Debbie Ridpath Ohi
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debbieohi.com
Debbie Ridpath Ohi
@debbieohi.com
Kidlit author & illustrator. πŸ‡¨πŸ‡¦. Illus in books by Judy Blume, Michael Ian Black, others.

Newest:
πŸ“š I WANT TO READ *ALL* THE BOOKS
πŸ“š I'M BUSY (w/ Michael Ian Black, 2026/02/24)

publish.obsidian.md/debbieohi/bluesky
DebbieOhi.com @work.debbieohi.com
Pinned
Bloggers / reviewers/ media outlets: If anyone is interested in I'M BUSY, please let me know? My publicist at Simon & Schuster has asked me for suggestions.

Pls reply or use my Contact form (debbieohi.com/contact/) w/your details, and I'll forward the info. Thanks so much!
#KidLit
Excited about the Feb.24 launch of I'M BUSY, written by @michaelianblack.bsky.social
& illustrated by yours truly (Simon & Schuster BFYR), part of our I'M series about kids' emotions. Available for pre-order!

Thanks Kirkus for nice review: www.simonandschuster.com/books/Im-Bus... #KidLit #ImBusy
Final packing for NYC.

Looking forward to meeting up w/ @jpchanda.bsky.social @gingerninja.bsky.social @brianlarossa.com and others.

Hope to see some of you at #scbwiNY26! I am bringing my one (1) copy of I'M BUSY, if anyone wants to take a peek. 😁
debbieohi.com/book/book-im...

#KidLit #ImBusy
January 12, 2026 at 3:04 PM
The link was in the first post in the thread, but here it is again: rhttps://reading-2026.paperform.co/

Thank you for filling out the survey!
January 11, 2026 at 9:33 PM
Nearly 100 respondents so far! Thanks to who have been spreading the word. Interesting results so far, will share more next month. One thing is clear, tho: physical bookstores & libraries are VERY important in helping with book discovery process.
How do YOU discover books to read? Have your reading habits changed in past year? Pls take a few minutes to answer this anon, multiple-choice informal survey:

reading-2026.paperform.co

I'll post results on my blog. One goal: to help book creators. Thank you! πŸ©·πŸ“š
#BookSky #EduSky #KidLit
January 11, 2026 at 9:16 PM
Bwahahahaha!
January 11, 2026 at 8:49 PM
Thanks so much, Maria! If it's a written interview, I'm in. If it's audio-only for a podcast, I will have to pass for now; I find these stressful right now but really appreciate the interest. 🩷
January 11, 2026 at 8:49 PM
Thanks, Caroline! I just responded. I really appreciate the support!
January 11, 2026 at 8:47 PM
Ironic that I'm busy now putting together promo materials for I'M BUSY that I haven't been able to work on earlier because I've been too busy. πŸ˜‰
January 11, 2026 at 7:55 PM
Putting together some sample illustrations from I'M BUSY to add to the bonus page (debbieohi.com/book/book-im...) and am struck by how much this book applies to ME right now. #ImBusy
January 11, 2026 at 7:53 PM
Darn it....just noticed my camera clicker lanyard hanging down behind one of the books. Will try to fix that if I have time, but then need to get back to packing for my trip.
January 11, 2026 at 7:02 PM
Finally got around to taking some updated author promo photos! Too cold to take photos outside (I did try.... brrrr) so did a green screen photo with my iPhone camera instead in my bsmt office, inserted Laurent Linn's brilliant I'M BUSY endpapers behind me. #KidLit #ImBusy
January 11, 2026 at 7:01 PM
Thanks so much, Ryan!
January 11, 2026 at 4:38 PM
Reposted by Debbie Ridpath Ohi
πŸ‘‡πŸ½πŸ‘‡πŸ½

#writingcommunity #callforsubmissions
I chair the acquisitions meeting of @reaktionbooks.bsky.social, an independent publisher. We're open to unsolicited book proposals: history, art, music, film, food, animal studies and any great indefinable non-fiction book ideas you might have. Check out the list and get in touch.
January 11, 2026 at 4:24 PM
If anyone out there speaks Korean, I would very much appreciate a rough gist of what the lyrics say. :-)

My agency's foreign rights department is fine with it, and Greatbooks is a respected publisher in Korea, so I'm assuming all is fine.
January 11, 2026 at 3:51 PM
cont'd

Apparently Korean kids found the original way I drew eyes scary (!), hence the changes (with my permission) by an in-house artist. See the video notes for details.

Korean edition included in this Greatbooks collection:
www.greatbooks.co.kr/introduce/co...
μΆ€μΆ”λŠ” 포포
μ˜μœ μ•„μ—μ„œ μ΄ˆλ“±κΉŒμ§€ 연령별 λ°œλ‹¬λ‹¨κ³„μ— λ”± 맞좘 λ‹€μ–‘ν•œ μ˜μ—­μ˜ 전집을 μ†Œκ°œν•©λ‹ˆλ‹€.
www.greatbooks.co.kr
January 11, 2026 at 3:43 PM
Thanks to Greatbooks for permission to share this music video they made to help promote Korean version of my #KIdLit picture book, WHERE ARE MY BOOKS? Thanks also to the Curtis Brown Ltd's foreign rights dept.

youtu.be/6X13XA-bjE4?...

Some of you may notice the art looks a bit different cont'd
Promo video created by Greatbooks for the Korean edition of WHERE ARE MY BOOKS?
YouTube video by Debbie Ridpath Ohi
youtu.be
January 11, 2026 at 3:41 PM
Feel free to scoop this graphic with a QR code to share with other readers, if they aren't on Bluesky. Thanks so much for spreading the word: tho this is just an informal survey, I'm hoping to get input from as many people as possible - thanks! #BookSky #LibrarySky
January 11, 2026 at 2:13 PM
How do YOU discover books to read? Have your reading habits changed in past year? Pls take a few minutes to answer this anon, multiple-choice informal survey:

reading-2026.paperform.co

I'll post results on my blog. One goal: to help book creators. Thank you! πŸ©·πŸ“š
#BookSky #EduSky #KidLit
January 11, 2026 at 1:51 PM
Working on free I'M BUSY door hanger templates for educators to use with young readers, as well as not-so-old readers. 😁

debbieohi.com/book/book-im...
#EduSky #TeacherSky #ImBusy
January 10, 2026 at 9:02 PM
I recently overheard someone say that audiobooks aren't "real" books & shouldn't count toward reading goals. As someone with visual issues & super-limited time to read, I embrace reading in ALL formats, including audio. I still read print but then typeface / type size / room lighting are key.
I switched from Audible to @libro.fm last year. Not only do my audiobook credits never expire but I can support indie bookstores like @bakkaphoenix.bsky.social.

Pls consider using my referral link to check out Libro.fm? (helps me get more #audiobooks πŸ“šπŸ˜):
libro.fm/referral?rf_...
January 10, 2026 at 1:41 PM
For my own mental health, I'm getting back into the habit of starting each day with a short morning mellow moment, even if it's just a minute of mindful breathing, gratitude, & listening to music like this improv from my friend @angrykem.bsky.social. Also avoiding news headlines until later. #Uplift
January 10, 2026 at 1:36 PM
Reposted by Debbie Ridpath Ohi
Books don't tell readers who they personally are or who they are supposed to be. They do show readers a variety of characters. Implicit in that is this: "Here are some ways of being." Kids books aren't altering your kid to be someone new. They are simply showing them parts of humanity.
January 10, 2026 at 7:00 AM
I switched from Audible to @libro.fm last year. Not only do my audiobook credits never expire but I can support indie bookstores like @bakkaphoenix.bsky.social.

Pls consider using my referral link to check out Libro.fm? (helps me get more #audiobooks πŸ“šπŸ˜):
libro.fm/referral?rf_...
January 10, 2026 at 1:26 PM
Wow, so generous of you!
January 10, 2026 at 1:20 PM
Good luck with your sweater! I made several attempts to learn how to knit or crochet well enough to craft a piece of clothing, but never made it past a (very small) scarf. Rooting for you!
January 10, 2026 at 1:20 PM
Mimi is looking wonderful, Kelly. 🐌

And yes, be careful of your crocheting fingers!
January 10, 2026 at 1:19 PM