When we last left kindergartener Lupe Lopez at Hector P. Garcia Elementary School, she was living her best life. In LUPE LOPEZ: ROCK STAR RULES (Candlewick, 2022), Lupe had mastered the rules of kindergarten and kept her rock star persona intact, all while starting a band with her friends Ana …
I’m happy to welcome illustrator Keisha Morris to the blog today. Keisha created the art for A GIRL CAN BUILD ANYTHING, written by e.E. Charlton-Trujillo and me, which joined the world on April 18. When e.E. and I were writing the book, we thought it would be super-cool if the …
People who have hung out with me for any period of time have probably heard me talk about picture books I want to hug. These are books I love so much, I just have to hug them and re-read them, and then go off and attempt to write something even …
For most of my writing career, I never considered writing with a co-author. I was happily writing my own picture books with no shortage of inspiration or ideas. And, then, my long-time writing friend, e.E. Charlton-Trujillo said: “I’ve got this idea for a picture book.” e. is no stranger to …
If you’re looking for a family Christmas book to read out loud, there’s still time to find CHRISTMAS FAIRIES FOR OUMA, a new picture book by Lindsey McDivitt and Katarzyna Bukier that came out this year from Familius Books. The book is about Tessa, who wants to show her far-away …
The magic of picture books is how they tell a complete story in few words. To help that happen, picture book authors often use repeating elements. Repeating elements are words, phrases or sentence structures that occur several times in the story. They provide a strong framework and help the plot …
I’ve been thinking a lot about picture book structure lately. In fact, I wrote two Picture Book Builder blog posts about it not so long ago. Here’s one. And, here’s the other. I’ve become a firm believer that the best picture books have a very solid structural foundation that elevates …
Today’s post is about two words that often confuse authors, both new and veteran — marketing and promotion. And, there’s a reason those words confuse people. Because they are, in fact, confusing. They generate so many questions: What should the publisher do? What should the author do? When should it …
Are you a rock star? Either in reality, or secretly deep inside? If so, you might like LUPE LOPEZ: ROCK STAR RULES, a new picture book from Candlewick Press written by e.E. Charlton-Trujillo and Pat Zietlow Miller and illustrated by Joe Cepeda. The book is a story about Lupe, a …
I talk a lot about revision, because it’s such an important part of the picture book writing process. And, revision can come at so many different phases in the writing process. Writers often revise: On their own before anyone else sees the manuscript. (Often multiple times.) After sharing the story …