Into The Words

Author Traci Chee on Highlights Summer Camp, finding voice and morning rituals.

Author Tiffany Jackson talks about her jump from the TV/Film world to being a full time writer and how plotting your favorite movie can really help you with your story. 

Author/Illustrator Shadra Strickland talks words, illustrations, teaching and secret agenting.

In between sessions of the Whole Novel workshop, we caught up with Author and faculty Ashley Hope Perez.

Which novel workshop should you take in 2020? Program Director Alison Green Myers breaks down this year's workshops.

Harold Underdown gives us a sneak peek on his upcoming online course, Everything You Need to Know About Children’s Publishing.

Guest interviewer Merrill Rainey talks all things graphic novels with Colleen AF Venable, & Nidhi Chanani

You've written a manuscript now what? Harold Underdown & Eileen Robinson talk about the revision process and their workshop tailored to just that.

Legendary writer Jane Yolen talks picture books, process, and giving back. 

Authors Jess Rinker and Deb Gonzalez talk about how the lack of resources for debut authors helped in the creation of the online course and its different modules. They share what they've learned and wish they'd known in their own debut years.

Authors Lesléa Newman and Rob Sanders talk about their Writing the Rainbow LGBTQ+ themed workshop and their big upcoming projects.

Poets Rebecca Kai Dotlitch and Georgia Heard talk about their annual workshop/retreat, creative processes and their dear friend, the late Lee Bennett Hopkins.

Crystal Allen got her start at the Highlights Foundation as a scholarship recipient, now she’s back to talk to us about her career and the workshop she’s teaching.

Author/Illustrators Elizabeth Rose Stanton and Carolyn Dee Flores talk about the importance of women in kidlit and nurturing your creative voice.

Meg Medina talks about setting goals, believing in one's self and living a creative life.

Librarian, writer and podcaster Matthew Winner takes on kid lit through his passion for storytelling, readers, education and media.

Art Directors Mallory Grigg and Jen Keenan give us sneak peek into their world and how they're helping illustrators hone their skills in a meaningful way.

Author/Illustrators Kelly Light and Steve Light are not related but talk about their similar upbringings, their work processes and the camaraderie they share.

Author Kathy Erskine tells us all the different ways you can get to know your characters during your writing process and her history with The Highlights Foundation.

Author/Illustrators Kathyrn Othoshi and Mike Curato discuss their creative processes, their preferred illustration methods and fill us in on what's next.

Author Emma Otheguy updates us on her current projects in the works, her passion for children’s storytelling and the value of expanding your horizons through diverse stories.

Author Heidi Stemple joins us from the porch of cabin 16, the Jane Yolen cabin, named after her mother, beloved author Jane Yolen. She explains how to find your creative voice, shares her writing process and current projects and shares how birds have played a significant role in her writing.

Christine Carron talks the highs and lows of critiquing/receiving feedback on a WIP and the vulnerability it really takes to do all that. She also chats about her new venture, “The Critique MD,” a website built to help strengthen writers skills and confidence in the critique/feedback process.

Award-winning poet and children's book author, Carole Boston Weatherford talks about how viewpoint, voice, and verbs can affect the a manuscript.

Tara Lazar, children's book author, talks about humor in picture books, and about Storystorm--a picture book idea-generator project. The Storystorm challenge is to create 30 story ideas in 30 days.

Young Adult author Alex Villansante talks about the things she didn't know to expect as her first novel was getting ready for release.

Program Director, Alison Green Myers previews our upcoming Fall Workshops. Executive Director, George Brown provides information about attendance logistics, the history and context of what we’re doing, and what makes a Highlights Foundation workshop different from other children’s literature conferences.

Highlights Diversity Fellows, Jessica Galán, Trisha Tobias, and Daria Peoples-Riley discuss why they write for children and share their experience of the 2019 Summer Camp workshop at the Barn.

Paula and Jan discuss the difference between writing for trade versus writing for the educational market. In their workshop, students learn how to navigate this area of writing and market themselves to educational publishers. Paula and Jan also discuss the needs in this industry and how a writer can soar to success.

Julie and Patrice talk about their inspiration behind the creation of the Villains and Anti-Heroes workshop. Inspired from Julie's debut book, "Forest of a Thousand Lanterns", students could expect to learn what makes these types of characters take the path that they do and act out of the norm, and how world-building can influence the origin story of a villain. Patrice and Julie also discuss must-read books that portrays the best character developments of some of their favorite villains.

Jennifer talks about what aspiring writers can expect to learn at the Nuts and Bolts of Science Writing workshop, such as selecting a STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts, mathematics) topic that stands out, and developing an amazing hook that everyone will love. Two of Jennifer's book projects that will be coming out this fall include, "Save the Crash-test Dummies" about the history of car safety engineering, and "Spies, Lies, Disguise: The Daring Tricks and Deeds that Won World World II," which is a historical book that was influenced by her military background. Jennifer also speaks to us about her research methods when writing science versus historical books and how her mentor has been able to support her through her projects. Stem Tuesday (www.stemtuesday.com), a blog created by Jennifer and her team, brings attention to middle grade and YA STEM books. She also discusses the success of her new nonprofit, based in her hometown of Jacksonville Florida, called Kid Literacy, Inc., which brings authors and illustrators into schools that are disadvantaged and donates $500 worth of books to their library.

Heather, a STEM writer, talks about breaking boundaries in nonfiction, the practice of finding tone and voice with imagery, sound mapping during nature walks, writing in trees, and her up and coming books about poop and nature observations!

Baptiste and Miranda talk about writing creative science, rhythm and lyricism in the cadence of your book, and making your writing palatable for an impactful and engaging story for kids to become inspired. Baptist talks about his debut book, "The Field", an ode to his childhood life in the Caribbean. Miranda and Baptist also discuss the collaboration and research involved in their latest book, "I am Farmer: Growing an Environmental Movement in Cameroon" about Farmer Tantoh, a Camaroonian environmentalist.

Leslie and Darcy talk about writing picture books and what their workshop is all about, including format, dummies, word choice, and much much more. Leslie's picture book, "Are Your Stars Like My Stars" from Sterling releases January 2020. Darcy's latest picture book, "Pollen: Darwin's 130 Year Prediction (Moments in Science)" was released March 2019.

Writing teacher, picture book author, and novelist Sarah Aronson talks about what to do when you get stuck when writing your novel, fellowship, her personal writing practice, and her latest picture book biography, "Just Like Rube Goldberg: The Incredible True Story of the Man Behind the Machines."

Padma talks about voice, her middle grade novel, "The Bridge Home", and how she drew from her own childhood experiences to connect readers to a message that is not only about support for our families, but how they can also be created.

Nicole and Rob talk about a round-table critique method that includes the author in the conversation.

Aram talks about overcoming her fear of public speaking to help her develop a successful school presentation.

Nancy discusses the value in having your entire novel read and critiqued rather than just the first pages. She also discusses the artful technique of cutting the unnecessary words to make your story more enriched. Nancy is the author of ten young adult novels and has been writing for over 20 years.

Na An and Lilliam talk about getting your story unlocked, world building, and doing the research to make the most out of your story. 

Melissa, a special guest at the Whole Novel workshop, talks about writing prompts and how they can be used to inspire your writing practice.

Jennifer talks about a workshop designed for mid-career authors and illustrators looking to continuously improve their craft.

Christine and Deb discuss their various roles in the children's publishing world, as well as their experience with Writing the Unreal: A Whole Novel Workshop in Fantasy and Speculative Fiction.

Get to know Angela Dominguez, the 2019 Highlights Foundation Visual Artist of the Year whose work is currently on display at our retreat center. Angela discusses her latest book, "Sing, Don't Cry".