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Beth Volkmann

@bethvolkmann.bsky.social

2.2K followers 1.2K following 2.7K posts

M.Ed. Children's Book Writer. Picture Taker. Nature Lover. Anglophile. Curious about flora and fauna of all kinds but particularly fond of elephants, wolves, birds, insects, and trees. #SCBWI. #12x12 #kidlit #naturalist elizabethvolkmannauthor.com

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Beth Volkmann @bethvolkmann.bsky.social · 24m

single fallen leaf
a spark of inspiration
Henri's second life

#haikuSaturday #haiku #Matisse #nature #art

(Matisse drew inspiration from nature and it is thought that some of the shapes in his scissor-paintings are reminiscent of oak leaves.)

Bur oak leaf turning from green to yellow.

Henri Matisse artwork: The Sheaf (La Gerbe) 1953. Leaf like cut out of several bright colors.

Beth Volkmann @bethvolkmann.bsky.social · 1h

My morning glories, too, are wilted but for the ones that had climbed onto the porch. I'm sad to have lost them with that small dip in temperatures. But they were - glorious!

Reposted by Beth Volkmann

Kirsten W. Larson @kirstenwlarson.bsky.social · 14h

Hooray! Our first review is in. Kirkus calls THIS IS HOW YOU KNOW “a soaring paean to the scientific method in all its messy, uniquely promising glory.” @cornelia-illo.bsky.social
🔗 https://tinyurl.com/5azscyp4

#KidLit #STEM #PictureBooks #ScienceEducation #Curiosity

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Beth Volkmann @bethvolkmann.bsky.social · 10h

Love the concept of autumn wings in reference to Monarchs. Really lovely. Very meditative.

Reposted by Beth Volkmann

Lorraine Sime @lorrainesimeart.bsky.social · 16h

A wee drawing of a bolete for #fungifriday. #fungi #nature #drawing

Drawing of a bolete mushroom that has been uprooted. It has mostly brown shades with bits of grass at the bottom from where it was taken out the ground.

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Beth Volkmann @bethvolkmann.bsky.social · 22h

Thanks, Abbie, for sharing this!

Reposted by Beth Volkmann

Abbie James @abbiewjames.bsky.social · 23h

SCATTERGOOD by @hmbouwman.bsky.social is one of the best books I've read this year! Such an authentic and nuanced discussion about the existential questions that I suspect many of us share. Lovely cover art by Angie Kang. Thanks for the recommendation, @pollyf.bsky.social!
#kidlit upper #MGlit 📚👍

cover of SCATTERGOOD has a light orange (as if sunset) background; the top left corner is a chess board pattern and these squares morph into a flock of birds in flight as they continue down the page; the bottom shows a girl in a blue dress walking to the left on a lane towards a large building with a few lights on inside; there are trees/bushes on the sides of the building; the book title and author are above the building

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Beth Volkmann @bethvolkmann.bsky.social · 22h

Be transported by tremendous actors reading snippets of short-listed #BookerPrize finalists.

I promise you will forget the 'noise of the news' and remember that ART is absolutely crucial to the human spirit.

Gorgeousness abounds! Prepare to be moved!

The Booker Prizes

Welcome to the home of the Booker Prize and the International Booker Prize, the leading literary awards for works of fiction published in the UK in English

thebookerprizes.com

Reposted by Beth Volkmann

Alison Weiss @alioop7.bsky.social · 1d

Opening #askkidlit if there are any takers. What do you desperately need to know about the swirling publishing world? If you'd rather DM, just let me know!

a man wearing glasses and a plaid shirt is holding a piece of paper that says do you have any questions

ALT: a man wearing glasses and a plaid shirt is holding a piece of paper that says do you have any questions

media.tenor.com

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Reposted by Beth Volkmann

Betsy Bird @fuse8.bsky.social · 1d

"I was gobsmacked by the new research of awe—how it can change the way you think and feel, lessening our anxieties and making us more generous and kind. And I knew I had to write a book for kids..." A talk with @chanastiefel.bsky.social & Susan Gal #kidlit 📚👍 afuse8production.slj.com/2025/10/09/a...

Awe (and) Inspiring. A Cover Reveal and Q&A with Chana Stiefel and Susan Gal

afuse8production.slj.com

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Beth Volkmann @bethvolkmann.bsky.social · 2d

If you’re scrolling, consider this an invitation to pause.

Breathe in.
Breathe out.
Breathe in.
Breathe out.

💚

Beth Volkmann @bethvolkmann.bsky.social · 2d

I am so over the moon to see your pitches out in the world! I love every single one!❤️

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Reposted by Beth Volkmann

Vanessa Gillings @vanessagillings.bsky.social · 2d

My twelfth piece for my solo show at @gallerynucleus.bsky.social!

#kidlitart #illustration #watercolor #watercolour #gouache #originalpainting #fantasyart #fantasyillustration

watercolor and gouache painting of a girl in a feather cloak floating midair above a standing stone as a crow and a storm come to greet her

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Beth Volkmann @bethvolkmann.bsky.social · 3d

This gets talked about in screenwriting, too, as 'tone' comps. How the story is meant to make someone feel.

Beth Volkmann @bethvolkmann.bsky.social · 3d

I love a fall garden. Next year I’m going to have a majority of fall blooms. Watching the bees guzzle the nectar right now makes me feel very happy.

Beth Volkmann @bethvolkmann.bsky.social · 3d

❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

Beth Volkmann @bethvolkmann.bsky.social · 3d

I was actually taking a picture of the flower (late bloomer) and the bee just zoomed right in! 💜

Beth Volkmann @bethvolkmann.bsky.social · 3d

❤️❤️❤️

Beth Volkmann @bethvolkmann.bsky.social · 3d

I needed to share this moment of serenity. Maybe you needed this moment, too.

#bumblebee #ecology #entomology #backyardgarden #joy

Lone bumblebee with sunlit wings feeding on a bright pink coneflower.

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Reposted by Beth Volkmann

Harold Underdown @hunderdown.bsky.social · 3d

Yes, Baker and Taylor is shutting down. Not good news. The big question is how much they owe to publishers:

www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/...

Baker & Taylor Prepares Plan to Shut Down

At a town hall yesterday, B&T owner and CEO Aman Kochar announced that following the termination of the ReaderLink acquisition deal, he does not see a path to keep the library wholesaler in business.

www.publishersweekly.com

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Beth Volkmann @bethvolkmann.bsky.social · 3d

Yikes!

Reposted by Beth Volkmann

Ben Goldfarb @bengoldfarb.bsky.social · 3d

Eighty-five percent participation in a voluntary program to slow down and thus reduce vessel noise is… actually pretty impressive? Probably much higher than the percentage of drivers who stick to the speed limit in, say, Yellowstone. #marineroadecology

www.sierraclub.org/sierra/slow-...

Slow Lanes Help Save a Dwindling Orca Population

Reducing speeds can help killer whales navigate an increasingly louder sea

www.sierraclub.org

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Beth Volkmann @bethvolkmann.bsky.social · 3d

🐛🐞🐝❤️

LOVE this so much!!

#picturebooks #kidlitart #insects #entomology

Farida Zaman @faridazaman.bsky.social · 3d

Day 4 of the #alexandrasillosinktober #alexandrasillos2025 challenge.
The prompt is : MASON JAR
.
.
.

#kidlit #kidlitartpostcard #illustration #illustrationartist #art #illustrationforkids

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Beth Volkmann @bethvolkmann.bsky.social · 3d

I would also guess an immature Orange-crowned Warbler.
Glad you were able to guide it back outdoors and on its way.

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Beth Volkmann @bethvolkmann.bsky.social · 4d

Hooray!
Rebecca's newsletter is a bouquet of the best news and inspiration for being a good steward of land.
Whether you think globally or about your own small patch of earth, I highly recommend signing up for her posts.

🌼🌿🌎👩‍🌾

#gardens #ecology #nativeplants #horticulture #entomology #getoutside

Rebecca McMackin @rebeccalovesplants.bsky.social · 4d

Hello I am back on Bluesky! I was overwhelmed with the world, the world is overwhelming. But I am now back to talk about spider gardening, leaving leaves and the nuns of ecological restoration. xo!

Grow Like Wild! - Harvest Moon

Left leaves, spider gardening, and nuns.

rebeccamcmackin.substack.com