BOBBY: A Story of Robert F. Kennedy

BOBBY: A Story of Robert F. Kennedy

To celebrate the publication (today!) of BOBBY: A Story of Robert F. Kennedy, here is a book-birth story. The path to publication began in 2007 — 15 years ago — at a conference in Washington, D.C. where I had lunch with some publishing people and we got to talking...

read more
bookshop.org

bookshop.org

Here we go. I want indies to survive this pandemic so they are still here, creating community and a literate society, for us and with us, as they've always done, when we emerge from our sheltering in place. Please consider opening a book buying account at bookshop.org...

read more
books in the time of corona

books in the time of corona

Hello, friends. What a time. I've made some posts on IG and want to put them here, where I will end up posting in more depth about Kent State and other books, and, well, life in the time of corona, I guess. Without belaboring anything, here is post one, which I'll...

read more
diversity in my books, part 4, kent state

diversity in my books, part 4, kent state

[Note: this is a February (sneaking into March) series on the diverse themes and characters in Deborah Wiles’s books. I’m publishing the series during Black History Month, with the full knowledge that my books are written from a white person’s point of view (as I am...

read more
diversity and my books, part 3, the Sixties Trilogy

diversity and my books, part 3, the Sixties Trilogy

[Note: this is a February series on the diverse themes and characters in Deborah Wiles’s books. I’m publishing the series during Black History Month, with the full knowledge that my books are written from a white person’s point of view (as I am white), and that every...

read more
diversity and my books, part 2, the Aurora County novels

diversity and my books, part 2, the Aurora County novels

[Note: this is a February series on the diverse themes and characters in Deborah Wiles’s books. I’m publishing the series during Black History Month, with the full knowledge that my books are written from a white person’s point of view (as I am white), and that every...

read more
the book of love

the book of love

"The Book of Love" by The Magnetic Fields, written by Stephin Merritt, and posted by me today, for Jim Pearce. I took a long, surprising, winding road to this valentine of mine, and didn't even know I was headed in this direction. But here I am and here we are, and...

read more
diversity and my books, part 1, freedom summer

diversity and my books, part 1, freedom summer

[Note: this is a February series on the diverse themes and characters in Deborah Wiles's books. I'm publishing the series during Black History Month, with the full knowledge that my books are written from a white person's point of view (as I am white), and that every...

read more
new year, new path

new year, new path

Greetings at the close of an old year, the beginning of a new year, and a journey into the great unknown. As is every day. We shepherded Anthem into print in 2019; it had a short moment in the sun, since it was published in October, so you'll be learning more about...

read more
ANTHEM is coming, chapter 47

ANTHEM is coming, chapter 47

ANTHEM, Book 3 of the Sixties Trilogy, publishes on October 1. Each of the book's 47 chapters begins with a song from the Sixties to set the tone, mood, and scene. Every day between now and October 1, come have a listen and read a snippet from each chapter. On October...

read more
ANTHEM is coming, chapter 46

ANTHEM is coming, chapter 46

ANTHEM, Book 3 of the Sixties Trilogy, publishes on October 1. Each of the book's 47 chapters begins with a song from the Sixties to set the tone, mood, and scene. Every day between now and October 1, come have a listen and read a snippet from each chapter. On October...

read more
ANTHEM is coming, chapter 45

ANTHEM is coming, chapter 45

ANTHEM, Book 3 of the Sixties Trilogy, publishes on October 1. Each of the book's 47 chapters begins with a song from the Sixties to set the tone, mood, and scene. Every day between now and October 1, come have a listen and read a snippet from each chapter. On October...

read more

About Debbie:

World’s Best Zinnia Grower

World’s Best Baking Power Biscuit Maker

World’s Worst Piano Player (but I play anyway)

2014 National Book Award Finalist for REVOLUTION

2015 NAACP Image Award nominee for REVOLUTION

2015 Jane Addams Peace Award for REVOLUTION

2005 National Book Award Finalist for EACH LITTLE BIRD THAT SINGS

E.B. White Award Winner (Speech)

Ezra Jack Keats Award Winner for FREEDOM SUMMER

Bank Street College/Josette Frank Award Winner for EACH LITTLE BIRD THAT SINGS (Speech)

PEN/Phyllis Reynolds Naylor
Working Writer Fellowship Winner

Thurber House Writer-in-Residence, Columbus, Ohio

MFA in Writing, Vermont College, I have taught teachers at Towson University (“Writing Techniques for Teachers,” ECED 422), and have taught in the MFA programs at Lesley University and Vermont College.

Pioneer of the Documentary Novel containing scrapbooks with primary source documents — photographs, song lyrics, newspaper clippings, etc., and opinionated biographies alongside the story/narrative, mixing fiction, non-fiction, and biography in one book/story in a trilogy about the 1960s. COUNTDOWN 1962; REVOLUTION 1964; and ANTHEM 1969 (to be published fall 2019)

* * *

I’m a Southerner born in Mobile, Alabama, where I lived until I was five years old. My parents were Mississippi born and bred, and I spent most of my childhood summers there and grew up in Mississippi and all around the world as an Air Force dependent.

I’ve lived in:

Mobile, Alabama
Jasper County, Mississippi
Honolulu, Hawaii
Washington, D.C.
Prince Georges County, Maryland
Charleston, South Carolina
Clark Air Base, Philippines
Northern Virginia
Cherry Point, North Carolina
Millington, Tennessee
Frederick, Maryland
Atlanta, Georgia

After living in the Washington, D.C. area (Frederick, MD) for 25 years, where I raised a family, I moved to Atlanta 14 years ago, and now live in a little house with a purple door in a little woods. I married musician/composer Jim Pearce 12 years ago. You can hear Jim profiled by Susan Stamberg at NPR right here.

Where to find me online:

I use Pinterest as a visual resource for my books. You’ll find primary source material for my books archived here, including playlists for COUNTDOWN and REVOLUTION.

Talking with Michele Norris of All Things Considered at NPR, about THE AURORA COUNTY ALL-STARS and writing with and for young people.

Visiting Spring Ridge Elementary School (video).