About viviankirkfield

Writer for children - Reader forever - Mom of 3, educator, author of FOUR OTTERS TOBOGGAN: AN ANIMAL COUNTING BOOK (PomegranateKids, PIPPA'S PASSOVER PLATE (Holiday House), SWEET DREAMS, SARAH (Creston Books); MAKING THEIR VOICES HEARD: THE INSPIRING FRIENDSHIP OF ELLA FITZGERALD AND MARILYN MONROE (Little Bee Books); FROM HERE TO THERE: INVENTIONS THAT CHANGED THE WAY THE WORLD MOVES (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, Jan 19, 2021); PEDAL, BALANCE, STEER: Annie Londonderry, First Woman to Bike Around the World (Calkins Creek/Astra, Feb 20, 2024) picture book junkie, lover of travel, hiking, fly-fishing, cooking, and playing Monopoly with my grandson.

PICTURE BOOK COVER REVEAL: NINITA’S BIG WORLD

Posted on July 1, 2018 by viviankirkfield

WOW…what an honor! I get to reveal the cover of Sarah Glenn Marsh’s latest picture book!!

I first fell in love with the subtitle…I mean, how can you not be head over heels about NINITA’S BIG WORLD: THE TRUE STORY OF A DEAF PYGMY MARMOSET? And then I saw the cover…Ninita is super cute, right? The book pubs from Clarion in 2019, and here’s a short blurb to get you thinking about it:

Meet Ninita! She’s a pygmy marmoset—the smallest type of monkey. As a baby, she was the size of a human thumb. Full grown, she fits easily in the palm of a person’s hand.

Ninita is deaf, but that doesn’t stop her from exploring the world. She loves to climb, taste new foods, and follow interesting smells to exciting adventures. With her sharp eyes, Ninita is always spotting things that her pygmy marmoset friend Mr. Big and the other animals miss—sometimes creatures even smaller than she is!

Pygmy marmosets are native to the Amazon rainforest, but Ninita and her friends live at the Rare Species Conservatory Foundation in Florida, where they are helping to save animals from extinction. Published in partnership with the RSCF, this charming story introduces readers to biodiversity and wildlife conservation—and to a tiny, adorable little monkey who is making an important difference in the world.

What a wonderful idea for a story…and based on a true character…that makes it even better! And here is a little bit about the author.

Sarah Glenn Marsh is an author of young adult novels including Reign of the Fallen and Fear the Drowning Deep, as well as children’s picture books like Selfie Sebastian and A Campfire Tail. An avid fantasy reader from the day her dad handed her a copy of The Hobbit and promised it would change her life, she’s been making up words and worlds ever since. She lives in Virginia with her husband and their tiny zoo of four rescued greyhounds, three birds, and many fish.

When she’s not writing, she’s often painting, or engaged in nerdy pursuits from video games to tabletop adventures. You can visit her online at http://www.sarahglennmarsh.com, and follow her on Twitter @SG.

Earlier this year, I featured Selfie Sebastian and A Campfire Tail on Perfect Picture Book Friday and I gave away a copy of each. Maybe next year we’ll be able to turn the spotlight on NINITA’S BIG WORLD: THE TRUE STORY OF A DEAF PYGMY MARMOSET and do a giveaway.

There’s a big beautiful week coming up, dear friends. Happy 4th of July…wherever you are going and whatever you are doing, I wish you joy, peace, and safe travels.

Jen Betton: Will Write for Cookies PLUS Giveaway

Posted on June 23, 2018 by viviankirkfield

WILL WRITE FOR COOKIES

INSIGHT – INSPIRATION – INFORMATION

FOR WRITERS

TODAY’S GUEST

JEN BETTON

I’ve always been a person who sees the silver lining in the storm cloud. My Sweet Dreams, Sarah may have been pushed from 2017 to 2018 and now to 2019, but I’m overjoyed to have connected with the debut picture book authors and illustrators of each of those years. Talented Jen Betton is one of the Epic Eighteens and I’m thrilled to know her and welcome her to Will Write for Cookies.

Jen Betton loves to draw and make up stories with her pictures. In Kindergarten she got into trouble for drawing presents on a picture of Santa, and she s been illustrating ever since. Her picture books include her debut as an author-illustrator, HEDGEHOG NEEDS A HUG, published with Putnam, and TWILIGHT CHANT, written by Holly Thompson, published with Clarion.

She has a BA in English, and a BFA and MFA in Illustration. She lives in Dallas with her husband and two children. You can see more of her work at www.jenbetton.com.

ME: Jen, I’m so happy you stopped by today. I know everyone is excited to find out more about you.

Who were your favorite authors/illustrators when you were a child?

JEN: Favorite authors were C.S. Lewis, Louisa May Alcott, Madeline L’Engle; illustrators were Pauline Baynes (you can tell I love the Narnia Chronicles), Trina Schart Hyman, and N.C. Wyeth. I still love all these people and their work.

ME: What do you know now that you wish you knew when you first started writing?

JEN: How helpful it can be to pay attention to different book structures. Certain ideas fit better into different structures, and being aware of them makes it possible to play with the plot.

Also, when a certain bit of critique resonates with you, or even more when it doesn’t, think about the heart of your story. What is the underlying theme, the core of your story, and how does this suggested change align with that heart? This helps me a lot when figuring out what changes to make.

ME: Where do you like to write – inside, outside, special room, laptop, pen and paper?

JEN: I usually write on my computer, but I’ll also print out a copy of what I’m working on and make edits on the print out. That way I can work on little thumbnail drawings while I’m editing the text.

ME: When do you write – early morning, late in the day, middle of the night, on schedule, as the muse strikes?

JEN: Definitely not morning! Midday is my sweet spot (because it’s nap time and the kids are asleep!), but really any time of day (other than morning) when I get the time and an idea.

ME: Why do you write for children?

JEN: In part because those are the kind of stories that I love the most, and the kinds of stories I want to write. C.S. Lewis said he told stories for children because that was the best medium for the stories he had to tell, and Neil Gaiman and Maurice Sendak have made similar comments.

I also write children’s books because I’m an illustrator, and picture books allow me to tell stories visually, which I love to do. I tend to think of the story as separate from the medium in which it is told – it exists on its own and then takes form in either words or pictures, or both. The picture book is this wonderful alchemy where you share the story between two different languages – the verbal and the visual.

And finally I write picture books because I enjoy sharing them with kids!

ME: EXACTLY! I totally agree, Jen! Thank you so very much for sharing all of this. And I know you have a fabulous cookie recipe to share as well.

JEN: I do, I do! This one is perfect for kids, but for a more “grown up” cookie, you can soak the dried cranberries or cherries in bourbon for one hour ahead of time.

Recipe:

……………..

Chocolate Cranberry Oatmeal Cookies

1 cup (aka 2 sticks) of butter, softened

1 cup firmly packed brown sugar

1/2 cup granulated sugar

2 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon salt (optional)

3 cups oatmeal (quick or old fashioned, uncooked)

1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

1/2 cup chopped macadamia nuts

1/2 cup dried cranberries or cherries*

Heat oven to 350 F

Beat together butter and sugars until creamy

Add eggs and vanilla; beat well

Add combined flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt, mix well

stir in oats and raisins, mix well

Drop by rounded tablespoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheet

Bake 10 to 12 minutes or until golden brown.

Cool 1 minute on cookie sheet; remove to wire rack.

WOW…Oatmeal raisin cookies are one of my favorites!!! This Q&A has been lots of fun…and I can’t wait to try the recipe. Big thanks to Jen for stopping by and to all of you for spending your precious time here. Please don’t forget to leave a comment to be entered into the giveaway of a copy of HEDGEHOG NEEDS A HUG.

Have a safe and happy weekend, dear friends. I am still in Chicago, but will be flying home early Monday morning. It was great to be visiting with famiy and I was fortunate to connect with librarian Betsy Bird. I’d met her at an SCBWI conference, listened to her on one of the 12×12 webinars recently, and yesterday I enjoyed chatting with her at the Evanston Public Library where she is the Collection Development Manager in addition to being a blogger for School Library Journal.

Perfect Picture Book Friday: Hedgehog Needs a Hug PLUS Giveaway

Posted on June 22, 2018 by viviankirkfield

Happy Perfect Picture Book Friday! I’m so happy to bring you one of the new 2018 debuts! This one is such a perfect marriage of text and illustrations – and one of the reasons for that is because it was created by the very talented author/illustrator Jen Betton. I fell in love with her heartfelt drawings of all of the animal characters and I think you will also. And guess what? Jen will be stopping by Will Write for Cookies tomorrow with an inside peek at her writing/illustrating life.

Don’t forget to leave a comment on this post and on tomorrow’s for a chance to win a copy of this wonderful book!

HEDGEHOG NEEDS A HUG

Written and illustrated by Jen Betton

Published by G.P.Putnam’s Sons (June 2018)

Ages: 4-8

Themes: Friendship

Synopsis: From Amazon:

Everyone needs hugs, even if they’re prickly.

When Hedgehog wakes up feeling down in the snout and droopy in the prickles, he knows a hug will make him feel much better. But none of his animal friends are eager to wrap their arms around Hedgehog’s prickles, and he’s too smart to fall for Fox’s sly offer.

Then Hedgehog gets a surprise: Another animal in the forest is feeling exactly the same way.

Luckily, both are kind and brave enough for the perfect hug

Why I like this book:

Text filled with heart and humor is paired with gorgeous heartfelt illustrations
I LOVE friendship stories – and so do children
Kids will really relate to how Hedgehog is feeling

RELATED ACTIVITIES

Photo courtesy: https://totallythebomb.com/25-totally-cute-hedgehog-crafts

Can you believe all of these awesome hedgehog crafts? For detailed instructions, please go to: https://totallythebomb.com/25-totally-cute-hedgehog-crafts

Matthew Winner gave a shout out to Jen’s new trailer for HEDGEHOG NEEDS A HUG: http://www.matthewcwinner.com/single-post/2018/06/05/HEDGEHOG-NEEDS-A-HUG-Book-Trailer-Premiere

Don’t forget to leave a comment to be entered in the book giveaway…and please support your favorite authors and illustrators by buying their books, telling friends about their books, and writing reviews for their books.

And definitely don’t miss coming tomorrow when author/illustrator Jen Betton stops by to chat on Will Write for Cookies.

Happy Summer to all…and have a safe weekend!