I'm on Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast today!! Go check it out!! (Yes, I am ridiculously excited!!)

Jules did a really neat round-table interview with the four people most directly involved in Hush, Little Dragon and Over At The Castle- me, Kelly Murphy (the illustrator), Maggie Lehrman (the editor) and Chad Beckerman (the art director). I think it's a great inside peek at all of the different processes that go into making a picture book.
So go see!

:)

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The really cool part about being an author is not what you'd think.

Yeah, the fame, the fortune, the public recognition... I mean, it's cool, to a point, but after a while it gets a little old, y'know? That's why the best part of my chosen profession is getting to see things like this:

way before other people do. In fact, I saw Mostly Monsterly way back when it was just a little old work-in-progress by my writing pal, Tammi. Of course, a lot of things have changed for little Bernadette since I first met her. She's now adorably illustrated by the fabulous Scott Magoon (he of Ugly Fish fame, one of my all-time top favorite picture books ever) and she even has a new title.

But the *best* part of getting to see this cute monster back when she was just words-on-paper is that one of the words that ended up in the book is MY word! It's like a little piece of me is in this fabulous book. So go to the bookstore on Tuesday and buy Mostly Monsterly (because that's the day it comes out and that's what you should do, says me). Then, when you are reading your new book to your favorite child (or to yourself, I won't tell) and you get to the page where a TOOTHY grin spreads across Bernadette's little monsterly face... that's where Tammi Sauer, incredibly talented author, thought, "Hey, that Boni Ashburn has a good suggestion here in this critique, making her grin a toothy grin, and I'm going to use it!" Yeah, that makes being an author, for me at least, really, really cool!

:)

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Big things have been happening and I'd be remiss in not mentioning them here, wouldn't I?

1. Several of my writing pals have had new books released lately! Yay Debbie and Ruth and Lisa!! If you haven't seen these books yet, get thee to a bookstore or a library and check them out:

And don't miss the cool contest Debbie's running on her blog, Jumping The Candlestick!

2. The coolest auction EVER starts Monday:


and I've been torn about whether or not to mention it here... I mean, if millions of people bid on these awesome works of art, I'll never get a chance to win one, right? But I decided, hey, it's for a good cause, 826LA, and I'll still bid and you just never know, right?? And besides, not one but TWO of my illustrators have items to bid on- Kelly Murphy, the lovely illustrator of Hush, Little Dragon and Over At The Castle, and ALSO Julia Denos, the lovely illustrator of an upcoming picture book of mine out next year. You can find out everything you need to know at theeyewitnessreports.blogspot.com

3. I sold a couple of new picture books! I can't share any details yet, but I'm really excited about both of them. I have had zero writing time this summer (as well as zero blogging time, huh??) and have not felt much like a writer for the past several months. I have kids and it's summer! What little "writer" time I've had has been spent addressing the promotional needs that have cropped up, author visit stuff, submissions- all the accoutrements, so to speak, of BEING a writer without doing the actual activity of WRITING. This I am not so much a fan of, as Clementine would say. So in two more weeks, ya'll ought to notice a big improvement around here as I dry my misty eyes and send those kids back to school. Until then, we have summer to kiss good-bye...

:)

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So, yeah, it's been a little busy around here.

We drove 4,000 miles on a family trip (hello Wisconsin, Illinois, Missouri, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico, Colorado, Wyoming, South Dakota, Minnesota and home!) and not only lived to tell about it, but had a lot of fun, too.

Then I flew out to LA for the SCBWI National Conference which was amazing! The last time I went was in 2007 and I only "knew" a few people. This time I met up with bunches of people I knew and met new ones I didn't.
(This is where I shamelessly name-drop...)

Michael Reisman, who writes the Simon Bloom series

was charming and super-nice and funny, even to this non-fantasy-loving picture-book writer who was just scoring a signed book for her son (to impress him.) I'm such a fan of Michael's now, however, I may have to go read his books...

Kristin Clark Venuti was just as cool and smart as the writer of Leaving The Bellweathers should be. You should hurry up and read her first book

if you haven't already because the sequel is coming! I even touched an ARC of it! Darn it if I couldn't distract her long enough to swipe it, but she did give me a Super Special, Limited Availability, Alligator Paper Clip which is ultra-cool.

Dan Santat is just as funny as I thought he'd be. Or funnier, if that's possible.

I also met Deborah Freedman (who is ridiculously talented and NICE to boot!) and Jacqui Robbins (who is both ridiculously *tall* and FUNNY) and Mike Jung (who is just as Mike Jung as I expected him to be, which is all the nice adjectives I've used so far in this whole post) (except *tall* because he is really not that tall), all of whom I'd gotten to know quite well online and was *thrilled* to meet in person and talk endlessly with about my favorite subject.

(Insert many, many more names here, too many to mention, of other *fabulous* people I met and hung out with in LA but really, this post is already too long as it is...!) (But do be sure to yell at me on facebook for not listing you- I can take it!)

Leaving me with a "last-but-not-least" sort of spot in which I mention the two authors I sort-of went to LA with the intention of quietly stalking- Mac Barnett and Jon Scieszka. Met them both! Funny, gracious, genuine... did I mention FUNNY?? And boy, do they KNOW children's books. Wow. I'm now in awe of them both even more than I was before I met them. Jon even signed my original Stinky Cheese Man copy, so all is now right in my world. Yay for SCBWI conferences!

:)

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So, today was my birthday and I received this book as a present from myself-

The Gashlycrumb Tinies

I have wanted to read this book forever as I had heard it might be the sort of book I enjoy. Oh, it was.
It was *very much*.

And, I might add, my twisted little children laughed as much as I did. And we re-read it twice. And it was the perfect present capping off a lovely day. I (heart) Edward Gorey!

And now I am on vacation for a few weeks. I might be hereabouts. I might not. But I do hope you're spending some time this summer reading a good book! I know I am...

:)

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If you aren't a regular reader of Kelly Murphy's blog (which you should be- she creates such amazing art), please head over there and check out this post!

It has photos of the REAL castles that inspired her gorgeous art in our two books together, Hush Little Dragon and Over At The Castle. So cool to get an inside peek at inspiration like that!

:)

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So, we're halfway through 2010 already (I know, I know) and Betsy over at Fuse #8 is venturing her Halfway-Mark Caldecott/Newbery guesses.

She's really good at doing this, so I'm not gonna be one to disagree. The Newbery is not my field of expertise (despite what I said in my last post- I have a LONG way to go!), but I do have major MAJOR love for this book:

The Night Fairy by Laura Amy Schlitz is simply LOVELY. If you haven't read it yet, please please do. I'll even guarantee this one! I'm going to read it aloud to my twins this summer- I don't normally read longer books to them (we still read picture books together) but I think it will make a perfect read-aloud. This book, to me, has Newbery (or at least Newbery Honor) written all over it.

What do I see for Caldecott contenders? I've already shared my love (I think? Did I blog this book? Or did I just marvel at it over on goodreads? I can't remember...) for Betsy's top pick, which is this:



Here Comes The Garbage Barge is just smack-you-in-the-face awesome. I love Jonah Winter (Gertrude Is Gertrude Is Gertrude or You Never Heard Of Sandy Koufax?! ringing any bells?)- he has the best creative non-fiction voice in picture books today. And even if you put that aside, as I think they basically do, seeing as how the Caldecott is for illustration, the illustrations are a perfect complement to the text- they're innovative and intricate and just way, way cool. I hope it wins!

So, I may be playing favorites there, but I have a few others that have made an impression on me in a big way so far this year that certainly deserve mention as well:











I'm no art expert, but all of these brought me great joy to behold. And now I'll keep my eye out for the rest of the year...

:)

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Before I wrote my first picture book, I had easily read thousands of them to my kids. I absorbed a lot about picture books and their structure simply by reading them. When I sat down to write my first one, it just flowed- I never sat there for a minute and wondered how to write it. Obviously, I'm still improving my craft and getting better at writing, but I had the basics down by osmosis.

A while back, I decided I wanted to write a chapter book that I had an idea for. I sat down to write it. It didn't flow. Not the first time I sat down, or the ninth, or the twentieth. I was so frustrated! And I didn't understand why until I came across this wonderful advice on Linda Sue Park's website. Read a thousand books of the genre you want to write in. I love reading advice that makes so much sense, it makes you feel stupid reading it! I'd done that with picture books, why not with chapter books??

So this is what I'm doing now- I'm reading! Chapter books, with some shorter, younger mid-grades thrown in the mix. And I'm discovering I really like this level of book. A lot. When you steer clear of the formulaic series, there are some really good books in it! I'm trying to make sure to get a good dose of everything: some fantasy, humor, reality-based, highly-illustrated, non-illustrated, girl books, boy books, old, new... I want to completely understand the genre before I sit back down and open up that file.

If you have any suggestions of chapter books you think are particularly good, please e-mail me or mention them in the comments!

:)

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Yesterday... I had a wonderful school visit at Young Author's Day down in Baraga, Michigan where everything went perfectly (well, everything except the hot and humid weather) and they treated me like a *famous author*. Kids hugged me! The faculty was ridiculously nice, the kids were so well-behaved and asked good questions. They gave me a *gorgeous* flower arrangement and a very cool t-shirt with my name on it. And I got ice cream!

Yesterday... I found out that a very kind author I know had recommended me to that Young Author's Day committee as a speaker and it was so nice to discover she had that kind of confidence in me.

Yesterday... two authors who I admire and respect a great deal solicited MY opinion on manuscripts they had written.

Yesterday... a really sweet author I know related a small yet charming anecdote to me about an experience she had out in the *real world* with one of my books (by the way, this NEVER gets old!)

Yesterday... an editor who I admire tremendously and have been anxious to work with since I met her three years ago offered me a book contract!!

Today... I am so very grateful for my writing career and all the wonderful people I have met and continue to meet while doing the thing I most *love* to do in the world- write books for children.

Thank you everyone for making my yesterdays and todays so very, very awesome!

:)

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Editorial Anonymous has asked the question, "What's on your 'I Want To Read!' list?" She has two of mine on her list! So, I must respond in kind (especially since I haven't done one of these posts like this in a while- what's up with that?)...

I love looking forward to books with sweet anticipation! Sometimes they come through and meet or exceed my wild expectations, sometimes they don't. But it sure is fun to salivate over (and pre-order!) books like these:

Yeah, that would be one good-looking bookshelf...

:)

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You know I am all about getting kids, especially boys, to read.

There are two terrific websites that I want to make SURE you know about.

ReadKiddoRead.com, a website started by James Patterson (he's an author, but I've never read any of his books...must investigate...), is one I learned about via Fuse #8's great interview with Judy Freeman last month. There are so many good book recommendations in that post alone! I have a great deal of respect for their book selection process. Go to ReadKiddoRead and find books KIDS WILL LIKE TO READ.

The other must-see website is GuysRead.com. It's been around for a while and is spearheaded by Jon Scieszka. I think it takes a slightly broader approach to book selection and has a few more traditional recommendations on the whole than Patterson's site, but I think they are stepping up their game a bit now. Scieszka and the other authors behind Guys Read are putting out a book this fall called Guys Read: Funny Business and they have a hilarious You Tube trailer for it, which I will attempt to put here:



Since my son has checked out the nearly-falling-apart Jokelopedia book from the school library approximately 124 times, I can assure you that this video rings very true! I'm excited for the book to come out- these authors are a terrific bunch who truly care about getting boys to read. A nobler cause does not exist (well, of course, world peace and ending hunger and stuff like that, but, y'know...)

:)

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I know, I'm not keeping up with my blog.

But I'm W-R-I-T-I-N-G!!

See, with me:

Lots of blogging = I'm not writing (for any of a number of reasons, none of them good)

No blogging = I'm busy writing (yay! this is a good thing)

No writing = I can't keep calling myself a writer (then who would even want to read my blog...?)

Writing = I'm a writer first, a blogger second (if there's time)...

Sorry blog and blog readers :(

Summer's looming!!

Summer = lots of kids + no time for writing

So,

Me = writing desperately now = not blogging now = productive = Good Thing (trust me)

:)

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This week is National Library Week and I can't think of a better thing to celebrate.

There is a terrific group of bloggers doing all sorts of posts about libraries today and you can find a round-up of them over at Market My Words. Please go check it out- there are very few worthier causes to support.

We need books and we need libraries and we need to support both in every way we can!

I had intended to participate with a post of my own. And then I started thinking about how I promote libraries and their importance to our world during my school visits. And then I remembered that I haven't even blogged about my FABULOUS school visits from the end of March down in Oshkosh, WI (it is seriously on my To Do list, right at the #2 spot!) And THEN I opened up the revision I'm trying to finish up for an editor (this would be item #1 on that To Do list) and decided today is the day to finish it. Because after all, I am a writer first. If I stop being a writer, I lose my platform to promote libraries in the first place!!

So, go over to Shelli's blog and support libraries while I get this revision d-o-n-e and cross #1 off my list.

:)

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So, the laundry's finally done.

The inboxes are almost cleaned out.

The Spring Break (the one with the really-bad timing!) is in full swing- sidewalks are being chalked, children's museums are being attended, new bikes are being broken-in and chocolate-chip cookies are being baked and consumed (I'm doing way too much of both...)

And then in a random moment online, I find this:

An adorable-looking sequel to possibly the most perfect picture book of all time?!?! Can you hear me squealing all the way over there?!

Come on, September....

:)

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(Seriously! They did NO laundry while I was gone!)

I haven't even looked yet to see if I have any decent pictures to post from all the *awesome* schools I visited last week. Soon!

But in the meantime, check out the LOVELY review of Over At The Castle that Jen Robinson did over at Jen's Book Page.

Thank you Jennifer!!

:)

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I'm headed to Wisconsin, the land of cheese, the Packers and BOOKS!

I'll be visiting schools in the Oshkosh area Wed, Thurs and Fri, but I'll also be at Apple Blossom Books in Oshkosh on Wednesday night at 6pm (I get to sit in the CHAIR again! Love the chair...).

And on Saturday, I'll be doing a storytime at The Reader's Loft in Green Bay at 1:00pm.

Come say hi if you're in the area!

:)

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Oh, I have a BUNCH of cool stuff I want to blog, but will have to make it short cause I'm getting ready to head back out on the road again (eek!)

I had the BEST time over in Marquette- The Mining Journal even interviewed me and put me on the *ahem* front page. The photo is, um, an action shot, yeah, that's it, an action shot (i.e. not good!) but the article is really good- she asked great questions!

The schools were all wonderful- five different ones! And every stop is different from the last- I love that about them. There is nothing better than being greeted by kids art when you get to a school! Superior Hills did some great stuff for me:

This is the regal library, the Peter White Public Library (which just may have the nicest children's area I've ever seen at a library):


It's so library-looking, isn't it? Wonderful!



I got to stay in the Dandelion Cottage Room at the Landmark Inn which was Charming with a capital C. It even has a hand-painted bathroom- tres fancy! And I even received my own copy of the book (a "minor classic" written in 1904 by a local author, whose home, the Dandelion Cottage of the book, is still in Marquette today) and it now sits atop my TBR pile:


(Thanks, Lynette!!)

So it was a lovely trip, all books and schools and libraries... what else do you even need?!

:)

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Hey, check this out- I'm a "celebrity judge"!!! I'm still recovering from my first big round of promotion for Over At The Castle (and will post a bit about it soon), but it sure was fun to see this:

Debbie Diesen, she of The Pout-Pout Fish-ery, is holding a cool contest over at her blog for her new book, which looks like this:

The book looks adorable, and the contest should be a lot of fun- it's being judged by some VIP's... AND could get really interesting if there's eventually a tie :)

So, tout de suite, post-haste, hie thee hence and participate!

:)

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In lieu of a well-written, thoughtful post about any one topic, I give you small bites of several:

1. Share a Story, Shape A Future!

The wonderful blogging literacy event happens THIS WEEK and has tons of information and ideas about reading to kids. Is there anything more important you can do for a child? I think not. Please go check it out.

2. Please get your hands on this book and read it:


I want to spend more time telling you why, in fact I'd like to dedicate a huge old post to the *genius* of Jonah Winter (although I probably already have in the past... but he would deserve another one for this book alone)(and no, although my maiden name is Winter, we are not related and I don't know him), but I am ridiculously busy this month and I'm already falling behind and I don't want to forget to shout it out. You want to be at the forefront of good books, right? Think of it this way: I read probably 600-1000 picture books a year and this one will likely be at or near the top of my Best list at the end of 2010. People came from other rooms of my house to join us last night as we read this book because it sounded just so darn interesting! And it is that, in addition to being a rollicking fun read. I've said this before, I know: Jonah Winter has V-O-I-C-E. Wow.

3. The Marquette Alger Reading Council is hosting me for school visits and a par-tay at the Peter White Public Library over in Marquette, Michigan this Thurs-Sat. And in two weeks I'm headed to Oshkosh, Wisconsin for a week of fast-paced fun with the lovely Apple Blossom Books. I'm really excited about all of it! But, I am also busily preparing and trying NOT to get distracted by all things Internet. So, if you notice my absence hereabouts or thereabouts or allabouts, that's why.

Read on!

:)

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And the winner is.....

COREY SCHWARTZ!!

Corey wins a signed copy of Over At The Castle

AND, since she tweeted, a signed copy of Hush, Little Dragon too! Corey, e-mail me (boni.ashburn AT gmail.com) your address and they'll be on their way :)

Thanks to everyone for taking part in my little giveaway!
I loved all your favorite numbers- and even learned a little bit about math- ha!

:)

(p.s. I'm posting this on the 6th of March... and 6 is MY favorite number!)

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Today is the official release day of my second book, Over At The Castle!



And, you might ask, what's a birthday without PRESENTS?? Exactly...



Let's give away a present... or two! Just enter before I draw the winning name at midnight on Friday, March 5th, 2010.

WHAT'S THE PRESENT? A signed copy of Over At The Castle. And maybe a signed copy of Hush, Little Dragon, too, since it's Hush's Two-Year Birthday today! But that part's up to you...

Over At The Castle is a counting book, so I'm going to have a little fun with numbers (but I'm terrible at math, so I'll make it e-a-s-y- ha!) Just leave a comment on this post telling me what your favorite number is- how easy is THAT??! I'll put all the entries in a hat, draw the winner and post his/her name on Saturday so the winner can contact me with their mailing address.

So, how can you win a copy of Hush, Little Dragon too?? Simply post about this giveaway on your blog, tweet it on Twitter, post it on your Facebook page, the blueboards... you pick, but give it one little cyber-shout-out SOMEWHERE (and tell me where when you comment), and if your name is the one I draw to win Over At The Castle, then you'll get a signed copy of Hush, Little Dragon too!

And if you ask me, these two books do look *sweet* next to each other on a shelf :)

Thanks for celebrating my Book Birthday with me and GOOD LUCK!

:)

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Kelly Murphy, the incredibly talented illustrator of my first two books, is on Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast today! She has another book out this season, Brand-New Baby Blues, written by Kathi Appelt, that is just terrific:

and Jules had them over for coffee (I know, it was just cyber-coffee, but I'm still jealous!)

I finally got my hands on a copy of this book just last week and it was great fun to read- a swingy, bouncy text with adorable illustrations. It was entertaining, too, to pull it out for my kids- they recognized that it was Kelly's work right away (which made me very proud- discerning little picture-book purveyors that they are).

What we especially loved was seeing her spot illustrations for a change- almost all of Hush, Little Dragon and Over At The Castle are full-bleed (I hope I have that terminology right!) illustrations with just one or two items getting a spot treatment- and don't get me wrong- they're gorgeous! But in Brand-New Baby Blues, the full-bleed pages are alternated with spreads that have multiple spot illustrations and Kelly is awesome at those! When they're alternated like that, it feels kind of swingy, like the text. So it was fun to see a slightly different style from what we're used to (not that we sit around all day here and look at Hush and Castle- really, we don't...much. Ha!)

Anyway, enough of my amateurish rambling- go check out Jules' much more professional treatment of this fantastic new book. It's a lovely way to start your day!

:)

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I am so pleased with how my bookmarks came out for my new book, OVER AT THE CASTLE!

They're beautiful! (Well, how could they NOT be beautiful if they feature Kelly's artwork??) The front-side image is from my favorite spread in the book and it highlights the really cool "sub-plot" told by the illustrations which was all Kelly's idea (yes, she is a genius!)

Do you have a favorite class or teacher or librarian that would like some signed bookmarks?

I'll send a bundle of 25 signed bookmarks to the first 20 people who e-mail me at boni.ashburn(at)gmail.com (Use the real @ sign of course, put "bookmark giveaway" on the subject line, and include your mailing address in the body of the e-mail.)



Ready, set, GO!

:)

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My daughter wants to be on stage- singing, dancing, acting- whatever. She's talented. She's dramatic. And yes, she's adorable :)

THIS is a fabulous book for anyone like that in your life:

It's big and bold and every page is bright and fun and filled with quotes and statistics and definitions- you could spend hours reading this book with your child and not get bored.

The genius of it is the alphabet-book framework- younger children can enjoy the book on a simpler level, following the ABC's and understanding the basic definitions (and being entertained by the dynamic layout and zany illustrations), while older children will find the quotes and more in-depth material fascinating.

What I really love about this book is its gender-neutrality. They could have gone girly with this in the hopes of reaching the Fancy Nancy audience, but they didn't. Both girls AND boys will easily find a lot to enjoy here. And so will the parents!

;)

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If you are insanely obsessive, like me, and you pre-ordered a copy of this:

from Amazon, just so you would know the exact moment it is in stock and shipping,

then you already know it is.

In case you aren't like me, and you're just a regular, relaxed kind of person, then you should know:

OVER AT THE CASTLE is in-stock and shipping RIGHT NOW from Amazon!

(happy sigh)

:)

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