and how the legacy of this change maker is being kept alive by local students. I was so honored to visit an incredible group of scholars at SUNY Brockport last fall. They were all recipients of the Fannie Barrier Williams Scholarship. Jianna Howard is their teacher, advisor and mentor. She’s the reason they call themselves […]
Sometimes the seeds that are planted in one chance meeting blossom beyond anything you could have imagined. This woman. Intentional. Generous. Empathetic. A force of nature. Her soul shines through a smile that lights up the whole room. When she pulls you in for a hug, she’ll adjust you first. She’ll say, “No. It needs to […]
It has been an absolute honor to serve as President of RACWI this past year. The Rochester Area Children’s Writers and Illustrators is a group of kidlit creators living in the Rochester, NY area. Thank you to all of you who made me feel welcome and capable in this new leadership position. I had a […]
This is my writing buddy, Oliver. As soon as he spots me with a hot cup of tea in one hand and my notebook in the other, he runs to the stairs. He leads the way, checking to make sure I’m following, and dives under my desk. I sit and write and he sits on […]
It’s that time of year again… The time where we put the last year of our lives under the magnifying glass and take a good look at what we accomplished and where we went wrong. We make goals, usually lofty ones. Personally, when January comes along and I’ve spent the past week eating Christmas cookies, I […]
After being trapped in a house with my three children during the pandemic for 15 months, my wonderful husband agreed to let me leave him and the kids for four days. So on Mother’s Day, I gave my Mom (and myself!) a writing retreat for two. Never have I ever packed my bags and set […]
When I was in second grade, I won the “future author” award.
I was that kid. A total bookworm. The kind of kid who has read everything three times and starts stealing her mother’s novels. The kind of kid whose mother has to rip out certain pages because she knew I was stealing her books and write, “and they did it” in place of the pages torn out. The kind of kid who can’t wait to get home with her new library books. My escape.
