Singing and Acting — Lessons for Life (and for Writing)

This post could be subtitled “Words of Wisdom from Bruce Coville (with embellishments by Beth).” I first encountered Bruce Coville, author of middle grade fantasy novels and other such wondrous things, at the Summer 2011 conference of the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators in Los Angeles, SCBWI LA ’11. Not only did he…

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From the archives — The Fine Art of Reading Aloud, 4, Older Kids

This was first posted on elizabethannewrites on June 23, 2011. One of my favorite memories of sixth grade is of the half-hour or so after lunch time, when our teacher read aloud to us. For the most part, all the students were able to read for themselves, but this was different. This wasn’t work. This…

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The North Star…

The North Star has meant many things to many people over the years. Most often, it has meant guidance, a beacon, something to count on, something that can lead, that can be trusted. It’s something that helps us get our bearings, that tells us where we are and shows us where we’re heading. In life,…

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