Inkandescent Kids

Ep1 StoryTime: The Podcast — Meet Alexandra Kuehn, author of “Libby the Lunchbuddy”

Hello Inkandescent Kids and families! We are so excited to bring you the first episode of our new podcast and video show where we shine a light on truly amazing children’s book authors and their stories. 

I’m Hope Katz Gibbs, proud founder and publisher of the magazine, podcast and video show. With our Inkandescent Kids magazine editor, Ellen Smith, we are on a mission to help kids build critical thinking skills, boost creativity, and learn to think like a reporter.

One powerful step toward that goal is to read everything you can get your hands on, including reading children’s books by some of our favorite authors.

Today we are so excited to launch the show with Alexandra Kuehn, author of Libby the Lunchbuddy. We are going to start off by getting to this truly amazing author and find out what inspired her to write children’s books. Then, we’ll ask Alex to read from her book.

Parents: There will be an opportunity for you to link to just the reading so you can your children’s can enjoy the book as a bedtime story. Of course, we encourage you to get a copy of the book so you and your kids can read along.

“Libby the Lunch Buddy,” by Alexandra Kuehn

Welcome Alex!

Before we launch into the book-reading portion of today’s show, here are 8 questions for us to discuss so our readers can get to know you. Here we go!

  • What inspired you to write this book?
  • When did you first come up with the topic?
  • Tell us about the illustrations!
  • Do you want to write more books? What will the topics be?
  • You also have a talk show on Fox5+ called This Writer’s Life. I have had the honor to be on the show. Tell us more about it.
  • What advice do you have for anyone who wants to write a children’s book?
  • What was the hardest part of the publishing process? What is your favorite part?
  • What advice do you have for kids who want to grow up to be writers?

Now, please read to us from Libby the Lunchbuddy!

Thank you so much for taking the time to share your magic with us, Alex!

Friends and families: Please tune in for the next episode of StoryTime: The Podcast on InkandescentRadio.com, Spotify, Apple Podcasts, iHeart Radio, and you can find the video version of our interview on our YouTube channel, InkandescentKids.tv

Please also check out our online magazine, packed with articles, illustrations, photos, and more — all for kids, by kids, about kids: InkandescentKids.com.

Join us: If you, or a kid you know, want to learn to think like a reporter and be featured in the magazine, send us an email:hope@hopegibbs.com • editor@inkandescentkids.com

About the show: From the mouths of kids come the most profound thoughts and ideas. On the Inkandescent® Kids Show, we take it one step further with interviews by kids, for kids. Yes, there are a few adults involved, too, including experts on parenting, education, and more!

Read all about it: Launched on August 8, 2025, InkandescentKids.com magazine is on a mission to teach kids from kindergarten to college to think critically, like a reporter. Students are welcome to submit articles, photos, illustrations, videos, puzzles, games, and more for review and publication.

We also offer classes: 

  • Journalism (3 sessions): I am an award-winning reporter and teach the journalism classes. In Class 1, the assignment is to be part of our “So You Want to be a …” book project, in which they interview a parent about their work. They learn how to do research, develop interview questions, and practice asking the questions; then they write the article, and we work on it together until it’s ready for our student editors to copyedit and publish it.
  • Photojournalism (2 sessions): Our Inkandescent photographer, AnnaGibbs.com, guides students through the process of taking photos for the articles. She teaches them the essentials of taking a good photograph, how to capture the essence of the story they are working on, and, once she approves the images, we send them to our editorial team for inclusion in the article.
  • Illustration (4 sessions): Award-winning illustrator michaelglenwood.com works with students to create artwork to accompany the articles. He teaches them to identify the main concepts in the article they are working on, create 3 sketches for editor review, and then craft the illustration. Upon his review and approval, it goes to the editorial team.
  • Videos and podcasts (4 sessions): With me, Inkandescent’s video and podcast producer, Nelson Benavides, teaches students how to capture the essence of an interview through video and podcasting. He focuses on helping students understand the technical aspects of production.
  • Newsroom (6 sessions): Our InkandescentKids editor, Ellen Smith, is building our student newsrooms that include a team of editors, copyeditors, proofreaders, and a layout team. In addition to our online magazine, they help us craft a bi-monthly printable publication that features a theme. This September-October theme is New Beginnings.

Click here for pricing and payment options, and learn how to join our InkandescentKids family!

Upcoming Podcasts

October 1, 2026Inkandescent KidsEp1 StoryTime: The Podcast — Meet Alexandra Kuehn, author of “Libby the Lunchbuddy”

MEET THE INKANDESCENT® RADIO TEAM

Hope Katz Gibbs, Founder & Executive Producer, InkandescentRadio.com

Brandi Wilsker-Merritt, Director of Podcasting

Nelson Benavides, Director of Videography

Max Kukoy, Inkandescent Website Developer

Michael Gibbs, Inkandescent Art Director

 

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