custom image

My First Talk in Pajamas

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.

custom image
Graeme George

Something Good!

The world has begun to take stock in a few good things that have happened during the pandemic. I would include my Zoom visit with the International School of Kuala Lumpur (ISKL) as one of those surprise blessings. I had such a good time working on list poems with them. Take a look at some of their creations. A special thank you to Ms Catherine Bae, their amazing librarian, who organized this visit. The poem below is entitled SUMMER ROCKS by Mr George’s Second Grade. Isn’t it grand?!

custom image

World Read Aloud Day 2021

It’s now over a week ago, but my WRAD experience was amazing this year. I loaded all of my events into my Google Calendar so that I could easily find the link to each Zoom or Meet. That was definitely helpful. I also printed off a sheet for each school so I knew which book or poem we were working on. With 7 visits in a row, there wasn’t time in between each one for any hesitation. From Colombia to Queens, El Paso to Midlothian, Virginia, I had a blast creating poems and showing a “sneak peak” of my next children’s book, For Every Little Thing (Eerdmans Publishing), co-authored with June Cotner. It’s safe to say, I can’t wait until next year.

custom image

Author Acrostics with Elly Swartz

I can’t think of anyone I’d rather hang out with during a New England snow storm than Elly Swartz. If you haven’t read one of Elly’s fabulous books yet, now is the time to start. You can choose from Finding Perfect, Give and Take, or Smart Cookie. If you finish those, her next book, Dear Student, will be coming out in 2022. To learn more at her website, click https://ellyswartz.com/ To book a photo session with her talented son, Greg, head to https://www.instagram.com/gregswartz_photography/

Author Acrostics with Brian Lies

I can’t imagine starting out an #AuthorAcrostics New Year any better than this. I’m honored to have New York Times best-selling author-illustrator, Brian Lies, here with me today. I think this is a good omen for 2021, don’t you?! Please join me on Twitter for a chance to win a copy of Brian’s amazing book, The Rough Patch, which received a Caldecott Honor and a Crystal Kite award. To learn more about Brian’s upcoming book, Little Bat in Night School, and more click here.