Above is one of the stunning images from my first picture book, Where Do Butterflies Go at Night? Soon to be released is a newly-designed and formatted 2nd Edition (see image above right.)
Why a 2nd Edition? All will be revealed soon when I announce my book’s availability on Amazon. Meanwhile, above is one of the places I imagined butterflies might go at night, beautifully brought to life by illustrator Stella Maris Mongodi.
Stay tuned …
It’s this Sunday!! Stop by the Author’s Tent at the Annual Tinicum Arts Festival, 963 River Road, Erwinna, PA. Books will be available for sale or bring your own to be signed. Ask me anything about my publishing journey … or butterflies!
This is a great 2-day festival of the finest artists and artisans, plus much more. It is located on the PA side of the Delaware, across from Frenchtown in NJ and just a couple miles south. Please check the website for directions* and many other features of the festival.
*There may be a road closure south of Erwinna.
Please stop by and say hello!!
And it’s the time of year for those of us who create for a living to remind visitors that all the things we’ve worked so hard on are ready to be gifted!
If you’re looking for a great gift for a child, you can really never go wrong with a book. And if you want a book that will light up the eyes of a little one with wonder, please consider my Where Do Butterflies Go at Night? The story is in rhyme, and takes you through an enchanted nighttime journey while the little boy dreams of the possibilities of where his cabbage white friends go when they disappear at dusk.
I was so fortunate to have the artwork done by illustrator Stella Mongodi – she really found the magic in my words and brought them to life. Butterflies is available at all major online booksellers including Amazon, Barnes & Noble, bookshop, and more.
May your holidays be wonderfully filled with good books and good reading!
Saturday, July 8th, I was in the Author’s Tent at the annual Tinicum Arts Festival from 2-4 p.m. with my picture book, Where Do Butterflies Go at Night? One of the purposes of the event, of course, is to promote my book.
However, part of the fun of being there is to chat with customers about the story itself. Visitors are interested to know about how I came up with the idea for Butterflies, and what was my creative process in writing the story. People are often interested in the book journey itself, from concept to print, and what’s involved in an author being at an event talking to them right then!
I think exchanges such as these are truly a part of what makes publishing a book so interesting and worthwhile. We always go to events hoping for sales, and that’s an important motivation, but why this book sprang from our hearts and minds is very important, too. It’s nice to know others want to know that.
Pictured above is a fellow author, an entomologist and engineer, Chris Alice Kratzer, whose book is The Social Wasps of North America. The festival plan was for one adult and one children’s author to share the tent for two hours, and Chris was a delight. To Hannie, the Author’s Tent event organizer, and the Tinicum Civic Association for inviting me to participate – thank you!!
I was invited by Principal Melissa Goad (below right) to give a presentation on June 15th at Patrick McGaheran Elementary School – a talk on butterflies and a reading of “Where Do Butterflies Go at Night?”
I was a little anxious in anticipation. This would be my first experience with groups this large – three assembles of 120 kids each, pre-K through 2nd grade. I put a tremendous amount of time into the preparation, not only modifying my talk for a large group, but also learning Power Point, and creating my first slide show ever.
It paid off! I knew my material, and the talk improved with each presentation as I relaxed, became more spontaneous, and got used to using a mic and managing the presentation on my laptop while talking.
The school had really prepared well for me, too. They had gotten books and had read them to all the students in advance. I worked with a wonderful PTA liaison, Kelly (above left) who’d put so much together before I even got there, and had another assistant, Stacy (above right), to help me while I read aloud.
The students had been building a butterfly habitat in their garden-like courtyard, and were very excited to learn more about butterflies and be read to. It turned out to be so much fun. Children today know much more than we did at that stage in our education, and I loved taking their questions. They were shy in asking, but had very relevant points they wanted to know. I could have spent half the time with them just doing Q and A!
I breathed a deep breath when we were done; it went well! 360 small children were more well-behaved and eager to be involved than I had anticipated – whew! – and we all learned a lot. Thanks to all at Patrick McGaheran School!
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