I’m excited to share that I have a new short story in the February 2016 issue of Scholastic Scope magazine! “Lost & Found” was inspired by some of the research I did for Summer of Lost and Found. Here’s a sneak peek at the first page:
And here’s a teaser about the story:
A brother and sister find treasure from an ancient shipwreck. The laws say it’s not theirs to keep—but would anyone know if they did?
To find out more about Scope magazine, visit its website here.
You may have heard that the East Coast was walloped with a snowstorm this weekend. As a Wisconsinite, the sound of snowplows scraping the pavement and snowblowers bustling down the blocks made me feel happily at home. I had a great time watching the snow from indoors, while writing and reading and making cookies. But I did venture outside–I had to see the record-breaking snow for myself! Here are some scenes from the city during and after the snow:
Half-buried car on an empty avenue
Sledders heading to the park, during the storm
More sledders in the street
Silent night
The snowy streets were magical
Another quiet street
The next morning: Do you want to build a snowman?
Frozen Citibikes
Sledding!
Last weekend, I hopped on Amtrak and headed up to Boston for the ALA Midwinter conference. (The ride is actually pretty scenic, as the train hugs the coastline through Connecticut and Rhode Island, so you can see the ocean, ferries and fishing boats, and charming towns like Mystic along the way.) It was a quick trip–I got in on Friday afternoon and twenty-four hours later I was already chugging back to New York. But what a great twenty-fours hours they were!
On Friday I got to meet up with some fellow New Leaf Literary authors and our agents, Suzie Townsend and Pete Knapp. Here’s Team New Leaf:
We spent our evening enjoying wine and chocolate at a shmancy party with some fantastic librarians. And I mean enjoying it–the spread involved a make-your-own chocolate crepe bar! But the best part, of course, was getting to talk about books with our librarian friends. I love hearing about what they’re reading, what library life is like, and which books their readers adore.
The next morning, I got breakfast with the Aladdin/Simon Pulse team before heading to the exhibit floor. I’d say being on the floor is like being a kid in the candy store, but as a child my excitement level would’ve been at the same height for a candy store or a bookstore. It was so fun running around seeing all the shiny new titles on display and running into other book people. I gathered enough ARCs that I have a huge bruise on my left shoulder from the tote bag–but it’ll heal, and it’s worth it. (Once I finish them, I have a school librarian in mind to share them with.)
To top it all off, I had just enough time before my train to run into Faneuil Hall and grab a slice of Boston Cream Pie for the road. When in Boston, right? 🙂
Thanks to Goodreads, it’s easy to step back and look at your year in reading. Here’s mine:
So many great books, and I kept up with my personal reading goal of a book a week.
Per the handwritten book log I keep in my planner, it looks like I read 20 MG books, 9 YA, and the rest were adult. Only 5 were nonfiction–although I may have read a few more titles as research that didn’t make it into my Goodreads/booklog.
Goals for 2016? Keep trying to read more diverse books, more books in genres I don’t usually gravitate toward (like fantasy), and a little more nonfiction. I’m also planning to read the Elena Ferrante novels because I haven’t met a single reader who hasn’t gushed about them.
And I’d always love to read more, in general. But considering I revised Summer of Lost and Found twice, finally sent a shiny new manuscript to my agent, presented at a conference, and worked hard at my day job–I’m proud of how many titles I still read!
How was your year in books?