Two Villages, One Book---One Happy Author

     The last time I posted I was on my way to Chicago for the One Book Two Villages Program (hence known as OBTV), hosted annually by the Winnetka-Northfield Public Library System. Each year, two thematically related books...one for children, one for adults...are selected for citywide reading in Winnetka and Northfield. This year, my middle grade historical fiction Yankee Girl was chosen as the children's book.

     I was thrilled to have my "first born" book so honored, and doubly so when I learned that the adult selection was Kathryn Stockett's The Help (the first time I have been associated in any way with a New York Times bestseller!)  Not only do both of our books take place in Civil Rights-Era Jackson, Mississippi, but both of us claim Jackson as our hometown. (Kathryn was really born there; I just sort of adopted it.)

       If knowing that your adult counterpart is a bestseller was not intimidating enough, I really felt out-of-my-league when I learned that my predecessors in the program include Laurie Halse Anderson, Pam Munoz Ryan and Deborah Ellis!
Luckily, I didn't come upon that information until after the first day of the program.  By that time I already knew that the readers and librarians of Winnetka-Northfield Public are the best.  I have never had more fun on a multo-day school/library presentation.  Because this program has existed for seven years, the whole three days were smooth, glitch-less and stress free for me.

     I visited two schools, Skokie and Sunset Ridge Schools, where I talked about the Civl Rights Movement, and the background of Yankee Girl. Snaps all around to the teachers and librarians at those two schools who made sure their students read YG before my visit. One of the schools even conducted book discussion groups for YG before I arrived. As a result of the pre-planning, the students were ready to ask me insightful and cogent questions.  When you have been doing school visits as long as I have for YG,
after awhile you know you have been asked every conceivable question. . . twice!  These students questions I had never considered, and found themes and nuances I was unaware of. . .and I wrote the book!

     Many of these students were also present for a Mother-Daughter Book Dicussion and Young Writer's Workshop that took place at the Winnetka Library after school.  By the end of day two, I could remember the names of a dozen kids, because they had attended both programs and at been present for one of the school visits.

     At these library programs, I discovered that not only were these students critical thinkers, they are also fine writers. I suspect this is because they are also fine readers. As part of the writing workshop, we did a freewrite exercise in which the word prompt was "bedtime."  In only five minutes, and without consulting with anyone (or their neighbor's freewrite!), everyone of those dozen or so young writers had a sequence that involved being told to "turn out the lights and stop reading", followed by continuing to read by some "alternative" form lighting . . .flashlight, night light, hallway light, sneaking into a bathroom. Yes, these kids are my kind of kids! (For the record, I was a hallway light reader....hanging as far out of bed as I could to catch the light, but not so far that I couldn't haul myself up at the sound of footsteps.)

     If all this activity were not enough, there was a booksigning and talk at The Book Stall in Winnetka. Not only did I see the same students from the other programs, but for me, there was a special surprise.  The brother of one of my father's FBI partners showed up!  I had never met this man before, but his resemblance to his brother (who I knew very well) was so amazing, I knew exactly who he was before he introduced himself.

     The last event on my agenda was a luncheon with the Winnetka Alliance for Early Childhood. This time I gave my "adults only" version of the actual events behind YG.  I had a great time; I hope my audience did as well.

      The week was topped off with visits with Chicago writer buddies, including TA's Marti (aka Carmela) and Esther, as well as with last week's author interviewee, April Pulley Sayre.  I arrived back in Atlanta Saturday afternoon, experiencing the same sort of let down you have after a wonderful vacation. Especially since the Atlanta Airport. baggage retrieval and commuter rail were all hour behind schedule. (But then, when aren't they?)

     I would like to thank every single person who made my time in Illinois so special. . .but I don't know all of their names. A big shout out to those school librarians and teachers for spending considerable time discussing YG in advance. A thank you to the folks at the Book Stall, and the Winnetka Alliance for Early Childhood. Roses all around to everybody at the Winnetka Library (especially Director David Seleb) who became my new BFF's overnight. Most of all, I want to send a truckload of (cyber) roses to the Wonderful Wizard of Winnetka, Head of Youth Services, Bronwyn Parhad who made all of this come to pass. That's Bronwyn with the OBTV display in the library's children's department. Hooray for Bronwyn and Winnetka-Public Library for giving me the best gift a children's writer can receive . . . the opportunity to connect with young readers.

Posted by Mary Ann Rodman

P.S. Alas, my camera was out-of-commission, so I don't have any of my own pictures to share, but it you go to Winnetka-Northfield's Facebook page 

 http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=168830&id=8630759092
you can see how much fun we had.

     Browym and her PR team also produced this terrific YouTube trailer for the Yankee Girl part of the TVOB. Just enter my name in a video search, and it will come up.

Gone Fishing

All right I'm not really fishing, although given the amount of rain we've had in my neck of the woods, I could probably fish off my backporch. I am in Winnetka, Illinois for a couple of days of school visits, library programs and a book signing, which is just as much fun as fishing. I hope to see some of you who live in the area. ( http://www.onebooktwovillages.org/kidsummary/?bookid=60741095 ) Tell me you read Teaching Authors so I will know who you are. The next time I write, I hope I will have some pictures and stories to share with you.

Remember, you have until 11 pm Tuesday to enter both of our giveaways; the one for Irene Latham's book, Leaving Gee's Bend, the other for the free critique. See Esther's last post for details regarding the book giveaway. And Carmela's post for the critique information.

My suitcase is packed and ready to go. All I have to do is turn off the computer....

Mary Ann Rodman

Happy Birthday to Us!

This week Teaching Authors will celebrate it's first Blogiversary! (I would insert a quick verse of "Happy Birthday", but that would require copyright permission.) So, minus the song, I have the pleasure of kicking off Blogiversary Week. (And yes, that's my eighth birthday party...no permissions needed.)

I am not one to "Wow. A year already? How time flies." For me, time doesn't fly like a Concorde, but more like a crop duster, puttering low over the fields, with frequent stops for fuel. Very frequent stops. This year has seemed exceptionally long for me, partly due to my eye surgery last June. I was working with one eye for what seemed like months. (It was a convenient excuse for my numerous typos.)

What has this year meant to me? Well, without getting all "Miss American Farewell Speech," I can say that this year has been a blessing.  Meeting new writers and teachers (and sometimes even in person!) gives me the one thing that all writers (teaching or otherwise) crave...the feeling that we are not all alone. We spend so much time in isolation with our chosen instrument of writing, living in our heads even in the presence of others, we forget that what we create in solitude is read by other people. Sometimes lots of them!

I still have that solitary confinement feeling as I try to wrestle two novels into shape, but when I sit down to write my blog, I have this wonderful sense of being surrounded by all of you. I can see you...even without the old Romper Room Magic Mirror (extremely dated Boomer reference). I see you with your coffee cups, stacks of "urgent" paperwork from the Central Office, reading us as a guilty pleasure, all the while feeling as if you should be doing something important.  I see you too, you stay-at-home parents who have wedged reading this blog between play dates or homeschooling lessons or magically concocting an item that your child remembers at 10 pm he needs by tomorrow morning. (Slight digression...the worst case scenario I've heard was a mom who sculpted a boars head out of SPAM. Don't ask me why.) That all of you teachers and writers have found the time to visit with us on line is a humbling sort of honor. Please don't stop.

My secret guilty pleasure (which when you read this will no longer be a secret) is checking the blog stats a couple of times a week, to see where our readers are located.  I know that you are from Alaska and Australia and Belgium.  I know that there is a big bunch of faithful readers from the Midwest. It's a real mindblower for me, to know that someone on the other side of the world might read what we Teaching Authors have to say. In return, we are thrilled to hear from all of you, no matter where you live. We are all in this teaching-writing thing together.  Writing and teaching are the hardest and most rewarding job you will ever have, whether you are in Topeka or Timbuktu. We look forward to many more Blogiversaries...as long as we keep hearing from you.

OK, altogether everybody, a chorus of "It's a Small World After All." Wait no. Those pesky copyrights again. Well, just imagine I am dumping a cybershower of balloons on you right now, wherever you are. And in the words of the Great Maurice Sendak, "Let the wild rumpus begin!"

Out and About

This is cheating because I am not "Out and About" yet, but I will be very soon.  Yankee Girl has been chosen by the Winnetka-Northfield Public Library System for their "Two Villages, One Book" selection. So for all you folks in Chicagoland, I will be doing school visits and other assorted pleasures the week of May 3.  For all the festive details, check the Winnetka-Northfield website.

Mary Ann Rodman