Victoria Scudder
Award-Winning Children's Book Author
& Authorpreneur Coach
Rosie the Farm Truck
​​Mom’s Choice Awards® Gold Recipient 2022
Purple Dragonfly Award Honorable Mention 2022
Firebird Book Award First Place 2022
Family Choice Award™ 2022
Reader's Favorite 5-Stars 2022
Reader's Favorite Gold Medal 2022
The Book Fest Second Place 2022
B.R.A.G. Medallion 2022
Rosie and her friends are called to help a group of reindeer stranded in Le Grand County on the eve of a winter blizzard. Rosie is presented with a challenge that she is not sure she can accomplish on her own. Through teamwork, trust and tenacity, Rosie and her friends accomplish their mission while discovering their own inner strengths. And little do they know that their new friends are on an important mission of their own!
Beautifully illustrated artwork in hand-painted watercolors, see Rosie and her friends come to life through the eyes of your younger ones.
Originally written for children ages 3-9 years but appealing to 'tweens and teens, this classic story of love, patience, kindness, and tenacity will warm hearts of all ages.
The Sweet Baby Series
Introducing the Sweet Baby series, books filled with sing-song rhymes and beautiful watercolor drawings for your baby to enjoy!
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Each page is filled with sweet-natured illustrations that capture your child's imagination and bring the rhymes to life. Watch as your little one's eyes light up with joy as he or she follows along with the rhyming words and learns about the surrounding world.
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"Sweet Baby is the perfect addition to any baby's book collection. It's a fun and engaging way to introduce your child to the beauty of language and the joy of reading."
Pepe the Key West Rooster
Join Pepe, the lovable Key West Rooster, on an extraordinary journey of self-growth, compassion, love, and friendship! In this captivating picture book, Pepe admires his handsome and popular father, Miguel, and yearns to be just like him. As he explores the vibrant streets of Key West, Pepe seeks guidance from his friends to uncover his own special qualities. Along the way, he learns valuable lessons about patience, self-acceptance, and the beauty of embracing one's uniqueness.
With its engaging storyline, vibrant illustrations, and heartfelt messages, Pepe the Key West Rooster is a delightful tale that celebrates confidence, self-esteem, and the power of a positive mindset. Join Pepe on this island adventure and let his story inspire young readers to discover their own inner strengths and embrace the wonders of self-discovery.
Rosie the Farm Truck
Meets Little Red
Reader's Favorite 5-Stars 2022
Rosie's famously sweet nature is challenged when a shiny brand-new tractor joins her farm family. Will her friends forget about her as they become bedazzled by the newcomer? Find out what happens to Rosie and how she deals with Farmer Jack's surprise!
Beautifully illustrated in hand-painted watercolors, see Rosie and her friends come to life through the eyes of your younger ones.
Originally written for children ages 3-9 years but appealing to 'tweens and teens, this classic story of love, patience, kindness, and tenacity will warm hearts of all ages.
24 Days 'Til Christmas for Kids: How to Guarantee a Spot on Santa's Nice List
24 Days 'Til Christmas for Kids: How to Guarantee a Spot on Santa's Nice List is a heart-warming guide in helping children understand the importance of kindness and gratitude during the Christmas season of giving. Each day of the 24-day activity journal provides a prompt meant to help kids focus on sharing, honoring, and thinking about their communities and the important people in their lives. Geared toward children of all ages, this holiday workbook can be completed independently or with adult support, and is a sure-fire way to spice up your family's dinner time conversations!
Jack's Garage: Tire Maintenance for Kids
Family Choice Award™ 2022
Royal Dragonfly First Place 2023
Readers' Favorite 5 Star Rating 2022
Introducing Jack's Garage, the first of a new series by 13-year old kid author Jack Scudder. Since Jack was a very young boy, he was obsessed with the maintenance and care of a wide variety of vehicles - cars, trucks, tractors, scooters, and even boats! - and he's passionate about teaching other children how to understand and appreciate the inner workings of these "things that go".
In Jack's Garage: Tire Maintenance for Kids, Jack will walk children through the step-by-step processes of maintaining vehicle tires for optimal safety. This book is not meant to be a manual, rather a child-friendly guideline to help kids learn basic terminology and steps so they can expand upon their interests and knowledge as they grow older and gain more independence. The images are bright and colorful, and the book includes a basic list of terms to aid with vocabulary development.
Appropriate for children of all ages, though focused primarily for readers ages 5-9.
Book Trailer: Tire Maintenance for Kids
My Story
Hi! Thanks for taking the time to scroll down this far! I appreciate your curiosity!
So here's my story ...
Official Professional "Blah Blah":
My professional life has been a diverse blend of education, military service, and entrepreneurship. With extensive experience in teaching Literacy and History, I've mentored students at various levels, from elementary to college classrooms (and beyond!) for over 15 years (with middle school holding a special place in my heart!). After retiring from the classroom, I took the opportunity to homeschool my teenage son, Jack. This decision has left me feeling so grateful in ways I'm not sure I ever expected.
In 2006, I retired from the U.S. Air Force after serving 20 years, some of my favorite experiences spent traveling overseas. I consider myself one of the lucky ones, as I was incredibly blessed to have had a series of outstanding mentors who helped me move up the ranks to Master Sergeant, sponsored me through my commissioning process, and stood by my side until the day I retired as a Captain. The Air Force's core values are integrity first, service before self, and excellence in all we do. To this day, I work hard to honor them by honoring those values in my everyday life. Except when I steal my kid's chocolate and pretend otherwise.
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About 7 years ago, I entered the professional world of eCommerce by opening up an online shop that eventually led to a micro-niche specialization selling Christmas ornaments. This business, still thriving and keeping me hopping for 5 months out of the year, nurtures my business brain. The whole process is entirely different from education or training, but it's a special kind of thrill knowing that my products sell far and wide. In a world full of cranky people, it's fun to see people smile over something so simple.
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Which somehow then led me to writing children's books. Yeah, that's connected, right?
I was supposed to write a book for my middle school students. That was the plan, and that hasn't happened yet (sorry, I got sidetracked!). Instead, I attended a business conference in Chicago where I met a couple who wrote and published children's picture books under their own publishing company. Can you see my wheels spinning? On the flight home, I wrote the rough draft of my first children's book, Rosie the Farm Truck, hired an illustrator from the Philippines, and published under my own company after the Covid world opened back up. It was a hit! And now 14 books later, I'm still loving it so much that I'm now training and coaching others in the field of "Indie" publishing. And still nurturing my business brain!
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Official Fun Facts:
I was raised in update New York by my northern father and Southern mother. The South won my heart, and I've called Northeast Florida home for more than 30 years on and off. After the past 13 years in Key West, my husband Trey, son Jack, and my ever-present cockapoo Sailor the dog are heading back home for good. We just bought a fixer upper on 6.5 acres of paradise complete with a barn, turkeys, sandhill cranes, and a resident black bear!
I'm an academic geek and specialized in 16th-17th century European-American-Latin history in graduate school at the University of North Florida. My thesis topic related to the significance of Catholic church during the Counter Reformation and how it impacted the 17th-century Mayan shamans via the Spanish missionaries. I had lunch with a modern shaman once when I was trekking through the Yukatan on a research trip. But we weren't allowed to talk to him. Or sit at the same table. But I'm still calling it a lunch date. ;)
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We are very much a military family. My husband currently serves in the U.S. Navy, and I'm unbelievably proud of him. He's a 6th generation military Scudder and "son" of the American Revolution. My father was Air Force during the Vietnam era, and one of my brothers is a retired Marine Gunnery Sergeant. My son is a Sea Cadet with aspirations of going into the Air Force. I thought it was because of my guiding light (haha). Nope. He wants to go into the Air Force because the bases are "way" nicer. Like, duh.
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For fun, we hide away in our RV on really cool road trips. I'm a darned good cook, love jigsaw puzzles, thrive on time with family, and have a fierce appreciation for really good craft porters, salted caramel, and milk chocolate.
Reviews
Great New Tradition or Keepsake!
What a great way to incorporate a simple, yet character-forming tradition into the season of giving! I love this book, and will read it year after year with my child as another way to keep us focused on what matters. So simple. Makes for great conversation at dinner, bedtime, or car time - but positive action is required!
(Sort of a spoiler: #23 is the BEST!)
Josh, 24 Days 'Til Christmas for Kids
Great little journal!!
I'm always looking for new ways to improve my business, and this has given me so much to think about that isn't what you would necessarily find in your traditional "business" books. The author uses quotes from some of our past leaders and offers business-related prompts and actionable suggestions to go along with each quote. I like the format, and I just started using some of the prompts to brainstorm with my team. It's a fresh approach to thinking and a great tool for anyone managing their own business.
Nancy, The Entrepreneur's Journal
Full of fun and thoughtful activities for the Christmas season!
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I love this little book! It has 24 activities for children for the days leading up to Christmas that emphasize giving, kindness and gratitude. I am really looking forward to December to get started! I know it's going to be fun. Plus, this book will be a keepsake to treasure.
Gotta Paint, 24 Days 'Til Christmas for Kids
Review from AdSense Click here to read!
This Christmas Farm Book For Pre-School Kids Is A Funny Family Winter Story
I want to live on this farm!
Rosie is such a sweetheart!! What a great character, and like I seriously hope to see her in other stories. My kiddo loved her. And the surprise twist in the book is such an awesome lesson for kids about overcoming challenges. I didn't expect that and such a great bonus lesson that led to some good discussion. Overall, this story is well-written and reads like a big, warm hug. The illustrations are really beautiful too. Hope to see more from this author!
Beautiful story!
I bought this book thinking it would be a cute Christmas story for my kids. I didn’t know what I was in for, as I pre-read it. Well, it melted me. I have a child who has struggled for years with dyslexia, and this book was such sweet encouragement! I bought a second copy to gift, but need to get a couple more too. Thank you for sharing Rosie with us!! Absolutely beautiful illustrations as well - sweet and gentle and I love it! More Rosie, more Callahan Farm, please!
Adorable and sweet
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I bought this book to start a book collection for my unborn grand daughter for her baby shower. Of course I read it before wrapping it and glad I did. It was so well written and sweet and Rosie is a great character with lots of love! Can’t wait to read more of her books in the future. It’s a must read!!!!!!
Rosie the Farm Truck Reviewed by Jennifer Ibiam for Readers' Favorite® - April 7, 2022
5-Stars
Eight inches of snow fell on the Callahan Farm overnight. Rosie the truck wanted to play with her friends in it. Unfortunately, they expected a storm the following night, and Farmer Jack enlisted the help of everyone to prepare for it. Rosie wasn’t happy, but she helped. Later, while they were playing, Mayor Hope sent for Rosie to help bring in four reindeer trapped on a stranded train. The reindeer were on an urgent mission but couldn’t brave the incoming storm. If the mission failed, many children would be sad. Would Rosie agree to help get the reindeer out of danger to a shelter? Would the storm stop the reindeer from their task? Find out in Rosie the Farm Truck by Victoria Scudder, illustrated by Kam Bayo.
Rosie the Farm Truck by Victoria Scudder is a perfect Christmas children’s story. However, the lessons in this picture book remain evergreen. It is a tale of kindness, teamwork, love, resourcefulness, courage, and healthy doses of confidence. I loved the beautiful illustrations and attractive choice of colors by Kam Bayo. The simple grammar and punchy sentences were catchy and easy to understand. Scudder awakened my imagination by creating living characters out of everything in the environment which I’m sure will excite children. Above all, this book reminds us never to second guess ourselves, as Rosie did. We must opt for a circle of people who would do everything to help us succeed, as we can only receive the energy we give. When we show up for people in difficult situations, we unlock another level of our own strength and uniqueness. Thank you for this educative book, Victoria Scudder!
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Rosie the Farm Truck Reviewed by Judge, 30th Annual Writer’s Digest Self-Published Book Awards - Nov 21, 2022
The story of Rosie is endearing. The illustrations really bring her to life and engage with the reader's imagination. The way the book is formatted is perfect for the content, and I loved the way the words are broken up around the page to keep the eyes moving and interested, that is well done. It's charming to have the cars with eyes, and I think that's something kids will resonate with and be attracted to reading after so many cartoons and movies have similar styles in their characters. Thinking about a task like farm work from the point of view of the truck is a great way to teach while also keeping it fun. This is really cute, I think kids and adults will enjoy reading about Rosie and be wanting more of the farm and community adventures!
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Jack's Garage: Tire Maintenance for Kids Reviewed by Vernita Naylor for Readers' Favorite® - Sept 29, 2022
5-Stars
Growing kids have always watched adults. You will find them continually mimicking adult actions from pretending they are working at a grocery store checking groceries, staying at home cooking, and fussing with the kids to working in an office. Jack's Garage: Tire Maintenance for Kids by Jack Scudder is an ideal children's book that will educate them on the various aspects of the importance of tire maintenance. Jack is a young author with a diverse background in working with all types of vehicles. He wanted to pass on his passion and knowledge to other young readers who also may have an interest in vehicles. Jack has provided the tools necessary for understanding vehicles and even a novice can learn a lot from this book. Children will become familiar with the terms and definitions used for tires and understand the necessary safety steps on how to change and take care of tires. While this book is about tires, it's just the beginning for Jack.
As I read Jack's Garage: Tire Maintenance for Kids by Jack Scudder, I thought about how beautiful it was to see a young talented teen have the drive (pun intended!) to write such a book. Then it made me smile as I began to recall the days with my dad and learning about cars. He not only taught me about tire changing and maintenance but changing oil, checking fluids, troubleshooting by listening for different sounds that the vehicles make, and so much more. This book is an easy read and makes a great start for a beginning reader. The material is easy to absorb and not overwhelming. I enjoyed this book and am looking for more from this author about other parts of the vehicle. Get your copy today and tell a friend.
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FarmGirl68, Rosie the Farm Truck
Heather C., Rosie the Farm Truck
Cindy Collins, Rosie the Farm Truck
Videos
Author Visits
Invite us to your school, club, or organization!
With over 15 years of classroom teaching experience specializing in Literacy, Exceptional Student Education, Social Studies, and Training Education, I bring a high level of energy, passion, and excitement into schools for book readings, author trainings, writing workshops, and a variety of topics pertaining to children's literacy.
Two (2) internationally award-winning authors for the "price" of one!
15-year old son Jack Scudder will tag team with me for a double-duty powerhouse presentation - both of us sharing books, experiences, and writing habits as best-selling authors!
Grades 3-8 Presentation:
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60 min per session
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Tailored for grades 3-4 / 5-6 / 7-8
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Interactive slideshow
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Tie-ins to school curriculum or theme
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Overview of the writing process - fiction, non-fiction, or rhyme and meter
- Insight into how books are made
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Q&A
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Bookmark for each student
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1 book of choice for each teacher's classroom (paperback)
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Hardcover book copies for the library
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Bulk order discounts (see wholesale pricing guide)
Writing Workshop: A Deep Dive for Grades 3-8
Looking for a more hands-on workshop to help your students with specific writing skills?
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60 min per session (max 30 students per session)
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Grade level specific and tailored to your school's curriculum and/or state's standards
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Happy to work with you on specific topics!
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Popular topics include:
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How to write an irresistible story hook
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Building believable characters
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Creating vivid settings
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Show, don't tell: bringing emotions to life
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The art of dialogue
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Story structure (we'll pick one genre together)
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Writing from different points of view
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1 book of choice for each teacher's classroom (paperback)
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Hardcover book copies for the library
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Bulk order discounts (see wholesale pricing guide)
School Visit Fees:
Option 1 - In Person
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$1200 for a full day (3 presentations)
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$800 for a half-day (2 presentations)
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Travel/mileage expenses more than 60 miles outside of zip 32177
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Send home pre-order forms two weeks before the presentation
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Signed books delivered day of presentation
Option 2 - Virtual
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$225 per 60 minute session (max 30 participants)
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Send home pre-order forms two weeks before the presentation
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Signed books shipped to the school
PK - 2nd Grade Read -Alouds
I am always happy to read to the youngest schoolers for FREE! It's not a formal presentation - just a pop in for 20 minutes to read a story. :)
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Max of 20 (PK-1st) / 25 (2nd) children per group
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Minimum age 3 years **
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Travel/mileage expenses more than 60 miles outside of zip 32177
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Send home pre-order forms two weeks before the visit
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Signed books brought on the day of the visit for the teacher to disperse as appropriate
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Bulk order discounts (see wholesale pricing guide)
A Presentation for the Grown Ups!
I am also available for 90 minute talks for parents or teachers interested in helping their children and students become published authors (or for those who want to become authors themselves!). This interactive session includes an introductory presentation, handouts, and plenty of time for Q&A. No limit on participants - the more, the merrier! It's always a good time!
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$600 + travel/mileage expenses more than 60 miles outside of zip 32177
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1 book of choice for group organizer
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Bulk order discounts (see wholesale pricing guide)
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Students 10+ yrs welcome to join these "grown up" sessions!