I’m writing this from Sharjah, UAE, where I’ve been invited to speak and participate in the annual Sharjah Children’s Reading Festival. I must admit, I had no idea what to expect, but even my highest expectations have been surpassed. This festival is for the people, to inspire and encourage families and children to read. I […]
With London Book Fair kicking off today, I’m thrilled to share some very exciting news…. The book (which in the UK is) known as DRUMMER GIRL… …will now be published in the U.S. & Canada by a brand new YA imprint called KCP Loft with a snappy new title: KEEPING THE BEAT KCP Loft is the […]
Who needs a new social network? I don’t know about you, but between twitter, Facebook, instagram, and YouTube (confession: I’m not on snap chat), I feel a bit too social. So I was initially reluctant when the good folks at Super Awesome purchased the Pop Jam app and invited me to become a “channel.” But […]
Years ago, as a young brand builder at Procter & Gamble, I was part of the team that launched Febreze, and led the launch in Canada. I worked tirelessly for months, bringing a core (and then ever expanding) team of like-minded people together to get this new-to-the-world product category to market. The night before “SOS” […]
(note: the following post was originally published on LinkedIn on February 29th, 2016) Watching Pixar take home the Oscar for Best Animated Film reminded me that we all have loads to learn from Pixar Animation Studios. Much has been written and celebrated about their creative process, including in Ed Catmull’s must-read book (‘Creativity Inc.’), but […]
Yesterday, I learned that author Harper Lee had died. I’ve never met her, and actually know very little about her personal life, but she gave to us a literary gift in To Kill A Mockingbird that will outlive us all. I first read the book in high school, when soon-to-be adult views on the world […]
This week I’m in Miami for the annual Kidscreen Summit, flying the flag for AWESOME… In it’s second year in Miami (used to be NY), Kidscreen has become a global meeting place for people making content for kids (and kids at heart). It’s part conference (Mary Coleman of Pixar is the keynote speaker) and part […]
If you’ve been following this blog, you know that I’m obsessed with creating characters, stories, and worlds. I love writing fiction because it’s an organic process, probably the purest expression (after oral storytelling) of story. But I’m also a relentlessly visual thinker and I love the creative collaboration that happens in television (as opposed to the loneliness that […]
So, today is kind of a big day. If you’re like me, a child of Star Wars, this is the day you’ve been waiting for since the mid 80’s. I must admit, I was excited (and then ultimately disappointed) by the prequels, but nothing like the excitement in store for JJ’s take on Lucas’ world. […]
I’m working on something new, something a bit, well… different. STAR PRESSED is a story about family. It’s not quite a kids book, it’s not exactly YA, and it’s not fully a grown-up read either. It’s a story about eight “people”, three adults and five teenagers thrown together by fate, facing a world they don’t understand, and […]
