HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!!
I’m so honored to be kicking off 2025 with you all!
I’m especially excited for you to help me celebrate the launch of my new picture book, WRITE HERE, WRITE NOW, illustrated by Andrea Boatta, which released on Jan. 1 with Capstone! WHOOHOO!!!
Here’s a little about the book:
WRITE HERE, WRITE NOW inspires all kids to find joy in writing, no matter what, where, why, when, or how they write. It encourages reluctant writers to tap into their interests while motivating more prolific students to keep doing what they love. Appealing to readers of books like How To Write a Story by Kate Messner and Write! Write! Write! by Amy Ludwig VanDerwater, WRITE HERE, WRITE NOW presents a plethora of ways for kids to play with words while discovering the type of writing that’s “right” for them.
So, I’m sure this will come as a shock to you all, but I was one of those kids who wrote all the time — stories, essays, poems, plays, letters. I started writing in a journal when I was around seven or eight years old (and haven’t stopped!) I was always helping my friends with their writing assignments in high school, became a writing tutor in college, worked in advertising where I wrote ad copy and press releases, worked as a magazine and newspaper journalist, and finally found my way to writing picture books and children’s poetry.
Writing has ALWAYS been a huge part of my life. So, as a parent, when my two boys started telling me they “hated” writing, that it was “boring,” and they weren’t “good” at it, not only was I flummoxed, flabbergasted, and gobsmacked (three of my favorite words), but I felt like I had been gut-punched. My soul actually hurt. I mean, how in the world could MY own flesh-and-blood children “hate” writing?!?
But as I dug deeper into researching this crazy phenomenon (strapping on the ‘ol journalist cap!), I soon discovered that my boys didn’t “hate” ALL writing. They didn’t find ALL writing “boring,” and in fact they were actually really “good” at it. Indeed, many times during my investigation, I found my older son frantically typing scripts for his sports podcast or writing in-depth articles and opinion pieces about the NFL for a fictional newspaper he created. Or I’d find my younger son curled up on the sofa, scribbling made-up inspirational quotes into a notebook or writing long letters to a cross-country pen pal.
This all led me to the conclusion that when my kids say they “hate” writing, maybe what they’re really saying is that they “hate” being told what, when, where, why, or how to write. They are “bored” by the writing they feel “forced” to write by their teachers at school.
And so… I wrote WRITE HERE, WRITE NOW because I want to encourage kids not to discount all writing as “boring.” I want them to experiment with writing topics they enjoy and to find places, writing methods, and structures that feel comfortable to them. As I tell kids during my school visits, there are SO many ways of being a writer and so many things you can write: a speech, a poem, a play, a movie script, a recipe, a song, a newspaper article, etc.
However, let me be very clear: I am NOT AT ALL throwing teachers under any buses here. I completely understand that teachers must adhere to certain curriculum guidelines and they are required to assign certain types of writing to their students. And all of that is SO important because it gives kids an introduction to different forms and a writing foundation they will need moving forward.
My hope, however, is that teachers will use this book in their classrooms to remind those students who may be struggling or who seem disengaged with writing that, even if they don’t particularly LOVE writing “persuasive essays” or “book reports” or whatever they’ve been assigned for that particular lesson, it doesn’t mean that ALL writing is “boring” or that they aren’t “good” at writing. I hope teachers and parents will encourage kids to experiment and find ways of writing (and discover themes and topics) that feel “right” to them.
I believe that writing is like reading. If you think reading isn’t fun, it just means you haven’t found the right book. If you think writing isn’t fun, it just means you haven’t found the type of writing that’s fun for YOU!
And while we’re on the topic of writing for fun, here are some of my favorite books for inspiring kids to play with new ideas:
BRAINSTORM! by yours truly, illustrated by Kate Kronreif (I know, shameless plug, but this *IS a post about writing, so I kinda had to, right? :):
A POEM GROWS INSIDE YOU by Katey Howes, illustrated by Heather Brockman Lee
THE STORY OF A STORY by Deborah Hopkinson, Illustrated by Hadley Hooper
ALSO AN OCTOPUS by Maggie Tokuda-Hall, Illustrated by Benji Davies
By the way, I AM doing a GIVEAWAY this month! Just leave a comment below to win either a signed copy of WRITE HERE, WRITE NOW (US-only) or a 30-min Ask-Me-Anything Zoom call with me! Winner will be announced on my next post, Jan. 31!
And the winner of last month’s giveaway, a signed copy of Diana Murray’s Sleepy Snuggles is….
****Jane Heitman Healy!!!!****
Congrats, Jane! Please email me at [email protected] to claim your prize!
As a mom and a journalist who became a teacher and picture book author, I want to thank for writing Write Here, Write Now. 💜
I love how you parsed out that your boys didn’t really hate writing, but didn’ like “prescriptive” writing. Yes, teachers have to follow the curriculum, but they can find opportunities for kids to write creatively! Congrats on this book and thanks for the book list, too!
This is an important book! I also see it as a way to inspire the younger kids to get excited about writing . And the rhyming keeps it light and interesting.
This sounds like a story for writers of ALL ages! Looking forward to reading this!
I am looking forward to this fun book about all kinds of writing!
Congratulations, Rebecca and Andrea! What a wonderful way to start the year!
Thank you for the inspiration, Rebecca! Your books are so lovely.
Congrats on your latest book. It looks fantastic and I can’t wait to read it!
So fun! Congratulations!
Wow – what an encouraging and fun book. I’m sure it will inspire all sorts of great writing.
What an inspired book -I hope teachers read it and widen the range of writing assignments.
Such a creative title! When I go back to teaching, I would love to use this story in my classroom!
Congratulations on your creative book that will inspire writers and help teachers in their quest to build confidence in their students’ abilities to express themselves. I’d love to win a copy of this delightful book.
Congratulations on your new book, Rebecca! I didn’t like writing until I discovered picture books, so I very much appreciate the approach your book takes. I can’t wait to read it!
Can’t wait to read it (like so many other comments). Love that you don’t just tell the reader to do it, you give examples to help spur them on. Bravo!
I’m always gobsmacked (a favorite word of mine, too!) by the poems kids write in workshops during my school visits–and then having their teacher tell me they normally struggle to put words on paper. Maybe it’s the novelty of an outside speaker, maybe it’s the freedom of a poetry prompt, maybe it’s being told there’s no right or wrong way to respond….who knows? Congrats on your book–I love the spreads you shared here!
So happy for this clever and fun book! Congratulations.
What a phenomenal execution of a brilliant book idea. Bravo! I really track with the purpose of the book because I was a reluctant writer (though I was a huge reader!) In school, I dreaded writing. I wish I’d had your book to show me how exciting and fun it can be.
This looks like a great book! It would be fun to read it to kids and have a discussion about writing. The illustrations are charming! Congratulations!
Rebecca, the book looks wonderful! So inviting!!! Congratulations!!!
Hooray for another success!
I’d love to win this book for my students! I love teaching writing. Congrats on all your books!
This book will be great to use as an introduction to a classroom writing program. A great way to get kids minds spinning.
Congratulations, Rebecca. Reading this review has me wanting to read your book & sit down and write!