iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Beth Volkmann @bethvolkmann.bsky.social · 30/05/2026

awash in white springtime blossoms delight warm weather ‘petal’ storm #haiku #haikuSaturday #gardens #flowers #seasons #botany

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Abbie James @abbiewjames.bsky.social · 30/05/2026

peony a burst of laughter among old friends #HaikuSaturday 💚 #bloomscrolling

a bright pink peony with yellow in the center; photo taken in the sun; green leaves from other plants behind it

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Abbie James @abbiewjames.bsky.social · 28/05/2026

Just read PUFFINS! by @gianferrari-m.bsky.social w/art by @mariswicks.bsky.social. Love this! The photo doesn't capture it, but the orange color is so bright & happy! Puffin facts & fabulous content about the effects of climate change on puffins/how to help wrapped in the cutest package! #kidlit 📚👍

cover of PUFFINS shows one puffin up close in the lower right with lots and lots of puffins in the background on rocks and water; title is large and in bright orange puffy letters; photo is of book in my hand in front of light blue wall

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Jacob Souva @jacobsouva.bsky.social · 28/05/2026

Wrote about my optimistic plan for #kidlitart #kidlit when the industry is jittery and moving slow: substack.com/@jacobsouva/... (Also made some brand new art which was super-nice and felt very good to work out!)

A bug stands on a flower wondering what’s next

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Beth Volkmann @bethvolkmann.bsky.social · 28/05/2026

A divergence ... ... spend a DELIGHTFUL hour of laughter by tuning into Stephen Colbert's hilarious (and sweet) 'takeover' of Only In Monroe. Very transporting - aided by Jack White's adept employment of a cassette tape player! :) Really fun! Truly fabulous! www.youtube.com/watch?v=jJTX...

youtube.com

Only In Monroe --- May 22, 2026

YouTube video by Stephen Colbert

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Debbie Ridpath Ohi @debbieohi.com · 27/05/2026

I am seeking examples of children's book illustrators who use Pinterest as a way of getting discovered, promoting themselves or their work. If you know of one, please post the link in replies? A #Kidlit illustrator I am mentoring has asked about Pinterest, but I haven't used it that much. Thanks!

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Jessica Lee Anderson - KidLit Author @jessicaleeanderson.bsky.social · 25/05/2026

It would be nearly impossible to put a number on how many animals Tabitha Blewett has helped or the number of people she's reached given her passion for education and outreach! snakesandsentences.substack.com/p/featuring-...

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Sera Rivers @writeloudly.bsky.social · 22/05/2026

Dear #kidlit friends! I'm creating a #picturebook #writingretreat and would love feedback on what works best for YOU! Please fill out my survey if you're interested in attending a small in-person retreat. TIA writeloudly.survey.fm/pb-retreat-s... #amwriting #amrevising #writingcommunity #litagent

writeloudly.survey.fm

PB Retreat Survey

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Abbie James @abbiewjames.bsky.social · 22/05/2026

ear to forest floor echoes of dinosaurs ancient ferns still flourish #forestfriday 💚 #haikusaturday 💚 #nativeplants

about 15 spleenwort fern fronds (asplenium platyneuron, I think) with brown leaf matter below them and other plants in the background in area where sun is peeking through trees

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Jane Friedman @janefriedman.com · 21/05/2026

If you’ve been working on book for years, it may be hard to work it into a focus sentence. But if you can do it, it’s like walking down a forest trail that beautifully unfolds. Insight from @joshuadolezal.bsky.social.

janefriedman.com

Hide the Sawdust: Hone Your Focus Sentence | Jane Friedman

A good story, like a good hiking path, simply unfolds without seeming forced. Here's a tool that helps keep complex stories on track.

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Lynn Becker @lynnbbooks.bsky.social · 21/05/2026

Today on the blog: my Shelf Awareness review of A Door Is to Open, which perfectly depicts the tantalizing promise of adventures, large and small, that await behind doors of all kinds. lynnbeckerbooks.substack.com/p/shelf-awar...

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Leslie Zampetti @literarylesliez.bsky.social · 20/05/2026

Decisions, decisions! Responding to queries is getting harder - because they’re getting better. I got 613 queries when I opened in April. I’m down to 74 - and now I have to winnow those down to 15-20 requests. Wish me luck! 🤞🏻📄 🤞🏻

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Beth Volkmann @bethvolkmann.bsky.social · 19/05/2026

I ❤️ this post! So encouraging!

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Beth Volkmann @bethvolkmann.bsky.social · 19/05/2026

Haven't read this yet but I ❤️Clover Robin's art and am thrilled it is being paired with David Elliott's poetry!

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John Lechner @johnlechner.bsky.social · 17/05/2026

It's time for my favorite game, spot the toad! 🍃

Photo looking down at an array of green sprouts coming up in the garden amid dry leaves, and possibly a small toad.

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P. J. Purtee, AKA Jill (Shields) @pjpurtee.bsky.social · 17/05/2026

SPIDER IN THE WELL ✍🏻 & 🎨 Jess Hannigan @jesshgn.bsky.social 2024, Katherine Teagen Books / HarperCollins #PB #kidlit a boy 👦 a well stops granting wishes an investigation 🔎 a 🕷️ lies a deal 🪙 . . . 🥰 🥰 🥰 #librarians #teacher #parents #lies #truth

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Kate Messner @katemessner.com · 17/05/2026

Children's book friends! What are your favorite fairy tale retellings & fairy-tale inspired books from BIPOC authors & illustrators? I have a list started but feel like I must be missing a lot of more recent releases.

Book cover MUFARO'S BEAUTIFUL DAUGHTERS by John Steptoe shows a brown-skinned girl holding a hand mirror, against an African landscape.

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Emma @emmasartworks.bsky.social · 16/05/2026

Poplar seeds flying Silver in the sunlight fall Grey fluff in gutters #haikuSaturday

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Beth Volkmann @bethvolkmann.bsky.social · 16/05/2026

life thrives within these trees mammals, insects, birds, fungi deadwood trees? hardly! #haikuSaturday #haiku #ecology #dendrology #trees #deadwood

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Abbie James @abbiewjames.bsky.social · 16/05/2026

fleabane flowers frilly feather dusters for cobwebs in my brain #HaikuSaturday 💚 #bloomscrolling 💚 #nativeplants

photo of three light pink fleabane flowers with yellow centers in sunshine; many fleabane and green leaves blurry in the background; there is some kind of hoverfly (I think?) on one flower and the tiniest bit of spiderweb at the upper right on some flowers that have not yet opened

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Abbie James @abbiewjames.bsky.social · 15/05/2026

on reflection peace arrives in gentle waves Happy #ForestFriday 💚

photo of my small pond with small solar fountain creating ripples; grass on banks and trees on all sides; blue sky with a few white clouds at the top and reflected in the pond

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Hillary Fazzari @hillaryfazzari.bsky.social · 22/04/2026

Hi everyone! I've reopened to queries for the first time in FOREVER. Very excited to start seeing everyone's work again. I'll be focusing most on PB, MG, YA, NA, and commercial adult fiction in multiple genres. For more, visit my MSWL page: manuscriptwishlist.com/mswl-post/hi...

manuscriptwishlist.com

Hillary Fazzari – The Official Manuscript Wish List Website

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Beth Volkmann @bethvolkmann.bsky.social · 11/05/2026

Great read from Sarah (no surprise) on the 'week that was in #kidlit'. And some quotes by Tennessee Williams! ❤️ Sarah is truly one of THE most encouraging and kind #kidlit creators I have encountered. 🎉 #BeAnAmbassador

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Carol Hinz @carolhinz.bsky.social · 11/05/2026

Delighted by this PW review for TAKE IT APART by @kateywrites.bsky.social and E.V.: "Undoing gleams as a pathway to discovery in this inventive work." www.publishersweekly.com/9798765648568

publishersweekly.com

Take It Apart by Katey Howes

Dismantling objects becomes a source of knowledge in Howes and Vuković’s peppy appreciation of the practice as a critical compon...

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Beth Volkmann @bethvolkmann.bsky.social · 10/05/2026

I am not a fan of Mother's day, generally speaking but I could embrace Mothers' Day as it originated. Here is its origin story offered by historian Heather Cox Richardson. heathercoxrichardson.substack.com/p/may-9-2026

heathercoxrichardson.substack.com

May 9, 2026

If you google the history of Mother’s Day, the internet will tell you that Mother’s Day began in 1908 when Anna Jarvis decided to honor her mother.

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Jen Gennari @jengennari.bsky.social · 09/05/2026

New book recs on my substack—this time about novels in verse and the importance of poetry! #reader

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Stefan Karlsson @stefankarlsson.bsky.social · 09/05/2026

No rhyme or reason, Mother Goose nests where she likes. A story is born. #haikusaturday #haiku #poetrycommunity #mothersday

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Gillian Eilidh O’Mara @lightonthesea.bsky.social · 09/05/2026

Day 3 of ‘from the archives’, adventure walking 🌷

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Beth Volkmann @bethvolkmann.bsky.social · 09/05/2026

it’s finally begun blooms today, blooms tomorrow spring has truly sprung #haikuSaturday #haiku #spring #flowers #botany #gardens

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Gina Perry @ginaperry.bsky.social · 08/05/2026

Hello #kidlit friends. I asked this the other day, asking again - do any of you have newsletters on beehiiv? So far I only know of @karalareau.bsky.social @adamrex.bsky.social and @katievenit.bsky.social

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Kate Messner @katemessner.com · 08/05/2026

If you write - or want to write - informational books for kids, I just shared pretty much my entire workshop on that topic from this winter's NY @scbwi.bsky.social conference over on fb. Click here and get your library card ready - it's all about the mentor texts. www.facebook.com/KateMessner/...

facebook.com

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Beth Volkmann @bethvolkmann.bsky.social · 08/05/2026

I really, really ❤️ the way Jacob has processed the week. I share his feelings and am grateful that he has taken the time to offer them in this post. Emotional, fair and thoughtful. Onward!

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Kirsten W. Larson @kirstenwlarson.bsky.social · 07/05/2026

Want to write nonfiction kids can’t put down? 📚 Join me for SCBWI's "Engaging Stories" Conference in WI, for a 3-hour intensive masterclass on writing compelling nonfiction that kids of all ages can't wait to read. www.scbwi.org/events/octob... #Kidlit #NonfictionWriting #ChildrensWriters

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drydenbks (Emma D Dryden) @drydenbks.bsky.social · 07/05/2026

What a creator creates is important and courageous! Getting kids to see themselves in what's created can be lifesaving. Getting kids to read, think, imagine, feel something because of what's created is essential to instill empathy. Something that's in short supply. Creators: keep creating! #kidlit

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Cindy Kang @cindysykang.bsky.social · 07/05/2026

Happy #kidlitartpostcard day! I’m Cindy Kang, a Korean Illustrator based in New York. I love illustrating children and city scenes. 🐦 I’m open to new projects! 📚 Rep: @mccarthylit.com 📌 cindysykang.com

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