Don't Miss Middle Grade Lit Chat Tonight and an Announcement...

Are you a middle grade writer/reader? Tune into Middle Grade Lit Chat on Twitter (#mglitchat) tonight at 9pm ET for tips from some of the best middle grade editors around, including Walden Pond Press's editor, Jordan Brown!

AND, for a limited time only, get the ENTIRE Kindle eBook of Guys Read: Funny Business edited for only $1.99!

http://amzn.to/xA5BJn

All Things Middle Grade

We figure it's about time to do a round-up of middle grade events for our blog readers. If there is anything we've left out, please leave a comment and we'll add any pertinent events to the post.

ONGOING

- Every Thursday evening at 9pm ET (barring any holidays), the founders of Middle Grade Lit Chat (#mglitchat) host a fun and engaging Twitter chat around a special topic in middle grade literature. Check out the upcoming list of chat topics here, and join in every Thursday!

- Every Monday join in the fun of Marvelous Middle Grade Monday around the kidlitosphere. Started by Shannon Messenger of Wanderings of a Wannabe Scribe, fifteen or so bloggers celebrate middle grade books with reviews, giveaways, contests, and more every week. Check out Shannon or Deb. A. Marshall's blogs for a round-up of MG posts every Monday.

UPCOMING

- First ever Middle Grade Read-a-Thon!: Thanks to Deb A. Marshall for planning the first (to our knowledge) Marvelous Middle Grade Read-a-thon! The event is set to kick off on Monday, January 2nd and run through Sunday, January 8th. From Deb: "have a look at your TBR piles, your been meaning to read lists--pick the books you for sure want to read during that time and each moment you have…read MG."

- ALA Middle Grade Meet-Up: We're working on setting up a middle grade meet-up at January's ALA Midwinter meeting in Dallas, TX. We'll keep you posted as we sort everything out!

For more middle grade news, be sure to check out our "All Things Middle Grade" blogroll!

Chat with Authors Anne Ursu and Laurel Snyder on Twitter! #magicisreal

This Tuesday, October 4th, at 8pm EST, Breadcrumbs author, Anne Ursu, and Bigger Than A Breadbox author, Laurel Snyder, talk about about Fantasy, Magic, and Realism in Middle Grade on Twitter using the hashtag #magicisreal. 

The chat will be hosted by ALAN board member, English teacher, and creator of RAW INK Online Paul W. Hankins. Official title: Magic is Real: Fantasy, Magic, and Realism in Middle Grade.

5 chat participants will receive free copies of Breadcrumbs and Bigger Than A Breadbox!

But it isn't a chat unless you join us! We'd love to hear your thoughts, questions, and opinions about fantasy, magic, and realism in middle grade literature today. Meet us, this Tuesday at 8pm EST on Tweetchat.com.

BIOS

Anne Ursu is the author of three middle-grade novels that comprise the Cronus Chronicles trilogy: The Shadow Thieves, The Siren Song, and The Immortal Fire. She is also a professor of writing for children at Hamline University and a lifelong Minnesota Twins fan. Anne lives in Minneapolis with her son and two cats. You can visit her online at http://www.annursu.com/.

Laurel Snyder is the author of  three novels for children, “Penny Dreadful,” “Any Which Wall” and “Up and Down the Scratchy Mountains OR The Search for a Suitable Princess” (Random House) and two picture books, “Inside the Slidy Diner” and “Baxter the Kosher Pig.” (Tricycle). Visit her online at http://www.laurelsnyder.com/.

Paul W. Hankins teaches English 11 and AP English Language and Composition at Silver Creek High School in Sellersburg, Indiana. Paul is an ALAN Board Member. The creator of RAW INK Online, Paul seeks opportunities to connect his students with young adult authors. Paul's Twitter literacy initiative, #SpeakLoudly, was selected as Edublog's Most Influential Tweet/Series of Tweets for 2010 and the chat he co-hosts with Donalyn Miller, #TitleTalk continues to grow in popularity within the Twitter community. Paul's thoughts on literacy topics like reading aloud to secondary students and literature-based multigenre projects have appeared in Education Week, Choice Literacy, thewritingsite.org, and The Courier-Journal.

Middle Grade Book Chat Comes to Twitter

Thanks to a great group of middle grade authors, Twitter now has a middle grade book chat! Every Thursday evening at 9pm EST, join fellow tweeps to talk tween books under the hashtag #mglitchat. For a list of upcoming topics and transcripts of past chats, check out the link below:

http://mglitchat.blogspot.com/

Hope to see you all this Thursday!