Book Lists

Never Too Old for Back-to-School

By Michelle Houts on August 7, 2017 / Book Lists, For Writers, Writing

It’s Back-to-School month for many students, teachers, librarians, and parents. Summer is at its peak, and yet the supermarket aisles are filled with crayons and notebooks and lunch boxes. It’s time to get back to the business of learning.

As authors, we never stop learning, really. At least we shouldn’t. Even though I teach workshops about writing, mentor new writers, and critique others’ work, I still seek out opportunities to learn from those who paved this road I’m lucky to travel.

The best teachers are perpetual students. I believe that with all my heart.

Walking with Jane Yolen at her home, Phoenix Farm, during Picture Book Boot Camp last spring.

It’s important for authors to look for learning opportunities and find ways around all the reasons why we can’t pursue them. Too far, too expensive, too time consuming, maybe in a few years. Of course, some of those are valid reasons, and no one can do everything their heart desires, but if each of us sought out one mentor encounter a year — attended a lecture, went to a book signing, signed up for an advanced workshop — all opportunity would not be lost on “maybe next year.”

Have you ever been in the presence of someone and I thought, “This is golden. I need to remember everything about this moment?” I look for moments like that. Sometimes I find them among hundreds of people in an auditorium, listening to a speaker. Sometimes, it’s just me, face-to-face with a beloved author, feeling the warmth of their handshake and trying desperately to form words in my mouth that make it sound like I made it past third grade. That was me at this moment:

Standing on Ashley Bryan‘s front step, Little Cranberry Island, Maine, June 2015.

Here in rural Ohio, I don’t exactly live in a literary hotbed. But, I do live within driving distance to The Mazza Museum, the country’s largest collection of art from children’s literature. I’ve made the trip there to hear dozens of authors and illustrators speak. I’ve sat mesmerized by Tony Abbott, had a conversation with Gary Schmidt. and listened intently to Michael Buckley.

Last winter I drove two hours in the other direction to hear what Kwame Alexander had to say, and one piece of advice he gave the audience made a beeline to my brain and has changed the way I think. “Say yes,” he said. Be that person that says, “YES!” to opportunities.

So what Back-to-School opportunities will our Mixed-Up Files of Middle-Grade Authors bloggers say “YES!” to this year? Maybe sign up for that amazing out-of-state-once-in-a-lifetime opportunity? Take a road trip to hear someone speak? Attend a presentation at your local bookseller? Listen to a podcast? Read that craft book on writing you’ve been putting off reading – you know, the one everyone says is “magical?”

It’s time. It’s time to get back to school.

Finally, a Full Member of this Site!

By JROSEN on July 28, 2017 / Book Lists

Hello Mixed-Up Filers!

Hope you’re all well since my last post, all those many ages ago! I know what you’re thinking . . . Jonathan, aren’t you going early? Way ahead of schedule? Well, the answer is yes! After the huge write-in campaign, where thousands upon thousands of emails came pouring in, requesting . . . no, not requesting. Dare, I say, demanding that I go earlier, the administrative team over here at Mixed-up Files, had no choice but to acquiesce to the overwhelming influx and change the order. Oh, sure, there was chaos at our weekly meetings, but thankfully, Dorian Cirrone brought in coffee for everyone and made us all stay late, until she was able to restore order.

So, without further ado, here we go!

This month, I’m going to veer away from the usual posts, but I promise, I have a good reason. You see, I started writing for Mixed-Up Files, a little over five years ago. Then, and now, I think it’s one of the best sites for anything relating to kids’ books in general and Middle Grade, specifically. It really is an absolutely great site, and I was always proud to be a part of it. Especially, since I love Middle Grade books. Middle Grade, to me, is the most fun. That’s where my heart is, and those are the stories, I like to read, and those are the stories I like to write.

What, I especially loved, was whenever the new releases were posted. I, eagerly, looked to see what new great stories were going to be coming soon. I marked down all the ones I wanted, and you can be sure, I went to go pick them up when they came out.

I admired each of these authors and longed for the day, that I could be among them. And, the thing is, I kept reading the title of this site, which is, From the Mixed-Up Files of Middle Grade Authors. And, as I said, I love Middle Grade. But, in the back of my mind, I kept feeling, I was a Middle Grade writer, but not yet, author. I know it didn’t matter to anyone here, because my passion for Middle Grade, was no less than anyone else’s, and nobody looked at me or anyone else any differently. But, I wanted to be listed as, ‘Author’. And, I kept thinking, ‘One day’. Well, guess what, Mixed-Up Filers? That day is here! This will be my very last post, before I can change my resume, to Author! At the end of August, the 29^th, to be exact, my book, Night of the Living Cuddle Bunnies will be released out into the world!

I can’t tell you, how ecstatic I am, that I’m still part of this fantastic site, and will get to see my name among all of the great books and authors that we’ve featured here through the years. This site has such a strong following, and I thank you all for reading my posts, all these years, and hope you’ll also enjoy reading my books.

So, the next time you see me, my Mixed-Up Filer friends, just know, that even though, I’ll be the same, I’ll also be slightly different.

Thank you

Summer Scares

By Mike Hays on July 26, 2017 / Book Lists, Fiction, For Kids, For Librarians, For Parents

Don’t we all have at least one fiber in us that loves a good, scary story? As a species, we’ve been telling scary stories almost from the time we stood up and began to walk upright on two legs. Stories that have become integral to our human existence. Our advancement as a species is built on the back of a story. We pass our experiences down from generation to generation through story.

Scary stories play an integral role in shaping our existence. From entertainment to cautionary tale, to moral plays, to simply visceral enjoyment, stories of ghosts, monsters, urban legends, and creatures of the night serve their purpose well. Frankenstein, Dracula, the Brothers Grimm, all use a scare to define our limits and our psychological fears.

When my siblings and I were growing up in the early 1970’s, my dad never failed to send a shiver down our spines with this one thing he did. He would cup his hands around his mouth to get a 1930’s radio special effect and mimic the introduction to The Shadow radio drama.

“Who knows what evil lurks in the hearts of men? The Shadow knows!”

Even now, it brings a little smile to my face. The joy of remembering a dark hallway with us boys supposedly going to sleep in our bedroom and Dad, out in the living room, saying the Shadow’s introduction in his deep voice and with an emphasis on the word “evil”. I would smile as my heart raced and Mom would shush Dad about scaring us boys when we should be going to sleep. I would pull the covers tight and have visions of The Shadow with his black cape, hat, and mask. Scary (but not too scary) felt like a warm blanket. That’s one thing a good scary story does. It wraps around you and gives a familiar and slightly uncomfortable spine-tingling feeling.

Which brings me back to the beauty of a good middle-grade scare. These books are important. They do serve a purpose. Claire Quigley wrote a great blog post addressing scary books in June of 2016 at BookRiot.com. In the post, she nailed the explanation of why scary books belong in a prominent space in kidlit.

“These creepy stories have an important place in our literature, and our culture at large. Being a child is a scary, strange and unsettling time, and the stories that articulate these anxieties help children navigate the world, all the way through to adulthood. Life can be challenging, and at times upsetting, but you’ll also be equipped to battle through it, just like the heroes and heroines of those creepy tales. And let’s not forget, at the end of the day – those spine-chilling stories are always such good fun!”

Below is a list of my top 13 scary MG book recommendations. Books that are perfect for late summer nights when the warm, humid air calls for a creepy chill and reading by lantern or flashlight in a quiet, dark woods or on a windy nighttime beach is in peak season.