Writing for Kids (While Raising Them)

Storystorm 2025 Day 15: Jennifer Swanson Sets the Scene with STEM

January 15, 2025 in STORYSTORM 2020 | Tags: Astronaut Aquanaut, Inc., Jennifer Swanson, Kid Literacy, Solve It for Kids Podcast | 400 comments

by Jennifer Swanson

One of the many things that makes a great story is the scene. Setting the scene for your book is so important because your reader needs to know where they are. After all, a book is two-dimensional. It’s not a video which has the ability provide multiple images in a flash of a minute and interact with you. Books need the author to provide rich, descriptive details that makes the reader feel the sensations and emotions of being in a particular place.

It might be the cool, dark forest, surrounded by high, full trees swaying in the wind. It might be the warm pebbles of sand slipping through your toes while gentle waves lap against your feet.

OR it might be the inside of a tiny shoot of a flower as it emerges from the earth and stretches its new bud towards the sky. Wait. Did you just put your reader inside the stem of a flower? Yep. That’s the lovely thing about STEM writing. It can take you ANYWHERE.

When you are writing science books, just like a fiction book, you can immerse your reader in your scene. That scene might be in the ISS (International Space Station) high up in the sky where you have your reader marvel as the view of the tiny Earth fills up your observation window and feel the weightlessness of microgravity. Or maybe your reader is taken on journey across the limbs and tree branches over a stream, into freezing cold mounds of snow, and through a short, quick thunderstorm to show you how the water cycle works.

What I’m trying to say is that just because you are writing about science/STEM/STEAM you don’t have to be boring. Be Creative! When you are getting ready to write your topic, many people think that because this is a book about science, it has to be done “head-on”.

In other words, if you are writing a book about seeds, you need to talk about how a seed, grows roots, its shoot grows, and it undergoes photosynthesis…. (are you bored yet). What you can do, is to set that same scene in an exciting way. Melissa Stewart does a great job of that with her book A Seed Is the Start by NGKids.

Melissa does tell the story of how a seed grows, but she uses images of an actual seed in the soil. She explains what is happening in short, active words so that the young reader can really see what is happening as well as read it. Pretty cool idea. She is showing science in action in a BOOK!

In my book, Astronaut-Aquanaut: How Space Science and Sea Science Interact, I take my reader on a journey to space and under the ocean. It is not so obvious a progression as Melissa’s, but it accomplishes a similar idea. Readers will see the inside of the ISS and real astronauts answer questions about what it’s like to be in space. They will understand and hopefully even imagine the floating around the ISS and doing their job. To make this more real, I spoke with NASA engineers who helped to build the rockets and space suits that the astronauts wear, asking them what it felt like and how they created this amazing technology.

Then the reader is introduced to aquanauts that dive deep in the ocean and live in Aquarius, the only underwater lab in the world. They will feel the pull of pressure on their bodies, and “hear” their voices reach different pitches as they live in the specialized air combination sixty feet below the ocean. Comparing and contrasting these two extreme environments is a great way to help the reader to understand the e forces that push in on them or lift them up as they also learn about what it would take to become either of these two explorers.

Now I could have just given the information “head-on” but setting the scene of what is happening makes your reader feel like a part of the book. Other books that do this well are:

Sarah Albee’s Poison: Deadly Deeds, Perilous Professions, and Murderous Medicines:

How They Croaked: The Awful Ends of the Awfully Famous by Georgia Bragg:

Water is Water by Miranda Paul:

So, the next time you get ready to write about a science topic, think about ways you can use setting to help your reader feel like they are going on an adventure in your book–when actually, they are learning about science. (Shhh…don’t tell them.)

After all, SCIENCE ROCKS!

Jennifer Swanson is the award-winning author of over 50 books for kids, mostly about science and technology. She is the creator and co-host of the Solve It! for Kids Science Podcast, the creator of STEAMTeamBooks, and STEM Tuesday, and a curious kid at heart.

Visit her online at JenniferSwansonBooks.com. She is also the President and Founder of Kid Literacy, Inc.

Jennifer Swanson is giving away a 20-minute Zoom Ask me Anything session to one lucky winner.

You’re eligible to win if you’re a registered Storystorm 2025 participant and you have commented only once below.

Prizes will be distributed at the conclusion of Storystorm.

Storystorm 2025 Day 14: Audrey Perrott Knows Being Funny is Serious Business

January 14, 2025 in STORYSTORM 2025 | Tags: A HAT FOR HOUSE, Audrey Perrott, BAA HAA, MOO HOO, Ross Burach | 512 comments

by Audrey Perrott

If you’ve ever been on my Instagram feed, you already know I cry easily, just like Milton in my debut picture book MOO HOO. But I also love to laugh, just like Babette in the upcoming companion book BAA HAA. And House, well, his snarky anxious self in A HAT FOR HOUSE is me in all the ways.

What I’m trying to say is…

I’m an author shamelessly plugging my books.

I kid, I kid. (Not really, not really.)

Actually, what I’m trying to say is my anxiety makes me a deeply feeling person, which is mostly great when it comes to writing books for kids.

My husband uses the word “intense.” I prefer the word “passionate.”

Tomato, tomato sauce.

This passion usually translates to books with humor and heart, but I’m not always feeling particularly jovial especially when the world feels dark. That’s when I need a little help finding the light—inspiration that brings me joy, makes me laugh, and validates all of my feelings. So where do I turn?

Stand-up comedy.

Seriously.

Hear me out: While the content of most stand-up comedians is NSFPBs (Not Safe For Picture Books), there is a huge bucket of inspiration and knowledge you can gleam.

Stand-up comedy is so much more than jokes. It’s carefully crafted storytelling with perfected word choice, pacing, tone, voice, themes, and a pay-off in punchlines. Sound familiar?

Comedians tell a story that connects with their audience that makes them laugh, hopefully over and over and over again. That’s what we want for the readers of our funny picture books. We are writing to surprise our readers with joy, preferably in the form of a belly-aching snort-laugh so they read our books over and over and over again.

Study the way comedians weave together everyday situations in unique ways. Watch how they lean into the awkward, the embarrassing, the obvious, and the preposterous. Take notes on their timing. Think of their dramatic pauses as page turns. Pay attention to the running gags and where they’re placed in the set.

Laugh—and then analyze why you’re laughing.

I’m not joking.

Humor is a serious business. So is writing funny picture books.

This is why a few years ago, I made a writing challenge I called Eat Your Words to brainstorm silly picture book ideas. You can find all of the posts on my blog, starting here. I printed out lots and lots—and LOTS—of teeny tiny bits of paper with words. Every week I challenged myself to pick three and use them to come up with story ideas. I encouraged people to join me!

They did not.

It’s okay. It was fun! It also helped me get out of my rut and led to some funny story ideas.

You could easily use an online random word generator, such as, Random Word Generator, or you can download the ones I made.

One last idea for ideas: I’ve been a huge Tara Lazar and Storystorm fan for years, even fangirling big time at the SCBWI Florida Regional Conference in 2020 before the world (almost) ended.

But this is my first time as a guest blogger! It’s a very surreal and exciting checkmark on my proverbial author BINGO card. So, I thought it would be fun to make a real 2025 Book-Maker BINGO card for you to download as a way to keep your sights on your dreams beyond January.

After all, one of my main mantras is to dream big, work hard, and be grateful.

On that note, I hope you dream up dozens of big story ideas this January.

I hope you work hard to turn some of the into full drafts.

And I am oh so grateful to Tara and all of you for inviting me into your inbox today.

Now go forth, be the light and find the funny!

Audrey’s sense of humor has helped her get through some really icky seasons in life. It’s also helped her write and publish a few books, including her debut picture book MOO HOO, illustrated by Ross Burach, A HAT FOR HOUSE, illustrated by Druscilla Santiago, and the upcoming companion to MOO HOO titled BAA HAA, launching on March 4, 2025. Audrey believes funny books are just as important as serious books and writes both in her North Carolina home. You can find more about her at AudreyPerrott.com, on Instagram at @audreysbooksandbakes or BlueSky at audreysbooks.bsky.social.

Audrey Perrott is offering a picture book critique [non-rhyming, up to 600 words] OR one copy of one of her books [MOO HOO, A HAT FOR HOUSE, or BAA HAA (March 2025)], to one lucky winner, their pick.

You’re eligible to win if you’re a registered Storystorm 2025 participant and you have commented only once below.

Prizes will be distributed at the conclusion of Storystorm.

Storystorm 2025 Day 13: Alan Silberberg Hosts “The Idea Game”

January 13, 2025 in STORYSTORM 2025 | Tags: Alan Silberberg, MEET THE LATKES, MEET THE MATZAH, MEMEET THE HAMANTASHEN, MILO; STICKY NOTES & BRAIN FREEZE, P is for PASTRAMI, THE BAGEL WHO WANTED EVERYTHING, THE FALAFEL WHO FELT AWFUL | 469 comments

by Alan Silberberg

Alan is a cartoonist and writer who loves making funny food books for kids. P is for PASTRAMI – The ABCs of JEWISH FOOD keeps company with MEET THE LATKES, MEET THE MATZAH and MEET THE HAMANTASHEN (Viking/ Penguin Random House). His new book, THE BAGEL WHO WANTED EVERYTHING will be published Summer 2025 followed by THE FALAFEL WHO FELT AWFUL in 2026.

His illustrated middle-grade novel, MILO; STICKY NOTES & BRAIN FREEZE won the SCBWI Sid Fleischman Humor Award.

Alan is from Boston but happily lives in Montreal.

He likes chocolate chip cookies.

Learn more at SilberBooks.com and follow him on Instagram @alan_silberberg.

Alan Silberberg is giving away a signed copy of one of his books, one lucky winner’s choice.

You’re eligible to win if you’re a registered Storystorm 2025 participant and you have commented only once below.

Prizes will be distributed at the conclusion of Storystorm.

Storystorm 2025 Day 12: Joann Howeth Chooses Parallel Story-Telling

January 12, 2025 in STORYSTORM 2025 | Tags: Joann Howeth, THE MOLLYS B | 484 comments

by Joann Howeth

People ask what inspired the writing of my picture book biography THE MOLLYS B. and why I chose the parallel story-telling format. It started with an incident in which a heifer executed (forgive the pun—perverse, for sure, but for some reason makes me chuckle) her grand escape from a slaughterhouse in Great Falls, Montana in 2006. That was a busy year for me; I was taking care of my elderly parents, working full-time, and just getting through each day. I remember reading the article about her in the local newspaper. Mostly, I was amused, but I was also inspired by this bovine’s determination and pleased that she had been granted clemency. I cut it out of the newspaper, added it to a folder about animals I’d been keeping for years, and then forgot about it.

Eight years later this heifer made the news again. The article provided a recap of her escapade (hilarious again in its retelling) and proceeded to tell readers about what she’d been doing in the intervening years. Having evaded slaughter and now named Molly, she had been a resident of two large animal sanctuaries. When both of those operations had to close, a third home was found for her at a farm animal sanctuary located in my hometown. The story once again tickled my funny bone, so for my own amusement, I cut the article out of the newspaper, filed it away, and proceeded to forget about it.

By this time, my parents had both died, I was no longer working full-time, and I was engaged in learning the craft of writing children’s books. Always on the lookout for story ideas, I visited my folder about animals where I stumbled across the newspaper articles about Molly. I remember thinking what fun it would be to write her story, but how? A cow escaping from a slaughterhouse? For children?

Fast forward another eight years: it was November. My husband and I were flying home from New York City, and I was as sick as sick could be—the kind of embarrassing sick that had me using the motion sickness bag. And in that weird, brain-fogged, “please let me die” place, I was touched by magic, and THE MOLLYS B. landed in my lap.

In 2006 when Molly the heifer was recaptured and returned to the meat packing plant, the manager didn’t have the heart to send her back to the slaughter pens. Her gumption to overcome her fate spoke to him. He secured her freedom and humorously named her “Molly” after the original unsinkable “Molly”—Margaret Tobin Brown— famous for having survived the sinking of the RMS Titanic in 1912. He saw that the two females shared a natural buoyancy: not only had Molly the heifer survived encounters with moving objects (cars, trucks, and a train), like Margaret she had also survived an ordeal with water—a fast-moving ride down the Missouri River.

In my flulike stupor, I envisioned these two, indomitable gals side-by-side. The text started unfurling and with racing thoughts, I dictated it to my husband, who patiently let me interrupt his reading each time I leaned over with a fresh line. I wrote the first draft of THE MOLLYS B. in four brain-addled hours, but it’s evident that the desire to tell this story had been germinating a long time—sixteen years! Success? Yes, sort of. I had found my way into the story. I had words down on paper, but I still had a sticky problem.

Photo credit: Blue Balloon Books

How does one explain a slaughterhouse to little children? What was my responsibility here? I really wanted to tell Molly’s story—her gumption inspired me. I wanted to celebrate that. But how? Finally, I decided I could tell the story by focusing on one single, shared experience, and how both females, from places of determination and inner strength, fought to save their lives.

Fast forward another two years: after a year of conducting interviews, obtaining testimonials from experts, purchasing licenses for photographs, rewriting, and revising, and then another year of working with a publisher and illustrator, the dual story of the Mollys is at last ready for its audience. It has been a long journey, demanding an amount of patience for which no synonym exists, but I’ll tell you what—it has been FUN! With capital letters. Immensely rewarding and gratifying, I wouldn’t change any part of it.

So don’t ignore those niggling ideas that keep you awake at night, no matter how outlandish they may at first seem. One of those ideas may be a story longing to be told and you may be the only one who can tell it. Find your way into it and start writing!

*Footnote: for the parents of the astute child who questions Molly’s presence in a slaughterhouse in the first place, my book provides resources that will hopefully guide them in finding answers for the toughest of questions they may find lobbed at them.

Photo credit: Adler Boncher Creative

Expecting to become a high school English teacher, Joann was secretly relieved when a scarcity of jobs following graduation nudged her into a complete change of directions. Finding employment in the jewelry industry, she spent many happy creative years as a designer and goldsmith. Comparably satisfying, Joann now writes children’s books. She is a member of the SCBWI and the winner of a handful of awards. THE MOLLYS B. is her second book. Joann makes Montana her home. Visit her at JoannHoweth.com and follow her on Instagram @joannhoweth.author.

Joann Howeth is giving away a signed copy of THE MOLLYS B. to one lucky winner.

You’re eligible to win if you’re a registered Storystorm 2025 participant and you have commented only once below.

Prizes will be distributed at the conclusion of Storystorm.

Storystorm 2025 Day 11: Michelle Schaub Adds Yummy Layers to Her Book Cake

January 11, 2025 in STORYSTORM 2025 | Tags: LEAFY LANDMARKS, Michelle Schaub | 480 comments

by Michelle Schaub

Just as the variety of scrumptious flavors in a layer cake tantalize taste buds, layers in a children’s book deepen its richness. What do I mean by layers? In my mind, a layer is any distinct element that connects with readers. This might be a specific topic, like polar bears or pies, a theme, like friendship or forgiveness, or a curricular subject, like geography or government. The more layers a picture book contains, the wider its reader appeal.

I discovered the importance of layers during my eighteen-year publication journey with LEAFY LANDMARKS: Travels with Trees, illustrated by Anne Lambelet and published by Sleeping Bear Press (March 2024). It’s a family road trip through poems to visit 14 famous and historic trees around the United States.

I wrote the first version of this book in 2007, after discovering that a burr oak my children and I liked to picnic under at our local arboretum had once been a gathering place for the Potawatomi people. This sparked the question, “What other important historical moments have trees witnessed?” Through research, I discovered hundreds of famous and historic trees around the country. I gathered the ones I found the most in-TREE-guing (sorry, couldn’t help myself), wrote a narrative vignette about each, and organized them chronologically according to historical moments. From the start, I had two layers: history and trees. Pretty tasty, I thought.

After several years of submission and rejection, I realized that my vignette approach (too many words!) was falling flat. At this point, I had been honing my poetic voice and successfully publishing poems in children’s magazines and anthologies. I decided to trust my palette for poetry and add this layer. I trimmed the vignettes into sidebars and wrote a poem for each tree. As an educator, I know that teachers seek out poetry collections that model different poetic forms, so I used a variety of unique forms, from etheree to zeno. With three layers, my flavor profile was expanding.

I got some nibbles of interest, but no bites. I had an inkling that my chronological structure wasn’t appealing to kids’ (or editors’) appetites. I thought back to what made my own kids excited to join me on tree research trips. The thrill of the expedition! So, I reframed the collect as a family road trip. Until this point, most of the trees I featured were from the eastern US. I extended the road trip to include trees from western states, including the Grove of Titans in California, home to the tallest trees in the world, and the Pando Aspen Grove in Utah, which is one giant organism with over 40,000 cloned trunks. I also added an introductory poem, “Hit the Road” and a map to indicate the locations of the trees along the road trip route. With geography added to the book’s layers, I finally struck the right flavor balance to tantalize Barb McNally at Sleeping Bear, who purchased the manuscript!

Yes, layers add appeal to children’s books. In my years of reading manuscripts with the Rhyme Doctors (the critique business I run with fellow “docs” Eileen Meyer and Patricia Toht), I’ve learned that layers are often what’s missing in novice manuscripts. I encourage clients to seek out fun and unique flavor notes to add to their stories. But this doesn’t mean opening that writing spice cabinet and randomly sprinkling in additional topics, themes, or formats. Cayenne pepper might add zing to a chocolate cake, but mixing in sardines? I don’t suggest it. Likewise, you want to layer topics and themes into your story that, while surprising, meld in a cohesive, balanced way.

I love giving my Rhyme Doctors’ clients mentor texts to help them during revision. So here are a couple recent picture books that showcase a creative but cohesive use of layers:

The Reindeer Remainders: A Lesson in Working Together and Including Others by Katey Howes, illustrated by Marie Hermansson (Sourcebooks, 2024)
This book expertly layers math with social emotional learning topics such as friendship and inclusion, all in a pleasing rhyming narrative. Sadly, Katey passed away unexpectedly in 2024, but her spirit lives on in her heartfelt picture books.

Nancy Bess Had a Dress, by Claire Annette Noland, illustrated by Angela C. Hawkins (Gnome Road, 2024)
The scrumptious layers in this book include historical fiction, crafting, recycling, and through the art (yes, art can add layers too,) a growing family.

From Park to Playa: The Trails that Connect Us, by Nell Cross Beckerman, illustrated by Sophie Diao (Cameron Kids, 2024)
This book creatively layers urban communities, diverse cultures, nature, and lyrical language.

Looking for layer inspiration? Try browsing following curricular “cookbooks.” (Note: Curriculum standards can differ state by state, but these sites provide an idea of topics covered at various grade levels.)

Happy baking—I mean writing—everyone!

Michelle Schaub is an award-winning children’s author, poet, and teacher. Her most recent books are A Place for Rain (an Indiana Library Federation 2025 Best Read Aloud selection) and Leafy Landmarks: Travels with Trees (a California Reading Association 2025 Eureka Gold and NCTE 2025 Poetry Notable.) Michelle mentors aspiring children’s book writers through the Rhyme Doctors. She lives in Colorado, where she enjoys biking, hiking, and eating layer cake with her lazy golden retriever named Bear. Learn more about Michelle at MichelleSchaub.com and follow her on Instagram @schaubwrites.

Michelle Schaub is giving away a signed copy of LEAFY LANDMARKS to one lucky winner.

You’re eligible to win if you’re a registered Storystorm 2025 participant and you have commented only once below.

Prizes will be distributed at the conclusion of Storystorm.

Storystorm 2025 Day 10: Tara Lazar Talks to Friends

January 10, 2025 in STORYSTORM 2025 | 531 comments

You know that writing friend you have? The one you haven’t spoken to in you-can’t-remember-how-long, but you’re pretty sure it was pre-pandemic?

Yeah, her.

Call her.

Can you believe she hasn’t put out a new book in ages? Or that she hasn’t written anything new lately?

Well, I can’t believe it, either!

Tell her to stop being so selfish!

She’s keeping all her talent and creativity to herself and not sharing it with the world! She is selfishly depriving us of her genius! Her unique perspective! Her inspirational voice!

Once you tell her, she will thank you.

And then she’ll tell you to DO ALL THE THINGS.

It doesn’t matter if THE THINGS get published or not and make money or not. DO ALL THE THINGS just to do them. Because doing the things you do makes you happy. They don’t have to yield anything BUT JOY IN THE DOING.

There.

Now, wasn’t that call good?

Don’t you feel motivated?

She does, too.

Yay.

Pass it on.

More than you want to know about Tara is here.

Tara Lazar is giving away a fiction picture book critique to one lucky Storystorm winner.

You’re eligible to win if you’re a registered Storystorm 2025 participant and you have commented only once below.

Prizes will be distributed at the conclusion of Storystorm.

Storystorm 2025 Day 9: Lisa Gerin Recommends Refrains

January 9, 2025 in STORYSTORM 2025 | Tags: Lisa Gerin, PETE THE CAT, ROSALIND LOOKED CLOSER | 530 comments

by Lisa Gerin

As a former elementary school teacher-librarian, I must have done 1000s of story times. And kids always loved the books that had repetition, rhymed phrases or refrains we would repeat together. So why did it take me almost ten years to use this technique in my own writing?

Now I’m primarily a writer of nonfiction picture books. I first go down the research rabbit hole looking for facts and quotes to use as inspiration for the rest of my text. Then after jotting down my first drafts, I go back and try to insert more lyrical language. It wasn’t until I sold my first biography in 2020, that I realized that a repeated refrain was going to be my book’s hook and subsequently its title. I had written two prior picture book bios and a slew of fiction before I honed my craft and sold my first title, a biography about British scientist Rosalind Franklin for kids.

ROSALIND LOOKED CLOSER: AN UNSUNG HERO OF MOLECULAR SCIENCE (Beaming Books 2022) was not the original title of my manuscript. It was originally entitled THE GIRL WHO LOVED SCIENCE. After my editor thought the book needed something to spice up the writing, I came up with the refrain “Rosalind always took a closer look.” With the rule of the power of three for picture book writing, I put the refrain in the text 3 times. It also ended up becoming the last line in the story and inspired the new title.

Here’s a look at two of the pages in the story with the refrain:

In looking at your own writing and when revising, think about using a refrain. It’s like the chorus in a song that children always remember. Refrains work in fiction and nonfiction picture books. Try a refrain in your next writing project; it may just change your direction and give you a new hook you didn’t know you needed!

Here’s one of my favorite fiction books that uses refrain, PETE THE CAT AND HIS FOUR GROOVY BUTTONS, from the Pete the Cat series by Eric Litwin and James Dean. Happy writing!

Lisa Gerin is a former school librarian and high school teacher with a master’s degree in education. She writes creative nonfiction and biography for children. She lives in Tucson, Arizona, but was raised in New York City.

She is the author of the Junior Library Guild Gold Standard selection: ROSALIND LOOKED CLOSER: AN UNSUNG HERO OF MOLECULAR SCIENCE (Beaming Books) 2022. In September 2022, she spoke to NPR radio, ARIZONA SPOTLIGHT, about her book. In 2023, she appeared on a children’s panel at the Tucson Festival of Books, talking about research methods in writing nonfiction for children. She loves doing school visits. Her newest picture book biography publishes in 2026 with Beaming Books. Find out more about her at LisaGerin.com and follow her on Instagram @_.lisagerinwriter.

Lisa Gerin will give 2 winners a choice of either a critique of their picture book (fiction or non-fiction) or a copy of ROSALIND LOOKED CLOSER.

You’re eligible to win if you’re a registered Storystorm 2025 participant and you have commented only once below.

Prizes will be distributed at the conclusion of Storystorm.

Storystorm 2025 Day 8: Nancy Stewart Explores Voice

January 8, 2025 in STORYSTORM 2025 | Tags: Me and the Missouri Moon, Nancy Stewart | 438 comments

by Nancy Stewart

“What in the world is voice?”

When I was a fledgling author, this would not have been an unusual question for me. In fact, as I look back at those years now, I realize how much I did not know about many aspects of writing. I have also learned that it usually takes a lot of writing to become proficient. After much practice and (I’ll admit it) several books for children, I began to realize how crucial voice is for an author to have any hope of connecting with a reader.

Here are some things I have learned about voice, how one can “capture” it and then use it to your and your reader’s advantage. After all, voice says so much. However, sometimes it doesn’t have to say much at all. The expression can be transferred through gazes, sighs, etc. as long as voice is evident to support expression.

To begin finding and using one’s voice, is to write at least your initial attempt in first person. This is the closest an author can get to the inner thoughts, feelings, hopes and dreams, especially to the all-important protagonist.

Stay close to the emotions of your cast of characters. I find if I can almost be “at one” with them, voice comes more easily. If there is anything similar about them to you (and let’s face it; there always is a chard of memory from our own past), mine it. Go deep into your past. Find the feelings—comfortable or not. It is amazing how much better and authentic your book will be!

If these tips seem heavy on knowing your protagonist/s emotions, then you would be right. One can never know too much about their characters. Knowing their hearts, desires, fears, goals and needs will help the author know what to say or do or act in an accurate manner. AND it will help your reader understand why the characters act the way they do.

When I began writing my Middle Grade novel, Me and the Missouri Moon, two years ago, I knew that I was a different author. That knowledge took me nearly eight years to attain. I knew from the outset that the protagonist, Scarlet, was going to triumph through the troubles that beset her, and how her best friend, Cricket, her mama, and several others, would help her save the day. Voice helped save the day. And the practice of listening to one’s characters and speaking for them in their voices is what makes reality happen in a book of fiction.

An example of voice used in Me and the Missouri Moon:

I propped my elbows on the chilly windowsill and rested my head on my hands. Tears plopped down on it, and I wiped them off the wood with my PJ top. Between Cricket, and Malcom, and Daddy, these past three months had been the best and the worst of my life.

The moon was all fuzzy when I looked back up at it through teary eyes. “Remember when I asked you to guide me like the North Star? Well, I needed your help then, but tonight I need it super bad. Problem is, I wasn’t constant and true to my best friend. Now, she won’t be my friend anymore, ‘cause I was mean to her without any real reason. But I believe in your magic, like Grandma says. So, if you could help me, I’d surely appreciate it. That’s all. Good Night.”

I climbed into bed, wiped the last tears away, and snuggled into my comforter. But as much as I loved that old moon, I knew in my heart it couldn’t help me. I was the only one who could.

This book is a starred Kirkus Star winner, 2024.

A graduate of Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri, Nancy Stewart taught grade school and was a university professor, specializing in Children’s and Young Adult Literature. She was fortunate to have lived in London with her family for a number of years and, while there, traveled the world, particularly Africa. Nancy’s debut Young Adult novel, Beulah Land, was a finalist in the Forward Indies Book of the Year Awards. It was also one of the most anticipated books at Barnes & Nobel in 2017. Her new Middle Grade novel, Me and the Missouri Moon, won a Starred Kirkus Award in October 2024, a star from The Children’s Book Review, and a gold medal from Literary Titan. Visit her at NancyStewartWrites.com and follow her on Instagram @rosenthalstewart.

She, her husband, and their (adopted from the Missouri Ozarks) pup, Louie, live in Tampa, Florida.

Nancy Stewart is giving away a signed, soft-cover copy of her book Me and the Missouri Moon.

You’re eligible to win if you’re a registered Storystorm 2025 participant and you have commented only once below.

Prizes will be distributed at the conclusion of Storystorm.

Storystorm 2025 Day 7: Tanya Konerman Writes Her Passion

January 7, 2025 in STORYSTORM 2025 | Tags: MUD TO THE RESCUE, Tanya Konerman | 541 comments

by Tanya Konerman

“Put your ear down close to your soul and listen hard.”
–Poet Anne Sexton

We’ve all heard the advice to “Write What You Know.” But I don’t adhere to that limiting concept, of writing about only that which I’ve gotten a degree in or do in my day job. Instead, I believe in “Write What You Love,” writing about that which fills my mind and heart the rest of the time, through serious hobbies or interests my family wishes I could stop talking about every chance I get.

“I think you’ve mentioned that obscure fact a time or two…”

Write What You Love is the idea that we all have concepts, items, places, people, moments, ideas, and ideals which are meaningful, important, and life-affirming for us. Each one of us feels strongly about different things, and that potency in feeling is what can make us strong writers about those things…IF we pay attention.

“Hello! Are you listening?”

For instance, I am a nature girl–always have been, always will be. Get me started on talking about forests, trees, frogs, turtles, birds, bears, or anything related to nature in general and you will have to stop me in my size 8 tracks.

This is why I also write about nature, and nature-related topics: because I can do my best writing when I look forward to it, when I am eager to share the deeply-ingrained or experience-obtained information I possess in a creative way that shares my passion with others, and when I pay attention to the topics which seemingly flow my way (yes, I do believe we attract that which we think about and act on most in our lives).

“It came to me in a dream…no, wait, it floated down from the heavens.”

Also, by writing MY passion, I am less likely to commit the ungracious and soul-crushing sin of “Passion Appropriation” (yes, I did just coin that!).

We’ve all been there. You’re drafting or revising or even subbing your newest book, based on your personal knowledge, extensive research, and thousands of hours spent reading, following, experiencing, and obsessing over your favorite niche topic. Then, you open your newest PW email to find an announcement that sends chills down your spine: YOUR BOOK is already being published via someone else, someone possibly not as ardent or heartfelt, perhaps not as “in the know,” maybe not as connected to the topic as you are.

“Woe is me. WHATEVER shall I do?”

And while you know your book may be different in every way that counts, you also realize the market for this topic has already been breached—perhaps even saturated depending on the topic—and your heart pinches while your body grows numb with shock and you whisper…

“If only I had gone into accounting instead…”

Do you really want to be responsible for this happening to someone else when you seize upon an idea you’re not the right person to claim? I sure don’t.

So if you’re looking for your next idea, one that will make your writing feel true and right (and, dare I say, easier than if you write about something you have no interest in), plus one that shows YOU are the best one to create this book, look no further than your heart and write what you love—Write Your Passion.

“I can’t believe I get to write about what I love…what a life!”

Tanya Konerman is a children’s author, writing fiction and nonfiction in both prose and verse for kids ages 0-12. Her debut picture book, Mud to the Rescue! How Animals Use Mud to Thrive and Survive, is a lyrical nonfiction look at the ingenious ways animals around the world use mud. It is forthcoming May 20, 2025, from Web of Life Children’s Books. Tanya’s ghost story for 9-12 year-olds, “Danger in the Dunes,” was chosen to represent Indiana in the anthology for middle graders, The Haunted States of America, published by Macmillan’s Laura Godwin Books in July of 2024. Visit her at TanyaKonerman.wordpress.com.

Tanya is giving away a choice of: one copy of Mud to the Rescue! How Animals Use Mud to Thrive and Survive (must reside in U.S.; book will be sent after 5/20/25) OR a free picture book critique for a non-rhyming, 750-word or less picture book.

You’re eligible to win if you’re a registered Storystorm 2025 participant and you have commented only once below.

Prizes will be distributed at the conclusion of Storystorm.

Storystorm Week 1 Break: The Home Card Catalog, Digitized

January 7, 2025 in STORYSTORM 2025 | Tags: libib | 171 comments

Again, this is not an advertisement, just something I wanted to share.

You probably have a large collection of books. And, if you’re like me, they’re haphazardly scattered all over the house. BUT WHERE IS MY COPY OF [INSERT TITLE HERE]??? Lined up on the staircase, like in Richard Sherman’s apartment from “The Seven Year Itch”? Or in ascending size order on the living room window sill? Or tucked into the bedroom bookcase for a good night’s sleep?

Well, with the app libib, you can create a digital cloud archive of all the titles you own, and to easily add them to your collection, you scan the barcode quickly with your phone (or search and enter them manually). Organize your shelves any way you wish—by genre, by TBR piles, or by location in your home (genius). It is free for up to 5,000 books.

Just search for libib in the App Store or Google Play and download it while you wait for today’s Storystorm post, coming later this afternoon!

HAPPY CATALOGING!