ARKANSAS AUTHOR WINS AWARD

23 May 2011, Fayetteville, AR, USA

Arkansas author and illustrator Tammy Carter Bronson won the 2011 Next Generation Indie Book Award for her new childrens picture book, Sea Horse, run!.

The Next Generation Indie Book Awards is the largest not-for-profit book awards program for indie authors and independent publishers. The 2011 award was open to all indie book authors and publishers including independent publishers (small, medium or otherwise), university presses, self-published authors, e-book authors, seasoned authors and even first time authors in the U.S., Canada or internationally who have a book written in English and published in 2010 or 2011 or with a 2010 or 2011 copyright date. Awards are given in sixty different categories, but according to Mrs. Bronson, "The childrens picture book category is very popular and competitive. At best I hoped to place as one of the three finalists. I never imagined I would win!"

The Next Generation Indie Book Awards were established in 2008 to recognize and honor the most exceptional independently published books of the year. Winners receive gold medals and are featured in national news media and events including BEA (Book Expo America, May 24-26, 2011). Presented by the Independent Book Publishing Professionals Group (www.ibppg.com), award winners also receive a cash prize and the opportunity to display gold award stickers on their book.

Tammy Carter Bronson lives in Fayetteville, Arkansas. She is the author and illustrator of three previous picture books: Tiny Snail (2000), The Kaleidonotes & the Mixed-Up Orchestra (2001), and Polliwog (2004). The award-winning Sea Horse, run! is her fourth picture book, and it will be available in bookstores June 1, 2011. Learn more at the books website: http://www.seahorserun.com.

QS? Contact: Matthew Shane Bronson, Publicity Department
Bookaroos Publishing, Inc., P. O. Box 8518, Fayetteville, AR 72703
Phone/Fax 479-443-0339 or 479-443-678

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WRITER/ARTIST EMULATES DR. SEUSS

24 January 2011, Fayetteville, AR, USA

In 1954 Dr. Seuss set out to create a primer that would be more appealing to children than Dick and Jane. Three years later The Cat in the Hat was published. "I loved The Cat in the Hat when I was a kid," explains Tammy Carter Bronson, the author and illustrator of Sea Horse, run! "It was pure fantasy, but my story needed to happen in a real place."

The coral reef was the perfect setting for the brilliant colors in Mrs. Bronson's collages. "I do a lot of research for my books," she says, "but the art requires the most. I always start in the library, but for Sea Horse, run! I also visited seven different aquariums across the country." Mrs. Bronson uses dry-brush watercolor with some pencil and colored pencil then she cuts and pastes everything together in the computer adding a few special effects.

Seuss limited himself to a 1st grade word list for The Cat in the Hat ultimately using only 236 different words for his story which was 1,623 words in length. "I wanted to limit myself to half as many total words as The Cat in the Hat," says Mrs. Bronson, "about 800, and in the end I managed an 849 word story with 283 different words."

But the last thing Mrs. Bronson wanted to do was write a story that would only appeal to 1st grade readers. "I tried to emulate what Dr. Seuss did for The Cat in the Hat, but I wanted Sea Horse, run! to have an environmental flair. I think I've created a primer for the 21st century that will be fun for teachers and parents, too."

Tammy Carter Bronson is the author and illustrator of three picture books: Tiny Snail, The Kaleidonotes the Mixed-Up Orchestra, and Polliwog. Sea Horse, run! is her fourth book and will be available in bookstores June 1, 2011.

QS? Contact: Matthew Shane Bronson, Publicity Department
Bookaroos Publishing, Inc., P. O. Box 8518, Fayetteville, AR 72703
Phone/Fax 479-443-0339, Alt Fax 479-443-6789
books@bookaroos.com, www.bookaroos.com