Video Tutorials for Turtle Paper Crafts

After posting my paper crafts for It Wasn’t the Moon, I decided that it would be helpful to make tutorial videos for each of them.

This way you can easily see a before and after version of the worksheet. First, how it prints, and then what the final result will look like.

First up, we have the Turtle Swirl: Spiral Paper Craft. For this one, I accidentally lost the video of me cutting out the spiral, but you still get the before and after, and can see how the spiral looks when it twirls and bounces:

@rosemarylynnbooks

Here’s the Turtle Swirl: Spiral Paper Craft 🎨✂️ to go with the picture book IT WASN’T THE MOON 🐢🌕 #kidlit #kidlitart #art #crafts #kidcrafts

♬ original sound – Author Rosemary Lynn – Author Rosemary Lynn

Next up, the Folded Turtle: 3D Paper Craft. This one is the simplest: just color, cut, and fold. It’s great for practicing fine motor skills and makes an adorable display:

@rosemarylynnbooks

Here’s the Folded Turtle: 3D Paper Craft 🎨✂️ to go with the picture book IT WASN’T THE MOON 🐢🌕 #kidlit #kidlitart #art #crafts #kidcrafts

♬ original sound – Author Rosemary Lynn – Author Rosemary Lynn

Finally we have the Hatch a Turtle: Puppet Paper Craft. This one is a little more complicated, so I felt that the video would be especially helpful. It has a few different pieces that go together, and while there are instructions and illustrations on the worksheet itself, as a visual learner, I wanted to provide a step-by-step that could be watched by either kids or adults. It’s actually pretty easy to put together, but just in case someone couldn’t visualize the final craft, this shows the whole process:

@rosemarylynnbooks

Here’s the Hatch a Turtle: Puppet Paper Craft 🎨✂️ to go with the picture book IT WASN’T THE MOON 🐢🌕 #kidlit #kidlitart #art #crafts #kidcrafts

♬ original sound – Author Rosemary Lynn – Author Rosemary Lynn

You can view the videos, in order to “save” them, on your favorite social media platform:

Tiktok: Turtle Swirl, Folded Turtle, Hatching Turtle

Instagram: Turtle Swirl, Folded Turtle, Hatching Turtle

Facebook: Turtle Swirl, Folded Turtle, Hatching Turtle

YouTube: Turtle Swirl, Folded Turtle, Hatching Turtle

And you can save them to Pinterest to make it easier to find them later.

If you haven’t downloaded the activities yet, you can get them on my Activities for Kids page.

Or if you’re looking for the picture book, you can get that here.

Happy crafting!

xo Rosemary

The Teeny Tiny Turtle Activity Zine

I’m so happy to share my new TEENY TINY TURTLE ACTIVITY ZINE!!!

This zine is a tiny (read: kid-sized) activity book to go along with It Wasn’t the Moon.

It’s nine pages of activities: games on the front and back cover, plus six inside pages, and one giant fold-out page.

It includes tic-tac-toe, a maze, word search, tracing practice, connect-the-dots, a word scramble, a find-and-count, and a find-the-difference activity. Then, when unfolded, the inside spread has a writing prompt and room to draw.

But what is a zine, you ask?

The short answer is that it’s a small book.

The slightly longer answer is that it’s a small book often handmade or printed by an individual writer and/or artist and often constructed from a single sheet of paper. It’s pronounced “zeen,” kind of similar to an abbreviation of “magazine.” And the content can be anything at all.

This zine is designed to fit in small hands, with games for many different age groups (different levels of difficulty), and to go along with my picture book.

I loved hosting library programs or themed story times where we could provide the kids with activities or worksheets or coloring pages.

This zine encompasses all of that.

AND it’s available right now on my Kickstarter – which is ending soon!

The zine is an add-on reward which you can get with your book. I plan to eventually sell them in person as well, but for right now you can only get it on Kickstarter – so be sure to check that out!

Plus – I even made a video preview of the zine:

@rosemarylynnbooks

The Zine is DONE!! 🎉I’ve finished creating the Teeny Tiny Turtle Activity Zine 🐢 to go along with Toby’s picture book, IT WASN’T THE MOON. 📖 This was soooo much fun to make. It is now available as an add-on reward on Kickstarter! Check it out at the 🔗🔗 in my bio – but hurry bc the campaign ends soon!! #zine #kickstarter #kidlitart #activityforkids #picturebooks

♬ original sound – Author Rosemary Lynn – Author Rosemary Lynn

And if you’re still looking for EVEN MORE activities… the paper crafts in the photo below can be found on my Activities for Kids page.

I hope y’all love it and have as much fun with it as I had making it 😀

xo Rosemary

Final Week to Get IT WASN’T THE MOON at the Preorder Discount!

We’re in the final stretch!

This is the last week that the Kickstarter campaign is active – which means the last few days where you can preorder your copy of It Wasn’t the Moon at a discount.

In other words, if you were thinking about buying the book NOW IS THE TIME!

And if you haven’t even seen it yet, this is also a great time to head on over to Kickstarter and see what it’s all about.

Thank you for supporting independent artists and a small business 😀

Happy reading!

xo Rosemary

New Printable Turtle Paper Crafts for IT WASN’T THE MOON

I am so excited to share these free printable paper craft worksheets!

I made the activities to accompany my new picture book It Wasn’t the Moon, and I had so much fun sketching them.

The main character of the book is Toby, and with these worksheets, you and your littles can bring Toby to life.

First with a spiral of Toby and friends diving through the ocean currents, then with a puppet that “hatches” from his egg, and finally with folded designs that create 3D turtles.

Even though the book cover is shown in color, the worksheets themselves can easily be printed in black and white. This makes them accessible to many. I wanted everyone to be able to enjoy them, from parents to teachers to librarians.

Please feel free to print and share these crafts.

I’d also love to see your finished crafts! You can share them with me on Instagram or Facebook.

Here are the files. Simple click the “download” button to get them:

It Wasn’t the Moon Activity 1 – Turtle Swirl: Spiral Paper CraftDownload
It Wasn’t the Moon Activity 2 – Folded Turtle: 3D Paper CraftDownload
It Wasn’t the Moon Activity 3 – Hatch a Turtle: Puppet Paper CraftDownload

I’ve also made a Teeny Tiny Turtle Activity Zine, which is for sale along with the book on Kickstarter.

And I have other free printable worksheets on my Activities for Kids page.

Happy crafting!

xo Rosemary

Toby is HERE! Get his book today!!

It’s finally the day!

The Kickstarter campaign for It Wasn’t the Moon goes live today!

This means that you can now pre-order the book. I’m so excited 🤩🤩🤩

There’s a ton of information on the Kickstarter website, so that’s the best place to get all of your questions answered. Essentially, the book will be available for pre-order for a few weeks, and then will get an official publication date in the fall, tentatively November 17, 2026.

But before that time, you can order the book NOW at a discount AND potentially get allllll kinds of goodies (stickers, keychains, pins) depending on the final amount that the campaign earns.

Check it out here: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/rosemarylynn/it-wasnt-the-moon-a-turtle-tale-of-bravery

So share with all your friends! The more people who purchase now – the more bonus reward items you’ll get!

THANK YOU for all your support!

xo Rosemary

Stuck Bumblebee Poetry Challenge: I Fight the Wind

I love finding inspiration in new places.

Last April I followed along with a blog writing challenge called the Stuck Bumblebee Poetry Challenge from Joyce Uglow’s substack.

The prompt words were oozing and swooping. I wound up just using “oozing” as I wrote about a caterpillar oozing over a branch on a windy day.

Here’s my poem:

black background with a tree trunk at the side and a caterpillar climbing the trunk, with words of the poem in white on top of the image

You can see more entries in the comments here:

https://jpuglow.substack.com/p/day-5-stuck-bumblebee-poetry-challenge

For alt text, here is the poem that’s posted onto the picture above of the caterpillar climbing a tree trunk:

I Fight the Wind: A Caterpillar’s Story

by Rosemary Lynn

I undulate up           the trunk

undaunted,             trekking slow.

I ooze over              and grab and grip,

holding tight.           I fight the wind.

The world                shakes. I shiver

huddled firm            against the force.

I wrap myself          with hardness,

frightened as           I fight the wind.

The air growls         and I grow.

My shell breaks

                              and I burst beyond.

It no longer             holds me back.

Oozing wide            my wings unfurl.

I follow the              wind. I fly.

Happy (belated) Poetry Month!

xo Rosemary

I’m a PB Party Finalist!

I almost can’t believe it, even though it’s been a few days since the announcement. But it’s true: I’M A PB PARTY FINALIST!

PB Party is an annual contest run by Mindy Alyse Weiss for picture book authors and illustrators. The contestants are narrowed down by a team of judges into about 60 finalists whose queries will be displayed alongside the first 70 words of the manuscript. Then, a few dozen literary agents, editors, and art directors get a chance to review all of the finalist’s entries.

You can see all of the 2026 entries here:

https://mindyalyseweiss.com/congrats2026-pbparty-finalists/

This is a SUPER exciting opportunity!

This is actually the fifth year I’ve entered. Last year my story about Toby received an Honorable Mention. This year I entered a fairy tale inspired manuscript about Baba Yaga’s granddaughter. And I am SO excited to see people expressing interest about a story that is such a favorite of mine. 😀

You can see my entry here, until the showcase ends:

https://mindyalyseweiss.com/31-chicken-legs-and-too-many-eggs/

After the showcase, the story excerpt will be taken down.

In the meantime, I’m thrilled to be a part of something that so very many talented people have entered.

Happy Reading

xo Rosemary

Wolf Song: a #50PreciousWords Story

It’s that time again!

Time for the annual super short (50 precious words) kidlit story contest!

This contest, run by Vivian Kirkfield, is a great opportunity to stretch your writing muscles. Writing a whole story with only 50 words is quite a challenge.

This year I had wolves on the mind.

This story came from some notes I made with the thought that I’d write a whole picture book around this theme. Maybe I still will. For now, here is my entry:

WOLF SONG [49 words]

You are so new.

More fluff than bite.

Paws too big and

voice too small.

You’ve strayed too far.

You’ve lost your way.

The night falls fast.

The shadows seem endless and

you are alone.

But listen, pup.

The pack calls you.

Follow the song.

We’ll sing you home.

#

You can see my entry here: https://viviankirkfield.com/2026/03/02/the-50preciouswords-2026-international-writing-contest-is-open/comment-page-18/#comment-289461

and you can see the rest here: https://viviankirkfield.com/2026/03/02/the-50preciouswords-2026-international-writing-contest-is-open/

The contest has some pretty amazing prizes and it’s open until March 3rd!

Happy Reading 🙂

xo Rosemary

ANNOUNCEMENT: New FREE Activity Worksheets

I’ve added some new printable activity worksheets to my ACTIVITIES FOR KIDS page!

They include the printable bookmarks from An African Animal Adventure:

And something I’m especially excited about – a CUSTOMIZABLE worksheet!

This handwriting practice activity is housed on Canva because it allows you to change the text to anything you like. I love this – you can make custom tracing worksheets for all the kids you know!!

These used to be available only to email subscribers, but now they’re on the ACTIVITIES FOR KIDS page.

I’ll be making some turtle goodies for the subscribers next, so please consider subscribing to my newsletter.

And if you’d like EVEN MORE activities for your kiddo, remember that The African Animal Series includes activity books!

xo Rosemary

ANNOUNCEMENT: New Picture Book Kickstarter Campaign

I am SO EXCITED to announce my newest picture book: IT WASN’T THE MOON!

For this book, I am both the author and the illustrator, and I am launching it as a pre-order on Kickstarter.

Why Kickstarter? It allows us to get a better idea of how many books to order in our first print run, to fund that print run, and also to create special goodies through stretch goals that we wouldn’t otherwise have the opportunity to distribute.

There is SO MUCH I could tell you but instead, I’m going to go ahead and direct you over to Kickstarter.

All the info and the pics are there. I talk about the book itself, the inspiration behind the book, even a bit about myself. Plus, I’ll be adding updates when I receive the sample print. And more!

The BEST possible way for you to support me is to pre-order the book … but the second BEST way to support my small business is to simply click the “Notify me on launch” button (this is totally free) before the campaign goes live.

Check it out on the Kickstarter website by clicking here!

Or you can scan this QR code with your phone, which will take you right there:

THANK YOU!

And Happy Reading!

xo Rosemary