“Writing is a Strange and Magical Process”: interview & book giveaway

Moments in Like Nothing Amazing Ever Happened are so real and reminded me so much of my husband that I…

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Veterans, PTSD, and the Jan. 6th Insurrection: author interview & giveaway

What an intense book for older-middle grade readers (and adults)! And how prescient of national happenings. The Inside Battle by…

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“I let myself daydream”: interview with Lauren Wolk & book giveaway

  Echo Mountain is a fabulous new story from the award-winning Lauren Wolk, out in 2020 from Dutton/Penguin Young Readers.…

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Grief in Middle Grade Fiction: 2-book giveaway

Stealing Mt. Rushmore comes out this coming Tuesday, August 18, and I’m pleased as punch to feature an interview with…

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How to Build Suspense: author interview & giveaway

When I asked author Tina Athaide how she made her debut novel so suspenseful, she gave me a mini-course on…

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Craft Strong Secondary Characters: interview & giveaway

After reading Adam P. Schmitt’s debut middle grade novel Speechless, I was… speechless. No, really. I was. Seriously. Toward the…

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Collaboration: Do’s, Don’ts, and a book giveaway

Last year I asked a friend if she’d collaborate with me on a novel, and she didn’t say YES right…

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Kill your Darlings: author interview and book giveaway

Is passion just an obsession with something you can’t seem to get better at, or is it the very thing…

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Hear the Character’s Voice: Interview & Giveaway

“The first part of a book for me is hearing the character’s voice in my head. I don’t even take out a pen until I hear it strongly and consistently.”

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