No fooling...spring is finally in the air! Happy first day of April from my Carolina Garden.

Fuzzy is over the moon (me, too!) that his book, Finding Fuzzy: a You-Decide Tale of a Lost Friend, finally hopped onto to Amazon’s bookstore today.  

 Finding Fuzzy, an illustrated chapter book for grades K-3, is set on North Carolina's Crystal Coast.  It's based on a family beach trip I took there some years ago with my nieces and inspired by a recent stay with those now-grown nieces at a real cozy yellow cottage on Emerald Isle. 
 
Graphic designer Kayte Price, a new addition to our creative team, really sparked the book layout and made Irene Jahn's beach-themed watercolors pop against the storyline.  

Be forewarned: 
Irene's watercolors have been known to bring on cases of beach fever!

I’m excited to share the video preview for my new book, Finding Fuzzy: a You-Decide Tale of a Lost Friend.  This illustrated chapter book for grades K-3 is coming to Amazon and other retailers on 31 March.  

Narrated by third-grader Erin, the video showcases Irene A. Jahn's ocean-themed watercolors from the book’s beach setting.

So, slip on your flip-flops and stroll down to the waves.  Join Fuzzy and friends at the Carolina shore in the preview below.  And don't forget the sunblock!
 

Finding Fuzzy's book trailer is a wrap  ... Third-grader Erin narrated while Production Assistant Mom  provided tech support.

We used mp3 audio clips downloaded to a laptop and iOS app Shadow Puppet on an iPad to showcase Irene A. Jahn's illustrations while Erin provided voice over.

The only glitch? We asked our neighbor to delay using his noisy leaf blower until we finished recording because the mic picked up that background noise -:D

I'll post the trailer shortly....can't wait to share it with you!

Even though it’s spring, the north wind still finds "Sweet T and the North Wind" readers.  These three siblings from Charlotte, NC, are especially enjoying T's illustrations by watercolor artist Irene A. Jahns.

Have a photograph of your reader with Sweet T?  I’d be honored to post it to my social media sites. Here’s how:
- Select your .jpg photograph
- Include first name(s) only
- Indicate the state/province where you live
- Send your photo and information via Facebook messaging or to my email: catmichaelswriter@gmail.com

It will be fun to see how many different places T visits. Happy tales AND happy spring!

Happy spring from my Carolina garden.

When I published Sweet T and the North Wind in November,  I didn’t realize this Energizer Bunny of a winter would just keep going and going. 

And speaking of bunnies …. my second book, Finding Fuzzy: a You-Decide Tale of a Lost Friend, features a plush blue rabbit in a sunny beach setting.  Endless summer next? 😉

Hankering for green dessert or a Dr. Suess-inspired plate of green eggs and ham this St. Pat's Day?

I wasn't surprised by Yahoo's search statistics showing an 820% boost in the search phrase, "Irish food," around this time of year. 

However, I was surprised when corned beef and cabbage didn't rank first in the top 10 searches for Irish food ...  and I totally missed the most-searched choice in this article from Mashable you'll find by clicking here.

• Do you find yourself *chortling* over *pandemonium*?
• Or  fighting *boredom* from too much *twitter* or *yahoo*?  
• Do you know anyone who is a *freelancer*? 

If you use any of the highlighted terms above, you’re in good company.  They were created by literary giants over the years, and Shakespeare isn't the be-all and end-all (the bard's words) of this authorly distinction.

Check out the Huff Post for 13 words contributed to the English language by great authors.  They may just surprise you!

I still delight in watching the animated adventures of Marc Brown's Arthur...even though there are no more little ones around to watch with me.

On March 11, this author/illustrator releases In New York, a new picture book about places to visit with children in his beloved New York City hometown.  I'm hopping on board a "Crazy Bus" for this ride!