Well, it's official--On March 31st, I become the Regional Advisor for #EasternUp. My thanks to Kerry McQuaide and @nancycastaldobooks.bsky.social for laying such a great path before me, and to the wonderful volunteers and creatives who make the Eastern NY SCBWI region so vibrant.
Woohoo!! Congrats @kerrymcquaide.bsky.social for being March's SCBWI Featured Illustrator! 🎉🎉🎉
Great interview. 🙂 #easternup #kidlit #kidlitart #goodnews
www.scbwi.org/featured-ill...
Back cover of FIDDLEHEAD FOLIO, 2025, Vol. 3. Text reads "A collection of poetry and stories from Metro west Writers' Guild authors!"
Not only is my story in print and my name on the cover of a book (in a list of names with many others), my story is referenced on the back cover! If you are curious about "a bell that rings at the most inopportune time," find out in Fiddlehead Folio Vol. 3. #easternup #goodnews #flashfiction
Book cover for MYSTERY DRIVER: THE STORY OF ALICE JOHNSON AND THE FIRST SOAP BOX DERBY, written by Elizabeth Tracy and illustrated by Anna Aronson. A child in helmet and goggles drives a white soap box derby car over an orange road toward a checkered flag.
MYSTERY DRIVER is a beautiful combination of STEM ingenuity, competitive spirit, and girl power! A dramatic tale that's all the more inspiring because it is true. @drliztracy.bsky.social #kidlit #easternup #picturebook #nf
Playing around with a potential new breakthrough for the MG. I always get inspired after critique :) #easternup #kidlit #amwriting
Here's a sneak peek at the second picture book in the Fred and Ethan Adventure series, "Trolls' Bridges and Nasty Ogres."
Seeking representation, see more at www.studio-w.art/tb
#kidlit #kidliitart #childrensbookillustrator #scbwi #digitalart #childrensbookartist #Imagination #fantasy #easternup
So fun to see so many #easternup writers at the Beekman Library Children's Literary Festival! So many great stories. So many great read alouds. So many great people. Plus, an epicly challenging scavenger hunt. Kudos to anyone who can finish that without help... #kidlit
Book cover for THE TROUBLE WITH HEROES by Kate Messner. A White boy with a tall, orange backpack stands on the summit of a mountain with a large, long-haired dog.
Finished the #easternup book club book! Loved it. I predicted all the twists save one. That one made it extra special. @nancycastaldobooks.bsky.social @katemessner.com #kidlit #mg #bookreview #scbwi
Finally get to share my first in-print publication! "Sam's Date" in Vol. 3 of Fiddlehead Folio. A humorous flash fiction story that some might call romcom, though I will not. Available through your favorite indie.
#goodnews #easternup #writingcommunity #flashfiction
bookshop.org/p/books/fidd...
Book cover for THE TROUBLE WITH HEROES by Kate Messner. A White tween boy with a baseball cap and a large, orange backpack stands on a rocky mountain peak beside a large tri-color dog. Green mountains and blue water show in the distance.
58% through and starting to make big guesses about the twists to come. @nancycastaldobooks.bsky.social thanks for giving me an excuse to buy this one. Really enjoying it so far! @katemessner.com #easternup #kidlit #mg #amreading
Shout out to #easternup Co-ARA @markersnyder.bsky.social whose debut graphic novel FIRST KISS WITH FANGS was nominated for a GLAAD Media Award!! 🎉🎉🎉
#kidlit #lgbtq #graphicnovel #gn #goodnews #vampire
I had too much fun organizing the #easternup critique spreadsheet this month. Apparently, I love sorting and filtering data.
Ethan is out enjoying a bright spring day at the park with Fred when he encounters something completely unexpected under a small bridge: A TROLL!
Seeking representation. See more at https:www.studio-w.art/kidlit
#kidlit #kidliitart #childrensbookillustrator #scbwi #easternup #digitalart
Next up for Fred and Ethan: Trolls' Bridges and Nasty Ogres! Jumping off from Ethan's last flight of fancy in A Bewildering Bottle, he imagines a world where friendly Trolls are responsible for holding up the world's bridges. He meets a Troll in need of his help to rescue the source of their magic from the clutches of the evil Ogres. He and Fred cross under the Troll's bridge into a fantastic land to locate the Ogres and rescue the Troll's magic. Originally illustrated in pen and ink, here's one of the new full-page artworks, reimagined as a "digital watercolor." Seeking representation, learn more at www.studio-w.art/kidlit
Next up for Fred and Ethan, he imagines a world where friendly Trolls hold up the world's bridges, and they need his help to rescue the source of their magic from the clutches of the evil Ogres.
#kidlit #kidliitart #childrensbookillustrator #scbwi #childrensbookartist #easternup #digitalart
Had a wonderful time at yesterday's CWHV Conference! I had lots of great bookish conversations with #easternup members and made a few new connections. #kidlit #writingcommunity
Here, Ethan imagines that it might turn him into a super genius. He would be able to invent how spaceships could travel across galaxies and stun his teacher.
Seeking representation. See more at https:www.studio-w.art/bb
#kidlit #kidliitart #scbwi #childrensbookart #Imagination #easternup
Just signed my first publishing contract! 🎉 It's only for a flash story, but it's still a cool milestone. 😁 #writingcommunity #easternup #goodnews
I just wrapped up improvements to this climactic scene from my picture book, A Bewildering Bottle. The story follows Ethan's uninhibited imagination as he wonders about the origin of the strange bottle he and Fred found on the beach. Here, he imagines it's not a bottle, but opens a gateway to a magic land of broken mountains, twisted trees, strange bushes, and infinite possibilities. It would be a place where he and Fred could go on fantastic adventures. This vista is a jumping-off point for the next book in the Fred and Ethan Adventures series. Seeking representation. See more at www.studio-w.art/bb
Ethan imagines the bottle opens a gateway to a magic land of broken mountains, twisted trees, strange bushes, and infinite possibilities. This spread is a jumping-off point for the next book in the Fred and Ethan Adventures series.
#kidlit #kidliitart #childrensbookillustrator #scbwi #easternup
Such a great #poetry writing day! I found a few submission calls and was thoroughly inspired. 😁 #amwriting #disabilitysky #easternup
Text reads "I'm going to The Empire State 24 Hour Children's Book Challenge. It's virtual! aa/8/25-11/9/25." Below the text is an image of New York State the Regional Team Hosts labeled: West/Central Upstate, Eastern Upstate, Westchester, Metropolitan, Long Island. Green SCBWI logo is in the bottom right corner.
Join #easternup and all the NY Regions of #scbwi for a 24 hour writing marathon! Next weekend, 10 am Sat to 10 am Sun (EST). @kerrymcquaide.bsky.social , @johnbriggsbooks.bsky.social , and I will be moderating overnight. There will be mini-lessons, writing sprints, and community. #kidlit
Ethan wonders if the bewildering bottle is actually a small top-secret rocket engine. If they can find another one, he and Fred can fly in the clouds together.
Seeking representation: www.studio-w.art/bb
#kidlit #kidliitart #childrensbookillustrator #scbwi #scbwiillustrators #easternup
Final edits for my upcoming flash piece are in! #amwriting #flashfiction #goodpublishingnews #goodnews #easternup
Got the most moving compliment from a critique partner today! #easternup #kidlit #amwriting
NFT SCAMS COME TO SCBWI
I get these a lot on Facebook, this is the first time I received a message via email, referencing our SCBWI profiles.
These are scams. Do not respond. Block the sender.
#scbwi #easternup #scam #nft
Tonight's #easternup webinar was amazing. Cherry Mo is so kind and inspiring!! #kidlit #picturebook #scbwi
I just recently finalized the artwork for the 10th illustration of my children's picture book, Fred and Ethan's Spectacular Discovery. In this work, I perfected an approach for illustrating complex trees (on the right of this 2-page spread) to achieve a more vibrant and natural appearance. This scene represents Ethan's increasingly creative and complex flights of fancy as he tries to imagine what could be inside the strange bottle he discovered. I'm available for children's book art commissions in my vibrant "digital that doesn't look digital" style. Learn more at https://www.studio-w.art/kidlit
In this recent work, I perfected an approach for illustrating complex trees (on the right of this 2-page spread) to achieve a more vibrant and natural appearance.
#kidlit #kidliitart #scbwi #digitalart #childrensbookart #childrensbookartist #easternup #Imagination #imaginationiseverything
#kidlit creators, join #scbwi #easternup for a webinar with Cherry Mo! The Caldecott-Honor-winning author-ilustrator will be sharing her process and her path to publication.
When: September 29, 2005, 6 pm - 7:15 pm EDT
Where: Zoom (will be recorded)
Price: $15 ($10 for premium)
bit.ly/4mtgC0a
Got word that my flash piece will appear in a literary journal. More details to come. #goodnews #goodpublishingnews #writingcommunity #flashfiction #easternup
I love seeing your beautiful illustrations recognized, Chuck! Congratulations! Hurrah for WHALES IN THE CITY! 🎉
@andreabrownlit.bsky.social @literaticat.bsky.social @steamteambooks.bsky.social @mackidssl.bsky.social
#easternup #kidlit #scbwi #hudsonvalley #picturebook
FIRST KISS WITH FANGS by @markersnyder.bsky.social is fabulous! The characters are all so well-rounded and unique I want more of them. 😉 I would totally be friends with vegetarian vampire Ivan. #kidlit #gn #graphicnovel #mg #bookreview #easternup
bit.ly/3I8d71f
