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Education Professional Development

Writing Your Best Picture Book Ever

by (author) Kathy Stinson

illustrated by Alan Daniel & Lea Daniel

Publisher
Pembroke Publishers
Initial publish date
Jan 1994
Category
Professional Development
Recommended Age
5 to 11
Recommended Grade
k to 6
  • Paperback / softback

    ISBN
    9781551380285
    Publish Date
    Jan 1994
    List Price
    $5.95

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Description

The award winning author and illustrators take kids through all the steps in creating original stories — from getting ideas to tips about characters, titles, dialogue, pacing, and how not to get discouraged by all the revising. Includes wonderful illustrations by Alan and Lea Daniel.

"Lots of workable writing advice. It is aimed at 8- to 12-year-olds, but people of all ages may find useful pointers here, and not just about picture book writing … balanced answers to popular questions asked of authors during readings and school visits." — Canadian Book Review Annual

About the authors

Kathy Stinson is a familiar name in children’s literature. She wrote the award-winning Red is Best and Big or Little?—two of the first picture books for preschoolers in Canada. Both were a huge success and have since achieved international acclaim. Red is Best 25th Anniversary Edition was released in 2006 a newly illustrated Big or Little? was published in 2009. Kathy’s latest book, The Man with the Violin (2013), was greeted with rave reviews, including starred reviews in Kirkus and uill & uire. Illustrated by Duan Petricic, this beautifully evocative picture book tells the true story of world-renowned violinist, Joshua Bell, who conducted an experiment by anonymously playing his priceless violin in the Washington D.C. subway station. Kathy grew up in Toronto. “My love affair with books began as a child,” she says. “I remember regular visits to the library, getting stacks of books to read.” She still has a notebook of stories that she wrote when she was in grade four. She believes that reading a lot is the key to becoming a good writer. In the early 1970s Kathy attended university while teaching elementary school. In 1981, she took a course called “How to write and get published.” The titles she has published in the years since range from picture books to young adult novels, from historical fiction chapter books to short stories in the horror genre. 2008 sees the publication of her first brand-new picture book in sixteen years! Kathy enjoys visiting schools across Canada, and especially talking with fellow writers. In 1987 she traveled to England as part of an exchange of Canadian and British children’s authors. She has helped students across Canada pursue their own creative projects through the Writers in Electronic Residence program, and in many communities has conducted writing workshops for children and for adults. When she’s not busy writing or reading, Kathy is a self-proclaimed jigsaw puzzle addict. Her children now grown, she lives with her partner, editor Peter Carver, in a hamlet not far from Guelph, Ontario.

Kathy Stinson's profile page

Alan Daniel is a painter and illustrator whose work is characterized by its energy and fine draftsmanship. His skills were honed in the studio of J. Merle Smith who, along with master watercolorist Kalman Banitz, provided a rigorous art education. A Kitchener resident for many years, Alan draws inspiration from the city, from the colours and contours of the landscape surrounding it and from rocky Muskoka where he summers. Well-known for his paintings of water, ranging from a springtime river to fierce ocean storms, he was commissioned to create several paintings for The Sea is At Our Gates, a movie created to celebrate the Canadian Navy. The human face and figure as well as birds and animals are also frequent subjects. Alan's work has been exhibited at the National Library of Canada; the Gallery/Stratford; York University, Toronto; Mable's Fables, Toronto; Homer Watson Gallery; Kitchener Public Art Gallery; Kitchener Public Library; Aaron Gallery, Waterloo; Hunsberger Gallery, St. Jacobs; Staircase Gallery, New York City; KOR Gallery, Kitchener; Canada at Bologna exhibit; in Paris at an exhibit to celebrate Quebec City's designation as a World Heritage Site. Alan's work space is located in Globe Studios Artists Co-op where he paints and teaches. He is an award-winning illustrator of many books for children.

Alan Daniel's profile page

Lea Daniel has collaborated with her partner Alan Daniel on 23 books in the Songbox Series as well as My Home Bay, The Best Figure Skater in the Whole World and Sody Salleratus, which earned them the MR. CHRISTIE BOOK AWARD. Lea is the author of Drummer and Finnger's War and has two short plays produced.

Lea Daniel's profile page

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