by play i write kid lit.
Right now, my main focus is picture book manuscripts. But I’ve got a couple YA novels in my back pocket and reserve the right to change or add to my genres as inspiration strikes.
A WILD IDEA.
What happens when wildlife needs to cross the road? In A WILD IDEA, a young girl dreams of a way to help: a bridge just for the animals. There are no wheels bound for this bridge. The only traffic will be hooves and paws.
OUT NOW: https://youtu.be/546QqlXDUXs
“Feels like a party, and you'll want to jump in.”
— KIRKUS
Pool party:
JUMP ON IN!!!
My debut picture book was co-created with longtime pal Elisa Parhad (Los Angeles Is…) and illustrated by the fab Anne Bentley. Publisher is Cameron Kids (a division of Abrams)!
it’s available now through Amazon, Indiebound, directly via the Abrams website, and in many retailers like B&N and indie stores.
i moved to los angeles with an idea.
i know, i know.
so cliche.
But it’s true.
I moved to Los Angeles with an idea - singular - for a kid’s book.
I thought it was my only idea.
I wrote a few drafts that weren’t doing anything and then finally, after a fortuitous meeting on a shuttle bus that led me to a new friend (and current writing group partner), I signed up for a course at UCLA Extension to learn more about the craft of writing for children.
After that class, I had a few more ideas. And then a few more. And a few more after that.
They keep coming, and I am forever grateful (and also forever fearful that someday they’ll cease).
Now, when I’m not at work or outside (and sometimes when I am), I find myself day-dreaming about new ideas. Sometimes I observe something in the wild and it sparks a notion. Sometimes I think of a play on words, chuckle, and realize it’s something to write down.
My phone, and notepad, and desk are full of little speckles that may someday become an actual book.
I love the whimsy and wonder of children’s writing. It truly feels like playing.
THE STORY BEHIND POOL PARTY
i am thrilled to have collaborated with one of my very first friends as co-authors of POOL PARTY, released by Cameron Kids (a division of Abrams!) in spring 2022.
People often ask, where did the idea or inspiration come from?
Elisa and I met in a pool as toddlers. We swam together throughout our elementary-school age years on a summer swim club called Aqua Club where we busted a city record-breaking relay record.
This is us!
I have toted this photo with me wherever I have lived over the years and decades. What a special time and memory.
This is where it all started!