Cynthia Leitich Smith's Blog, page 25

Perspectives from 2022 Debuts, Young Adult Edition, Part 2

By Michael Leali

As we close out 2022, I’m thrilled that we can learn from a few more fantastic young adult debut authors’ experiences. Featured in this article are Charity Alyse, Susan Azim Boyer, Anna Gracia, Elizabeth Kilcoyne, Keely Parrack, and Betty G. Yee.

Charity Alyse, Other Side of the Tracks

Tell us about your debut novel!

Other Side of the Tracks (Simon & Schuster, 2022) tells the thrilling and heart wrenching story of a racially divided town separated by train tracks and what happ...

Perspectives from 2022 Debuts, Middle Grade Edition, Part 2

By Michael Leali

These incredible debut middle grade authors share invaluable insights on the writing and publishing process. Featured in this article are Elizabeth Agyemang, Sylvia Liu, Darcy Marks, Shawn Peters, Skyler Schrempp, and Lakita Wilson.

Elizabeth Agyemang, Fibbed

Tell us about your debut novel!

My debut graphic novel Fibbed (Razorbill, 2022) is about twelve-year-old Nana whose true, but far-fetched tales land her in hot water at school. To keep Nana out of anymore trouble, her par...

Cynsations Fall Hiatus

By Gayleen Rabakukk

Thank you for being a Cynsations reader!

Effective immediately, the Cynsations blog is on hiatus for the week. We’ll return the week of Nov. 28 with more inspiration, insights and information on children’s-YA writing, illustration, literature and publishing.

In the meantime, keep up on all those topics with Cynthia Leitich Smith on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.

At Cynsations, we celebrate Native authors and illustrators all year long, but we know teachers and child-careg...

Cynsational News

By Cynthia Leitich Smith, Gayleen Rabakukk, Suma Subramaniam, A.J. Eversole and Gail Vannelli for Cynsations

Spotlight Image: A Land of Books: Dreams of Young Mexihcah Word Painters by Duncan Tonatiuh (Abrams Books for Young Readers, 2022).

Author/Illustrator Insights

The Magic of Black Joy in Kirby Howell-Baptiste & Larry C. Fields III’s Little Black Girl and Little Black Boy by Sarah Murphy Traylor from We Need Diverse Books. Peek: [Kirby Howell-Baptiste:] “It is…about growth. It may not be t...

Throwback Thursday: Michaela Goade Shares Her Illustration Process

Congratulations to Michaela Goade (Tlingit) on Berry Song (Little, Brown Young Readers, 2022)! It’s the first book Michaela has authored as well as illustrated, and it received starred reviews from Publishers Weekly, The Horn Book, and School Library Journal.

Take a look back at Michaela’s 2020 Cynsations interview discussing the creation of her Caldecott-award winning We Are Water Protectors, written by Carol Lindstrom (Anishinaabe/Métis)(Roaring Brook, 2020).

Native Voices: Author & Illustrat...

Keepunumuk: Weeâchumun’s Thanksgiving Story: Co-Authors Reflect on Decolonizing Thanksgiving

By: AJ Eversole

Today we address the topic of Thanksgiving from a Native perspective. The holiday—while still a time of family gathering for many Natives—is often misrepresented and used as an opportunity for teachers to create lessons that, more often than not, lead to false narratives about the Indigenous Peoples of North America. This problem is something that co-authors Danielle Hill Greendeer, Anthony Perry and Alexis Bunten had in mind when creating their picture book, Keepunumuk: Weeâchu...

Author Interview: Chaz Hayden on Wheelchair Horror Stories, Being Brave & Writing What You Know

By Rebecca Kirshenbaum

Today I’m talking with Chaz Hayden, the author of The First Thing About You (Candlewick, 2022). Chaz’s debut young adult novel is a deeply personal novel about a high school student, Harris, who just wants to fit in, find love, and be a “normal” teenager despite having spinal muscular atrophy and being confined to a wheelchair.

Chaz, all of us writers are constantly told to “write what we know.” There is certainly a lot of you, at least on the surface, in Harris. But that...

Cynsational News

By Cynthia Leitich Smith, Gayleen Rabakukk, Suma Subramaniam, A.J. Eversole and Gail Vannelli for Cynsations

Spotlight Image: You Matter to Me by Doyin Richards, illustrated by Robert Paul Jr. (Feiwel & Friends, 2022).

Author/Illustrator Insights

Wally the World’s Greatest Piano-Playing Wombat—Interview With Author Ratha Tep by Andrea Wang from Picture Book Builders. Peek: “I’m competitive about certain things, but not about my writing…because it’s all so personal. I can only write the way I’m ...

Thowback Thursday: Traci Sorell on Signing With a Literary Agent

Congratulations to Traci Sorell on Wilma Mankiller, part of the She Persisted chapter book series from Chelsea Clinton, illustrated by Alexandra Boiger and Gillian Flint (Philomel, 2022).

Take a look back at Traci’s first Cynsations guest post from 2016.

Traci Sorell on Signing with a Literary Agent

Kansas State U. Powwow with son Carlos & cousin Matthew Lester (senior)

By Traci Sorell

I had no idea how beneficial an agent could be when I attended my first SCBWI conference in October 2013.

I qu...

Author Interview: Andrea Rogers on Writing Horror for Young Readers

By AJ Eversole

Today it is my pleasure to welcome Andrea Rogers to the blog. Andrea is a citizen of the Cherokee Nation and writes both fiction and nonfiction. Her YA horror debut, Man Made Monsters (Levine Querido, 2022) released in October.

What is the heart of Man Made Monsters?

Oooh, I love this question. I think it’s the spirit of the Cherokee Final Girl. I needed one, so I wrote one. I have daughters and I want them to outlive me. I’m a citizen of a tribe, and I want it to survive me. I ...