Children’s Author and Poet
Wow! Guess I missed an email, but excited to find that #dirigibleballoon published one of my poems about our parakeet, Nimbus. He passed away 3 months after I submitted this one. RIP Follow this link to read one of my latest. Thank you, Dirigible Balloon Team across The Pond.
New deal! Read all about it here! June Cotner and I are embarking on our 5th anthology together, thanks to publisher Globe Pequot and are amazing agent, Anne Marie O’Farrell. Here’s an overview:
THE POETRY OF NATURE introduces children, ages 4 – 8, to elements of nature through inspiring poetry and vivid photos of the natural world. The poems are paired with photos that reflect the sentiment and inspiration of the poem. Exposing children to poetry and nature at a young age helps kids deepen their connection with life. The details in the poems and photos that describe nature will help children appreciate both the small parts of nature, such as a firefly, and the large parts, such as the vastness of the sky. Helping children appreciate the splendor and value of nature is more important than ever.
I’m so excited to be leading a workshop and a poetry reading on Saturday, March 28, at Gordon College. Poet and friend, Kelly Belmonte, and I will be running a workshop called The Prompt and the Practice, all about taking the fear out of writing, and writing to be read. We’ll also have tips on the road to publication. Hope to see you there! Here’s the link.
Well, there’s a first time for everything. This past Saturday I was the keynote speaker at a women’s event in Foxboro. Everyone wore their pajamas (including me) and enjoyed a fabulous breakfast (I forgot to eat).
I talked about the friendship between the Biblical cousins, Mary and Elizabeth, and how I could relate to the feeling of being ostracized in society when we struggled to conceive our first child. It was wonderful to have an interpreter for the deaf community in attendance as well.
I signed a lot of books! It was wonderful to see the variety of interest, from the anthologies that I’ve coauthored with my mentor, June Cotner, (For Every Little Thing, Bless the Earth, Toasts and Family Celebrations) to my latest book, Hearts in my Pocket with illustrator Shirley Ng-Benitez.
Besides my daughter’s upcoming wedding (no biggie), I have some bookish events to tell you about. Hope to see you there!
On August 23rd from noon – 2 PM, I’ll be signing books at the Children’s Book Festival, Hummingbird Books, Chestnut Hill, MA. The Boston Globe has that news story here!
On October 11th, from 10 AM – 5 PM, I’ll be at the Louisville Book Festival in, you guessed it, Louisville, KY.
and on November 16th, the 2nd Annual Newtonville Book Festival will be taking place. More scoop on this soon.
Recently, I’ve come across some lovely reviews for my more recently published picture books. This one is by A Beautiful Inheritance creator, Lauren, who writes that One Perfect Plan is a book her family will be “reading on repeat.”
I’ve also discovered some lovely reviews for Hearts in my Pocket online. Reading for Sanity blogger, Mindy, posted here and said: “Hearts in My Pocket acknowledges the rollercoaster of emotions that children might feel when their family situation changes, and is a beautiful reminder that hope and happiness can be found on the other side of divorce. I’d recommend this book to any parent or child who might benefit from that message.”
Likewise, Picture Book Recommendations blogger, Charlotte, posted and kindly wrote about Hearts in my Pocket: “Beautifully done and heartwarmingly illustrated, this book is sure to open up important conversations around feelings and transition to a new family normal.”
You may find several more reviews on my Reviews page. And, if you read one of my books and enjoy, please drop your own review on Amazon, GoodReads, or on your favorite Indie bookstore’s website. Thank you!
Starting a new series this Monday! When I visit libraries in Massachusetts or all over the world, I’d love you to come along and guess where I am. This was a beautiful local library.
I always love a beautiful staircase and row upon row of book stacks.
And always fun to find my own book/s and those of my friends!
Can you guess where I was?
NCTE Boston is fast approaching. I’ll be signing on Sunday, November 24th, at 10 am for Penguin Random House. Bless the Earth is the book that will be featured.
Next up after NCTE is the Newton Children’s Book Festival on December 14th, from 10 – 2 pm
Well, that’s a first! Thanks to the amazing photographer, Stacy Murphy, I had a lovely photo for the cover article with Leading Hearts in their October 2024 issue. Here is the link to the article I wrote called “The Healing Power of Words.” I hope you enjoy the read!
Grateful for Robert Sharpe’s program and that he took the time to read many of the poems in Bless the Earth. To hear the program, head here!