the Trap

Writing Into the Trap allowed me to transform many of the coasts and islands and bodies of water I’ve known into the fictional setting of Fog Island.

Since I was a kid, islands in particular have captivated me. All of the islands I’ve set foot on or seen from the deck of a boat have kept me under their spell. I wish I could tell you about all of them, from Vieques to Cuttyhunk, Bermuda to Barra.

But one that I thought about a lot when I was writing the book was called Dobbins Island. My family was lucky enough to own a 35-foot yawl that we sailed out of Annapolis, Maryland. Sometimes when we cruised we would head into the Magothy River and anchor near Dobbins Island.

It was an uninhabited islet covered with woods and thickets atop steep clay bluffs. Its spindly tangled trees looked like the masts of pirate ships. One time when we rowed ashore for a quick walk along the beach, one of my sisters said it looked like a good stand-in for the setting of Lord of the Flies. It was eerie, quiet and watchful and secretive, and that made me want to explore it all the more. But we had to head back to the boat.

I got another chance one muggy evening when we’d anchored off the island again. After dinner I climbed into the dinghy to head to the island alone. Crossing the smooth water, I spooked myself when I looked over the side to see the dark forms of seaweed just below the surface. I crunched ashore on the orange-ish sand and walked past a steep clay bank pocked with the burrows of swallows. The birds swooped and veered past me. I followed the beach and found a path leading up the bluff into the woods.

The woods was dim and shadowy and hissed with the sound of crickets. The leaves laced together overhead to blot out the light. I hadn’t expected to find such a well-worn path, and I followed it at a trot to reach the far headland. At the edge I pushed through the undergrowth to look out through the foliage over the anchorage, where our boat lay among a few other boats on the serene water. Behind me a blue jay called.

Why I had a feeling I was being watched, I wasn’t sure.

I spun around.

Only the woods lay before me. A blue jay called again. The light was thinning.

I went back down the path to see what was on the other side of the island. The path began to climb toward the other end, tree branches forming a leafy tunnel overhead.

Then I heard a thumping ahead of me.

I stopped to listen, my breathing heaving in my ears.

How close had that sound been?

I moved ahead, slower now.

The sound came again—a thumping of hooves.

I heard rustling in the underbrush.

The path took a sharp turn as it climbed. I came around a bend.

I stopped, my heart jolting, before a pair of large eyes staring at me from the middle of the path. They were the wide-spaced eyes of a goat—a wild goat. The forms of two other goats were behind it. They, too, stared at me.

What was I doing on their island? they seemed to be saying.

I should have known, I realized. Why else would a desert island have such a well-worn network of paths?

The dusk settled deeper as the goats melted into the thicket and vanished into the shadows. How the goats had gotten there I wasn’t sure. Maybe they swam here from the mainland. Maybe their ancestors had survived a shipwr

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A slideshow of the best social media campaigns (as rated by top New York advertising agencies. Unsurprisingly, the Old Spice Guy is pretty high up there — Pepsi's "Refresh" charity project and Evian's "roller babies" get mentions as well)... Read the rest of this post

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Hasbro, Discovery prepare to launch The Hub (The new kids' cable channel will debut on October 10 targeting 6 to 12 year-olds with a mix of popular syndicated series and originals like a live-action adaptation of "Clue") (Los Angeles Times) - BTS... Read the rest of this post

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Today we bring you another installment of Youth Media Movers and Shakers. We've culled through industry publications looking for the recent executive placements we think you should know about. If you have executive news that you want us to highlight... Read the rest of this post

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It didn't take long after the announcement of Hasbro and Discovery's new kids' channel for advocacy groups to come out to voice their concerns against the joint venture. From a statement released by the Campaign for a Commercial-Free... Read the rest of this post

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Twihards, fanpires (whatever you want to call the female fan base of Twilight, MTV has named them women of the year. Plus Twilight as you've never seen it before… with puppets) (MTV News) (YouTube) - RIAA stops suing individuals for piracy... Read the rest of this post

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