Spotlight on Corey Rosen Schwartz + DMC Challenge

COREY ROSEN SCHWARTZ

Have I got a treat for you –

Today you're going to meet a real, live, picture book ninja!

Okay.  In actuality, Corey Rosen Schwartz has no formal ninja training. Too bad. But she sure can kick butt in the world of rhyming picture books! (And in Scrabble, too, from what I hear.) After Corey's debut title HOP! PLOP! (Walker Books, 2006) was named a Eric Carle Museum "book of distinction" and a Bank Street College "best picture book of the year," we had to wait some time till we heard from Corey again. Apparently, she was engaged in covert operations for full-scale picture book infiltration.

In 2012, Corey kiya'd her way back into the spotlight with several fun, action-packed picture books, beginning with THE THREE NINJA PIGS (Putnam, 2012) – a book that won awards, honors, and the hearts of karate kids and fractured fairy tale fans everywhere. This was followed by GOLDI ROCKS AND THE THREE BEARS (Putnam, 2014) and NINJA RED RIDING HOOD (Putnam, 2014).  Her latest, due out this month, is WHAT ABOUT MOOSE? (Atheneum, 2015), co-authored with Rebecca J. Gomez and illustrated by Keika Yamaguchi.

WHAT ABOUT MOOSE?
Atheneum Books for Young Readers
IBSN: 978-1481404969
Find at Amazon.com, Barnes & Noble, or via IndieBound.org

The story is about a group of friends who set out to build a tree house together. That is, until bossy Moose barges in with his own ideas of how the construction should be handled. Convinced that only he knows best, Moose manages to supervise himself into a real pickle. Luckily, creative thinking, cooperation, and teamwork eventually save the day.

Corey, who believes picture books are something you never outgrow, writes for her inner four year old. As a result, WHAT ABOUT MOOSE? is fun from beginning to end with its bouncy verse, hilarious antics, and playful illustrations.

Don't take my word for it, check out this delightful book trailer:

For more information about Corey and her books (plus teacher guides), visit her website: Corey Rosen Schwartz: Picture Book Ninja.

Please help me welcome Corey to Today's Little Dojo... er, Ditty!

Let's start things off with five favorites, shall we?

Favorite pastime:   Scuba diving!

Favorite vacation spot:   Turks & Caicos

Favorite food:   Sushi  (but I try not to think about that while I am diving)

Favorite language:   American Sign Language

Favorite quote:  Not sure if it’s my favorite, but the one I need to remind myself of most often is:

“Do or do not. There is no try.” –Yoda

What drives you to write for children and what do you enjoy most about being a children’s author?

I think I write for kids because I never really grew up.  I feel like a kid on the inside.  I still like building blanket forts and I call my husband in hysterics whenever anything goes terribly wrong.  Ha.

What I enjoy most is seeing the effect that my books have on kids. Whether it is spotting a photo of a kindergartener dressed as a Ninja Pig for Halloween or receiving a letter from a third grader saying that Ninja Red Riding Hood made her want to sign up for a karate class, it is such a thrill to know that my books have made an impact.

Most people think of writing as a solitary activity, yet I’ve read that you prefer to collaborate on your manuscripts. Can you describe for us what your collaborative process is like? Are there challenges to maintaining a healthy writing partnership?

Becky and I meet in a Google Doc and can brainstorm for hours (Did I say hours?  More like days/weeks) before coming up with a story line that we are both excited about.   Once we have the idea, we try to get down a rough draft as quickly as possible.  For us, the fun is in fine-tuning.  We like to go through line by line and make the language as playful and punny as possible!

In our case, the way to keep the relationship healthy is to avoid ALL mention of politics!  Ha.   Seriously though, we do butt heads a lot.  Sometimes we need to take a little time off, and often that changes one of our perspectives. There are definitely challenges, but the benefits far outweigh the costs for me.  Becky and I often come up with ideas together that neither of us would have thought of on our own.

Great rhyme flows naturally, yet takes an inordinate amount of time and skill to make it seem so effortless. When I meet an expert rhymer like yourself, I have to wonder if you actually think in rhyme. Do the stories flow out of you as rhyme from the very beginning or does the rhyme come only after the structure of the story is in place?

It’s probably some combination of the two.  I try to have a basic outline of the story in my head before I start writing (This is easier of course when I fracture a fairy tale because the plot is already established in the original.) But I do write the first draft in rhyme.   Sometimes a stanza just sort of comes out “right” from the get-go, and other times it has to be tweaked and tweaked and is barely recognizable by the time I am done.

What inspired WHAT ABOUT MOOSE?

When my daughter, Jordan, was little, she was always bossing around her little brother.  One day when they were around two and three, Josh was putting art supplies away in a cabinet.  Jordan looked over his shoulder and said, “Joshy, not like that!”

Josh turned to me and said sadly, “I never do anything right.”

And it just broke my heart.  I decided right then and there that I needed to write a story where a character’s bossiness comes back to bite him!

Would you share a favorite selection from WHAT ABOUT MOOSE?

In the story, a group of animals are building a treehouse.

Skunk nailed the crossbeams to make the floor strong,
But Moose said, “Not that way. You’re doing it wrong.
The floor and the door should be just a bit straighter.”
Then Porcupine mumbled, “Who made him dictator?”

From WHAT ABOUT MOOSE?, text © C. R. Schwartz/R. J. Gomez, illustration © Keika Yamaguchi  (click to enlarge)

This is a tricky stanza in terms of meter, but I love the snarky line from Porcupine and I also really like that we don’t restrict our vocabulary.   We use words that might be unfamiliar to our target audience because how else are kids going to develop great vocabularies if not from books?

There’s a lot of construction that goes into the making of a treehouse – 

Fox laid the floorboards as Toad manned the drill.
Bear did the caulking with handyman skill.
Moose clambered up as they nailed the planks tight.
"Time for the walls," he said. "Don't take all night!"

From WHAT ABOUT MOOSE?, text © C. R. Schwartz/R. J. Gomez, illustration © Keika Yamaguchi  (click to enlarge)

Measuring, tightening, hammering, sanding, sawing... what would you consider the most indispensable tool in your toolbox?

I would say www.rhymezone.com and www.thesaurus.com. These two sites are indispensable to rhymers.  I have them open at all times when I am working and refer to them constantly.

Can you give us a hint about what’s coming up next for you?

I have two more fairy tales coming out from Putnam.  The first is HENSEL AND GRETEL: NINJA CHICKS co-authored by Becky Gomez and illustrated once again by the remarkably talented Dan Santat.  The second is TWINDERELLA: A FRACTIONED FAIRY TALE in which Cinderella and her twin sister split all their chores in half.

If you had all the world’s children in one room, what would you tell them? 

I would tell every kid in the world to read the book WONDER by R.J. Palacio and to always “Choose Kindness.”

Finally, please tell us what you have chosen as this month’s ditty challenge.

Editors are tired of seeing the same old commonplace rhymes– to/you, day/play, see/me.

They want to see rhymes that are fresh and unpredictable.  Write a stanza or two about building a treehouse and challenge yourself to come up with a rhyme word that is two or more syllables. 

In addition to the stanzas above, here is another example from WHAT ABOUT MOOSE?

The walls all went up as they hefted and pounded…
And built around Moose until he was surrounded.

From WHAT ABOUT MOOSE?, text © C. R. Schwartz/R. J. Gomez, illustration © Keika Yamaguchi  (click to enlarge)

Choose one of the words from the list below, or select one of your own. 

Concern                 Complete                  
Megaphone           Drilling                   
Precise                    Inspections             
Sawing                    Sanded

Don’t forget to check rhymezone.com for ideas!  

Many thanks for the constructive interview, Corey!

It's nearly summer, my friends. The grass is green, the sun is warm, school is out (or will be soon).  What better month to be outdoors and build a treehouse? Grab your poetry toolbox, and let's go!

For extra incentive, Corey has offered a personalized copy of WHAT ABOUT MOOSE? to one lucky participant, chosen randomly at the end of the month!


HOW TO PARTICIPATE:

Throughout the month, send your multisyllabic rhyming stanzas to TodaysLittleDitty (at) gmail (dot) com or use the contact form in the sidebar to the right. For children under 13 who would like to participate, please read my COPPA compliance statement located below the contact form.

BLOGGER FRIENDS:  Thank you for publishing your poems on your own blogs– I love that!  Please also remember to send me a copy of your poem or a direct link to your post. That way I know I have your permission to post your poem on Today's Little Ditty.

Some poems may be published on the blog as daily ditties, but all of them will appear in a wrap-up celebration on June 26th, 2015.   

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Thank you to everyone who participated in last month's free verse challenge, brought to us by Nikki Grimes. With forty participants, I couldn't be more pleased with the turnout, and, as usual, the variety and quality of submissions was incredible!

Random.org has determined that the winner of a personalized copy of POEMS IN THE ATTIC by Nikki Grimes, illustrated by Elizabeth Zunon is:

MICHELLE KOGAN 

Congratulations, Michelle!

Nature lover and TLD contributor, Buffy Silverman, is hosting today's Poetry Friday roundup.  I bet her froggy friend can give us some tips on treehouse construction!