Hugs and Hurrahs

Wow, our SCBWI-MI members have been busy! Your good news steadily arrived in my inbox for two weeks straight and brightened my days. Read on for your quarterly dose of inspiration and good cheer from writers and illustrators all around the state.

Patti Richards's latest picture book, Mrs. Noah (Little Lamb Books, October 2021) is a finalist in the 2022 Selah Awards. Winners will be announced in June. 

Also, her picture book manuscript, Ida Pluck's Cluck, recently won first place in the annual Detroit Writing Room Awards.

Double congrats, Patti!!

Suzanne Jacobs Lipshaw’s second picture book Mighty Mahi (illustrated by Dorothy Shaw) about a tenacious sea turtle was released from Doodle and Peck Publishing on March 1st. The story is dedicated to Suzanne’s students who adopted and advocated for Mahi during the 2014-15 school year. 

Congrats, Suzanne!

Katy Klimczuk’s poem "Lake Treasure" will be published in the Walloon Writers Review this spring. 

We’re looking forward to this Michigan publication, Katy!

In celebration of Women’s History Month, the Detroit Historical Museum has invited Jean Alicia Elster to talk on March 26 about her latest book, How It Happens (Wayne State University Press, 2021), and how she creates historical fiction from her own family history. 
https://detroithistorical.org/things-do/events-calendar/events-listing/jean-alicia-elster-book-talk-and-signing

What an honor, Jean Alicia!

Andrea Conto's third YA thriller, Tell Me No Lies, comes out October 18th and is available now for preorder. Riverdale meets Gone Girl in a shocking thriller about two sisters whose bond is tested when one girl's boyfriend goes missing... and her sister is the primary suspect. 

Shivers, Andrea!

Cindy Williams Schrauben’s debut picture book, This Could Be You, illustrated by Julia Seal, will be published by Cardinal Rule Press on April 1^st. 

Save the date! Her launch party is April 2^nd at Impression 5 Science Center.

Isabel Estrada O'Hagin received a book contract from Sleeping Bear Press for her picture book, La Mariachi. She's happy to announce the illustrator is Addy Rivera Sonda. La Mariachi will be published in 2023! Arriba! Arriba! 

We’re so proud of you, Isabel!

Monica A. Harris sold an additional six informational passages to Data Recognition Corp. and their work with South Carolina and Alabama assessment. Topics include: biographies of famous women, amazing animals, the history of the kazoo, Guatemala women weavers, and the history of glassblowing. 

Congrats on these ongoing publications, Monica!

P.J. Lyons’s newest book, All God’s Critters Sing Allelu, was released March 15, 2022 by Beaming Books! And in celebration/preparation, she has a new website: https://www.pjlyons.com.

Congrats, P.J.!

Vicki Wilke has a poem, “Egg”, included in a newly released book, Things We Eat by Pomelo Books (Janet Wong & Sylvia Vardell). All proceeds will be donated to the IBBY Children in Crisis Fund. 

Great work, Vicki!

Dana VanderLugt, a recent graduate of Spalding University's Naslund-Mann Graduate School of Writing, has signed with Rubin Pfeffer Content. Read more about Dana and her current project, a historical fiction novel-in-verse, at www.danavanderlugt.com. 

We’re cheering for you, Dana!

Annie Croft applied and was accepted to be a featured artist at the Morey Gallery at Art Reach of Mid Michigan in Mt. Pleasant from June 3-23, 2022. Annie is a new SCBWI-MI member and this will be her first art installation/gallery show! Her show will be an exploration of nature and hope (with illustrations in watercolor and collage) telling a story in picture book style. 

Wonderful, Annie!

And finally, three cheers for three members who placed in contests:

Elizabeth McBride was awarded 19th place in the 2021 Writer’s Digest Poetry Awards! Plus, you can watch her do a poetry reading here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uyuTNoCi9Fc

Theresa Nielsen took 3^rd place in the memoir category in the 2021 Rochester Writers Competition for her story, "Learning How to Paint." 

Marty Bellis received an all-around honorable mention for her story "Katie's Snow Creation" in the 2021 Holiday Contest for Children's Writers at Susanna Leonard Hill’s blog.

Congratulations again and thanks to everyone for sharing your creative energy!

My temporary takeover of the Hugs and Hurrahs will be short-lived because we have a new volunteer. Meet the new Hugs and Hurrahs Coordinator: Alison Hodgson!

Alison is a speaker and humorist, and the author of The Pug List: A Ridiculous Dog, a Family Who Lost Everything, and How They All Found Their Way Home (2016, Zondervan). Her writing has been featured in Woman’s Day, Forbes, Houzz.com, and her essays have been published in a variety of anthologies. She is currently working on a middle grade novel.

Welcome to The Mitten Blog Team, Alison! 

You’ll hear more from Alison in early June when it’s time to gather good news for the next round of Hugs and Hurrahs. 

Keep up the great work!

~ Kristin Lenz