Press and Publications
Illustrator Mags DeRoma and I had the pleasure of being part of Crayola's "Read Along, Draw Along" series in November 2022 for a TO MAKE conversation about the inspiration and patience of making as well as a drawing activity with the most fabulous Crayola art supplies! Full replay.
To Make was delightfully featured in the 2022 issue of L.A Parent Magazine by Ronna Mandel!
"Upon opening the pages of 'To Make,' readers are treated to spare, anticipatory text prompting page turns, complemented by expansive spreads in muted tones. Kids and parents will want to read this book again and again."
TO MAKE Maker Ribbons created by Abby at Fête Gazette featured on Handmade Charlotte!
The book trailer "To Make," directed by Todd Davis, was featured in issue 54 of UPPERCASE on the theme of collaboration.
“Trust is everything when collaborating…Everyone needs to feel safe, open, and free… Joy and playfulness are paramount. If energy lagged in the studio, I’d take over the speaker and play death metal until they begged for it to stop. We laughed a lot. And we collectively ‘whooped!’ when we finally finished shooting late on a Sunday night."
“Finding Theme: The North Star for You and Your Story.” October 2022.
In this piece, I share the what, why, and how of theme as North Star, as well as tips for finding your own project’s compass, companion, constant guide.
“…just like Polaris, not only does theme orient a story in the direction it’s meant to go, it’s still there after escorting the vessel to shore. A North Star shines for everyone. That’s the beauty of it.”
Nerdy Book Club Piece
A piece for Nerdy Book Club in June 2022: "Teachers Make Readers (and Writers)" in which I share how two elementary school teachers from Singapore American School, pictured on the dedication page of TO MAKE, made me.
“Mr. P and Mrs. A aren’t the only ones. There are myriad teachers like them who do this every hour in classrooms and at desks and while sitting on beanbag chairs. Teachers make readers. Teachers make writers. They make worlds and possibility. And they made me.”
Interview in L.A. Parent
I was interviewed by Ronna Mandel for L.A. Parent Magazine's summer 2021 issue!
“By developing their own process and their own writer’s life, [kids] can solidify a practice that will serve them now and later by absorbing narrative components, honing writing techniques, and, perhaps most importantly, nurturing the ability to channel their feelings and experiences into creativity and stories—
a meaningful practice they can lean on their whole lives.”
Photo credit: Rippin Sindher.
"Story Breath" article in SCBWI Bulletin
Thrilled to have my article, "Story Breath: Inspiration for Plot and Pace in Picture Books" in the spring 2021 issue of the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI) Bulletin.
“…picture books are different. Special. Distinct…Just like breath, each [one] has its own flow, rhythms, patterns.”
Voyage LA asked me about whether you should give up in May 2021.
My short answer? No.
"One thing’s for sure. SOMETHING will happen.
It might be unexpected, what you most fear, what you’ve carefully avoided.
It might even be exactly what you dreamed!
What happens is simply what happens. It may not be what you wished for.
But if you’re doing it because it keeps your creative fire alive, it can’t be wrong. Right?"