News: Member News

Awards/Contests

Sandra McLeod Humphrey's "What Would You Do?" series of books won the 2008 Silver Quill Award from the American Author's Association.

Janet Schultz won an Honorable Mention and placed 41st in the 77th Annual Writer's Digest Annual Writing Competition in the Children's/YA Fiction Category.

Karen Schulz received an Honorable Mention and placed 37th in the 77th Annual Writer's Digest Writing Competition in the Children's Fiction Category.

Books

Swati Avashti, Split (YA novel with Knopf). Avashti sold a two-book deal at Auction with Nancy Siscoe at Knopf.

John Coy, Two Old Potatoes and Me (January 2009)

Carrie Hartman, illustrator:

• It's Hard To Be A Verb, by Julia Cook (National Center for Youth Issues, 2008)

• The Clock Struck One, by Trudy Harris (Lerner Publishing, Spring 2009)

• The Mischievous Mom at the Art Gallery, by Rebecca Eckler and Erica Ehm (Key Porter Books, Canada, Fall 2009)

Pamela Hall, six books on grammar and punctuation for children through ABDO Press, due out in January 2009.

Laura Purdie Salas
Amazing Science Series (Picture Window Books, 2009):

• From Mealworm to Beetle: Following the Life Cycle
• From Seed to Daisy: Following the Life Cycle
• From Seed to Maple Tree: Following the Life Cycle

A+ Books Poetry Series (Capstone Press, 2009):

• Always Got My Feet: Poems about Transportation
• Chatter, Sing, Roar, Buzz: Poems about the Rain Forest
• A Fuzzy-Fast Blur: Poems about Pets
• Lettuce Introduce You: Poems about Food

Self-Published Books

Joan Marie Verba, Countdown to Action! (FTL Publications, June 2008)

Judith Schuster, No Place to Call Home: Book Two of the Eddie Brewster Adventures (Publish America, 2008)

Magazines

Laura Goering, "A Crocodile Tale" (short story, Highlights for Children Magazine, December 2008)

Claudette Hegel, "Claudette: On Caldecotts and Newberys" (column, Once Upon A Time Magazine, Winter 2008)

Christine L. Henderson, "A Tooth Tale" (short story, Highlights for Children Magazine, December 2008)

Gayle Jacobson-Huset

• "Little Sure Shot: America's First Female Sports Superstar!" (article, Stories for Children Magazine, November 2008)
• "Cold Fight" (poem, Stories for Children Magazine, December 2008)

• "Pearl Harbor and the USS Arizona" (article, Stories for Children Magazine, December 2008)

• "What Is an Idiom?" (article/activity, Stories for Children Magazine, February 2009)

Jennifer Jesseph, "A Party for Jesus" (poem, My Light Magazine, December 2008)

Pam Johnson, "Gigi and Grandmama and the Overstuffed Chair" (short story, Humpty Dumpty Magazine, January/February 2009)

Sara Matson
• "Ojo de Dios" (God's Eye) (craft, Highlights for Children Magazine, November 2008)
• "Family Fun Candles" (craft, Highlights for Children Magazine, December 2008)

• "A Nickname for Alberto" (short story, Stories for Children Magazine, March 2009)
• "Mexican Hot Chocolate" (recipe, Stories for Children Magazine, March 2009)

Tom Prill, "Michael and His Flute" (short story, My Light Magazine, December 2008)

Christina Rodriguez, two illustrations (pg. 24, pg. 31) in the December 2008 SCBWI Bulletin

Noteworthy News

MnNSCBWI 2008-09 Mentorship Program
Author Mentor, Guy Stewart, winner: Bill Talty
Illustrator Mentor, Shawn Mccann, winner: Betsy Laplatte

On the Internet/Blogs:
• Mindy Braun: www.melindabraun.blogspot.com

• Betsy LePlatt: Facebook profile.
• Christina Rodriguez updated her one-year-old blog to include her "art crushes."

• Alicia Schwab: www.aliciaschwab.blogspot.com
• Laura Purdie Salas has a blog called "Bubble Stampede" where she and author Fiona Bayrock invite other authors to come and chat about ways to promote your first trade book.

Margi Preus had a book signing on Saturday, November 1, 10 to 11 a.m., at St. Martin's Table, 2001 Riverside Ave, Minneapolis for her new book, The Peace Bell (Henry Holt)

Christina Rodriguez had a book signing at Caminito Art Studio in Hudson, Wisconsin, on Saturday, December 13th, 2008 and Sunday, December 14th, 2008 for her latest illustrated book, The Wishing Tree (Elva Resa Publishing)

Lauren Stringer: Kerlan Friends Appreciation Day, November 15, 2008, 120 Andersen Library. The event featured a special presentation by illustrator Lauren Stringer, celebrating publication of her forthcoming picture book, Snow, with text by Cynthia Rylant (Harcourt Children's Books, 2008)

Ben Weiss wrote a picture book for adults for the homeless for the Minnesota Coalition of the Homeless. Weiss read his book to the MN Legislature on December 18, 2008, while illustrations provided by Melinda Braun flashed on the overhead screen during the reading.