• I am pleased to announce that I received an honorable mention in a competition for the 2010 McKnight Artist Fellowship for Writers of Young Children’s Literature. My submission celebrated unique blue things found in the natural world.

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  Thank you for coming to the 2009 signings and events for The Twelve Days of Christmas in Minnesota. Check back for Fall 2010 signings or view my blog for the latest information.
  
  Check my blog for additional information on signings and events! www.checkersandme.blogspot.com

When you drive through some parts of Canada you see stone landmarks or Inuksuit on rocky cliffs lining roads and highways. One of these carefully balanced piles of rocks is called an Inuksuk (pronounced “in-uk-shuk”). The people of the Arctic region once used Inuksuit to provide directional guidance, mark good hunting and fishing places, and sometimes just to say, “we were here.” Hikers, artists, and whoever else feels the calling to create, still assemble these cairns much to the delight of visitors like me. This simple three stone Inuksuk is pointing the way to a favorite hidden bay on Lake of the Woods—a wonderful place to write stories and catch fish.