Ellen Leventhal | Writing Outside the Lines

04 Apr Gayle Krause, New Book, Fabulous Giveaway!

Posted at 13:12h in authors, children's literature, critique groups, kid lit, marketing, picture books, publishing, Uncategorized, writing by Ellen Leventhal 10 Comments

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One of the best parts of being involved in the children's literature community is the friends I've made. I am so happy that the prolific author, Gayle Krause, is one of those friends. Thanks for dropping by, Gayle. I am thrilled to have you. Thank you for...

22 Dec My Sideways Life!

Posted at 20:14h in Uncategorized by Ellen Leventhal 0 Comments

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I have no idea why the pictures on my last blog post came out sideways! I hope it's not an omen on the new year! My apologies!! ...

22 Dec ON FLOODS AND WRITING

Posted at 20:08h in authors, children's literature, critique groups, flood clean up, floods, Houston, kid lit, new year, picture books, publishing, reflection, revision, Texas, Uncategorized by Ellen Leventhal 5 Comments

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I was recently asked how long it took me to write Lola Can’t Leap. The answer is far from simple. And I absolutely would not have gotten it done without the love and support of all my friends in the KidLit community! I started thinking...

08 Dec Holiday Hero

Posted at 16:29h in children's literature, holidays, kid lit, rhyme, Uncategorized by Ellen Leventhal 11 Comments

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IT'S BACK! SUSANNA HILL'S ANNUAL HOLIDAY STORY CONTEST! We all know that children's stories shouldn't be long, especially when holiday treats are scattered all around! What child wants to listen to a long drawn out story when visions of sugar plums are dancing in his head? ...

08 Apr Author Cynthia Surrisi

Posted at 13:58h in authors, children's literature, critique groups, kid lit, middle grade, picture books, publishing, revision, Uncategorized, writing by Ellen Leventhal 2 Comments

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I am thrilled to highlight the versatile, talented, and all around wonderful author, Cynthia Surrisi. I "met" "Cynthia in The Best 2018 Picture Book Release Group Ever", and I'm glad I did. Sit down, grab a cup of coffee and a cookie, because Cynthia has...

02 Mar Nancy Takes Her Shot! An Interview with Nancy Churnin

Posted at 02:12h in authors, bullying, children's literature, diversity, kid lit, marketing, non-fiction, picture books, publishing, revision, Uncategorized by Ellen Leventhal 2 Comments

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A few years ago, I was fortunate to meet fellow Texan, Nancy Churnin, while at Kristen Fulton’s WOW retreat in Georgia. I knew that Nancy had written a book about a Deaf baseball player, and I was intrigued. I couldn’t wait to meet her. The...

31 Oct Author, Jenna Grodzicki

Posted at 21:28h in authors, children's literature, critique groups, kid lit, picture books, Uncategorized, writing by Ellen Leventhal 5 Comments

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Today, Jenna Grodzicki popped in to visit. I first met Jenna at Kristen Fulton's WOW retreat in July 2016. I clearly remember talking to her on a shuttle on the way into town. She was telling me about her upcoming book, Pixie's Adventure, and I was...

03 Oct Unnatural Disasters and Children’s Stories

Posted at 18:10h in children's literature, failures, floods, Houston, kid lit, Texas, Uncategorized by Ellen Leventhal 5 Comments

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Show of hands. Anyone else find it hard to keep going? I know, I know. So many of us, right? It’s been a difficult month. Earthquakes, fires, hurricanes, and floods. Natural disasters of great magnitude. I can speak for Houstonians when I say that we...

28 Sep Author, Melissa Stoller

Posted at 18:36h in authors, chapter books, children's literature, critique groups, Houston, kid lit, publishing, revision by Ellen Leventhal 5 Comments

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Since Horrible Hurricane Harvey decided to pay an uninvited visit to Houston, I have been trying to keep my head above water (pun intended). I was stuck in flood mode for a long time, but happily last weekend, I went to the N. Texas SCBWI...

04 Aug Love Your Story

Posted at 03:01h in authors, children's literature, critique groups, failures, kid lit, middle grade, non-fiction, picture books, Uncategorized, writing by Ellen Leventhal 11 Comments

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A group of writers and I are reading a wonderful book called Fearless Writing by William Kenower. I won't say it has been life changing, but I will say it has made me look at my writing and other parts of my life in a...