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Personal Essay

Mexican Paleteros Inspired My Children’s Book

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Paletero Man by Lucky Diaz, illustrated by Micah Player, is on sale now. By Lucky Diaz As a child, I remember my dad affording himself very few luxuries. He was a giver, with what little he had. He loved taking my brother and me to the panderia to choose a pan dulce, to el mercado to buy a … [Read more...] about Mexican Paleteros Inspired My Children’s Book

Why I Wrote A Picture Book About Sadness

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Jenny Mei Is Sad by Tracy Subisak is on sale now. By Tracy Subisak I remember exactly where I was when I began to write this book. I was sitting in a hammock in my backyard when the first words came out in my notebook. “Jenny Mei is sad.” I began to cry because it was my way of … [Read more...] about Why I Wrote A Picture Book About Sadness

Q&A With Ken Lamug, Mischief and Mayhem

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Mischief and Mayhem #1: Born to Be Bad by Ken Lamug is on sale on June 15, 2021. Watch the book trailer. If you order your copy of Mischief and Mayhem through The Writers Block, you will receive a signed book, bookmark, character sticker pad, and a poster.  By Ken Lamug Ever since I was a child, … [Read more...] about Q&A With Ken Lamug, Mischief and Mayhem

I Am Once Again Asking You To Use the Word Lesbian

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The Lucky List by Rachael Lippincott is on sale now. By Rachael Lippincott The first time I had an inkling about my sexuality was when I was in elementary school. I heard an NPR interview in the backseat of my parents’ car about a lesbian couple that had been together for a number of years, … [Read more...] about I Am Once Again Asking You To Use the Word Lesbian

The Importance of Joyful Stories in Diverse Children’s Books

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Rea and the Blood of the Nectar by Payal Doshi is on sale on June 15. By Payal Doshi  Picture a twelve-year-old with magic.  Do you see a white kid with brown or blond hair living in England or America? Or a brown-skinned girl with dark eyes and dark hair living in an apartment complex in … [Read more...] about The Importance of Joyful Stories in Diverse Children’s Books

Reading Widely Was the Best Research I Did for Writing

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By Julia Drake The Last True Poets of the Sea by Julia Drake is on sale now.  While I was on a book tour for my debut novel The Last True Poets of the Sea, a person attending an event asked me a question that began, “Did you do a lot of research?" Why, yes, I thought, and gleefully began to … [Read more...] about Reading Widely Was the Best Research I Did for Writing

I Wrote My Novel so Queer Mexican American Teens Could See Themselves

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Fifteen Hundred Miles From the Sun by Jonny Garza Villa is on sale now. By Jonny Garza Villa The very first words you’ll read when you open my book (besides the title page) is, like in any book, the dedication— To all the queer brown boys still waiting for their chance to … [Read more...] about I Wrote My Novel so Queer Mexican American Teens Could See Themselves

Remembering Our Radical Asian and Asian American Elders

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Force of Fire by Sayantani DasGupta is on sale on June 1, 2021. Order it here. By Sayantani DasGupta At what cost do we forget the stories of our radical elders? What price must we pay for these erased histories? The other day, I was participating in an Asian American writer’s panel … [Read more...] about Remembering Our Radical Asian and Asian American Elders

I Wrote Wishes so Readers Could See What It’s Like To Be a Refugee

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Wishes by Mượn Thị Văn, illustrated by Victo Ngai, is on sale on May 4, 2021. By Mượn Thị Văn Wishes is a story that I have always wanted—and needed—to tell. Thanks to Victo Ngai and the incredible team at Scholastic, I am finally able to tell this story, as honestly and as directly as I … [Read more...] about I Wrote Wishes so Readers Could See What It’s Like To Be a Refugee