The Amazing Trail of Seymour Snail--Kirkus Review!

I like this. It's Seymour's second review, this time from Kirkus.

Yay, it's still:

So far, so gooooooooo...good.

You might recall Seymour's first review from Booklist a while back. If not, click here to take a look.

And here is what Kirkus has to say about my favorite snail...

"Seymour Snail is an endearing artist..."

"Cushman’s anthropomorphized bugs from the art gallery are a hoot..."

"Creative wordplay abounds..."

"Engaging characters and winning art create a solid addition to the field of transitional literature."

KIRKUS REVIEWS April 1, 2009

"Budding artist Seymour the Snail gains experience by working at a local gallery. Employed by the demanding Mr. Stink Bug, shy Seymour struggles with mundane tasks and hears rumors that there is an inspiring artist in town. When the artist’s identity is revealed, Seymour’s world changes dramatically. The brief chapters assist readers transitioning from beginning fiction to longer selections. Detailed, shaded drawings fill each page and provide emotional depth. Seymour Snail is an endearing artist; with his tilted beret and paintbrush in mouth, he paints with passion. Cushman’s anthropomorphized bugs from the art gallery are a hoot; their sunglasses, beaded necklaces and high heels portray their fast-paced lifestyle. Creative wordplay abounds: Slow Seymour works as the Speedy Art Gallery, and jokes often serve the older reader. The spider with the business card shares, “I’m onto something big. It’s called the World Wide Web.” Engaging characters and winning art create a solid addition to the field of transitional literature. (Fantasy. 5-8)"

If you'd like to purchase a signed copy of Seymour, ooze on over to Cover to Cover Booksellers in San Francisco. Just give them a call at 415-282-8080 (and tell them Seymour sent you).

Imaginary Readers, if you are a creative or teacher-talented-type of person, I seek your assistance. I'm looking for art and nature projects related to snails to post (or link to) on my website and blog. If you know of any good snail-themed projects or come across any links to such, please let me know. Thanks!

Forecast: More happy slime & gooey good projects!

And dust off your beret!! Please come celebrate Seymour with me at a book launch party on Saturday May 16th at Cover to Cover.

© 2009 by Lynn E. Hazen of Lynn E. Hazen's Imaginary Blog. All rights reserved.

Cesar Chavez Day, Middle School & High School Visits, and Totally Cool Teen Art

I've been doing some San Francisco middle school, high school and juvenile hall visits recently with my YA novel, SHIFTY. I've really enjoyed meeting youth, teachers and librarians at S. F. Juvenile Hall, Horace Mann Middle School, John O'Connell High School and Mission High School. I'm inspired by the questions from the youth about SHIFTY and their interest in the writing process. Writing is usually such a solitary process so meeting teen readers has been great fun (and has given me ideas for new stories)!



I took all these photos of the inspiring student art work in the hallways of Horace Mann Middle School. Wow!














Imaginary Readers, isn't that some of the coolest art you've ever seen?

Forecast: More school visits and maybe someday I'll even catch up on downloading the rest of the photos off my camera!

March 2009 Carnival of Children's Literature is Up!

March's Blog Carnival of Children's Literature is up. Thanks to Jenny Schwartzberg at Jenny's Wonderland of Books. Take a look.

Forecast: Lots of interesting posts.

Lynn E. Hazen's Imaginary Blog & Amazon Connects

Hello Real and Imaginary Readers,

If all goes well, this brief test post from the Imaginary Blog will show up on my books' pages on Amazon via Amazon Connects.

So here is some news:

• Kirkus praised my new young adult novel, SHIFTY, as "a realistic story that resonates.” SHIFTY was also chosen for VOYA’s Top Shelf Fiction, as a CCBC Choice, and as a Smithsonian Notable.

• I was interviewed recently on Cynsations by Cynthia Leitich Smith.

• I'm co-teaching a two-day class on Writing the YA Novel at U.C. Berkeley Extension (in San Francisco) in May 2009.

and....

My new young chapter book, THE AMAZING TRAIL OF SEYMOUR SNAIL, illustrated by the wildly talented Doug Cushman is being published this May with Holt.

Seymour's first review from BOOKLIST says in part:

"Seymour Snail hopes to be a great artist someday, but he feels shy about showing his work. He is thrilled to get a job in an art gallery, but he is bullied by his new boss, Mr. Stink Bug. At last, though, Seymour’s slimy glitter art is recognized by Mr. Stink Bug's client, Lady CocoLaRoche, and the snail becomes a star...
young grade-schoolers will enjoy all the talk about slime and goo, as well as the puns about a friendly spider, who is working on something big––the World Wide Web. Children will also cheer for the small creature, who oozes along at a snail’s pace but triumphs in the end."
--Hazel Rochman

Find more news on my websites:
www.LynnHazen.com
www.ShiftyTheBook.com
and blog at www.LynnHazenImaginaryBlog.blogspot.com

Lynn E. Hazen & Susan Taylor Brown's: Beyond Websites -- Facebook, Blogs & Twitter -- Oh MY!

I co-taught a class for SCBWI yesterday in Walnut Creek with Susan Taylor Brown called:

Beyond Websites -- Facebook, Blogs & Twitter -- Oh MY! How to Juggle Your Promotion Efforts, Social Websites & Online Personalities and STILL HAVE TIME TO WRITE


Oh MY! Susan and I had been preparing for weeks. There was a great turnout—49 people—and set up thanks to the swell organization skills and good spirit of scbwi volunteer and writer, Keely Parrack.

We had several super-duper valuable handouts. People asked great questions and the two hours zipped by in a flash. And Oh MY, it was great fun, too. Everyone left with several “To Do” lists to research, explore and try on the web. We tried to make our exploration of Web 2.0 for children’s authors and illustrators not too daunting or overwhelming. We were aiming for inspiring, fun, and chock full of info. Judging by the positive vibe of the attendees, their questions, and the evals we got—it was a success. Whoo hoo!

Here is what a few folks said on their evals:

"I've been a web developer for 14 years and I learned so much!"

Marik Bergits

"Great information on the various tech sites told in a user friendly fashion."

Marya Ashworth

"Susan Taylor Brown and Lynn E. Hazen paint realistic website and blogging panoramas. Practically focused, their energetic presenting made a believer out of me."

Lyndsey Davis

"Blogspicational!"

Chad Cameron

"Lynn and Susan took the mystery out of Twitter for me."

Carma Dutra

"A great introduction to Web 2.0 for Kidlit mavens. Lynn and Susan make the world of social networking seem accessible no matter how busy you are."

Dashka Slater

For final inspiration, I read aloud Gotta Book Gregory Pinkus’s great I’m Pretty Well Connected poem. (Thanks Gregory!!) I hope that the 49 participants felt inspired and a bit more confident to go out on the web to Facebook, Blog & Twitter (plus much much more) Oh MY!

Susan and I mentioned KidlitosphereCentral.org so there's the link.

I also mentioned Britt Bravo’s site and her Vimeo video on the value of Social Media. Here it is here. Take a look.

Meet Britt Bravo from David Collin on Vimeo.

And just for you, Imaginary Readers, Susan and I are offering a great free download with links to many of the Social Networking sites we mentioned (and a few we didn’t have time to mention) with clickable links for easy viewing.

Just go to my website www.LynnHazen.com and download our free:
"Lynn E. Hazen & Susan Taylor Brown's Social Media Adventure Map for Children's & YA Authors" (and illustrators too of course!)

Enjoy!

But wait, there is more good news. In case you were unable to attend the class or want more in-depth info and guidance, Susan Taylor Brown, digital native extraordinaire, will be teaching online classes on this very hot topic. If you are interested in more info on her Social Media classes go to Susan’s web page at www.susantaylorbrown.com/classes.html.

To be put on Lynn Hazen’s email list of upcoming classes and events, please send an email to LynnHazenEvents@gmail.com saying “Add me to your mailing list” (And tell me where we met or how you heard about me, too!)

Thanks to Jill Ann Cooke for creating the nifty photo collage at the top of this post.
And a few participants are already blogging about the class.
Take a look.

Lyndsey Rose Davis
Laure Latham Guyot
and of course, Susan Taylor Brown
Carma's Window
Fragments/ Keely Parrack

Forecast: Updating my own websites and blog!

SHIFTY Review on Greg LS Blog

Drive on over to Greg Leitich Smith's blog for a review of SHIFTY.
Greg says in part,
"SHIFTY is an engaging, heartwarming, and sometimes funny story of growing up, responsibility, and what makes a family."

I like that Greg gets into Soli (aka Shifty's) motivation:

"It's not his fault this involves marginally legal activities, like driving without a license or picking up a homeless woman to pose as their grandmother..."

While you are on Greg's blog, scroll down a bit to see his other reviews, including Susie Williams' new novel, Bull Rider. Susie's book is on my "too read soon" list.
Greg says,
"In BULL RIDER, Williams effectively captures the feel of a small, close-knit ranching community, delivering believable and likeable characters and an affecting arc. In short, BULL RIDER is a moving novel of hope, recovery, and family."

Greg is the author of Ninjas, Piranhas, and Galileo and Tofu and T.Rex. He is also the Co-Author of Santa Knows.


Forecast: "To Read Soon" list getting longer and longer

SHIFTY on School Library Journal

Take a look at School Library Journal.
SHIFTY is in good company there today in an article recommending books about youth in foster care.

The SLJ article states,
"According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, there are more than 500,000 children in foster care in the United States. Sadly, the trend is showing more children entering the system than exiting. There are many wonderful foster families helping young adults prepare for the world, but unfortunately there are others where abuse and neglect are the norm. These titles are sure to prompt discussion among readers about the foster care system in our country."

Take a look!

Forecast: Awareness

Cinder Rabbit & Shifty Reviewed at TheChildrensBookReview.com

This is fun. It's the first ever (that I know of anyway) review of my young chapter book, CINDER RABBIT, combined with a review of my YA novel, SHIFTY! Take a look at The Children's BookReview.com

Amanda Lynch says,
"After I put down Cinder Rabbit, an adorable Early Reader book, and picked up Lynn E. Hazen's first young adult novel, Shifty, I had a bit of a jolt. I'm always impressed with authors who have a broad range...."

For the rest of the review(s) please take a look at The Children's BookReview.com

So Amanda has me thinking. Should an author stick with one genre, reading level or general character age-range?

For me, that'd be like asking me as a mother to parent my children to a certain age, say infancy or toddlerhood, then no longer be a parent in the elementary, middle school or teen years.

Raising children from infancy until they are independent young adults is kind of like writing for various ages. Sure, it requires slightly different skill sets writing for various ages just as it does raising a child as he or she develops year after year. Surviving the challenges of diapers and sleepless nights during your child's babyhood is very different than encouraging reading, monitoring the completion of homework and grappling with school-age issues.

And I see similarities between living with teens and writing a YA novel--both endeavors are slightly frightening and extremely rewarding at the same time. Some days it is an extremely difficult challenge to say the right words to your kids, the same as it is a challenge to capture the right words on the page. Maybe for me, because I studied Human Development in college, because I've run a preschool for 25 years (and have met many delightful young children who are now adults), and because I've observed my own children through various ages and stages, reading great books for all ages is natural. Some of my favorite books have characters of various ages, too--just like real life! Trying to write for various ages seems like a natural pursuit as well.

What's next for me? THE AMAZING TRAIL OF SEYMOUR SNAIL, a young chapter book.

After that? Maybe a middle grade novel or a baby board book? I'm working on both. And perhaps another YA novel?

I like the freedom and challenge of writing picture books, young chapter books, middle grade and YA. And like Seymour in the cover illustration, I just try to capture the joy and emotion of life on the page.

And so, I write!

Forecast: Maybe I need a beret!?

Lynn Hazen Teaches Berkeley and Stanford Classes in Writing For Children & Young Adults

Registration is now open for a two-day U.C. Berkeley Extension class (held in San Francisco) May 30-31st, 2009 on Writing the YA Novel. Elissa Haden Guest and I taught this last summer and it was great fun. We're looking forward to teaching it again. Register here before it fills up.

Speaking of filling up...

I was also going to announce that we'll being teaching Writing for the Youngest Audience at Stanford Continuing Studies (a two-day class on May 2nd & May 9th, 2009 co-taught with Elissa Haden Guest). But the class is already full! The good news? There is a way to join the waitlist. Just click right here for more info about the class and the waitlist. Who knows? If enough people join the waitlist, maybe they'll ask us to teach another section.

Here is the description of: Writing the Young Adult Novel: A Two-Day Intensive Workshop
What exactly is a Young Adult novel? How does it compare with middle-grade children's literature or adult literature? How do you get started, keep going, and once you've written it, find the right publisher? In this two-day intensive workshop, students are introduced to various Young Adult genres, including traditional, edgy, verse, and graphic novels. We look at successful examples of the Young Adult novel, focusing on specific writing techniques. Participants explore voice, character development, and plot-point ideas through in-class writing exercises.

And here is the description of the Stanford Class: Writing for the Youngest Audience
In this workshop we will explore how successful picture books, early readers, and young chapter books engage a young audience (birth through age nine). Aspiring as well as experienced writers will explore exemplary titles for children in this age range. We will investigate and practice writing techniques focusing on developing character, story structure, and vivid language, and we will consider when to leave room for the illustrator and more. Students will participate in engaging, in-class writing exercises. Practical tips about the world of children’s book publishing will also be addressed with plenty of time for Q&A. Participants are welcome to bring and focus on their own typed first three pages of a picture book or early reader manuscript.

Lynn Hazen Interviewed on Cynthia Leitich Smith's Blog--Cynsations

This is cool. Cynthia Leitich Smith posted an interview of me today on her Cynsations Blog.
Please take a look!

Lynn E. Hazen Visits MOCHA: The Museum of Children's Art

Today I visited MOCHA, the Museum of Children's Art in Oakland to participate in their Saturday Stories. It's a friendly place, full of children and families, wonderful artwork and a great creative vibe. The walls are covered with beautiful children's art. Take a look.



I read Buzz Bumble to the Rescue aloud. I showed a bit of Cinder Rabbit (and my other books, too).


The kids joined me in dancing the Bunny Hop, then we moved on to art projects!
This cool bunny garden pic was already on the wall. Beautiful, don't you think?



The children made bunny ears,

bee antennae headbands,


paper venus fly traps, and their own unique creations.




I had a lot of fun.


I had to take a photo of this cool paper mache dino whose legs looked like they were made from toilet paper rolls. Now that I look at the dino, maybe the shape of its body under the paper mache is a plastic spray bottle perhaps? I'll have to ask the MOCHA folks.



This colorful button & jewel-covered clock at MOCHA should remind us all to set our clocks forward one hour tonight! Cool clock, don't you think? Too bad it means one less hour of sleep.



This bunny's expression shows how I feel about "springing forward" and losing an hour of sleep.



Forecast: I guess if I were smart, I'd go to snooze an hour early? Good-night!

So Far, So Goo...Seymour's First Review on Booklist

Yay! Seymour is slowly sliming his way to a bookstore near you...

In the meantime, here's an early review of The Amazing Trail of Seymour Snail by (yours truly) Lynn E. Hazen & illustrated by the wildly talented Doug Cushman.

From BOOKLIST (March 1, 2009 issue)
May 2009. 64 p. Holt, hardcover, $16.95. (9780805086980).

"Seymour Snail hopes to be a great artist someday, but he feels shy about showing his work. He is thrilled to get a job in an art gallery, but he is bullied by his new boss, Mr. Stink Bug. At last, though, Seymour’s slimy glitter art is recognized by Mr. Stink Bug's client, Lady CocoLaRoche, and the snail becomes a star. Some of the humor in this early chapter book, illustrated with lively cartoon drawings, may be more for adults who know the pretension of the “creative” world and the meaning of escargot. But young grade-schoolers will enjoy all the talk about slime and goo, as well as the puns about a friendly spider, who is working on something big––the World Wide Web. Children will also cheer for the small creature, who oozes along at a snail’s pace but triumphs in the end."--Hazel Rochman

If you'd like to pre-order Seymour, please click here to order on Amazon. Otherwise, Seymour should be at your local bookstore or library on May 12th. Please ask your school and public library to order it.

If you'd like to purchase a signed copy of Seymour, ooze on over to Cover to Cover Booksellers in San Francisco. Just give them a call at 415-282-8080 (and tell them Seymour sent you).

Imaginary Readers, if you are a creative or teacher-talented-type of person, I seek your assistance. I'm looking for art and nature projects related to snails to post (or link to) on my website and blog. If you know of any good snail-themed projects or come across any links to such, please let me know. Thanks!

Forecast: More happy slime & gooey good projects!

Whoo-Hoo! SHIFTY a CCBC Choice for 2009! Best-of-the-Year list at the Cooperative Children's Book Center (CCBC)

Good News!

I just found out that SHIFTY is included in CCBC Choices 2009, the annual best-of-the-year list of the Cooperative Children's Book Center (CCBC)!
I'm jazzed.

Forecast: !

Lynn Hazen at MOCHA: Museum of Children's Art

I'll be at MOCHA (The Museum of Children's Art) for Saturday Stories

March 7 | 1-2pm "BUZZ BUMBLE TO THE RESCUE"! Hear author Lynn E. Hazen read the story of sibling rivalry that's sure to have kids buzzing! Then stay and make your own busy bees and wacky antennae hats.


I'll also read a bit of CINDER RABBIT and we'll do the Bunny Hop!
More details and location here on the MOCHA website.