November also means PiBoIdMo!

October was a month of celebrations for me. Celebrating two new picture books, 1 + 1 = 5 and Other Unlikely Additions and Minnesota's Hidden Alphabet. Celebrating turning 50 years old (it's been one of my best birthdays ever). And of course celebrating Halloween, with plenty of pumpkin carving.

Now it's time to catch my breath and look at a new month. As Stephanie reminded us, November is National Novel Writing Month. Cheers and good wishes to all who are taking up this challenge. But for those of you who wish to try a shorter writing form, November is also Picture Book Idea Month, or PiBoIdMo.

For the second year in a row, Tara Lazar has assembled a collection of children's authors and illustrators who are providing inspiration and encouragement on writing picture books. Readers of Tara's blog are encouraged to take the PiBoIdMo Challenge: come up with one new idea for a picture book each day throughout the month of November. And for all those who follow through, she is offering some fabulous prizes (oh, I do love contests!), including free books, original artwork, manuscript critiques from published authors, and personal consultation from established agents. Best of all, after 30 days you'll have 30 (or more) ideas for a new book.

It's not too late to take part. You have until November 7th to take the PiBoIdMo pledge to qualify for prizes. And even if you don't sign up for the challenge, you can read the ongoing list of inspirational ideas to get motivated for your next picture book (I was the guest blogger for November 2).

Whether your interest lies in novels or a picture books, here's to a new month of celebrating successful writing!