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Jessica Speer has written The Phone Book, published by Familius, a social emotional learning guide to cell phones with additional fun facts and puzzle games. Lesley Imgart illustrated the text. I wish that I read this years ago. However, it is here now and others may learn from it. This is a nonfiction book that could be passed through families as each child turns of phone age or likewise through neighborhoods again slightly before a child receives their first phone. One can skip to the case studies for faster learning. The intent of the book is twofold: a less vulnerable child/person and a kinder, better world.
One Question Interview with Jessica Speer
ETC: Welcome, Jessica.
What advice would you give students in K – 12 who would like to write books?
JS: Years ago, I attended a writing conference, and author Matt de la Pena shared the following during his keynote session.
“It’s not about writing what you know; it’s about writing what you want to know.”
Wow! That was a shift for me. I thought I had to be an expert in the subject before I started writing. I thought I needed to know all the facts or how the story might end.
Matt’s wisdom encouraged me just to begin, to start the book, to explore an idea. Through writing, we become experts. Like anything, it requires practice and persistence.
But as you practice the craft, you improve. As you research, you learn. As you revise, you grow. And as you write, you expand your expertise on the topic. You become the expert on your story and how it ends.
Start with what you want to know, then begin.
ETC: Thank you for the excellent advice, Jessica.
Visit author Jessica Speer
Visit illustrator Lesley Imgart
Visit author Matt de la Pena
Visit your local bookstore Second Star to the Right Books
