By Carol HinzEditorial Director, Millbrook Press As you may already know, Brian P. Cleary is the author of the entertaining and educational Words Are CATegorical books. But did you know that he also posts fun word trivia on his Facebook page? Here are a few recent tidbits: WITHOUT LOOKING IT UP what does GLEDGE mean? […]Read more "Fun with Words from Brian P. Cleary"

Covers have an uneasy relationship with social media, or so it is beginning to seem to me. So much about the book making and marketing processes have updated themselves for a socially networked world. In this world covers are, in best cases, avatars for books and their authors and lightning rods for their publishers in […]Read more "Covers (probably part I)"

Here’s a happy occasion for GU Comics Day to return to the blog! Kirkus Book Reviews has announced their 2010 Best Children’s Books, and two Graphic Universe titles are on the list: Hamster and Cheese and And Then There Were Gnomes by Colleen AF Venable and Stephanie Yue. There are of course many other great books […]Read more "GU Comics Day: Hurrah for Guinea Pigs (and Koalas)! Kirkus announces its 2010 Best Children’s Books List"

By Domenica Di Piazza, Editorial Director, TFCB <img src="http://lh6.ggpht.com/_lqHsy2xLVmU/TN1-XAGgfPI/AAAAAAAAAR8/qpaS9JIPBL8/videofd99e5c51c5d%5B3%5D.jpg?imgmax=800" style="border-style: none;" galleryimg="no" onload="var downlevelDiv = document.getElementById('1e56cc78-da3c-432f-bc1b-86881124c833'); downlevelDiv.innerHTML = " http://www.youtube.com/v/ht9bPJDlRFc&hl=en“;” alt=”” /> I know I’ve said before that I’m a cat lover (I have three), and here’s proof positive that you can use your personal passions as fodder for science projects. The New York Times […]Read more "How Do Cats Drink? A Physics Lesson"

by Trudy Harris (author) and Andrew Harris (illustrator) We are both excited to share some of our thoughts with you about our book Tally Cat Keeps Track. We are going to experiment a bit on this blog by interviewing each other. So here goes… Andrew to Trudy: What made you want to write a story […]Read more "Tally Cat Q&A"

by Anna Cavallo I thought I was going to write about vocabulary. It is, after all, an important element of all books, and it’s particularly something we think about in shaping and refining Lerner books. Throwing around too many unfamiliar words may deter a reader. But introducing a key term in a clear, relatable way […]Read more "Quidditch"

Especially in a team context. Just ask the Portland Trail Blazers. And guess what? It’s not any easier in the book industry. In sports, general managers look for players who have superior skills in their own rights, but also skills that complement the existing players on the roster. And that means that there will always […]Read more "Evaluating talent is difficult…"

By Connie Goldsmith, for TFCB (check out Connie’s Health Blog too) When Domenica asked me to blog about being a nurse and a writer–and about my new titles in the USA Today Health Reports series (recently named a Top 10 Health Series for Youth by Booklist Online)–I jumped at the chance. (That’s Cherry Ames on […]Read more "Who to Be? Dr. Eugenie Clark, Marine Biologist, or Cherry Ames, RN?"

Author Bob Raczka shares the story behind his newest book, Before They Were Famous: How Seven Artists Got Their Start. When I was a kid learning about historical figures, most of what I learned was about adults. But I remember reading a biography about Benjamin West, an American painter from the Revolutionary War era. It […]Read more "Guest Blog: Bob Raczka on Before They Were Famous"