Thankful
November 26, 2024
No Comments
One of the particular joys of writing for kids is that they write to you.
Blog
Lemony Tomato Soup
November 19, 2024
2 Comments
I was feeling gloomy. It had started to snow. I started a read-through of my current project. A favorite recipe for Tomato Soup popped into my mind.
A Curious Contradiction
November 12, 2024
2 Comments
The more books I begin, the worse they seem at the start.
Yes, Foxes Are Sly, But They’re Not Always Sly
November 5, 2024
1 Comment
I was talking to a sixth-grade class the other day when one of the students asked: “How do you make a character in a book, you know, all the different things and feelings she has?”
A New Book
October 29, 2024
1 Comment
Today is the day my newest book, Lost in the Empire City, will be published. People often ask me, “How does it feel to have a book published?”
Logic
October 22, 2024
2 Comments
Logic. While we may not think of the concept as having anything to do with fiction, it is not just a key aspect of narrative, but particularly important to readers.
Titles
October 15, 2024
2 Comments
What does a good title have that makes it good? Lots of notions here. The truth is, as any author will tell you, a good title is hard to compose.
Immigrants
October 8, 2024
3 Comments
I suspect that there are countless American family stories akin to this one, the journey to point of departure, the voyage itself, the arrival, and early years of tragedy and/or triumph.
The Oldest Book on My Shelves
October 1, 2024
2 Comments
It’s not really a surprise then, that on my shelves I have a few — very few — books from my childhood. Read this week’s essay about those books.
Soup’s On
September 24, 2024
2 Comments
Last night didn’t start well. It began when my wife and I sat down to a new soup recipe. That soup took two hours to make, but only about thirty seconds to realize, “This is awful.”