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1. Christmas I had a great Christmas and I hope you did too if you celebrate it.
2. Proofing  I finished proofing Lies We Tell. I'm very excited to venture into adult mystery/suspense. The book will release in April.
3. Winter Break  My daughter is home for Christmas break this week, so I'll be spending most of my time with her, which is why this Mishmash is shorter than usual.

1. Sunday is Christmas! It's Practically Here!  Can you tell I'm a fan of the Grinch? I love the original cartoon movie. I'm all ready for Sunday.
2. Editing  I'll be doing a client edit this week before the holidays.
3. Publishing  Since Fading Into the Shadows is ready to go for it's January 16, 2017 release, I'm busy getting my April release ready. The digital proof of Lies We Tell has been proofed, and the paperback proof has been ordered!
4. Taxes  It's getting to be that time again where I need to update my expense and earning logs for taxes. Ick!
5. Snow  I'm done with snow and winter hasn't even officially begun yet. :(

December is a month of celebrations and a chance for the co-authors to take a brief blogging break as we turn our focus to our families during the rest of December. The rest and reflection always helps us start the new year with a renewed sense of passion and purpose.

1. NaNoWriMo Winner!  Yesterday, I was finally able to claim my November 7th victory of writing 50K. My word count continues to count against me, but at least I am officially a winner now.
   
2. Drafting  I'm working on book two for this month, but it's going very slowly due to client edits.
3. New Author Banner  I decided to finally splurge and get myself a banner to stand behind my tables at book signings. I opted for the four-foot one since I don't think the six-foot ones are fully seen anyway since the table covers them. Here's the banner I designed:
   
4. December 3rd Signing  My banner I just mentioned is arriving December 1st, days before my next signing, which is taking place at Middle Smithfield Elementary School during their local vendor event. My daughter, Ayla, will be signing with me. Her first signing!
5. Editing  I'm trying to stay on schedule with the holiday and the days off from school. Wish me luck!
6. Happy Thanksgiving!  I hope you all have a safe and happy thanksgiving!

Just in case any one wants to join in...trace your hand and make a turkey!  Here's mine.

1. Happy Halloween!  I hope everyone has a happy and safe Halloween. 
   
2. NaNoWriMo Starts Tomorrow!  If you're taking part in NaNo, buddy me. My name is khashway on the site. And good luck! 
   
3. Editing  Even though I'm drafting a new book, I have client edits to tackle this month. Eek! NaNo is pretty much my way of showing myself I can find balance between doing work for others and doing work for myself.
4. Field Trip  I'm chaperoning my daughter's field trip on Friday. Um, when am I supposed to write for NaNo? I'm not panicking. Nope. Not at all. Okay, maybe a little. I guess I'll be writing in the evening on Friday. Send coffee please.
5. Fading Into the Shadows  Fading Into the Shadows is fully edited, proofed, and ready to go over two months early! I'm so excited for this book. E-ARCs are in, so if you have time to read the book before January 16, 2017 and would like an ARC in exchange for an honest review, sign up here. The cover reveal will take place November 16th-18th. If you're interested in sharing the cover on any social media site, you can sign up for that here.  

There are many aspects of Christmas that, on reflection, make little sense. We are supposed to be secular-minded, rational and grown up in the way we apprehend the world around us. Richard Dawkins speaks for many when he draws a distinction between the ‘truth’ of scientific discourse and the ‘falsehoods’ perpetuated by religion which, as he tells us in The God Delusion, “teaches us that it is a virtue to be satisfied with not understanding” (Dawkins 2006).

The post Why Christmas should matter to us whether we are ‘religious’ or not appeared first on OUPblog.

The sound of paddling pools, ice-cream vans, and sizzling barbecues means but one thing: summer is finally here. We caught up with four of Oxford University Press' most seasoned travelers to see which books they recommend for trips to Thailand, Cambodia, Germany, India, and France.

The post A summer reading list appeared first on OUPblog.

1. Happy Independence Day!  I hope everyone has a safe and happy Fourth of July! 
   
2. Blogging Break  Just a reminder that I'll be on a blogging break for one week beginning this Friday. I'll return to blogging on Friday, July 15th.
3. Computer Issues  I've been putting off adding memory to my laptop, but it's causing serious issues now so I really need to do this soon.
4. Editing  I'm editing for a new client this week.
5. New Author Logo  Since I'll be self-publishing my new adult and adult titles, I decided I wanted an author logo to put on the back of the books where a publisher logo would go. Here it is! (I love it!) 
   

1. Mother's Day  I hope all the moms enjoyed their day yesterday. I had a great weekend complete with a shopping day with my daughter while my husband cleaned the entire house. Now that's a great Mother's Day!
2. Drafting  I'm working on an Ashelyn Drake adult contemporary romance. I wasn't planning to draft right now, but the idea just hit me and I had to write.
3. Scaling Back  I've been really stressed lately and overworked. I'm making an effort to scale back for the sake of my sanity and health.
4. PTO Luncheon  This week I'm going to the PTO luncheon at my daughter's school. It's so nice of the teachers to do this for the PTO volunteers.

A painting for Mother's Day 2016!

Spring is finally here! The sun is shining bright, we’re wearing less layers, and birds are chirping! Well, not one bird who has some ambivalence about hatching. On this episode of Ready Set Draw!, Joyce Wan, the illustrator of Peep and Egg: I’m Not Hatching draws the spring-ready characters from Laura Gehl’s eggscellent picture book.

SUPPLIES YOU CAN USE TO DRAW WITH US

• Alex Rainbow 60 Piece Marker Set
• Strathmore 300 Series Drawing Paper – 9×12

Did you, your child, or a student draw their own version of Peep and Egg using this video? Please share your images with us via Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter! Use the hashtag #KidLitTV on Instagram and Twitter too. We can’t wait to see what you’ve drawn!

Like an Easter basket, this post is filled with treats! Click the images below to download a Teacher’s Guide and Activity Kit.

LIKE IT? PIN IT!

Watch Joyce’s episode of StoryMakers to learn more about her books!

ABOUT PEEP AND EGG: I’M NOT HATCHING

Peep and Egg: I’m Not Hatching
Written by Laura Gehl; illustrated by Joyce Wan (Farrar, Straus and Giroux BYR, 2016)

Egg is “not” hatching. No way. No how. It is too scary out there.

Peep wants Egg to hatch so they can do fun things together, like watch the sunrise, splash in puddles, and play hide-and-seek. But Egg is “not cracking” … Joyce Wan’s bright and bold illustrations will have young chickies giggling at Laura Gehl’s reassuring tale that takes the “not” out of “I’m not.”

ABOUT LAURA GEHL

Laura Gehl is the author of several picture books including the Peep and Egg series. She has a B.A. in psychology from Yale and a Ph.D. in neuroscience from Georgetown. She’s taught literacy and biology.

A Birthday for Frances, The Perfect Nest, The Big Orange Splot, and This is Not My Hat are a few of Laura’s favorite picture books.  She enjoys the work of Gordon Korman, Susan Cooper, and L.M Montgomery too.

Laura and her family live in Chevy Chase, Maryland.

CONNECT WITH LAURA GEHL
Website | Facebook

ABOUT JOYCE WAN

Joyce is inspired by Japanese pop culture, Scandinavian design, modern architecture, and the little things that put a smile on her face. In Joyce’s perfect world “everything would be cute, round, and chubby,” which is evident in her illustrations. Joyce is the author of several bestselling board and picture books including You Are My Cupcake and The Whale in My Swimming Pool, a Spring 2015 Junior Library Guild Selection.

Although Joyce’s parents had the equivalent of a middle school education, and her mother wasn’t able to speak English, her mother took Joyce and her siblings to the library every week. Picture books were integral to Joyce’s love of reading as she and her siblings made up stories to go along with the illustrations. Joyce counts the determination of her parents as a driving force behind her perseverance and success. “When I first started Wanart, I was working at a 9am-6pm job at an architectural firm. I spent many late night hours on my own business with only a few hours of sleep in between the two “jobs”. I did this for two years before I quit my full time job to pursue my own business full-time.”

Joyce graduated from Barnard College, Columbia University in New York City with a liberal arts degree in Architecture. Joyce teaches greeting card design and art licensing at the School of Visual Arts. The self-proclaimed night owl prefers drawing and writing in the early morning hours “when everyone’s asleep and the world is quiet.” Joyce lives in Ridgewood, New Jersey with her husband. The architect turned author and self-trained illustrator hopes to inspire people to “embrace the spirit of childhood and follow their dreams.”

CONNECT WITH JOYCE WAN
Website | Facebook | Instagram | Twitter

CONNECT WITH KidLit TV
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Ready Set Draw!
Executive Producer: Julie Gribble

This post contains affiliate links.

The post Ready Set Draw! | Joyce Wan Draws Peep and Egg appeared first on KidLit.TV.

1. Drafting  I'm trying to finish up the first draft of my Ashelyn Drake romantic suspense sequel before my daughter is home for Easter break.
2. School Visit  I'll be visiting Blairstown Elementary School on Thursday and doing three presentations. Wish me luck!
3. Out of the Ashes Releases Tomorrow!  Book two in the Into the Fire Trilogy comes out tomorrow! I'm a little excited. ;) Because of that, there will be no Writer Wednesday this week since I'll be posting on release day instead. 
   
4. Into the Fire Free Promotion Success!  I was so happy to see all the free downloads of Into the Fire last week during the free promotion. 
   
   
   
5. Easter  Hoppy Easter to all if I don't "see" you before then.

Here are a couple of princess images I created.  One was for a Halloween book and features my daughter with her friends and cousin. The other is a spread from A Little Princess which I stepped in to illustrate for another illustrator when she could not meet the deadline...I'm glad I took the job!

Wherever you are, whatever you celebrate, I hope you have a season full of friendly faces and happy memories. See you in 2016!

You better watch out. You better not cry. You better not pout, I’m telling you why,
Santa Claus is coming to town!!
www.robertabaird.com

And that is the story of Santa Claus.
Hey, it’s getting late, and I’ve got these letters to deliver. You better be getting home, too.
And remember, behave yourselves, because Santa can still look into his magic snowball
and see just what you’re up to. And now that you know all about him, you can be darn sure that
come snow or high water, Santa Claus is comin’ to town!

You wish to give me… a present? A… a toy?
No one ever gives mean old Warlock a toy.
A choo-choo.
I’ve always wanted one.

All the little cares picked along the way
Suddenly have disappeared with yesterday
My world is beginning today!

It’s… a… difficult responsibility
That he extract from the number-one law keeper, me
Be it known throughout the land from sea to sea
There’ll be no more.. toy… makers… to the King!

Oh no! It’s Christmas Eve and somebody forgot to buy tags for the gifts. Hmm. Well, you could just get out your Post-it pad or use your burrito wrapper from lunch. Aren’t you swanky.

No! Don’t do that! No one will appreciate black bean remnants on their gift, trust me.

Instead, use these printable gift tags that I designed just for you. Merry Christmas! It’s so easy. There are stockings, snowflakes and even some lightsabers thrown in because apparently there’s a new Star Wars. They should really do some marketing, I had no idea.

There are several pages with different styles. Choose your favorite or use them all!

If you need help figuring this out, it’s okay. We’ve all had someone put too much bourbon in our egg nog once or twice. Here’s how to use these things:

1. Download the PDF of the gift tags here.
2. Print them using your home (or hotel) printer. They are letter-size pages, so it’s easy. I suggest printing at full size, but if you shrink to fit, the world will keep spinning. Depending on how much egg nog you’ve had, it may spin faster.
3. Cut them out using the handy dotted lines as a guide. I use a fancy Fiskars cutter, you could use scissors. Or the plastic knife from your burrito (I suggest rinsing or licking first).
4. Fill them out. Yeah, I thought that was obvious, but you know… egg nog.
5. Tape them to the present. Wait, you did what? Ha! Oh well, open them up again and see who gets what, THEN tape the tag to the gift.

If you’re having trouble reading the instructions (egg nog), just look at these photos:

In case you got lost (egg nog), here’s where to download the printable gift tags: http://bit.ly/christmas-tags

Happy Holidays and please tag responsibly.

Oh! Wait! Once more thing… try some delicious vegan egg nog.

I hate toys! And toys hate me! Either they are going or I am going and I definitely am not going!