May Author Visit

On May 11th 2012 I had the pleasure of visiting Ethan Allen school in PA. It was a great time and the kids were wonderful, kind and enthusiastic. I participated in their Career Day by telling them a little about what it is like to be an author and then I shared Teresa's Shadow with them. I also brought with me autographed copies of books they purchased ahead of time. (Psst - for those who didn't have a chance to buy the book, I left a few copies at the library. Check it out and enjoy the story!) I enjoyed running into students throughout the day and hearing their kind feedback and stories they shared. One group of girls even said "Happy Mother's Day".  I would gladly visit them again!

While I was there, the older kids submitted questions they wanted to ask me. I only had time to answer a few of them. However, I thought they were ALL excellent questions. So, what to do?   I decided I will answer all the questions right here on my blog. I will answer one per blog post. So keep coming back to look for the next question. If you have a question you don't see here over time, feel free to leave one in the comments section and I will add it to my list.



So here it goes.

 Question # 1 :How did you think of the ideas and titles for your books?

That is a great question. I'm often asked how I came up with certain ideas.  Most of the time a thought or a concept comes to me and the story starts there. For example in Teresa's Shadow all I knew was I wanted to write a bed time story. But I didn't want just ANY bedtime story. I wanted something new and different.  From there, the characters began to develop and ideas grew over time. Eventually I had a basic storyline and I filled in details every time I revised it. Many times the final story is very different from the first draft.


Stay tuned for Question #2!

We are in the middle of the best literary week in the world - Children's Book Week organized by the Children's Book Council. You probably love books - children's books at that. So what can you do to celebrate Children's Book Week?

• Check your local libraries to see what events may be going on.

• If you are a teacher, maybe your class can create a  children's  book written by your room. Then each child can take turns throughout the year to share it with their family (this is a great way to keep Children's Book Week going for longer than a week.

• Read some favorite children's books to your child. Give them an extra book this week at bedtime!
  
  
  
  And finally, stop by my facebook page and tell me how you are celebrating Children's Book Week and what books you are reading. Hope to see you there!

Teresa's Shadow Joins Be There Bedtime Stories

As an author, teacher and enthusiastic supporter of reading, I am pleased to share this good news with you. My second picture book, Teresa's Shadow, joined the website Be There Bedtime Stories.

 This website is all about connecting children with families who are far away from each other, like a child and a grandparent, or a child and their military parent. Now, these adults can "be there" for a bedtime story. The website will tell you what they do and how to participate. It is a fantastic idea, which I'm sure will catch on around the country.
 
If this is something you think you're interested in, check out Teresa's Shadow at this great website: Teresa's Shadow at Be There Bedtime Stories

Craft Show Appearance Today

I brought my books, Teresa's Shadow and A Star in the Night to the craft show at the Sisters of the Holy Redeemer's Provincialiate. I love doing craft tables at events like this to see all the interesting things other people bring as well.

 I also explained to my daughters, who came to help, that this is a great way to promote the books. Getting the word out about your books is essential.

I sold some books, had a great pancake breakfast and met some interesting people today. The highlight, and I'll probably post this on my Random Thoughts About God blog as well, was meeting a deacon from a local parish. He was particularly interested in A Star in the Night and My Light Magazine. We had a nice conversation about children, writing, and the Catholic faith. It even ended with a little blessing. You just never know what may come out of these events.

On a separate note, I had planned on doing the April AtoZ Blogging challenge but eerily, the month slipped by me. Thanks to all those who checked in on the blog and attempted your support. Posting regularly is a skill I must sharpen.

Swing by my facebook page to see more pictures of today's event. 

A Writing Pondering

While fending off some tempting, yet distracting game requests, my mind began to wander. And as many authors will tell you, that's when the trouble begins. (Good trouble, ofcourse- unless you are working on a separate project and this becomes a distraction. Then again, sometimes you just have to follow the muse.) Characters develop, plots dance around, villains taunt, and sometimes words just float.

Today I had the case of the floating words. Hope it makes you smile!

Blogging A to Z Challenge is Almost Here

It's almost that time of year again. The Blogging A to Z challenge where you are challenged to do "one month of blogging through the alphabet." It begins April 1, 2012. Use it any way you wish, with whatever theme fits your writing. Each post starts with a letter - beginning with A on day 1 and ending with Z on the last day.

For more information. please visit  A to Z Blogging Challenge and sign up. Comment below with a link to your blog and I'd love to follow your posts! Have fun!

Books in a Basket

Yesterday there was a "Basket Extravaganza" to raise money for my local parish.  When my son's first grade was looking for donated items for their basket, I offered an autographed copy of A Star in the Night and Teresa's Shadow. The teacher was thrilled and thought it would fit in nicely with their "Cold and Flu" theme.  Who couldn't use a book to cozy up with when they're sick, right?

It was a fun event and I wished I could have stayed for the whole event, but my first grader wasn't feeling well. (Anyone else find the irony in that?)  So we stopped on by, took some chances for some other great baskets and left. Of course, we didn't leave before snapping some pictures of the basket with my books.

Let's see how sharp your eyes are.  Can you spot A Star in the Night?

 Teresa's Shadow is lurking in the back of the basket As always, thanks for your continuous support, CTK!

Click on the links to get your own copy of A Star in the Night and Teresa's Shadow.  When you do, stop by my facebook page and tell me what you thought!