Elvis & Olive now live in the Kerlan Collection!
June 20th, 2008
The Kerlan Collection at the University of Minnesota is one of the world's finest collections of children's literature materials. The Twin Cities is lucky to have access to so many original manuscripts, illustrations and correspondence from a long list of amazing authors and artists. These include Beverly Cleary, Tomie De Paola, Maurice Sendak, Kate DiCamillo and many, many more.

It was a great honor when the Kerlan requested my Elvis & Olive papers, and this week I finally got them in order (scary photo below). Now, my scribblings will live alongside the work of all my literary heroes. Wowie man!



These folders contain everything Elvis & Olive, including:
--My very first draft of the story, in which Natalie was named Gertie(!)
--The first draft of the final scene with Steven, written on a Caribou Coffee brochure(!!!)
--Correspondence with my editor
--Galley proofs
--The evolution of the cover art
--All of my embarrasing mistakes and misteps, which were necessary to create the final book

I just handed over my 100-lb. stack of papers this week, so it's not ready for viewing yet. The lovely folks at the Kerlan need to sort everything into neat folders first, and the papers will be available for you to visit this fall.

The Kerlan Collection is free to view and open to the public. They simply ask that you call to let them know you are coming. Get directions to the collection and see the full list of authors on the Kerlan Collection website.

Stephanie on the FM 107.1 Lori & Julia Show
May 31st, 2008

Last Thursday, I had the honor and the pleasure of being on the Lori & Julia radio show on FM 107.1 (Twin Cities). If you've listened to Lo J, you already know that they are har-de-harlarious. Julia, guest host Randy Meier and producer Donny Love asked me questions about Elvis & Olive, writing, my radio past and more. It was so much fun!

Give it a listen (don't mind the Menards ad before the interview starts):

Win a Copy of E&O!
May 16th, 2008

Kidsreads is giving away free Elvis & Olive books to a handful of luckies. The only thing better than free books are free bicycles but I don't have any of those. So enter the contest, guys!
Enter now

Capitol Hill Magnet School Rocks
May 12th, 2008

A couple of weeks ago, I had a blast visiting the 4th graders at Capitol Hill in St. Paul, Minnesota. I read the first chapter of Elvis & Olive out loud, signed some books and answered questions. Kids ask the best questions. Better than professional interviewers on TV. Better than I could even think up myself.

Someone asked why Annie isn't wearing a shirt in the first scene. The answer is that I needed a detail that would set Annie Beckett apart from everyone immediately and shirtlessness was perfect. I have a childhood memory of a girl in my neighborhood riding her bike with no shirt on and hair that looked like it had been braided days before and then slept in for a few nights. You know, more flyaways than braids. That image has stuck with me forever. And now, some pictures:

Me, blabbing away about my book to the 4th graders.

See? I told you they had questions. My face is too tiny, but if the picture was a close-up you'd see how impressed I am with their great questions.

Signin' books. See the beautiful sign in the back? That was so sweet. I felt very honored to have been invited. Thanks Capitol Hill!

Author Interview on Kidsreads.com
May 1st, 2008

Check out the interview, which includes my answer to the question: If you had a code name, what would it be? (I had to really think about that one.)
Read interview

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Are you interested in scheduling a school visit? Drop me a line.