Books and Plays by Wade Bradford; Plays for children - comedic monologue - comedic female monologues - drama resources - creative writing class - scbwi members - publishing business - how to be a children's book author - middle grade novel - fantasy novels - writing prompts
Last month, I had the honor of participating in story time at the Mukilteo and Edmonds libraries.
These statues are located outside the Mukilteo Library.
The set-up was very nice. The children's librarian had her own room and she had lots of activities for the kids. I said a quick hello to the families, and let the librarian read my book during the first storytime... and then during the second session I was brave enough to perform a read-aloud of Around the World in a Bathtub for the very first time.
Later on in the afternoon, my family and I went to the Edmonds library.
Lots of people showed up for this event, including Neil -- a good friend from my high school days -- and his son.
The host of storytime was a rockstar among children's librarians. The kids and parents loved her, and in addition to telling stories, singing songs, and telling jokes, she played the accordion.
It was a pleasure getting to read to friends, family, and a lot of new faces. Thanks to all who joined the library storytime. Hopefully there will be more reading events in the near future. Stay tuned!
It's September, which to me means that it's time to go Back to School...
Of course, I've already been teaching classes for three weeks. But when I was a kid, I wouldn't return to the hallowed halls of public education until after Labor Day.
And as soon as I returned to class, I spent most of my time staring out the window, daydreaming... often remembering the fun and freedom of summer. So, since I've got some spare time today (because I was a good teacher boy and finished grading my daily allotment of essays), I'm going to post some of the photos and videos from July.
For the past few years, I have been blessed with a career that allows me to take summers off, if I choose. So, Cheri, the girls and I have spent most of July in the Pacific Northwest.
How do we get there? Like so many other Californians, we travel in a silver Prius.
It's air conditioned and usually quite comfy. But keep in mind that I am not only traveling with three other humans and their luggage. We also have these two numb-skulls:
Lizzie and Chase, two adorable mutts, sittin' in the back seat with their human counterparts. The drive takes over two days with lots of potty breaks for people and canines alike.
Oh, and how could I forget, we were also traveling with our bunny rabbit, Mr. Knightley.
But we survived the drive. We stopped in the middle of Oregon on the first day, and stayed at a very dog-friendly hotel /casino. Well, I should specify, the hotel is dog-friendly. I didn't take the dogs to play the slot machines, so I don't know what the management policy is...
Anyway, after two days, we made it to my mother's house, where we enjoy a beautiful view of the Puget Sound.
Notice the little fence? That's an electric border to keep those dogs around the house. It doesn't always work, though. Last year, Chase and Lizzie escaped and my daughter Emily was the only one around, so she chased them for over an hour until some good Samaritans helped her retrieve those rascals.
Here's a glimpse inside my parents' home. My dad passed away over 18 years ago, but before he died he enjoyed a handful of retirement years in this kitchen, designed to his specifications.
I have a lot of fond memories of my dad hanging out behind that counter, making sure everybody is well fed.
I love to hang out at this green counter and work on my books.
Basically, the summer was spent writing, and going back and forth between my mom's house and my mother-in-law's condo. My daughter Mackenzie made a Vlog of her adventures... here are the first three sections, for those of you who want a glimpse of Washington state during the summer time.
I am finally getting around to posting photos and reflections on my wonderful 10th year as a member of this incredibly organization: the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators.
This year's adventure, which took place last July, was perhaps my favorite, mainly because Cheri was able to join me... and for the first time ever I stayed at the hotel instead of driving back and forth between my home and the convention center.
I couple other things were different. #1 We flew into Los Angeles to attend the event. That's because #2 They moved the conference date to July instead of its usual August slot. And #3 it was held at a new hotel, the Marriot next to Staples Center.
There's lots of restaurants in this area, but for some reason, every time we met for a meal, Cheri and I kept going back to the Yard House.
None of my photos do the conference justice, but trust me, there were amazing speakers, moving presentations, and inspiring workshops.
I got to reconnect with some of my writer friends, including the coolest couple in the World of Children's Literature... the Trisha and Stephen Shashkan!
Throughout the weekend, the SCBWI head-honcho Lin Olivier held a joke contest. The rules were simple: come up with the Worst Title for a Children's Book. There were lots of hilarious entries, and I'm proud to say that three of my jokes were picked. They gave me gift certificates to the book store, and among other items, I picked up a copy of Miranda Paul's wonderfully quirky Blobfish Throws a Party.
Miranda, who is a fellow client of the Red Fox Literary Agency, was kind enough to sign it for me. She also gave a presentation on the topic of school / event visits. Incredibly informative!
On Saturday Night they hosted the Silver Linings Ball. All the cool people wore sparkly stuff to the party, but I was a wall flower in drab attire. But I had fun watching everybody.
We returned to Washington on Sunday night, but not without obtaining a heckuvalotta children's books.
A few days ago, I mentioned how I've been sending some of my creative works out to my agent and publishers... Here's what's been happening with those projects...
1) The dragon book: This was revision number 8, and it still isn't going in the right direction. Useful feedback from my agent. This picture book project of mine contains a great idea... but I have yet to tie it to a great plot. It's a case of good topic / bad execution. It's back to the drawing board for this one.
2) The ostrich book: Waiting for agent feedback.
3) The kitten book: Waiting to hear back from editors.
4) The radio play: The good folks at Eldridge like this project quite a bit. They've asked for a rewrite in order to trim some of the beginning and add some more humor in the second act. My writing partner and I will hopefully be sending out a new, improved version early this month.
So far, my Intro to Fiction course is a blast. Bright students, brisk pace. Best of all, it gives me an excuse to revisit some great novels.
The first is Pride and Prejudice. (I believe this is Cheri's all time favorite book / movie / miniseries.) In addition to being enchanted by the text, I have enjoyed exploring Austen's life, as well as her early works from her childhood years. She was quite the wit!
The other novel is one I haven't read since college: Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison. I am just beginning chapter three, and it's already proven to be better than my memories (and I recall loving the book back in the 90s). It seems more relevant than ever before.
It's Labor Day weekend, which is nice. But I've also got my first batch of essays, so it will be a working weekend. But for now, I plan to spend the rest of the evening wrapped up in a book.
As I often lament, I am not good at marketing myself.
However, I am good at remaining optimistic enough to continue to write, believing that some of those manuscripts will eventually get into the right hands and achieve some level of success.
This summer, my latest book was born, and I was incredibly thankful when my friends began posting photos of their kids reading "Around the World in a Bathtub."
It is ingratiating to know that children and grown-ups around the country (and perhaps the globe) are sharing my stories... and hopefully this is just the beginning.
This past week, the editors at Eldridge Plays sent me an offer to publish a one-act version of my play "12 Angry Pigs." It's based off a skit I wrote about seven years ago... and since its creation this little parody has taken on a life of its own, being performed at many international schools seeking scripts for reader's theater. I can't wait to see what happens next, now that it runs about 25 minutes and has a lot more characters and a lot more comedic action.
Also this week, I have been sending stuff out into the universe. My agent currently has two manuscripts of mine, both picture books. One of them is a revision that we've been tinkering with for several months. It's about young dragons. This is draft #8. The other is a brand new project about an ostrich.
Also, about three weeks ago, my agent submitted a new project to several editors (I don't know how many, actually). This particular manuscript is about kittens at a theme park.
Finally, I did submit Change the Station to Eldridge Plays. This is the one written by Chris Flowers and yours truly.
So, here's the run-down of the stuff:
1) Dragon Book (waiting for agent response)
2) Ostrich Book (waiting for agent response)
3) Kitten Book (waiting for editor response)
4) Radio Play (waiting for editor response)
Keep your fingers crossed and hope that the universe is kind to these little stories.
