Last week Cary Memorial Library in Lexington, MA hosted a kids’ event called Rock the Lot, and it did! With music, crafts, food, and readings by local authors (including the person writing this post), it was definitely a hit. And the end-of-September weather was gorgeous!
Authors Heather Lang, Maya Tatsukawa, me, and Josh Funk
At the signing table with author pal Josh Funk
Wonderful independent bookstore Maxima Book Center handled book sales.
My Interrupting Chicken Puppet “helped” me read WHAT’S UP WITH THIS CHICKEN?
My granddaughter was impressed that Grammy got a special parking spot.
It’s sooooo nice to see my new picture book, Gracie Brings Back Bubbe’s Smile, available for pre-order at independent bookstores! My local store is Maxima Book Center in Lexington, MA. You can find yours at Indiebound.org or Bookshop.org
I was surprised to see that my picture book due for publication in September already got its first review. And so relieved and pleased that it’s a great one! Kirkus cited all the themes and messages I was trying to get across.
I was so pleased to see my September ’22 book GRACIE BRINGS BACK BUBBE’S SMILE listed in the social and emotional learning section in the publisher’s, Albert Whitman’s, catalogue!
Wearing a face mask adorned with an orange beak, I had fun reading WHAT’S UP WITH WITH THIS CHICKEN? at Maxima Book Center in Lexington, MA, on Independent Bookstore Day. My cheeky chicken puppet introduced me and asked attendees to chime in during the reading, which they did with heartwarming enthusiasm.
The best part was having my cuties there!
Thank YOU, Brian, owner of Maxima Book Center owner!
Next Saturday, April 30th is Independent Bookstore Day, a yearly celebration that takes place in indie bookstores across the U.S. I’m looking forward to participating at a terrific new bookstore in my town of Lexington, Massachusetts, Maxima Book Center.
For my first in-person event since the pandemic began, I’ll be reading my book about a hen who refuses to relinquish her eggs, WHAT’S UP WITH THIS CHICKEN? I’m looking forward to it!
A while back I said to stay tuned for the title of my next picture book. Now I can not only reveal the title, but the cover, too —
With irresistible illustrations by Debby Rahmalia and published by Albert Whitman, the book’s plot is:
Gracie loves when her grandmother comes for a visit, but this time Bubbe is sad. Her husband, Gracie’s grandfather, recently died. Gracie misses Zayde too, so when Bubbe reveals that she used to speak Yiddish with him, Gracie is eager to learn. As Gracie picks up more words, she and Bubbe move past Zayde’s loss and find moments of joy together.
…rejections. At least, I don’t think anyone does. Well, I suppose if you were about to break up with someone and didn’t know how and then they broke up with you first, you might welcome a rejection. But that’s a rare circumstance, and besides, I’m talking about rejections of writing.
This post is for writers who want to be published (including me, because I need this reminder too!)
We work so hard on our writing—we plan, think, write, revise, seek feedback from others, revise some more, proofread, research potential agents and editors, write and rewrite query letters, and then after we finally submit. check our inboxes every day. All that, only to—
—get an email back saying “Thank you for your submission” and perhaps “The writing was charming” or “I enjoyed reading it,” followed by the dreaded big BUT…”But I’m afraid I don’t feel it is as strong as it needs to be…” or “But I’m afraid I’ll have to pass” or “The marketplace is crowded…” or “But opinions are subjective and others may feel differently,” etc. You know the refrain. And unlike that song from the ’90s, no one likes these kind of big buts.
Now here comes another one— BUT you gotta submit again. Yep, you really do. Maybe a rejecter just accepted a book with a similar theme. Or had a bad day or is already overwhelmed by their swollen client list. Or has terrible taste in literature. Try someone else! Try lots of someone elses!
Keep in mind how many rejections these wildly successful books received before eventually being published:
Harry Potter — 12 Dune —20 A Wrinkle in Time— 26 Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance—121
And Chicken Soup for the Soul was rejected…wait for it…134 times!
Look over your submission and query letter again to see if there are any improvements you can make to improve it. Then submit again! And one day your inbox might have an email that makes you feel like this—
Yep, this holiday season, if you’re looking for a gift for a 7-11 year old who likes funny books, I have a suggestion for you…Me and the Weirdos, my award-winning middle grade novel about Cindy Krinkle’s quest to “unweird” her family is one click away on Amazon—$7.99 in paperback and $4.99 on Kindle.
Last week Cary Memorial Library in Lexington, MA hosted a kids’ event called Rock the Lot, and it did! With music, crafts, food, and readings by local authors (including the person writing this post), it was definitely a hit. And the end-of-September weather was gorgeous!
With irresistible illustrations by Debby Rahmalia and published by Albert Whitman, the book’s plot is:
