Dear Friend,
Ah, spring! <long inhale>
…………………………………………“WAAAA-CHOO!”
Excuse me.
Really, though…<dabs corners of itchy eyes>… spring’s so lovely, isn’t it?
“fzzztt!”
I bet you were wondering: how’s that raccoon babysitter picture book coming, Elayne? Can we order it yet?
Aww, thank you for rhetorically asking! Believe me, as soon as I can, I will share pre-ordering details. (It’s all so exciting—but it will still be a bit!)
One juicy update: I have seen John Ledda’s fabulous art for this, and, OMG, our readers are in for a treat next summer! 👦🏽+ 🦝🦝🦝= 😍 (Also, if you don’t already, follow John on Instagram!)
Here are the THERE’S SOMETHING ODD ABOUT THE BABYSITTER public deets so far! (Honestly, it’s the announcement again, but it’s still fun for me to read and share, so—!)
Slightly related to the above, it turns out there is a fear of writing in public called scriptophobia. I learned about it in a “did you know/trivia” kind of way…and then realized sometime next year, I’ll be writing strangers’ names in Sharpie within brand-new hardcover books while simultaneously attempting to converse as a “normal person” (always a challenge for me, even without signing something). So, guess who will (somehow) need to cultivate a new skill? It’ll be fine, I’m sure. 😬 Right!?!?!
My Substack posts from this month were:
And two golden oldies:
📌 A Dirty Little Secret: I Love My Stories - ’cause I’m still gross like that 😎
📌 The Affirmative - Uh, I haven’t kept up with daily affirmations; however, I still enjoy them when I make time!
Because around here 👍 I’M 👍 the publisher, I’m toying with, for funsies, putting one music video a month in this spot. Anyhow, if you like this idea, ❤️ the post so I know, and if you don’t, tell me in the comments (but maybe still ❤️ the post to soften the blow). 😂
Related: this video holds up.
Here is a quick glimpse of the many picture books I was jealous of this month. You can read why (plus my reviews of many others) on my Goodreads reviews.
I have been seeing robins out and about again, and it struck me that they always look like they are doing power poses.
🤨
≤))≥
_|_
Somehow this realization makes me love them even more (and yes, I’m drafting something related to it)!
Speaking of loving something more, I recently re-read Edward Lear’s The Jumblies. And now I think children’s book creators…well, we all just might be Jumblies! (In the best way.)
They went to sea in a Sieve, they did,
In a Sieve they went to sea:
In spite of all their friends could say,
On a winter’s morn, on a stormy day,
In a Sieve they went to sea!
Your Jumbliesome friend,
Oh my goodness, have you figured out your author signature yet? I'm floundering. Everything looks so silly and then I feel silly for caring so much but I do haha
Scriptophobia! Oh no, I think maybe I have that too and now I'm starting to panic since I have my debut coming out next year and will likely need to figure out how to write/sign in my books and talk at the same time ... when next year will you be experiencing the joy of scriptophobia?