Imagine the New York Times best-selling author of Escape from Mr. Lemoncello’s Library, Chris Grabenstein, sending a writing prompt to two time Newbery Medal winner and author of Because of Winn Dixie, Kate DiCamillo.  The prompt asks DiCamillo to write “… a song about moldy pizza, rancid butter, and flat root beer.” pg. 153   Oh yeah, and it needs to be a love song!

Well, you don’t have to imagine, you just have to read The Creativity Project: An Awesometastic Story Collection, put together and edited by Colby Sharp.  The collection includes stories, poems, pictures and comics from forty-four different children’s book authors and illustrators, including Lemony Snicket (the man behind A Series of Unfortunate Events), RJ Palacio (author of Wonder), graphic novel author/illustrators Jennifer Holm (Baby Mouse) and Victoria Jamieson (Roller Girl), Dav Pilkey (author of Captain Underpants) and many more.  You’ll find short stories about magic and friendship, about a pirate who’s afraid of his mother and one in which the narrator’s mom is dating a fish.  There are short graphic novel entries about two peas performing Shakespeare and a cartoon cat who comes to life to explain to a teacher that graphic novels are real books!  There are silly poems and a poem about baseball great Jackie Robinson. Plus drawings that will make you laugh and think, and maybe want to create your own.  Check out The Creativity Project, for a fun, light read this summer and get a peek into the creative process of some of your favorite authors and illustrators.   There is even a collection of prompts for you, the reader …

“I bark, therefore I am.” RJ Palacio pg. 248

“End a story with the sentence: ‘And when the dragon began to cry, I knew that I had won.’”  Adam Gidwitz pg. 233

What would you write … or draw?