StoryToolz - resources for authors. It's a text analyzer checking readability, word count, clichés, passive verbs, etc. Pretty cool.
A new book by Uri Shulevitz! reviewed by Julie Danielson at Kirkus: WHEN "NATURE'S LIGHTS GO OUT" - DUSK
Fabulous First Lines as gathered by Elizabeth Bluemle, owner of the Flying Pig bookstore in Vermont.
Mentally Strong People: The 13 Things They Avoid at Forbes via SwissMiss
The Gingerbread Man's Top 5 Writing Tips by Darcy Pattison via Cynsations. Great writing advice for the holiday season!
On Being a Real _______ by Cheryl Klein at Chavelaque via Susan Rosson Spain on FB.
How Much Money Do Self-Published Authors Make? from Forbes via PW
Mongolian Author Rides Camel to Bring Children Closer to Books at The Indian Express. Another cute photo on twitter here.
A CHILD'S CHRISTMAS IN WALES, illustrated by Chris Raschka - GIVEAWAY!
Some writers give us words that taste like candy when we read them aloud. Such is the case with A CHILD'S CHRISTMAS IN WALES by Dylan Thomas, originally recorded for radio in 1952, and newly released this year as a picture book with glorious illustrations by Chris Raschka.
Every writer needs to read this book to elevate their expectations of the written word. And every child needs this book read to them (even if they don't understand all the imagery). In fact, my hope is that reading A CHILD'S CHRISTMAS IN WALES will become an annual tradition, preferably by a fire with a hot cup of cocoa, while wearing flannel pajamas.
The story hearkens back to a time of gas lanterns and Christmas puddings, when snow blanketed everything turning a grimy world to white. While they may not have been the most perfect times--when socks were worn as mittens, and bullying was as common as breathing--the memory of those times certainly can be perfect.
But you must read this book slowly so you can soak in the illustrations by Chris Raschka--wonderfully complicated in a Grandma Moses sort of way that makes you want to stare and stare and stare...
I'm thrilled to have Chris here today to answer some questions about his latest book...
Chris, welcome, welcome! I remember when we were on a panel together at one of the first Decatur Book Festivals and I've been a fan ever since. So glad to have you here!
Q. A CHILD'S CHRISTMAS IN WALES by Dylan Thomas has been around for a long time. What made you decide to take it on?
A. The idea came from Elizabeth Bicknell the editor at Candlewick. We had just completed our first book together, A Poke in the I, and perhaps she was looking for another project we could work on together. A Child's Christmas In Wales was approaching its fiftieth anniversary, so she thought the time was ripe, even though there are a large number of illustrated editions. I knew the recording, not as well as Liz, but enough for me to be eager about doing it.
Q. You're known for your wonderfully simple (looking) watercolor illustrations like in A BALL FOR DAISY (2012 Caldecott winner), but the images in A CHILD'S CHRISTMAS IN WALES are delightfully complicated with so much to look at. How did you approach the artwork for this book?
A. Well, it seemed to me that the imagery and story telling of the piece were like bright fleeting fragments of thought and memory. So in making the art I tried to approximate this as well. Here's what I would do. I would read the text straight through and then simply paint in heavy ink brush strokes whatever came to mind afterwards, whatever I could remember of the text, onto a great variety of kinds of paper I had lying on my large table. I tried to do it all in a continuous swoosh of art-making until the afternoon was over. Then the next day I repeated the process—reading the whole text and painting whatever I could remember of it. After I had a stack of loose brush paintings on my table, I studied them one by one, sometimes not even being able to tell what I had been trying to illustrate. But with some I could tell, and these I developed further with watercolor and finally with touches of body color—gouache in white or pale yellow. Some of the papers I used were very absorbent making the black ink run and blur. Others weren't absorbent at all and the ink skipped over the surface. Either way I tried to make sense out of the black with added color. Once I had a stack of these paintings I began tearing them up. Finally, I placed the shreds next to text where I thought they might work.
Q. You captured the feeling and mood of the time so well. Did you do a lot of research?
A. My first thought was that this project was begging me to make a trip to Wales, and perhaps it was. However, my son was small at the time, and in school, and I didn't want to go without my family, so it was not to be. Instead, I spent a good bit of time browsing in the picture collection at the New York Public Library. However, this too, I eventually gave up. I decided instead to for the most part try to find comparable memories from my own life to be the basis of the pictures that came out.
Q. I know that even your simple-looking images often take you a very long time to get just the way you want. Did the illustrations for A CHILD'S CHRISTMAS IN WALES present unique challenges?
A. See above. But also, I made many more pictures than ever appeared in the book. This was a challenge but a happy one.
Q. The poem was also illustrated in a picture book by Trina Schart Hyman in 1985. Did that influence your approach at all?
A. I was aware of Trina Schart Hyman's book and others, but for the most part I tried to actively be unaware of them in order to go my own way.
Q. You've been a household name for so long, but I'd love to hear how you first broke into children's books.
A. That's kind of you to say. It was like this. I was making little book dummies for a couple of years. These included Charlie Parker Played Be Bop, Yo! Yes? and Arlene Sardine. A friend of mine in an illustrators group I used to meet with once a month on the Upper West Side of Manhattan said to me, "You know, you should really send your books to Richard Jackson. He likes weird books." She did not know Richard Jackson, but did know of his book taste. I knew neither, but found Dick's address somehow, and mailed off my hand drawn dummy of Charlie P P B B to him in California. I learned later that Dick's assistant at the time fished it out of the proverbial slush pile and placed it on his desk. He wrote to me a few days later a short letter that included the lines, "I quite like your little book. Could we meet?"
Q. How long does it usually take you to do a book on average?
A. The average time is three years. Often longer though for one reason or another.
Q. Do you have any advice for those wanting to follow in your footsteps?
A. My advice is this. First and foremost, produce work, whatever that is, and keep producing new work. Secondly, gather with other like minded people. These can most easily be found through the good work of the SCBWI. Gathering them will fill in for you the information that you lack, whatever it might be. Finally, for want of a better word, you have to have faith that the work you produce will find its way and move you forward in the work you do and want to do more of.
Thanks so much for stopping by!
GIVEAWAY!
Candlewick has kindly agreed to give one free copy of A CHRISTMAS IN WALES to one of my lucky commenters. (Must live in the US or Canada to win.) Enter below...
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Hackschooling makes me happy: Logan LaPlante at Tedx
This kid has a better handle on life than most adults I know. He's worth your time:
(Click the image if you can't see the video in your feed.)
(Click the image if you can't see the video in your feed.)
Coloring Page Tuesday - Round Santa!
CLICK HERE for more Christmas coloring pages! And be sure to share your creations in my gallery so I can put them in my upcoming newsletters! (I NEED MORE!!!!) (They don't have to be cards - share your kids' art too!)
Sign up to receive alerts when a new coloring page is posted each week and... Please check out my books! Especially...
Click the cover to learn about my picture book THE 12 DAYS OF CHRISTMAS IN GEORGIA! Makes a GREAT teacher gift! Don't live in Georgia? Check with your local bookseller - Sterling has a version for each state.
My Love For You Is The Sun - Kickstarter and giveaway!
Two of my writerly friends, Julie Hedlund and Susan Eaddy (illustrator) have teamed up for a grand experiment. Their next book, MY LOVE FOR YOU IS THE SUN, is being funded through Kickstarter. In today's changing world of publishing, it's always interesting to follow ventures like these to see how they do. Julie and Susan stopped by to chat about their daring adventure.
Q: Hi Guys! So why did you decide to forego the traditional publishing process and try Kickstarter for MY LOVE FOR YOU IS THE SUN?
Susan: That would be Julie. She had the vision for this hybrid form of publishing and I was lucky enough that she invited me to come along.
Julie: I was lucky Susan agreed! Her work is perfect for this book. I didn’t forego the traditional process so much as tweak it in order to get a book that might not otherwise have been published come to fruition. If your readers want more detail then they ever thought they’d want to know, I did a five-part “Why I Am Crowdfunding My Next Picture Book” series on my blog.
Q: How did the two of you come together on this project?
Susan: We met at the 2012 Bologna Book Fair. The SCBWI booth is the hub of activity and meet -ups for members from all over the world. Sarah Towle, from Paris, was giving consultations in the booth, and I believe she met Julie that way. Sarah saw my showcase in the booth, and said,"You two need to know each other!" We shared coffee and later dinner, and a year and a half later... here we are!
Julie: Yes, we met in Bologna but then ran into each other again at the LA-SCBWI conference in 2012. It was there that I saw Susan’s book, PAPA FISH’S LULLABY. I didn’t realize it at the time, but it was that book (and how much my kids adored the illustrations) that got the gears turning in my mind about asking Susan to illustrate MY LOVE FOR YOU IS THE SUN.
Q. Julie, since entering the children's book industry, you have wowed my socks off with your marketing skills. How did that come into play on this decision?
Wow, Elizabeth! I’m blushing. Thank you so much for the compliment. I come from a business background (electronic payments and banking, believe it or not), so marketing does come a bit more naturally to me than perhaps it does for other authors and illustrators. But I think the reason I’ve had as much success as I have with it is because I am truly passionate about this business AND helping other writers in their journeys. That’s way easier to promote than a business case for a new Internet banking product!!
Certainly the existence of my network through 12 x 12 and other children’s writing communities, SCBWI included, influenced my decision (and my publisher and agent) to pursue this particular path to publishing. Even though hitting the button on that campaign was one of the most terrifying things I’ve ever done, I was confident we’d get the funding. I just never imagined it would happen so soon!
This is why I am such a strong proponent of writers building their networks and platforms. They are not only useful for marketing published books but can also open up all kinds of opportunities that might not otherwise be possible.
Q. Susan, you've done one sample spread for the book so far to give an idea of the finish. How did you decide which spread to mock up and tell us about your medium! (How long does it take you to create one of these fabulous pieces?)
I LOVE the verses in this book, and am so excited about them ALL. There were no bad choices here!
It took me a few weeks to create the thumbnails for the book, and Julie and Stacey and I each weighed in about which spread would be a good start. We decided to go with the river spread, because the idea of FUZZY baby ducks being guided down the river was just too irresistible. And I knew I would have lots of fun with the Mom's wing patterns. Then it was another couple of weeks to work out a tight sketch. Lots of research during that time, what kind of ducks, what setting, time of day etc.
Then the clay... about 5 days to lay the clay (and lots of re- doing in that process), then I photograph it, put it into Photoshop, and prepare the files. It takes about 10 days to 2 weeks for the whole process, after the sketch.
Susan's Studio:
Q: You've now met your goal for Kickstarter funding, so what's next?
Susan: Any extra funding that comes in will be used for publicity. We all know that getting a book published is just the FIRST part of the process. Getting it into the hands of readers is ongoing.
Julie: Susan is right! In addition, I’ve pledged to do one free school visit (in underfunded schools) for each $500 we raise over our target. So far, we’ve got one, but I’d love to do more!
Q: Do you both have other projects going on. Julie, tell us about 12x12 and your Italy writer's retreat. Susan, what's your latest?
Susan: My first authored Picture Book, Poppy’s Best Paper comes out in 2015 with Charlesbridge. This was not a good fit for the clay and is being illustrated by the delightful French illustrator, Rosalinde Bonnett.
Beyond that I have many other manuscripts that I continue to polish until they are ready to be sent out into the world.
Julie: My 12 x 12 is a picture book writing challenge where authors and illustrators try to write one picture book draft per month through the year. There are lots of extras like giveaways from featured authors, the opportunity to submit to agents at the top level, and an amazing community of supportive writers. 2014 will be my third year running the challenge, and registration opens in January.
This is my second year running the Writer’s Renaissance retreat in Florence, Italy, and it promises to be just as amazing as the first year! The retreat is less about writing volumes of material and more about filling the creative well (with all-star faculty to support that process). I only have one space left though, so if anyone’s interested they should act quickly.
I’m also in the midst of promoting A TROOP IS A GROUP OF MONKEYS, which was recently released in print after coming out first as an app (with its companion A SHIVER OF SHARKS). I know you know all about that process Elizabeth, having hosted you when LULA’S BREW was released in print.
Beyond that, I am absolutely itching to WRITE. My writing took a backseat this year to my myriad other activities. I don’t regret that decision because it’s been an amazing year! I just need to find a better balance between my writing and my business endeavors in 2014.
Q: How do you plan to launch MY LOVE FOR YOU IS THE SUN to the world?
Julie: That’s a great question Elizabeth! We’re not entirely sure yet, but one thing I’ve learned from running the Kickstarter campaign is how much of a difference it makes to think strategically BEFORE launching. I know that probably sounds obvious, but I did a great deal more specific planning for the campaign than I did for marketing the other books. I want to take that wisdom and apply it to planning the launch for MY LOVE FOR YOU IS THE SUN, along with Little Bahalia of course, months before the book comes out. So watch this space!
Thanks for stopping by!!
GIVEAWAY!
Julie and Susan have kindly agreed to offer one free copy of MY LOVE FOR YOU IS THE SUN (when it comes out) to one of my lucky commenters. Must live in the US to win. Enter below...
a Rafflecopter giveaway
John C. Campbell - "Creating Picture Books" Wrap-up
This past week I had the great pleasure of teaching "Creating Picture Books" at the John C. Campbell Folk School in Brasstown, North Carolina (sort of like camp for adults in the thick of the Appalachians). I teach this class once a year, but must admit, I had the most fun ever on this trip.
The classes this go-round were extended to four-day rather than three-day classes and that made all the difference in the world for mine class. The pace was more relaxed. My students got to make an actual book dummy, which was enormous help for their writing. And I wasn't so tired at the end of each day, I actually partook in some local fun.
One night, we did wreath-making in the main house's ballroom (I use this term lightly). Staff brought in yards and yards of greenery and berries picked from all over the mountain campus, and we went to work fitting it onto wreath forms. (Here's Michelle putting together her wreath.) There was music, laughter, and hot chocolate. What a great way to get in the holiday spirit!The next night a few of us went to dinner in a small Italian restaurant, Antica Roma Cafe, in downtown Murphy, North Carolina (just down the road). It was during a holiday celebration in town - Santa was there. And we had some of the best gelato I've ever tried. Then we went back to Brasstown, where all the stores and galleries (about five total) stayed open late. Hot buttered rum was served, and there were as many folks just hanging out as there were shopping. How fun!
I had the smallest class I've ever taught at John C, just three dedicated students, but we had a great (and intense) class. Their experience ranged from beginner to expert and they all ended up with tight, and greatly improved manuscripts. (The owner of Harvest on Main in Blue Ridge, Georgia was among them—a professional writer.) Still, picture books are their own unique art form and we all learned bunches. (I was reminded how much I love the medium as I had time to read lots of examples to the class with the extra time we had.)
The weather is always changing up there, and is always stunningly beautiful as clouds or fog roll in over the mountaintops - changing the view from our studio every moment. What a wonderful place, what a wonderful time.
Here are my students with their dummies—Ellen, Sam, me, and Michelle.
And here are their mini-dummies (the acordian-folded items) and their full dummies, which they did a truly fabulous job on. 
SO PROUD!!
And although I couldn't stick around this year, Sunday was the annual "Fireside Sale" at John C - where I usually do all my holiday shopping. (The Alpaca socks are the BEST!) Maybe you'll join me next year?
Read about previous classes here:
2012 class
2011 class
2009 class
2008 class
Peter Bellerby - The Globemaker
I adore globes and don't have nearly as many as I'd like. But I never really thought about who made them before. Step in Peter Bellerby - this is fascinating!
Peter Bellerby - The Globemaker from Cabnine on Vimeo.
A short film about Peter Bellerby, artisan globemaker and founder of Bellerby and Co. Globemakers. www.bellerbyandco.com
Directed by Charles Arran Busk & Jamie McGregor Smith
http://www.cabnine.com
http://www.jamiemcgregorsmith.com
twitter: @cabninefilms
Take Your Child To A Bookstore Day!
It's Take Your Child To A Bookstore Day! 620 stores are participating this year (up from 80 in 2010 when the happy day began). Use today as an excuse to spend some time reading with your child while surrounded by wonderful BOOKS!
ALL THAT'S MISSING by Sarah Sullivan - Guest Post & GIVEAWAY!!
Hi Elizabeth and Thank You for the opportunity to be a guest on your blog. This fall I’m celebrating the publication of my first middle grade novel, All That’s Missing. After 4 picture books, it seems like quite a change, but the truth is, middle grade fiction has always been my passion. I’ve wanted to write a novel for this audience practically all my life.
All That’s Missing is a story about an 11-year-old boy named Arlo who goes in search of the grandmother he has never known and discovers a family secret and a new place to call home along the way.
I’m thrilled that the Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books has given it a starred review! When I began writing the story, all I knew was that there was an 11-year-old boy who was learning about long-hidden family secrets. He had to go in search of his grandmother on his father’s side of the family. I knew the boy’s father had died when he was a toddler and that his grandmother lived in a small town in the Tidewater area of Virginia. And that was about it.
Finding your place in the world and figuring out how much your family has to do with who you are as a person are themes that I think about all the time, so it’s no surprise that they figure in this book.
Revision is my favorite part of writing. I loved creating Frog Creek Books, the indie bookstore in Edgewater with a tree house in the children’s section where Arlo and his friend Maywood formulate a plan to save his grandmother’s house. I loved doing the research necessary to create a fictional African American artist who lived in Paris in the first quarter of the twentieth century.
Edgewater in the book is actually inspired by the town where my grandparents lived many years ago. I say inspired by because it is not exactly that town, but I did use physical characteristics of Tappahannock in creating my little town of Edgewater, such as the tall statue in the center of town...

and the osprey nests up and down the river.

Other parts of the fictional Edgewater differ greatly from Tappahannock, though both are indeed small towns.
On a good day, when I’m revising, I pick up a thread and go with it, working really hard until I suddenly look up and realize an hour has passed. Sometimes I make wrong turns. Only, there is no way of knowing I’m headed in the wrong direction until I try them out. Actually, I don’t think they are wrong turns at all. Rather, they are necessary steps along the way to discovering the path my story is meant to take.
I'm a morning person. That's when the brain waves are at their peak. If I don't pack in some good work early in the day, I'm not likely to make much progress. I head straight for the computer with my coffee and start to work.
First drafts are torture. I enjoy the initial idea, that sudden spark that seems so promising. I love the first innocent keystrokes of a new story, when all is fresh and filled with promise. But, all too soon, the creative spigot shuts down and it becomes work. Is there any other way?
Sometimes I make lists or look at photographs or listen to music, (film scores mostly. Road to Perdition and Cider House Rules are two of my favorites). And then, slowly a character's voice will come into my head. I start writing. Don't go away, I think. Please stay with me. But, it's very slow at this stage because there is so much I don't know. There is that Martha Graham quote which begins, "Dance is just discovery, discovery, discovery." And writing is too.
One final thing about this business of telling stories is the need for input from other writers. No matter how many times I edit and revise, everything changes the instant I think about sharing the story with someone else. Clunky sentences seem to appear out of nowhere. How could I have missed them? And yet, for some reason, only the threat of “outside eyes and ears” sharpens my editing eye enough to catch a lot of things that need work.
Thank you again for the invitation to write for your fabulous blog. Happy Holidays and Happy writing!
GIVEAWAY!
Candlewick has kindly offered to send one free copy of ALL THAT'S MISSING to one of my lucky commenters. (Must live in the US or Canada to win.) Enter below!
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Friday Linky List
Contents of Maggie Stiefvater's Brain - Error messages. Hilarious!
Ian Rankin: 'It took 14 years for my writing to pay.' Fame & Fortune: Crime writer Ian Rankin, 53, who has sold more than 20 million books, opens up on his personal finances.
Via PW and Salon: Literary self-loathing: How Jonathan Franzen, Elizabeth Gilbert and more keep it at bay.
The Words as "Straight Man": Leaving Room for the ILlustrator...with Marcie Colleen at Picture Book Academy
Plotting Along: A Diagram of Key Plot Points at Janet Fox's Through the Wardrobe
Amazon's Drone Announcement Is About Normalizing An Enormous Societal Disruption from Forbes
Ian Rankin: 'It took 14 years for my writing to pay.' Fame & Fortune: Crime writer Ian Rankin, 53, who has sold more than 20 million books, opens up on his personal finances.
Via PW and Salon: Literary self-loathing: How Jonathan Franzen, Elizabeth Gilbert and more keep it at bay.
The Words as "Straight Man": Leaving Room for the ILlustrator...with Marcie Colleen at Picture Book Academy
Plotting Along: A Diagram of Key Plot Points at Janet Fox's Through the Wardrobe
Amazon's Drone Announcement Is About Normalizing An Enormous Societal Disruption from Forbes
LITTLE CHICKEN'S BIG CHRISTMAS by Katie and Jerry Davis - GIVEAWAY!!
My friend and creator of BRAIN BURPS ABOUT BOOKS podcast, Katie Davis and her talented husband Jerry have a new ebook out just in time for Christmas. It's called LITTLE CHICKEN'S BIG CHRISTMAS and is a follow up to the adorable LITTLE CHICKEN'S BIG DAY. Remember when I interviewed her?Well, in typical Katie style, this is no ordinary book and no ordinary book launch! In fact, she's created a Launch Team. And she stopped by to tell us about both...
Q. Hi Katie, welcome back to dulemba.com and congratulations on LITTLE CHICKEN'S BIG CHRISTMAS! How did this story come about?
A.
Jerry: Katie was brow beating me ;)
Katie: Cute, honey. Actually, Our kids always ask us what we want for our birthdays or holidays. The thing is, they never believe our answer which is that we REALLY do love it when they make something, a piece of art or a poem, rather than buying something. It always has so much more meaning. But that's on a parent level.
Jerry: What I love about Little Chicken is he has a lot of attitude. He'll go along with what his mom needs to do, but his patience wears thin in about a nanosecond. I think that works on the kid level. So we played that attitude against the backdrop of the holiday bustle. And with the reveal that Little Chicken's impatience comes from a purely loving and selfless place, we get to underscore the importance of giving and expressing love during the holiday season, no matter how crazy things get. That seemed like a good reason to do a book!
Q. Is it fun to collaborate with your husband Jerry?
A. It makes it a lot easier, that's for sure! I'm amazed at how good he is at both the writing and the vision of keeping Little Chicken in character - keeping his sassiness in the right places, and balancing the rhythm of the quiet pages and the dialogue pages. Our process goes like this: he writes the first draft (the first drafts *I* see). I make suggestions, he tweaks, and back and forth we go. Then I start drawing. He makes suggestions, then *I* tweak, and back and forth we go. And so on. Until it's time to go outside for feedback, meaning from our agent, then critiquers, and an editor.
Q. Little Chicken is so cute. I know children relate to him and I love the story twist at the end - so sweet! Who inspired Little Chicken?
A. Our two kids are both funny and irreverent. Since they were born. Little Chicken, if I had to say, is a cross between them and Bugs Bunny.
Q. So you're doing something new with LITTLE CHICKEN'S BIG CHRISTMAS, releasing it as an ebook before Christmas and lining up a team of people to help spread the word. (You are the marketing maven after all.) How has that worked? Tell us more!
A. So far it's been an amazing experiment! I looked at this as a reciprocal opportunity: for others to learn how to launch a book and learn from my mistakes, missteps, and successes, and for me to see if an effort like this would work.
The first step was for Jerry and me to choose which platform we'd use to publish. After much hand-wringing, research, and weighing of variables, we chose the Kindle. All the reasons and research will be shared in the Q&A webinar I offered to my launch team as one of the thank you gifts for their support.
Then there was a very short time for people to join me on this adventure. I was thrilled when 120 people signed up. They received review copies and were asked to submit honest reviews. It was important to me that they wrote what they actually thought because otherwise, it means nothing and no one would believe the reviews anyway. As a thank you, I offered many valuable thank you gifts, including a chance at a guest spot on my podcast, Brain Burps About Books, which is a great promotional opportunity, or an hour consultation (which I usually charge for). I also offered a whole bunch of other goodies, but what *I* thought was most valuable was a chance to follow along in this experiment and see first hand what would happen. The best thing is the wrap up in January - that private Q&A webinar with my teammates to share the results of the numbers, the steps and strategies taken, which were successful and which fell flat. Team members will be able to apply them to their own launches.
I'm going to do this again using what I learn this time and gather a new team when I launch the second edition of My eBook, How to Promote Your Children's Book: Tips, Tricks, and Secrets to Create a Bestseller. It's been re-written with a ton of new content and chapters, and will include information on this experience as well as lots more. So if your readers are interested, I'll be announcing it on all my social media platforms: my Site, Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, Google+, My Podcast, and it will again have a limited signup time.
Q. How can my readers enjoy their own copy of LITTLE CHICKEN'S BIG CHRISTMAS?
A. The good news is, for a limited time, starting December 5th, if you buy it and submit your receipt to support@katiedavis.com you will get a gift with every purchase: a downloadable Write Your Own Coloring Book version of the book! If you buy three or more copies (you can give them as Christmas gifts, after all!) you will also get a $10 discount coupon for any of my products for writers at http://www.katiedavis.com
The link to get Little Chicken's Big Christmas is : http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00GPPSTRK If you don't have a Kindle, you can still get it because there's a free Kindle for Mac app available right on that page which you can download for your iPad, laptop, or desktop.
Thanks so much for stopping by! Katie also has a coloring pages, a Little Chicken mask, bookmark, and coloring bookmark you can download: CLICK HERE!
And check out this sweet book trailer!
GIVEAWAY!
Katie has graciously agreed to give one free copy of LITTLE CHICKEN'S BIG CHRISTMAS to one of my lucky commenters. (Keep in mind this will be a free ebook.) Enter below!
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Quote of the Day - Alain de Botton
"One of the finest protections against disappointment is to have a lot going on." - Alain de Botton
Don't I know it!
Thanks to SwissMiss for the heads up.
Don't I know it!
Thanks to SwissMiss for the heads up.
Coloring Page Tuesday - Hanukkah Lamp
I hope you had a lovely Thanksgiving or Thanksgivukkah, or whichever you are celebrating this year! Did you know this it the first time that Hanukkah and Thanksgiving intersected in over 70 years? There's still a few more days left for Hanukkah and I hope you have a great one!
CLICK HERE for more coloring pages including more seasonal images! And be sure to share your creations in my gallery so I can put them in my upcoming newsletters! (I NEED MORE!!!!) (They don't have to be cards - share your kids' art too!)
Sign up to receive alerts when a new coloring page is posted each week and... Please check out my books! Especially...
Click the cover to learn about my picture book THE 12 DAYS OF CHRISTMAS IN GEORGIA! Makes a GREAT teacher gift! Don't live in Georgia? Check with your local bookseller - Sterling has a version for each state.
GREAT holiday gift ideas!
Sometimes the publishers I represent in my giveaways have book-ish products to share too. Since we are officially into the holiday shopping window, I thought I'd share some of the stars...
From Chronicle comes this awesome kit of punch-out shapes, which you can use to make the coolest monsters! It's all I could do to not rip this open and start playing with it. But no, it's got my little cousin's name ALL OVER it!!!! Is this not adorable!?
From Candlewick comes a mini-animation theater for your budding artist - also using, you guessed it, MONSTERS!!! I would have adored this as a kid! Heck, I love it now. And what a great introduction to animation this is!
If that's not enough, here's an easy gift idea: DRAGONOLOGY. Also from Candlewick, I don't know a kid alive who wouldn't want to pour through this awesome tome with all its scaly details!
So, if you've got some little ones in your life who need some really cool gifts, any of these will steer you straight! All are available through your local bookseller (try them first!) and online resources.
(DRAGONOLOGY. Text and Design Copyright © 2003 by The Templar Company. Illustrations Copyright © 2003 by Wayne Anderson, Douglas Carrel, and Helen Ward. Reproduced by permission of the publisher, Candlewick Press, Somerville, MA.)
From Chronicle comes this awesome kit of punch-out shapes, which you can use to make the coolest monsters! It's all I could do to not rip this open and start playing with it. But no, it's got my little cousin's name ALL OVER it!!!! Is this not adorable!?
From Candlewick comes a mini-animation theater for your budding artist - also using, you guessed it, MONSTERS!!! I would have adored this as a kid! Heck, I love it now. And what a great introduction to animation this is!
If that's not enough, here's an easy gift idea: DRAGONOLOGY. Also from Candlewick, I don't know a kid alive who wouldn't want to pour through this awesome tome with all its scaly details!
So, if you've got some little ones in your life who need some really cool gifts, any of these will steer you straight! All are available through your local bookseller (try them first!) and online resources.
(DRAGONOLOGY. Text and Design Copyright © 2003 by The Templar Company. Illustrations Copyright © 2003 by Wayne Anderson, Douglas Carrel, and Helen Ward. Reproduced by permission of the publisher, Candlewick Press, Somerville, MA.)
Coloring Page Tuesday Ornaments!
I have teamed up with Kacy Krieg of Lost Creek Laser to make these adorable Christmas ornaments using my Coloring Page Tuesday images. They are currently available in my Etsy shop (click the banner). Ornaments are laster cut into aromatic cedar wood and will arrive with their natural finish, so variations in wood grain are to be expected. The ornaments are ready to hang, or can be painted and decorated by your favorite elves as gifts or memorable keepsakes. I hope you enjoy them!
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