On the heels of the last blog about motivation for writing, I recently came across an interesting article which discusses the importance of writing things down by hand and the benefits unique to doing so. I'm not going to link the article because it wasn't well cited; however, I compiled the research and am presenting to you, A Case for Handwriting.
I am a huge advocate of developing typing skills. As a child in the late 1980s, I remember being bewildered by how fast my mother typed and made...
Book Three in a Magical Junior Novel Series for Young Readers aged 6-9. (Can be read as part of the series or as a standalone)
One enchanted ring. Endless mischief.
Return to the magical Unicorn Shore in the third adventure of the series, as nine-year-old Marigold fulfills her promise by bringing her little sister, Sophie, to celebrate Eclipse’s coronation. At the castle, everyone gathers to cheer the...
It's hard to get behind doing something hard when you don't know the why. Why do we need algebra… why do we need to repeat 2 years of general education before we can start focusing on our chosen degree…?
Whether it is reading or writing, kids are no different. They thrive when they want to write, and they will only want to write if it has a greater purpose that outweighs the resistance. In the "olden days" aka the 1900s, children naturally wrote letters to grandparents, thank-you note for...
You know it's time. The jack-o'-lanterns have started to rot on the porch (we should probably throw those out), the fake spiderwebs are getting a little too real, and Mariah Carey has fully thawed.
Hopefully, we made our way through our Fall TBR lists because it is time to focus on our Winter/Christmas reads.
As fall fades into memory, we find ourselves reaching for heartwarming tales and winter adventures with a cup of hot cocoa near a cozy fire instead. And for those of us celebrating the...
My husband grew up in a literacy-rich household where his mom and sisters constantly challenged one another to cutthroat games of Scrabble. Only a few souls have the bragging rights of having beaten my mother-in-law. It's the stuff of family legend!
I had never played a game of Scrabble in my life until we were married, and it took me 10 years to learn the strategy well enough to finally beat my husband. It was a sweet victory for sure, and it hasn't happened since.
Growing up in an environment...
Ghost Wolf: The Shard of Fenrir by T. K. Wilder is a chilling paranormal thriller for middle-grade (10+) readers who love suspense, psychological mystery, and ghost stories that linger.
After the accident, thirteen-year-old Will Anders moved to the sleepy town of Black Hollow to live with Aunt Mags. It was supposed to be quiet. Safe. A place to rebuild his life.
...
One of my closest friends of nearly 20 years is British. During the early years of our friendship, she introduced me to afternoon tea, as is the British custom. We spent countless afternoons, sometimes with little ones and sometimes while they napped, around her kitchen table. She'd put the kettle on, pull out the biscuits, and we'd sit and talk. The world slowed down for those precious moments. I didn't realize it but I was learning something that would not only show me how to slow down and...
Being a “Book First” Family
One of the best decisions we made as young parents was to be a “book first” family, which simply means we read the book before we watch the movie.
We discovered early on that this had a number of benefits, and I believe this standard has heavily shaped our now young adult children in some pretty profound ways.
Imagination
When kids read first, their own mind's eye pictures the scene and the characters, and the sky is the limit in regard to their own imagination....
Those of us who love to read know there's nothing quite like cozying up with a good seasonal book this time of year. Even if it means cranking the A/C down to 60 degrees because we live in the South.
I know many people, myself included, enjoy having a seasonally curated TBR list, and I think there's real value in doing this for our young readers too.
The seasonal changes are special. They remind us that while life can feel unpredictable, some things stay beautifully consistent. (Did your granny...
How a Hygge Lifestyle Can Encourage Reading
Hygge (hue-gah), the Danish lifestyle concept that emphasizes finding contentment and coziness in simple, everyday moments, has become a major trend on social media, and I am here for the hygge! As a recovering Type A personality, hygge is my preferred speed.
But here's the thing about turning hygge into a curated aesthetic... it completely misses the point.
Real hygge isn't a TikTok aesthetic or Pinterest picture. It isn't about buying the right kind...
Throughout history, authors have frequently used pen names. The practice has deep roots in publishing history and is especially common in children's literature.
Louisa May Alcott, author of "Little Women," wrote gothic thrillers under the pseudonym A.M. Barnard. More recently, J.K. Rowling has written under the pen name Robert Galbraith for her adult crime novels, wanting to separate this style of work from her beloved Harry Potter series.
Daniel Handler writes adult literary fiction under...
Some fun antidotes and quotes from some of the best children's authors:
1. Beverly Cleary’s Chicken Trouble
In her memoir A Girl from Yamhill, Beverly Cleary tells how, as a child, she brought her neighbor’s live chicken to school for show-and-tell. The classroom chaos that followed feels like it could have been a scene straight out of her Ramona books.
2. Roald Dahl’s Chocolate
As a boy, Roald Dahl and his classmates were sometimes asked to taste-test new chocolates from Cadbury. That sweet...
Draven the Kirin: A Magical Creature from Ancient Legends
In Eclipse’s Secret, we learn Draven is a kirin. But what exactly is a kirin, and why is that such a big deal? Let’s step into the world of myths and legends to find out.
What is a Kirin?
A kirin (pronounced “kee-rin”) is a magical creature from East Asian mythology. In Chinese stories it is called qílín, and in Japan it is called kirin. People have been telling stories about the kirin for thousands of years.
The kirin is often described...
We love to hate them, but we probably shouldn't take any back to school advice from these baddies!
1. Miss Trunchbull (Matilda)
“Save time in the morning and wear your gym clothes all day and call it ‘being prepared.’”
2. The White Witch (The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe)
“Turn the thermostat way down and have a snowball fight in the classroom.”
3. The Big Bad Wolf (The Three Little Pigs)
“Skip the lunchbox. Just sniff around the cafeteria until you find something better.”
4. Captain Hook (...
As children around the world head back to school in the coming weeks, I thought it would be fun to see what advice some of our favorite book characters might offer...
1. Matilda by Roald Dahl
Matilda Wormwood: “Read everything you can get your hands on.”
2. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone by J.K. Rowling
Hermione Granger: “When in doubt, go to the library.”
3. Ramona the Pest by Beverly Cleary
Ramona Quimby: “Don’t be afraid to be yourself—even if it makes people roll their eyes.”
4. The...
When we think about magical creatures, two of the most famous ones that come to mind are the unicorn and the pegasus. They both look like horses, they both show up in fairy tales and adventures, and they both feel like they gallop straight out of dreams. But even though they are sometimes mentioned together, they are different.
The Unicorn
A unicorn is usually described as a white horse with a single, spiral horn on its forehead. That horn is the unicorn’s most important feature. In legends,...
Move over bookworms. In 2025 we are raising book dragons!
A book dragon is a magical creature disguised as a child. Instead of gold or jewels, their treasure is books. Hoards show up in backpacks, under pillows, littered across the minivan, and stacked in every corner of the house. Once you’ve met one, you’ll recognize the signs right away.
Sign #1: The Hoard Begins
It usually starts with a small pile under the bed, then a stack of library books that somehow always end up overdue, and maybe a...
Children pay attention to and model what they see in their homes. When a parent cuddles up with a book for pleasure, or when Dad reads before bed every night, it sends a powerful message.
Researcher Sandra Cubillos (2023) found that when parents genuinely enjoy reading for themselves, whether that means curling up with a novel, flipping through a magazine, or keeping a stack of books by the bed, their kids are more likely to read for fun too. It makes sense. When children see reading as...
“Mom, I’m bored!” The dreaded three words of motherhood.
We live in a world that hates boredom. Actually, that was the world I grew up in. Now we live in a world that is intolerant of boredom. As adults, we’ve been conditioned this way too. Think about the last time you stood in line, sat in traffic, or waited at a doctor’s office. How long did it take before you pulled out your phone? Probably seconds, not minutes. Our kids see that too, and they learn from it.
Boredom feels wrong…like...
Why I Love Writing Junior Novels
If you’re not quite sure what a junior novel is, you’re not alone. In today’s publishing world, it’s a bit of an in-between category. Under the umbrella of children's literature, these books fall somewhere between early chapter books (Magic Treehouse or Junie B. Jones) and full-length middle grade, text-only novels (Harry Potter or Wings of Fire). As you read my examples, you might be thinking how big of a jump that is between the two. This is where the junior...
