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by Bryan Patrick Avery It’s been a busy summer and I’ve been on deadline for most of it. One the projects I’m working on is a mystery in verse so I thought I’d use this month’s post to share a few of my favorite mentor texts for verse novelists. Up first, a book from one of my favorite poets, Nikki Grimes. PLANET MIDDLE SCHOOL, by Nikki Grimes, follows Joylin, a middle schooler who loves playing basketball, particularly with Jake, her long-time friend. Without warning, Joylin’s world, and body, start to change, leaving her trying to figure out her place in this new, ever-changing, world. Joylin navigates issues at home, problems at school, and even her first crush.  Who it will help: Everyone! Nikki Grimes is one of kidlit’s most celebrated poets, and for good reason. Her free-verse poems are excellent on their own but really come alive in the context of the story. Her ability to tell a story three a series of poems, including the richness of emotion, action, and suspense are unmatched. If you’re interested in a writing a novel in verse using more structured poems, check out THE LAST FIFTH GRADE OF EMERSON ELEMENTARY by Laura Shovan. Emerson Elementary is scheduled to be close and bulldozed over. Ms. Hill’s fifth-grade class pick up their pens and pencils and make one final stand (through poetry) to try to save their school.  Who it will help: Anybody looking to tell a story in verse using various poetry forms, including acrostics, fibs, haiku, and limericks. Also, anyone looking to tell a story using multiple points of view. In this book, all the students contribute poems using their favorite formats. If you’re looking for examples of many different types of poetry this is a great place to start. JAZZ OWLS, by Margarita Engle, tells the story of the 1943 Zoot Suit Riots in Los Angeles, California. Young Mexican women gather in jazz clubs to dance with the Navy sailors who’ve come ashore until racism and violence threatens the safety of the once quiet community. JAZZ OWLS is a compelling and honest look at a troubling time in our nation’s history.  Who it will help: Poets working on novels in verse for older readers. Also, any poet looking for inspiration that will help them develop their own unique voice, create and deliver on a theme for their novel, anyone looking for examples of the most evocative and emotional poetry.  One last resource I’d recommend, even though it’s not exactly a mentor text. My love of poetry began as a small child with the poem Carol of the Brown King by Langston Hughes. After that, I devoured everything Hughes wrote (including the not so kid friendly poems). THE COLLECTED POEMS OF LANGSTON HUGHES collects all of his published work and is an essential resource for any poet.
Well, that’s all for this month. Happy writing and have a magical month.
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The pandemic was in full blown lockdown. My fifth and sixth grade students struggled to succeed in our new virtual format. Perched on a chair at my dining room table, I settled in for yet another Zoom session with bewildered faces staring back at me. You guessed it. It was March 2020 and little did I know how much my life’s path would change. Changing from in-person teaching to virtual would be a walk in the park compared to changing from traditional art forms to digital illustration. Along with this transition, I also decided to rummage through some of my old manuscripts and put fingers to keys – ahhh yes! I’m a children’s book writer again. Not so fast!  First, I learned that my passion was a bit ahead of my understanding of the craft of writing for children. After multiple rejections I knew I must learn more about the craft. However, when it came to illustrating, I knew there was much to learn about children’s book illustrations. My training was in fine art and architecture. I attended Parson’s School of Design in Los Angeles back when personal computers, let alone laptops and iPads were rare. I figured it would be too complicated to illustrate in pastel since I usually worked on paper 18X24 and larger. I initially decided I would be an author and not pursue a path as an author-illustrator. I was active in the children’s writing community on Twitter when I saw a post from Larissa Marantz about one of her drawing classes with OC Art Studios. I applied and received one of her scholarships. Additionally, with extra time on my hands, I decided to break out my pastels and see if I still had skills. I had not completed a pastel drawing in years. Here are a few of my return to pastels drawings.
Once in Larissa’s course I began to realize that many illustrators were using digital tools. I was working with pen, ink, paper, and erasers. Working digitally intrigued me. I had never drawn much of anything digitally. The first thing I did was ask my teenage daughter how to use some digital drawing apps. She just happened to be using Procreate, and that’s where my journey began. I did not know a layer from a mask, or brushes, or any other elements used in digital painting. My first efforts were frustrating. I knew in my mind what I wanted to create, but I could not carry it out digitally. I knew exactly what I would do if I were working traditionally. I knew how I would mix colors and execute certain aspects of my drawing. Do not despair. By and by, my digital illustrations improved. This was in part to Larissa’s courses. But it was also in part through courses with Mira and all the phenomenal co-teachers in Children’s Book Academy. What is even more incredible, is that I found out about CBA from Larissa and received a scholarship to attend a CBA course.  During the course, I continued to work on my digital illustration skills, and I continued to work on my craft of writing for children. I soaked in as much knowledge as I could during those six months from June – December 2020. One of the wonderful culminations of Children’s Book Academy courses is the Golden Tickets one might receive. As it turns out, I did receive multiple Golden Tickets, one of which led to my debut author-illustrated picture book “Old to Joy” with Gnome Road Publishing (2023). Transitioning from traditional to digital meant quite the learning curve, but there are so many courses and videos available to help make that process easier. I continue to take courses and workshops to improve both my writing and digital illustration capabilities. And our children are worth it!   BIO:
Anita Crawford Clark is a writer and illustrator of fiction and nonfiction books for children. Anita grew up chasing butterflies and fishing crawdads from a nearby creek during scorching Sacramento summers. Her stories and illustrations often reflect those memorable childhood years. Anita earned her BA in Sociology, her MFA in Creative Writing, and MS in Psychology. A veteran K-12 teacher, Anita especially enjoys directing musical theatre productions. The athlete in Anita enjoys shooting hoops. The musician in her enjoys playing the drums, piano and banjo. Anita draws inspiration from her faith, nature, music, history and everyday life. If you visit her during crab season, you might be treated to a bowl of her Louisiana style gumbo - a treasured family recipe. You can connect with Anita on Twitter (@AnitaLClark), Instagram (@AnitasFavPics) or visit her website at AnitaCrawfordClark.com. by Melissa Stoller We just passed the halfway mark on the calendar. It's time to take stock of your writing life and put into place some accountability systems. Here are a few ideas to try:  1) Take note of the stories you are currently working on, those you might want to place on the back burner, or those you might want to work on for the rest of the year. Write a list of your goals for the remaining months of 2022. Ask your critique partners to help prioritize your goals. 2) Be intentional with your kidlit reading. Jot down several books that you want to read and potentially use for comparative titles. Keep an active list on Goodreads or through your library's books on hold service. Check in with friends and online kidlit groups for the latest book suggestions in your genre and others. 3) Access your idea files. Are you running low on potential ideas? Do you need to replenish with new ideas? Would it be helpful to mash together some ideas from your idea notebook? Check in with your writing pals and help each other prioritize ideas to work on for the rest of the year. Stay accountable to yourself and to your writing partners during this month and throughout the year. Let me know how you are doing in the comments. Happy August and cheers to creativity.   BIO: Melissa Stoller is the author of the chapter book series The Enchanted Snow Globe Collection - Return to Coney Island and the picture books Scarlet’s Magic Paintbrush; Ready, Set, GOrilla!; and Sadie’s Shabbat Stories. Planting Friendship: Peace, Salaam, Shalom (co-written with Callie Metler and Shirin Rahman, illustrated by Kate Talbot), released from Clear Fork Publishing in October, 2021. Melissa is a Blogger and Course Assistant for the Children’s Book Academy, a Rate Your Story judge, a Regional Ambassador for The Chapter Book Challenge, a volunteer with SCBWI/MetroNY, and a founding member of The Book Meshuggenahs. She also interviews authors on her blog, This Writing Life, and offers book tips and resources. In other chapters of her life, Melissa has worked as a lawyer, legal writing instructor, freelance writer and editor, and early childhood educator. She lives in New York City with her family, and enjoys theatre, museums, and Wordle! CONNECT: https://www.MelissaStoller.com https://www.MelissaStoller.com/blog http://www.facebook.com/MelissaStoller http://www.twitter.com/melissastoller www.instagram.com/Melissa_Stoller www.pinterest.com/melissa_Stoller https://www.TheBookMeshuggenahs.com By Sharon Giltrow “Emotion - a strong feeling deriving from one’s circumstances, mood, or relationships with others” Oxford Languages. Emotions we all have them; we can’t deny them or quash them. But if we can’t deny and quash them, what can we do? Well as writers we can write about them. The books we write for children can provide a great opportunity to help them to identify and accept their feelings in a safe environment. Uber talented and emotional acceptance champion Kitty Black does just that in her emotional literacy series FOLLOW YOUR FEELINGS.
Kitty champions emotional acceptance through the use of big doses of humour and heart. Here are some of Kitty’s favourite spread from FOLLOW YOUR FEELINGS - LUCY AND SAD.
K - I love this spread because of Sad’s almost deliberate quirky confusion about who or what biscuits are. Following up Sad’s confusion with enthusiasm for cat food is a light-hearted moment foreshadowing the mood shift within the book. S – This spread is a great example of using heart and humour. You can see the connection between Lucy and Sad on the left, when she is trying to make Sad, happy. Which quickly turns into humour on the right when Sad tries to eat the cat biscuits (or Tiny Floor Biscuits).  K - I love this spread because it’s the turning point for Max in emotional acceptance, and because Worry looks adorably funny in the stressed out collapsed on the bed pose. A pose which I’m sure we’ve all found ourselves in at some point or another! S- Here Jess Rose, the amazing illustrator of both Lucy and worry, illustrations add greatly to the story. They show how stressed-out Worry is about the possibility of getting something wrong. The heart in this spread can be seen in the way Max is talking to Worry as well as the reassuring hand he places on Worry. Next time you’re feeling like Sad or Worry try and remember how Lucy and Max accepted and followed their feelings. See you in August with another great Aussie book. GIVEAWAY For a chance to win a copy of either LUCY AND SAD or MAX AND WORRY
BIO: Sharon Giltrow grew up in South Australia, the youngest of eight children, surrounded by pet sheep and fields of barley. She now lives in Perth, Western Australia with her husband, two children and a tiny dog. Sharon has taught for all of her career. Previously a teacher of children who are hearing impaired and Deaf-Blind, she now teaches young children with Developmental Language Disorder. Her humorous debut PB, BEDTIME DADDY! released May 2020 through EK books. Sharon’s humorous follow up PB, GET READY, MAMA! released through EK books in April, 2022. Her third PB, LET’S GO SHOPPING, GRANDMA! is due to be released through Dixi Books in 2023. SAMARA RUBIN AND THE UTILITY BELT, book one in Sharon’s early MG series – THE UTILITY BELT, will be released in 2023 through Clear Fork Publishing. With book two TOBY KING AND THE UTILITY BELT to follow. CONNECT: Website
by Bryan Patrick Avery Recently, I was asked what I use to conduct research for my non-fiction books like BLACK MEN IN SCIENCE. I thought I’d take a moment and share my three favorite resources.  Resource #1: Newspapers.com Newspapers.com is, hands down, one of my favorite resources. If you’re not familiar with it, it is a website that provides access to more than 700 million pages from over 21,000 newspapers dating back to the 1700s. I’ve used newspapers.com to research my picture book, THE FREEMAN FIELD PHOTOGRAPH and to find articles about several of the subjects in BLACK MEN IN SCIENCE. If you’re looking for information on a subject for biography, or information in a moment in history, check out Newspapers.com. Note: A subscription is required but my local library provides subscriptions for free to all library card members. Check to see if your library does the same.  Resource #2: Ancestry.com IF you’ve ever done any genealogy research, you’re likely familiar with Ancestry.com, on of the leading genealogy research sites. The cool thing about Ancestry.com is that you can use it to research other people a well (within reason, of course). You can search census results, military records, birth and death certificates, and so on. I’ve used it to verify birth dates, spouses names, and even find family photographs of some of my subjects to get some context on their lives. If, like me, you enjoy research, Ancestry.com is an endless source of research opportunities. Note: A subscription is required but, like Newspapers.com above, some libraries provide free access. Check with your local library.  Resource #3: Libraries Speaking of your local library, libraries are one of my favorite sources of information when I’m doing research. I know, that seems pretty obvious. Look beyond your local library. Many libraries have collections on important figures, groups, or events. For example, I found a collection of Dr. Leonidas Berry’s papers and artifacts in the Chicago Public Library. These documents, which included letters from political leaders and fellow doctors documenting his contributions to the medical field. Check with libraries in the vicinity of your subject matter to see what information they can share. Well, that’s all for this month. Happy writing, and have a magical month.  At the age of 7, Bryan Patrick Avery discovered a love of reading and mysteries after receiving his first Bobbsey Twins Mystery book. Today, he is an award-winning poet and author of more than a dozen books for children. His middle-grade story, “The Magic Day Mystery”, appears in SUPER PUZZLETASTIC MYSTERIES, an anthology from HarperCollins and the Mystery Writers of America. His Jake Maddox JV Mysteries, OFF BASE and SOCCER SUSPICIONS were released earlier this year by Stone Arch Books. Bryan is the 2021 recipient of the SCBWI Work in Progress Award for his chapter book mystery THE ROBOT IN THE LIBRARY. He is also the author of THE FREEMAN FIELD PHOTOGRAPH, BLACK MEN IN SCIENCE, and the chapter book series, MR. GRIZLEY’S CLASS.
Bryan serves on the board of directors of the Northern California Chapter of Mystery Writers of America. He lives in Northern California with his family. |
We are so excited to be mixing things up at CBA, beginning with some delicious additions to the Blogfish. Meet our awesome new bloggers!!
Here's our lineup: 1st Mondays begin with editor/art director, & CBA Director Mira Reisberg PhD who is handing her Mondays over to awesome former now tradtionally pubbed students to widen their audience. 2nd Mondays will feature super smart Melissa Stoller whose career is taking off with several new books. 3rd Mondays will feature Bryan Patrick Avery, published writer, man of mystery, and professional magician among other things. 4th Mondays feature funny Aussie author Sharon Giltrow sharing awesome Aussie books. And 5th Mondays will feature Libyan American author Koloud Tarapolsi sharing wonderful diverse books. Archives
September 2022
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