Ralph Fletcher (born March 17, 1953) is an American writer of children's

picture book A picture book combines visual and verbal narratives in a book format, most often aimed at young children. With the narrative told primarily through text, they are distinct from comics, which do so primarily through sequential images. The ima ...

young adult fiction Young adult literature (YA) is typically written for readers aged 12 to 18 and includes most of the themes found in adult fiction, such as family dysfunction, substance abuse, alcoholism, and sexuality. It is characterized by simpler world build ...

, and

poetry Poetry (from the Greek language, Greek word ''poiesis'', "making") is a form of literature, literary art that uses aesthetics, aesthetic and often rhythmic qualities of language to evoke meaning (linguistics), meanings in addition to, or in ...

. He is also an educational consultant, and author of books for both children and professional educators on the art of writing.

Biography

Ralph Fletcher was born and raised in

Marshfield, Massachusetts Marshfield is a town in Plymouth County, Massachusetts, United States, on Massachusetts's South Shore (Massachusetts), South Shore. The population was 25,825 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. It includes the census-designated places ...

. He is the oldest of 9 children. Each of his parents was one of eight children. He received his

B.A. A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree ...

degree from

Dartmouth College Dartmouth College ( ) is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Hanover, New Hampshire, United States. Established in 1769 by Eleazar Wheelock, Dartmouth is one of the nine colonial colleges chartered before the America ...

in 1975 and his M.F.A degree in writing from

Columbia University Columbia University in the City of New York, commonly referred to as Columbia University, is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Churc ...

in 1983. In college, he participated in foreign study programs in

Tonga Tonga, officially the Kingdom of Tonga, is an island country in Polynesia, part of Oceania. The country has 171 islands, of which 45 are inhabited. Its total surface area is about , scattered over in the southern Pacific Ocean. accordin ...

in the

South Pacific The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five Borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean, or, depending on the definition, to Antarctica in the south, and is ...

and

Sierra Leone Sierra Leone, officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country on the southwest coast of West Africa. It is bordered to the southeast by Liberia and by Guinea to the north. Sierra Leone's land area is . It has a tropical climate and envi ...

, South Africa. After receiving his master's degree, Ralph worked in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

classrooms as part of the Teacher College writing project. Fletcher currently lives in the vicinity of

Durham, New Hampshire Durham is a New England town, town in Strafford County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 15,490 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, up from 14,638 at the 2010 census.United States Census BureauU.S. Census website 2010 ...

. He is married to JoAnn Portalupi with whom he has collaborated on several professional educator books. Together they have four sons.

Awards

His

young adult In medicine and the social sciences, a young adult is generally a person in the years following adolescence, sometimes with some overlap. Definitions and opinions on what qualifies as a young adult vary, with works such as Erik Erikson's stages ...

novel '' Uncle Daddy'' won a Christopher Medal in the Books for Young People, ages 10–12 category in 2002. '' Fig Pudding'', a young adult chapter book by Fletcher, was recommended as one of the ten best books of 1995 by the

American Library Association The American Library Association (ALA) is a nonprofit organization based in the United States that promotes libraries and library education internationally. It is the oldest and largest library association in the world. History 19th century ...

. Fletcher's poetry book '' I Am Wings'' was chosen by

School Library Journal ''School Library Journal'' (''SLJ'') is an American monthly magazine containing reviews and other articles for school librarians, media specialists, and public librarians who work with young people. Articles cover a wide variety of topics, wi ...

as one of their best books of 1994.

Writer's Notebook

In 1996, Ralph Fletcher wrote the book "Breathing In, Breathing Out; Keeping A Writer's Notebook". Although this book is geared towards an adult audience, it contributes a better understanding for educators of how to keep a writer's notebook and instill the values within Writer's Workshop for children. Fletcher writes that "keeping a notebook may be the single best way to survive as a writer." This book provides examples of situations in which Fletcher personally used his writer's notebook for himself to cope, jot down story starters, write poems, let out rage or frustrations, or simply a place to unleash all that was on his mind. The purpose of this book is to allow people to see the value of having a writer's notebook and allowing it to be "a quiet place to catch your breath and begin writing." Fletcher provides samples from his own writer's notebook throughout the book to provide a better example of what a writer's notebook truly is.

Bibliography

Children's picture books

*'' Twilight Comes Twice'' - illustrated by Kate Kiesler (1997) *'' Grandpa Never Lies'' - illustrated by Harvey Stevenson (2000) *'' The Circus Surprise'' - illustrated by Vladimir Vagin (2001) *'' Hello, Harvest Moon'' - illustrated by Kate Kiesler (2003) *'' The Sandman'' - illustrated by

Richard Cowdrey Richard is a male given name. It originates, via Old French, from Old Frankish and is a compound of the words descending from Proto-Germanic language">Proto-Germanic ''*rīk-'' 'ruler, leader, king' and ''*hardu-'' 'strong, brave, hardy', and ...

(2008)

Poetry books

*''

The Magic Nest ''The'' is a grammatical article in English, denoting nouns that are already or about to be mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The' ...

'' (1980) *'' Water Planet'' (1991) *'' I Am Wings'' (1994) *'' Ordinary Things: Poems from a Walk in Early Spring'' (1997) *'' Buried Alive: The Elements of Love'' (1998) *'' Room Enough for Love'' (1998) - Compilation of ''I Am Wings'' and ''Buried Alive'' *'' Relatively Speaking: Poems about Family'' (1999) *'' Have You Been to the Beach Lately?'' (2001) *'' A Writing Kind of Day'' (2005) *'' Moving Day (book)'' (2007)

Novels and memoir

*'' Fig Pudding'' (1996) *'' Flying Solo'' (1998) *'' CommonLit , Funeral - Wolfe County Schools (2005) *'' Spider Boy'' (1997) *'' Tommy Trouble and the Magic Marble (2000)'' *'' Uncle Daddy'' (2001) *'' Marshfield Dreams: When I Was a Kid'' (2005) Memoir *'' The One O'Clock Chop'' (2007) Young adult *'' Also Known As Rowan Pohi'' (2011) Young adult *''Marshfield Memories: More Stories About Growing Up'' (2018) Memoir

Professional educator books

*'' Walking Trees'' (1991) *''

What a Writer Needs What or WHAT may refer to: * What, an English interrogative word * "What?", one of the Five Ws used in journalism Film and television * ''What!'' (film), also known as ''The Whip and the Body'', a 1963 Italian film directed by Mario Bava * ...

'' (1993) *'' Breathing In, Breathing Out: Keeping a Writer's Notebook'' (1996) *'' Craft Lessons: Teaching Writing K-8'' (with JoAnn Portalupi) (1998) *'' Nonfiction Craft Lessons'' (with JoAnn Portalupi) (2001) *'' Writing Workshop'' (with JoAnn Portalupi) (2001) *'' Teaching the Qualities of Writing'' with JoAnn Portalupi (2004) *'' Lessons for the Writer's Notebook'' with JoAnn Portalupi (2005) *'' Boy Writers: Reclaiming Their Voices'' (2006) *'' Pyrotechnics on the Page'' (2010) *'' Mentor Author, Mentor Texts'' (2012) *'' What a Writer Needs, 2nd edition'' (2013)

Books on writing for children

*''

A Writer's Notebook Ralph Fletcher (born March 17, 1953) is an American writer of children's picture books, young adult fiction, and poetry. He is also an educational consultant, and author of books for both children and professional educators on the art of writi ...

'' (1996) *'' Live Writing'' (1999) *''

How Writers Work How may refer to: * How (greeting), a word used in some misrepresentations of Native American/First Nations speech * How, an interrogative word in English grammar Art and entertainment Literature * ''How'' (book), a 2007 book by Dov Seidman ...

'' (2000) *''

Poetry Matters Poetry (from the Greek word ''poiesis'', "making") is a form of literary art that uses aesthetic and often rhythmic qualities of language to evoke meanings in addition to, or in place of, literal or surface-level meanings. Any particular ...

'' (2002) *'' How to Write Your Life Story'' (2007) *'' Reflections: Author at Work'' (2007) *'' Guy-Write: What Every Guy Writer Needs to Known'' (2012)

Notes

External links

Ralph Fletcher's website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fletcher, Ralph 1953 births American young adult novelists 20th-century American novelists Dartmouth College alumni Columbia University School of the Arts alumni Living people 20th-century American poets American male novelists American male poets 20th-century American male writers People from Durham, New Hampshire