Big Bearded Bookseller #125
currently reading 'Barrowbeck' by Andrew Michael Hurley
Had a lovely final week of the holiday, going to the Yorkshire Sculpture Park is always such a treat and helped clear the mind.
What I’ve been up to these past two weeks.
It’s been a fortnight of two halves really.
The first was a weeks holiday, reading a lot and visiting a few favourite places to just relax and I didn’t do much toward any of the blogs and having time for my lovely tattoo to heal a bit before being on my feet all day.
Then I was back to work and not only to the shop but to the blogs.
I’m continuing to mirror work from the various blogs to the Ko-Fi as soon as I write the posts so that I don’t forget to do this.
There was even time to get a new Author Q&A up onto Big Bearded Bookseller (see below) and I reformatted a couple more author/illustrator posts during the week.
Other news
Instagram continues to be a more bookish affair, with the more personal posts as stories so they don’t mess up the grid too much.
I also just discovered Shortbox Comics Fair, an online only “innovative digital comics fair showcasing all-new, original comics from artists around the globe!” that lasts for the month of October and have had great fun buying a new comic every now and then. These are all from indie creators and are a great way of supporting them.
Favourite so far was “Dog Days” by Bianca Bagnarelli that was unexpectedly sad and I had to pause for quite a while after reading this.
Beautifully illustrated and narrated story of loss and the confusion and numbness that comes with it
Recently added bookshops
Bart's Books, California
Cook & Book, Brussels
Goldberry Books, North Carolina
Livraria Ler Devagar, Lisbon
Recently added publishers
Recent book reviews
Lockett & Wilde's Dreadfully Haunting Mysteries: The Ghosts of the Manor (28/09/24)
Soma (30/09/24)
Shy (05/10/24)
The Snowman Code (08/10/24)
Armed With Madness (10/10/24)
Other blog posts
Laurie Ann Thompson - Author Q&A (01/10/24)
Prey (01/10/24)
Solo Gaming (05/10/24)
Solo RPGs (05/10/24)
Laurie Ann Thompson – Author Q&A
A former software engineer, Laurie Ann Thompson now writes for young people to help them understand the world we live in so they can help make it a better place for all. She strives to write nonfiction that encourages imagination and fiction that reflects universal truths, as seen in Emmanuel’s Dream, a picture book biography of a man who changed his country’s perceptions of disability (winner of the ALA Schneider Family Book Award, an ALA Notable Book, a CCBC Choice, and a Bank Street College Best Book of the Year, among dozens of other accolades); Be a Changemaker, an inspiring how-to guide for teens who want to change the world; and the Meet Your World series (illustrated by Jay Fleck), which encourages young readers to learn about a familiar animal by pretending to be one. She lives near Seattle, Washington, in the Pacific Northwest, USA. Learn more at lauriethompson.com.
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lauriethompsonauthor/
Twitter (X): https://twitter.com/LaurieThompson
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/laurieannthompson/
Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/lauriethompson.bsky.social
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@LaurieThompsonAuthor
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/lauriethompson1/
What kinds of things do you like to write?
I mostly write nonfiction for kids, everything from board books for the littlest readers to a young-adult how-to guide. Anything that catches my interest is fair game, but lately I’m feeling especially drawn to STEM and social-emotional learning (SEL) topics.
What inspired you to write the genre you do?
I am super curious and love learning new things! And if I’m going to take the time to learn about something, I might as well share that knowledge, right?
Tell us about your current book.
My newest book is You Are a Garter Snake! It’s the fourth book in the Meet Your World series, which encourages very young readers to learn—through gentle interactivity and pretend play—about the animals who share their world. It was a real challenge to get inside the mind—and body—of a snake, especially since I’ve been irrationally terrified of them my whole life! But it was a great learning experience. My hope is that kids when kids see how much we all have in common, they’ll be inspired to care for and protect not only garter snakes, but the environment and each other, as well.
What did you do before (or still do) you became a writer?
I have a degree in applied mathematics and was a software engineer before starting my second career as an author. I took some time off work to raise my children, and while reading to them I rediscovered how much I love children’s books. It took a lot of hard work and patience, but I eventually found a path to publication… and I haven’t looked back! Most people are surprised to hear about my analytical background, but I feel like coding and writing are very similar processes for me. They both involve breaking an idea down into manageable parts, putting those parts in the right order, and then using language to achieve the desired outcome. Plus, rarely is either endeavor right on the first try, with both taking multiple iterations to perfect. Both feel like puzzles to me, and I love solving puzzles!
Were you a big reader as a child?
Yes, I read literally everything I could get my hands on! My parents were very supportive, and they let me read whatever I wanted, so I was exposed to a bit of everything.
What were your favourite childhood books?
I spent a LOT of time just browsing through our set of encyclopedias. I was fascinated with the idea of trying to take all of the knowledge in the world and condense it all in one place. Of course, that’s impossible, but growing up in the pre-Internet days, the encyclopedia was an absolute treasure trove. My all-time favorite story book, however, was Judith Kerr’s Mog the Forgetful Cat. I felt a lot like Mog, always making mistakes and not quite sure why the people around her weren’t pleased with her behavior.
Which genres do you read yourself?
It’s probably no surprise that I read a lot of nonfiction on a wide range of subjects. And, of course, I read a lot of children’s books. But my favorite escape has always been fantasy novels! Lately, I’m really enjoying the “new” sub-genre of cozy fantasy, such as Travis Baldree’s Legends and Lattes.
Would you ever consider writing outside your current genre?
Yes, I’m actually working on a middle-grade fantasy novel! Writing long-form fiction is a very different process from writing picture books or nonfiction. I loved the drafting phase, but I’m still trying to wrap my head around how to approach a revision.
What will always distract you?
The crow that lives in my backyard. Whenever it sees me working, it comes and sits right outside my window and stares at me until I deliver peanuts.
How many books are in your own physical TBR pile?
I think you mean how many shelves full of books are in my physical TBR pile. More than a few, that’s for sure!
What is your current or latest read?
Right now I’m reading Starter Villain by John Scalzi and The Ends of the World: Volcanic Apocalypses, Lethal Oceans, and Our Quest to Understand Earth’s Past Mass Extinctions by Peter Brannen. Both are very good!
Any plans or projects in the near future you can tell us about?
I’m really excited about my next picture book, Let the Light In, which comes out in September. It’s a social-emotional learning (SEL) tool full of examples of how we can take care of ourselves when we’re experiencing sadness, grief, or depression. I’ve heard from so many people—young and old alike—who are struggling right now, and I hope this ode to the many forms of self-care can be a balm to those who need it. I’m also putting the finishing touches on an informational picture book about Newton’s Laws Paws, inspired by my cat, who was clearly a physicist in a previous life. I’m working on two different picture book manuscripts about climate change for very young readers. And, I’m researching a more serious middle-grade nonfiction about the Earth’s past—and present—mass extinction events. So, lots of different projects in various stages of development… just the way I like it!
Interview series*
I run a series of interviews on the three main blogs I’ve got and am always on the lookout for more people to be involved, if you are interested why not look at the one related to you and get in touch.
I’m also thinking of setting up some questions for another coupole of categories in the book world; editors and agents but they may take some time to develop as I have to figure out what I personally would like to know about their roles and routes into those roles.
What’s happening in the next two weeks?
‘I would challenge you to a battle of wits, but I see you are unarmed!’ William Shakespeare
Tomorrow, the 12th of October is, of course, Bookshop Day and this year the exclusive tote is from Angela Harding and has a beautiful otter on one side, remember these are very limited so get down early to support your local bookshop and grab one of these.
I’ll be spending a lot of time adding interviews from the pool that is building up again, with the idea of publishing at least two new ones a week until they run out (or not if I keep getting people who want to be involved).
Along with that I’m planning to reformat at least one old post a week with the idea that this will all be finished by the end of the year and continue to mirror posts so that there’s a place for all the blog posts.
The other plan is to get at least one new image a week edited and onto the Stephen Baird blog and Redbubble.
I’m also planning a 10 x 10 gaming challenge for 2025, choosing which 10 board games I want to include in this challenge and setting up a page to follow this challenge through the year.
and there should be at least two new books read and reviewed as this seems to be the pace I’m at with reading and reviewing at the moment.
As always, if you have any news/offers/events you would like included in the newsletter, or know of any publishers or bookshops I’ve missed please email me at bigbeardedbookseller@gmail.com and I’ll get it on ASAP.
A reminder that a paid subscription to this newsletter is only the cost of one large coffee a month. This helps with lots of things but right now it would help with domain and hosting costs for the various projects.
If I could get 700 or so newsletter or Ko-Fi subscribers I could work on these projects full time including travelling to visit, film, and write about independent bookshops and publishers!
The links to the various projects can be found at: