NIGHT SHADOWS Publication 2021

Night Shadows tells the story of a lonely girl who finds an unlikely friend in her elderly neighbor. Each night kids have been creeping around and spray painting houses in Tasha’s neighborhood. Two days in a row, her neighbor Mrs. Lucy awakes to find graffiti outside her home. Tasha helps her paint over it. They discover that they are alike, except for their age, and become inseparable. This nuanced story shows young readers that honesty and respect are the most important elements for friendship. This third collaboration of Caldecott Medal-winner Ed Young and and Barbara DaCosta shows the intensity with which a child experiences solitude and companionship. From Seven Stories Press/Triangle Square.

★ Kirkus Reviews: “Conversations about motivations and actions will abound as children absorb the impact of grace.”

Visit Barbara's website for further information!

DaCosta Story in "Minnesota Not So Nice"

 

Barbara DaCosta's latest short story, "Mary, Marry, Merry" appears in the entertaining anthology Minnesota Not so Nice: Eighteen Tales of Bad Behavior from the Twin Cities chapter of Sisters in Crime.

by Barbara Merritt Deese (Editor), Pat Dennis (Editor), Michael Mallory (Editor), Timya Owen (Editor)

2021 Silver Falchion Award Finalist for Best Short Story Collection presented by the Killer Nashville International Writers' Conference

Minnesota Not So Nice is a collection of eighteen short stories written by local Minnesota authors. We poke holes in the legendary "Minnesota Nice" to expose the darker side of our great land of 10,000 lakes.

When "Minnesota Nice" flies out the window, Bad Behavior takes center stage. The Twin Cities Chapter of Sisters in Crime explores what defines the legendary "Minnesota Nice" and why Bad Behavior sometimes has its own rewards in their latest mystery anthology. Eighteen tales of Bad Behavior from some of Minnesota's best crime fiction authors.

Mighty Moby—This August!

Mighty Moby

Take the sea voyage of your life in Ed Young and Barbara DaCosta’s latest collaboration, Mighty Moby! The creative team behind bestselling award-winner Nighttime Ninja have crafted another thrilling adventure, this time based on Herman Melville’s great novel Moby Dick. This classic American tale is retold in collages of pictures, prose, and song, along with a humorous twist. Available from Little, Brown August 1, 2017 at stores near you and online!
Available now for preorder!

On Mighty Moby's website, you'll find information about whales, whaling, Melville, and more.

“….Young and DaCosta have assembled a vivid and thoughtful introduction to Melville’s celebrated American epic.”  —Horn Book

When Azaleas Last in the Front Yard Bud: An Ode to Global Warming

When azaleas last in the front yard bud,
Last week in an odd early winter heat,
Before the temperature did downward thud,
And snow crunched beneath my feet.

©Barbara DaCosta
December 9, 2012

Nighttime Ninja Available Soon!

Nighttime Ninja is beginning to make its presence known! And what a more splendid welcome than a starred review in Publishers Weekly:

"[Barbara] DaCosta builds her debut on the scaffolding of the suspenseful adventure that turns out to be make-believe....The depth of feeling DaCosta and [Ed] Young give to the boy’s fantasy makes this a standout."

Ed Young and I enjoyed making this book. I hope that boys and girls everywhere (and ninja-like adults) will enjoy our "children's picture book thriller!" Look for it in stores September 18.

---Barbara DaCosta

More Writing Myths for Busting

"How many of us have been held back by myths? ....I’d like to add my own favorite writing myths to be busted. (Whether these are myths or delusions, I’ll leave to you to decide.) 1. You have to be neurotic to be a good writer/poet/artist/actor.
Reality: Health and happiness are ever-so-much-more-pleasant states of being.
You don’t need to be miserable to be a successful creative artist! If, however, you like creating suffering characters, what you do need is empathy. That, plus observational skills. Of course, you’ll still tap into your own experiences to some extent as you write, but you don’t need to go to extremes in your own behavior. All you need is to amplify a quality to make it stand out in a character. In other words, the personality quirk that allows someone to justify stealing a car is not that different from the person who steals a paperclip."
Read the rest of my article at Buried Under Books, then, add some of your own myths that deserve busting!

Plagued by Plot?—Try Logic!

How do writers deal with plotting? And how do they deal with being stuck with the plot? Find out what these squiggles to the left mean and how they can help solve the most intractable plot problem in my essay at the blog Buried Under Books.

DaCosta New Story Published

"As the Number 18 bus pulled up, Terrence stuck his weather-beaten hands back into his pockets to warm them for a brief moment. He hated panhandling, but with a bum back and bum eye, there wasn't much work he could get."

In this story, "For Want of Some Gloves," I tackle the layers of honesty,  thievery, and assumptions that so easily can creep into our lives. The story appears in Why Did Santa Leave a Body, a collection of holiday season mysteries now available from North Star Press. Edited by Brian Landon, the book also features stories by Jessie Chandler, Michael Allan Mallory, Brian Landon, Camille Hyytinen, Joan Murphy Pride, Dennis Anderson, Kathleen Lindstrom, J. Henry, T.J. Roth, and Marlene Chabot. ---Barbara DaCosta