Author of award-winning, adventurous realistic and historical fiction

2018 in Reading

Jan 1, 2019 | , , , , , , , , , ,

Thanks to Goodreads (which I tend to use as a booklog, pretty much just for this purpose), I’m taking a look back at my reading stats for 2018:

These books took me from Cameroon to Moscow to Fiji to Antarctica to Topsea, and from Ancient Greece to outer space. (Can I get airline miles for this?!)

In terms of category, I read 18 middle grade books, 4 YA, 4 nonfiction, and the rest were adult fiction. And I seem to have a thing for blue covers.

In 2019, I’m switching from reading goals to a reading thesis: read to discover, read diversely, read without time pressure, read joyfully. I’m debating whether to keep tracking online–it is handy for the year-end page and book count (although I cannot figure out why Goodreads insists these 59 books are 60), but it also adds a little pressure to add, add, add books. We’ll see what I decide . . .

What were your favorite books of the year, and what do you hope to read in 2019?

New Canaan + nErDcampLI

Nov 29, 2018 | , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Time flies when you’re having fun . . . or you’re revising. I was doing both this fall. In November I turned in the final manuscript for my next MG novel, which will be out in October 2019. The new title (and cover, and a bunch of other info) I’ll share in the new year!

In terms of fun, I had great trips to Wisconsin (where the fall color is always divine), California (where the Disneyland is always magical), and Sleepy Hollow (where the Halloween is pumpkininny). In terms of bookish fun, on October 28 I visited the lovely New Canaan Library for a middle-grade author extravaganza. We had a lively panel followed by a signing, and it was delightful.

The extravagant authors (and friends)

Our books on display at Elm Street Books 🙂

The lovely library

The next Saturday was one of my favorite days of the year: nErDcampLI! I was too busy learning, sharing, connecting, laughing to take many pictures, but here are two:

Our panel on school visits went great–lots of ideas to incorporate for next year!

Book love in cookie form

Now I’m ready to hibernate with a new project I’m writing. Hope your fall was fantastic!

Warwick Children’s Book Festival

Oct 8, 2018 | , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Last Saturday, I spent the day in charming Warwick, NY, at the Warwick Children’s Book Festival. I got to meet with eager readers, signed lots of books and shared 1960’s candy (just like Bea and Pidge would’ve eaten on their cross-country trip), and enjoyed local delicacies: NY apples and apple cider doughnuts. After a long week, it was wonderful to get out of the city and connect with book people.

If you have a chance to go next year, I highly recommend it!

Meeting with a reader

I’m still wondering what’s in a Zagnut bar . . .

Cider doughnut!

Talking fact and fiction on diyMFA Radio

Sep 4, 2018 | , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

I love talking about writing about as much as I love writing (so, a lot). And I had a great time talking about historical fiction and the writing life with one of my “Write Nite” pals (and directly-across-the-street neighbor) Gabriela Pereira. We get into:

  • How to weave a famous historical figure into fiction
  • Crafting rich supporting characters in a road trip story (when they only get a scene or two)
  • Why it’s important to represent real people accurately in your novel
  • Using setting to develop characters and share history

Check out Episode 215 of diyMFA Radio for our discussion here, and be sure to browse all the wonderful resources on the diyMFA site!

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