INK Sisters Write

Dear Kim, A collection of quotes from children’s books to fan the flames of our next good fight.  And a last one, just for you from My Special Word . Illustrations and design from the wonderfully talented (and kind) Beth Bogert . Now we make calls: https://www.usa.gov/elected-officials   Much love always, Alison P.S. Quotes pulled from texts, and, other than Beth's, images from pixabay.com.

Dear Alison, I cannot tell a lie. The idea of compartments and compartmentalizing has preoccupied my brain since our last meeting. You told me about a friend from your carnival days that didn't have compartments. She lived life as an open book. I admire those people who live a compartment-less life, but I am not one of them. I will NEVER be one of them. Truth be told, I have compartments for my compartments. I am a private person (believe it or not), who is completely happy keeping my compartments sealed off from one another. In fact, I am the only one who knows the contents of all my compartments, but something changed for me last week. Ever since our conversation, I haven't stopped wondering why some people have compartments and other people don't. I think compartments are a Darwin Response. Survival of the fittest: keep caches of food in case of emergency. I have one of these. Might need it if the ice storm hits. I thought about ways I could combine my compartme...

Dear Kim, Focus on books. Focus on books. Look to ALA and focus on books. That's my mantra today. Does it work for you too? ALA Midwinter is a hive of book buzz right now with just a few days until the announcements of the annual ALA Youth Media awards. From http://www.ala.org/news/mediapresscenter/presskits/ymapk It is an exciting time for the children's book world as we await to see if our favorites will wear foil seals. Award committees may miss one or two of our favorites, but overwhelmingly do a nice job of highlighting the very best in children's literature each year.  What a task serving on such a committee must be, equal parts heavy responsibility and utter joy. I'm always pleased when the committees help me find new books to love, like Dan Santat's BEEKLE or THIS ONE SUMMER by Mariko Tamaki, illustrated by Jillian Tamaki. Both were so far from my radar. So I say, THANK YOU, COMMITTEES for bringing them to me! I don't read enough m...

Dear Alison, I loved spending time with you today. Our meetings ground me back into the world of writing and books and everything wonderfully creative. I owe you a letter, a real letter, filled with emotions and daydreams. I'll give you a hint about the post I'm working on for tomorrow: Compartments. (hmmm, I wonder where I got that idea from.) You'll have to wait 24 hours for the letter. Until then, I want to share my cover for Avalanche, a short story I wrote, that's part of the Valentine Kisses Anthology with Inkspell Publishing coming out, you guessed it on February 14, aka Valentine's Day. There's snow and skiing and love! Life doesn't get much better. (At least for me.)  More about Avalanche below, but first the official reveal... Six authors bring to you six sweet and sizzling romance novellas that will make you swoon. The cover reveal of the box set... Valentine Kisses And there's special pricing too! Starting from today,...