Opening Day

It's Day One of the blog and I feel like the owner of a new restaurant. Come, taste the fine cuisine at Le Garrigues.

Although this is the first post, I am not new to blogging, nor am I green when it comes to writing. While earning my Master's degree from James Madison University, I was awarded Best Graduate Paper at a statewide conference. Currently, I am considering an offer of agent representation (TBA) for a couple of my picture book manuscripts.

One of my goals is to create intelligent, adventurous, and engaging stories of children from a variety of backgrounds that must look within themselves to overcome everyday challenges. Kids are smart; believe me, I am around them all day. They can figure out a lot on their own. Too often parents and teachers rush in to a conflict, rather than allow the child to problem-solve on their own. I want to encourage this developing skill within preschool children, which is why I model it through my characters.

Now for a bit more on the blog, here's a list of things I will post:
--Updates on my career as an author
--Samples of my work
--Relevant publication information
--Useful industry news, links, and advice for other authors

I will not post:
--Full manuscripts
--Detailed information on my agent (other than name and link), publisher, contracts, or sales
--Criticism of others in the industry (I will leave that job to those more qualified...for example, http://anotherealm.com/prededitors/ )

Thanks for trying the fare and please come again!