Bea and Jules, Day 12

DAY 12: Secrets. 

Jules and Bea are Secret Angels this year.

They swapped names. 

Guess who they have? 

Yep. 

They send secret notes every day. 

“Have a good day!
- From, your Secret Angel”

Also they send things like…

Glitter. (Thanks, Jules.) 

A pretty leaf. 

A rock from the parking lot.

A bottle cap. 

A singing train.  (Sorry, Charlie!!)
More glitter!

Books!

    

The Jolly Christmas Postman - Janey & Allan Ahlberg

The Dove's Letter - Keith Baker

A Letter to Amy - Ezra Jack Keats

Fanny & Annabelle - Holly Hobbie

Bea and Jules - Day 8

Bea still really wants it to snow.  

Jules, too!

They gather up glue and clean jars

and a few dollhouse toys. 

Bea glues toys inside each jar.

She makes Jules wait while they dry. 

  

Jules grabs the glitter!

Shake, shake, shake!

Now, close the lid.... Shake again

Snow globe!

Bea and Jules, Day 7 - Night Tree

Day 7: Night Tree.

Well! 

Jules may have planned for the animals to wake up and talk on Christmas 
Eve, but the animals didn’t know they were supposed to wait.  

Maybe they already had something to talk about.

          “Psst! Spread the word! Feast at the Night Tree!”

The treats Jules and Charlie made are already gone. 

Nibbled up. 

Vanished.

            “At least they had a party!” Jules sighs.  

That’s okay. There is still plenty to do to bring Christmas to everyone else. 

Books ! 

THE FRIENDLY BEASTS - Tomie DePaola
THE NIGHT TREE - Eve Bunting
OWL MOON - Jane Yolen, John Schoenherr

Bea and Jules, Day 3

Day 3:

Charlie wants to write a letter to Santa. Jules is happy to help. 

“Dear Santa, Happy December! Charlie wants ANOTHER train! This is okay with me, but pleeeese not one that SINGS!!! His old one that sings is hiding under my bed because it was ANNOYING! Also, I  think Charlie wants extra candy to give to his sister (me). And if you can make Gran feel better, we will even be okay without the candy. 

Love, Charlie (and Jules!!)”

Books!

The Jolly Christmas Postman, Janet & Allan Ahlberg 

The Dove's Letter, by Keith Baker

I can't wait to read "How Winston Delivered Christmas," by Alex T. Smith.

Bea and Jules, Day 2

Day 2:

Day 2: 

Today, Bea and Jules set up their workshops - the safest place to make things and keep them secret. 

What does one need in a workshop? 

Bea can give you a list. 

Her workshop has a calendar, pencils, envelopes, glue, tape, scissors, and everything else that’s on her list. 

Jules doesn't have a list, but her workshop is full. 

Full of glitter, full of paper, full of crayons, old holiday cards, tape, glue, paint, and more glitter.
Jules also stocks her workshop with: stacks of books, mittens, a jingle bell, a plastic spoon, mints from her gran’s purse, and three puzzle pieces that she found in her pocket. And a sock bookmark.

Or maybe that’s just a lost sock.

What do your elves keep in their workshops?

Books!

Toot & Puddle, Let it Snow, by Holly Hobbie

Christmas With the Mousekins, by Maggie Smith

The Elves & the Shoemaker, by Jim LaMarche

What are your favorite cozy, crafty, holiday picture books?

Bea and Jules, Day 1

Day 1:

Bea loves lists. 

On today's list: get the advent calendars from the Christmas box in the garage. 

The box bursts open with candles, ornaments, popsicle stick snowflakes, and the smell of winter. At the very bottom are the calendars. Each calendar has tiny doors that peek open with a note or a picture for each day until Christmas. Bea's family uses them year after year until the doors are worn and torn and taped back together. 

Today is the first day, so Bea opens the Day 1 door in all the calendars. 

What do you think she will find?

12 Easy-Peasy Writing Secrets, or How to Find Ideas

I get to talk with 4th graders this week about writing. 

As they especially want to know where writers get their ideas, 

I thought I should make a list. 

I decided to share it with you, too. 

This isn't the quantitative, end-all list of idea-catchers, mind you

because, as all writers know, ideas can be found....

• 1. At the bottom of the dryer
• 2. In snatches of conversation 
• 3. In the waiting room at the doctor's office 
• 4. Under the couch, next to the monster's eyeball
• 5. Inside a pair of Seven League Boots
• 6. Buried under the witch's bones in the graveyard
• 7. In a fistful of stolen pirate gold
• 8. In the pocket of the Wrong Coat at the Lost & Found
• 9. Behind a secret staircase in the old castle
• 10. In the next chapter after the final chapter of the last book you read

Of course, this list goes on 

and on

and on...

Writer friends, where do you find your ideas?

Any special plants or potions or special tricks

 that keep your ears and eyes 

ready for your next idea?

Teachers, you are welcome to use this freebie printable as a teaching resource.  Feel free to share links to this page. 

To use this resource, just drag the image to your desktop and print. 

Thank you for keeping this original content credited to its creator.  Cheers!

Let Sleeping Bears Lie, and Sneak Peeks

It's not exactly sleeping bears, -not much sleeping at all, really, 

but I am discovering that the road to illustrating picture books  

involves much burrowing away in caves.

A bit like hibernating. 

The good news is that sometimes 

when writers and illustrators hibernate, 

they have magical news to share.

I am a sucker for fairy tales. 

In 7th grade, I won a poetry contest. 

With my prize - a gift certificate to a local bookstore -

I bought two of the largest collections of fairy tales I could find. 

I devoured those books. I breathed in those stories

and longed to make my own. 

And now my life has come full circle. 

I'm thrilled to tell you that I get to illustrate Lynn Parrish Sutton's story

ONCE UPON A TIMELY

with Kane Miller books. 

What magic!

A huge thanks to Molly O'Neill and Root Literary for helping make this happen. 

Thanks to all of my friends and mentors who have encouraged me along the way.

And thank you to the bookstore, the poetry contest, the teachers 

who coaxed me to read and write and make art... 

Where would we be without the very special magic of having someone believe in us?

Here are a few sneak peeks...

new news

I'm so thrilled to share my news with you:

I'm now represented by Molly O'Neill at Root Literary.

Here's to all the words ahead -

The scribbles, sketches, 

 fresh pages,

new chapters,

erasers.

Here's to exuberance -

all those story seeds wishing their way into the world 

- and to hope.

If you're interested, I'd love to show you my new website:

faithpraybooks.com

I'll still tend this blog when I can, 

still share my lovely finds

 of life and books and story-making, 

wildebeest-wrangling, life-learning, and looking for joy in the daily dirt.

Thank you for supporting and encouraging and connecting with me

through the past eight years. 

Thank you.

Here's to our adventures ahead!  

alight

It's Spring,
and my creative birds of a feather
flock to Seattle
for the SCBWI Western Washington conference.
It's a bright spot in the middle of the rainy season
as authors, illustrators, publishing gurus, 
and friends alight to sharpen, share, bloom,
and cheer.


I'm thrilled to get to learn from the genius of picture book
duo Sarah Stewart and David Small.
Stewart and Small have created some of my favorite books, including
The Gardener, The Library, and The Quiet Place.

Here's a piece I've been working on for a class I'm taking
with Kristine Brogno, design director at Chronicle Books.

It's a windy whirl of a weekend, with so much wisdom to learn and enjoy.
I'll share some nibbles when I get back.
  
For now, it's time to gather up my portfolio,

get the lights,

keep my eyes and ears peeled,

 make a wish or two,

and soak it up!

Fairy Tale Day?

What do you do on Tell a Fairy Tale Day?

Put on your 10,000 league boots?

Fight ogres? 

Plant mysterious beans?

Talk to wishing fish?

Grab your notebook and spin new story magic into the world?

My friends at Puddle Jump Collective

make fairy tale art.

 

I had a little trouble honing in on a fairy tale for this project.

I played with princesses, 

pondered Bremen Town musicians,

 

until Thumbelina caught my attention.

 

Who doesn't need a good, thimble-size hero?

What are your favorite fairy tales?

A sprinkling of my favorites:

The Rainbabies - by Laura Krauss Melmed, illustrated by Jim LaMarche

Adelita - by Tomie De Paola

Little Gold Star - by Robert San Souci, illustrated by Sergio Martinez

The Girl Who Spun Gold - by Virginia Hamilton, illustrated by Leo & Diane Dillon

Tom Thumb - retold & illustrated by Richard Jesse Watson

Sleeping Beauty - by Trina Schart Hyman

Gold Slipper, Glass Sandal - by Paul Fleischman, illustrated by Julie Paschkis

Novel fairy tales:

Ella Enchanted, by Gail Carson Levine
Where the Mountain Meets the Moon by Grace Lin
The Princess Bride by William Goldman
Searching for Dragons by Patricia Wrede