Founders Workshop Faculty

• Return to the Founders Workshop Main Page • Past Founders Workshop Faculty
	SANDY ASHER Variety and quality characterize Sandy’s work, which includes nineteen books, more than three dozen plays, and over two hundred articles, stories, and poems published in magazines. Her best-known play, A Woman Called Truth, has been produced by more than 250 school, community, and professional groups in the United States and Canada; she was honored with the American Alliance for Theatre and Education’s Charlotte Chorpenning Award for a distinguished body of work in theater for young audiences. She’s also the editor of three collections of fiction, including With All My Heart, With All My Mind: Thirteen Stories About Growing Up Jewish, winner of the 1999 National Jewish Book Award in children’s literature. A frequent guest speaker at conferences and schools, Sandy has served as writer-in-residence at Drury University in Springfield, Missouri, and has taught writing workshops for people of all ages. Sandy's latest book is an anthology she edited with poet and author David Harrison. Dude! Stories and Stuff for Boys will be published this summer by Dutton. Her newest picture book, Too Many Frogs, won North Dakota's Flicker Tale Award, was chosen for the Texas Library Association's 2x2 reading list, and has been nominated for the Florida Reading Association's Children's Literature Award and the NY Library Association's Best of the Season Award. Workshop: Writing Your First Novel
	CHARLES BAKER Charles currently edits two magazines (Calliope and Footsteps) that he and his wife founded, now published by Cobblestone Publishing Company. He is the author or coauthor of several books: The Struggle for Freedom: Plays on the American Revolution, The Classical Companion, Classical Ingenuity, and Myths and Legends of Mount Olympos. He has also coauthored Ancient Greeks, Ancient Romans, and Ancient Egyptians for Oxford University Press, and Don’t Hold Me Back, the biography of black folk artist Winfred Rembert for Cricket Books. Most recently, he edited a series of four animal books for children (Bugs, Pets, Water Animals, and Wild Animals) for Carus Publishing Company. Workshop: Nonfiction Magazine Writing: Articles That Sell! back to top
	MARK BALDWIN Principal author of the Natural History Atlas to the Chautauqua-Allegheny Region, Mark has devoted the past fourteen years to the development of nature education programs for the Roger Tory Peterson Institute of Natural History. As director of education, Mark works with teachers throughout the country to infuse nature studies into their curricula. He is president of the Chautauqua Watershed Conservancy and vice president of the American Nature Study Society. Workshop: Writing from Nature: Blazing a Trail from Field Journal to Publication back to top
	SUSAN CAMPBELL BARTOLETTI Among Susan’s many writing honors are a 2006 NEWBERY HONOR award for Hitler Youth: Growing Up in Hitler’s Shadow (Scholastic Nonfiction 2005) and the 2002 SIBERT MEDAL for Black Potatoes: The Story of the Great Irish Famine (Houghton Mifflin 2001). Her thirteen books for children include such picture books as Nobody’s Diggier than a Dog (Hyperion 2005), such novels as A Coal Miner’s Bride (Dear America/Scholastic 2000), and such nonfiction books as Growing Up in Coal Country (Houghton Mifflin 1996. Learn more about Susan at www.scbartoletti.com. Workshop: Writing to a New Level back to top
	ANDY BOYLES A lifelong interest in science led Andy to his position as science editor at Highlights for Children ten years ago. From dinosaur fossils and rain forests of Madagascar to environments closer to home, Andy’s encounters with the natural world and those who study it are recorded in countless interviews and articles. A member of the National Association of Science Writers, he has received numerous writing and editing awards. Workshop: Writing from Nature: Blazing a Trail from Field Journal to Publication back to top
	KENT L. BROWN JR. Kent is the Editor in Chief of Highlights for Children magazine and has been publisher of Boyds Mills Press since its introduction in 1990. A past-president of the Educational Press Association of America, Kent has served on the publications committee of the International Reading Association and is a member of the National Council of Teachers of English, the American Society of Magazine Editors, and the National Press Club. Workshop: A Crash Course in the Business of Children's Publishing Workshop: Life in the Spotlight: Author Opportunities After Publication back to top
	DOMINIC CATALANO Dominic holds an MA in fine arts, an MFA in illustration, and most recently was awarded a PhD in art education from Ohio State University. He is an assistant professor at Bowling Green State University in northwestern Ohio. Dominic has illustrated twenty-five trade and mass-market picture books, four of which he also wrote—Wolf Plays Alone, Frog Went A-Courting, Santa and the Three Bears, and Mr. Basset Plays. His work has also appeared in numerous children’s magazines and reading series. Workshop: Visual Art of the Picture Book back to top
	CAROLYN COMAN Carolyn Coman's acclaimed novels for children and young adults include The Big House, Many Stones (National Book Award finalist and a 2001 Michael J. Printz Honor book), Bee and Jacky, What Jamie Saw (National Book Award finalist and Newbery Honor book), and Tell Me Everything. She has taught fiction writing at Harvard Extension, Harvard Summer School, and the Chautauqua Institute. For eight years she was a faculty member of the Vermont College MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults Program, and will be on the faculty of Hamline University’s new MFA program in 2007. Workshop: Novel Mentorship Program back to top
	BOBBIE COMBS Bobbie is a free-lance children’s book specialist and one of the owners of Two Lives Publishing, a small niche publisher of children’s books. She has devoted her career to children’s books in various ways: manager of a children’s independent bookstore; children’s buyer and children’s sales/marketing director of a book distributor; publicity assistant; freelance children’s book reviewer; Webmaster for several industry sites; author; editor; and publisher. Nearly all these jobs have required a special focus on public relations and marketing: working with independent bookstores, chains, and wholesalers to increase their awareness of authors; developing relationships with media (local, national, and niche); ensuring that books reach the right reviewers; developing tailored mailing lists and utilizing the Internet, author Web sites, and e-mail to gain maximum exposure. Workshop: Visual Art of the Picture Book Workshop: Life in the Spotlight: Author Opportunities After Publication back to top
	REBECCA KAI DOTLICH Rebecca is an accomplished children’s poet who has published numerous children's poetry and picture books, including Over in the Pink House: New Jump Rope Rhymes; Lemonade Sun: And Other Summer Poems; Sweet Dreams of the Wild: Poems for Bedtime; Mama Loves; What Is Round?; and Away We Go! A frequent speaker at IRA and NCTE national and local conferences, she has been a poetry advisor for Creative Classroom magazine, and a contributing columnist for Teaching K–8. She has extensive experience speaking about poetry at various venues, including the Buffalo Writing Conference and the Kentucky Bluegrass Writing Project. Rebecca's poetry has been featured on Reading Rainbow and has been selected for numerous anthologies and textbooks. In addition, she was profiled in Ladybug’s “Meet the Poet” pages. Workshop: Wordplay: Writing Poetry for Children back to top
	PATRICIA LEE GAUCH Patricia is the vice president and editor at large of Philomel Books. In this role, she has developed and published some of the finest children’s literature, including the fiction of Brian Jacques and three Caldecott Medal winners. She is a respected author in her own right. She holds a doctorate in English literature, and has taught children’s literature on the college level and reviewed for The New York Times. Patti has written thirty-nine books for young readers, among them the highly acclaimed Thunder at Gettysburg and This Time, Tempe Wick? Her most recent title, Tanya and the Red Shoes, part of the celebrated Tanya ballet series, was published in spring 2002. Workshop: The Heart of the Novel: Developing Characters That Readers Care About back to top
	TIM GILLNER As the Boyds Mills Press art director, Tim is directly responsible for the design and production of all Boyds Mills Press books. Tim has taught book illustration at Marywood University for the past five years. He is a member of the American Institute of Graphic Arts (AIGA), the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators, and the Society of Illustrators in New York City. Workshop: A Crash Course in the Business of Children's Publishing back to top
	KIM T. GRISWELL Kim is the coordinating editor of Highlights for Children. Her service has spanned the worlds of publishing and teaching, leading her to positions as senior editor, book development manager, a university instructor, and a teacher with the Institute of Children’s Literature. She holds master’s degrees in teaching writing and in literature. A prolific writer and committed editor, Kim has published more than two hundred short stories, articles, and columns. Her children’s book, Carnivorous Plants, was recently published by Kidhaven Press. Workshop: A Crash Course in the Business of Children's Publishing Workshop: The Hero and the Shadow Workshop: The Hero's Journey: Part Two back to top
	RON HIRSCHI An award-winning author of more than 50 books for children, Ron works as a fisheries biologist for Pacific Northwest Indian Tribes. He has introduced hundreds of young people to the water world, and he has been invited to schools to create nature trails, plant butterfly gardens, restore streams, and create as well as restore wetlands. Ron often involves young people in his work, sometimes incorporating lessons he learns from kids in his books. He says this helps him write for curious young naturalists in playful new ways. Workshop: Writing from Nature: Blazing a Trail from Field Journal to Publication back to top
	PETER P. JACOBI Peter is a journalism professor emeritus at Indiana University, a former ABC and NBC newsman, and a consultant with magazines and corporations. He has worked with writers, editors, and CEOs from all walks of life to make their words clear and engaging. His two guidebooks, The Magazine Article: How to Think It, Plan It, and Write It and Writing with Style: The News Story and the Feature, are standard journalistic references. Peter has also served as a music critic and columnist for the Bloomington Herald-Times, was a major contributor of essays to The Lyric Opera Companion, and wrote The Messiah Book: The Life and Times of G. F. Handel's Greatest Hit. Workshop: Life in the Spotlight: Author Opportunities After Publication back to top
	PAUL KOWALCZYK Paul is a longtime forester with deep firsthand knowledge of the Pennsylvania woods. As manager of the forest surrounding Boyds Mills House, he directs efforts to maintain the forest as a healthy habitat for wildlife as well as a source of timber. Workshop: Writing from Nature: Blazing a Trail from Field Journal to Publication back to top
	BARBARA KRASNER More than sixty of Barbara’s articles have appeared in Babagaznewz, Calliope, Cobblestone, Footsteps, and Odyssey. In 2005, she serves as one of the judges in the SCBWI Magazine Writing Merit Awards. In January 2006, she will receive her MFA. in Writing for Children and Young Adults from Vermont College. She is currently at work on a biography and two historical novels for young people. Workshop: Nonfiction Magazine Writing: Articles That Sell! back to top
	PAULA MORROW Paula has been a children’s literature specialist for twenty-five years and currently has an independent editing service. Longtime editor of Ladybug and Babybug magazines, she has also edited books by such esteemed children’s authors as Eve Bunting and Barbara Seuling. Paula is a regular columnist for the children’s writers’ magazine Once Upon a Time, weekly book reviewer for newspapers in northern Illinois, and instructor with the Institute of Children’s Literature. She is the author of more than two hundred stories, articles, poems, and activities published in children’s magazines. Workshop: Writing Fiction for Children's Magazines back to top
	LINDA OATMAN HIGH Linda Oatman High, a dynamic presenter, has more than a dozen books to her credit and has won many awards, including being recognized for two of her books that were Junior Library Guild Selections. Among others, Hound Heaven was nominated for the Rebecca Caudill Award, and A Christmas Star was featured by the New York Times as one of the best Christmas books of the year. Visit www.lindaoatmanhigh.com. Workshop: From Hip to Historical—Writing Books for Today's Kids back to top
	MARILETA ROBINSON Marileta is a senior editor at Highlights for Children, where she edits fiction for young readers in addition to writing each month’s installment of the popular feature "TheTimbertoes." A free-lance writer before coming to Highlights, Marileta has published two picture books and several magazine stories. Her background includes teaching in the Peace Corps and on the Navajo reservation, as well as instructing for the Institute of Children’s Literature. She holds a master’s degree in bilingual education and is a regular speaker at SCBWI conferences around the country. Workshop: A Crash Course in the Business of Children's Publishing Workshop: The Hero and the Shadow Workshop: The Hero's Journey: Part Two back to top
	LARRY ROSLER Larry is editorial director of Boyds Mills Press, where he has broad responsibilities for acquiring manuscripts and developing them for publication. Before coming to Boyds Mills Press, Larry was a manager of New Morning Books in New York and worked for Henry Holt and Company, first in marketing and later in editorial on both adult and juvenile titles. Workshop: A Crash Course in the Business of Children's Publishing back to top
	WENDY SCHMALZ Wendy is the principal and founder of the Wendy Schmalz Agency, founded in 2002. Representing a wide range of writers for both the children’s and adult markets for more than twenty-five years, her current client list includes Sandy Asher, Seymour Simon, and Ed Koch, to name a few. She began her career at Curtis Brown before moving on to Harold Ober Associates, where she was a principal of the company for more than two decades. Workshop: Writing Your First Novel back to top
	JANE RESH THOMAS Jane Resh Thomas is the author of fifteen published and contracted books, including picture books, short fiction, middle-grade fiction, and biography. The Comeback Dog, Saying Good-Bye to Grandma, Courage at Indian Deep, and Lights on the River have won, among other honors, a Parent's Choice Award, Notable Books and Best of the Best listing by the ALA, and an award from the Consortium of Latin American Studies Programs. Her most recent books are The Counterfeit Princess and Blind Mountain, a novella. She was a faculty member of the Vermont College MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults Program, and will be on the faculty of Hamline University’s new MFA program in 2007. Workshop: Novel Mentorship Program back to top
	RICH WALLACE Rich is the author of four acclaimed novels for young adults: Playing Without the Ball, Wrestling Sturbridge, Shots on Goal, and Restless. He has also authored a short-story collection called Losing Is Not an Option, and a series of sports novels for middle-grade readers called Winning Season. His columns, profiles, and other features have been published in Highlights, Track and Field News, Runner’s World, and other publications. Rich is a former senior editor at Highlights for Children. Workshop: Writing Novels for Young Adults back to top
	DOUG WECHSLER Doug is a wildlife biologist and photographer who takes his inspiration from forests, swamps, and seashores as well as his own backyard. By showing the wonders of nature and its humorous side, he hopes to motivate his readers to deepen their interest in their natural surroundings. His photographs have appeared in hundreds of publications, including International Wildlife, BBC Wildlife, Audubon Magazine, National Geographic, National Wildlife, and Smithsonian Magazine. Workshop: Writing from Nature: Blazing a Trail from Field Journal to Publication back to top
	ED WESELY Ed is director of the Butterfly Barn Nature Center located on the Pennsylvania bank of the Delaware River, where he rears and releases about 400 monarch butterflies each summer. Ed’s environmental education background provides the foundation for his many outreach activities, including numerous publications, lectures, and guided field tours. He is currently developing a natural-history Web site. Workshop: Writing from Nature: Blazing a Trail from Field Journal to Publication back to top
	JOHN WIESSINGER John is a wildlife artist, naturalist, and educator on the staff of the Roger Tory Peterson Institute. John has written and illustrated five books on nature, illustrated several other books, and produced his own natural history educational series, which has been used in zoos, museums, schools, and nature centers across the U.S. and Canada. John combines his interests in natural history and art with writing—a skill he never thought he’d need to use—to develop the online nature series called the Electronic Naturalist. Workshop: Writing from Nature: Blazing a Trail from Field Journal to Publication back to top
	CLAY WINTERS Clay, president of Boyds Mills Press, has been in publishing since 1960. Before coming to Boyds Mills Press, he was president of Putnam/Grosset Books for Young Readers, the children's book group of G.P. Putnam & Sons. Clay has taught the rudiments of publishing to aspiring writers and an entrepreneurial course in marketing for several different institutions. Workshop: A Crash Course in the Business of Children's Publishing back to top
	CAROLYN YODER Carolyn is the senior editor of history for Highlights and has written numerous articles on research and writing history for children. She spent a decade serving as the award-winning editor in chief of Cobblestone: The History Magazine for Young People; Calliope; Faces; and Odyssey, which led to her position as assistant publisher of Cobblestone Publishing, Inc., overseeing development of its book division. She is currently editor of Calkins Creek Books—the history and historical fiction imprint of Boyds Mills Press, publisher of her book George Washington: The Writer. Carolyn also reviews juvenile history books for the Civil War Book Review and has been a writer and editor for the New Jersey Historical Society. Workshop: Mixing Research with Imagination: The Art of Writing History and Historical Fiction Workshop: Carolyn Yoder Alumni Writers' Retreat Workshop: Real People, Great Stories: The Art of Writing Biography back to top