BIO
My name is Emily Durant. I am an aspiring children's book author living with my husband and son, along with my two pet rodents of ill repute, in Wallingford, CT.
I work as a hospital-based physical therapist. I spend my (early) mornings writing and my evenings reading.
My rhyming children's book "The Art of Staying Dry" recently won 1st place in the children’s book category of the Pacific Northwest Writers’ Association 2020 Literary Contest for Unpublished Work.
Outside of writing, I enjoy rock climbing and the excuse for travel that it provides, cooking vegetarian and vegan meals for my family, and lifting weights regularly in our social-distancing-friendly home gym.
I am currently seeking representation for my work.
MY WORK
My style for children’s picture books is extremely varied. Variety is the spice of life - and apparently, the key for me to stay inspired with writing! Length ranges from a 146-word board book with flaps (“But Underneath”), to an 800-word realistic fiction book about a child’s experience outdoor rock climbing for the first time.
I adore rhyming, but as they say, not all children’s books are meant to be written in rhyme! Two of my rhyming books are fun, fantastical stories that are humorous in their absurdity. The other is a sweet Christmas tale, aligning with the happenings of “The Night Before Christmas,” that will leave you with a warm, fuzzy feeling inside.
My favorite focus for children’s books is on the incredible relationship between children and the natural world. As Richard Louv writes in Last Child in the Woods,
“The dugout in the weeds or leaves beneath a backyard willow, the rivulet of a seasonal creek, even the ditch between a front yard and the road – all of these places are entire universes to a young child.”
There are so many stories to be told within these small universes that will awaken a child’s sense of natural wonder - and maybe revive the parent’s sense of wonder as well!
I am currently working on a children’s chapter book that is reminiscent of “The Wind in the Willows” meets “The Great Mouse Detective.”
Books I Love!
Goodnight, Goodnight, Construction Site
by Sherri Duskey Rinker
The Dragon and the Nibblesome Knight
by Elli Woollard
Summer
by Alice Low
The Book With No Pictures
by B.J. Novak
The Magic Finger
by Roald Dahl
The Poisonwood Bible
by Barbara Kingsolver
The Famous Five
by Enid Blyton
The Phantom Tollbooth
by Norton Juster
My Absolute Darling
by Gabriel Tallent
Mr. Pudgins
by Ruth Christoffer Carlsen
The Redwall Series
by Brian Jacques
Last Child in the Woods
by Richard Louv
MEMBERSHIPS
PUBLICATIONS
AWARDS
MEMBERSHIPS
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Pacific Northwest Writers' Association (PNWA)
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Society for Children's Books Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI)
PUBLICATIONS
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"Rethinking Rats." La Joie journal. Winter 2021 (Accepted; in press)
HONORS & AWARDS
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"The Art of Staying Dry" First place in the children's book category of the Pacific Northwest Writers' Association 2020 Literary Contest for Unpublished Work
