Mission 1: All in a Day's Work | Chapter 14 Excerpt, Middle-Grade Fiction Ages 8-12
Chapter 14: Thursday Night Meet-Up Zelda Screech Cat taunts her bona fides while at home with her nemesis and reluctant owner, Sophia...
Susan Stoderl
Jul 7, 20231 min read
Prequel to Mission 1: All in a Day's Work | Middle-Grade New York City History
Jefferson Market Library was originally built as the Third Judicial District Courthouse from 1874 to 1877 and was designed by architect...
Susan Stoderl
May 26, 20232 min read
Writing Children’s Fiction Ages 8-12 | Letting Children Know They Are Not Alone
Children want to know how to cope with situations that seem overwhelming, that they feel are beyond their years and ability to cope....
Susan Stoderl
Apr 18, 20231 min read
Middle-Grade Detective Book Excerpt | Mission 2: Unexpected Visitors
Chapter 1. Apartment 4B—with a Capital “B” for Bo-o-oring! A cloud of doom hovered over the MacGregor household. Sophia propped her...
Susan Stoderl
Apr 14, 20232 min read
Middle-Grade Prequel to Mission 1: All in a Day's Work | Excerpt
From Chapter 1: Boys, Dragons, and Golden Fleece In this excerpt, the classroom teacher, Bartholomew Smythe, lectures on Jason and Medea...
Susan Stoderl
Apr 7, 20232 min read
A Middle-Grade Indie Author’s Life | To-Do List v. Completed List
To-Do on the Business End of Writing Read all those emails from the writers and entrepreneurs that already know what I need to know. Make...
Susan Stoderl
Apr 4, 20231 min read
What I Would Do Differently | Part 3: Who is Your Audience
My answer was “Uhhh…,” followed by some generalized answers based on why I wrote the story I did. It quickly turned into “I don’t know.”...
Susan Stoderl
Jan 24, 20232 min read
New Sophia and Pedro Short Story and Lesson Learned
Introducing my second short story "A Celebration of Cultures: Pedro's Special Three Kings Day." The stories expand on the characters...
Susan Stoderl
Jan 6, 20232 min read
New Year's Eve Plans Go Awry
#sophiaofthebrightredsneakers, #middlegradebooks, #middlegradedetectiveseries, #newyearsevestory, #childrensfriendshipbooks
Susan Stoderl
Dec 30, 20221 min read
New Christmas Story Just for You
Sophia and Pedro prepare for the perfect Christmas Eve celebration with Mr. O'D and Henry. Missing are Lionel, Henry's nephew, an NYPD...
Susan Stoderl
Dec 23, 20221 min read
Three Turtledoves and a Partridge | Louisa May Alcott and Christmas
Louisa May Alcott, (November 29, 1832—March 5, 1888) was an American author of many children's books, in particular Little Women. In the...
Susan Stoderl
Dec 21, 20225 min read