Little Literacy

Congratulations to Deborah Allmand who won, Midnight Without a Moon from last week's blog.

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I'm thankful that each of my five grandchildren's parents are encouraging literacy from an early age. I was on grandma duty last week so allow me to share some pictures and videos I've accumulated over the years. 

At a few days old, Eleanor Edgar was introduced to Sandra Boynton.
Two years later, she's still a fan.

At ten months, Eleanor was "selecting" books.

Now she plays alphabet games with her Mommy,



enjoys independent reading,



and shares books with her dog.

Her cousin Libbie Kasten enjoyed reading DON'T LET THE BEDBUGS BITE by Niki Masse Schoenfeldt in the car.

She memorized favorite books,



and wrote her name in the sand.

My grandson Mason Clark discovered that literacy includes receiving HOW TO CHEER UP DAD signed to him by Fred Kohler,

as well as reading Biscuit, a first reader all by himself.



Caitlin, Libbie's big sister, was extremely proud when she began reading chapter books. She loved the Princess Posey books by Stephanie Greene.

As well as writing her own book.



Caitlin actually told her parents that she hoped to major in reading when she goes to college. Her scientific/math-minded parents raised their eyebrows about that, but she is a girl after my own heart!

My oldest granddaughter, Ebby Clark, is in fourth grade and offered these two book reviews:



I'm delighted that my grandchildren have discovered through The Cousins Club that their Grandma LOVES books!

If you're not tired of videos yet, here is one more that will entertain the favorite toddler in your life:


As a parent or grandparent, how have you encouraged literacy? I'd love to hear your stories!

My Next Big Thing

My friend and role model, Joyce Hostetter, tagged me last week in a work-in-progress meme called, "The Next Big Thing." You can read about Joyce's WIP here, and since I've had the privilege of reading parts of it, I can tell you that it will be great!

Now it's my turn to answer eight questions and then to tag several authors. Here we go:

What is the working title of your book? Half-Truths. 

Where did the idea for the book come from? That's a long story. I visited Wing Haven gardens with my youngest daughter about 15 years ago. At the time I thought it would make a great picture book but found that there were too many stories for that genre. Then I thought I would take some of the real stories about this bird sanctuary and write a book for young boys. My son-in-law said there was not enough blood and guts in a story about children rescuing a robin for boy readers today. Now Wing Haven is the quiet sanctuary where both main characters find refuge.

Joyce had shared Carolyn Yoder's advice to "write the story in your own backyard." I started thinking about how the same last name for both blacks and whites were on signs all around Charlotte, NC. Obviously there was a connection there. I visited the Rosenwald school in the Grier Heights community and noticed the pictures of many several light-skinned principals. That day I spoke with two gentlemen which further stimulated my thinking about the connections between white and African American families in Charlotte. 

One to two sentence synopsis of the book: In Charlotte in 1950, two teenage girls--one black and one white-- break racial restrictions, uncover family secrets, and discover they are second cousins.   
  

What else about the book might peak the readers' interest?
I think that many young adult readers today don't fully realize the problems that African Americans faced before integration. Lillie, the light-skinned African American girl, will flirt with the idea of passing as a way to get everything that whites have. The white girl, Kate, has her own set of problems as she doesn't fit in with the debutante lifestyle her grandmother wants her to have. I am hoping that these issues of "belonging" will resonate with today's readers. There is also an unlikely romance threaded throughout the book. 

Will your book be self-published or represented by an agency?
I have no plans to self-publish and will look for agency representation after it is as close to perfect as I can get it--with the help of many critique partners!

How long did it take you to write the first draft of the story?
That is a REALLY hard question to answer! I had many starts and stops along the way as I had a hard time figuring out where my story began. As a result, I spent a lot of time writing what I now understand to have been the back story. In 2008 Joyce challenged me to participate in NaNoWriMo. I had already been working on this novel, but that helped me spill more of the guts of this book. By the end of 2010 I had completed my first draft. At the SCBWI-Carolinas conference in 2011, my critiquer was Mary Cate Castellani. She suggested that I write my story from both girls' points of view. That was a major shift in my thinking and writing and it took about nine months of working on and off with Rebecca Petruck to come up with a really good outline. I am now over half-way through this draft; which is tighter and better than any of the previous drafts! 

What other books would you compare it to in this genre? This is a scary question because I don't want to feel presumptuous at all. Since it deals with issues of segregation I'd like for readers to think of To Kill a Mockingbird--but I hesitate to even admit that since that is such a Southern classic! Since it deals with a light-skinned young woman passing, I also think of Flygirl by Sherri Smith, although that takes place about five years earlier. When I have described the book to others, some adults have thought that it was The Help for teens, but the books are very different. 

What actors would you chose to play a movie rendition? I am not a movie person, so I couldn't begin to answer this question. But Price Davis, my 92-year-old African American expert keeps telling me to hurry up and finish the book because he wants to see the movie! Now, that's encouragement!

Price Davis, outside his childhood home.

OK, now it's your turn Gretchen Griffith, Becky Levine, Bonnie Doerr, Donna Earnhardt, Augusta Scattergood, and Niki Schoenfeldt. If you want to play along and share with the world what your next Big Thing is--we want to hear it!

Don't Let the Bedbugs Bite! Giveaway #3

In today's blog, Niki Schoenfeldt shares the backstory about her new book, Don't Let the Bedbugs Bite! At the end are directions how you can win your own autographed copy of this adorable book for your children or grandchildren. It would make a great baby, birthday, or holiday present!

CAROL: How did you get the idea for your book? Was there a real event in your family which inspired the story?

NIKI: Like most parents, I tucked my little one in and spouted the old bedbug adage. She immediately asked, “What are bedbugs?” I hesitated. Did I really want to tell my 3-year-old about bugs who suck your blood at night while you’re sleeping? Instead, I told her they were bugs that lived long ago and there was no such thing as bedbugs anymore. I thought I was telling the truth!

I decided to write a book about bedbugs to make the adage less scary. To my dismay it came out like a poem! My writer's group thought my little poem would make a great picture book and suggested I beef up the conflict. I read this story during open mic at our chapter’s 2009 SCBWI Conference and sold it a month later to Shenanigan Books.

CAROL: How many rewrites/revisions did you go through?  How did editorial input shape the story?

NIKI: Bedbugs went through numerous revisions. As you know, since the sale of this manuscript, the bedbugs I had thought were eradicated have made a comeback. Add to that a new series on Animal Planet called INFESTED! and Bedbugs was almost history.

Thankfully my publisher at Shenanigans said she loved the story and didn’t want to drop it. She wondered if we could somehow make my “bedbug” a beneficial bug caught up in a case of mistaken identity. She thought it could be a stink bug, but I couldn’t imagine a child wanting a stink bug in their bed either, so I had to come up with something more cheerful. A bug everyone likes. A bug that is adorable. Not an easy task as most bugs are pretty creepy. But then I remembered a bug my grandmother used to say was the only bug she would allow in her garden and one she said represented good luck. (You’ll have to read the book to find out what bug I’m talking about.)

I went back and forth with new lines and ideas with my editor for a few months. It was actually quite fun and Bedbugs is a better book now. However, I wasn’t the only one caught up in revisions, because of these changes, the illustrator, John Wes Thomas also had to redo some scenes.

CAROL: How did you find your publisher?

NIKI: I’m always researching publishers. While reviewing books for http://www.curledupkids.com, I received a beautiful picture book they had published.  The story was a bit longer than what most publishers were doing at the time and was very cute. But what really caught my eye was the book itself. It was well made and the colors and artwork popped. After looking at their list, I sent them another picture book, which they quickly rejected but commented that they’d like to see more of my work. Before they forgot my name, I emailed them the manuscript for Bedbugs and they loved it!

CAROL: You were smart, Niki, to keep persevering! Now, about the illustrations.  They really pull the reader into the story. What do you think of your illustrator?

NIKI: John Wes Thomas did a great job on the illustrations. In fact, when Shenanigan sent me the cover image I almost cried! It was a book I would definitely pick up randomly off a bookshelf for my own child. After that, I got a few sneak peeks of some illustrations here and there, but I didn’t get to see all of them until I actually held the book in my hands. The funniest thing is that the wallpaper in the little girl’s room is very similar to the paper in my own daughter’s room. Also, his vision of my little “bedbug” is awful cute!

CAROL: How long did the entire process take?

NIKI: There is nothing about this business that is fast. Especially when it comes to picture books. I received the offer on my book in Early October, 2009 and then signed the actual contract in early December. I think it was originally scheduled to be part of Shenanigan’s 2011 list. I’m not exactly clear on what happened, but I think it took them a few tries before they found an illustrator they thought was just right. Then, of course, there was that whole bedbug epidemic going on which halted production for a while, but hey, no worries.

CAROL: What's next? Another book with them? 

NIKI: Well I certainly won’t frown at working with the folks at Shenanigan again but alas, the last manuscript I sent was kindly rejected. Of course, that doesn’t mean they won’t receive more from me in the future. It just goes to show that even when you think you’ve made it, the rejection pile is never far away. But for now, my submissions are handled by my agent, Louise Fury of the L. Perkins Agency. She’s got a few of my picture books she’s focusing on and hopefully we’ll be celebrating the next sale together. Fingers crossed. (Toes & eyes too!)

CAROL: Anything else you would like to share with my readers?

NIKI:  It has been a long journey. I’m not new at this. And although I’ve had some successes, the struggle continues. It isn’t an easy career choice and if I were the main breadwinner, my family would starve. But writing is in my blood. It is part of me and I couldn’t stop even if I wanted to. My best advice is to keep going. Keep writing. Keep submitting. You will never see your work in print if you stop producing!

Before I go, I’d like to use my final comments for a shameless plug: Buy DON’T LET THE BEDBUGS BITE! Your kids will love it!!!

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I bought a copy for one of my granddaughters, now here is your turn to win a copy yourself:

To enter this giveaway: 

1. Please share this on your social media site of your choice and/or become a follower of this blog.

2. Leave me a comment, with your email address, indicating which you did.

3. Winner's name will be drawn October 3 after 6 PM.

STAY TUNED-- MORE GIVEAWAYS COMING UP SOON!