Featured Illustrator: Amy Lynn Spitzley

 Viola, Scrapbook, Wall Drugs notepad, scoliosis, "the Englishman," and covers: Author/illustrator Amy Lynn Spitzley

Charlie Barshaw coordinates our regular Writer Spotlight feature and interviews writers of SCBWI-MI. In this piece, meet writer/illustrator  Amy Lynn Spitzley.

Banner for The Mitten for 2026. Amy describes it as follows: It's mixed media, and the original piece is called The Long Journey. I may have been influenced by 

childhood memories of Leo Lionni, and my love of Redwall books. Fun fact about this one--the mice are made of homemade paper, some of which I made myself. 

Viola Doyle or An Unconventional Gift

3.83 avg rating — 52 ratings — published 2014 — 3 editions

I hadn’t heard of this title, which I think you wrote first but published after The Scrapbook of My Revolution?  Decent ratings, too.  How did a hatpin play into Viola?

Well, originally because I was going to this writing group every week, and they did stream-of-consciousness writing. This was back when my 26-year-old daughter was an infant, playing on a blanket in the corner of Horizon Books, where we used to meet. 

One time the facilitator brought in a bag of jewelry and told us to pick one and come up with something to write without stopping to think about it. As stopping to think isn’t something I tend to do, I immediately came up with this young woman, riding her bike through a park with her hair streaming behind her and not caring what her fellow park-people thought. That was the beginning of Viola Doyle. 

As for what the pin does in the story? It’s magical, of course. What else would it be? 

I was a beta reader for your Scrapbook. Seems I remember the Malians were tall and strong, and good-hearted people who took on some blatant racism and alienism from bad hombres.

How badly did I mis-remember?

Not bad. That’s the Athletics. They were the physical ones. All of them tended to be super-healthy, though. There were Athletics, Sensitives, Camos, and Manipulatives. Amber, the MC of Scrapbook, was a Sensitive. She could read emotions. 

I may as well say it up front. I'm Malian. Yeah, one of the freaks. I've got gold skin and the ability to read emotions. It's great fun, too, believe me. Yeah, right. Anger. Frustration. Desire. Try reading those all day. But I'm not the only one who's frustrated. We're all mixed-up and sick of the bad press and attacks and everything else from Regulars. Things are changing, though. I'm getting other Malians in my school together. We might be able to show people that we're just as human as they are...unless one of my best supporters is really public enemy number one.

Did you have plans for future Malian stories?

I don’t. I feel like that field is all played out, you know? When I came up with Scrapbook it felt different. Now YA is crawling with angsty power-people. I’m not complaining about that–I’ve read quite a few of those books myself, and my daughter (same one from the bookstore baby blanket!) is a teen librarian, but I don’t want to do what everyone else is doing. I never liked that idea.

I know I entered a story in the Young Authors competition in 6th grade. That same year, when I was 12, we went out west for a vacation and I got a little notepad with blue flowers on it at Wall Drug Store and started writing. I kept track of the amount of animals I saw—several herds of buffalo, 20 prairie dogs, that sort of thing. That was really the beginning.

A Wall Drug notepad w/blue flowers. What did having that notepad on that exciting trip awaken in the writer and artist in you?

Bathtub Gnome

Um. Well. I guess it just showed me that writing could be fun. I loved that notebook. I looked for things to write about. I guess observation and the act of putting pen to paper hadn’t really been linked till then. 

Revising a story called The Midnight Trees. It’s the edgiest thing I’ve ever done, about people in a society where the rich ones live high in the trees and the regular ones live on the ground. There’s a drug called Stem that’s distilled from the same trees, and it’s getting most of the society hooked. A few people are trying to figure out how to combat this, including a brothel-owner’s daughter named Angel.

You said you liked drawing trees? What do you find about trees that’s so alluring? Would you be a treetop dweller or a “groundie”?

I love trees! Trees, wind, clouds, water, books. Those are my Things. I need them to be anything like a functional Amy. Well, and my people, too, of course, but that’s a given. I think I’d like to live in the treetops because of the wind, but in that story, the upper levels were for the elite, and I wouldn’t be that. Really I’d want the freedom to move between the two. I wouldn’t do well in Hierro. 

My character, Angel, comes out all right in the end, after tackling elitism and drug abuse. It’s a bit dark. I think I’d have to go in with a humor brush and lighten things up a bit. I do not believe this world needs more gloom and doom. Nope, nope, nope! 

I haven't worked much on the Midnight Trees story, just because it is so dark. I like elements of it, but I've been gravitating more towards a retelling of an old Russian story I wrote about 15 years ago. I'd like to clean that up and get it out in the world, probably more than the Midnight Trees story. It feels lighter, more fun, and even more wholesome--though ick, what a word--and more like something I'd like to read myself nowadays.

All this without mentioning your portfolio. You’re a prolific artist with a large toybox of tools. Are you supporting yourself as a freelance artist?

I am not. I’d love to though! Man, the retail world is NOT where it’s at. I’m on disability for severe scoliosis too. Being able to support myself doing something I actually love would be  absolutely wonderful.  I am open to partnerships/advice and even perhaps a bit of soul-selling, should anyone be interested. I’m sure I’ve got extra soul stored away somewhere! 

I make art that amuses, beautifies, and maybe inspires a little thought. I use whatever is fun for me--collage, acrylic, watercolor brush pens, pencil, colored pencil, and gel pens. I've done woodburning and murals and sidewalk art. I specialize in portraits, trees, and anthropomorphic animals.

Tell us what it takes to conceive a giant piece of art, find a wall to paint it on, and then deal with ladders and paint and weather? 

Honestly, I’ve never done an outdoor mural, and I can’t really do indoor ones or sidewalk art anymore, because of the aforementioned Stupid Scoliosis.

As I age, my art changes. My portrait women have gray hair now, and my animals are more intricate.

How intricate are your animals?

Huh. Fairly intricate. I’m not a photorealist, though I admire the level of detail they get! I like putting human expressions on animals. I’d give myself a good B or B+ for my animal art.

I'm very influenced by Redwall books, as well as people like Jan Brett for the beauty and Leo Lionni for the collage look of things. 

You lovingly refer to your husband as “the Englishman,” and your son and daughter are the apples of your FB eye. Despite the plague of tourists, you’ve got a pretty good life in Traverse City. Are you a traveler, or a home-body?

Ha! They have their moments. My husband and son are on the autism spectrum, and my daughter probably touches the tip of the scale, too. I like to say that the Godfreys are Autistic and the Spitzley is Artistic. It makes for an interesting, though sometimes frustrating, household! 

I like the idea of travel, but I have anxiety. I don’t like not knowing where I’m going to eat or how things are going to play out. At the same time, I tend to be impulsive and restless. It can become kind of a mental mess. I’d love to figure it out a bit more and try to travel, but there’s also a money issue at play. So…I guess I’m not really a traveler or a homebody. I’m just an Amy.

What’s next for Amy Lynn Spitzley?

Good question! Let me know if you figure it out before I do. 

Also, I should have mentioned somewhere that I would really really LOVE to get work as a book cover illustrator, and I think my work would be suited to that, but I cannot seem to break into it to save my life! Most frustrating. 

Please share any social media:

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Website: amyspitz.wixsite.com/artwork-of-amy-lynn.  

Studio Tour with Featured Illustrator Nicole Ray

 

Winter 2026 banner by Nicole Ray

Me at a holiday studio open house in December 2024

Hello! I’m Nicole Ray and I run Sloe Gin Fizz, my illustration business, from a studio space in Pinckney, Michigan. I started Sloe Gin Fizz in 2008 and worked out of a room in our home for over ten years. A large part of that business is selling products featuring my artwork: Art prints, greeting cards,
stickers and more. 

My work table and studio space at home

The collection — and inventory — has grown significantly over time. This became all too clear during the pandemic when my husband started working at home, too. I would passed back and forth behind him during his living room Zoom meetings, packing orders, prepping products, making art all in different areas throughout the house. We quickly realized how much my work had taken over the whole house.

My first 99 square foot studio space outside the house

I passed a real estate office every day on my way to the post office with orders and one day went in to ask if I could rent the office that had clearly been empty for quite some time. They said yes and I took a leap and rented a small — 99 square foot — office within their larger office just down the road from home. I moved all of my inventory and production and shipping materials over there. It was such a treat! I jam packed it all in there. I still made art in my home studio but everything else was in that little space. 

My current studio all cleaned up and ready for my first open studio March 2024

After two years there, the opportunity
to move across the road came up and I moved into my current studio in January 2024. There are three other offices around me that remained empty for the entire first year I was in this space. I kind of loved it. I’ve used the large wood work table for production and shipping since the early days of Sloe Gin Fizz back in a small apartment in Ann Arbor. The wacky light setup over the work table is a carry over from doing craft shows that has proved really effective in the studio. 

My granddad’s drafting tools in an old cigar box he stored them in

The work table came from my grandad who was a mechanical engineer who moved to New Jersey to work with Thomas Edison back in the day. He had the most magical basement workshop and was constantly tinkering and making things with us. While I still kick myself for turning down his drafting table and chair, I do cherish his work table. I also have his old cigar box holding all his drafting tools. 

SO much shelving packed into this space

With just over 200 square feet, it’s still a tight fit for all of my STUFF. I’ve lined the walls with as many shelves as I can pack in, holding all of my inventory and packing materials. Around all of that I’ve been filling any other spaces available with my favorite art, knick knacks and collected bits and bobs. 

My ever-evolving wall of inspiration featuring artist friends and favorites

This inspiration wall is ever-evolving and includes everything from my first block-printed merch bag turned into a hanging to a screenprint I bought from an artist selling her work from a blanket on the ground in Union Square in NYC. 

The mess that is my current drawing table situation. I try to keep it analog with no computer or monitor but the full holiday chaos all around has landed my laptop there today.

After making art at home for over ten years, I’ve found it difficult to change my habits.  I still keep a home studio and often do my drawing there. But I’m slowly doing more and more drawing here. I moved my drawing desk this summer and installed shelving above. (The holiday rush keeps me from getting a prettier picture of this little space!)

Many years worth of sketchbooks

I’ve been moving my book collection and sketchbooks into the new shelving and it’s starting to feel more like a cozy little nook to work in. 

I’ve become the drawer of squirrels and as such, have a growing collection of them. But also: Two very special goldfish friends.

This little shelf of friends helps! I like to keep the pair of goldfish nearby. They represent a kind of turning point for me in finding my artistic voice. I went back to art school in the late 90s, taking classes at night and on the weekends. I was exploring and having fun but at the same time completely lacking confidence and very intimidated in class. I really loved my oil painting classes, but felt at a total loss for subject matter. After my foundation classes, I shuffled around several other painting classes floundering miserably. I finally stumbled into a class that was exactly what I needed: Still life
painting. 

Oil painting from art school of the two goldfish toys on a letterpress block

By removing the pressure of deciding what to paint, I could finally go back to focusing on learning how to paint. About midway through my second semester with this professor — after painting many kettles and vases and flowers — I decided the subject for my next still life would be these two little goldfish toys. It really was an a-ha moment. They
represented the fun and humor and lightness I wanted in my art! I ended up doing a series of paintings of toys. I still have the 4’x5’ goldfish painting. It’s too large for my studio, but hangs in our guest bedroom at home so I can invite our guests to sleep with the fishes.

 

My best pal John and I in a photo booth that malfunctioned and just kept taking pictures!

I recently hung this photo booth triptych over one of the windows. It’s my friend John and I in a photo booth that malfunctioned and just kept taking pictures. John passed away in 2022 from pancreatic cancer at just 54. He knew how to easily find the fun in everything and brought out the silliest side of me like no one else can. He had these blow ups hanging over the door in his bathroom for years and years. It’s my constant reminder of him and to find the fun every day. 

Ever-changing clouds over the lake

My studio looks out at Zukey Lake and has a paved walking and biking trail between the lake and the building. I love to watch the skies change and the clouds putting on a show. I can walk the trail to take orders to the lakeside post office or to just clear my head and work out ideas. Or I can just stare out the window and watch the trains run by. 

I feel like a kid every time the train goes by and am always hoping the conductor will blow the whistle.

Nicole Ray is an illustrator who creates a whimsical line of art prints and paper goods under the name Sloe Gin Fizz. From quirky animal and vegetable characters to cozy, nostalgia-filled interiors and calming views of nature, Nicole’s hand-drawn scenes are highly accessible, infused with a playful sense of humor and a strong narrative quality. Nicole and her mister live in a log house on a lake with a border collie and an ever-changing network of critter friends. Find more of her work at sloeginfizz.com.

Featured Illustrator: Ryan Hipp

 Kammeraad, puppy dog eyes, Little Steps, Our Show, Defauw and rooster: author/illustrator Ryan Hipp

Charlie Barshaw coordinates our regular Writer Spotlight feature and interviews writers of SCBWI. In this piece, meet  author  and featured illustrator Ryan Hipp.

Ryan's inspiration for this banner: "My daughter and I play called ‘Alligator Walk’ where she pretends to be a little bird sitting on my back."

What was life like for young Ryan? Where did the urge to draw and create come from?

That’s really where it all started, right? I think probably for a lot of us. I have like 4 or 5 vivid milestone moments that always come to my mind, and I don’t really remember which one came first. 

One very early one was realizing that before I could write letters and words, I had a better ability to draw what I meant to say - and people understood what I was drawing. So this exploded because I knew I could communicate visually. 

early art

Another moment that really aided my passion was my love of books with pictures. I was obsessed with the structure of Richard Scarry books, and how everything was meticulously labeled - which is why I am probably the way I am now. 

I do very much remember the moment that I discovered that Roger Hargreaves, the author and illustrator of the Mr. Men and Little Miss books was not in fact a kid. That tipped my apple cart. Those books reinforced that I could write and illustrate books.

more early art

They were simple in structure, and the illustrations were not too complicated and very accessible for a young audience to aspire to. So that initial spark got me thinking, “If a kid could make these books, I should make my own books." When I found out the truth, I doubled-down harder - okay, if a GROWN UP is writing and drawing like this, then I totally should be able to”

Early on you paired with Kevin Kammeraad to create The Tomato Collection. Tell us about this collaboration. How did you meet Kevin?

I met Kevin right at the start. We were both in college - he was finishing up at GVSU and I was at GRCC. I had just made the decision to follow my dream of becoming an author and switched to the Graphic Design major. Kevin was in film school and I met him at a party - I worked at a Grand Rapids comic book store called Tardy’s with Kevin’s roommate. 

At the party, my buddy said, “You’re still trying to make kids’ books right? You should talk to my roommate - he’s making one too”.  Although Kevin has no memory of this - haha - the day I met him at this party - this is my memory and I’m sticking to it. 

He was sitting on the floor on a shaggy rug, long flowing hair, wearing a white linen shirt, and there were like 4 or 5 really pretty girls sitting with him with puppy dog eyes as he was showing them his manuscript and dummy book for the Tomato Collection. 

He was reading them his poems and they were just enamored.  So I turned to my buddy and said, “This was not what I was expecting”, to which he responded, “Yeah, this is what it's like every time we have a party”.

I was at Kevin’s grand release party for the book, and it was really a proud moment - At the time, we were like, I don’t know 22 or 23? So this was a big deal for me to know that kids our age could really do this. It was an infectious motivation and I knew I more than ever I wanted to focus on this.

Shortly after his book was released, he had already started project #2 which was to turn the entire book into a music album, and he openly invited me to help him and that is really where I first established myself in the kid-lit world - I wrote and performed about 8 or 9 tracks on his album and did filler instrumentation on other people’s tracks - and that helped solidify my credibility in this path to kids books as a kids musician.

You’re a musician? What instruments do you play? How does your musical ability come into play with your art and writing?

Yeah - 8 years of band in school paid off - once you learn how to read music and if you have a good ear for music, anything is possible. Although playing live gives me anxiety, I am a wizard in the studio, I can usually get a song right in several takes with the power of editing. I play trombone, drums, ukulele and organ.

You also collaborated with Kevin Kammeraad to produce A Curious Glimpse of Michigan. What was your goal for this book?

Before I talk about Curious Glimpse, here's a good segue - Kev and I often would daydream of being one of those famous duos like Lane Smith & Jon Szieska. I joke about being paired with Kevin, but its really a point of pride to me. I really love Kevin - he is my family.

So Kevin and I were at Book Expo Chicago several years ago, and in an elevator on our way to an exclusive event we got a secret invite to from Harper Collins - it was a charity auction of original picture book art - and it was a literal who’s who of the industry - and who were we on the elevator with? Lane Smith and Jon Scieska! I think I made a joke about pressing the emergency stop button. Kevin said “we only have 40 seconds to tell these two guys how important they are to both of us”. They signed my autograph book. They even saw us after the gala and said, “Hey, Michigans!” We did give them a copy of Curious Glimpse.

So back to that - I had just started doing school visits with Kevin and also my first ones solo, and Kevin had met our publisher EDCO at a a teacher’s conference - and they really wanted to do something that was “like The Tomato Collection, but supporting the Michigan 4th grade curriculum”. 

I think what happened was Kevin wasn't really sure what that would even be, so he asked me for help. The plan was he and his wife Stephanie would write it, and he and I would co-illustrate it - and it really worked - we ended up all blurring the lines to make it what it was.

This was a huge door-opener for me because we had to re-pitch the idea to EDCO, and they trusted us. The book sold 20,000 copies regionally, and we did our signature treatment and turned the entire book into a music album - 49 tracks! 

We spent about 6 months making the book, and about a year making the music album. This is also where I met another collaborator Jim “ScribbleMonster” Dague, who wrote some of the songs on our album for us.

You went solo, wrote and illustrated a children’s book Little Steps. This book arose from a difficult period in your life. Care to elaborate?

Yes, thanks for asking this question - I always talk about this openly because I want kids to know authors are humans too, and talking about our feelings is healthy and we heal when we address our issues head-first.

It was October 2010 when the first block toppled - about a week before an SCBWI-MI Fall Retreat - my then-wife-now-ex-wife dropped a bomb on me out of the blue that she wanted to get divorced. No discussion. It was decided. 

I felt powerless to fix things. I wasn’t sleeping. I wasn’t eating, but I kept trying to hold everything together. When I showed up to Writing Camp, I just couldn’t fake it any more and I told Ruth and Charlie who really went above and beyond for me at that event and for months and months after. In time,  things got easier in some ways, and other blocks would fall in other ways. 

One really great thing that happened is I was able to put all my focus on my kid-lit career - I joined SCBWI-MI’s AdCom (Advisory Committe), became the Regional Illustrator Coordinator for my term, helped plan big events, made great connections, doubled (maybe even tripled) my school visits, and in 2012 received the Gwen Frostic Award for fostering literacy, (and I am so proud of the legacy of heroes and friends I am on that wall with). 

But despite all of the good, I still felt like a hole was still there inside me - that I still felt broken, anxious, uncertain, lost. The irony is even at the time I was doing my best work for kids, I was a mess. 

Even the letter I received informing me I was to receive the Gwen Frostic award sat unopened for a few weeks. I was just not really experiencing a lot of joy, and I knew I needed help - so I started seeing a counselor to help me process everything .

At this point what I was dealing with was much less about the lost relationship, and more about the fear of my future path being no longer clear... and I said, “why isn’t there a book about all of this?” 

(Side Note - haha I KNOW there are MANY books that help with these topics - but for dramatic effect and for the dramatization version of this autobiography, there were no books on the planet that could help with this - so I decided to write one). Little Steps really is about recognizing that life is going to be really hard, but we really do grow and learn to handle what comes our way.

You may have left Kevin Kammeraad behind, but you embraced his puppetry. You produced a number of short YouTube videos with Finley and Max. What did filming puppets teach you about storytelling?

Although I have made a concerted career effort to come into my own and not be so tied to Kevin in people’s minds, I will never have left Kevin behind. 

Sure, is it kind of annoying sometimes to be at an author event, and see a peer, and the first thing they ask is “Where’s Kevin?” I usually remind people we are not Bert & Ernie. But also we definitely never had a Hall & Oates falling-out either. Or for my fellow elder Millennials, we never had a Drake & Josh beef.

The story of Finley & Max is an incredible full circle. Finley & Max came about from an opportunity that I had to pitch a show idea to our local PBS Public Media station, and just as Kevin had given me so many opportunities, I knew I wanted to throw Kevin a bone and wanted to do this with him as well. 

We produced 2 pilot episodes and 9 mini episodes and due to contractual conflicts at the time, our PBS affiliate maybe got a little spooked about the commitment, and they never  aired on TV.

I was still incredibly proud of the accomplishment, I created a cinematic universe and a series bible for not only these two characters, but all the characters they would reference, I designed the puppets based on my drawings and hired Avenue Q puppet-maker Jarrod Boutcher to fabricate the puppets. A fun-fact about Jarrod, is he has created perfect muppet replicas for many notable puppeteers of the Sesame Street cast.

So fast forward to now! The fire has been re-sparked. My Curious Glimpse of MI colleague Jim Dague had been connected to my Finley & Max director at WGVU Phil Lane -  and now Jim, Phil, Kevin, myself and a host of others have begun our new children’s television adventure Our Show Today! Which airs on Saturday mornings on WGVU PBS Kids

All of our old Finley & Max segments are finally airing in a sub-segment called “Our Show Yesterday!” haha

Its really been so fulfilling to see decades of work and passion and collaboration finally find its way into the sun.

Ryan cares about animals, loves cartoons & comic books, science fiction & fantasy, collecting toys, playing classic video games, and skateboarding. 

That list of likes was from a while ago. I imagine you don’t skateboard as much as you used to. What do you care about now?

Haha. I feel attacked! In fairness, you are not wrong! I gave my adult nephew all four of my skateboards about 8 years ago. I think Tony Hawk is still skating in his late 50s, but I need to insure this body with better coverage if I am going to risk all. If I break my drawing hand, I’m in trouble.

So many of my other same interests are still happening! I still collect pop culture toys and statues, but I now have limited to a very specific curation of higher-end collectables. I have to collect with intentionality now otherwise I go too far. Something fun I do now is unboxing videos with my daughter (who is 4 at the time of this article).

Author and fellow-SCBWI member Danielle DeFauw wrote about the year you worked with K-4 students. What was the stated goal of your job? 

I am glad you asked about Danielle - I hope she sees this - Hi Danielle! - Here’s another person that I owe so much to. Danielle reached out to me a few years ago with really an incredible request around the time she was planning her Master’s thesis - to follow me in my author visit touring season journey and observe my approach to working with students over the course of my sessions. 

The outcome was more than I could have hoped for, and was incredibly validating to see a scholar’s point-of-view of my work, my impact and my mission to help kids. Really a huge honor!

You’re a Master Certified Coach?  What is Hipp-Hop Academy?

So for the last 10 years or so, I have been taking on adult mentorship clients, kind of ad hoc - helping folks that were aspiring authors who had great ideas but really no idea how the publishing industry works learn what they need to do to take the right steps. 

My first advice is always the same - join SCBWI first, and then I can help guide you further. I have always loved helping others make their publishing dreams come true, which was what I loved so much about my time on AdCom.

That’s why I have expanded my mentorship in a more official capacity by offering Hipp-Hop Academy.

In 2021, to improve my mentoring acumen, and to take on clients in a more official, certified capacity, I got my Master Certification in Professional Coaching. 

From there, I decided to develop a full program based on my entire career - packing all my successes and mistakes in a bottle and then scaling my 1:1 mentor offering into an expanded  full curriculum. Sometimes we need someone to take those little steps together.

You met a wonderful woman, and together you save animals. 

Tell us about some of your rescue successes. What rescues are currently under your care?

Yes, my wife Rachel is really my soul mate! She and I have been rescuing farmed animals since 2014! At our peak we had over 40 animals - each one getting full veterinary care. Father Time has asked us to say goodbye to so many of these friends, but we were able to give them a safe, harm-free life. 

Ryan and Luke Cage

One rescue that is very near and dear to us is our Rooster Luke Cage - a personal rescue we witnessed getting hit by a semi truck, and after taking him to the emergency hospital, he survived unscathed. He is still with us today, the indestructible Luke Cage.

You also have a beautiful daughter. What is this contest you’ve involved her in?

My daughter Lilith is a bit of a celebrity. Her toy unboxing videos are quite popular with a lot of the collectible companies, and Liith took 10th place in Hasbro’s Toddler of the Year contest. 

Rachel and Lilith

You joined two powerhouse reading organizations. What did you bring to their tables? What did SCBWI and the Michigan Reading Association do for you?

Where would I be without SCBWI and MRA? Both have given me a wealth of knowledge, experience, credibility, support, friendships, and a 20+ year career. Everything I have accomplished has been a ripple-effect from every opportunity that has come my way and each ripple originates from these two organizations. 

MRA gave me a platform, an audience, and a purpose to help kids in Michigan. And SCBWI-MI gave me the tools, the knowledge, the experience, and the credibility to be viewed as a thought-leader in the publishing world.

I would like to think what I brought to both of these organizations was service to young ones and service to those that want to do work for young ones.

Young and untamed Ryan Hipp changed the menu at an SCBWI event he was chairing. He was friendly with conference faculty. He had an uncommon amount of confidence for a big, bald guy with an unusual last name. Is there a quieter, dad Ryan today?

Haha. I will explain myself to anyone that wants to know this whole story! I think I have always had convictions and I think my confidence comes from a place of manifesting the person I want to be. 

To this day I think my time on AdCom was some of the proudest moments of my kid-lit career because It felt so good to be of service to so many writers and artists and being someone they looked to for guidance. 

I think we owe that confidence as responsibility to our members. And maybe this is the one thing in life that I am certain in my expertise of? Sorry Not Sorry for all my younger shenanigans.

Dad Ryan is maybe even more bold and un-quiet because I am keeping up with my little challenger for the title of Trouble-Maker-Maximus.

So, what’s your plan? Any new books on the horizon?

1. Coaching and Mentoring Aspiring Writers at Hipp-Hop Academy!

2. Traveling the world: Italy! Malaysia! Thailand! Japan! in 2024! Scotland! in 2025!

3. School Visits for the 2025-2026 School Year!

4. OUR SHOW TODAY! Saturdays on WGVU Public Broadcasting PBS!

5. I am writing a Middle Grade Horror Series!!!!

Please share any social media platforms:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hipphop.academy

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/hipphop.academy

Free KidLit Webinar WaitList https://www.hipphop.com/free-webinar-waitlist

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Reminders about Upcoming SCBWI-MI Events

• Fall webinar with Sheela Chari- Oct. 22nd at 7:00 pm Registration period: Oct 1-22
• Fall webinar with Cate Berry- Nov. 12th at 7:00 pm Registration period: Oct 22-Nov 12