Fabulous Fall Friday

The temp here in Austin is now reaching a high of 87 with evenings in the cool 60s. This is fall for us--so I am going to take it. I do miss the fall foliage of upstate NY, the crisp apples, donning sweaters and walking to my beloved Brooklyn bagel shop and having coffee with friends on park benches. But, Austin has brought other Indian Summer pleasures--taking a walk with AK down at Town Lake, writing outside at The Place with the ladies and as K.A. Holt said bogarting a picnic table for 5 hours, and finally opening The Writing Barn to friends.

This last Sunday, a rainy Sunday which the drought ridden soil so desperately needed we held the opening of The Writing Barn. (Also, a birthday celebration for my 39th.) The day before Dave Wilson, a wonderful photographer, who just happens to be married to Austin author Nikki Loftin came to take professional shots of The Barn. It may have been gloomy outside but Dave, with his wide angle lense, and his talent made The Barn look bright and welcoming.

A fancy shot merging three solo shots.

Guest bedroom, queen sized bed

Cozy loft space to read or write

A place to rock and read

Screened in porch

Lovely courtyard in front of The Barn

The rain continued to fall for the Barn Warming on Sunday afternoon but friends came--ready to eat, drink, and be merry! Abou Sylla and band were incredible!

Jeff Crosby, Shelley Ann Jackson, and E. Kirstin Anderson chat.

Gather ye round for cake. From R to L, Vanessa Lee, Cynthia Leitich Smith, Jenny Moss, and Don Tate and his lovely wife.

Abou Sylla breaks it down. Pic by Jen Bigheart.

The birthday carrot cake ala Central Market

It was a wonderful to see so many friends, old and new, and to break in the barn the right way--mud and all--before The Barn's first event this weekend, a book launch party for HARNESS HORSES, BUCKING BRONCOS & PIT PONIES: A HISTORY OF HORSE BREEDS at the Writing Barn on Sunday, Oct. 16th from 2-4 pm. Written and illustrated by Jeff Crosby and Shelley Ann Jackson.  (For an excellent interview with Jeff and Shelley see Donna Bowman Bratton's blog.) 

Lots of other goings on this week, In Austin

Don't miss Cynsations interview with Tu Books (Lee and Low) Editor Stacy Whitman and Author Karen Sandler. Comment and you will be eligible for a 10 page critique by Editor, Stacy Whitman. 

Publisher's Weekly featured BookPeople in this week's Children's Bookshelf. Meghan Goel, book buyer for BookPeople was asked 3 Questions. To find out what they are--go here. 



Outside Awesome Austin

The National Book Award nominees were announced. A big congrats to all nominees but a special congrats to friend Debby Dahl Edwardson for My Name is Not Easy, and the two other VCFA names in the mix--the wonderful Lauren Myracle  for Shine and current VCFA faulty member Franny Billingsley for Chime!


Over at Hunger Mountain

The annual print edition is DONE, which means new content to the YA & Children's section for the fall issue, The Art & Insanity of Creativity will be launching soon. Look for content by Bobbie Pyron, Ron Koertge, Lindsey Lane, Debby Dahl Edwardson, Uma Krishnaswami, Jennifer Hubbard, Sarah Aronson, J. Patrick Lewis, and more.
 

I was invited by Claire Guyton to write an essay for the Hunger Mountain Voices series going on at the blog, Another Loose Sally. The first essay was written but nabbed up for a future Writer's Life, Inc piece. So I began drafting a new one--that effort YA Is Not a Genre--I hope clears up some of the misinformation about YA. Thank you to my Hunger Mountain colleagues--the woman at the head of the ship, Miciah Bay Gault, and our extraordinary social media intern, Kris Underwood for their participation in the conversation.

Busy, Busy, Busy: A Round Up Between Bursts of Busy

It's Friday--which means it is round up time and there is much going on in the kid lit scene one must read about.

In Awesome Austin

The Austin SCBWI hosts Storytelling in the Digital Age tomorrow at St. Edwards. The event itself, and author/speaker Lindsey Lane, got some wonderful coverage in the Austin Statesman, in their article, "Storybook apps for kids a major topic among children's book writer's and artists."  

"It astounds me the possibilities of what you could do with a story and touching the screen, opening up different worlds for kids," Lane said.

If wanting to register, see here. 


The Austin Teen Book Festival
I was one of the 25,000 attendees at The Austin Teen Book Festival at the Palmer Center last weekend. I snapped many a picture, chatted with many a fellow author, and was overwhelmed at the excitement in the air. The teens came out in full force to see a line up of stellar YA writing rock stars. Check out today's coverage from Publisher's Weekly, including a fabulous quote from Varian Johnson, Austin author of Saving Maddie.

 

 

A young fan of author Jennifer Ziegler

An attendee in full steampunk regalia. 

 

 

Authors Jennifer Ziegler, Christina Mandelski, Stephanie Perkins and Simone Elkeles

 

 

 

 

 

 

For more photos of the outstanding event, see Cynsations Event Report by Austin Teen Book Festival featured author Cynthia Leitich Smith, whose Tantalize series drew in plenty of fans. And, see also Greg Leitich Smith, whose new novel Chronal Engine is coming soon!


The Writers' League of Texas

As usual, much is going on at the Writers' League of Texas, including a fundraiser for the WLT this Sunday evening. Check out information for the Raise the Roof Party Here.

The Texas Book Festival

I am up to my ears in books for this year's TBF. Please join me on Saturday at 2pm, Oct. 22nd for:

Zombies, Odd Girls, and My Other Middle School Classmates

with Mac Barnett, K.A. Holt, René Saldaña Jr., and Jo Whittemore

Date: Saturday, October 22, 2011
Time: 2:00 - 3:00
Location: Family Life Center (1300 Lavaca)

In middle school, most kids are afraid to be themselves. So we want to celebrate those daring middle schoolers who are proudly unique - the sullen odd girl in Jo Whittmore's Odd Girl In, the brain-eating zombies in K. A. Holt's Brains for Lunch, and the crime-solving detectives in Mac Barnett's It Happened On a Train and René Saldaña Jr.’s The Lemon Tree Caper. Because if you can't be yourself, you might as well be (un)dead.

Moderator Bethany Hegedus is the author of Between Us Baxters and Truth with a Capital T, both of which were named to the Best Books list by the Bank Street Awards Committee. Forthcoming is the picture book Grandfather Gandhi, co-authored with Arun Gandhi, grandson to the Mahatma. Bethany serves as the Young Adult & Children's editor for the literary journal Hunger Mountain.


Authors: Jo Whittemore
René Saldaña, Jr.
K.A. Holt
Mac Barnett




At the Writing Barn


Please join us for The Writing Barn's first event, October 16th, 2-4 pm. 

Please join Jeff Crosby & Shelley Jackson to celebrate the release of their newest children's picture book, HARNESS HORSES, BUCKING BRONCOS & PIT PONIES: A HISTORY OF HORSE BREEDS!

Minis and Friends, a charitable organization that benefits disabled children, will be at the event with live miniature horses to pet. Original art from the book will be on display, prints will be for sale, and copies of HARNESS HORSES will be available for purchase and to get autographed. We'll also have snacks, horsey games and more!
  

This event is open to the public. The Writing Barn is located at 10202 Wommack Road in Austin. Parking will be available inside the property and overflow parking is available on Riddle Road and Wommack Road.

 

It's sure to be a fun event for horse lovers, book lovers, and art lovers of all ages!

Happy Friday!

Hunger Mountain, 2012 Submission Calls PLUS The Opening of The Writing Barn

It officially has only been fall for a few days (though the temps in Austin are still 100) but things have been busy on this end. The Writing Barn is soon to open and as YA and Children's Editor of Hunger Mountain, I wanted to let all readers know about our 2012 Submissions Needs.

Hunger Mountain Submissions Call

The Hunger Mountain Children’s & YA page continues to showcase the best and brightest in children’s literature, from new voices to award-winners. We spotlight industry issues as they happen and create a dialogue between writer, reader, librarian, parent, and all interested in kid-lit. 

 *We are also interested in sneak-peaks into new books coming out, deleted chapters from books, short stories, etc.* Hunger Mountain buys first world serial rights and upon publication, the rights revert back to the contributor.  For sneak-peaks, publisher and rights department approval is needed. 

For those interested in submitting, please visit the Hunger Mountain submissions page.

Jan-March 2012

The Mystery & Magic of Identity

Hunger Mountain is actively seeking submissions for the Winter 2012 issue The Mystery and Magic of Identity. We are looking for essays, fiction, poetry, non-fiction and humor that touch on the themes of identity—gender, sexual, ethnic, privilege, author branding, online identity, explorations of self, along with the mystery and magic of world building in fantasy and novels that deal with time travel. For picture books—identity issues as a child, sibling relationships, the magic of word choice, the mystery of the page turn etc.

April-June 2012

The Landscape of Literature

Hunger Mountain is actively seeking submissions for the Spring 2012 issue, The Landscape of Literature. We are looking for essays, fiction, poetry, non-fiction and humor touching on the importance of setting, place, regionally distinct pieces (Not just Southern), use of dialect, heritage—literary heritage as well as author’s heritage, where historical novels now fit, illustrators incorporating setting details in their work, setting as character,  from YA, MG and PB contributors.

Along with our features, each issue we would like to include one or two essays for our regular columns:

The Flipside—two authors various take on one issue.

This Writer’s Life—essays on and about the writer’s life.

INKlings—essays on and about the illustrator’s life and/or techniques.

In Response—an essay adding to or commenting on the conversation from the prior HM issue.

The Toolbox—craft based essays on a variety of topics.

What My Last Book Taught Me—A short essay on what the author’s last book taught them.

New Work—fiction, poetry, short stories, opening chapters of WIP, etc.

Please see our most current issue here: http://www.hungermtn.org/young-adults-and-childrens-literature/

Do not miss the Art & Insanity of Creativity fall issue which will launch later this month.

Do not miss content from the Hunger Mountain C&YA Archives, some highlights include:

Young Adult and Children’s Literature

• Anderson, E. Kristin…Topography (poem) (Spring 2010)
• Anderson, Jessica Lee…Finding Bigfoot (MG Novel Excerpt) (Spring 2010)
• Appelt, Kathi…Blurring the Lines (Winter 2009)
• Atkins, Jeannine…Scrap by Scrap: Turning History into Poems (Spring 2010)
• Auseon, Andrew…The Kid Stays in the Pictures(Summer 2009)
• Brosnan, Rosemary…Missing Norma (Winter 2009)
• Cupala, Holly…Tell Me a Secret (YA Novel Sneak Peek) (Spring 2010)
• Davis, Tanita…Reflected Faces (Spring 2010)
• Dionne, Erin…Contemporary Cinderella: Inner Changes and Transformation Make a Modern Princess (Winter 2009)
• Fagan, Deva…Proactive Princess: Re-Imagining the Fairy Tale (Winter 2009)
• Jahn-Clough, Lisa…So You Want to Write about Sex? (Winter 2009)
• Jones, Carrie…Hunting Bigfoot: Why I Write Fantasy (Summer 2009)
• Knowles, Jo…Helping Inmates Find Their Truth: Using Writing Prompts to Explore Personal Journeys (Spring 2010)
• Lewis, J. Patrick…Can Children’s Poetry Matter? (Winter 2009)
• Mazer, Anne…My Mother, the Writer (Winter 2009)
• Millward, Carol Larese…Star in the Middle (YA excerpt) (Winter 2009)
• Neri, G.…Wahoo! The Incredible Adventures of Chief Wahoo McDaniel: Wrestling Superstar (Summer 2009)
• Neri, G.…Creating The Book: How To Hook Urban (non)Readers (Summer 2009)
• Neri, G.…The Run (YA)(Winter 2009)
• Nuzum, K.A.…Damn it, Jim. I’m a Writer, Not a Paleontologist (Summer 2009)
• Nye, Naomi Shihab…Maximum Security (a poem) (Spring 2010)
• Paterson, Katherine…Fellow Travelers (Summer 2009)
• Patron, Susan…A Lucky Break (Summer 2009)
• Perkins, Mitali…Teens Do Judge a Book by the Cover (Spring 2010)
• Wiles, Deborah…Speaking Through the Veil (Winter 2009)
• Stein, David Ezra…The Making of Pouch (Winter 2009)
• Teplick, Anne…The Quieter We Become, the More We Are Able to Hear: Writing with Teens in a Psychiatric Hospital (Spring 2010)
• Williams-Garcia, Rita…Warning: Characters May Appear as They Are or Why I Write “Realistic” Fiction (Summer 2009)
• Wong, Janet S.…The Poet’s Process (Summer 2009)
• Wynne-Jones, Tim…The Uninvited (YA Novel Excerpt) (Summer 2009)
• Zarr, Sara…Hold On Loosely (Summer 2009)

Interviews

• Corcoran, Jill…Literary Agent Jill Corcoran in conversation with Hunger Mountain YA/Children’s Lit editor Bethany Hegedus (Summer 2009)
• LaReau, Kara…Flying Solo: Editor of Bluebird in conversation with Hunger Mountain YA/Children’s Lit editor Bethany Hegedus (Summer 2009)
• McVeigh, Mark…Literary Agent Mark McVeigh in conversation with Hunger Mountain YA/Children’s Lit editor Kekla Magoon (Summer 2009)
• Smith, Cynthia Leitich…New York Times Bestselling Author of Eternal in conversation with Hunger Mountain editor Bethany Hegedus (Winter 2009)

And in Writing Barn News!

A bit about the barn...

The Writing Barn, a writing retreat and book launch party space is available for rental in S. Austin. Operated by author Bethany Hegedus, The Writing Barn, which features floor to ceiling book shelves, cozy loft, large covered porch, free wifi, spacious bedroom with queen-sized-bed, half bath, and kitchenette, is a haven for all book lovers.  For more information visit: The Writing Barn (web site under construction) and/or email bahegedus at gmail.com for rates and availability.

The Barn's FIRST Event... October 16th, 2-4 pm. 

Please join Jeff Crosby & Shelley Jackson to celebrate the release of their newest children's picture book, HARNESS HORSES, BUCKING BRONCOS & PIT PONIES: A HISTORY OF HORSE BREEDS!

Minis and Friends, a charitable organization that benefits disabled children, will be at the event with live miniature horses to pet. Original art from the book will be on display, prints will be for sale, and copies of HARNESS HORSES will be available for purchase and to get autographed. We'll also have snacks, horsey games and more!
  

This event is open to the public. The Writing Barn is located at 10202 Wommack Road in Austin. Parking will be available inside the property and overflow parking is available on Riddle Road and Wommack Road.

 

It's sure to be a fun event for horse lovers, book lovers, and art lovers of all ages!