Bonnie Adamson

I have added a couple of lists of some of my favorite books (all science fiction) -- I highly recommend everything listed! bookshop.org/shop/astroka...

The hour has gone, and it's time to move on to the Reese's Minis portion of the evening. Let's congratulate ourselves on having HABITS, good OR bad! See you next time. #kidlitchat

I tend to obsess over details before I get the main structure down--in illustrating as well as writing. And I haven't come up with a good fix for that. I've tried calling it "my process," but it can be exhausting. #kidlitchat

TOPIC: How do you recognize and deal with bad habits in your creative process? Like overusing the word "like." Or relying too heavily on the same illustration POV. Or sentence fragments. #kidlitchat

Frozen pizza, check! Wee glass of sangria, check! Ready for #kidlitchat, coming up at the top of the hour. (9E/6P)

Ossoff: "Tech titans dig bunkers while warning us the AI they're creating risks human extinction. Meanwhile, our Congress debates youth sports and the president builds a ballroom ... I refuse to leave my girls a world as dark and dangerous and cruel as this one threatens to become"

🗳️ Early voting in South Carolina begins Monday, October 19! Early voting runs October 19–31, from 8:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., excluding Sunday, October 25. Find your early voting location at SCVotes.gov and make sure you have the information you need before heading to the polls!

Another fast hour! Thanks, all. Time spent here always feels good. Best of luck to everyone on course or forging your own path. See you next time. #kidlitchat

I planned for illustrating to get my foot in the door so I could write. Didn't work out that way, but somewhere along the way, illustrating became hugely important--not just a means to an end. I was surprised, lol. #kidlitchat

TOPIC: We all have plans, strategies and expectations when we launch ourselves into the kidlit world--and then reality happens. What's the biggest course correction you've made so far in your career? How is it working out? #kidlitchat

Goodnight, all--and thanks for sharing your experiences. Wishing each one of us a book to promote and audiences eager to listen. See you next time. #kidlitchat

... Oops! The shameless self-promo works better if you include the link for the thing you're promoting! Here's the information about my Selling Yourself (Without Selling Yourself Short) courses: vbartles.com/workshops/sy... #KidLitChat

Speaking of presentations, has anyone done one at a conference? Those "how the book got made" sessions were always some of my favorites. #kidlitchat

TOPIC: Let's talk school visits - getting 'em, planning 'em, doing 'em - and other presentations, too, from book fairs to anywhere else. What do you charge for? What do you do swag for? How do you tune a presentation? And what else?! #kidlitchat

Tuesday nights are always hugely validating. Thanks, all. I'll see you next time. #kidlitchat

And at the risk of sounding needy . . . I need validation. Truly. That what I'm doing is worthwhile, or that I'm on the right track, or even that I'm mature enough in my craft to take criticism. I mean, sometimes you have to hear it. Out loud. #kidlitchat

I'd have to choose trust. You can't give or take honest feedback without trusting that the person on the receiving end has the capability and objectivity to process it. In former critique group, a frequent comment was "I know you and I know you can manage (whatever the issue)." #kidlitchat

TOPIC: What do you want from a creative partner? Anyone from a critique partner or beta reader to an agent, editor or art director. In your journey to shape a project, what are you looking for: validation, support, a dash of cold water, or...what else? What takes you to the next level? #kidlitchat

Brace yourselves--#kidlitchat is coming up at the top of the hour! (9E/6P)

“I don’t think being good at things is the point of doing them.” How an Archeologist changed KURT VONNEGUT’s life.

We are idea MACHINES. And if that's a problem, it's a good problem to have. May we never run out of ideas! Thanks for tonight, everyone. See you next time. #kidlitchat

I have an old dog-eared file folder and a ratty old yellow notepad that have both become talismans (talismen?) over the years. I also use my phone's Note app a good bit--but nothing becomes real until it enters the file folder. #kidlitchat

I've been trying to clean up my cache of ideas--having ideas about the ideas. Sigh. I really want to FINISH some of them. #kidlitchat

TOPIC: It's the fall equinox here in the Northern Hemisphere - bringing to mind harvesting ideas and storing them up for winter. Do you stockpile ideas, characters, words, or anything? And how do you decide which idea of yours is ripe for starting? #kidlitchat

My takeaway from tonight's chat: all this is hard, but we do it anyway. I like that about us. :-) See you next time. #kidlitchat

I'm better at saying no to people I don't like. Problem is, only dealing with people I don't like is not a good career strategy. :-/ #kidlitchat

TOPIC: Let's talk about saying "no!" We get demands on our time, get notes that might pull our story away from what we intended, and even our characters can tell us to go places we don't want to. How do you know how and when to say no to... anything? #kidlitchat

PSA: #kidlitchat is coming up at the top of the hour (9E/6P). Be there or be square!

Going old-school today. It doesn't summarize for me, or suggest "other things I might like." #writing

I have a feeling we could talk about queries all night. :-) See you next time--and good luck to everyone querying! #kidlitchat

I'm okay with the bio. I just feel I fail miserably at describing the project. It's like describing one of your children. #kidlitchat

TOPIC: Where do you feel you shine when crafting a query? And where do you struggle? Is there something about the query process you'd change if you could? ("Abolish queries" is already taken.) #kidlitchat

#kidlitchat, coming your way in about FOUR MINUTES. You have been warned.

Goodnight, all. Keep on keeping on! See you next time. #kidlitchat

TOPIC: It's time to check in with what's been going on in your creative world since June. (Yes! Another quarter gone!) Victories large and small, plans, goals--it's all part of the journey worth sharing and celebrating! #kidlitchat

We SEE your requests! We’re working on the fixes!We ask for your patience as our tiny team of engineers heads into a BIG week. Thank you for joining us! Welcome to the Quest🦄

Reminder: watch what they do, not what they say

Goodnight, all. It helped to be with you tonight. See you next time. #kidlitchat

As for ideal reader, I agree with John. It's always me. I guess I hope that's what translated to my own children and might create a connection with the (perhaps mythical) children I write and draw for now--a shared my delight in a story I can find myself in. #kidlitchat

TOPIC: Do you have an ideal reader in mind when you're working on a manuscript or illustration? Is it you or someone you know... or is it just an idea to help guide you? If you don't, what helps you guide your work for its audience? #kidlitchat

Just made a donation. The site is likely to be overwhelmed. Keep trying. #Dolly

I don't know what to say. This hits hard. #Dolly

Thanks for the memories--and for the nudge to catch some of the books I missed. Hope you'll all catch us next week. See you then! #kidlitchat

First that come to mind for me are the "Anne" books. #kidlitchat

TOPIC: We know your TBR stack keeps growing! How about old favorites? Are there books you read as a child/teen that you keep coming back to, that never disappoint "older you"? #kidlitchat

T minus 10 minutes to #kidlitchat!

Hey kids - some scam artist is using a scam Gmail account to impersonate me. If you get an email from “me” that seems fishy and isn’t from my actual email — it’s not me! I’m sorry and BOO SCAMSTERS!!!! 🤬🤬🤬🤬🤬