Susi Gregg Fowler

Some of you know that I enjoy writing poetry, essays, and adult fiction as well as children's books. This past year, The Christian Science Monitor published one of my poems, "Identity Crisis" and one of my essays, which I had called "Practicing Delight" but which they called "Anticipating Delight, both ofwhich you can read on their website, http://www.csmonitor.com. Just put "Susi Gregg Fowler" in their "Search" box. Needless to say, I was thrilled to be included in this fine newspaper!

I also had a poem, "Complaints," selected by Alaska's Writer Laureate (we don't have a "poet laureate" per se) for last year's National Poetry Month calendar which was posted on the website of the Alaska State Council on the Arts, and this fall, my poem "After the Stroke" will be included in a new book, "Illness and Grace, Terror and Transformation," published by Wising Up Press. I've been enjoying dipping into the adult world a little.

But of course, I'm still working on new children's books -- picture books and even novels. I recently returned from a splendid novel revision workshop sponsored by the SCBWI Western Washington group. Darcy Pattison (http://www.darcypattison.com) put twenty-four of us through our paces, as we spent a weekend learning new tools to help us look at our own novel drafts and those of others in our four-person groups. We covered so much, I think my brain is still exploding! I'm just now getting back to work on my middle-grade novel with the hope that I'll be able to send it out sometime this winter.

By the way, you may have noticed in my links the book "Healing Stories: Picture Books for the Big and Small Changes in a Child's Life." I have added it because "I'll See You When the Moon Is Full" is included in Dr. Golding's bibliography of books for children facing change. She has been traveling the country, speaking about her book and her thoughts about helping children cope with change. Check it out!

May your days be good ones.

susi