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Author Stacy S. Jensen

Stacy S. Jensen

Exploring the World In and Out of Books

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Author Stacy S. Jensen
Stacy S. Jensen
Exploring the World In and Out of Books

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Before the book …

Before the Book Launch

Before the Cover

Before Sketches

Before the Revisions

Before the Research
There was an idea

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I shared this one before, but after an image of th I shared this one before, but after an image of the confederate flag showed up at the Great American State Fair — it makes sense to share this children’s book again. The image was removed, but it's crazy in 2026 that it even showed up.⁠ THAT FLAG by Tameka Fryer Brown and Nikkolas Smith shares the story of two friends, who view the confederate flag differently. It means violence and oppression to one girl and heritage to the other. ⁠ Through a field trip and a violent hate crime in the community, there’s a change of heart from the girl who views the flag as a symbol of heritage. ⁠ While a picture book may not change any minds, it could. On the title page it says “We hope the words and images in this story foster transformative conversations that lead to change.” The book includes information about the confederate flag and — an author’s note and an illustrator's note. Look for this at your library or local bookstore. #confederateflag #thatflag #violence #oppression #CivilWar⁠
Enzo returned from his German exchange trip yester Enzo returned from his German exchange trip yesterday. He was so talkative until he crashed last night.😴He had a great experience- ate lots of bread, met students in Paderborn, learned trains and public transit requires some flexibility, got to know more students from his own high school, and that experienced a heatwave with no AC 🥵 HOT! He told me today he would be happy not to talk to anyone for 5 hours. Only child in a five person room at the hostel… I understand. This Mom still has questions, but I can be patient 😆 Andy Jensen
Another fun #libraryhaul. Books shown include TINY Another fun #libraryhaul. Books shown include TINY T. REX and the Grand Ta-Da! by Jonathan Stutzman and Jay Fleck, WHAT EMMA WROTE: The Woman Behind the Words on the Statue of Liberty by Ann D. Koffsky and N. Tarcan, and THE BIGGEST, HIGHEST WAVE by Kerry McQuaide. Stop by your library and see what you can pick up. #picturebooks #publiclibrary
For a little Monday History, check out WHAT EMMA W For a little Monday History, check out WHAT EMMA WROTE The Woman Behind the Words on the Statue of Liberty by Ann Diament Koffsky and N. Tarcan. This is a great biography of the poet Emma Lazarus who wrote The New Colossus that is at the Statue of Liberty’s base. In this story, you learn about Emma's childhood - her parents published a book of her work! She interviewed immigrants and told their story. She wrote the poem as part of one of the fundraisers for the statue. In the back matter, the author notes the statue from France on America’s 100th Birthday “was one of the biggest birthday presents ever received.” If you are looking for books about America’s history, check out this one about Emma and her poetry and other work. #mondayhistory
Well, that was a surprise. When I looked through m Well, that was a surprise. When I looked through my previous drafts and notes for BEFORE I LIVED HERE written by me, illustrated by Victo Ngai, and Neal Porter Books/Holiday House, I found a dummy book. Dummies are often used by children's writers like me to write or past the words of the manuscript into a small "book" to gauge pacing, page turns, etc. In this case, you can see I created it, but didn't really commit to the dummy process. Writers and illustrators create dummies in a lot of different ways. Today, I break up my story into 15 segments (I simply type 1-15 into the document) and consider page turns, etc. this way. #amwriting #picturebook #picturebookdummies #writingprocess #childrensbooks
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“I am a former child,” she said. “And I haven’t forgotten a thing.” – Ursula Nordstrom

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