Welcome to my new blog, which now includes content from many of the blogs I’ve created over the years. You can now also access content via category from this one page instead of having to search for my individual blogs, which were scattered over various platforms and websites.
Thanks to all who took my (very) informal reading poll at the beginning of the year. 217 responded. Keep in mind that I am not a professional survey-maker, and my reach was limited to my own social media…so be wary about drawing broad conclusions. After the first few hours, I . . .
What are YOU busy doing? Help us celebrate by customizing your own I’M BUSY door hanger! You can download a free, print-ready template here. To educators: if you combine this activity with our book with young readers, I’ll record a special video message just for your students! Submit a photo . . .
To help celebrate next week’s Feb. 24th launch of I’M BUSY, I’ve create these free, print-ready templates. Feel free to download and customize! Also note that I’m seeking I’M BUSY reader gallery photos. Educators, feel free to use this as a classroom activity with our book with your young readers! . . .
Thanks to my friends Karen Krossing, Helen Kubiw, Caroline Fernandez, Adrienne Kress, and Kevin Sylvester for these fun “I’m Busy” photos! I’ll be adding them to my “Reading the I’M… picture books in the wild” Reader Gallery on Pinterest, and would love to add yours, too. For guidelines and to . . .
Shortlink to this post: debbieohi.com/reading2026 If you have a few minutes to spare, I would appreciate you taking my (very) informal survey on book reading and book discovery. The survey is anonymous and multiple choice, plus a free-form comment box for anything else you’d like to tell me: 2026 Book . . .
Any other bullet journal fans out there? I usually prep my annual bullet journal in December, but the holiday season was unusually hectic for me and I ended up working through most of it. The page layout above is the one I’ve settled on after a lot of experimenting with . . .
I gave up on concrete New Year’s Resolutions years ago. Inevitably, they led to disappointment and self-recrimination. Instead, I choose a theme word. My word for 2025, like 2024, was “Simplify.” I aimed to simplify things in my life, both digitally and in person, and thus carve out more time . . .
In 2014, I was thrilled to illustrate the covers of Judy Blume titles being reissued by Atheneum / Simon & Schuster Children’s as middle grade: Are You There God? It’s Me Margaret, Blubber, Deenie, Iggie’s House, It’s Not The End Of The World, Starring Sally J. Freeman As Herself, and . . .
Woohoo! A single, precious copy of I’M BUSY by Michael Ian Black and me just arrived on the weekend, along with a sweet note from our editor at Simon & Schuster Children’s, Justin Chanda. Don’t you love Laurent Linn’s fabulous book design? This newest in our I’M… series about kids’ . . .
Karen Krossing wrote comics and poetry as a kid and dreamed of becoming a published writer. Today, she’s the author of many books for kids and teens, including picture books and novels. She won the SCBWI Crystal Kite Award for Canada in 2015 and 2023 and has been a finalist . . .