I’m currently doing the final edits on my two middle-grade novels: The Song of the Bees and The Outcasts. Plenty of books for children have little badges on them indicating an award or ranking by an organization. This is to let parents know that some body of experts(?) thinks the book might be a good read for their kid. I decided to enter the manuscripts for both novels in the Gertrude Warner Awards for middle-grade fiction. Gertrude Warner was the author of the first nineteen books in the Boxcar Children series. Books submitted for this award go through a progression of eliminations in their respective divisions: long list, short list semi-finals, finals, first place. Both books made the long list and the short list. The Outcasts is currently in the semi-finals and waiting for the next round of judging. I’ve had short stories win contests, and it’s always nice to know some group of curators appreciates your efforts.

I really enjoyed writing these books. Writing for children enabled me to indulge in some fantastic daydreaming that the stories I write for “mature” readers don’t really allow. My hope is that kids will find both entertainment and inspiration in the characters I’ve created and that good reviews and contest award badges will get the books to more kids. I’ll post more info about the books soon. I hope to publish both in April. For now, I’ll just say that The Song of the Bees is a contemporary story and The Outcasts is a fantasy adventure. The covers are (hopefully) temporary, to be replaced with non-AI art. We’ll see.