Children's Book Author - Poet - Journalist
More about me...
Hi, I’m Rebecca! Thanks for stopping by!
As a child, I loved having playdates with words. Not only did I scribble in my diary (with its bedazzled unicorn cover and mini-lock-and-key, naturally), but I wrote poems, plays, essays, silly jokes, inspirational sayings, and articles for “newspapers” that I created out of construction paper.
Eventually, my love of words turned into a career as a professional magazine and newspaper journalist. I wrote about everything — from hard news stories for The New York Observer and New York Newsday to features of non-profit and business leaders for The Chronicle of Philanthropy and Working Mother, to relationship pieces for Bride’s and Ladies Home Journal.
When it was time to raise a family, I took time off from writing, but oh, how I missed it! About seven years ago, after almost a decade of full-time Mommying, I enrolled in a local writing class called “Where Do I Begin?” I knew I wanted to write again, but also knew that I didn’t want to return to magazines and newspapers. My teacher provided weekly prompts and what began flowing out of me were funny, punny stories and poems — often, in rhyme.
(Wait, WHAT?!)
“But I’m a journalist!” I thought. “Where’s all this poetry coming from?”
But then I remembered: I’ve always been a poet. I have hundreds of diaries and notebooks in my attic overflowing with of emotional and lyrical ruminations, quotes, and poems that I wrote as a child. This was who I was. This is who I’d always been. This is who I’m meant to be!
My teacher suggested that some of my poems and stories would make great fodder for picture books. She introduced me to the Society for Children's Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI) and I attended my first writing conference in June 2016.
My mind was blown.
I haven’t looked back.
Professional Bios
The Short Story
Rebecca Gardyn Levington is a children’s book author, poet, and journalist with a particular penchant for penning both playful and poignant picture books and poems – primarily in rhyme.
The Longer Story
Rebecca Gardyn Levington is a children’s book author, poet, and journalist with a particular penchant for penning both playful and poignant picture books and poems – primarily in rhyme. Her debut picture book Brainstorm! (Sleeping Bear Press, 2022) hits bookshelves this summer. She has four more rhyming picture books being published in the next two years, including the inspirational I Will Always Be… (HarperCollins, 2024). Rebecca’s poems and articles have appeared in numerous anthologies, newspapers, and magazines. She lives in the suburban jungles of New Jersey with her husband and two boisterous boys. Find out more about Rebecca at www.RebeccaGardynLevington.com and follow her on Twitter at @WriterRebeccaGL.
The Whole Story
Rebecca Gardyn Levington is a children’s book author, poet, and journalist with a particular penchant for penning both playful and poignant picture books and poems — primarily in rhyme.
Her debut picture book Brainstorm! (Sleeping Bear Press, 2022) hits bookshelves this summer. She has four more rhyming picture books being published in the next two years, including the inspirational I Will Always Be… (HarperCollins, 2024).
Rebecca’s poems have been or are scheduled to be published in Spider Magazine, Highlights High Five, The Caterpillar, Honeycake: The Jewish Magazine for Creative Kids, as well as Countdown, Blast Off and Launchpad (publications of The School Magazine). Her poems have also appeared in the anthologies Hop To It: Poems To Get You Moving, Imperfect II: Poems About Perspective–An Anthology for Middle Schoolers, and Chicken Soup for the Soul: The Magic of Cats. Her poem, “Lemons!” originally published in Countdown, won the 2021 SCBWI Magazine Merit Award for poetry from the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators.
Rebecca has a master’s degree in magazine journalism from NYU and a bachelor’s degree in communication studies, with a specialization in business administration, from UCLA. In her life B.C. (“Before Children”), she was a freelance magazine and newspaper journalist, writing feature articles and cover stories for The New York Observer, Ladies Home Journal, Working Mother, Bride’s, New York Newsday and The Chronicle of Philanthropy, among many others. Prior to that, she was a Senior Editor at American Demographics (a now defunct marketing magazine that was far more interesting than it sounds!) where she wrote and edited stories about what motivates people’s purchasing decisions and lifestyle choices.
Rebecca is a member of the Society for Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI), The Poet’s Garage, The 12 x 12 Picture Book Writing Challenge, and Women Who Write. She is also a member of KidLit Caravan, a group of children’s book creators with books debuting in 2022.
She lives in the suburban jungles of New Jersey with her husband and two boisterous boys and is represented by Kaitlyn Sanchez at Context Literary.
To read Rebecca’s latest poems, learn more about her writing journey, and sign up for her newsletter, visit her website at www.RebeccaGardynLevington.com and follow her on Twitter at @WriterRebeccaGL.
Headshots
