Chicago author Crystal Chan doesn’t shy away from challenging subjects. With her debut novel, the enchanting Bird (Atheneum, 2014), she explored loss, grief, and the meaning of family through the eyes of an inquisitive girl, Jewel. The book resonated with middle-grade readers and adults, and was picked up for translation and publication in nine countries […]
Category Archives: Author Posts
June
13
Crystal Chan Takes on Complex Issues for Teens in New YA ‘All That I Can Fix’ – Interview by Kate Hannigan
posted by CBethM
June
12
Avi: What Do Writers Write?
posted by CBethM
I made up my mind to become a writer when I was a senior in high school. I wrote that down in the only diary I have ever kept. I began high school at Stuyvesant High School in New York City. It was a huge, high-powered school, with some five thousand boys (no girls). […]
June
09
Let’s Start at the Very Beginning… by Mark Overmeyer
posted by CBethM
My first year teaching, I was one of the lucky ones. I had come out of a strong student teaching experience, and my new teacher colleagues provided a perfect balance of providing support and letting me try (and often fail) and try again. And my class– I will never forget my incredible sixth […]
June
06
A Life Story in Books by Kate Messner
posted by CBethM
Readers always tell their life stories in books. When I think back to my childhood, I remember friends and family, splashing in the pool and turning over rocks to look for crayfish in the creek behind our house. But for every year, every age, there’s also a book. I remember meeting Beverly Cleary’s […]
June
05
On Labels in Lions & Liars by Kate Beasley
posted by CBethM
I’m beyond excited about my new book, Lions and Liars. I feel in my bones that this is the story I was supposed to tell next and the way I was supposed to tell it. The novel is about Frederick Frederickson, a 10-year-old who, through a series of madcap mishaps, winds up at a […]
May
30
Cover Reveal: A Drop of Hope by Keith Calabrese
posted by CBethM
My first middle grade novel is about a lot of things. A wishing well. An attic cluttered with mystery. A rare, stolen diamond. Lawn care. The enduring power of friendship. Overcoming our fears, whatever shape they make take. And junk. Lots of junk. But at its heart, it’s mostly about hope. Hope means something different […]
May
29
Wake Up Little Princess (and Prince) by Liesl Shurtliff
posted by CBethM
It’s inevitable. During a Q&A with a group of kids I will always be asked the following: Are you going to write a princess tale? Cinderella? Sleeping Beauty? Snow White? I get a little squeamish and politely say, “Maybe someday,” or “I haven’t gotten an idea for those stories yet,” while on the inside I […]
May
23
COVER REVEAL FOR THE DECEIVER’S HEART by Jennifer A. Nielsen
posted by CBethM
Perhaps the most common question I get as an author is where do I get my ideas? Usually the answer is relatively simple, but with THE TRAITOR’S GAME series…not so much. It started with the title, which was all I knew about the story. And as I began asking questions in search of the […]
May
22
Living, Breathing History by Marc Favreau
posted by CBethM
When I was a child, my dad would get us up early on April 19, to make the short trip from my hometown of Waltham, Massachusetts, to Lexington, just a couple of miles down the road. He had passed on his history bug to me, and I thrilled to the sights, the crackling muskets, and […]
May
17
COYOTE SUNRISE Cover Reveal by Dan Gemeinhart
posted by Colby Sharp
Okay, folks. I’m gonna try to be calm about this. But, spoiler alert, I’m gonna fail at that. I am so, so, so excited to finally start talking about my next book, THE REMARKABLE JOURNEY OF COYOTE SUNRISE. It comes out in early 2019, and even though I’m glad I’ve got the word “early” in […]
