I first wrote about Abraham Lincoln ages ago. My book, Lincoln: A Photobiography (Clarion, 1987), was researched during the 1980s, and in 1988, it won the Newbery Medal—the first nonfiction book to receive that award in more than 30 years.Guest Blogger: Russell Freedman
I first wrote about Abraham Lincoln ages ago. My book, Lincoln: A Photobiography (Clarion, 1987), was researched during the 1980s, and in 1988, it won the Newbery Medal—the first nonfiction book to receive that award in more than 30 years.
“I think you should write a book called Green.” One evening in 2007, I received an email from Neal Porter. He wrote, “Here’s a title for you and Pete. Green.” Neal Porter is my editor at Macmillan’s Roaring Brook Press. We’ve worked together on each of the 15 books I’ve written and illustrated. In the past, most of the ideas for the books have originated in my journal. This was the first time we began with just a title.
In this post, Sharon Creech considers her inspirations for her latest middle-grade novel, The Great Unexpected (Harper 2012), described in School Library Journal as “part realistic fiction, part mystery, and part ghost story.” Enjoy!
Why do I write about science and nature for young readers? Easy answer. It’s FUN! But making scientific facts fun to read about is a challenge, especially in our modern world filled with iPods, iPads, smart phones, video games, and any number of other electronic distractions. I try to use storytelling techniques to grab my audience.
Snakes are tricky creatures, both to photograph and to handle. Their long thin bodies and surface-hugging habits don't necessarily create the best photographic compositions, and their nervous natures don’t permit easy interaction, especially with those of us carrying cameras.
My newest book, Son (Houghton, 2012), which creates a quartet from what had been The Giver (Houghton, 1993) trilogy, began as the continuation of Gabe’s story from those books. So many readers, over the years, had written to ask what happened to the baby? Was he okay? Did he grow up and thrive?