@WildMelissaHart

I've had the honor of appearing on three panels with Kayla McKeon, the first U.S. Congressional lobbyist with Down syndrome.

Here's a terrific interview with McKeon in honor of Down Syndrome Awareness Month: www.localsyr.com/bridge-stree...

#downsyndrome #inclusion #education

The current administration fired most employees at the Office of Special Education. The activists and athletes, artists & entrepreneurs in DOWN SYNDROME OUT LOUD depended on this Office for access to mainstream education, tutoring, and college prep.

The cruelty of this administration astounds me.

A bird’s song adds wonder to the world - High Country News If a song defines a place, what does it mean to lose it?

Happy Migratory Bird Day! I'm still waiting to hear this lovely birdsong in Eugene; I may have to get back to the Oregon coast, instead. #migratorybirdday #nature @highcountrynews.org

www.hcn.org/issues/50-9/...

Families Like Ours: A Reading List for the Children of Queer Parents - Longreads Some of us got to stay with our moms or dads. Others did not.

It's National Coming Out Day. My mom came out in 1979. Here's our story. longreads.com/2022/06/28/q...
#nationalcomingoutday @colage.bsky.social

I Wrote One Of The Few Tween Books About Down Syndrome. A Couple Of Sentences May Get It Banned. "Because of a handful of sentences among 281 pages, adults are going to considerable lengths to make sure kids don’t read my newest book."

It's Banned Books Week. I wrote about this for @huffpost.com :

www.huffpost.com/entry/daisy-... #bannedbooks #bannedbooksweek #downsyndrome @bannedbooksweek.bsky.social @littlefreelibrary.bsky.social

Happy Down Syndrome Awareness Month from my brother and me! @oregonduckfootball.bsky.social @universityoforegon.bsky.social #downsyndrome

Right there with you, Tim Flach.

It’s #DownSyndromeawareness Month! Celebrate with this #mg #nonfiction inspirational title: bookshop.org/a/102434/978... @wildmelissahart.bsky.social @sourcebooks.bsky.social

Harness the Power of Time- and News-Pegs to Sell your Stories October 2025

My free October newsletter for creative writers is packed with excellent opportunities and inspiring articles; it has only a little to do with obese black cats. #creativewriting #writing
writingwithhart.substack.com/p/harness-th...

I think this publicist got some incorrect information about my newest book. Nevertheless, I'll be reaching out the Hallmark Channel today.

October is Down Syndrome Awareness Month. To celebrate, purchase a copy of DOWN SYNDROME OUT LOUD: 20+ Stories of Disability & Determination for your library, school, bookclub, community center, Little Free Library, family member, or friend! #downsyndrome #disability #inclusion #teacher #librarian

YouTube video by DSRFCANADA The LowDOWN Podcast - Down Syndrome Out Loud (S11, Ep 3)

Thanks to the @dsrfcanada.bsky.social for featuring DOWN SYNDROME OUT LOUD on The LowDOWN and including insights from activists Karen Gaffney, Charlotte Woodward, and Zack Gottsagen!

www.youtube.com/watch?v=MWPZ... #downsyndrome #disabilityawareness #inclusion #reading #teacher #newrelease

As I tell my creative writing students, it's just so important to read your work aloud to catch typos.

YouTube video by Ze Frank True Facts About The Dung Beetle

"Just remember, no matter how bad your job is, even if you shovel crap for a living, at least you're not doing it naked, and with your mouth, and then eating it."--Ze Frank

www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q1zb... #nature #humor

How wonderful to see DOWN SYNDROME OUT LOUD on display at the NYC Buddy Walk! #downsyndrome #mglit #disabilityawareness

Introduce Middle Grades Readers to People with Down Syndrome Melissa Hart's Down Syndrome Out Loud introduces middle graders to contemporary people with Down syndrome and to an overview of the condition and its effects.

Thanks to @drtlovesbooks.bsky.social for this lovely review of Down Syndrome Out Loud: 20+ Stories of Disability and Determination! www.middleweb.com/52613/listen... #mglit #middleschool #kidsbooks @unteragency.bsky.social

What's making me happy today is this school library photo from teacher Michael Holton, who's featured in my newest book Down Syndrome Out Loud: 20+ Stories of Disability & Determination. I hope every school librarian will order a copy of this inspiring and important book! #backtoschool #librarian

For the rest of this summer, please always carry a couple of dollars in cash and stop at kids' lemonade stands, even if you have to make a U-turn. We did this yesterday, and there was much rejoicing all around.

Where Greed Grows Wild - Hidden Compass In dazzling blue waters shaped by a history of alligator wrestlers, escaping monkeys, and war, Melissa Hart considers Silver Springs State Park, Florida.

My latest story for Hidden Compass feels particularly relevant right now, as environmental activist groups raise concerns over the building of "Alligator Alcatraz" on vulnerable Florida wetlands.

hiddencompass.net/story/where-... #florida #nature #everglades

Immerse Yourself in Weirdness for the Sake of Creative Writing Go on...take that Zumba class, lick a rock, and brew up a batch of backyard-weed tea.

I feel weird and vulnerable publishing a link to my Substack newsletter here--is imposter syndrome after 25 years of writing professionally a thing? Apparently, it is.
writingwithhart.substack.com/p/immerse-yo... #creativewriting #writing #journalistm #author #writingtips

I will make this happen later this year. Thank you for the inspiration!

I get to teach a workshop on how to write social and political commentary at the Willamette Writers' Conference in Portland, Oregon tomorrow, and I am so very excited to empower people to get their stories out into the world! #creativewriting #politics #writer

Lonely But Not Alone: Why Gen X Women Are Feeling It More Than Ever Podcast Episode · The Shaw Report with Jessica Shaw · 07/24/2025 · 24m

I adored this talk with Jessica Shaw about loneliness in Gen X women, inspired by my essay in @damemagazine.bsky.social . We discussed friendship benches, @roadscholarorg.bsky.social adventures & why you should attend Salamander Science Night at the pub. tinyurl.com/8nuusete #loneliness #friendship

Thank you @opb.org for this amazing piece with Ellen Morris Bishop! OSU Press is excited for the new edition of "Living with Thunder" coming this October! 🗻

Friends at #mswishlist , does anyone rep middle-grade memoirs written by adults with Down syndrome or other intellectual/developmental disabilities? Literally asking for a friend profiled in my newest book, Down Syndrome Out Loud. #books #downsyndrome #disabilityawareness @mswishlist.bsky.social

The Vital Importance of Coffee Dates with Friends, Family Members & Near-Strangers Face-to-Face Conversations over a Cuppa Give Writers the Strength to Persist

Should you need some distraction & creative writing tips/ opportunities, my July newsletter is out. Also, please read the new novel CLOSER by my friend Miriam Gershow . #creativewriting #fiction

open.substack.com/pub/writingw...

I've been crying all day. As the sister of a man with Down syndrome, with several friends who have IDD, I'm devastated by the cruelty of this administration.

Thank you for this--love Ologies and have never listened to these two episodes.

I am grieving the barbarism that is going to unfurl from all this. People are going to die. Livelihoods gone. All to feed a corrupt kleptocracy.

I see every day up close how different it is from the first time around. There are no guardrails. A disaster. I’m sorry we have to live through this.

Friends, how do you connect with Republican House leaders if you're not in their district? Help!

This tax/spending cuts package will devastate the lives of people like my brother with Down syndrome and people featured in my newest book, Down Syndrome Out Loud.

We need to act today. Advice?