The mall in Century City has been undergoing a massive $1 billion makeover, and last night, some of the more famous new spots finally opened. One being Mario Batali’s Eataly. The other being Apple’s new location near the huge, shiny Nordstrom. And oh, the French boutique Equipment with their buttery silk blouses, which I absolutely… Read more »
[NOTE: When I was writing away years ago with no publishing deal in sight, I was always curious to know what the exciting parts of a writer’s life are actually like (not the hard part where you sit for hours at your computer — I already knew enough about the hard part!). So I hope… Read more »
I’m so thrilled to announce that Random House has acquired my second picture book, The Paper Kingdom. I poured my heart and soul into this story, and I’m excited to see the book when it’s released! I’ll keep everyone posted, and one of these days, I’d like to write a post about how the entire… Read more »
I’m happy to reveal the work in progress of Colleen Kong-Savage, the talented artist who is illustrating THE TURTLE SHIP. I find absolutely fascinating the thought process behind her artistic choices. For instance, Colleen is working to find a way to contrast the turtle enough to make him pop off the page, instead of blending… Read more »
Here’s my latest article for SCBWI (Society of Children’s Book Writers & Illustrators), which covers attending the pro track for the first time at their conference. Featuring photos of Judy Blume and Newbery winner Linda Sue Park. Girl crush time!! Check it out here.
I have been in love with the artwork of Jean-Jacques Sempé since I was fifteen, when I read the NICOLAS series (which he illustrated) for a high school French class. Sempé is known in the U.S. for his iconic New Yorker covers, such as this one: But in his home country of France, his illustrated… Read more »
When I first launched this website a few months ago, I promised myself that I’d post at least once a week. Well, three months into this endeavor, I’ve already been absent for an entire month. The reason for my absence is actually a pretty good one 😉 Our home renovations were finally completed (side note:… Read more »
My nephew is a wonderful pianist, but sometimes, he really hates to practice. But he loves music. He loves excelling at the piano. So he practices at random times of the day, no routine involved, no inspiration needed. He just applies his tush to the piano bench, and starts going. Here’s a video of him… Read more »
I’m embarrassed to admit that when I was a kid, my number one fantasy went like this: I wake up, and my parents tell me we have to go to Toys R Us to “run an errand.” When we get there, all the employees are standing around and smiling at me. My parents then inform… Read more »
After college, I lived in South Korea and then in Paris. In both places, I quickly learned one stark difference between the U.S. and probably the rest of the world: they don’t live with huge closets. People in other countries simply don’t own as many clothes/accessories/shoes as we Americans do. It’s not uncommon to see… Read more »