authors, books

QWF Gala

  My writing blahs were blown away last week at the Quebec Writers' Federation Gala in Montreal. It was even bigger and better than I'd expected - definitely worth the drive. Mingling with other writers, celebrating local literature, consuming free wine and hors d'oeuvres... it was just what I needed to renew my interest in the written word. After the food… Continue reading QWF Gala

authors, books

Fall Faves

Writing isn't going so well for me just now--I'm scattered among different projects and I keep going back and forth between two possible plot directions in my sequel to All Good Children. Not good. I don't like writing blind. I don't want to whine -- that's why I haven't blogged in a month -- so I'll write about other people's… Continue reading Fall Faves

authors, writing

Small Town Blues

There's a lot going on in the big cities these days when it comes to children's literature. I just received an invitation from the Canadian Children's Book Centre to attend the TD Canadian Children's Literature Award Celebration in Montreal on November 2nd. There are cocktails and hors d'oeuvres before the award ceremony, and coffee and dessert after. There's even… Continue reading Small Town Blues

authors, books, writing

Feast and Famine

In 2008, after several years of writing for children, I had the good fortune to sell two manuscripts in the same year: a picture book to Kids Can Press in the spring; and a middle-grade novel to Orca Book Publishers in the fall. I did not understand the bleak book market at that time and I had no idea how… Continue reading Feast and Famine

authors, books, writing

Hard Work Rewarded

The YA novel I've been working on for the past year, All Good Children, has found its home with Orca Book Publishers. My editor loves it and sold it to her board and they're already asking if there will be a sequel. (And just so you know, my editor rejected other manuscripts in between Walking Backward and this new one.… Continue reading Hard Work Rewarded