Poets, do you have a bucket list? A list of things you want to do before you — for example — turn 49? My family and I have lived in the Baltimore suburbs for over 18 years. And for 18 years, we’ve talked about going to visit the Edgar Allan Poe House and Museum in […]
Laura's Blog
Thursday, 8 February 2018
Thursday, 25 January 2018
Happy Poetry Friday! January is hobbling to its frigid, icy end. It’s been a cold month in Maryland, as the blue hues of my temperature scarf will attest. The annual February Poetry Project members are warming up for our month of daily writing. This year’s project theme is “Ekphrastic at Home.” Each day, a member of […]
Thursday, 11 January 2018
This is a year of big transitions for my family. Our youngest turns 18 this week and is preparing to make the leap from high school to college. Shortly after that, Mr. S turns 50 and our eldest celebrates his 21st birthday. (All of our birthdays, including Sam the dog’s, fall within five weeks. Mine […]
Thursday, 4 January 2018
Happy 2018, poets and poetry lovers. Before you know it, February will be here. That’s right. It’s almost time for our annual daily writing workout. A little history: For four years, my blog hosted a community poetry project. In 2013, I celebrated my birthday month by writing every day in response to vintage postcards. I mailed the […]
Thursday, 14 December 2017
Happy Poetry Friday! I recently added a line to my email signature. Along with my title (poet in the schools) and the titles of my children’s novels (The Last Fifth Grade, Takedown), you will now see “Currently reading: —” listed under my name. Publicly sharing what I’m reading is a practice I learned from educator […]
Thursday, 7 December 2017
Dear friends, when I’m feeling down I often turn to an old friend to help me settle my worries: George Harrison, fellow Pisces and my very favorite member of the Beatles. My favorite albums are Let It Roll, Songs of George Harrison and Concert for George. For Poetry Friday, I’m sharing one of George Harrison’s solo […]
Wednesday, 6 December 2017
A question came up in one of my kidlit groups the other day: Can young readers handle books with more than one narrator? No surprise, there was a debate among the members. Why make books harder for kids to read by writing in more than one voice? Isn’t that confusing? While I don’t think multiple […]
Friday, 1 December 2017
It’s the first day of December, Poetry Friday friends. This week’s host is Mary Lee Hahn at A Year of Reading. Grab a cup of hot cocoa and head over to her blog, where you’ll find some poetry to warm you up. I went searching for a December poem and came upon this beauty by […]
Thursday, 16 November 2017
It’s almost Thanksgiving, Poetry Friday fans. That means baking season is upon us. At our house, Mr. S is the cook. Baking – that’s my job. I’m not usually adventurous when it comes to baking. However, when chili-infused dark chocolate bars hit the market, so did some kitchen inspiration. I came up with a spicy […]
Thursday, 12 October 2017
Big news, Poetry Friday friends! Today is the cover reveal for my latest middle grade novel, Takedown. This prose novel is about two middle school wrestlers, a boy and a girl, who are *not* happy when their coach makes them training partners. Curious? Stop by Nerdy Book Club for a sneak peek. This month, I’m […]
Laura Shovan is the author of the award-winning middle grade novel, The Last Fifth Grade of Emerson Elementary. Her second book, Takedown, is a Junior Library Guild and PJ Our Way selection. Look for A Place at the Table, co-written with Saadia Faruqi, in 2020. Laura is a poet-in-the-schools Maryland.
