Follow Friday by Donna

I first met Cynthia Leitich Smith when both of us were starting to write for children. I was working with Kathi Appelt to lead the Brazos Valley chapter of SCBWI and Cynthia was becoming active in the Austin children’s writer scene. Fast forward more years than I care to tell, and now Cynthia is a media star! Not only is she the author of bestselling books, like ETERNAL and TANTALIZE (both Candlewick), she is also an amazing resource for other writers. Her website was named one of the top 10 Writer Sites on the Internet by Writer's Digest and an ALA Great Website for Kids. Her Cynsations blog was listed as among the top two read by the children's/YA publishing community in the SCBWI "To Market" column.

Cynthia is also one of those authors who writes in multiple genres. Her award-winning books for younger children include JINGLE DANCER, INDIAN SHOES and RAIN IS NOT MY INDIAN NAME (all HarperCollins). Next year look for the release of HOLLER LOUDLY (Dutton, Nov. 2010) for kids and BLESSED for YAs (Candlewick, Jan. 2011). Cynthia is also a member of faculty at the Vermont College M.F.A. program in Writing for Children and Young Adults.Check out her award winning blog or follow her on twitter @CynLeitichSmith!