Meeting Judy Blume!

This summer I had the amazing opportunity to meet the one and only Judy Blume! This truly was a childhood dream come true!  I have been a huge fan of hers since I was a little girl.  I read every book and still have my old copies.  When I was 14 years old, I even wrote a note to "my future children" explaining how wonderful I thought Judy's books were.  (There's a link to this note on the Bio page of my website.) I stuck the note inside my boxed set and promised to save them for my own kids, in case these books weren't around any longer.  I really treasured them, and still do!  Luckily Judy's books are still adored by children of all ages.  Judy was kind enough to sign my old boxed set and she even pulled out the books and we laughed over how the covers have changed. Many thanks to my mom for arranging this amazing experience!  It was even more fun because I was able to do it with her.  A day that still makes me smile! 

Prairie Writer's Day 2010

Ahhh...This past Saturday was the SCBWI-Illinois 2010 Prairie Writer's Day at Harper College.  It was fantastic!  I am so grateful for the opportunity to spend the day with my fellow writing pals and to learn from such an amazing line-up of editors and agents.  This was definitely my favorite PWD yet and I've been attending for many years. 

The fabulous speakers included:  Andrea Welch, Editor (Beach Lane Books), Marilyn Brigham, Editor (Marshall Cavendish Children's Books), Katherine Jacobs, Associate Editor (Roaring Brook Press), Tamra Tuller, Editor (Philomel Books Hothouse), Jennifer Mattson, Associate Agent (Andrea Brown Literary) and Edward Necarsulmer, Director of the Children's Department (McIntosh & Otis).  There were also breakout sessions by:  Janice Del Negro, Author, Professor and Reviewer, Michelle Bayuk, Director of Marketing (Albert Whitman & Co.), Meg Moss, Contributing Editor for ASK/Muse magazines and Tori Telfer with Cricket Magazine Group.   I left inspired and motivated.  Oh, I wish it would come more than once a year.  Heartfelt thanks go out to the tremendous planning committee.  All of your efforts are so appreciated.  Already looking forward to the next one. 

Writing is such a solitary job and it can take years to reap the rewards of your efforts.  Attending functions like this remind you that you are not alone in this endeavor.  And helps to refocus all of us on why we do this.  When I speak to children about writing, I always tell them about how much books meant to me growing up.  I always loved that feeling of being taken away to another place and was in awe when writers like Judy Blume could write something that described exactly how I was feeling.  How did they do that?  I was hooked way back then and still am now.  I loved that feeling as a child and hope that I can help kids to feel that way with my stories. 
That would be a dream come true!