Birthdays: Helena Blavatsky (1831), Jacinto Benavente (1866), Edith Hamilton (1867), Mary Roberts Rinehart (1876), Zema Sharp (1889), Ruth Stiles Gannett (1923), Donald Justice (1925), Wallace Markfield (1926), William Goldman (1931), Walter Dean Myers (1937), Gail Parent (1940), Deborah Howe (1946), Sue Monk Kidd (1948), Ann Martin (1955), Katherine Boo (1964), Anthony Swofford (1970)

Zema Sharp is known for creating the “Dick and Jane” readers.

Donald Justice won the 1980 Pulitzer Prize for Poetry for “Selected Poems”

Deborah Howe is known for the “Bunnicula” series written with her husband.

Quote: “It has always seemed strange to me that in our endless discussions about education so little stress is laid on the pleasure of becoming an educated person, the enormous interest it adds to life. To be able to be caught up into the world of thought—that is to be educated.” [Saturday Evening Post, September 27, 1958]” ― Edith Hamilton

“Everyone thinks that having a talent is a matter of luck; no one thinks that luck could be a matter of talent.” ― Jacinto Benavente

Tip: Get yourself a good dictionary, thesaurus, and grammar book—or know where to look for them online. The Chicago Manual of Style is considered the best for most writing. Also Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary and Roget’s Thesaurus. And use them!

Jumpstart: Pretend you’re a doll living in a doll house. What is it like? What do you see from your vantage point? Who plays with you? In what way?