Say a big HELLO to the fabulous Megan of Children's Books Daily! If you've been a part of the Ruby Olive community for a while, you have probably seen Megan pop up on our social channels before. Megan is a teacher-librarian at St Aidan's Anglican Girls' School here in Brisbane and the face behind Children's Books Daily - a website and blog that acts as the holy grail for everything surrounding Children's literature. Megan has recently released her first book, Raising Readers! It's a MUST-HAVE resource for educators and parents.
Naturally, having Megan as one of our lanyard guest designers HAD to happen! It was made with a combo of Megan's favourite pink, her brand colours and a nod to the school she works at (keep reading to find out more)... We think the end result is one stunning lanyard that matches perfectly with Megan's fabulous pink hair. We sat down with Megan for a quick Q&A, to chat about our lanyard collab and to learn more about her new book. 
RO: Megan, was there a defining moment when you fell in love with literature and knew you wanted to spend your life immersed in it?
MD: That’s a really good question, I’ve not been asked that before! My mother is a teacher librarian and both my parents read aloud to us every.single.day. I was a tween around the time mum was at university studying teacher librarianship and I distinctly remember the influx of astonishingly good books into our home. It was in this period that I discovered the books that set me on the path to being a lifelong reader. Books like Dicey's Song, Came Back to Show You I Could Fly and John Marsden's iconic, So Much To Tell You blew my teenage angsty brain and I still hold these books amongst my 'Top Ten' books ever. This was definitely the time I fell in love with literature, but at that stage I don’t think it occurred to me that it was an option to work amongst such gorgeousness every day.
RO: Why are you so passionate about raising readers, and encouraging children to read?
That’s an easy one! I honestly believe that words and stories can change lives. Stories connect us all and humans are wired for connection. Reading helps children to walk in the shoes of others and deeply understand issues around the world and those close to home. It is through reading the stories of others and learning of their hardships and triumphs that young people begin to develop kindness, compassion and empathy and understand that the world is beautifully diverse and filled with the stories of millions of people. Everyone's story is unique, and every story is important.
RO: You’ve recently written and published your first book Raising Readers - congratulations! Could you tell us a little more about the book?
Many parents question the best way to support their child's literacy journey and I really wanted to write an accessible book which looked at this and answered some common questions and concerns around reading. When can you start reading to your child? How do you find that special book to inspire a reluctant reader? How can you tell if a book is age appropriate? What can you do to keep your tween reading into their adolescent years? I hope what I have done is unpack my 17 years of experience into an accessible guide, enhanced with up-to-date research and first-hand accounts from well-known Australian children's authors. It also contains practical tips, such as suggested reading lists and instructions on how to run book-themed activities.
RO: What was your main inspiration for writing your own book?
With ‘Raising Readers’ I really wanted to reach parents, caregivers, library peeps and educators and inspire them to take nurturing a love of reading in the young people in their lives as seriously as they might take daily exercise or a balanced diet. I also wanted to demystify the role of the teacher librarian and advocate for this role in EVERY school. Like any other specialist teacher your child may have in their school life (PE teacher, French teacher, Science teacher etc.), they are experts in their field, in this case experts in children’s and YA literature, knowledge management, the research process and increasingly, in the area of digital technologies and all things STEAM related.
RO: Can you tell us a bit more about your lanyard design?
Ruby Olive is known for COLOUR and as a pink haired, COLOUR wearing teacher librarian, I was overjoyed to be asked to collaborate on a RO lanyard! I chose my favourite shade of hot pink, the teal of my book cover and the brand colours of my website to create a lanyard that kind of SCREAMS ‘libraries are BOLD and places of clashing colours, thoughts and words’. I’ve also added a nod to the beautiful school I work at, St Aidan’s Anglican Girls’ School, with the navy blue leather tag (school colours).
THANK YOU to fabulous Megan for creating such a gorgeous lanyard, and bringing so much joy to young and old alike through her love of literature. We absolutely adored collaborating with Megan, and we hope you love the end result as much as we loved creating it! SHOP THE LANYARD >>>
See more of Megan:
> Children's Books Daily Website
> Instagram
> Facebook