Ah, notifications flash at me from various devices, it’s time to blog they say or that your friends Cate and Gretchen have blogged again- and you have not! So I’m finally paying heed to the notification Fey and doing as they say!

Hello my dear Fellow Children’s Writers and friends,

It has been two months since my last post and I’ve been as busy as ever. Some of this busyness has even been related to our craft and industry which is thrilling. Why thrilling? Because it’s involved going back out into the world to find and meet kindred spirits for the first time in two long years. How I’ve missed it all. Book Launches, Book Week and birthday get togethers, and even a Preschool visit, with a return visit booked for December. Not bad for a debut author’s first Book Week! Special thanks to Tegan, Lisa and the rest of educators at Nido Early School, Seven Hills for being so welcoming and allowing me to share Star and some of my other tales with your beautiful children. I don’t know who was the most excited, the children, the staff or me!

There’s even more excitement to come with my first Love Your Bookshop Day as a presenting author. My local bookshop, Five Senses Education, who were so generous with their help during my Lockdown launch of Star have asked me to do a little presentation, reading and book signing on the 8th of October for Love Your Bookshop Day at both of their stores. I do hope to see many more writing and non-writing friends at North Rocks or Seven Hills Five Senses. If you do come, make sure to say, ‘Hi!’ I’d love to see you.

It’s such a buzz meeting fellow KidLit writers, which is why I’m also thrilled to be attending StoryArts Brisbane in October and involved in Book Fair Australia in November, before returning to the wonderful Nido Early School in December.

StoryArts Brisbane is one of my favourite writing festivals, it’s small and intimate, while still hosting many well known and respected writers, illustrators agents and editors. I, for example, am looking forward to attending Picture Book workshops with Zanni Louise and Freya Blackwood and an assessment with Alex Adsett. This final one for POC presented a new and interesting dilemma which may well be the subject of a whole different post down the line. Be sure to look out for this discussion in the next couple of months.

Book Fair Australia is a new event for writers of all sorts to showcase and sell their work. I will be sharing a stall with my amazing and talented friend Karen Hendricks alongside other wonderful and hardworking KidLit friends, Ashling Kwok, Carla Fitzgerald, Emma Hay, Jacinta Froud, Jacqueline De Rose-Ahern, Sandra Bennett, Sarah Speedie and Susea Spray.

Here’s what Nido Early School kindly said about my visit, ‘Today we were very lucky to have children’s author Artelle Lenthall come in and read her very own book- Star. This book “shares the importance of our own unique place in the world.” Our Kinder and Kinder 2 children along with educators throughly enjoyed this experience. #bookweek2022’

I love being involved in helping children, especially those in Sydney’s Greater West to develop a love for story and books and it’s equally delightful to find people who share that vision. If you’re involved in a school or preschool and would like me to present my Christmas book Star along with some other Christmas or differently themed stories, now is the perfect time! So, don’t hesitate to contact me below, on my Facebook page Artelle Lenthall or come along to one of the events above and have a chat about it there. Can’t wait to see what else the year holds.

Farewell Fellow Children’s Writers and friends,

Savour the Quest,

Journeygirl