You May Contribute A Verse

Today's guest is author Samantha Gassman, and we have the distinct privilege of discussing her apparently extreme versatility as an artist, encompassing not only her three VERY different published or acquired works, but additionally her military background, her motherhood, her singing ability, and her impeccable rhyme sense. I'll leave her other two books to be discussed in our chat, but did want to introduce DEAR RAINBOW BABY, published as her commercial picture book debut this year. This book is deeply personal to Sam, as you might imagine given the subject matter of miscarriage, pregnancy loss, and the ways families rebound. It's a beautiful book and a touching way to introduce one of the most difficult topics imaginable to a child. All this is to say that the conversation Brenna and I had with Sam is a real journey as we reconcile and connect the tissue between her nonfiction, her early 2022 debut on the educational market, her publication of DEAR RAINBOW BABY, and Artichoke-y Karaoke, which you'll have t

I’m Brenna Jeanneret, children’s lit author, mother, rock climber, outdoors person, and podcaster joined by Josh Monken, children’s lit author, father, science communicator, and podcaster. Josh and I have embarked on this kidlit journey together this year, having become critique partners early in the year, only to find that our powers combined could make captain planet. Maybe not, but at least our powers combined can make a pretty good podcast.  Our guest for this conversation was Jennifer March Soloway. Charlene Chua. You can find Charlene on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook and TikTok.  This episode’s ChewyReviewy books: KID SHERIFF AND THE TERRIBLE TOADS by Bob Shea illustrated by Lane Smith.  NORTON AND THE BEAR by Gabriel Evans The artwork for You May Contribute a Verse features our new quokka mascot, Versey, and was generously created by the great Maddie Frost! Find her on Twitter @_maddiefrost or on her website Maddie-Frost.com  Our theme music is So Happy by Scott Holmes you can find more of his music at

Today’s chat features none other than author-illustrator-actor-voice-over…er Justin Colon, creator of the esteemed PBChat on Twitter and overall kidlit powerhouse. Chances are very good that you’re already familiar with Justin, his passion, and his work to foster community among other creatives. Equal parts craft, community, and consideration, this conversation is very much a worthy follow-on to last episode’s chat with – not at all coincidentally – Justin’s agent Jennifer March Soloway of Andrea Brown. We get right into the real stuff this time, starting with some context around the two recent announcements of Justin’s fall 2024 debuts, IMPOSSIBLE POSSUMS with Disney-Hyperion and THE QUACKEN with Simon & Schuster. Redirection. Mentorship. Outreach. Education. Being ready. Having to wait. And chalking it all up to experience. Justin Colon literally and figuratively spills the tea. This verse is one you don't want to miss. *** Our ChewyReviewy picks of the week are: The Ugly Doodles by Valeria Wicker The V

I’m Brenna Jeanneret, children’s lit author, mother, rock climber, outdoors person, and podcaster joined by Josh Monken, children’s lit author, father, science communicator, and podcaster. Josh and I have embarked on this kidlit journey together this year, having become critique partners early in the year, only to find that our powers combined could make captain planet. Maybe not, but at least our powers combined can make a pretty good podcast.  Our guest for this conversation was Jennifer March Soloway. You can find Jennifer on Twitter, or on the Andrea Brown website.  This episode’s ChewyReviewy books: JILLIAN VS PARASITE PLANET by Nicole Kornher-Stace illustrated by Scott Brown MCTOAD MOWS TINY ISLAND by Tom Angleberger illustrated by John Hendrix The artwork for You May Contribute a Verse features our new quokka mascot, Versey, and was generously created by the great Maddie Frost! Find her on Twitter @_maddiefrost or on her website Maddie-Frost.com  Our theme music is So Happy by Scott Holmes you can find

The end-of-year season that brings with it so many celebrations and togetherness across cultures, geographies, and faiths feels like the perfect time to share this conversation with author Pamela Ehrenberg! A large part of our chat today centers around the joy of collaboration, finding and building strong relationships, acting in service, and coming together to build something more than the sum of individual parts could alone. We talked today mostly about two of Pamela's books, in addition to her journey as a whole. Detour Ahead is her middle grade collaboration with author Tracy Lopez, centering on the intersection of two adolescents who met by happenstance, and the ways that meeting changed the courses of their lives. Pamela's 2017 debut is our other book subject this week: Queen of the Hannukah Dosas is a delightful book blending an intercultural family dynamic with a troublesome affinity for climbing. Pamela's own journey through service-oriented work and into the publishing industry (read more about PJ L

I’m Brenna Jeanneret, children’s lit author, mother, rock climber, outdoors person, and podcaster joined by Josh Monken, children’s lit author, father, science communicator, and podcaster. Josh and I have embarked on this kidlit journey together this year, having become critique partners early in the year, only to find that our powers combined could make captain planet. Maybe not, but at least our powers combined can make a pretty good podcast.  Our guest for this conversation was Lisa Rogers. You can find Lisa on Twitter, or on her website.  This episode’s ChewyReviewy books: WHERE ARE YOU FROM? by Yamile Saied Mendez, illustrated by Jaime Kim.  LOOKING FOR A JUMBIE by Tracey Baptiste illustrated by Amber Ren. The artwork for You May Contribute a Verse features our new quokka mascot, Versey, and was generously created by the great Maddie Frost! Find her on Twitter @_maddiefrost or on her website Maddie-Frost.com  Our theme music is So Happy by Scott Holmes you can find more of his music at scottholmesmusic.c

Author Jennifer Concepcion’s debut picture book, Potatoes for Pirate Pearl, is slated for an alliterative publication of winter 2023, and you’re absolutely not going to want to miss this book’s – and Jennifer’s – journey to publication. We caught up with Jennifer during her class plan time, which we very much appreciate, at her grade school in Costa Rica. This is such a charming and conversational chat, and fair warning, there’s a lot of agent-author sausage-making in here about Dan Cramer and Page Turner Literary, as Brenna and Jennifer are agency siblings! Lots of wisdom on offer here! Jennifer's website: https://www.jenwritescr.com/  Our #ChewyReviewy picks of the week: Bikes for Sale, by Carter Higgins and illustrated by Zachariah Ohora: https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/39874653-bikes-for-sale  Maybe Tomorrow?, by Charlotte Agell and illustrated by Ana Ramirez Gonzalez: https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/37828981-maybe-tomorrow 

I’m Brenna Jeanneret, children’s lit author, mother, rock climber, outdoors person, and podcaster joined by Josh Monken, children’s lit author, father, science communicator, and podcaster. Josh and I have embarked on this kidlit journey together this year, having become critique partners early in the year, only to find that our powers combined could make captain planet. Maybe not, but at least our powers combined can make a pretty good podcast.  Our guest for this conversation was Valerie Bolling. You can find Valerie on Twitter, or by following her Linktr.ee links.  This episode’s ChewyReviewy books: UNICORN’S FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL by Jess Hernandez and illustrated by Mariano Epelbaum. DOING BUSINESS by Shawn Harris The artwork for You May Contribute a Verse features our new quokka mascot, Versey, and was generously created by the great Maddie Frost! Find her on Twitter @_maddiefrost or on her website Maddie-Frost.com  Our theme music is So Happy by Scott Holmes you can find more of his music at scottholmesmus

This is the podcast You May Contribute a Verse, where we talk to kidlit creators, share their stories, and learn from their journeys. Is this a nonfiction podcast? I’ve never thought about it that way, but the more we talked to today’s guest Jocelyn Rish about her book Battle of the Butts – and her journey into nonfiction – the more we realized that we’re here just like Jocelyn, to inform and educate, but also to entertain and laugh! Jocelyn’s been writing for a long time. Like many of us, she’s written a lot that she’s back-pocketed, and like many of us should strive to, she’s found some really fun success by staying open to inspiration, and affectionately pinching inspiration’s butt when it came a-calling. Battle of the Butts is what’s resulted, followed at the end of this year by its semi-sequel, the nonfictional Battle of the Brains. There’s so much to this chat that’s just pure delight. I’m really happy to share Jocelyn’s journey through self-discovery, publication, self-promotion, nerding out with scien

I’m Brenna Jeanneret, children’s lit author, mother, rock climber, outdoors person, and podcaster joined by Josh Monken, children’s lit author, father, science communicator, and podcaster. Josh and I have embarked on this kidlit journey together this year, having become critique partners early in the year, only to find that our powers combined could make captain planet. Maybe not, but at least our powers combined can make a pretty good podcast.  Our guest for this conversation was Joyce Sweeney. You can find Joyce on Twitter or on The Seymour Agency website.    This episode’s ChewyReviewy books: Garbage Island by Fred Koehler  If Your Babysitter Is A Bruja by Ana Siqueira illustrated by Irena Freitas   The artwork for You May Contribute a Verse features our new quokka mascot, Versey, and was generously created by the great Maddie Frost! Find her on Twitter @_maddiefrost or on her website Maddie-Frost.com  Our theme music is So Happy by Scott Holmes you can find more of his music at scottholmesmusic.com   Find

It's Samantha Berger, Part 2! And the end of the #BeforeBrenna times! One small rumination on genuineness: not only did I wring an hour and a half out of her (today's ep being the latter half of that interrupted conversation), but Samantha Berger followed up, unbidden, with me in one of the most encouraging emails I've ever received. Encouraging both in its content and in the "trails of glitter" consistency of character that Sam showed in bothering to write and send it. I won't share it here, but I will summarize it because a lot of it was SO consistent with what we're trying for with this podcast. YOU are uniquely YOU. Your work is best when it builds on your passion. Passion worked is passion honed. Don't let that work become joyless or humorless - keep it light and fun. No one but you can tell the stories inside you. You may contribute a verse!

The final two #BeforeBrenna episodes air this week and next! This week: Samantha Berger, Part 1. My first question for this week's episode is this: why do I sound so much more like a Jim-Henson-does-semi-professional-adult-man Muppet voice this time than other interviews? I'm not complaining since part of what we discuss does include Muppets and Sesame Street, but it's striking. I'm choosing to air this episode in its uncut original entirety, with original Robby Zar theme song and original intro. It was at this point in 2019 that I had begun to hit my stride with the weekly pace and production. I'm proud of the intro and of this early take on more professional production and writing.  This episode and next week's #BeforeBrenna summer finale got eaten up by my archives, so I'm happy to have a chance to rerelease and share again. Samantha Berger is a bright, shining star, and an inspiration for both hard work and making time to celebrate your community. Enjoy Samantha Berger's Verse!

This week's episode is a re-air of my 2019 conversation with illustrator and author Joyce Wan! If you’ve never listened to this episode, it’s a good one. In preparing to rerun it, I rediscovered it. A lot of things went through my head during this relisten. First, a rare glimpse at being completely happy with my creative work. This is a really good conversation and I’m glad of the chance to re-air it. Two, Joyce has a holistic perspective that we don’t always get to experience. Partially informed by my ignorance into the kidlit world and what it means to be published, I think we manage to go broad and dig deep into aspects of doing It bears ending on a recognition that we’ve touched on in other conversations, which underpins almost every aspect of this chat with Joyce: children’s books are creativity and a way to reach hearts and build up minds, but they’re also a commodity. Facing that aspect of the business of kidlit can help prepare us for the realities that we’re engaging in an industry that relies on m

I’m Brenna Jeanneret, children’s lit author, mother, rock climber, outdoors person, and podcaster joined by Josh Monken, children’s lit author, father, science communicator, and podcaster. Josh and I have embarked on this kidlit journey together this year, having become critique partners early in the year, only to find that our powers combined could make captain planet. Maybe not, but at least our powers combined can make a pretty good podcast.  Our guest for this conversation was Steve Light. You can find Steve on Twitter and on his website.  The artwork for You May Contribute a Verse features our new quokka mascot, Versey, and was generously created by the great Maddie Frost! Find her on Twitter @_maddiefrost or on her website Maddie-Frost.com  Our theme music is So Happy by Scott Holmes you can find more of his music at scottholmesmusic.com   Find us on Twitter @joshmonkwords and @brennajeanneret and as always, let us know what you think via a rating, review, or comment! Thanks and see ya next time.  You M

It’s the flipside of the golden ticket this week with one from the archives: author-illustrator Kelly Light! Way back in 2019 I started a podcast called What It Takes to Make. I thought at the time that my life wasn’t going to have space for the kind of creativity I wanted. I figured I’d use my journalism background to live vicariously through creators of different stripes, from filmmakers to dancers to kidlit authors. Little did I know, a couple of things transpired as a result of those early efforts. The name changed pretty early, first of all, when I got a takedown notice from another podcast – that was wild. Second, I couldn’t have anticipated what doing the podcast would do to me. As I was approaching 40 at the time, speaking to other creators around the same age, it lit a fire under me and helped define and focus what I wanted to do with myself. Three years later, here we are, a co-hosted, well-oiled machine, laser-focused on understanding and navigating the complicated kidlit world. There are some para

I’m Brenna Jeanneret, children’s lit author, mother, rock climber, outdoors person, and podcaster joined by Josh Monken, children’s lit author, father, science communicator, and podcaster. Josh and I have embarked on this kidlit journey together this year, having become critique partners early in the year, only to find that our powers combined could make captain planet. Maybe not, but at least our powers combined can make a pretty good podcast.  Our guest for this conversation was Julie Hedlund, founder of 12x12 and co-founder of Picture Book Summit. Find Julie on Twitter,  Instagram, Tic Tok, and her website. The artwork for You May Contribute a Verse features our new quokka mascot, Versey, and was generously created by the great Maddie Frost! Find her on Twitter @_maddiefrost or on her website Maddie-Frost.com  Our theme music is So Happy by Scott Holmes you can find more of his music at scottholmesmusic.com   Find us on Twitter @joshmonkwords and @brennajeanneret and as always, let us know what you think v

Some conversations show you what the world could be – how great we could all have it – if we just give a little more of ourselves or, put another way, place ourselves firmly outside the center of focus. CK Malone is an educator, author, and giver. They aren’t perfect – we discuss this point in the episode – but what they are and strive to continually be is capital-G Good. From shouting out those who inspired them to boosting the work of others to praise for those who have made them and their work what they are today, this chat takes a village. A little context: we recorded this conversation in early April 2022, a few months after CK had hosted an event boosting (future podcast guest) Julie Hedlund’s Over Bear Under Where, and had just completed several hundred manuscript critiques. For free. Generous and gracious is the name of the game. CK’s debut picture book, A Costume for Charly, comes out this September – make sure to preorder it if you’re able, or ensure your local library stocks a copy when the time co

I’m Brenna Jeanneret, children’s lit author, mother, rock climber, outdoors person, and podcaster joined by Josh Monken, children’s lit author, father, science communicator, and podcaster. Josh and I have embarked on this kidlit journey together this year, having become critique partners early in the year, only to find that our powers combined could make captain planet. Maybe not, but at least our powers combined can make a pretty good podcast.  Our guest for this conversation was Ally Malinenko, author of Ghost Girl and the upcoming This Appearing House. You can find Ally on Twitter,  Instagram, and her website. The artwork for You May Contribute a Verse features our new quokka mascot, Versey, and was generously created by the great Maddie Frost! Find her on Twitter @_maddiefrost or on her website Maddie-Frost.com  Our theme music is So Happy by Scott Holmes you can find more of his music at scottholmesmusic.com   Find us on Twitter @joshmonkwords and @brennajeanneret and as always, let us know what you thin

I’m Brenna Jeanneret, children’s lit author, mother, rock climber, outdoors person, and podcaster joined by Josh Monken, children’s lit author, father, science communicator, and podcaster. Josh and I have embarked on this kidlit journey together this year, having become critique partners early in the year, only to find that our powers combined could make captain planet. Maybe not, but at least our powers combined can make a pretty good podcast.  Our guest for this conversation was Karen Nespoli, author of Gertie Saves the Day illustrated by Daniela Massironi. The best place to find Karen is on her website.  The artwork for You May Contribute a Verse features our new quokka mascot, Versey, and was generously created by the great Maddie Frost! Find her on Twitter @_maddiefrost or on her website Maddie-Frost.com  Our theme music is So Happy by Scott Holmes you can find more of his music at scottholmesmusic.com   Find us on Twitter @joshmonkwords and @brennajeanneret and as always, let us know what you think via

Betsy Bird is back! When we have folks on who are generous with their time and their expertise we like to take advantage of that, vampire-style, and wring them dry of every bit of their knowledge we can think to ask. What we have this week is the result of a call to peers and fans, in a podcast-first crowdsourcing effort. You get to hear Brenna and me NOT meander organically through a conversation, but instead curate a much shorter chat sourced by friends. If you haven’t already listened to our full conversation with Betsy Bird, please do so at your earliest convenience (it's the next one down from this one in the feed). Here’s the connective tissue I see in this supplemental conversation that, by its nature, hops around a bit: Betsy Bird is clearly comfortable knowing and growing and moving within the publishing industry, whether it’s advocating for herself and her work, assembling lists, knowing she’s funny, or navigating industry trends. It’s all of a piece with someone who has put in her time and keeps pu