Rothko Mountain (acrylic) by Dongeun Lucy Rhee, 13; published in the September/October issue of Stone Soup A note from Emma Wood Hello, everyone! I chose Dongeun’s incredible painting of a mountain, in the style of Rothko, for this newsletter because in this past month, I feel as if I have scaled a mountain; earlier this month, we moved for the fourth time in the past three years—with a three-year-old and a one-year-old, only a week before Conner and I both started new jobs as writing professors at Xavier University in Cincinnati. I’m still in survival mode, and am starting to suspect I will be for a while, but Cincinnati is a wonderful, welcoming city with lots of wonderful parks, and we love our new neighborhood. Everyone is happy to be here and adjusting well! There have been a lot of transitions at Stone Soup in these past three years as well—a new operations manager, a new director, three new board members, and now, a new editor for the magazine and books as well as a new editor for the blog. Change can be invigorating and exciting—it forces change and growth. It helps us see more clearly. But, it can also be exhausting and destabilizing. I am feeling hopeful that as my life stabilizes, the life of Stone Soup will as well, and I am excited to help make that happen. This month, we are all back to school—and my three-year-old daughter Margot will be starting preschool for the first time. Class will soon be back in session for Stone Soup, too; Conner Bassett will, for the first time, be leading a novel writing workshop, starting September 16th! To ring in the new school year, we’re offering 30% off annual print + digital subscriptions. Use code BACK2SCHOOL30 at checkout! Only three spots left! This fall, we’re offering an all new course: Novel Writing! Class begins Saturday, September 16th at 11:00 a.m. Pacific time, and seats are filling up quickly, so register today! Join us this fall for Novel Writing, a multi-week, virtual course instructed by writer, translator, and professor Conner Bassett that will teach you how to write a novel. We will focus on the basic techniques and tools of good storytelling: voice, description, setting, character, plot, conflict, and dialogue. The course will consist of brainstorming activities, in-class writing exercises, readings, and workshops. By the end of our time together, you will have a complete novel draft. Register now! Stone Soup is published by Children’s Art Foundation-Stone Soup Inc., a 501(c)(3) educational nonprofit organization registered in the United States of America, EIN: 23-7317498.
bi-weekly
Saturday Newsletter: August 19, 2023
Lazy Cat (oil pastel) by Tutu Lin, 13; published in the July/August issue of Stone Soup A note from Laura Moran Hello all, I start this week’s newsletter with exciting news! Refugee Project contributor Parwana Amiri, has just published her collection of poems, We will fly higher. Parwana is a young refugee poet from Herat Province, Afghanistan. Her book is available at Barnes & Noble and other major booksellers. Congratulations on this exciting achievement, Parwana! I imagine the majority of our readers will receive this week’s newsletter on the cusp or at the start of a new school year! I can also imagine the myriad of emotions that accompanies this time of year. Indeed, I don’t even have to imagine—the air is thick with nerves and excitement in my house as my daughter is about to begin her first year of high school and my son is set to enter the third grade, both in new schools. Whether you are excited or nervous, or a bit of both, I hope you had a fun and restorative summer. One of the highlights of my summer was teaching Anthropology of the Everyday as an offering of Stone Soup’s Young Author’s Studio Camps hosted in collaboration with Society of Young Inklings. It was inspiring work to see what students came up with as they set out to explore and think critically about their everyday lives and environments. I am so excited to be working with our new Refugee Project collaborating organization, Humanitarian Service Team, to offer elements of this workshop to young people in Nakivale Refugee Settlement in Uganda this fall. Following the workshop, we hope to provide an opportunity for young writers in both sessions of the course to share their work with one another. I look forward to telling you more about it soon! Until then, best of luck with the start of your school year, and while you’re feeling that tangle of emotions that comes with new beginnings, why not take a moment to write a poem about your experiences? As always, if you like what you’ve written, we hope you consider submitting it to Stone Soup. Best wishes, From Stone Soup July/August 2023 The Sun’s Sister by Katja Muckle Eizenberg, 9 I am the sun So big and bold My seeds leave me When I’m old I stand and sway watching them fly away to freedom Bobbing in the breeze And finally landing in the shade beneath The trees But now it is Spring And I am blooming bright Now it is Summer and I am still a lovely sight Fall is here and I look like the moon All of my seeds will leave me soon Soon is here as they blow away Soon is here as one little one stays The moment is here The moment is sad but happy Bad but good The moment is here as the last seed blows away The moment is here as I close my eyes And enter a long winter’s sleep Click here to read more from the July/August issue… Don’t wait until it’s too late! This fall, we’re offering an all new course: Novel Writing! Class begins Saturday, September 16th at 11:00 a.m. Pacific time, and seats are filling up quickly, so register today! Join us this fall for Novel Writing, a multi-week, virtual course instructed by writer, translator, and professor Conner Bassett that will teach you how to write a novel. We will focus on the basic techniques and tools of good storytelling: voice, description, setting, character, plot, conflict, and dialogue. The course will consist of brainstorming activities, in-class writing exercises, readings, and workshops. By the end of our time together, you will have a complete novel draft. Register now! Stone Soup is published by Children’s Art Foundation-Stone Soup Inc., a 501(c)(3) educational nonprofit organization registered in the United States of America, EIN: 23-7317498.
Saturday Newsletter: August 5, 2023
To the Wild (oil) by Sophia Zhang, 12; published in the July/August issue of Stone Soup A note from Diane Landolf Hello, readers! I am no rider, but this painting from the latest issue of Stone Soup, To the Wild by Sophia Zhang, captures the spirit of adventure I’m feeling as I embark on my new role as Stone Soup editor. I first read the magazine when I was in elementary school, and I was blown away by the idea that kids like me could be published authors and artists. And the work was really good! Not just good for a ten-year-old or a twelve-year-old, but high quality by any standards. After more than twenty years as a children’s book editor at a major publisher, I am proud to be joining an organization that inspires kids to create and publish their own wonderful poetry, prose, plays, and artwork. I’m also happy to discover that, now in its 50th year, Stone Soup is every bit as good as ever. Lucky for me, I came on board just in time to be part of judging our Annual Book Contest. The August 15th deadline is fast approaching, so don’t miss your chance to submit you novel, short story collection, or poetry collection for possible publication! I can’t wait to read your stories and poems. Finally, don’t forget our monthly Flash Contest. Check the blog on Monday, August 7th for this month’s creativity prompt and submit your response. Happy summer writing! From Stone Soup July/August 2023 The Fish’s Song by Sage Surra, 9 It was foolish to say it could be done. The boat washing through the shimmering water, the cannons loaded and ready. The world could be a striking place to venture. And as the Earth moved in long ovals, everyone stopped. The fish stopped darting and all their thoughts were focused on the world as the boat sailed and made a street to carry. Then the fish started to twitch and swam forth and everyone stopped peering through their windows. Everything stopped watching. and so the ocean rose and the laws of gravity paused and all the fish flew and took breaths and began to sing. They sang of the life and death of the world. The sailors clutched the sides of the boat. The fish sang of longing and hope. Click here to read “The Fish’s Song” in full… Our Annual Book Contest ends August 15th! Submit your manuscript Registration is open for our fall workshops! We are so pleased to announce the continuation of our writing workshops with an all new course: Novel Writing! Class begins Saturday, September 16th at 11:00 a.m. Pacific time. Join us this fall for Novel Writing, a multi-week, virtual course instructed by writer, translator, and professor Conner Bassett that will teach you how to write a novel. We will focus on the basic techniques and tools of good storytelling: voice, description, setting, character, plot, conflict, and dialogue. The course will consist of brainstorming activities, in-class writing exercises, readings, and workshops. By the end of our time together, you will have a complete novel draft. Register now! Stone Soup is published by Children’s Art Foundation-Stone Soup Inc., a 501(c)(3) educational nonprofit organization registered in the United States of America, EIN: 23-7317498.
