By: Terry Pierce,
on 8/24/2015
The Ridgecrest branch of the Kern County Library System is hosting an author panel, showcasing local authors. I'm happy to say I'll be one of the panelists! If you're in the area on Saturday, October 17, please stop by--I'd love to see you!
By: Catherine Nichols,
on 1/27/2015
By: Terry Pierce,
on 2/8/2012
Registration is now open for my upcoming online course, Introduction to Writing Easy Readers, offered through UCLA Extension Writers' Program.
I am SO excited to teach this course. As some of you know from my workshops on this subject, I believe the Easy Reader genre is THE most important genre of children's books because it is the one that sets a child onto the path of independent reading. In other words folks, this is where we either hook kids as readers or let them get away.
If you're interested in enrollment and registration, please click here.
Hope to see ya'll in my virtual classroom!
By: Terry Pierce,
on 5/3/2010
Next week, I'll be in Bakersfield, CA for the Kern Reading Association's Young Author Fair. I'll be speaking at the following sites:
By: Terry Pierce,
on 6/2/2009
I had a great time giving my workshop on The ABCs of Writing EZ Readers. We had a nice turnout and everyone was eager to learn about this often overlooked, but oh-so-important genre. I always welcome the opportunity to share my views on easy readers with folks.
I can't say enough about how important it is to write beginning readers that kids can actually READ with MINIMAL FRUSTRATION. It's so important to challenge young readers but not so much that it turns them off to reading.
So, a big thanks to the Ventura/Santa Barbara SCBWI for inviting me to present the workshop. And an especially big thanks to Kathryn Hunley, Joan Bransfield Graham, and Jody Fickes Shapiro for making it a fabulous day (oh--and Yuki Yoshino for helping out with book sales!).
By: Terry Pierce,
on 5/29/2009
I'm packing up to head down to Ventura for my SCBWI workshop on Saturday, "The ABCs of Writing EZ Readers." We've got a good number of folks signed up so it should be a fabulous afternoon on learning, interacting and reveling in our craft!
By: Terry Pierce,
on 5/12/2009
Just a quick bit of shameless self-promotion here...
I'll be presenting an SCBWI workshop on Easy Readers on Saturday, May 30 from 1:00-4:30 PM in Ventura, CA. For anyone interested in attending, or learning more details, please click HERE. It should be a fun (and informative!) afternoon. My goal is for attendees to leave feeling like their heads are overflowing with information. And the packets I'll provide...ah, the packets!
By: Terry Pierce,
on 4/1/2009
It's that time again--National Humor Month--where we focus on the joy and therapeutic value of laughter. Not only is laughter the best medicine, it also reduces stress, creates endorphines (those "feel-good" hormones in our bodies) and is a great tool for classroom teachers.
Apparently, in my rush to get dressed, I had grabbed a pair of pants that had been lying on my bed, where apparently, one of my cats’ toys had also been laying. I grabbed the pants along with the toy and threw them on, not realizing that I had a cat toy hanging out the back of my pants! I supposed that if anyone would have said anything, I could have just said that I was writing a story about a cat and was getting into my character. ;-}
By: Terry Pierce,
on 10/23/2008
Tomorrow I head off to Thousand Oaks, CA for the Ventura/Santa Barbara SCBWI annual Writers’ Day (my local SCBWI chapter). I love Writers’ Day! It’s a one-day event but we pack it with great speakers, such as editor Meredith Mundy Wasinger (Sterling Publishing), agent Jamie Weiss Chilton (Andrea Brown Literary Agency), and creative director Patrick Collins (Henry Holt). Additionally, we feature a handful of newly published regional authors, our “Spotlight Speakers” who give a ten-minute talk on some aspect of how they became published (wow--what a great way to hear how others maneuvered on the road to publication). And, if that’s not enough, there are manuscript and portfolio critiques, plus a “first pages” panel where anonymous first pages (submitted by attendees) are read to our speakers followed by their reactions and comments.
C’mon, how cool does this day sound??? This is WHY you should join the SCBWI, if you haven’t already. Each regional chapter offers fantastic events, such as the one I described above. It’s a great way to hear real, live editors and other professionals in the children’s lit business, and network with other writers in your area.
I hope to see some of you there! More later...
Read the rest of this post
By: Terry Pierce,
on 8/20/2008
One of the things I love about being a writer is seeing my books used for good causes, and I recently read about an idea that just about knocked my socks off because I loved it so much (thank you, Mary Hershey!). Mary had the terrific idea to use her latest book launch as a means to donate books to Girls, Inc., a local girls' organization in Santa Barbara, CA.
When I read about this, I called my local bookseller and shared Mary's idea. She loved the idea too, so together Red Rock Books (in Ridgecrest, CA) and I are going to be donating books to The High Desert Women's Center, as part of my book launch. The Women's Center is a non-profit organization that helps women and their children who have left abusive home environments, and helps them get started on a fresh, new life. Because that kind of a situation can be so uncertain and a bit scary for young children, we thought that having each child receive a new book of their own would perhaps offer them a little comfort (and on a separate note, a quilting local club donates homemade quilts, so this way each child will receive a new quilt and a new book).
Red Rock Books is making available to the public a chance to purchase a gift certificate in the amount of $10.00. The certificate will be designated to buy one copy of Blackberry Banquet and that copy will be donated to the Women's Center. You can call Red Rock Books at (760) 375-3454 and request to buy a $10.00 gift certificate for the Terry Pierce signing for The Women's Center. This will allow children at the center to get their own autographed copy of the book. How easy is that?
And of course, if anyone wants to join in the festivities of the launch, the date is Saturday, Aug. 30 at 11:00 AM. I'd love to see you there (and of course, if anyone wants to buy copies for themselves, that's okay too :-).
Cheers,
Terry
By: Terry Pierce,
on 1/21/2008
I have a few good things to post. The first, my Snoopy Dance news is that I found out yesterday from my publisher at Sylvan Dell that I will be participating at Book Expo America this year at the LA Convention Center! They weren’t sure if Blackberry Banquet (click here for a sneak preview) would be available by then, but despite its July 10 release date, it will. They’ll have advanced copies available for me to sign, so mark your calendars for the last weekend in May.
I’ve never attended BEA and I’m very excited. It's such a huge event with so many publishers and authors—and to be a signing author is a thrill. My already overactive imagination is running amuck with thoughts of whom I’ll be seated near. I mean, isn’t it every children’s writers dream to get to rub elbows with Jane Yolen or Richard Peck (even if it’s from a distance and a line of people separates our elbows).
The other good news is that I recently heard from Roxyanne Young of SmartWriters.com. She has decided to run the WIN competition (Write It Now) again this year. It will be open for entries beginning in August 2008, so mark your calendars and watch the SmartWriters website for updates.
One last bit of cool information. Author Bruce Hale, of Chet Gecko and Underwhere fame, is offering a 39% discount on the first four CDs in his Teleseminar series on writing and publishing (targeted toward beginning and lower-intermediate writers). Each recording addresses a different aspect of the process. You'll find insider tips from editors and agents, plus time-tested information on how to write, edit, and sell your story. Click here for more info.
Happy Writing to All!
By: Stacy Whitman,
on 7/16/2007
Our friends over at the Official Time-waster's Guide have posted the second podcast interview with a Mirrorstone author from ALA. Check it out! Candice is the author of over 100 books for children, so her vast experience is something most people can learn from--and she's just plain entertaining, too.
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Yeah! You will be great! Enjoy.
Thanks, Mary Ann. I'm looking forward to it :-).
Terry