I've never been one to make New Year's resolutions. I mean most of them aren't even fun. How many years in a row can you promise to eat better and exercise more?
Sorry, but in my book, that = boring. I can come up with a LOT better resolutions than that. How about attaining the power to burp rainbows to bring joy to all the children of the world? Or how about being able to transform into a skeleton at will to scare said children when they displease me?

"Now that's just plain silly," you say. "So unrealistic." Oh yeah? How realistic is your resolution to eat better and exercise more, hmmm?

But I have made a sort of resolution for 2009 and it involves the very thing you're reading. The last time I posted on my blog was in 2006. That was ages ago! I mean we must have flying cars by now, right? Right? So it's about time I venture from my office/studio, known as "The Troll Hole" or on some of my more challenging days, "The Pain Cave" and let everyone know what's going on with my new books, art, and the out of control biker bar that runs my brain. I can't believe the world has actually still kept spinning not being privy to this information. A lucky break I guess.

So what IS new? My most favorite agent in the world, Edward Necarsulmer IV has made sure I'm still writing children's books. I will have forthcoming titles out with both Little Brown and Simon and Schuster in the next couple of years - more on that later.

This March, "Big, Bigger, Biggest" is coming out with Henry Holt -yay! I'm a total word freak, and if you are too you might want to look it up. How many chances do you get to see the word "lackadasical" in print? Not enough, I assure you.

And this fall, I have broken my string of books under 800 words with my first Y/A novel out with WestSide Books - yay, again!

Now because I've been successfully unemployed since 1984 (and by "successful" I mean I'm still somehow alive) I still do other things to keep that honorable designation. Teaching has taken up more of my time - shameless plug coming - Teachers, I'm a joy to have in your class, just ask my mom. My school visit info's on the sidebar. Thanks!
And of course I still color. In fact, here's the first installment of:

"Hey, Look! It's a Nancy Coffelt original!"

This holiday season, Portland, Oregon, my hometown, had an epic (for us anyway) snow "event". I love that term, it seems somehow more clinical and more dire all at the same time. By the time we were all able to leave our homes we were feeling pretty batty after having to talk to only our family members for days at a time. The snow scene depicted here may seem at its surface to be a light-hearted diplay of canine holiday cheer, when in reality it is a dark look at the animalistic violence that bursts forth from our souls after too many meals of canned goods and endless games of Scrabble because of some stupid snow "event". And the best part is it's for sale! Contact me for price and size info.

So I did it. A kind of resolution. I'll try to do it again because a resolution really isn't a thing in itself. It's simply a step toward attaining an end goal. Good luck to all of you with your steps. I'll try to take another one soon!