2016: A look back

Original post on Blogger Friday, December 30, 2016

For many, 2016 was not the greatest year. Not to minimize all that went wrong, but... how about a moment of celebration for all that went right?

The following are the most awesome things that happened in my writing world in 2016:

WINNING the 2016 Oregon Literary Fellowship for Young Readers Literature

which allowed me to attend two amazing writing workshops.

The 4th Annual Better Books Workshop: an amazing, intimate group of talented writers, jam-packed with info on the craft from an awesome faculty, including Heather Alexander (Pippin Properties), Abby Ranger (HarperCollins), Kate Sullivan (Delacorte Press) and Andrew Harwell (HarperCollins).

The Advanced Writer Weekend Workshop: Letting Your Freak Flag Fly with the fantabulous NYT bestselling author Libba Bray and her agent/husband Barry Goldblatt at The Writing Barn in Austin, Texas.

Click here to see a short video one of the talented attendees put together.

Participated in my FIRST book signing at Powell's Books for a room full of second graders.

(pictured left: many of the authors/illustrators, including me in the second row, for Oregon Reads Aloud)

And my first reading at Powell's Cedar Hills, along with Elizabeth Goss, the uber-talented illustrator of my short story "Kira's Imagineering".

What awesome events made you smile in 2016? Cheers to many more writing successes in 2017!