Most authors of Parenting Press books are available for interviews and presentations. Some of our illustrators are great media guests, too! Here are some of the authors and illustrators who have been interviewed recently. We’ve also described the topics on which they speak at conferences, preschool annual meetings, PTAs and in-service workshops. For other authors, please contact the Parenting Press Publicity Department regarding availability.

Peggy King Anderson has written dozens of books for young readers. Her Parenting Press publications include First Day Blues and “A Gift from the Mountain: Eduardo’s Story” in A Horse’s Tale. A Seattle-area community college writing instructor and the mother of five, Anderson can discuss how to motivate children to want to write, how to teach almost anyone to write, and the genre of historical fiction. Contact the author

Maribeth Boelts, the Iowa author of Parenting Press’s Kids to the Rescue! First Aid Techniques for Kids, is a former teacher with book after book after book to her credit. She specializes in stories for children, toddler through tween. Boelts, who completed an EMT course while writing Kids to the Rescue!, can discuss first aid (and teaching it to kids), reading and writing skills, and writing for publication. Contact the author

Jennifer Anne Brown, M.S.W., the Seattle-area co-author of What Angry Kids Need, focuses on children and their families, providing both parenting education and family therapy. She also consults to mental health agencies regarding children who have both developmental disabilities and mental health concerns. Mrs. Brown, who met co-author Pam Provonza Hopkins when they both worked in Yakima, wants their new book to do more than tell parents how to squelch bad behavior. “Parents need to understand why kids act angry. They need to understand how their responses can impact children’s healthy emotional development. And parents need to be empowered, with practical skills and realistic expectations for changing how kids act,” she points out. Contact the author

Janan Cain, the Chicago-area author/illustrator of The Way I Feel, demonstrates how to portray different emotions when she speaks to school groups. Her recent presentations have resulted in such compliments as, “I am confident you sparked writing and illustrating ideas in the children—maybe even in the teachers. It is obvious that you are passionate about what you do . . .” from Pleasantdale School principal Matt Vandercar, LaGrange, IL. The handout she uses for personal appearances is available on our web site, so television viewers can follow along when she shows how to create happy, sad, and angry faces. Contact the author

Linda Carlson, the Seattle author of Internet Safety and Your Family, used her investigative reporting skills to fumble around the Internet, and was she ever surprised at how much personal information is readily available—absolutely free. Her guide, available both as a downloadable publication and as a traditional book, alerts adults to the risks they may be creating when they or their children use blogs, chat rooms, Facebook and other sites with profiles. She also explains phishing, spoofing, spam, cyber bullying, and how you can be vulnerable to stalking and identity theft even if you’re not online. Contact the author

Jean Illsley Clarke, M.A., is a Minnesota parent educator whose most recent research focuses on the overindulgence of children and how it affects their adult lives. A latecomer to writing—it was her 50th birthday when she made the commitment to write a book—she is now the author or co-author of a dozen books, three of them published by Parenting Press (How Much is Enough? Leader’s Guide, Time-In, and Who, Me Lead a Group?). This vibrant grandmother is a frequent speaker at parenting and child development conferences in the U.S. and Europe, and can provide interviewers with both solid content and humor. Contact the author

Elizabeth Crary, M.S., the Seattle author of such classic parenting books as Without Spanking or Spoiling and the new Dealing with Disappointment and Self-Calming Cards, has appeared on Oprah, Dateline NBC, and dozens of other talk shows. Besides child guidance on a variety of topics, Crary can provide realistic suggestions for teaching kids to cope with anger, frustration and disappointment. Contact the author

Sandi Dexter, the Seattle preschool instructor who wrote Joyful Play with Toddlers: Recipes for Fun with Odds and Ends, is a world traveler who incorporates her experiences, both home and abroad, into her early childhood education program. She is an experienced broadcast guest and can liven up your talk show with homemade sock puppets and rubber band banjos. Contact the author

Roslyn Ann Duffy is a Seattle counselor who can discuss parenting, discipline and child care. She is the co-author of The Parent Report Card, which encourages kids to “grade” their parents on such topics as respect, affection, chores and homework. Contact the author

Jan Faull, M.Ed., the Seattle author of Unplugging Power Struggles and Mommy! I Have to Go Potty! (1st ed.),, is an experienced talk-show guest. She can discuss a range of topics from toilet training to teenage power struggles. Contact the author

Pam Provonsha Hopkins, M.S.W., the Seattle-area co-author of What Angry Kids Need, started her career as the “Child Abuse Lady.” That’s what kids called Hopkins in her first job as a child sexual abuse prevention community educator for Walla Walla College. Her assignments with the college’s Parent Education Resource Center led to work on such issues as bonding and attachment therapy and eventually to a private practice as a mental health counselor. She and co-author Jennifer Anne Brown explain possible causes of angry behavior, help parents teach kids to handle anger in healthy ways, discuss why some children seem angrier than others, help parents manage their own anger and recommend when to seek help outside the family. Contact the author

Rebecca Huntley, The Sleep Book for Tired Parents, is a Seattle parent educator who can discuss sleep issues, postpartum adjustment and children’s oral health. Contact the author

Eileen Kennedy-Moore, Ph.D., is the New Jersey author of What About Me? 12 Ways to Get Your Parents’ Attention (Without Hitting Your Sister), a clinical psychologist and the mother of four young children. She’s an ideal speaker or interview on such topics as emotions and relationships. Contact the author

Marilyn Maple, Ph.D., wrote On the Wings of a Butterfly to help adults talk to children who are terminally ill. A Gainesville, Florida educator, screenwriter and playwright, she is committed to discussing death as a normal part of life. She can also speak on the craft of writing. Contact the author

Helen F. Neville, B.S., R.N. is the author of the revised and expanded edition of Mommy! I Have to Go Potty! (2nd ed.). She is also the author of our well-received new Is This a Phase? Child Development & Parent Strategies, Birth to 6 Years and co-author of Temperament Tools: Working with Your Child’s Inborn Traits. A veteran Bay Area pediatric nurse and parent educator, Mrs. Neville has been affiliated with Kaiser Permanente since 1976. An experienced speaker and instructor, Mrs. Neville has a reassuring style that helps new parents understand what to expect at every developmental stage between birth and age 6. She is also a frequent speaker on the innate nature of temperament and how it affects development, behavior and family harmony. Contact the author

Lyndall Shick, M.A., Understanding Temperament: Strategies for Creating Family Harmony, is a LaGrande, Oregon family therapist who can discuss children’s and adults’ temperament as well as gay parenting and grandparenting. She can also talk about domestic violence and about the challenges of single parenting for battered women. Contact the author

Susie Leonard Weller, the Spokane, Wash., parent educator who has written Why Don't You Understand? Improve Family Communication with the 4 Thinking Styles, helps parents and professionals understand why some people are in sync with each other and their kids—and others “just don’t get it.” She takes the familiar “left brain, right brain” theory several steps further to explain why the way each person’s brain works is so important in family communications. Mrs. Weller is also an excellent source of information if you’re considering a story on why people who are too much alike sometimes make poor partners. Contact the author

Sandy K. Wurtele, Ph.D., is a University of Colorado at Colorado Springs psychology professor who has made the prevention of child sexual abuse the focus of much of her career. The author of Out of Harm’s Way: A Parent’s Guide to Protecting Young Children from Sexual Abuse, she speaks at national and international conferences regarding what she calls a “heinous crime.” She emphasizes that, regardless of how much abuse prevention education children receive, protecting them is still an adult responsibility. She outlines typical behavior of potential abusers, and tells adults what to be alert to. Contact the author

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Contacting an Author

To reach an author, e-mail our media contact, or phone (800) 992-6657, ext. 105 or (206) 364-2900, ext. 105. Please provide your name, the name of your publication, your story topic, and your deadline. We’d appreciate having both your telephone number and e-mail address.

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