dulemba.com

Technical Difficulties

2009-11-09T10:57:00.001-05:00

My hosting company is upgrading their servers right now (should be finished some time Tuesday) so please forgive any functioning delays or slow page-loads at Dulemba.com until they're finished. This is temporary - I promise!

Featured Author in Kidsville News!

2009-11-09T08:00:00.006-05:00

Do you read Kidsville News? In several of their regions across the country I am featured in their "Dear Author" segment this month to help promote Soap, soap, soap and general hygeine - very important during this Swine Flu season!
Thanks to Kim Norman, friend, author, and editor, for the fantastic shout-out!
(Click the image below to see a larger version.)

I Love You too!

2009-11-08T08:00:00.001-05:00

Thanks to all my readers at dulemba.com - I .... what Mishka said!
(Thanks to Cute Overload for the link.)

My Marketing Strategy: The Snowball Effect at Cynsations!

2009-11-07T08:00:00.005-05:00

Friday I had the honor of being a guest blogger at Cynthia Leitich Smith's Cynsations! She asked me to share my marketing strategy. And since I get a lot of questions from you guys about exactly that - I hope you'll go have a read:
Guest Post Elizabeth O. Dulemba on Marketing - The Snowball Effect.
     But that's not all! Cynthia is also giving away a signed copy of SOAP, SOAP, SOAP (all-English or Bilingual)! Click Here to enter the drawing! (Told ya there would be more giveaways!)
     Cynthia Leitich Smith is the author of the FABULOSO novels TANTALIZE and ETERNAL. (Click the titles to view some very cool book trailers.) As well as RAIN IS NOT MY INDIAN NAME and many others.

     Cynthia and I met at the SCBWI LA conference a few years back and I have so appreciated her support of my career. She's also one of the most popular bloggers on children's lit today. So look around and learn more about her!

     Click the cover to learn about my newest picture book, Soap, soap, soap and Soap, soap, soap ~ Jabón, jabón, jabón.

National Bookstore Day!

2009-11-06T08:00:00.003-05:00

National Bookstore Day is tomorrow!!! It's sponsored by Publishers Weekly to help drive traffic to bookstores as sellers gear up for the holiday book-buying season. And what better way to show love than to share a book? Go visit your local bookseller this weekend!!!

MG vs. YA?

2009-11-05T08:00:00.001-05:00

The authors at MiG Writers recently shared a FANTASTIC post about the difference between MG (Mid-grade) and YA (Young Adult) fiction: MG vs YA fiction: What's the Difference?
     It includes this funny cartoon by Debbie Ohi. Remember Debbie? She did that awesome comic strip of me during my Soap, Soap, Soap blog tour?
     So, if you ever wondered what age range your novel falls into - maybe you'll find an answer there!
     (Thanks to Anastasia Suen for this heads up... )

Kirby Larson's NUBS (THE TRUE STORY OF A MUTT, A MARINE, AND A MIRACLE)

2009-11-04T08:00:00.003-05:00

Kirby Larson and Mary Nethery have created a story about a wonderful dog who finds the perfect human, but goes through some serious trials to stay with him (Major Brian Dennis). I dare you to keep a dry eye as you read NUBS (THE TRUE STORY OF A MUTT, A MARINE, AND A MIRACLE). Today, I ask Kirby about her latest picture book (which is already getting RAVE reviews).

Q. You've done it again Kirby - you've written a story that brought me to tears. How did you first hear about Nubs?

A. It was all thanks to Mary. We loved collaborating together on Two Bobbies and were looking for another project. She was convinced that we could find a story similar to the Bobs, but this time set in Iraq and, five minutes after she made herself a note to that effect, her husband walked out of his home office with a newspaper article about Nubs and Major Brian Dennis. He said, "I think this is a story you and Kirby would like." She called me and we got on it immediately. Since Brian was still deployed in Iraq, it took us a few months to make contact with him. But in June 2008, after he had returned home, we flew to San Diego to talk with him about the possibility of writing the book. Nubs fell in love with us -- partly in thanks to the Bow-Wow-Wonie Mary brought him -- and that sealed the deal as far as Brian was concerned.

Q. This is an unconventional picture book with all the photography and military geography. Did it present any interesting obstacles to create?

A. I doubt there is a book written that doesn't require wrestling with obstacles! ;-) The biggest challenge was that, if we had only known what Nubs had up his sleeve, we would have fitted him with a camera so that we'd know what he saw and experienced during his 70 mile trek across the desert! We had photos of every aspect of the story except the journey. The second biggest challenge was for the Little Brown art director, Patti Ann Harris, who had to work her magic to convert all of those amateur snapshots to resolutions/quality levels that could be printed in the book. We have no idea how she accomplished this huge task but we're certain it has earned her sainthood. For Mary and I, the biggest challenge was gathering both photos and the permissions to use them from Brian's team, which was dispersed after their mission.

Q. Have you met Nubs? Tell me about it!

A. We have met Nubs who is much smaller in person than you would think. He looks like a German Shepherd but he is much more petite. He's not all that much bigger than my neighbor's beagle (and certainly slimmer). Mary and I drove up to Brian's house and Nubs greeted us at the door. As I mentioned above, Mary charmed him with the doggy brownie and from that moment on, he was our buddy. He is very sweet and smart and oh-so handsome.

Q. This is a wonderful companion book to your last one, Two Bobbies. Do you plan to do more books about rescued animals?

A. We do plan on writing other books together and we know they will continue in the nonfiction vein and feature animals in some way, but perhaps not necessarily rescued animals (though, to be accurate, Nubs was as much rescuer as he was rescued!). Right now, however, I have a book deadline looming so we've put our joint work on hold for a bit.

Q. How have these stories affected you?

A. They have affected me in countless ways, but I'll share three. First, I gained a new appreciation for how animals can help us be the best we can be. Second, we receive emails every single day from people impacted by these stories -- most of them adults. I have been amazed by the way these books created with children in mind have touched readers of all ages. Third. . .well, I'll attach a photo to answer that. After 34 years of married life without a dog, we now are owned by one.

I want to thank Little Brown for making a generous donation to the ASPCA as part of their participation in this book, and Mary Nethery for being the Charlotte to my Wilbur. And I want to thank you for this chance to chat!

Kirby

Thanks so much and I can't wait to tell everybody about Nubs!

Thanks again to Kirby Larson for appearing, courtesy of Provato Marketing, for other stops on the tour please check www.provatoevents.com.

Coloring Page Tuesday! - Leaf Canoe

2009-11-03T08:00:00.001-05:00

Sign up to receive alerts when a new coloring page is posted and to view more coloring pages - click here!

     We're well into the browns and oranges and yellows of the year. Leaves float to the ground and have all sorts of uses you may not have known about...
     Click the image to open a .jpg to print and color. Send me your colored version (less than 1mb) to coloringpages@dulemba.com and I'll post it to my blog! Click here to find more coloring pages.

     Click the cover to learn about my newest picture book, Soap, soap, soap and Soap, soap, soap ~ Jabón, jabón, jabón.

COMBO by Blue and David Ellis

2009-11-02T08:00:00.000-05:00

WOW. In a similar vein to the Strawberry Swing animation for Coldplay, this one goes even further. AMAZING. It loops twice if it gets too long for you. (Thanks to Cheryl Noll for the link.)

NaNoWriMo

2009-11-01T08:00:00.002-05:00

National Novel Writing Month begins today, and I'm doin' it dangit! Want to join me?

That's How a Pumpkin Grows

2009-10-31T08:00:00.001-04:00

What a great pumpkiny video!! It's by songwriter Brian Vogan and illustrator Alberto Cerriteño. Happiness!
(Thanks to The Purple Cow Bookstore Blog for the link.)

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!!

One Man's Trash

2009-10-30T08:00:00.001-04:00

One Man's Trash - They are just piles of trash until a light is shown on them - SPOOKY!!
Thanks to Sally Vitsky for the link!

Guys Read Gets a Makeover!

2009-10-29T08:00:00.002-04:00

Guys Read was created by a special group of highly prolific and successful children's book creators, including Jon Sciezcka - the head honcho. It was born out of the knowledge that guys often don't read as much as girls. But why not when there are such great boy books out there? That's where Guys Read comes in.

Another great boy book? SOAP, SOAP, SOAP of course!

Click the cover to learn about my newest picture book, Soap, soap, soap and Soap, soap, soap ~ Jabón, jabón, jabón.

ABC Best Books for Children Catalogue

2009-10-28T08:00:00.001-04:00

Woohooo! The Association of Booksellers for Children has just released their latest ABC Best Books for Children Catalogue and SOAP, SOAP, SOAP (the all-English version) is right there on page 6!! (Luvs me some Skippyjon too.) Another Raven Tree Press title also made it in: BEAUTIFUL MOON by Dawn Jeffers! Woohoo!
(Click the catalogue to open the .pdf and see the whole thing!)

Coloring Page Tuesday! - Pumpkin Mouse

2009-10-27T08:00:00.002-04:00

Sign up to receive alerts when a new coloring page is posted and to view more coloring pages - click here!

     Here come the Halloween coloring pages! Bats and witchy huts and the like - I love this time of year!
     Click the image to open a .jpg to print and color. Send me your colored version (less than 1mb) to coloringpages@dulemba.com and I'll post it to my blog! Click here to find more coloring pages.

     Click the iPhone to learn about my new app - Lula's Brew!

I NEED MY MONSTER!

2009-10-26T08:00:00.004-04:00

Roar!!!! Today I get to introduce a great new picture book to all you monster-lovers out there. You know who you are - you love scales and slime and all things that spook and scare.... I NEED MY MONSTER, written by Amanda Noll and illustrated by Howard McWilliam, is the book for you! Ethan loved the monster that lived under his bed. But when Gabe goes fishing, Ethan needs to find a replacement. Turns out that's not so easy to do...
I asked Amanda about the creation of this fun book:

Q. How did this story come to you?

A. By wishing my three year old daughter would be too afraid to get out of bed. In my defense, my fourth child was still an infant. All I wanted was a solid night of sleep! It’s not my finest parenting moment. I’m a much better parent when I’ve had enough rest.

Q. Did you do a lot of revising?

A. Yes. Picture books are deceptive. They seem very simple and easy to write. I estimate (because I lost track!) that the book was revised about 11 times.

Q. What was your path to publication?

A. Long, but typical. I wrote the story mid 2005 and started submitting it to publishing houses (including Flashlight Press). Flashlight made on offer to publish the book in 2007. It wasn’t released until April of 2009.

Q. How are you celebrating the release of I NEED MY MONSTER?

A. Halloween is the perfect time to celebrate! I’ve been doing quite a few author visits and bookstore events. There is a monster page you can download at http://flashlightpress.com/Make_a_Monster.html to make your very own monster. Not to mention that I love to make toe cakes. They’re gruesome and tasty at the same time.

Q. It's a perfect Halloween book, but it's also a great night-time book for kids who want to 'embrace their monster' rather than fear it. Do you have any funny stories or anecdotes on how the book can be/is being used?

A. I did hear that after a reading one little girl said “There are monsters under my bed!?!” Mostly, it’s been well received. I’ve also heard one classroom is using the monster page to figure the number of variations that can be made with the monster bits. I just love to hear that kids are reading and enjoying the book!

Q. Thanks Amanda! Hope the book has a grizzly future!

A. Thanks! - Amanda

Where The Wild Things Are Tattoos!

2009-10-25T08:00:00.000-04:00

From Cakehead Loves Evil - Where the Wild Things Are Tattoos!
     No higher honor?
     Believe it or not, some of my art adorns bodies too. WAY back when I played Ultimate Frisbee (I wasn't very good), I created a logo for our team - Naked Pretzel. I was around to see the t-shirts, but long after I'd moved on I learned several people had turned the logo into tattoos - I think I saw one once but it's been a long time.
     And every now and then I get permission requests to turn other pieces into tattoos. I ask them to please send pics so I can share them on my blog. No pics yet, so I don't think anybody actually went forward with it.
     But yeah, that would be cool.

Percy Jackson - getting closer!

2009-10-24T08:00:00.000-04:00

The movie will be out February, 12 2010. Looks like a GREAT cast too!
Go here to learn more: Percy Jackson The Movie.

Nominate Your Tech Savvy Super!

2009-10-23T08:00:00.004-04:00

Tech Savvy Superintendents are being honored through eSchool News. Between now and October 30th you can nominate your Superintendent if he/she qualifies. Some of the qualifications include:

Models the effective use of technology in the day-to-day execution of the superintendency.
And...
Thinks creatively and strategically about the long-term challenges and opportunities of technology in the school district and in education at large.

Why do I care? Because I offer Virtual School Visits just for forward thinking educators like these! Virtual Visits offer unique opportunities for many reasons - they can make authors available to rural areas, they are much cheaper than an in-person visit, and the technological aspect makes them interesting for older students too.
Read about my first (well-documented) Virtual Visit Here and find more authors doing Virtual Visits at

An iPhone App is Born - Lula's Brew!

2009-10-22T08:00:00.003-04:00

Drum roll please...
I'd like to announce my first iPhone App -
LULA'S BREW!
written, illustrated and read to you by
Elizabeth O. Dulemba (Yours Truly)

     Lula's Aunties want her to be a witch like them. But Lula hates to fly on brooms. She'd rather study cookbooks than spellbooks ... Lula dreams of being a famous chef!
     When her Aunties insist she attempt one last potion, Lula secretly adds her cooking flair and in true witchy fashion ends up creating a brew that bewitches the entire town ... maybe her Aunties too!
     This rhyming tale transcends the typical Halloween story to appeal to cooks and "foodies" throughout the year.

I had to try it - these new apps are too exciting! Are they books? Sort of, but they're really something new and different. For instance, they're GREAT for on the road when you can't have your books with you. And I love that we have another way to share our stories!
LULA'S BREW available NOW for $1.99 through:

or

search: Lula
To help celebrate, here are the Stray Cats singing Be-Bop-A-Lula LIVE!

Here's a quick demo:

Book Price War - Who Really Pays?

2009-10-21T08:00:00.010-04:00

Per The Wall Street Journal there's a war raging between Amazon and Walmart right now.
     Walmart recently had the bright idea of selling the top-selling blockbuster books for just $10 each. Amazon decided to compete and went to $9, then Walmart went to $8.99. Sounds good for buyers, right?
     No. Not good for buyers.
     See, neither of the big chains is making a profit on these books at those prices. In fact, they're selling them at a loss. They're hoping that while you're buying your $9 book, you'll buy other things too.
     Problem is, there is not an indie bookstore in this country who can compete with those prices. There is not a publisher who can support selling their books so low. There is not a writer alive who can make a living without decent advances and royalties (which are MUCH lower than you think for most of us) - compensation can't be made when books are sold at a loss. Those are the hard reasons. Now for the more subtle.
     What happens when buyers change their thinking? Why buy a $25 novel from a new author when you can buy a $9 novel from somebody well-known? Unknown writers lose the already small window they have to break into this industry. Obviously that means me too. But worse, it means eventually readers won't have choices. They will have the top ten best-selling authors to choose from and little else.
     Some people don't read. Some don't care. But some do. And I'm betting you're one of them. I'm betting you, a reader, want and need variety.
     So, I'm appealing to you. If you want fair business in America, start with your own pocket book. Buy books for what they are really worth. And y'know who has them marked appropriately? Your local independent bookseller, that's who. And y'know what else? There will be somebody working there who can point you to a book by an author you may never have heard of, but who's writing you may love.
     I'm not just talking about fair trade, which is important, I'm talking fair value for Americans. Here's a great video by Annie Leonard about how consumerism has changed in America since the 1950's - The Story of Stuff. It takes a while to watch, but it's a real wake-up call. And while it doesn't directly relate to books, it gives you a better understanding of the issue as a whole.

     If we want to continue to have creative and valuable choices in all things, we need to support the creators by paying fair prices for what we buy. We've lived in a land of discounts for so long, it's a definite shift in thinking, but it's time. Do you really want to travel the country and see the same identical things for sale everywhere you go? I know I don't, but that's what's happened. And now it's happening to books too. Do you really want to read the same ten books everybody else has read, because those are the only choices you have?
     I avoid politics on my blog, always have, until something comes up that directly affects me and my ability to do what I do. This is one of those things.
     America - let's keep it real, shall we?

Update: Target has joined the fray now too. And Walmart is down to $8.98. Geesh.

Update 2: Letters are pouring into Shelf Awareness on the topic. The latest argument? Independent booksellers are suggesting they might buy their stock from the big box stores because they could get the books cheaper (and in lower quantities) than from the publishers. You tell me that won't kill the book industry as we know it.

Update 3 (10-22-09) - Per Publishers Weekly:
In a letter sent to the antitrust division of the Department of Justice Thursday, the board of directors of the American Booksellers Association requested that the government begin an investigation into what the organization believes is the illegal predatory pricing policies being carried out by Amazon, Wal-Mart and Target in selling 10 hardcover titles for as low as $8.98. The ABA requested a meeting with officials as soon as possible, arguing that left unchecked, the predatory pricing policies “will devastate not only the book industry, but our collective ability to remain a society where the widest range of ideas are always made available to the public.”
Click here to read more.

Coloring Page Tuesday! - Witchy Potion

2009-10-20T08:00:00.001-04:00

Sign up to receive alerts when a new coloring page is posted and to view more coloring pages - click here!

     Halloween is coming - with ghosties and pumpkins and bats and...Witchies!
     Click the image to open a .jpg to print and color. Send me your colored version (less than 1mb) to coloringpages@dulemba.com and I'll post it to my blog! Click here to find more coloring pages.

     Click the iPhone to learn about my new app - Lula's Brew!

Georgia Literary Festival

2009-10-19T08:00:00.002-04:00

Saturday I trucked on up to Rome, Georgia for this year's Georgia Literary Festival put on by the Georgia Center for the Book (of which I am now a board member).
     If you've been down south you know how wacky the weather has been lately and Saturday was no exception. It was windy, overcast and cold! It definitely did a number on attendance, but it was still wonderful to go.
     Local volunteers had made a smorgasbord of goodies for the authors to enjoy in the hospitality area and the escorts (thanks Tony!) and stage managers (thanks Virginia!) were wonderful all day long. I spoke in the children's theatre room at the new library (what a GREAT facility!) and while the crowd was small, everybody seemed to really want to be there. (Heck, I'll take quality over quantity any day.) So we had a good time. I read Paco and Soap and drew a rubber duckie and a cow (yes, this is my job - stop giggling).
     Afterwards I went to sign and was thrilled to see the scads of my books Barnes & Noble had ordered - even a book I thought had gone out of print: Haley and the Big Blast! It made me wonder if the book buyer was the same I'd met during the Cedar Valley Arts Festival two years ago. I had to go say 'hi'... Sure enough it was Kris.
     Like I've said so many times, whether it's an indie or a chain, a dedicated bookseller can make such a difference in their community and Kris is obviously one of those people. She is connected and involved and is therefore an absolute pleasure to work with.
     I also got to meet some fellow authors: the infamous Terry Kay (what a nice man - I hope to get the opportunity to talk to him more another day); Lynn Coulter (a long-time SCBWI comrade); Lauretta Hannon (author of The Cracker Queeen and a total hoot!); Akbar Imhotep (storyteller); Natalie Jones (storyteller); Virginia Willis (author of Bon apetit Y'all); and Anthony Grooms (author).
     Thanks to Ray Atkins, this year's committee chair, for putting together such a charming event, to Bill Starr of the Georgia Center for the Book for his continued and much-appreciated support, and to Rome for the warm welcome. I hope to return soon!

Teen Read Week

2009-10-18T08:00:00.000-04:00

Teen Read Week starts today and there are all sorts of things going on around the intranets to drum up interest in this sometimes hard to reach group... And they really shouldn't be that hard to reach when there are SO MANY great books out there. Heck, it's MY favorite genre (and I'm well past teen). Anyhow, learn more at the American Library Association - Young Adult Library Service Association (yalsa).
Go visit Readergirlz for some fun activities there. And School Library Journal for a panel on new YA releases!

FUN

2009-10-17T08:00:00.000-04:00

Gotta luv it. Find more great images at Chris McVeigh's website. Thanks to Fuse #8 for the heads up.