This week has been busy also with babysitting, reading to over 40 children at an author visit at a daycare, and attending the Author Showcase in Sapulpa, Oklahoma. Not to mention, my birthday is fast approaching. I will be an older decade. I will tell you though, I realize I do not have the energy of these children but I thoroughly love “being a kid at heart” and will continue as long as I can to “make a difference in the lives of children” by continuing to provide quality children’s books that “come from the heart”, provide the literary elements and themes for children to learn from, continuing promoting being a military Veteran, and encouraging children to read and write more. During the daycare visit, I had the opportunity to read to 3–5-year-olds in the morning. They are so funny and enjoyable to read to. I use a lot of props with this age and interactive activities since the attention span is usually short. I read my book , “Did You Come Home for Lunch” which by the way will be on display in a couple of weeks at the Miami Book Fair which I am excited since it has been to San Diego Festival of Books, Times Square in New York with my publisher , and now on to Miami, Florida Book Fair. I came back in the afternoon to read to the school age children which consisted of children from four elementary schools. I really enjoyed the “Ask the Author” segment and reading my book, “Nicoli Picoli!” and “It Happens.” This group of children was an amazing group to have the opportunity to read to. The event was held at the Sapulpa Library with 11 other authors besides me. The Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators (https://www.scbwi.org/) provided a panel discussion for authors and the public who attended. Next, I was up on stage as the first of the 12 authors to read their work for five minutes each. Then, the public was invited to go shopping at each author’s table and speak with the authors. I ended up meeting someone there that I have been collaborating with about coming to speak to their reading group in Feb. 2025. It was a fun event that I thoroughly enjoyed, and it was a road trip since Sapulpa is over an hour away from where I live. Next stop is the upcoming “Picklemas” event all about pickles which fits nicely with my themed book, “Nicoli Picoli!” in Edmond, Oklahoma on November 30th and the final event in December, “Christmas in the Park” at Choctaw Creek Park in Choctaw, Oklahoma on December 14th, 2024. Boy, what a busy year! I have attended close to 50 events this year. I am excited to see what journey lies ahead for me in 2025 regarding events I will attend such as the Virtual Author Festival in February and the Books by the Bay Festival in Pensacola, Florida in March. I better get busy pre-planning the first quarter of 2025.
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January 2025
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