By Melissa Stoller 
www.MelissaStoller.com
 
 
It’s July, and where I live, that means summertime - filled with jumping into pools, building sand castles, and roasting marshmallows. This month, jump into idea collecting and story building.
 

                                                                         Canva Image


​Here are some tips to get started:

1. Take a walk at a beach, lake, or other body of water. Observe your surroundings, including children at play, animals (wild or pets), and any water craft. Jot down ideas relating to your observations, and choose one to write about. 

2. Remember childhood activities you enjoyed during the summer months. And think about your favorite summer adventures today. Are these the same? Different? Notice any sparks from these thoughts and incorporate them into a story.   

3. What foods did you enjoy during the summer months? Did your family have any special summer recipes? Did your friends or family (in your childhood or today) have any special summer get togethers or reunions? If so, let those inspire a title or first line.

4. Take a trip to a local bookstore or library and find books set during the summer. Let those inspire you!   

5. If you can, jump up and down (or tap your hand on a table) – and for each jump or tap, name a word you associate with summer. Write a story incorporating three of those words.   
 
​
I hope these prompts help you find ideas that will encourage you to jump into storytelling this month. Happy writing and creating. 
 

​
MELISSA’S BIO:
 
Melissa Stoller writes to bring heartfelt connection and joy to her readers. Melissa’s newest picture book, Stella’s Special Recipe: A Rosh Hashanah Story, illustrated by Valerya Milovanova, releases from Kar-Ben Publishing on August 4, 2026. Her recent picture books include: Hazel and Mabel: Two Hearts Apart, illustrated by Anita Bagdi (Gnome Road Publishing, 2025) and Mojo’s Return: A Story of Resilience and Hope, illustrated by Uzi Binyamin (co-authored with Lishay Miran Lavi and Mary Millman) (Niv Publishing, 2025). Melissa is also the author of the chapter book The Enchanted Snow Globe Collection - Return to Coney Island, and the picture books Scarlet’s Magic Paintbrush; Ready, Set, GOrilla!; Sadie’s Shabbat Stories; Planting Friendship: Peace, Salaam, Shalom; and Building Bridges: Peace, Salaam, Shalom (co-written). Melissa is a Blogger for the Children’s Book Academy, a Rate Your Story Judge, a member of SCBWI, a Westhampton Beach Performing Arts Center Trustee, and a former school and synagogue trustee. In other chapters of her life, Melissa has worked as a lawyer, legal writing instructor, freelance writer/editor, and early childhood educator. She lives in New York City with her family, and enjoys theatre, museums, and connecting with kids at school and library visits.  
 

 
CONNECT WITH MELISSA:
https://www.MelissaStoller.com
https://www.MelissaStoller.com/blog 
http://www.facebook.com/MelissaStoller
www.instagram.com/Melissa_Stoller
www.pinterest.com/melissa_Stoller

by Dr. Debra Collins
​www.TheWriteDebraCollins.com

​June-November is hurricane season where I live. We keep an eye on the tropics, paying attention to storm watches and warnings. Whether planning our evacuation routes and destinations, packing for a stay in a hurricane shelter, or staying in our homes, we follow the instructions in our hurricane preparation guides. Referring to checklists, we take steps to safeguard our properties and stock our pantries with nonperishable food, water, medicines, and other essentials. Those of us who have generators refer to manuals that explain how to run them safely. We tune in to radio reports telling us the places to avoid due to floods and downed power lines, and the places to go in order to find or give assistance.
 
Thanks to the plentiful announcements, guides, manuals, checklists, and news reports, we know just what to do to prepare, get through the storm, and manage until utilities, stores, and everyday services are back.
 
But the announcements, guides, manuals, checklists, and news reports say nothing about how to handle our emotions.
 
This month’s spotlight shines on a story that speaks to a child’s feelings in the face of the storm.

​A hurricane is coming. Lupita feels worry surging through everyone around her: her parents, her friends, her neighbors, her teacher. She fills with worry, too. Will the storm gobble them up? Will it blow her house away? Will the storm last a long time? Will it knock down her favorite tree?
 
As Lupita navigates the storm within as well as the storm outside, she receives tender loving care. She also provides it.
 
The Care Lupita Receives
 
Through their words and actions, Lupita’s parents bolster her ability to manage the intense emotions stirred by the hurricane.
 
Before the storm, Mami and Papi assure her, “It’s OK to be scared.” They reassure her, “We’ll be safer if we prepare.” Lupita watches Papi close the shutters and Mami bring the planters indoors.
 
During the storm, Lupita and her parents stay close together. Mami and Papi distract Lupita from the howling winds and rattling shutters by playing cards and board games. When the tornado siren sounds, they lead Lupita to the sturdiest place in the house: a closet. They huddle together. When the power goes out, Lupita’s parents murmur, “It’s going to be okay.”
 
The storm passes. Papi announces, “It’s over.” Going outside with her parents, Lupita finds the sun is shining. Along with her parents, she checks on friends and neighbors.
 
The Care Lupita Provides
 
As her parents prepare for the storm’s arrival, Lupita asks, “What can I do?”
 
Lucky, her puppy needs to go outside, so Lupita takes him. Beneath the palm trees, she discovers two baby birds, palomitas. They are nestled in the grass, peeping loudly in distress. “A storm is coming!” she tells them. “Fly away! You need to stay safe!”
 
But the palomitas are too young to fly. With the wind whipping up, they have fallen from their nest. The sky darkens. The first raindrops fall.
 
The birds’ mother is nowhere to be seen.
 
Lupita resolves to take care of the palomitas, and Lucky, like her parents take care of her. She will keep the animals safe and calm.
 
Cradling the birds in her hands, Lupita brings them indoors. She decides to make them a nest, so they will be safe and secure. After considering several options, Lupita chooses an empty shoebox. She fills the bottom with shredded newspaper. The little birds snuggle in. Lupita sets out a tiny bowl of water for them.
 
Lupita keeps her puppy and the birds near her as the family plays cards and games. When they all huddle in the closet, Lupita curls up beside the shoebox and holds Lucky in her lap. When the power goes out, Lupita uses a flashlight to check on the birds. Just like her parents do for her, she tells the palomitas and Lucky, “It’s going to be okay.” When Papi announces that the storm is over, Lupita informs the animals.
 
When it is safe to go outside, Lupita brings the palomitas back into the yard. Along with her family and neighbors, Lupita helps to clear away debris.  She is reunited with neighbors and friends…and the little birds are reunited with their mother, who arrives with the sunset.
 
Coping and Hoping
 
Through Lupita’s dual roles, receiving care and providing care, this story strongly models and reinforces skills for weathering the emotional storm.
 
Self-Management:
Lupita builds skills for managing her stressful emotions. Her parents’ reassuring statements provide words she uses to calm herself and the animals. The practical steps her parents take before, during, and after the storm show Lupita ways to optimize safety, keep her mind from focusing on worries, and restore order after the storm. Lupita follows her parents’ example, applying her own planning and organizational skills. She constructs a comfortable nest for the birds, keeps the animals close to her, checks on them, and verbally reassures them.
 
Self-Awareness:
By successfully caring for the palomitas, Lupita enhances her sense of self-efficacy. She does not feel helpless. She is able to rise to a challenge.
 
Social Awareness:
Lupita is aware of others’ feelings and needs. Before the hurricane, she is alert to the worries affecting her family and community. During and after the storm, she wonders whether her friends, neighbors, and teacher are safe. After the storm, she reconnects with everyone and pitches in to help with the clean-up. Lupita’s empathy and compassion extend to her puppy and the baby birds, prompting her to take action to ensure their welfare.
 
Responsible Decision-Making:
When Lupita finds the baby birds, she identifies the problem. They cannot fly away, and their mother is not there to provide whatever care she could. Lupita then devises and implements means to address the problem.
 
An Extra-Special Story
Lupita, her parents, and her puppy already provide the elements of a highly effective coping-with-a-hurricane story, but the added element of the flightless palomitas makes this book really soar. Lupita, feeling helpless, encounters the baby birds, who are far more helpless. The interplay of Lupita both receiving care and giving care amplifies the social-emotional threads, making this an especially empowering story for readers. Alexandra Alassandri’s author’s note adds another boost, as we learn how Lupita’s caretaking role was inspired. Just before a hurricane, Alexandra and her family discovered baby mourning doves in a fallen nest. They cared for the tiny birds during the storm, and, yes, when the storm passed, the birds’ mother returned.
 
An Educator’s Guide
On the publisher’s website, Beaming Books provides an educator’s guide that includes social-emotional activities. Children can use the “Anxious Storm Clouds,” to identify things that make them nervous, and the “Rainbow of Hope” to explore ways to cope with big, overwhelming emotions.

​By Melissa Stoller 
www.MelissaStoller.com
 
 
This June, notice all the ideas that are blossoming and blooming all around you. Reach out and grasp them before they flitter-flutter away! 

                                                                         Canva Image 

Here are some prompts to get started:
 
1. Take a walk through a botanical garden, a small local garden or park, or a neighborhood. Journal about what you see. Or draw some doodles. Do any story ideas spark from these strolls? 

2. Dig deeper. Research about flowers and trees online or at the library. Choose one flower and one type of tree and try to incorporate them into a story idea. 

​3. Scroll through photos on your phone or in a photo album. Focus on 3 that contain images of flowers or trees. Describe what is happening in those photos. Choose one to include in a story arc.   
 
I hope these prompts help you find ideas that will bloom and blossom this month.
​Happy writing and creating. 

​MELISSA’S BIO:
 
Melissa Stoller writes to bring heartfelt connection and joy to her readers. Melissa’s newest picture book, Stella’s Special Recipe: A Rosh Hashanah Story, illustrated by Valerya Milovanova, releases from Kar-Ben Publishing on August 4, 2026. Her recent picture books include: Hazel and Mabel: Two Hearts Apart, illustrated by Anita Bagdi (Gnome Road Publishing, 2025) and Mojo’s Return: A Story of Resilience and Hope, illustrated by Uzi Binyamin (co-authored with Lishay Miran Lavi and Mary Millman) (Niv Publishing, 2025). Melissa is also the author of the chapter book The Enchanted Snow Globe Collection - Return to Coney Island, and the picture books Scarlet’s Magic Paintbrush; Ready, Set, GOrilla!; Sadie’s Shabbat Stories; Planting Friendship: Peace, Salaam, Shalom; and Building Bridges: Peace, Salaam, Shalom (co-written). Melissa is a Rate Your Story Judge, a Blogger for the Children’s Book Academy, a member of SCBWI, a Westhampton Beach Performing Arts Center Trustee, and a former school and synagogue trustee. In other chapters of her life, Melissa has worked as a lawyer, legal writing instructor, freelance writer/editor, and early childhood educator. She lives in New York City with her family, and enjoys theatre, museums, and travel.  
 

 
CONNECT WITH MELISSA:
https://www.MelissaStoller.com
https://www.MelissaStoller.com/blog 
http://www.facebook.com/MelissaStoller
www.instagram.com/Melissa_Stoller
www.pinterest.com/melissa_Stoller

 

by Dr. Debra Collins
​www.TheWriteDebraCollins.com

“Make your main character likeable. Even if they are unlikeable, show something likeable about them.” This is common advice for writing a story with an unappealing protagonist. By showing the readers something redemptive, something sympathetic, the readers will root for them.

But what if the main character is a bully? Readers don’t want to root for them. Readers want to see the consequences of their awful behavior. Will the bully get their comeuppance? Will they come around to a new, empathetic mindset?
​
Let’s look at three stories whose main characters are bullies: YERTLE THE TURTLE by Dr. Seuss, BRING ME A ROCK! by Daniel Miyares, and LUNCH EVERY DAY by Kathryn Otoshi.

Yertle, king of the turtles, lives in a clean, warm pond, with plenty to eat. He has everything he  needs. But he wants more. Since he is the “ruler of all that I see,” he needs to see more. He needs a tall, tall throne.

Yertle commands the other turtles to stand on each other’s backs. He settles himself on top. He’s never satisfied, so this goes on and on. The turtles pile on and the tower grows.

Mack, the “plain little turtle” at the bottom, meekly wonders how long he and the others must stand there. He tells Yertle of their suffering. They’re in pain. They’re starving. Their shells will crack. But Yertle intends to rise higher than the moon. Lacking empathy, he remains unswayed, until…
​
Mack burps. The “throne” trembles. Then, PLUNK! Yertle falls headfirst into the pond. From then on, he remains miserably stuck in the mud. The turtles he tormented are free!

This bully, a grasshopper, also is a king. Like Yertle, he is certain of his superiority, and he  demands service. At his command, the other bugs bring big rocks. When the smallest bug arrives with a “puny pebble,” he orders the “little bug” to go away.

The king has the large rocks stacked into a “majestic pedestal.” He lounges on top, relaxing with his drink. But the drink spills. The king slips. The tower wobbles, and he slides to the edge of the teetering top. “HELP!” he cries.

The tiny bug jams his little pebble into just the right spot. The tower is balanced.

The king comes around, at least a bit. “You saved my life! However can I repay you?” The little bug rearranges the rocks into towers of equal height. Now everyone, from the king to the runt, is on the same level.
​
We’re not told how the king feels about it.

In an earlier Blogfish post “Empathy for the Bully” (July 2024) I discussed LUNCH EVERY DAY in detail. The main character is a surly, aggressive boy who repeatedly steals his classmate’s lunch. But the consequence that changes everything is not a downfall. It’s a lift-up.
 
As we follow the bullying boy, we discover that beneath his hard exterior is a sad child who is deprived, beaten, and hungry. He lacks food and love. He is convinced that he has no value, and he resents that the other kids’ lives are better than his. Their homes are better. Their lunches are better. He knocks them down, a show of strength meant to compensate for his own weakness.

The mother of the child he torments surprises him. Instead of punishing him, she promises to make him lunch, every day…and she does. Her kindness teaches him he does have value. He begins to believe in himself.
​
LUNCH EVERY DAY is a true story. That boy is now an adult. His name is Jim Perez. At the end of the book we learn that Jim is known for his community leadership, anti-bullying and gang prevention initiatives. Jim earned an Ambassador of Peace Award from the Violence Prevention Coalition of Orange County California.

​By Melissa Stoller 
www.MelissaStoller.com
 
 
This May, mine for ideas in your own life and in the history of your family or friends. These can be wonderful starting points for story sparks. 
 
Here are some tips to get started:

                                                                           Canva Image

​1. Interview members of your family (or neighbors and friends), especially people from older generations. Do they have any stories that you find compelling? Can you turn their adventures into a story idea?  

2. Walk around your home – what family ritual objects are visible that you could use to help ignite a story idea? Choose one and think about and/or research the origins of the object and how the object is used. Try to incorporate this object into a story title or opening. 

​3. If available, review old letters, diaries, and photos. Or, check out current photos on your phone or current text or email exchanges. Listen to old songs and watch old movies. Do any inspire book ideas? 
 
I hope these prompts help you mine for ideas in your family, your home, and your history. Let me know in the comments. Keep digging deep! Happy writing and creating.