“Some liked the mystery but didn't like the voice; some loved the voice but thought the mystery needed more work; some thought it was ‘eminently publishable’ (God bless that encouraging soul) but said it wasn't right for their list.”

— on SHAKESPEARE’S SECRET (MG)

“The request for a Mother's Day book came in February 2001 and was submitted in July 2001. That editor passed on it in about a week (gotta love those rapid email rejections). So I tore it apart and decided to come at it from another direction, to celebrate the joy of a child having an entire day devoted to playing with a parent.”

— on OLIVER’S MUST-DO LIST (PB)

AUTHOR UPDATE: Susan Taylor Brown

“What most inspired me is that it is a story about the importance of native language and its survival against amazing odds.”

— on CODE TALKER:
A NOVEL ABOUT THE NAVAJO MARINES
OF WORLD WAR II  (YA)

"While all of my work seems to carry a certain non-fiction element (my next young adult novel as well) I try not to over-research. I try to go with my gut and artistic intuition, and then use the research as I need to."

—on ASK ME NO QUESTIONS (MG)

“Especially for teenagers, love is a complicated thing. There's always a push-pull between what your brain is telling you is right and what your heart wants to do. There's also a push-pull between what you believe to be right and what society believes.”

— on YA romance (YA)

"Goddess Games tells the story of three girls — Seneca, the daughter of an Oscar-winning actress, Drew, an athletic Army brat, and Claire, a struggling born-again Christian — who are thrown together as roommates when they each take summer jobs at a posh mountain resort. Needless to say, they aren't three people who'd instantly bond!"

—on GODDESS GAMES (YA)

Read about Niki Burnham's influence on my own writing life.

"As excited as I'd be to dive back in, it was often troublesome to do so until I'd figured out the key — music.”

—on BUDDY: THE STORY OF BUDDY HOLLY (PB)

Anne also talks about Anneographies (favorite picture book biographies and a few collected biographies, too, birthday by birthday).

"It wasn't until I met Barbara Skinner Rumsey, Director of the Boothbay Region Historical Society in Boothbay, Maine that I realized that the story was, quite likely, a legend."

—on THE SEA CHEST (PB)

She also shares insights on DAWDLE DUCKLING (PB).

Author Update: Toni Buzzeo.

Toni also talks about school visits. Read part one and part two.

"The one thing I think I did 'right' was to 'network'..."

— on ALTOONA BABOONA (PB)

"In fact, Isabel has probably played with every kid on the block at some point, at least until that particular kid realized there was something different about Isabel. But different or not, Isabel is still the treasure on our street."

—on THE TREASURE ON GOLD STREET (PB)