Earlier this week I was privileged to be invited to read Ana and the Sea Star to the awesome kids at Scarborough Elementary School as part of their end-of-the-year Reading Celebration.

After the reading, we talked about the writing process, getting published, favorite books, and sea stars, of course.

I just had to share the beautiful original artwork that illustrator, Jamie Hogan, graciously gave me. My daughter helped choose this particular piece, which reminded her of a photo of the two of us taken on the beach trip several years ago that inspired the story.

 

I shared with the kids about the long road to becoming a published author that started with writing poems and stories when I was their age.

The kids showed me the medals they earned for all the minutes they read this year. I met two new friends who share my birthday (Groundhog Day). And I even got a hug from a former student. It was a great day.

I want to offer a huge thank you to Scarborough Librarian, Lisa Fiedler, and Library Assistant, Nancy Clewell, for inviting me to be part of their celebration. Writers need readers. Thank you for inspiring your students to love reading.