Welcome From the Editors

Dear Readers,

Welcome to the Spring Issue of Hunger Mountain, an issue that highlights the many ways writers can make a difference in our communities, both in the industry-at-large (check out and weigh in for yourselves on a highly debatable Flipside, with opinions offered by Tanita S. Davis and Mitali Perkins) and in our home communities. We have long admired the work many authors and illustrators do: holding writing workshops in juvenile detention centers, jails, and hospitals. Story, we learn through the work and wisdom of playwright Ann Teplick, is heard everywhere if we listen. Her essay, “The Quieter We Become,” is tough reading. The words of the teens she works with are gripping, terrorizing and profoundly moving. Accomplished poet Naomi Shihab Nye offers up “Maximum Security” and YA novelist Jo Knowles gives us a window into the Glass House project. We thank these artists, and the many others who lead and facilitate similar programs, for their continued work honoring our humanness and forming community.

Our Toolbox section is jam-packed this go round. Don’t miss an offering on picture book voice, “I’ve Gotta (Not Just) Be Me” by Chris Barton, an essay on how to write “Organically Grown Thrillers” by April Lurie, and “Scrap by Scrap: Turning History into Poems” by Jeannine Atkins. Insights and ah-ha moments abound.

Our Industry Insider, showcases a conversation with author and literary agent Nathan Bransford. And if you haven’t seen it yet, don’t miss our interview with the Cynsational Cynthia Leitich Smith.

We’re also thrilled to offer a sneak peek into debut author Holly Cupala’s Tell Me a Secret, which doesn’t hit stores until June 22nd. (And, we’ll tell you a secret: it’s the kind of book you won’t want to keep to yourself.) We also present other fine fiction selections from Jessica Lee Anderson, Cheryl Spanos, Jane Hertenstein, Stefanie Demas, Michael Bazzett and Kobbie Alamo. Poetry wise, be sure not to miss poems by E. Kristin Anderson.

Keep in mind that the deadline for the Katherine Paterson Prize for Young Adult and Children’s Writing is coming up: June 30th! Holly Black, author of The Spiderwick Chronicles, is this year’s judge. Help us spread the word!

We invite you to get involved: in the Katherine Paterson Prize, in the Hunger Mountain community, in your communities here in the U.S. and abroad, and in the wider children’s lit community. Discuss, debate, submit to future issues, but most of all…

Enjoy the read!

Bethany and Kekla