Had two totally different storytime experiences Friday and Saturday. Friday was great, Saturday was...less than great.
On Friday, Dara Dokas (Muriel's Red Sweater) and I went to the lovely Bookcase of Wayzata. Nancy Caffoe, the children's book buyer there, had arranged for two classes from nearby schools to come for a mini-field trip. So we had about 40 K-2 kids to present our Animal Antics storytime to. At the end of storytime, we moved outside for our animal-comparison activities. It was a gorgeous day, the wind was blowing over the lake, the sun was shining. The kids were having a great time. And then a city worker came and had to get into a manhole right near us, and wow! "This is the best field trip ever!" An order form went home with the kids, and hopefully some of them will buy Stampede and/or Muriel's Red Sweater. It was just a great event: well-organized, full of energy, terrific.
My wingspan is as long as an Indian Flying Fox. | 
I can jump as far as a bullfrog! |
Then on Saturday, Dara and I did storytime at my home library. Unfortunately, it was another beautiful day. We had five kids listening, ages 1 to 3. Luckily, their four adults were enthusiastic and participated, too. Everyone sang along, did animal noises, and enjoyed poems and stories. Not a single book sold, though. Even though everyone had fun, they were basically walk-ins who did not come to the library expecting to buy a book. So that event did not go so well. My poems are school-related, and they're a little old for 2-year-olds! I felt kind of stupid and like we somehow let the library down.
Oh well. That's the way bookstore/library readings go. You just never know. And you shouldn't expect anything! I've got two more bookstore storytimes planned, one in October and one in December. Then I'll have to evaluate whether they're really worth doing on a regular basis.
You should be able to see these whether you have a Facebook account or not.
And for something writing-related, I hope you'll check out Dara Dokas' new blog, Children's Writer Gal. Dara's a bookseller and children's author, and she's been blogging some posts that beginners to the world of writing for kids will find very interesting. She's been covering advance/royalties, picture book dummies, and more. So stop by, read up, and say hey:>)
My Blog Meander (see sidebar) continues with a brief interview over at Tracie Vaughn Zimmer's blog (she of the lovely Steady Hands)--hope you'll stop by to say to take a quick read. She also links to the wonderful teaching guide she created for Stampede.
And wish me luck! I'm off on my first official Stampede storytime today. With Dara Dokas, I'm doing an Animal Antics storytime featuring both of our animal-themed books, plus songs and activities! We're starting out with a bang at the Minnesota Zoo! If any of you are close by, would love to see you. Here are the details.
And last but not least, I'm offering an online workshop for writers of rhyming kids' poems. Go to this page and then click to read complete workshop info.
Carol's Corner has the Poetry Friday roundup today. Enjoy!
Saturday, I went to Dara's book launch for her adorable, funny picture book, Muriel's Red Sweater.
It was held at Micawber's Books, the bookshop where she works, and a good-sized crowd attended. Dara read the book, Muriel the duck puppet visited, and Dara's dad and daughter demonstrated string tricks with red yarn (read the book to see why), and we had cake. Dara's a former drama teacher, so she was in her element, and the launch was a smashing success!
On the downside, I'm ticked at LJ. I prepared a gallery of 9 images, but I can't get them to post automatically. Grrr...
Anyway, check out this fun picture book!
Kids (and grownups) will have a great time reading this appealing story and looking closely to see exactly what's happening to Muriel's Red Sweater!
