From The Mixed Up Files

Growing As a Writer – the Power of Community If you’ve ever seen one of those sped-up videos illustrators post online, maybe you know the kind – of their artwork going from blank canvas to finished masterpiece all in the span of 30 seconds – I LOVE those! And yet I always walk away thinking how cool it would be for us writers to have something comparable.  What would our sped up video show?    My first thought is of a writer alone at their desk, possibly hunched over a low lit keyboard while frantically...

Unfortunately, access to books is still under serious threat in the U.S. as the American Library Association’s (ALA) annual report on the state of the nation’s libraries makes all too clear. The ALA reports that in 2024, a staggering 2,452 unique book titles were challenged, which is the third-highest number ever documented by ALA. For comparison, from 2001-2020, the annual average books challenged was 273 unique titles. Publishers Weekly writes that “the most common reasons for challenges were claims of illegal obscenity for minors; inclusion of LGBTQIA+ characters or themes; and dealing with topics of race, racism, inclusivity, equity and...

A Universal Language I have the opportunity to work with students from all over the world. I volunteer with a program which supports students who have recently arrived in this country from countries such as Palestine, Peru, Afghanistan, Nepal, and Sudan. Most of these middle schoolers don’t have the language...

Preparedness Essentials When I show my former English teacher wife a new draft of a project, she often responds, “THAT’S A DISASTER!”  When this occurs, I celebrate that I’ve at least accomplished one of my writing goals of eliciting an emotional response from my reader.  Goal accomplished? Not really. It’s...

A girl with a summer job at her family’s amusement park crushes on a coworker who’d rather be working anywhere else in this fun and flirty middle grade rom-com. Meet Me at Wonderland (Aladdin). For grades 5+ MUF: Welcome to MUF, Julia DeVillers! Thanks for dropping by to talk about...

It’s that time of year when testing is winding down, classroom celebrations are taking hold, and the whiffs of summer are permeating the air. What better time to talk about summer reading with all your favorite middle grade books! Why Summer Reading? Experts agree that summer reading is a great...

It’s May. In my neck of the woods that means it’s almost the perfect temperature for sitting outside and reading a book. If that’s your idea of a perfect Spring day, we’ve got you covered with a great list of Middle Grade new releases.   The Bug Bandits by Jenni...

Growing As a Writer – the Power of Community If you’ve ever seen one of those sped-up videos illustrators post online, maybe you know the kind – of their artwork going from blank canvas to finished masterpiece all in the span of 30 seconds – I LOVE those! And yet...