This week my kid was home from school due to some inconveniently timed doctor’s appointments, so we had time to get messy and make a pretty intricate Valentine’s Day craft so she could give a little something to each of her classmates.
This was messy and time consuming! This is not your quick craft! However, it turned out amazing! So if you are like me and you’ve been stuck indoors in lots of nasty weather, you might want to look at making beeswax Valentine’s as a fun activity to occupy your kid.
I went to post this on Insta, but realized I didn’t have the space to explain how to do it. I already did a post about Valentine’s Day children’s books to give as gifts, so why not post about this?
Here’s the end product:
And here’s how to make them! Note: I am using affiliate links for supplies.
What better way to show your love than by sharing your love of reading? A picture book can make the perfect gift for Valentine’s Day–whether you’re a child or adult. (With some careful selection!)
Obviously, I have a motive in writing this, which is that I have 1 (and a half) picture books that make absolutely lovely Valentine’s Day gifts. I say a half because one of them isn’t out yet–bookmark it for next year! Affiliate links coming! I’ll cover my books that make great Valentine’s Day gifts and then move on to other picture books that go well with candy hearts.
If you’re in doubt, most picture books have free videos online so you can get a very thorough preview before buying.
“Call Your Mother” (out now) is a Valentine’s Gift that might just make your mom cry. Hey, dads! Get this one for your kids to give to their moms! Or moms–send this to your kid who’s in college or off working and doesn’t call enough! This book also makes an incredibly touching Valentine’s Day gift for a mom to give to a grandma. Or from a grandma-to-be to a new-mom-to-be. Don’t just take my word for it. Look at the reviews. Kirkus, one of the toughest review outlets out there, gave it a star and said it was: “A touching love letter to mothers everywhere and a helpful guide for how best to appreciate them.” Warning: if the person you are giving this to has lost their mother or has a difficult relationship with their mother, this might upset them. Otherwise, gift away! (And keep it in mind for Mother’s Day, too!)
“Call Your Father”: This is my half-book because it’s not coming out until April 14th. If you’re seeing this after 2026, it’s out and I’ve forgotten to come back and update this post! Early reviews show just as much love to this book as “Call Your Mother.” Get it as a Valentine’s Day gift for a dad, a grandpa, or a kid you wish would call more! Or bookmark it for Father’s Day!
I just realized today that I’m running low on my favorite way to make the holidays easier (and more sustainable!): reusable gift bags! No, I’m not talking about paper gift bags that you use over and over until they become trash. I’m talking about actual fabric gift bags.
These can actually cost about the same as a paper gift bag, and they can be used many, many more times. Normally I try to keep these in the family so I can be the one to reuse them, ha, but this year I am running low.
I love to have a big stash of gift bags because it makes the wrapping go so much more quickly. (If you’re like me and anything your child asks for starting in . . . about October . . . is saved to be a Christmas or Hanukkah gift, you do a lot of wrapping.
Finding the right comparable titles can be key to a successful query letter. They should instantly give literary agents and editors an idea of what your book is all about and where it fits in the market.
So, of course, comparable titles cause a considerable amount of agony for querying writers. I’m here to help!
Another departure from my normal writing-related posts here. This one is about towing horses with an electric truck! I crafted an article on Medium about this experience. There’s a free link in the article if you don’t subscribe. Here is the link to my article about towing horses with my Ford Lightning!
I have a love/hate relationship with Amazon but they DO give me a cut of things ordered via my affiliate links, so here we go with some random links of things that might be useful to folks who share my interests (kids, books, horses, outdoor life).
I always try to stock up on any basics I might need moving forward while they’re on sale, so I looked through my recent Amazon orders, and here we go.
All affiliate links!
Kid stuff
Kid velvet hangers–I had a lot of baby/toddler hangers but now Ava’s clothes are falling off so I upgraded to these. And they’re on sale! I’m going to order more!
“Call Your Mother”: My book! Not technically on Prime sale but so freaking cheap. Less than $3 as I write this.
Adorable butterfly hair clips: These are beyond cute! I discovered these for flower crowns/the Ren Fest but they’re great any time.
Untested change plates–we have a home gym and my weight needs are um much lighter than my husband’s. The trainer we zoom with recommended getting some change plates on sale!
Air tags–not technically on Prime sale but so cheap which makes me mad because I just bought new ones NOT on sale!
Air tag holders: I use these on Royal’s hoof boots and they mostly stay on…and keep her air tags dry when we cross streams.
Spray bottles: For horse stuff and life, I am often needing spray bottles. These have a good continuous spray and work well when I am waterproofing horse laundry.
Laundry tub cleaner: With all my horse stuff, my machine gets gross. I use this every now and then on a tub clean cycle.
Hair drying towels: if you have long hair, wrap it up in one of these when it’s wet and it will come out nicely wavy (if it’s like mine). Plus you won’t get everything all wet. Lifesavers!
Aquaphor healing ointment: This stuff saves my lips. I take it with me everywhere. Amazon tells me I’ve purchased this 27 times lol. And it’s on sale!
Cheap ear phones: I am always losing these so I go cheap. These work and they’re cute!
Scout bags: I bought a bunch of these on last Prime Day and they are GREAT. Bags and coolers with zippers that hold up and are worth the money…if you get them on sale. Get an extra large one and thank me later. These midsize coolers are great too–I keep water bottles in them. I like how the long strap makes them easier to carry.
Phone screen protectors: I go through these. This brand is cheap and easy to put on. Make sure you get the right size.
Horse stuff
Untested hoof polish–I haven’t tried this yet but it has rave reviews and it’s on sale!
Perfect prep gold–this is show legal calming paste aka what I like to call chamomile tea for horses. (Except I think actual chamomile might not be legal? Make it make sense.) Anecdotally, I do think this helps Royal relax at shows, as she was a bit more excitable the one show this year where I forgot it. But it was also a busier environment so who knows. It is long lasting so you can give it the night before instead of waking up even earlier. It’s not technically on Prime Day sale but it does have the lowest price in 30 days.
If you are bringing a book to a baby shower instead of a card, it can be hard to know what to write. Cards are ephemeral–subject to oohs and aahs, and then put in a pile or discarded. (Though I think we’ve all gotten cards with messages so special and thoughtful we’ve kept them!) Books, though, will be cherished by the family and hopefully read again and again.
I have a popular post on my blog about how to host a “bring a book, not a card” shower, and I am seeing some people asking what to write in a book when you’re bringing it to a baby shower.
*All Amazon links in this post are affiliate links. Help me fund this blog by using them to buy books!
Keep it Simple
Just write “To the FAMILY NAME,” with love, YOUR NAME. That’s really enough if you’re having a mental block about it. If you know the baby’s name, include that. You can also write Baby LAST NAME.
The Name Problem
Normally, you won’t know a baby’s name by the time of a baby shower. So I always go with a last name. However, if the parents have two different last names, I would always recommend checking with someone who knows about the baby’s last name before writing it down. Want to skip the name problem? Just write “Welcome, Baby” or “We already love you, Baby!”
Write Something Related to the Book
Many books will give you opportunities to write something cute. For example, my book, “Call Your Mother” (affiliate link) has an entire page where readers can write a note for the person to whom they are “dedicating” the book. I loved it when the Familius publishing team came up with this idea. Here are some things I’ve written on this page when giving the book to my friends:
“I know you’re going to be a great mom because you’re a great friend.”
“I am here for you whenever you need it. I know you’re going to be a great mom!”
“I can’t wait to meet your baby and see you as a mom!”
When I was pregnant, I looked through my childhood books. I found a note in the book “Good Dog Carl” from my parents’ best friends. It said something like “Your parents love animals so much, we know you will too.” For some reason, that made me bawl! It really doesn’t take much to bring tears to the eyes of a family expecting a baby. A sweet memory of the new parents as children or something relative to their family will do the trick!
I may come back and add to this post as I have more time, but in the meantime, what are your ideas for writing notes in a book to a new baby? Leave them in the comments!
Today I got an email from a writer that made me very angry on her behalf, and on the behalf of all writers just trying to get their books out into the world. She detailed several “offers” from “hybrid” publishers all costing an arm, leg, and the family dog.
Now, there is a lot wrong in the world of traditional publishing, too. It’s extremely hard to break into and I’ve seen many horror stories and broken hearts. I really do think the market is ripe for reimagining; there’s got to be a better way to do this.
But so-called “hybrid” publishing ain’t it. I’m going to tell you why, and share the red flags that should make you run away from these unethical businesses, fast.
Traditional publishing is when a publisher chooses to publish a book and takes charge of the editing, design, distribution and basic marketing. (Marketing mileage varies WIDELY.) The author receives royalties and maybe an advance. The author pays NOTHING to get published. For picture books, the author DOES NOT PAY FOR THE ILLUSTRATIONS. The publisher finds and pays the illustrator, normally with an advance and then half of the royalties.
Self publishing is when an author publishes a book themselves, either by piecing together freelancers/DIYing or working with a company that helps take a book from a manuscript to a final book. The author puts all the money up front and keeps all of the profits from the book. For picture books, authors typically pay illustrators and any other service providers with flat fees because it’s too complicated to keep track of the royalties. Distributors like Amazon do take a percentage of self-published books.
Hybrid publishing or vanity publishing is when a publisher convinces an author they’re chosen/special yet charges them money to publish their book. My original description did not include “hybrid” as “vanity” publishing, but lately, I’m having a hard time seeing how any “hybrid” publishers are NOT “vanity.” I’ve heard of authors spending as much as $40,000. Today I learned about a publisher asking for $15,000 to publish a picture book. Vanity publishing also covers those anthologies/collections that seek out authors but then charge $100 or so for a copy of the book. Traditional anthologies, lit magazines, and collections GIVE contributing authors at least one free copy of the book or magazine.
Confusion and Clarifications
When I talk about hybrid in this post, I am talking about publishers who are hybrid, meaning they charge authors to publish their books. There are also authors who call themselves hybrid, and confusingly, this is not at all the same thing. Hybrid authors are those who use a mix of traditional publishing and self publishing. This is A-OK, totally normal, and increasingly common given the problems with traditional publishing. No ethical issues there!
Hello, everyone! I have a ton of events coming up this spring relatively local to the Baltimore, MD area. As I tell my friends, want to see me in the few months after a book launch? Come to a book event! I’ve had plenty of events before where very few people come, so it can be so meaningful when people do show up.
That said, if you have an event where you know there will be a ton of kids, I am happy to show up and do a storytime and/or craft activity for them! Ping me at tracycgold@gmail.com. I’m probably looking at the fall right now as spring is packed!
Local Events for Readers
Saturday, April 20, 10:30 am Storytime and Craft Snug Books Baltimore, MD
Saturday April 27, 1 pm Annapolis Book Festival (this still only shows last year’s schedule) Key School, Annapolis, MD Reading and signing
Thursday, May 2, 10:30 am: FULL Storytime and craft Weber’s Farm Parkville, MD Free, but tickets required. Register here.FULL AS OF 4/3/24
Saturday, May 4, 10 am Storytime and craft Park Books Severna Park, MD
Webinar for writers Thanks to Reedsy, a platform of publishing professionals where I get a ton of my editing work, on April 3rd at 3pm Eastern, I’ll be chatting live about “Common Mistakes in Dialogue and How to Avoid them.” Register here. There will be a video and transcript available afterward, too, and you’ll be notified if you register even if you can’t attend.
Don’t Forget My Classes! Students are enjoying my Beginner’s Guide to Writing Picture Books! You can buy it on Thinkific. Or access it with a Skillshare subscription.
And of course, my class on rhyming picture books is still live! Here’s Thinkific and Skillshare.
I just had to share this adorable video/podcast that the kids at Krieger Schechter put together during my last visit to their school. I am the Silverman-Brown author in residence this year, which means I am coming for three visits over the course of the year. In my first visit, I talked with children about coming up with ideas and research. In my second visit, we talked about drafting and structure. When I return in April, we’ll be talking about revision. Throughout, we’ve been using my book “Trick or Treat, Bugs to Eat” as a jumping off point to talk about how bats can affect a region’s ecology. Krieger Schechter is planning to have kids make bat boxes to install at the school to give these helpful bug eating critters a safe home.
I love sharing my process and hopefully inspiring all of these young people!
