Welcome!

Middle Grade
Written By Anne-Marie Strohman

Welcome to the MG Lunch Breakwhere we devour middle grade books and savor the best craft practices

We love to read middle grade books. We love to write middle grade books.We love to talk about middle grade books. Now we're writing about middle grade books with a focus on craft. We look at what an author does well, and we examine our own writing in light of what we find. Then we put the best tips in easily-digestible portions for you. Whether you're a newbie MG writer or a seasoned one, we hope you'll learn from these books with us and join the conversation--through comments, through your own blogs, through social media (#mglunchbreak).You'll find a complete list of our monthly book selections in our Book Gallery. If you have suggestions for posts you'd like to see, drop us a line through the contact form. (We strive for excellent editing, but if you spot any typos, the contact form would be a great place to let us know.) So join us weekly on Tuesdays for an MG Lunch Break. We'll be serving up some tasty morsels!

Anne-Marie Strohman Editor-in-Chef 

Featured
Erin Becker: Go For It!
Erin Becker: Go For It!

I want to write books that make people feel good. I wrote Crushing It during the pandemic, during a difficult time in my life. Writing this story was like a warm hug and a reminder that sometimes, things do turn out okay. 

Tim McCanna: Embrace Brainstorming
Tim McCanna: Embrace Brainstorming

Brainstorming a solid idea for a book is as much a part of the creative process as actually writing the book. Sometimes you’re struck by lightning and that can be exciting. But often it’s about putting on your thinking cap and solving the riddle of “What should I write next?”

Lindsay Lackey: Welcome Ideas Out of Your Comfort Zone
Lindsay Lackey: Welcome Ideas Out of Your Comfort Zone

My biggest tips for authors: 1) don't be afraid! New topics and challenging themes ARE possible. And 2) Ask for help! Books are built like houses: the results are much better with the help of a few experts.

Anne-Marie Strohman

Anne-Marie Strohman (co-editor) writes picture books, middle grade novels, and young adult short stories and novels. She is a teacher, an editor, and a scholar. She is an active member of SCBWI and holds an MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults from Vermont College of Fine Arts.

Find her at amstrohman.com and on Twitter @amstrwriter

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