Poetry Friday: Not the post I’d planned…

The plan, you see, was for me to tease the official blog tour for my next picture book, I Am Today (POW! Kids Books), which was scheduled for publication on Nov. 30.

However…if we’ve learned anything from this pandemic, it’s to never count on anything as being a sure thing. Sigh.

Yesterday I learned from my I Am Today editor that its publication date is unfortunately being pushed out – again. It was originally supposed to be out Oct. 5 but got pushed out til Nov. 30 due to the whole global shipping / supply chain issue…but now we’ve learned the books are still not going to be available by the end of the month.

So the new & improved publication date is now Dec. 21. We’re hoping to get some last-minute holiday sales, although it’s going to be tight. And yes, it’s disappointing, but disruptions like this are part of the business and something you just have to roll with.

Pre-orders – and why authors love them

For now, we’re trying to push pre-orders, because they are so important for sales numbers…but they are also important for another reason. Folks who aren’t involved in publishing think publishers push pre-orders simply to sell books – which is true – however, pre-orders also help booksellers gauge how popular a book might be, how many copies they might need to order, and how many other books of that particular author they might want to consider stocking, as well.

^{Click here to be whisked away to a complete list of all my books!}

If you like an author and have any plans to get their book(s), then pre-ordering, rather than waiting until it’s available on the shelf, is a great way to help. And although I Am Today is available for pre-orders everywhere books are sold, please remember that if you order from my local indie bookstore here in town, I can personally-sign your book (or any of my books) and have them in the mail usually within 24 hours.

(Seriously – it’s a 20-minute walk from my house to the bookstore! They call me up, I run down and sign it, they put it in the mail…often in less than 12 hours!)

World Children’s Day

Today’s going to be busy for me, as I’ll be visiting with several schools across the country to celebrate World Children’s Day, which is officially tomorrow, Sat. Nov. 20. I’ll be sharing I Am Today with students so they can have a first-peek at this book about a little girl who decides she doesn’t need to wait to be “the Future” to make a difference in her world.

Each school will also receive a FREE COPY of the book – once it’s finally here, of course!

Oh, and since it’s Poetry Friday…

I thought I’d share a poem I wrote way back in 2012, when I was still learning the ropes about the children’s lit world and honing my writing skills. I like this poem, although if I were to write it today it would probably be a bit more polished. But since I wrote it specifically for one of my daughters, it’s staying exactly how it was when I first completed it.

“More Than We Are (for Katherine)”

An astronaut’s an astronaut,
but might be someone’s dad
who takes his daughter fishing
when she feels a little sad.
A banker is a banker
but could be a mom, as well,
who shows her son the alphabet
and helps him learn to spell.

A teacher is a teacher
but might be a singer, too.
The janitor at school…

(You can read the rest of it HERE)

For the complete Poetry Friday roundup, check out Carol’s beautiful “Bedecked in Autumn” gallery of poems and pictures at Beyond Literacy Link!

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I’m now a part of the BOOKROO family!

Create an account to add books to wishlists and be notified of special deals and dates…create custom collections…and discover and follow your favorite authors & illustrators!

Find out more about BOOKROO here!

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I’d love to visit with you or your child!
Learn more by clicking the graphic!

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I continue adding to my “Wit & Wordplay” videos ! These videos were created for parents and educators (along with their kids) to learn how to write poetry, appreciate it, and have fun with it. From alliteration and iambs to free verse and spine poetry, I’m pretty sure there’s something in these videos you’ll find surprising! You can view them all on my YouTube channel, and if you have young kids looking for something to keep busy with, I also have several downloadable activity sheets at my website.

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Ordering personalized signed copies online? Oh, yes, you can!

You can purchase personally-signed copies of Flashlight Night, (Astra Young Readers, 2017), Don’t Ask a Dinosaur (Pow! Kids Books, 2018), and nearly EVERY book or anthology I’ve been part of!

Click any of the covers below to order!

^{rriving Nov. 30, 2021! Pre-order now!}

Just click the cover of whichever book you want and send a comment to the good folks at MainStreet BookEnds in Warner, NH requesting my signature and to whom I should make it out. (alternatively, you can log onto my website and do the same thing) They’ll contact me, I’ll stop by and sign it, and then they’ll ship it! (Plus, you’ll be supporting your local bookseller – and won’t that make you feel good?)

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Thank you to everyone for your support!

FLASHLIGHT NIGHT:

• NY Public Library’s “100 Best Book for Kids 2017” AND “Staff Pick!”
• KIRKUS Starred review!
• Kansas NEA Reading Circle Recommended Books!
• “Best Reads of 2017,” Unleashing Readers
• Finalist, 2019 New Hampshire Literary Awards
• Positive reviews from Horn Book, School Library Connection, School Library Connection, Booklist, Publisher’s Weekly, and Shelf-Awareness!

DON’T ASK A DINOSAUR:

• “Rollicking rhyme!” – Booklist
  • “A wild romp!” – Parenting NH Magazine
  • “Cute…intriguing…4 out of 5 stars”     – Tulsa Book Review
  • “Rhythmic…funny and informative”     – Unleashing Readers

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Did you like this post? Find something interesting elsewhere in this blog? I really won’t mind at all if you feel compelled to share it with your friends and followers!

To keep abreast of all my posts, please consider subscribing via the links up there on the right!  (I usually only post once or twice a week – usually Tues. and Fri. – so you won’t be inundated with emails every day) . Also feel free to visit my voiceover website HERE, and you can also follow me via Twitter , Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, and SoundCloud!