Poetry Friday

Poetry Friday is hosted today by Random Noodling.

My selection is "Poetrees" by DouglasFlorian. 

 

Florian focuses his talent for poetry and illustration on trees as he celebrates their beauty, uniqueness, and importance in this collection of eighteen poems that are rich with his signature wordplay: "lovely leaves/leave me in awe."

Florian's enthusiasm for his subject is clearly demonstrated in the first stanza of his poem, Coconut Palm : I'm nuts about the coconut./I'm cuckoo for the coco./I'm crazed for this amazing nut./For coco I am loco.

There's the familiar oak and weeping willow, the largest - Sequoia and the oldest - Bristlecone pine, as well as the exotic Scribbly Gum, Baobab, and Monkey Puzzle Tree.  Florian  includes poems about roots, seed, bark, leaves, and even tree rings in this thoughtful look at one of earth's most valuable resources. A Glossatree that provides information about the subjects of his verses completes the book.

Florian turns his book ninety degrees to allow for large, vertical double-page spreads for his illustrations worked in mixed media on brown bag paper.

 

Poetry Friday

Poetry Friday is hosted today by A Teaching Life.

Poetry Friday: "Here's A Little Poem: a very first book of poetry: collected by Jane Yolen and Andrew Fusek Peters and illustrated by Polly Dunbar.

Dunbar has illustrated 61 small poems in this child-friendly introduction to the joys of poetry. Verses, in a variety of forms, highlight a youngster's experiences (from laughing delight to tantrums) and activities (from getting dressed in the morning to going to bed).  You'll find many familiar names here: Rosemary Wells, Margaret Wise Brown, and Jack Prelutsky, as well as some that may surprise you: Langston Hughes and Gertrude Stein. The illustrations are lively, colorful, and sure to delight.

Poetry Friday

Poetry Friday is hosted today by Buffy's Blog.

My selection for today is "Keep Climbing, Girls" by Beah E. Richards with illustrations by R. Gregory Christie.

This poem, which first appeared in "A Black woman Speaks: And Other Poems" by the late actor and poet Beah Richards, is reintroduced to young readers in this picture book format by illustrator Gregory Christie. 

Keep Climbing, Girls speaks to female equality as portrayed by a young African American girl who is determined to climb to the highest branches of a tree on her own terms despite the admonitions of her observers. Vernacular speech creates a distinctive voice for Miss Nettie as she attempts to convince the young girl to be careful for fear she'll become a tomboy with tomboy scars. Certainly there is a risk, but the young heroine's confidence and determination is stronger than her fear of danger.

Writers Wednesday

Today's featured guest is the very talented author and illustrator Cotey Gallagher sharing her new children's picture book, Have You Ever? Cotey's book is a humorous look at language and I'm guessing children of many ages will enjoy the clever wordplay.  Enjoy!

How did your interest in writing for children develop?

I was in college and took an intensive book illustration course taught by Lydia Dabcovich. I had always loved children’s books, and classic fairy tale stories; but before this class, had never really thought about children’s literature as a career choice. Seeing her accomplished work really inspired me to broaden my horizons and do something I really loved.

How does your career as a writer influence other areas of your life and vice versa?

Writing is something very new to me. I have always been the “pictures” in the picture book; the “art” to someone else’s “words”. Writing my own children’s book has been a learning experience. It has made me appreciate other writers, and the work that they create tenfold. What motivates me most right now is to watch my ten year old son as he sits at my computer, emulating me by typing up his own short stories. It is pretty awesome.

What do you do when you are not writing?

I spend a good portion of my time on artwork, whether it be for fun, or work. I also really enjoy crafting, making handmade ornaments is one of my “loves”.

Briefly, what's your book about?

Have You Ever? is a children’s picture book that explores sentence structure, grammar and alliteration in a humorous way. There is no true storyline, just a series of ridiculous, tongue-twisting sentences with equally silly illustrations. For example, “Have you ever peeked at pickle-eating porcupine prancing on a park bench?” The fun is taking the most random of things and placing them in a sentence together and making it come to life with the illustration! I even added a fill-in activity page at the end, much like a Mad-Lib, for children to create their own silly scenario!

What inspired you to write the book?

In 2013, I was asked to illustrate a series of books that depict the 4 seasons of my home state (Vermont). The author was self-publishing, and I found the whole process fascinating. I had always wanted to write and illustrate my own children’s books, but I felt like I was out of the game for too long and wasn’t sure how to get “back in the saddle” so to speak. The experience made me realize that there are many avenues besides traditional publishing, and if I spent the time and effort, I could create something all my own. This inspired me, and pushed me through to keep creating.

What are your current/future projects?

I am currently finishing up my 2^nd self-published book “The Literally Illustrated Collection of Idioms, Metaphors and Euphemisms”. It is a collection of these “figures of speech” accompanied by silly, literal illustrations. Each sentence also includes a definition to what the idiom, metaphor or euphemism is meaning to convey in speech. It is a subject I have always wanted to explore, and wanted to find ways to make it kid-friendly and educational at the same time.

What is your writing process? Do you follow a regular routine?

I have a notebook with sentences, sometimes paragraphs of random ideas that I think of. When I go back to it later on, I decide if it something I can elaborate on, or if it needs to be neglected. I have always been more of a word-nerd than a writer. I love language, how we structure our thoughts to sentences. I love big words, advanced vocabulary, and I am not afraid to use them in my children’s books. I think it is important for children to hear advanced vocabulary even at an early age. The more a child hears them through read-aloud, the more likely they are to incorporate them into their own day to day language.

What book(s)/author(s) have influenced your writing and how?

I admire the way Fred Gwynne makes humor out of some complicated rules in the English language. “The King Who Rained” is one of my current favorites. I have also always been influenced by the Amelia Bedelia books. Since I was a child myself, I found the silliness of taking words and phrases “literally” to be an extremely entertaining subject matter.

What part of the writing process do you find most challenging and how do you deal with that challenge?

I find the initial “idea” process the most daunting; getting something on paper is difficult for me. As I said before, I am an illustrator by trade, so I have found untraditional ways to come up with what to explore in writing works best for me. Sometimes I make lists of random words in columns, then I pair the words up from the different columns to see if the idea strikes something with me. This is a method I use in creating ideas for my artwork.

Anything else you'd like readers to know about you and/or your book?

Expect to see more from me. I have the fever now, and I don’t think I will lose motivation any time soon!  

Writers Wednesday

Multi-talented Derek Taylor Kent  is my guest today and you are in for a treat. Derek is an author, screenwriter, performer and director based in Los Angeles. You probably know him best for his award-winning book series SCARY SCHOOL (written under his pen-name Derek the Ghost). Derek is sharing his new bi-lingual picture book EL PERRO CON SOMBRERO. There's a delightful story behind the creation of Derek's new book, but I'll let you discover the details in Derek's words. Enjoy!

How did your interest in writing for children develop?

I had always been writing crazy stories and poems since I was seven years old. Writing stories was my passion as soon as I learned to write. The biggest thing happened when I was fifteen years old and randomly became re-obsessed with Dr. Seuss. I took a creative writing class in high school and tried writing stories in a Seuss-ian style and my teacher helped me hone my craft and fully understand rhythm and meter. I tried writing picture books in a Seuss style for about ten years ( I wrote dozens) which never took off. After college I became obsessed with Harry Potter and realized I needed to be writing novels that weren’t constrained by the need for illustrations. It took me about two years to finish my first chapter book, called Rudy and the Beast: Book 1 – My Homework Ate My Dog! It didn’t get a book deal, but it did land me my agent and a publisher liked it enough to suggest a different take, which become the Scary School series I am now most known for.

How does your career as a writer influence other areas of your life and vice versa?

I think when you’re a writer it influences all other areas of life because you are always looking at the world through the prism of an observer and storing things away for later use. Everyone you meet or have ever known can inspire characters in your stories, and anything that happens to you is likely to inspire plot and conflict.

What do you do when you are not writing?

Most of my time is spent either:

- Walking/running with my dog

- Shopping for food/cooking food. I am a ridiculous foodie and love trying new places and being adventurous in my eating and cooking.

- I still love playing basketball and coach my league team.

- I’ve gotten very into the realm of Virtual Reality and have been working on and writing projects for that medium.

- Most recently I’ve been helping my girlfriend launch her health coaching business, which you can check out at MichelleFreitas.com.

Briefly, what's your book about?

El Perro con Sombrero is a bilingual book about a homeless dog named Pepe who’s sad because he has no family. But then a lucky sombrero lands on his head and turns his life around! It’s perfect for ages 4 to 8.

What inspired you to write the book?

During a trip to Nicaragua, I was shocked by the number of homeless dogs that lived on the streets. I was working on a movie set and I wondered what might happen if one of the dogs wandered onto the set and became a movie star dog. I was already thinking about getting a dog, and when I got back, I knew it was finally time to adopt one. So I got my pup named Zander. He was so hilarious and mischievous, I just had to write a story about this antics.

What are your current/future projects?

I have many books in the pipeline. You will probably be seeing more El Perro con Sombrero books in the future.  I also have a new middle-grade book called Principal Mikey that will be coming in 2016. It’s about a 10-year-old kid who becomes principal of his school.

What is your writing process? Do you follow a regular routine?

I try to write every day. When I’m feeling inspired and loving what I’m writing, I can often write for 5-7 hours a day and finish projects very quickly. 

What book(s)/author(s) have influenced your writing and how?

Reading Kurt Vonnegut in high school and college solidified in my mind that I wanted to be a writer. I loved how he would incorporate hilarious and inventive short stories within the context of his larger stories. Also how he would snub his nose at the rules, like when he shockingly introduced himself as a character at the end of Breakfast of Champions.  My other biggest influences were Louis Sachar. The comedy and tone of Sideways Stories from Wayside School was the basis for the Scary School series. JK Rowling and Dr. Seuss were what made me fall in love with children’s books all over again as an adult.

What part of the writing process do you find most challenging and how do you deal with that challenge?

The most challenging part is definitely when you’ve spent months or sometimes years focused on a specific project and it doesn’t get published. It feels like a huge waste of time and can make you question your own judgment. I deal with it by self-publishing, so at least I can get the project out there, and just getting to work on a new project so I don’t have time to dwell on it. If you have a lot of insecurity, rejections can be soul-crushing. That’s why it’s a very important trait for writers to have a strong belief in themselves and their ability in order to dust it off and just delve into the next thing. I had a lot of practice dealing with rejection during my 20s when I was acting, so if other writers out there are struggling with this, I’d suggest doing activities where you get rejected all the time so you learn how to deal with it.

Anything else you'd like readers to know about you and/or your book? 

It’s a great tool for starting kids on learning Spanish, or also for Spanish-speaking kids to learn English.  Mothers have been reporting to me that their kids love repeating all the Spanish words in the book because they are fun to say, but were surprised that it triggered an interest in learning a new language and they were asking for more bilingual books!

Poetry Friday

Poetry Friday is hosted today by Wee Words for Wee Ones.

In this season of family togetherness is seemed appropriate to share "Grandparent Poems" collected by John Micklos and illustrated by Layne Johnson.

Micklos' collection of twenty-two poems celebrate the special experiences and memories that grandparents, both past and present, bring to their families. You'll find many familiar poets here: Lee Bennett Hopkins, Nikki Grimes, Mary Ann Hoberman and more.

Johnson's detailed illustrations offer heart-warming portraits of families in a variety of settings.

Poetry Friday

Poetry Friday is hosted today by Write. Sketch. Repeat.

My selection is "Animal Tracks: Wild Poems To Read Aloud" by Charles Ghigna with illustrations by John Speirs.

Ghigna's collection of 32 short poems is an invitation to silly fun that incorporates riddles and puns in verses about a wide variety of animals. The book is an entertaining read-aloud even though some of the wordplay may need interpretation for young readers. But isn't talking about what we read half the fun? An index of the 108 animals mentioned makes finding a poem about your favorite animal easy whether you're looking for hippo, egret or worm.

Speirs' cartoon style watercolors add a jaunty note to compliment the verses.