In this episode of the SCBWI Podcast, we are joined by Erin Lee!

Erin Lee is an elementary school teacher and artist living in Long Sault, Ontario. She graduated from the University of Ottawa with an Honors degree in Fine Arts, Visual Arts. Erin has published three award-winning children’s books: Benjamin and the Backyard Beast, Out of Season, and Maggie the Magnificent. 
Erin has written short stories and novels since she was a child. As a young student, she idolized authors such as Robert Munsch, Dr. Suess, and Roald Dahl. Having adventures of her own that she wanted to share, Erin began to write stories herself. Erin's love of literature is what inspired her to become a teacher, so that she could share her passion for reading and always be surrounded by books. Erin currently teaches Kindergarten and though, at times, she feels like Ms. Frizzle with her wild avant-garde lessons, she adores her students and often draws upon memorable classroom moments in her stories. It is also through childhood stories that she addresses important topics, such as bullying, inclusion, and anxiety within the classroom setting. She believes that no matter how subtle or minuscule these issues may manifest within the classroom, ensuring that they do not go unheard is crucial for the growth of a child.

https://www.erinleeauthor.com/

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In this episode of the SCBWI Podcast, we are joined by artist John Parra!

John Parra is an award-winning artist, illustrator, author, and educator, best known for his, Latino themed, children’s picture books. His work on, Frida Kahlo and Her Animalitos, was named a New York Times Best Illustrated Children’s Book of the Year. His MTA artcard poster, Birdhouse Subways, was displayed throughout NYC subways and his art was seen on six U.S. Forever Postage Stamps titled: Delicioso. He regularly speaks as a visiting artist at schools and literary conferences across the country, advocating art and reading education and was also invited by the Metropolitan Museum of Art in NY to present a special event about his career and illustrations. His book, Growing an Artist: The Story of a Landscaper and His Son, is his debut as both author and illustrator and has received numerous starred reviews and recognitions. John currently lives with his wife, Maria, in Queens, New York.

You can check his books out here: https://johnparraart.com/books/

Follow him on IG here: https://www.instagram.com/johnparraart/?hl=en

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In this episode of the SCBWI Podcast, we are joined by Michael Dante DiMartino!

Michael Dante DiMartino is an American animator, producer, writer, and director. He is best known, together with Bryan Konietzko, as the co-creator of the animated TV series Avatar: The Last Airbender and The Legend of Korra, both on Nickelodeon.

He has also written for podcasts and has authored novels. 

You can purchase his latest, Both Here And Gone on his website: https://www.michaeldantedimartino.com/product-page/both-here-and-then

Follow him on IG here: https://www.instagram.com/mike_dante_d/

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In this episode of the SCBWI Podcast, we are joined by Desmond Hall!

Desmond Hall was born in Jamaica, West Indies, and moved to Jamaica, Queens. He has worked as a high school biology and English teacher in East New York, Brooklyn; counseled teenage ex-cons after their release from Rikers Island; and served as Spike Lee’s creative director at Spike DDB. Desmond has served on the board of the Partnership for Drug-Free Kids and the Advertising Council and judged the One Show, the American Advertising Awards, and the NYC Downtown Short Film Festival. He’s also been named one of Variety magazine’s Top 50 Creatives to Watch. Desmond is the author of the gritty YA novel Your Corner Dark which confronts the harsh realities of gang life in Jamaica and how far a teen is willing to go for family. He lives outside of Boston with his wife and two daughters.

Purchase his book here: https://bookshop.org/p/books/better-must-come/18934206?ean=9781534460744

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In this episode of the SCBWI Podcast, we are joined by Margaret Finnegan!

Margaret Finnegan is the author of the Junior Library Guild Selections Sunny Parker Is Here to Stay, New Kids and Underdogs, We Could Be Heroes, and Susie B. Won’t Back Down. Her work has appeared in FamilyFun, the Los Angeles Times, Salon, and other publications. She lives in South Pasadena, California, where she enjoys spending time with her family, walking her dog, and baking really good chocolate cakes. Visit her online at MargaretFinnegan.com.

Purchase her book here: https://bookshop.org/p/books/sunny-parker-is-here-to-stay-margaret-finnegan/20163181?ean=9781665930086

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In this episode of the SCBWI Podcast, we are joined by Dan Gutman!

New York Times best-selling and award-winning author Dan Gutman has written more than 190 books for readers from kindergarten through middle school. Dan’s My Weird School series includes 100+ titles, and has sold more than 35 million copies globally over the past 20 years. Dan also is the author of the best-selling Genius Files series, the Baseball Card Adventure series, and many more.

Dan’s books have been named Junior Library Guild Selections and Bank Street College’s Best Children’s Books of the Year, and have been awarded numerous state book awards, including: The California Young Reader Medal, the Massachusetts Children’s Book Award, and the Iowa Children’s Choice Award, among others. When he’s not writing books, Dan loves to ride his bike, play pickleball, throw Frisbees, and explore New York City where he lives with his wife Nina. To find out more, follow Dan on Facebook, X, and Instagram.

Buy his books here:
https://bookshop.org/contributors/dan-gutman-3f460210-405d-476a-b005-507ccb560d15
https://bookshop.org/p/books/my-weirdtastic-school-4-miss-nichol-is-in-a-pickle-dan-gutman/20097761?ean=9780063207066

https://dangutman.com/
https://dangutman.com/books/

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In this episode of the SCBWI Podcast, we are joined by Dr. Sabic-El-Rayess !

Dr. Sabic-El-Rayess first became a teacher as a young teen during the Bosnian Genocide. In a letter written by President Joe Biden himself, he wrote: “I am inspired by the bravery and strength you have shown in the face of heartbreaking tragedy and persecution.” Reflecting on Dr. Amra Sabic-El-Rayess’ award-winning memoir The Cat I Never Named (Bloomsbury, 2020), the President described her as “the very idea of America” itself. As a Bosniak (Bosnian Muslim) woman and survivor of the Bosnian Genocide, who immigrated to America, Dr. Sabic-El-Rayess has transformed from being an object of hate-fueled violence to a renowned scholar, author, activist, and storyteller who is an exemplar of resilience in the face of hate and extremism. Today, Dr. Sabic-El-Rayess is a professor and researcher at Teachers College, Columbia University. She has taught, researched, and published on a range of issues in education, including Educational Displacement, hate prevention, and storytelling. Dr. Sabic-El-Rayess engages regularly with diverse audiences around the world.

Buy her books here:
https://bookshop.org/p/books/three-summers-laura-l-sullivan/18643174?ean=9780374390815

https://www.sabicelrayess.org/
https://www.sabicelrayess.org/books

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In this episode of the SCBWI Podcast, we are joined by Phil Bildner!

Phil Bildner is the New York Times bestselling author of numerous books for young people including the NCTE Charlotte Huck Award Honor-winning middle grade novel, A High Five for Glenn Burke, the Margaret Wise Brown Prize-winning picture book, Marvelous Cornelius, and the Texas Bluebonnet Award-winning picture book Shoeless Joe & Black Betsy. Phil is also the author of A Whole New Ballgame, Rookie of the Year, Tournament of Champions, and Most Valuable Players in the critically acclaimed middle grade Rip & Red series. His other picture books include Martina & Chrissie, Twenty-One Elephants, and The Soccer Fence. His latest is the biography, Glenn Burke, Game Changer.

Phil grew up on Long Island, studied political science at Johns Hopkins University, and then attended law school at New York University School of Law. After passing the bar in New York and New Jersey and working for a short time as an associate at a large Manhattan law firm, Phil went back to school and earned a master’s degree in early childhood and elementary education at Long Island University.

For eleven years, Phil taught in the New York City Public Schools. He taught fifth and sixth grade in the Tremont section of the Bronx in the 1990s and middle school Language Arts and American History in Manhattan in the 2000s.

After leaving the classroom to write full time, Phil began chaperoning student-volunteer trips to New Orleans to help in the post-Hurricane Katrina recovery effort. He founded The NOLA Tree, a non-profit youth service organization and served as the co-Executive Director for several years.

In 2017, Phil founded The Author Village, an author booking business and speakers bureau. He now represents over eighty book creators for young people, educators, and librarians.

Phil also serves on the Board of Directors of Baldwin for the Arts, the non-profit organization founded by Jacqueline Woodson and whose mission is to create a safe and nurturing space for Artists of The Global Majority.

These days, Phil lives in Newburgh, New York with his husband in a two-hundred-year-old farmhouse. Most of the time, you’ll find him out in the yard playing with his dog named Kat, hanging with his cats named Primrose and Rue, or working on the back porch (aka, his office) overlooking the Hudson River.

Buy his latest book here: https://bookshop.org/p/books/glenn-burke-game-changer-the-man-who-invented-the-high-five-phil-bildner/19745586?ean=9780374391225

Phil's Website

https://philbildner.com/

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In this episode of the SCBWI Podcast, we are joined by Tracy van Straaten!

TRACY VAN STRAATEN, Founder and President

Founded in 2019, TvS Media Group LLC  is an award-winning boutique public relations and consulting firm specializing in book publishing, entertainment, and brand management, with particular expertise in children's and young adult media. Founder and President Tracy van Straaten has more than 30 years of publicity, communications, and marketing experience, and she has created hundreds of campaigns for bestselling, award-winning, and debut authors, as well as beloved characters, celebrities, and brands.

Over the course of her career, she has directed media campaigns and strategy for more than 200 New York Times bestsellers, including Suzanne Collins’s bestselling The Hunger Games series; He’s Just Not That Into You by Greg Behrendt and Liz Tuccillo; Olivia by Ian Falconer; and the re-launch of the Eloise series by Kay Thompson and Hilary Knight, for which van Straaten received a Literary Marketplace (LMP) Award for publicity campaign. Her longstanding media and industry relationships and vast network of national contacts across all media platforms have resulted in an impressive track record of high-profile placements. In 2023, TvS Media Group was awarded a Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) Chicago Skyline Award of Excellence and a Publicity Club of Chicago Golden Trumpet Award for the media campaign for the 30th Anniversary of Goosebumps by R.L. Stine.

Tracy van Straaten has held publicity and marketing positions at Little, Brown and Company, HarperCollins, William Morrow, Simon & Schuster, and, from 2006-2019, Vice President of Communications, Publicity, and Educational Marketing for the Scholastic Trade publishing division. She served on the board of the Children’s Book Council, holds a B.A. in English and Art History from Hamilton College, and earned a master's degree in Children’s Literature from Simmons University in Boston. In 2017, she received the Simmons University Alumni Achievement Award for Excellence in Children’s Literature. She currently serves on the board of The Carol Shields Prize for Fiction.

Check out their services here: https://www.tvsmediagroup.com/services

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In this episode of the SCBWI Podcast, we are joined by Debbie Ridpath Ohi!

Debbie Ridpath Ohi is a children’s book author and illustrator who has helped create over 20 books for young people. She loves her job. She is the author and illustrator of I WANT TO READ ALL THE BOOKS, WHERE ARE MY BOOKS?, and SAM & EVA (Simon & Schuster). Her illustrations have appeared in books by Judy Blume, Michael Ian Black, Linda Sue Park, and others. You can find Debbie on Bluesky, SubStack, Instagram, her Bookstagram, Facebook, YouTube, X,

https://debbieohi.com/

PreOrder Debbie's Book Here:
https://bookshop.org/p/books/i-want-to-read-all-the-books-debbie-ridpath-ohi/21108507?ean=9781481416306

and check out the rest of Debbie's books here:
https://bookshop.org/contributors/debbie-ridpath-ohi-f05414b5-6e3d-4c1b-b0e0-74bae07489b5

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In this episode of the SCBWI Podcast, we are joined by F.T. Lukens!

F.T. Lukens is a New York Times bestselling author of YA speculative fiction including the novels Spell Bound, So This Is Ever After (2023 ALA Rainbow Booklist; 2022 Goodreads Choice Awards nominee), In Deeper Waters (2022 ALA Rainbow Booklist; Junior Library Guild Selection), and the forthcoming Otherworldly as well as other science-fiction and fantasy works. F.T. resides in North Carolina with their spouse, three kids, three dogs, and three cats.

Buy Otherworldy here:
https://bookshop.org/p/books/otherworldly-f-t-lukens/20163013?ean=9781665916257

and check out the rest of F.T.'s  books here:
https://bookshop.org/contributors/f-t-lukens

Follow them on IG here:
@ftlukens

F.T.'s website:
https://www.ft-lukens.com/

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