Peggy Archer
Children's Author

I love it when kids ask questions when I visit their school. I was at Westville Elementary School and talked about writing to the students in the book clubs there earlier this week. I forgot my camera and couldn't take any pictures, so I thought I'd share some of their great questions with you instead.

How long did it take to write your picture book, TURKEY SURPRISE? It took about one year before I was happy with the final version. I do many, many revisions before I'm satisfied with how it reads. I also read my story out loud to my critique groups, and they offer comments on what is good in the story as well as what they think could be improved. It's wonderful to have writer friends who will give me their honest opinion. It doesn't hurt my feelings if they tell me something could be improved.

Who chooses the illustrator for your books? The publisher decides who will illustrate my books. However I did have the opportunity to say who I thought would be a good choice.

Do you like the illustrations in your books? The illustrations aren't always the way I pictured them in my head when I was writing the book, but I love the illustrations in all of my books! Actually, they are much better than the way I had pictured them!

Have you ever met the illustrators for your books? No I have never met them. I also haven't had any telephone conversations, or e-mails from them. Thor Wickstrom put a little yellow dog in TURKEY SURPRISE, and I was excited about that because I had a little yellow puppy. But he didn't know that.

How many books have you written? My 4th published book, NAME THAT DOG!, will be out on April 1, 2010. But I've written hundreds of books! Some are in my file folders waiting to be finished, or for me to re-write them until they are good enough to send out to publishers.

Do you work on only one book at a time? Usually I work on a book for awhile, then put it down and work on something different, like poetry or non-fiction. Then later I go back to my book with fresh eyes. I can see things in my book more clearly then that should be changed or re-written. And there are times when I'm busy with some non-writing thing, and it might be easier for me to work on a poem, because a poem isn't as long as a whole book. So I'm always working on something.

What kind of books do you like to read? When I was young I liked to read fairy tales and Nancy Drew mysteries. My favorite book was Nurse Nancy. Now I read all kinds of books but I still love to read mystery and suspense books, and I like the Chicken Soup for the Soul books.

Thanks to all of the students and teachers and librarians for their wonderful questions!  Read More 

There are lots of things that I'm thankful for at Thanksgiving. My family, friends, good health. I can't wait for tomorrow, to be with family, and for the turkey and the pumpkin pie!

When it comes to writing and giving thanks, I think of. Read More 

Our church, St. Mary's in Kouts, hosts an anual Ladies Tea in December. This year the date is December 6th. It really is great fun. Along with the different teas and sandwiches and desserts, there are door prizes of Christmas wreaths and other gifts. Three themed baskets will be raffled off at the end of the afternoon: a Wine and Cheese Basket, a Chocolate Basket, and, my favorite, a Family Book Basket with books for all members of the family including a dozen autographed books.

I want to send out a special thanks to the authors who donated their books  Read More 

An inspiring conference for children's writers and illustrators was presented by Indiana SCBWI this past Saturday at the offices of Children's Better Health Institute (CBHI) in Indianapolis. CBHI was a wonderful host--special thanks Read More 

Because of her I write poetry. And I’m filled with new ideas and stories to write.

When we got Snickers she weighed 5 pounds. I could hold her in my hand. At the animal shelter they said, “Her mother is a cocker spaniel.” The vet said, “You have a little lab!” Her daddy had the dominant genes.

She was creative. She pulled the tablecloth off the kitchen table to get to the food. She ate a dozen chocolate cupcakes from the back of the stove without leaving a trace. She could get the screen door open, even when it was locked.

She was contradictory. Snickers did not like cats. One day she ate the cat food from the neighbor’s front porch.
She got carsick. The only way to get her back home when she escaped from the yard was to back the car out of the driveway and open the car door. She came running.

She was full of energy. She ate my yellow tulips, and chased lightening bugs. She barked at birds, and once or twice at an airplane. She took her snowman toy with her everywhere. She ‘buried’ rawhide bones in a corner of the living room. She liked pretzels.

One day when she was a puppy, she peed on the kitchen floor while I was mopping it for the third time in a row. I put her outside. That was the last time she peed inside the house. Until recently. She never went past the baby gate when we had it up, even though she could easily push it over or jump over it. Back then. She would race across the back yard, and followed us everywhere...

We’ll miss you, Snickers.

A Dog’s House

copyright PeggyArcher, 1999

Noseprints on the window.
Pawprints on the door.
Bones are in the pantry,
Dishes on the floor.
You left your mark upon this house.
You claimed it from the start.
With noseprints on the window,
And pawprints on the heart.
 Read More 

Last week I attended the Indiana Writers Consortium dinner event on the Business of Writing. The company was superb, and the food was great. It was nice to meet new friends and spend time with the old ones.

I learned more about the not-so-much-fun side of writing-- the business side of writing. It's the part that horns in on your writing time. The part that makes you keep records, and sets deadlines. The part that defines you as a serious writer.

I love speaking to students and young children about my books and writing, and to adults about writing for children. The business side says I have to let people know that do this, including the what's and how's. I hope that my website and blog is a good start. And I hope to see you at your school or library, or at an event for children's writers, one day.  Read More 

Aren't vacations wonderful?! My husband and I took a week off and went to the Smokey Mountains in TN. How beautiful, and vast.

Like writing for children...
So many ideas, so little time to put them into words.

But not just any words. The right words. Words that jump off the page, words that stretch the imagination, words that take you someplace you've never been before. They're simple, and lyrical and fun. They make you laugh or cry, but always, they make you feel. Together they tell a story, change characters, and can change the world one reader at a time.

The vacation is over, but  Read More 

Last Saturday at St. Joseph College in Rensellaer 11 children's pictue book writers,including myself, gathered to learn and talk about writing the pictue book.

What a great morning, meeting new people, enjoying a common aspiration.  Read More 

After weeks of spending too much time on the couch because of a broken foot or a broken ankle this summer, I finally started putting away the accumulation of papers and books that had surrounded me as I sat with one foot or the other propped up on pillows. Magazines, books, old mail--all got sorted and put away, or thrown away. But I also found bits of new writing, and revisions of old manuscripts there. Those still sit in the corner of the couch where Read More 

This past Saturday Indiana SCBWI hosted an event for children's writers on Ghostwriting with Sara Grant, Editor at Working Partners in London. Sara talked about their projects and gave tips on sending an application, but she also offered a wealth of knowledge on writing the novel and Read More