“Art is long, life isn’t.” Randolph Caldecott Randolph Caldecott, the father of the picture book, was born on March 22nd, 1846, in Chester, England. An artist from a very young age, Caldecott’s first published drawing was a sketch of a local hotel fire, which was printed in the London Illustrated News when he was just 15. By… Read More March 22nd – Randolph Caldecott
“Don’t get it right, just get it written.” James Thurber, Collecting Himself: James Thurber on Writing And Writers, Humor and Himself James Grover Thurber was born December 8th, 1894, in Columbus, Ohio. When he was seven years old, his brother accidentally shot him in the eye with an arrow. His parents took him to a… Read More December 8th – James Thurber
“Nothing mattered … but writing books, and living the kind of life that made it possible to write them.” Willa Cather Willa Cather was born Wilella Sibert Cather on December 7th, 1873, in Gore, Virginia. She was the eldest of seven children, and when she was nine, the family moved from Virginia to Nebraska in… Read More December 7th – Willa Cather
“Isn’t that one of the great pleasures of reading? You enlarge your life in so many ways.” Elizabeth Berg Author Elizabeth Berg was born on December 2nd, 1948, in St. Paul, Minnesota. When she was three years old, her father re-enlisted in the Army, and her family frequently moved after that. Berg attended college at… Read More December 2nd – Elizabeth Berg
“I have often noted that it takes the thinnest skin in the world to be a writer, it takes the thickest to seek out publication. But both are needed—the extreme sensitivity and the hippo hide against criticism.” Katherine Paterson Katherine Womeldorf Paterson was born October 31st, 1932, in Qing Jiang, China. Her parents were Presbyterian… Read More October 31st – Katherine Paterson
“If you want to be a writer-stop talking about it and sit down and write!” Jackie Collins Jacqueline Jill Collins was born October 4th, 1937, in Hampstead, London. She was the middle child of three. At 15, she was expelled from Francis Holland School and reportedly had a brief affair with the 29-year-old actor Marlon… Read More October 4th – Jackie Collins
When I am gone what will you do? Who will write and draw for you? Someone smarter–someone new? Someone better–maybe YOU! “When I Am Gone” by Shel Silverstein Sheldon Allan Silverstein was born September 25th, 1930, in Chicago Illinois. His father ran a bakery and expected Sheldon, who was born at the beginning of the… Read More September 25th – Shel Silverstein
Daily Inspirations for Writers and Readers 