(I thought it would be interesting to hear about the development of the Follow That Food Chain series from the authors’ perspective. Here’s the story of the series’ genesis from Becky Wojahn. –Ann Kerns) Don and I first got the idea for Follow That Food Chain from our boys. They’re two animal-loving guys who, as […]Read more "FTFC: the Story Behind the Story"

The filmmaker John Hughes died today. It’s probably fair to say that his movies laid the foundation for a lot of the great YA being written today. I can’t say anything on the subject that author Steve Brezenoff didn’t say better on his blog earlier today. […] As a writer of YA, I am constantly […]Read more "RIP: John Hughes"

(This entry posted on behalf of Robin Mayhall, copyeditor for several Graphic Universe titles and author of Twisted Journeys #17—title still top secret! GU uses in-house proofreaders as well as the occasional freelancer when things get really busy. Any typos in this post are not Robin’s faullt,!) In 20 years as a copyeditor and proofreader, […]Read more "GU Comics Day: Clarifying Comics with Copyediting"

Early in my tenure at Lerner, I oversaw the revision and expansion of the Easy Menu Ethnic Cookbook series in the Lerner Publications imprint. These books are a great introduction to world culture through food. In TFCB, we include recipes in the Cultural Life chapter of all the VGS titles. It’s always interesting to see […]Read more "Food for Thought"

I left my home in Virginia and took a road trip with my favorite cousin to revisit my Missouri roots and promote The Night the Chimneys Fell, a book about the New Madrid, Missouri earthquakes. First stop was Jefferson City where I signed at the Downtown Book and Toy store. The First Lady of Missouri, […]Read more "Guest Blogger Marty Rhodes Figley: An Author’s Road Trip"

I first started working on the Follow that Food Chain series in February 2007. It’s exactly the kind of series children’s editors (at least this editor) like to work on—lively, with a solid author’s voice, and inventive. It was on a subject—animals—that we know kids will love. And we know that there is never any […]Read more "A Series in the Making"

[Written in a spreadsheet-induced haze, and so I apologize in advance.] I make an effort to read book other than children’s books in my leisure time—I’m sure most editors do—but I almost always find myself sneaking a peak through the YA lens when I do so. Not surprisingly, it’s pretty easy to find YA themes […]Read more "Obsession"

The past few Wednesday posts have been about zombies, creators, and conventions. But before editors get as far as strolling through artists alley looking for talent, we have to decide what to publish. For most imprints, like Graphic Universe, that means figuring out how to balance different types of books, while always thinking about the […]Read more "GU Comics Day: Balancing the books"

I’m not sure every publishing house uses abbreviations to the extent we do. They’re everywhere, in every department, and have been for many years. In fact, one of the first documents we give to new people in the editorial sphere is a glossary and list of abbreviations. Ever hear of a PE? For us, that’s […]Read more "Awash in Abbreviations"