Abdul loves telling stories but thinks his messy handwriting and spelling mistakes will keep him from becoming an author, until Mr. Muhammad visits and encourages him to persist.

Plagued by writer's block, Birdie finds unexpected inspiration from her pens, pencils, and markers for creating the perfect story.

Her second place finish in a writing contest for third graders disappoints Emma, a deaf girl, but her best friend Izzie, who did not expect much, is thrilled to finish third, so the girls decide to celebrate together. Includes an ASL fingerspelling chart and a sign language guide.

"'You can write about anything, as long as you write about you.' A young boy listens as Mr. Lopez explains the class's assignment: write about yourself. Marcus is going to write about his hat collection. Alia is going to write about the vampires she talks about all the time. The boy, however, doesn't have any ideas beyond a title: 'The Story of Me by Me.' His sister suggests making lists as a way to start--Thinks I Like, Things I Know. But the things...

A child struggles to write a story until he finds inspiration outside his window.