Sara Van Note

I at least enjoy finding comps, since I like to think of my writing as in conversation with/inspired by books I admire. Pitches stress me because I feel so much pressure to be catchy! Which is not my style. I'm super grateful to my critique partners for their pitch editing! #KidLitChat

Now including New Mexico.

Aloe plant "reading" a "How to Report ICE" zine.

"How to Report ICE" 10/2:

Buffalo, CA, Chicago, CO, DC Metro, DE, FL, Indianapolis, KC Metro, MD, MA, NC Triangle, much of NJ, NM, NYC, Phoenix, Philly, Pittsburgh, Portland OR, RI, Rochester NY, St. Louis Metro, St. Peter & Mankato MN, VA, WI, WY

San Francisco in Spanish

tinyurl.com/mupyyr2x

EveryLibrary Live! Banned Books 2025 Calendar Join EveryLibrary Live! for Banned Books Week Fest 2025, a free online celebration featuring 25+ authors, editors, and advocates in bold conversations about storytelling, censorship, and the freedom t...

Check out @everylibrary.bsky.social's week of FREE events for #BannedBooksWeek!

I chat with @katherinelocke.bsky.social and #GigiHoward on Tues. 7 PM Eastern.

Here's to #FReadom #BooksNotBans #kidlit #lgbtqkidlit

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Wow! I would love to see them in action. So far each time I’ve observed it resting in its web.

A large spider with yellow and black patterns and an egg shaped abdomen waits at the center of a web with zigzag design beneath it

A large spider with black and yellow legs and pale yellow and black markings on its abdomen waits in its web

This huge gorgeous yellow garden spider (Argiope aurantia) has been hanging out in my school garden for a few weeks.
#Arachtober #Invertebrates

Yes! I'm trying to think what show it might have been on... maybe Reading Rainbow? (did they do book videos?) or 3-2-1 Contact or some other 80s PBS show. #KidLitChat

I remember watching the video of Chicken Soup with Rice on... PBS maybe? back in the day? And still remember the tune to the song! #KidLitChat

I also loved Frog and Toad and all Lobel's books! I've also loved teaching with them, they are as thoughtful and fresh as ever and still make me laugh out loud! #KidLitChat

And p.s. I'm writing picture books in verse about nature and animals so... still on brand! #KidLitChat

Oh that reminds me of another classic bunny book for toddlers: Pat the Bunny! I loved it and also loved reading it with my little brother. #KidLitChat

Same! Loved all of Marguerite Henry, and even got to visit Chincoteague and feed the ponies as a child 😍

I loved The Little House by Virginia Lee Burton and still feel heartbroken every time I read it! I also loved nursery rhyme and poetry collections. Also Roald Dahl, Laura Ingalls Wilder, Madeleine L’Engle. Plus any and all animal books! #KidLitChat

I love this news! 🌈 📚

I would encourage myself to notice what I’m passionate about writing, what brings me joy and sparks my creativity, and worry less about what I “should” be writing. #kidlitchat

Completely agree. There is so much learning in the drafting process. Ideas are wonderful but they’re like shiny pennies jangling around, where drafts are like… hard earned silver dollars! #kidlitchat

Some takeaways from ABC/Disney backtracking on Kimmel:
1) Corps only care about $$
SCOTUS says money is speech. So use your voice! Boycotts work. Collective action works!
2) A huge amount of energy went into helping Kimmel. We need that same energy for book bans & attacks on marginalized creators.

Trump’s allies now control X, Facebook, Instagram, WhatsApp, & TikTok.

They own Fox News, CBS, WaPo, WSJ & NY Post.

They own Sinclair Broadcasting which has 200 tv stations and local news in 100 markets.

“Freedom of speech” is now what Trump and his billionaire pals say it is.

I also love reading beautiful, inspiring books, in any genre. Recent favorites are Rachel Carson’s sea trilogy & Night Magic by Leigh Ann Henion. #kidlitchat

I found a super cute hairy tufted jumping spider today.
#invertebrate #BackyardRefuge

Like many others have said, spending time in nature recharges me! I love birding and bug-ing (aka looking for bugs). 🐞#kidlitchat

Oh wow. This is a book of my dreams! Bioluminescence is endlessly fascinating to me. Plus I’m always wishing for picture books for adults. Also cool inspiration for teaching. Thank you for the rec and the blog post!

Congratulations! The book looks incredible. Zooplankton (and especially their bioluminescence) are fascinating. And lucky you to work with MBARI! I've used their videos to teach my students about bioluminescence. I'm looking forward to adding your book to my resources!

A hidden crisis Thousands of immigrant children are being forgotten academically

"Thousands of immigrant children in government custody are being denied something we expect for every other child in America: a real education." #AFTvoices

Good Monday Morning #BookSky! Did you add care & joy to the world this weekend? Great!
As part of Banned Books Week @amlibraryassoc.bsky.social is organizing Let Freedom Read Day on October 11. On that day, we're asking everyone to take 1 action to protect the right to read. More info & actions👇

I loved A Pocket Full of Rocks by Kristin Mahoney/
illus. by E. B. Goodale. A lovely combination of nature, magic, and imagination.

I didn’t know about I Am Gravity! Sounds fascinating. And I haven’t read I Am We yet, but am excited to read it from the reviews. I hope to find it at my library soon!

Thanks for the reminder, it’s a beautiful book! Its lyricism is amplified through 1st person. I’m also remembering I Am Smoke/Henry Herz & I Am We/Leslie Barnard Booth. So much creative potential where that intimate voice meets nonfiction themes! #kidlitchat

Also, if anyone can recommend IF PBs written in first person, I'm all ears! Or PB autobiographies?? #kidlitchat

As a writer of NF and IF PBs, I usually write in third person, for accuracy. As a reader, I enjoy both. As an elementary science/STEAM teacher I mostly teach with PBs written in third person, because of NF themes. #kidlitchat