MATTHEWCWINNER

Peter Brown, author/illustrator of The Curious Garden, Children Make Terrible Pets, and Mr. Tiger Goes Wild, and now debut middle grade author of The Wild Robot, stops by the podcast to talk about paying attention to wording and phrasing, telling the story as efficiently as possible, and certain subjects you can’t avoid.

Faith Erin Hicks, author/cartoonist of The Nameless City, stops by the podcast to talk about drawing like a kid, unstable ground, and putting the readers in the shoes of the character.

Karen Rivers, author of The Girl in the Well is Me, stops by the podcast to talk about casual cruelty, feeling anxiety start at an early age, and her metaphor for popularity.

Pam Muñoz Ryan, author of El Niño (Scholastic Press), joins Matthew to talk about story ideas as a confluence of rivers leading its author to a narrative.

Daniel Nayeri, author of The Teacher of Nomad Land (Levine Querido), joins Matthew to talk about the utility of beauty in our lives.

James Kennedy, author of The Order of Odd-Fish and founder of the 90-Second Newbery Film Festival, stops by the podcast to talk about the stink of worthiness, blood-thirsty monsters, and the most frequently adapted Newbery winner.

Jess Keating, author of Pink is for Blobfish and How to Outrun a Crocodile When Your Shoes are Untied, stops by the podcast to talk about toning down the voiceyness, using all 88 keys to show everything you love about life, and to share a concept reveal of her upcoming Monsters of the Natural World.

George Jreije, author of Bashir Boutros and the Jewel of the Nile (HarperCollins) , joins Matthew to talk about trying to inhabit the voice of someone to whom he wouldn’t have otherwise related.

Madelyn Rosenburg, author of How to Behave at a Dog Show and Nanny X Returns, stops by the podcast to talk about the sweet spot of talking to kids, pushing the reset button a lot, and how her stories are helping her fiure out what kind of person she wants to be.

Fred Bowen, author most recently of Out of Bounds, stops by the podcast to talk about dealing with disappointment, the best place for kids to learn to lose, and how sometimes you try your best and it still doesn’t work out for you.

Kwame Alexander, author most recently of Surf’s Up, illustrated by Daniel Miyares, and winner of the 2015 Newbery Award for The Crossover, stops by the podcast to talk about the economy of words, the spiritual journey through the white space left on the page, and the joy and power of reading.

Cordelia Jensen, author of Lilac and the Switchback (Holiday House), joins Matthew to talk about belonging, change, and always keeping in mind that you’re writing a story.

Celia C. Pérez shares STRANGE BIRDS: A FIELD GUIDE TO RUFFLING FEATHERS. Celia’s sophomore release is about four girls and one hat that bonded them in sororal friendship. It’s about the Floras and how traditions are made to be challenged. It’s about activism and how others will stand in your way.

Michelle Schusterman, author of Dead Air: The Kat Sinclair Files (Book #1), stops by the podcast to talk about writing a gritty, urban Nancy Drew story, being a skeptic, and how's there's a logical explanation to most things that spook people.

David Barclay Moore, author of The Stars Beneath Our Feet, stops by the podcast to talk about art's healing ability, Harlem as a symbol for blackness, and being different as an act of resilience.

Hena Khan shares MORE TO THE STORY, a novel is inspired by Louisa May Alcott’s Little Women and centering on a Pakistani-American family with four daughters: Jameela, Aleeza, Bisma, and Maryam.

Kristen Kittscher, author of The Tiara on the Terrace, stops by the podcast to talk about creating a surreal world perfectionism gone awry, and how nothing that anyone writes is void of self.

Karina Yan Glaser shares THE VANDERBEEKERS TO THE RESCUE. In her third and latest installment in the VANDERBEEKERS series the five Vanderbeeker children find themselves in dire circumstances when new pets begin mysteriously arriving at their door.

Paula Chase shares DOUGH BOYS, her latest novel and a companion to SO DONE. There are not an abundance of stories reflecting the diversity of black identity. Many stories being published today center on black pain.

Tiffany D. Jackson, author of Blood in the Water (Scholastic Press), joins Matthew to talk about maturing a little faster when the environment calls for it.