Dori Hillestad Buttler

Here's the link to a video about the author of the popular Buddy Files, Dori Hillestad Butler, and her dog where she discusses her creation and inspiration for the series.

 One of the Buddy Files, The Case of the Lost Boy, won the 2011 Edgar Award for best juvenile mystery. (That award is given by the Mystery Writers of America.)
Enjoy.

Can Children's Book Authors Make a Living Writing?

Today I have a guest blogger -- Cynthia Levinson, a wonderful nonfiction writer whose new book, We've Got a Job: The 1963 Birmingham Children's March is gathering many awards. For the mathmatically challenged, it takes ten "mills" to add up to one penny.

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While the situation should outrage us, it¹s oddly reassuring to learn that even established, revered writers make incomes well below a living wage, despite the hours they devote to the craft. 

My son-in-law once semi-computed that, writing for the COBBLESTONE magazines, I made something like a mill a month. And, with the modest advance I got to offset part of the expenses for researching my book, on which I worked a good part of two-and-a-half or three years, my income is in the dreaded parenthesis column. 

When people ask me for advice about writing and topics, I say they must love their topics‹love to the point of obsession. They must love them in the face of negative cash flow, exhaustion, and limited socializing. I told a blogger I had to love it enough even to care that all the commas were consistent.

 If only I had a mill for each of those commas, I¹d be financially ahead of where I am.

Cynthia Levinson
We¹ve Got a Job: The 1963 Birmingham Children¹s March (Peachtree Publishers, February 2012)
Available in audio from Random House/Listening Library in Summer 2012

Website: http://www.cynthialevinson.com/
Blog: Emu¹s Debuts @ http://emusdebuts.wordpress.com/

Read to someone today

It's Read Across America Day!

Every year Dr. Seuss' birthday is celebrated by Read Across America Day.
Check out the links on this post at Elizabeth O. Dulemba's blog for links to activities and printables.

The Carnival of Children's Literature is up

Just in time for Carnival and Mardi Gras, the Carnival of Children's Literature has been posted on The Fourth Musketeer's blog.

What is the Carnival of Children's Literature?  It's a compilation of interesting posts all over the kidlithosphere.  Click on the links and enjoy.

I especially liked all the photographs of children dressed to celebrate Mardi Gras and Carnival.

Today we LEAP

If you ever wondered why we have an extra day in February, National Geographic Kids has the answer. Enjoy this Leap Day in this Leap Year.

(This fuss about February 29th also helps me to remember when the summer Olympics are and the US presidential elections are, because they always are every 4 years, during a Leap Year.)

If you are a Facebook fan, lots of people who were born on this day are coming out of the woodwork, mostly to brag how much younger they are than the rest of us who have to celebrate birthdays every  year.

Unfair -- Child Grows Taller Than Me

The 12-year-old has a new, annoying way to say good-night to me.
She'll kiss me and hug me and chant, "I'm taller than you."
And the annoying part about this is --
she's right!
She is.