Great Minds in Your Neighborhood - Reflections on a Writer's Retreat

We know the names of the Great Minds around the world, but it is just as important to discover the Great Minds in our own neighborhoods. They may not get the same recognition as scientists like Albert Einstein or Stephen Hawking. Their work may not be as easily recognized as that of Steven Spielberg or J.K. Rowling, but they are special to us in different ways. They are much more accessible, and they teach us that genius is all around us. I have been reflecting on this idea since attending a writer's retreat earlier this summer in New Mexico at the Norbertine Abbey. Twelve of us got together to write by day and talk about writing by night.

I left New Mexico in 2017 after spending nearly 30 years there. Every June I return for an informal writer's retreat loosely organized by one of our previous SCBWI regional representatives. The group includes both published authors (see some of our book covers below) as well as pre-published authors. One of our greatest joys this June was celebrating Susan Wider and her book It's My Whole Life: Charlotte Salomon: An Artist in Hiding During World War II. Her book won the 2023 Jewish Book Award for Juvenile Fiction. A few years ago,  Susan was one of our pre-published writers, wondering if she would ever find an agent and an editor. Now she is an award-winning author with worldwide recognition. Check out her book at Norton Books for Young Readers. 

Vaunda Micheaux Nelson has been a celebrity in our little circle for many years. She has a knack for finding little-known heroes and telling their stories. Let 'er Buck! George Fletcher, The People's Champion illustrated by Gordon C. James tells the true story of an African American black rodeo champion. Vaunda won the Coretta Scott King Award for Bad New for Outlaws: The Remarkable Life of Bass Reeves, Deputy U.S. Marshal illustrated by R. Gregory Christie. I love sharing this book with my struggling readers. Bass was a former slave and had to memorize the arrest warrants because he could not read. Unrelated to Vaunda's book, I recently found out that the creators of the Yellowstone series are creating a TV series based on Bass Reeves.  Vaunda has a wonderful blog called the Book Itch. It was inspired by her book,  The Book Itch: Freedom, Truth, & Harlem's Greatest Bookstore, also illustrated by R. Gregory Christie. Check out The Book Itch and scroll to the bottom of Vaunda's blog to sign up for email updates.

Sharon Sivinski, a retired middle school science teacher, has decided to tell her non-fiction STEM stories via a fun YouTube channel called STEM with COG.  I just watched a 9-minute video on How Crude Oil and Transportation Produce Carbon Dioxide. Her style has a definite Bill Nye the Science Guy feel to it. She explains complicated concepts in engaging and visual ways. 

Kimberley Griffiths Little has published multiple children's book series and is now publishing sweet romance and romantic suspense under the pen name of Kimberley Monpetit. She has a YouTube channel where her many book trailers may be found.  

Chris Eboch has published over 100 children's books. (Check out her website for her middle-grade novels and writing workshops.) She also writes mystery and romance under the pen name of Kris Bock, including The Accidental Detective mystery series and The Accidental Billionaire Cowboys sweet romance series. Check out her page at Tule Publishing. 

Molly Blaisdell started joining us a few years ago from Texas. My husband and I split our time between Denver and Texas these days, so Molly and I are almost neighbors (except for the fact that Texas is a VERY large state). She has more titles than I can count, many of them with a science emphasis. Check out her books at https://www.mollyblaisdell.com/

Cynthia Grady, poet and picture book author has a website at https://cynthiagrady.com/books/. Her most recent book Write to Me: Letters from Japanese American Children to the Librarian They Left Behind includes excerpts of correspondences between one caring librarian and her students who were interred during World War 2.

Last of all, check out the titles from my new project, The HOT ROD series of Decodable Books, on my website at https://www.wordtravelpress.com/. Scroll to the bottom of the home page to see my list of titles, and then explore the rest of the website. There are pages full of strategies and free activities for working with struggling readers. Read Hank the Tank for free if you are a member of Kindle Unlimited.

Don't forget to SUBSCRIBE to my newsletter to receive updates about my new decodable book series.

The members of our little retreat are just a few of the many talented authors I have met through the local New Mexico Chapter of SCBWI.  When my husband and I moved to Colorado and I joined the Rocky Mountain SCBWI, I met dozens more. Whether you are an illustrator, an author, or a teacher wanting to connect with authors, checking out your local SCBWI chapter is a great place to start. You may just meet some great minds in your own backyard.

Children's Books Explore The History Behind Juneteenth

Juneteenth became a national holiday in 2021, but many people don't know its background or why June 19th has historical significance. Fortunately, there are several wonderful children's books that explore the history behind Juneteenth.

My first knowledge of Emancipation Day, celebrated across the nation before it ever became a federally recognized holiday, was through a book by my friend, Vaunda Micheaux Nelson co-wrote with her husband, Drew. The book is entitled Juneteenth and was published by Millbrook Press, an imprint of Lerner Books (2006). Read more about the book on Vaunda's website. You can also sign up for her blog while you are there. It is called, The Book Itch. As a retired librarian, she has many insights about books and the writing process. 

Lerner Books, has a website called the Lerner Blog. They just posted What is Juneteenth? They have also published several books for a variety of ages on the topic, including Vaunda's, which may all be found HERE. 

The Emancipation Proclamation which promised freedom to slaves was made on January 1 of 1863. It was a huge success for abolitionists, but most slaves were not actually freed until much later. The Proclamation only gave freedom to slaves in states that had seceded from the Union. Those states no longer recognized Lincoln's authority, so the South did not honor the Proclamation until they were forced to do so at the end of the Civil War. Ironically, the Proclamation did not free the slaves in the southern states that had remained loyal to the Union, though those states did finally have to acquiesce. The slaves in the District of Columbia had already been freed by a law passed in April of 1862. Slaves in US Territories were freed by a law signed by Lincoln in June of 1962.  

Nonetheless, the Proclamation was an important document. As Henry Ward Beecher stated, "The Proclamation may not free a single slave, but it gives liberty a moral recognition." It gave the Union a focused motivation for the war and opened up the admittance of black soldiers. By the end of the war, 200,000 black men had enlisted. 

What does June 19th, 1865 have to do with all of this? It is significant because it was the date when Union troops led by General Gordon Granger marched on Galveston, TX, and read the order announcing that the slaves had been freed. The war had ended two months earlier, but no one had told the slaves they were free. Finally, the vision of the  Emancipation Proclamation was fulfilled. The 13th Amendment to the Constitution that abolished slavery was ratified on December 18 of 1865.

The first official celebration of June 19th came one year later in Galveston in 1866 and spread through Texas. As people moved to other parts of the country, they took the tradition with them. Texas was the first state to make Juneteenth an official holiday in 1980. It became a federal holiday in 2021.  

Juneteenth has become a day celebrated by people of all colors. It symbolizes the end of slavery, but more than that, it has also become a symbol of hope, resilience, and freedom for all people. Be sure to check out books on Juneteenth by Lerner.

Sign up for my newsletter to keep up with upcoming author interviews and book news. Visit the Sign Up Page on my website at www.wordtravelpress.com for details and discover free offers. The website has several free downloadable activities including an activity guide for my new decodable book, Hank the Tank.

FIVE TIPS FOR GETTING THE MOST OUT OF SUMMER READING

Tips for Enhancing Leisure Reading

You may find the video above on YouTube.

It's summer and everyone is exhausted from months of pandemic isolation, hunkering down at home, and neverending Netflix. We want to get outside. We want to play. We want to travel. But many of us are concerned that our kids have missed valuable instruction time over the past several months. We know that summer reading is important, but how do we balance that with having fun in the sun and being with friends? Is there anything more that we can do for our kids to enhance the reading experience besides taking them to the library and the bookstore? Does leisure reading end when summer is over?

Today's discussion is about simple ways to make books come alive. Join me and my lively panel of New Mexico children's authors (Vaunda Micheaux Nelson, Lois Ruby, and Caroline Starr Rose) to explore tips for getting the most out of leisure/summer reading. These authors and their books are featured in my new resource Story Frames for Teaching Literacy: Enhancing Student Learning Through the Power of Storytelling. The authors begin the video with exciting previews of their books which would all make great summer reads. 

My book is primarily for educators, but the focus of today's panel is on families. If you are a teacher, feel free to send this blog link and the PDF downloads home to families to encourage summer reading.

The authors featured today are also retired educators and librarians. They helped me come up with a list of tips for enhancing leisure reading. The list of our FIVE TIPS is below. To access the expanded and printable version discussed in the video, see the PDF download. 

Five Tips for Getting the Most Out of Summer Reading

1. Be a Book Lover

2. Provide Access to Books and Other Reading Materials

3. Encourage Exploration

4. Read Books Together

5. Make Reading Connections

Amy Miller, Director of the May Center for Learning, was not able to be part of our video as was originally planned, but she and I did hold a separate interview that may be accessed HERE. Find out what inspired her to use superhero stories with struggling learners. 

For further exploration, see my previous blog posts where authors Lois Ruby and Caroline Starr Rose talk about their writing styles and the differences between being a Panster vs. a Plotter.

See author Vaunda Micheaux Nelson's post on her blog - Poetry Break! Enjoy the Moment. During our panel, she also mentions one of her favorite books for encouraging reading aloud Reading Magic: Why Reading Aloud to Our Children Will Change Their Lives Forever by Mem Fox, as well as The Reading Promise: My Father and the Books We Shared by Alice Ozma who shares her experience of being in fourth grade and making a promise with her father to read 100 books aloud with him in 100 days. The experience was so meaningful that they continued reading books together until she graduated from high school. 

Reading aloud is not just for little kids!

To find out more about the books written by the authors in this video, visit the links below.

Story Frames for Teaching Literacy: Enhancing Student Learning Through the Power of Storytelling by Carolee Dean.

Bad News for Outlaws: The Remarkable Life of Bass Reeves, Deputy U.S. Marshal by Vaunda Micheaux Nelson

A Race Around the World: The True Story of Nellie Bly and Elizabeth Bisland (She Made History) by Caroline Starr Rose.

May B. by Caroline Starr Rose.

Steal Away Home by Lois Ruby

You may download a complete list of the 32 children's books explored in Story Frames for more great ideas for summer reading.

For suggestions from the American Speech-Language-Hearing Associatin (ASHA) on how to improve language, literacy, and learning over the summer, visit ASHA SUMMER TIPS.

BOOKSTORE COLLABORATIONS

Thanks to the following bookstores for supporting the recent release of

Story Frames for Teaching Literacy

Collected Works Bookstore and Coffeehouse, 202 Galisteo St., Santa Fe, NM 87501 (505-988-4226). Thanks to the bookstore for their generous support of my book and of Amy Miller, contributing author to Story Frames and director of the May Center for Learning. During the entire month of May 2021, CW will donate 15% of all book sales when the purchaser mentions the May Center (unless the publisher's discount to CW is less than the industry standard).

Barnes & Noble Booksellers, Coronado Mall, 6600 Menaul Blvd. NE, Albuquerque, NM 87110 (505-855-7799). B&N will donate a percentage of sales in the store on May 26 (and online on May 26-30) to the May Center for Learning for scholarships to the Summer LEAP Program which will be held at the Albuquerque Academy. Use the code when 12609863 ordering books. This code may be used at any B&N nationwide, so spread the word. 

Second Star to the Right, 1545 S. Pearl Street, Denver, CO (303-733-3773). On Tuesday, June 1, the bookstore will host a live, online event at 7pm Mountain Time when I travel north to talk with Colorado children's authors/illustrators Andrea Wang, Dow Phumiruk, and Beth Anderson. We will explore writing personal narratives and memoir. Find out more about the event and find the Event Brite Signup HERE.

Watch for more bookstore collaborations coming late summer and early fall.

To receive a FREE writing template PDF for kids, sign up for my newsletter HERE and have fun with summer writing!

ALA Chicago Highlights

I went to the American Library Association (ALA) Conference for the first time June 29-30th and it was a truly magical, amazing, and
overwhelming event. I could have spent a week just hanging out in the Exhibit Hall. I got to catch up with old friends like Esther Hershenhorn - author, Chicago resident, and fellow panelist at the IRA Conference in April of 2012.

I also got to meet one of my favorite writers of all time, Laurie Halse Anderson. She is as warm and wonderful as she is talented. Laurie is most well known for her riveting novel, Speak, a Printz Honor book which many of my students have read, but she's also written some wonderful historical novels. I picked up Chains, which won the Scott O'Dell Award for Historical Fiction. It was also a National Book Award Finalist. I also got the sequel, Forge. I'm looking forward to sharing both of these with my students this school year.

In addition to hanging out in the exhibit hall with authors, I attended the Coffee Klatch on Sunday morning. It's like Speed Dating with librarians. Thirty-eight authors, myself included, went from table to table speaking with young adult librarians about our books. Each table had about eight librarians and when the bell rang, the authors moved to a different table. It was exhausting and invigorating and I nearly lost my voice afterward, but so much fun!

The biggest highlight of the conference was getting to see Vaunda Micheaux Nelson at her book signing. Here she is with the Coretta Scott King Honor she received for No Crystal Stair. It's a documentary novel of the life and work of her uncle, Lewis Michaux, a Harlem bookseller in the tumultous 60s. Vaunda works as a librarian at the public library in Rio Rancho, New Mexico. It's the same city where I'm a speech-language pathologist. She and I led author panel discussions at both high schools last fall about book research. We also talked about our experiences at the YALSA SYMPOSIUM in St. Louis last November.

I'm already marking my calendar for ALA 2014 in Las Vegas, Nevada.