Author and Artist Marianne Richmond

Monkey, Pig and Fish show up at Children's Place

I am excited to share that six of my books will be offered at The Children's Place stores this holiday season!

After a chance meeting between our company (at Book Expo) and their company -- they invited us to New Jersey to tell them more about us, our books and our ability to meet their deadlines!  I'm delighted to say that, as I write, our books are displayed in 100+ stores around the country!  The best part?  The Children's Place created adorable little plush animals to complement the books.  You can also find the books online at www.childrensplace.com. 

About Face

A post or so ago, I explained the process of deciding on a book cover.  Well, here's the p.s. to that:  one can change her mind at the last minute.

I was 99.9% set on this:

But, in my gut, I knew it wasn't quite right.  This image preceded the interior art which took on a life and feel of its own.  The cover didn't match the inside anymore.  Also,  the "core" of the book is describing what one sees when they look into the brown eyes of his or her child.  This cover was missing the essence of this "relationship."

So we played around.  Tried different things.

Including this:

Much better.  This is the perfect case study in how two covers can convey such different messages.  This cover is all about relationship now.  And thus, reflects the content of the book.

This will be appearing in the book department at Target beginning October, 2009.  And yes, Beautiful Blue  Eyes will follow ...

Signed by the Author at Toys R Us...

Hi all, awhile back, I did a post showcasing the 1800 books I was personally signing for a special promotion at Toys R Us.  Well, here it is ... in stores now, in time for the holidays. All the books all this endcap are signed by the author and/or illustrator.  I feel privileged to be surrounded by good company ... and hope to be recognized as a "classic" someday as some of these books already are!

;kj;k

Boston Book Festival!

The rain in Boston (from Hurricane Hannah) held off long enough for the book festival to go off wonderfully!  The day included great music from Choo Choo Soul, Justin Roberts (Four-time Parents' Choice Gold Award winner) and Lisa Loeb.  Authors including Susie Bazil (The Sick Bug), Anne Dewdney (Llama, llama, Mad at Mama), Jarrett Krosoczka (Punk Farm) and me shared our books with the kids and parents, too!  Here's some pics of the day -- check out the gorilla who was on-hand to share some affectionate gorilla hugs from my book, Fish Kisses and Gorilla Hugs!

  

Getting help from the Gorilla (above)

"Could it be that what you need is one big gorilla hug?" (below)

CuldC

Lisa Loeb and me

Summer Board-dom!

In case you haven't noticed the splash on our website, we've recently introduced a line of board books!  Inspired by their big-book "siblings," these sturdy cardboard books are simplified for the curious pre-school set.  A peek inside some of my favorites...

Fish Kisses

and Grandma Loves Me...

These books retail for $7.95 but read on -- I would love to send 3 people a FREE board book just for telling me what his or her favorite pre-schooler activity is  (what you like doing best with your pre-schooler)!

E-mail me at mr@mariannerichmond.com and don't forget to include your mailing address...

Happy Reading, MR

A little help, please!

Hi all, things have been busy around the studio.  We received a nice order from Toys R Us for a couple thousand books.  The only catch?  They need to be autographed.  And no autograph stamp allowed.  Only the real deal.  Authentically signed by the creator.  So ... check out the task at hand:

All these boxes of books must be unpacked, unwrapped, signed and stickered with a special silver "Autographed Copy" sticker.  SO -- seeing the opportunity to teach our children about contribution to a greater goal, we invited them in to help out. My son and his two buddies un-boxed most of what you see here ... and my daughter took a turn at applying stickers.

She made $5 for her efforts.  And guess what?  She spent it at our gift shop on the way out!  Like mother, like daughter! 

Do you know a wish come true?

Wanted to share a bit about my newest book called I Wished for You, an adoption story.  Seems every time I open a magazine or read the paper, there is a story shared of an adoptive family.  Some of the stories have blissfully happy endings; others are tinged with challenges.  No matter the circumstance, however, there's always a sentiment of "meant to be."  My friends, who have adopted children, tell me that they feel God hand-picked their child for them.  It was this feeling and journey that I wanted to capture in my newest book.

This book is dedicated to Andre, Mila, Matthew and Liliana, special wishes-come-true that I  personally know.  Mila's dad said this, "I LOVE the book!  Within seconds I had a lump in my throat.  You do such a great job of letting people express how they love one another without tripping over shmaltz. I also love how you've brought up the question of the birth mother and dealt with it head on and in a loving manner. We talk openly about the kid's birth mother from time to time and your book will be welcome addition to this story."  Thanks, Paulie.  If you've read this far ... and are thinking about your own special wish-come-true, send me an e-mail.  I will send three

people a complimentary, autographed copy of I Wished for You to share with your own special child.  Click on comments below or send it to me personally at mr@mariannerichmond.com.

Book of the Year Award!

Hey, guess what?  Our book, Fish Kisses and Gorilla Hugs, recently received the 2007 Book of the Year Award by Creative Child Magazine, a national publication that focuses on nurturing creativity in children.  Each year, the magazine's testing department receives a BUNCH of toys, books and games.  A panel of judges then determines the winners in each category.   We were the lucky recipients in the Book category.

One of our printers, Cimmaron, sent us this wonderful congratulatory gift!

Fish Kisses tells the story of Ralphie Mix, who doesn't want to go to bed and invents every excuse to avoid it.  His mom comes up with a series of squeezes and tickles, all based on animals, to get him to give in to sleep.  Might be a great book to welcome back the school-year bedtime routine!  MR

This Book of the Year winner for Kids is truly a book that families will love to share with their kids at bedtime. The illustrations are first rate and the story will warm your child's heart.

           Creative Child Magazine,  Editor

New Product Peek!

Hello all,
I'm looking out my window seeing a brilliant blue sky and thinking how nice it would be to be sitting on my deck right about now... BUT!  This is the time of year to create new product for some retailers' Fall product offerings.  One of our new introductions (July, 2007) will be an addition to our scrapbook-made-simple product line:  Dear Grandson, a message of Love

The beautiful part of this product line is that it allows you to create a very personal keepsake with the simple addition of your photos and memories.  Many books for grandparents require Grandma or Grandpa to write at length about their memories and stories.  This proves a daunting task for some and inspired us to create this simpler approach.  Check out one of the sample spreads -- I think it is so beautiful!!  Look for this book to hit stores and our online store in July.

Dear Daughter

Hello!  It's a stormy night in Minneapolis.  Hopefully my computer won't shut down.  Our products recently went into Shopko stores, and I wanted to bring your attention to the book that's taking sales honors:  Dear Daughter, a message of love. 

This book is from our Scrapbook Made Simple Series.  It allows you to create a truly special keepsake by personalizing the pages.  You simply add your photos right over ours.

There's space, too, for simple journaling, words of advice and special memories.  Customers have created this book for everyday giving and also to commemorate a special event:  confirmation, graduation, mother's day...

You may not consider yourself a "scrapbooker," but you can do this, we promise!  You'll feel really proud of your creation... your daughter AND your book!  Marianne