Laura Roettiger found much of her inspiration from her students and children. But when she moved to the Rocky Mountains, nature revealed a new window for her creativity. In our conversation, Laura share how her first book, Aliana Reaches for the Moon, came to be, her experiences as an educator, and what she has in store for the future. More from Laura: lauraroettigerbooks.com

Twitter @ljrwritenow Random Acts of Reading: https://randomactsofreading.org/

These podcasts are sponsored by:

Eifrig Publishing: https://www.eifrigpublishing.com/

Mama Knows Nada Podcast: https://mamaknowsnada.com/

Song written, performed, and produced by Tracey Coryell. https://traceyland.com/

Podcast produced by: BNC Original, LLC

Anneke saw a gap in diverse books and sought to fill it in 2005 and Language Lizard was born. The mission is to supply diverse and multicultural content to students, their families, and teachers. With over 60 languages, the reach of Language Lizard has grown but the mission remains: multicultural literacy is a keystone. Anneke shares her journey, the books associated with Random Acts of Reading, and why she's passionate about dual-language learning.

More from Anneke and Language Lizard: https://www.languagelizard.com/

Random Acts of Reading: https://randomactsofreading.org/ These podcasts are sponsored by: Eifrig Publishing: https://www.eifrigpublishing.com/ Mama Knows Nada Podcast: https://mamaknowsnada.com/ Song written, performed, and produced by Tracey Coryell. https://traceyland.com/ Podcast produced by: BNC Original, LLC

Rita Bhandari is a Canadian-based educator who never thought she would be an author. But her experiences growing up biracial and watching her students interact prompted her to understand how society perceives and teaches race, especially to children. The Ace Compeers: The Secrets of Skin Tone is a book series that discusses the science behind skin tone and racial differences, a journey of inquisitive characters on a mission to learn the truth. Rita also shares a peek at her second book in the series The Mystery of Race which details how certain terms and stereotypes came in to be.

More from Rita and her Ace Compeers Series: https://acecompeers.com/

https://www.instagram.com/acecompeers/ Random Acts of Reading: https://randomactsofreading.org/ These podcasts are sponsored by: Eifrig Publishing: https://www.eifrigpublishing.com/ Mama Knows Nada Podcast: https://mamaknowsnada.com/ Song written, performed and produced by Tracey Coryell. https://traceyland.com/ Podcast produced by: BNC Original, LLC

Alejandra Domenzain has always been an avid reader... and thus a writer, filling dozens of journals throughout her life. As her path unfolded, she found herself advocating for immigrants' rights, noticing there were very few stories about this topic available to children. So, she turned her experience and her passion into a book for kids, not only to educate but also, in hope, to ignite a spark for them to discover their own innate ambition--whatever it may be. We discuss her profession, what inspires her, and what she aims to achieve with her book "Para Todos" (For All). https://www.forall-paratodos.net/https://www.instagram.com/forall.paratodos/ Random Acts of Reading: https://randomactsofreading.org/ These podcasts are sponsored by: Eifrig Publishing: https://www.eifrigpublishing.com/ Mama Knows Nada Podcast: https://mamaknowsnada.com/ Song written, performed, and produced by Tracey Coryell. https://traceyland.com/ Podcast produced by: BNC Original, LLC

As a child, Kristian was intrigued by monsters and horror stories, even terrifying classmates with his gory own tales. As time has passed, Kristian now desires to share this passion for monsters and creepy things in a fun and lighthearted way. Essentially, his goal is to depict these scary creatures as approachable beings and flip the script on their terrorizing legacies. We discuss his writing process, why he wanted to stop scaring people and start making them smile, plus what he hopes to do in the near future.

More from Kristian: https://worldofkristianjames.com/ Random Acts of Reading: https://randomactsofreading.org/ These podcasts are sponsored by: Eifrig Publishing: https://www.eifrigpublishing.com/ Mama Knows Nada Podcast: https://mamaknowsnada.com/ Song written, performed and produced by Tracey Coryell. https://traceyland.com/ Podcast produced by: BNC Original, LLC

As an educator, Alva Sachs has a passion for literacy and a knack for engaging with children. Her devotion to students has led her to be President of Reading Is Fundamental of Southern California for over a decade and her books have garnered numerous awards. In our conversation, she highlights how her classroom life impacted her author's journey and how involving kids with creativity can be the key to success and confidence.

More from Alva:

https://www.alvasachs.com/

https://www.instagram.com/alva.sachs/

Random Acts of Reading: https://randomactsofreading.org/ These podcasts are sponsored by: Eifrig Publishing: https://www.eifrigpublishing.com/ Mama Knows Nada Podcast: https://mamaknowsnada.com/ Song written, performed and produced by Tracey Coryell. https://traceyland.com/ Podcast produced by: BNC Original, LLC

As a leader in education, Analiza Wolf likes a good book. But when she was seeking stories with characters from Southeast Asian and Pacific Islander descent, she came up empty-handed. Ever the innovator, Analiza took matters into her own hands, writing a book entitled Asian Americans who inspire. This first book showcases the incredible talents and intelligence of numerous role models, all from Asian heritage. We discuss her journey and inspiration and what's to come from her shortly.

More from Analiza: https://analizawolf.com/ https://www.instagram.com/analizawolf/ Random Acts of Reading: https://randomactsofreading.org/    These podcasts are sponsored by: Eifrig Publishing: https://www.eifrigpublishing.com/  Mama Knows Nada Podcast: https://mamaknowsnada.com/   Song written, performed and produced by Tracey Coryell. https://traceyland.com/ Podcast produced by: BNC Original, LLC

After her young daughter was dismayed by the trash scattered on the beach, a family trip to the water turned in to a clean-up effort. Maritza Mejia scribbled the tale and saved it. Nearly 20 years later she surprised her daughter by publishing it. The Purple Shell is a book about ecological awareness, a topic dear to Maritza's heart. But it also holds another passion: bilingual proficiency. After visiting the USA, Maritza was determined to learn English and ensures all her writings--poems, stories, reflections--and written in both Spanish and English.

Y porque es muy importante a Maritza, en Español:Después de que su pequeña hija quedó consternada por la basura esparcida en la playa, un viaje familiar al agua se convirtió en un esfuerzo de limpieza. Maritza Mejía garabateó el cuento y lo salvó. Casi 20 años después sorprendió a su hija al publicarlo. The Purple Shell es un libro sobre la conciencia ecológica, un tema muy querido por Maritza. Pero también tiene otra pasión: la competencia bilingüe. Después de visitar los EE. UU., Maritza estaba decidida a aprender inglés y asegura que todos sus escritos -poemas, cuentos, reflexiones- y escritos tanto en español como en inglés.

Find our more about Martiza's works:

Website: https://luzdelmes.com

Insta: https://www.instagram.com/luzdelmes/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/luzdelmes

Random Acts of Reading: https://randomactsofreading.org/

These podcasts are sponsored by: Eifrig Publishing: https://www.eifrigpublishing.com/

Mama Knows Nada Podcast: https://mamaknowsnada.com/

Song written, performed and produced by Tracey Coryell. https://traceyland.com/ Podcast produced by: BNC Original, LLC