Press

Press

Renee Garrison Interviews Author Jayne M. Rose-Vallee

Renee Garrison interviews award-winning author & publisher — Jayne Rose-Vallee.

What has been your biggest challenge or obstacle?
As an author/publisher the most difficult challenge to overcome was to believe in myself; to take myself seriously. Traditionally published authors and traditional publishers used to make me feel ‘less than.’ It’s taken five years, but finally I acknowledge in my heart, I’m legit. It’s the students who cheer, laugh, applaud, hug, and love the books, who changed this for me. They are the best indicator of quality. I trust them.
Recently I founded, Literacy for Kids, Inc., (LFK) a non-profit corporation whose mission is to promote literacy, advocate education, support tolerance, and encourage acceptance.                    

                                                       

Renee is the author of The Anchors Clankers, architecture critic, fashion writer, restaurant critic, and religion reporter who enjoys making complicated subject matter easier for readers to understand. #Theanchorsclankers #ReneeWritesNow #author #book #children #humor #life #school

 

Dinosaurs Living in My Hair!2
Receives the Benjamin Franklin 2019 Silver Award!

The judging process takes seven months.
Over 160 librarians, booksellers, and design and editorial experts judged.
IBPA Benjamin Franklin Awards have been given for over thirty years!


"Dinosaurs Living in My Hair!2" was awarded the Silver Award for Interior Design: Children's/Young Adult.

The level of detail the IBPA Benjamin Franklin Award program holds itself to, makes it one of the most prestigious and highest national honors for independent publishers.

Needless to say we are thrilled! 

#IBPABenjaminFranklin2019Awards #IBPABFA2019 #IBPABFA

 

Dinosaurs Living in My Hair!2
IBPA Benjamin Franklin Book Award Finalist! 

On March 18, 2019, The Independent Book Publishers Association (IBPA) officially announced finalists in its prestigious IBPA Benjamin Franklin Awards program. These awards recognize excellence and innovation in independent publishing. "Unlike many other award programs, the IBPA BFA demand both editorial and design excellence and entrants are judged independently on both," said IBPA CEO Angela Bole. This year, over 160 librarians, booksellers, and design and editorial experts - most of whom have decades of book industry experience - judged the books submitted. The judging process took seven months. All entrants receive written critiques from each of three judges who reviewed their work. These critiques include constructive feedback to help each publisher understand how their book is being perceived by industry professionals. The mission is to educate the independent publishing community through this process. 

All finalists will be recognized during an awards ceremony on April 5, 2019, in Chicago, IL where one Gold winner in each of fifty-four categories will be named. The remaining finalists in each category will become Silver winners. 

The level of detail has helped the IBPA Benjamin Franklin Award program remain one of the highest national honors for independent publishers for over 30 years. 

We are very excited to have been chosen as a finalist in the category — Interior Design: Children's/Young Adult.
We will be in Chicago on April 5th to receive either the silver or gold award, meet new friends, and network for The Rose-Vallee Children's Foundation! #IBPABenjaminFranklin2019Awards #IBPABFA2019 #IBPABFA

 

2018 INDIES Book of the Year Award Finalist

Independent Presses and authors are publishing innovative, creative, and beautiful books. Foreword INDIES Book of the Year Awards honors the best of Indie publishing each year. Thousands of books are entered. A panel of over 120 librarians and booksellers take part in judging. Founded in 1998, Foreword Magazine, Inc. is the only media company completely devoted to independent publishing. Foreword is based in Traverse City, MI, with staff based worldwide. 

"Dinosaurs Living in My Hair!2" is a 2018 INDIES Book of the Year Award Finalist along with fifteen other Children's Early Reader Books. Award Winners will be announced in June. We are proud to have been chosen as a finalist and grateful indie publications have a place to "strut our stuff!" #ForewordINDIES To see a list of all finalists, visit
https://www.forewordreviews.com/awards/
finalists/2018/.

 

 

Author Forms Foundation to Expand 'Giving Back' Experience.

by Jody McVeigh, November 7, 2018 Grosse Pointe News

The last few years have been a whirlwind for Jayne Rose-Vallee. The Grosse Pointe Farms resident went from first-time author with Dinosaurs Living in My Hair, published in 2015, to motivational speaker, traveling the country to discuss her book and its sequel, Dinosaurs Living in My Hair!2.

She recently added staff to help as she takes the DLIMH movement a step further. Heather Mertz, also of Grosse Pointe Farms, shares office space on The Hill, where the two collaborate to expand their mission and debut the Rose-Vallee Children's Foundation.

"Every time I do an event it increases brand awareness," Rose-Vallee said. "The reason we're starting the foundation is, so much of what I do is giving back. I'm OK with that. There's such a need for it — but starting the foundation and getting more people involved, will allow for us to make more of an impact."

The giving back part began with Rose-Vallee's first book, which teaches children about acceptance and inclusion. The sequel touches on bullying and what community is. Once they understand 'You are a community,' they start to understand you may not look the same or think the same, but you have something in common," she said. "Rather than focus strictly on bullying . . . I do tattling vs. telling. Sixty to 70 percent of kids don't tell an adult because a log of them think it's tattling. We've created a way to share the difference between tattling and telling. It needs to be talked about.

The book and its sequel have won numerous national awards, including three Moonbeam Children's Book Awards, four Florida Authors & Publisher's Book Awards, and six Royal Dragonfly Awards. Additional lessons the books provide — which are what the DLIMH brand is all about — are imagination, creativity, beat, rhythm, poetry, and community. Rose-Vallee and Mertz recently created a video to aid their school presentations.
"One of our goals is to spread where we're reading." Rose-Vallee said, noting she's always chosen diverse locations to speak and donates books to school libraries. "We want them to know poetry is in so much of life they don't even know about. If they're on a swing set, swinging, the movement in that — that's poetry."
Currently, Rose-Vallee is scheduled to visit University Liggett School in November. She has presentations booked this year and into next in Wyoming, New Hampshire, Florida, and New York.
"It's exhausting," she said. "I don't know how teachers do it, but it is fun for the kids to have visitors. They love when someone comes in and makes eye contact. They want to show their world to an outsider."
Rose-Vallee and Mertz are launching a new website to bring the books, school visits, foundation and all other facets under one umbrella. "That will give us a chance to do blogs, newsletters, and schedule events," Mertz said. "People can see our products, shop, buy books."
The foundation takes Rose-Vallee's passion for working with children and sparking their imaginations and unites it with a broader group of participants, donors, and partners.
For example, Mertz is working on a book about autism that will be added to the foundation's repertoire. "Autistic children are thrown into public school settings and expected to make it one happy family. There are no children's books to teach other children about children with autism. This fits in with our theme of community, tolerance, and awareness."
Another idea Rose-Vallee is hoping to create one day is a children's publication such as a magazine or newsletter. "I'm a big believer that print for children is important," Rose-Vallee said.
"We've got some exciting things coming up," Mertz said. "It's so fun to see what's coming and we've already come so far . . . There's always more, always something we can do. Our brains never stop working."
Rose-Vallee has a third DLIMH book written to be published. She also wrote a young-adult novel for boys. "(Rose-Vallee) should be retiring but she's doing this and giving back," Mertz said.
"But I think its time for this village to help," Rose-Vallee added. "If it works well with the two of us, there are other ambassadors out there."
For more information, books or other merchandise, visit
"In this debut rhyming picture book, Sabrina has masses of wild, curly blond hair and worries that there may be animals—like dinosaurs—living in there. Five-year-old Sabrina faces a tough challenge: her crazy curls are difficult to comb and manage. When her mother tells her that “Creatures could hide out there,” Sabrina starts to worry she could be right: “Underneath all this mess, / Tangled up in my hair, / What if there are dinosaurs / Living in there?”
"This charming, engaging story offers a funny look at what happens when a child’s imagination unfurls." Read more...

"This whimsical multi-award winning book of rhymes with beautiful watercolor illustrations details how a little girl's curly hair makes her mornings difficult. Inspired by Rose-Vallee's daughter Lauren, now immortalized in the book as the hapless Sabrina, the response to rhymes... has been enormous from both boys and girls."


“Dinosaurs Living in My Hair” Wins Coveted Purple Dragonfly Book Award

CHANDLER, AZ (June, 2016) – The judges of the Purple Dragonfly Book Awards contest, which recognizes excellence in children’s literature, have spoken, and Dinosaurs Living in My Hair by Jayne M. Rose-Vallee, won 1st place in the Poetry category. It received several additional accolades for illustrations, cover design, and children’s picture book. This is the third gold medal awarded to Dinosaurs Living in My Hair since it’s April 2015 publication.

“Winning any place in the Purple Dragonfly Contest is a huge honor because in order to maintain the integrity of the Dragonfly Book Awards, a minimum score is required before a First or Second place or Honorable Mention will be awarded to the entrant – even if it is the sole entry in a category,” explains Linda F. Radke, president of Five Star Publications, the sponsor of the Dragonfly Book Awards. “Competition is steep, too, because there is no publication date limit as long as the book is still in print.” Read More...

 

"A movement is afoot. It’s called the DLIMH movement, and it’s based on the popular new book “Dinosaurs Living in My Hair!” by Jayne M. Rose-Vallee. Jayne hopes this book encourages children to embrace and celebrate their differences.

“Dinosaurs Living in My Hair!” received the Florida Authors and Publishers Association President’s Book Award in two categories, Gold in Poetry and Silver in Cover Design. The book also received the Mom's Choice Gold Award for Children's Picture Book." Read More...


“New Self-Published Books: February 2016
Booksellers, publishers, librarians, and agents are encouraged to look at the 73 self-published titles below, with descriptions provided by their authors. Some of these writers are waiting to be discovered; others have a track record and a following and are doing it on their own.

"In this picture book, Sabrina has masses of wild, curly blonde hair and worries there may be animals—like dinosaurs—living in there.”


Whimsical Book Details How Curly Hair Creates a Perilous Problem Multi-award-winning book helps children of all ages embrace being different; a portion of the proceeds go to the National Alopecia Areata Foundation, which supports individuals dealing with the autoimmune skin disease that causes hair loss