The IWC is happy to feature Tina Tocco in conversation about her writing life and her upcoming class with us, “Writing for Kids” (4 Thursdays: Mar 7, 14, 21, 28) Register here!
Tina Tocco is a Pushcart Prize nominee. Her work has appeared in publications for children and adults, including Highlights for Children, Highlights High Five, Cricket, Humpty Dumpty, New Ohio Review, River Styx, Potomac Review, and Italian Americana. Tina has contributed to multiple anthologies, such as The Best Small Fictions (2019). She was a Reader-in-Residence for SmokeLong Quarterly Issue 72. Her short story “The Unknown Soldier” is pending publication in Haunted States of America, a middle-grade ghost story anthology (SCBWI-Henry Holt). Tina earned her MFA from Manhattanville College, where she was editor-in-chief of Inkwell, the college’s national literary journal.
What writing accomplishment are you most proud of?
I’m so excited that I have a short story pending publication in The Haunted States of America. It’s a middle grade ghost story anthology set to come out this July. The collection is a joint effort between the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators and Godwin Books (Macmillan Publishers). The editors picked one story from each state, plus Washington, D.C. and Puerto Rico. I did a lot of research and worked a really long time on my story, so I’m thrilled it was chosen to represent my state.
What is your personal motto, or something like a proverb that you live by (writing related or not)?
My mom has always tried to teach me “you can only do what you can do,” that if you’re giving 100%, nobody can expect more. I think that’s finally penetrating my thick skull. I do my best and try not to compare myself with others and their work.
What’s your favorite thing about the IWC?
Sign me up for online events! I just watched the recording of The Art of Brevity with Grant Faulkner and Barbara Shoup. I love and write flash fiction, too, and their discussion was so informative and casual. I learned a lot.
What’s the best thing students can take away from this class?
Although starting a story can be difficult, by the end of this class, you’ll have the beginnings of multiple pieces in the children’s writing genre. I really think you’ll get a taste for how fun writing for kids can be.
Who are some of your favorite writers on the topic of children’s literature, and some of your favorite children’s books?
Lois Lowry’s The Giver is amazing. She wrote dystopian before people were using that word. Her writing is so subtle. One of my more recent favorites is Ruby in the Sky by Jeanne Zulick Ferruolo, which shows a difficult yet beautiful relationship between a grieving young girl and those in her new town. And if you like historical books, Skyler Schrempp’s Three Strike Summer, about a Dust Bowl-era girl who loves baseball, knocks it out of the park (pun totally intended!). Ferruolo and Schrempp can really put you in the main character’s head and know how to capture a kid’s voice.