CHILDREN

I love to write fun, feel-good adventures for children – and always have several books in various stages of development.

I’m an experienced speaker and classroom presenter, and a passionate advocate for children’s literacy in disadvantaged communities as a ‘Writer in Residence’ and ‘Literacy Ambassador’ for the education charity, Ardoch.

I’m humbled and thrilled in equal measure that my debut picture book, WONDERFUL SHOES has been announced as a 2022 ‘Notable Book’ in the Early Childhood Category, of the Book of the Year Awards, by The Children’s Book Council of Australia (CBCA). It has been such a joyful collaboration with the award-winning Australian illustrator Tania McCartney and the wonderful (and also recent award-winning) team at Windy Hollow Books.

My next children’s picture books will be published by the amazing team at Affirm Press, and are tabled for release in August 2023 and early 2024 – please do keep an eye on my Instagram page for more announcements about these lovely books over the coming months.

An excerpt from the CBCA Judge’s Report for Wonderful Shoes:

“It is a joyous celebration of uninhibited child’s play.

These two key elements of words and pictures are perfectly balanced and combine to make an engaging, fun read that would be highly relatable for children and adults alike.

Wonderful Shoes is perfectly suited to 0-6 year olds. It would make a beautiful addition to early learning centres, preschools, and preparatory classrooms as well as in the homes of little people.”

BRONWYN JOSEPH, JUDGE, CBCA BOOK OF THE YEAR 2022 – EARLY CHILDHOOD

Please click here to read the full CBCA Judge’s book review of Wonderful Shoes

Since being published in May 2021, WONDERFUL SHOES has featured on the iconic ABC Kids TV show Play School Story Time; been a No 1 bestseller; received many wonderful reviews; and been named in a prestigious list of ‘Best Rhyming Books for Children’ by respected Early Years Educator and Teacher Librarian, Megan Daley of Children’s Books Daily. Please stay tuned to  my Instagram for all the latest news and reviews on WONDERFUL SHOES.

WONDERFUL SHOES is a joyful celebration of everyday play, through the eyes of our tiniest humans, who know exactly where to find the best toys in the world!

Delightful verse and vibrant illustrations shine a light on the timeless tip-tapping click-clacking fun to be had, when little feet find big shoes.

It is now available in all good bookstores, giftshops and online.

Please click on the image to the left, which links to a blog post, where Tania and I share some behind-the-scenes snippets on how we created WONDERFUL SHOES.

Please click on the image to the right, which links to Teachers’ Notes and Colouring-In Sheets on the publisher’s website.

I believe books play a vitally important role in children’s social, emotional and intellectual development. I’m particularly passionate about getting picture books into the hands of babies and toddlers via their carers in the early years from birth to pre-school age – and have been involved in many programs in aid of disadvantaged communities as a Literacy Ambassador for the children’s education charity, Ardoch. It goes without saying that I’m a huge fan of school and public libraries, and the role they play in providing access to books and interactive storytimes – no matter what a child’s postcode may be.

As an active member of Australia’s kidlit community I enjoy developing my craft by attending meetings with my Melbourne branches of SCBWI and CBCA; kidlit conferences (especially the annual KidLitVic Meet the Publishers, where I was a guest blogger in 2019); and entering writing competitions. I was honoured to have made the Shortlist of the ‘Scribbles Creative Writing Awards’ , sponsored by HarperCollins Childrens Books Australia, for my picture book and middle-grade stories.

I really enjoy spending a lot of time in the classroom each year with Yr 1 – Yr 6 children in my ‘Writer in Residence’ workshops for the education charity Ardoch, and find the children to be some of the most authentic, engaging and interesting humans on the planet.

Author Emma Bowd reading NSS2017 at Brighton Library, Bayside Library Service; and conducting a Writer in Residence at Arnolds Creek Primary, 2017.