To celebrate the publication of Call Me Amy, I adopted a seal pup through World Wildlife Fund.

She represents the main character in one of my manuscripts which will hopefully become a picture book someday. Below is a picture of my puffin, Abigale. This small effort will help ensure puffins remain on the Maine coast. More recently, I collected over 250 cereal box tops in order to adopt a puffin through Project Puffin. For ideas on how to help these beautiful whales, please click here. This was before I realized the harsh realities of orcas being pulled from their families for human entertainment. She was the first Killer Whale born and raised in captivity. My prize was a star-studded trip to Orlando where I got to pat Baby Shamu at her extraordinary birthday celebration. I won first place for a birthday card I created for Shamu in a nationwide contest. Fun Facts Other than a few fish and a tiny long ago turtle I owned as a kid, my first brush with marine animals was at SeaWorld. Marcia at her grandparents’ home in Maine. If you click on the below photo, you can read a letter I wrote to my teen self as published on Dear Teen Me. Here I am in Maine at age six and as a young teen. Although Call Me Amy and Amy’s Choice are completely fictional, the setting was partly influenced by vivid memories of my grandparents’ home on the coast of Maine. If you’d like to know more about my writing, here are two links to interviews with me:Ĭlick here to read a Writer’s Digest interview.Ĭlick here to watch a portion of a Tv interview. For reviews and more information, please click the ‘Books’ tab. Both stories take place in a tiny fishing village on the coast of Maine.

Its sequel, Amy’s Choice, was released a year later. The first, Call Me Amy, was chosen for BankStreet College of Education’s Best Books 2014 edition. The novels are aimed at tweens (ages 9-12) but, to my happy surprise, are read by all ages.

After numerous magazine and anthology contributions, I now have several published books. I am a member of the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators, as well as Writers’ Rumpus. With a dash of photography and a few recipes and crafts sprinkled in, you’ll find the essence of this New England-based blog. I work at a public library and have a great love for art, history, music, and travel. Hi there, welcome! Although I began this site as a way to introduce my books to new readers, it seems more and more of my other interests are finding their way into the posts, as well.

Amy's Choice by Marcia Strykowski