Creating Christmas Magic for Children: Author Interview with Krystalyn Drown

From now until Christmas, I will be promoting writers who have Christmas themed books to help you get into the spirit of the season. The genres will range from children's books to adult novels. They will give you some great ideas for book gift-giving ideas as well. Hope you'll enjoy this first installment.

You’ve just published Tracy Tam: Santa Command. Tell my readers a little about your new book.
Tracy Tam is about a little girl who does not believe in Santa's magic. She believes everything he does on Christmas Eve is based on science - rocket powered sleighs and tricks with mirrors.

What would you like readers to take away from reading this book?
I would like readers to come away believing that there is magic in this world, that even the impossible can be done if you believe hard enough.

What makes the Christmas holiday season special for you?
Magic, plain and simple. I remember when I was little, waking up to find that Santa had visited. We would have a huge lunch with my mom's side of the family. Then, I would head over to my other grandparents' house and spend the night there with my dad's side of the family. I got to spend two days with all of my favorite people. To me, that was magical.

What is your favorite Christmas tradition?
As for my favorite tradition today, I have to watch A Muppet Christmas Carol every Christmas Eve.

Of all the genres you could write, what drew you to writing for tweens and teens?
It's what I enjoy reading. I love young adult coming of age stories. They explore the big moments in life that define a person. Middle grade has that to a certain extent, but those books still possess the whimsy of childhood. They still have magic. 

When did you actually start writing your first book? How long did it take to write your first draft? I think I wrote the first draft of my first book in about a month. It, of course, is terrible and will never see the light of day in its current form. It's a young adult novel about a girl who lives on a moon, but I'd like to rewrite it as middle grade at some point.

Who encouraged you along the way?
My sister at first, and then my critique partner, Dianne. Also, the lovely ladies from Fiction Femme Fatale, a short story blog I worked with for a while.

Prior to writing these children’s books, what was your publishing and writing background? Are you active in any writer critique groups?
I've always written in some form or another. I started with short stories when I was eight. I wrote a book of poems when I was fifteen. In college, I started writing novels still unfinished. I was a part of Kelley Armstrong's online writing group for a while. That was where I dipped my toes into the professional pool. Then, during the first Write On Con, I met my current critique partner. I also had two short stories published before Legasea, which was my first published novel.

How did you hear about your publishers?
I had queried Legasea to a ton of agents and it went nowhere. The ones who read it didn't have bad things to say about it, but they either didn't want to go with selkies or they already had something like it. So, I decided to look into small presses. My publisher, Curiosity Quills, was just starting off at the time, and they offered me a contract almost immediately. They've been wonderful, sending me to conventions and such.

I queried Month9Books for Tracy Tam because Curiosity Quills didn't accept middle grade at the time. They do now. One of my critique partners had worked with someone on the Month9Books staff years ago when she worked for Sourcebooks. Also an agent I know has an author with a book through them. So, I had heard good things about them. 

It looks like you've done a number of book fairs. How do you promote them?Most of the book fairs I've done have been promoted locally in the papers. I also promote them on Facebook. I'm starting to find a network of local authors, and they help spread the word, too. Next, I'd like to start doing school visits.

How did you go about finding an illustrator? I really love the whimsical look of the Legasea cover.
My publishers have all had their own illustrator/cover designers. For Legasea, I gave them a stick figure drawing of what I imagined the cover looked like. They gave me almost exactly what I wanted. For Tracy Tam, they used their own ideas, but I had input along every step of the way from sketch to final copy.

What has frustrated you the most in putting these books together?
The most frustrating thing for me is getting that first draft down. I don't really know the characters until about halfway through.

What has pleasantly surprised you in the process?
I've been pleasantly surprised by the editing process for all of my books. I enjoy editing and revising far more than drafting. I used to think that would be the hard part.

What do you know now about publishing you wish you had known sooner?
As for what I know now, marketing is hard. I wish I knew more about it.

What advice would you give someone who wants to write children’s stories?
Read a lot in and out of your genre. Find critique partners who work well with you. Listen to their advice.

What is the writing best advice you’ve been given?
Go straight to the publishers. Agents give form rejections. Publishers will often give more detailed feedback on what works and what doesn't.

How much time daily do you have for writing?
Not much. I have a full time job and a five year old. I get writing time on Monday and Tuesday nights. Occasionally, I can squeeze it in on other nights, but not very often.

What message would you like parents and children to take away from your books?
I hope that when people read my books, they find wonder, whimsy, and a little bit of truth.

What future plans do you have for writing?
I want to write more middle grade books. I want to finish the sequels for Tracy Tam and rewrite the young adult moon story. I also have a young adult circus story that I'm currently drafting.

Twitter - https://twitter.com/KrysteyBelle
Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/KrystalynDrown
Short stories - http://fictionfemmefatale.blogspot.com/search/label/Krystalyn
Amazon link to Legasea -

Amazon link to Tracy Tam: Santa Command

Fitting the Illustration to the the Text: Author Interview with Billie Webb

If you've ever made up stories for your children or grandchildren and wondered if you should turn them into books, here's what one writer decided to do.

Of all the genres you could write, what drew you to writing for children? What inspired you to write the first book?
My story is a bit odd. I actually created my first children's picture book never intending to publish it at all. I like to create hand-made things, and when my sister's first child, Natalie, turned one in 2012, I felt inspired to write and draw up a silly little book for her. It was a parody referencing Dr. Seuss and other great writers. 

So I sat down with my morning coffee and wrote "There's a Froggie on My Doggie." It took me 30 minutes to write and another 3 days to illustrate.  Then I spent about 2 more days figuring out how to scan it into my computer and lay it out so I could put the pictures and the words together. I then printed it out, sewed it together with my sewing machine, created a cardboard cover, and glued the cover to the book. I actually made four copies at once so that I could give her the best of four. I kept the others for myself.

Then I realized we had four other babies in our family who were not getting books from me.  I had accidentally put myself in the awkward position of telling her, "Please do not tell anybody that I made this for your child."

So while riding in the car back home from my sister's, I quickly wrote my other four books. (It was a 2 day drive.) Back at home, I went through the tedious process of hand-building my second book, "Red Cat, Red Cat, Red Cat, Blue," in the same fashion as before: by printing it out and sewing it together. Red Cat was going to be a gift for one of my brother's sons, who was turning one!

After sharing "Red Cat, Red Cat, Red Cat, Blue" with other children, I was surprised to discover that small children (like age 2) would often laugh and giggle in the middle of the book.  I had no idea that Gage's encounter with his mother would be so funny to two year olds!

Then it finally dawned on me: I am writer for two year olds. Perhaps it's not so bad having a fan club of little children.  I realized that I should embrace who I was created to be, and I should be willing to write for them

Who encouraged you along the way?
I wrote these for my family, who have always encouraged me in my work.

Prior to writing these children’s books, what was your publishing and writing background?
When I signed up for college, my father suggested that I major in advertising.  He said something like this: "You put pictures and words together.  You have done this since you were little, so advertising is probably the career for you." It sounded right to me. And I did it.

But I ended up getting married and staying home with my kids.  Thus, my publishing experience has been largely volunteer work: I used the knowledge from my degree to create posters, advertisements, greeting cards, comics and newsletters for my family, our church, the schools, and charitable organizations in general.
Are you active in any writer critique groups?
No, I am not active in a writer's critique group, however I have been in the past, and they are wonderful!

What made you decide to self-publish? Did you try the traditional route and send out to publishers and agents?
No, I did not try traditional publishers. I decided to self publish for a variety of reasons 1) I wanted to give the children in my family better quality books than the ones I made by hand. 2) I wanted to be able to get copies of my books at any time without going through the tedious process of hand-creating them. 3) I wanted the children to be able to get copies, even if I were not around anymore 4) I thought creating professional books for the children would be a great gift that would last their entire life. 5) I did not want to take the time to try to convince a publisher to publish my books.  I had heard that they are bombarded with hundreds of books all the time and generally overwhelmed with requests, so I thought it would be more efficient to just do it myself. 6) I am very good with software, so I had the skills needed to get it done. 7) I also wanted to publish them so that other children outside of my family could read them if they wished.

What are some of the promotions that you've done for the books that have been the most successful?
I have tried a few different promotions.  The best promotion I have had is actually email promotion.  When a message can be targeted at the correct audience, the returns are bigger. 

For example, one of my books is an educational workbook for children in daycare, specifically those involved in a government program called "CACFP."  There is a CACFP conference this month, and I am a vendor: I am giving away a free book to each participant upon their arrival at the conference. The conference has not started yet, but last week the organizer sent out a pre-conference email with all of the different vendor information, which included a link to my books.  I had nearly 250 sales last week from that email.  In my opinion, that email was a pretty good promotional tool.

As an author and illustrator, how do you put together your books?
When someone reads my books (which only take about 3 minutes to read), they can see that the images tell a chunk of the story that the words alone do not express.  This is just the way I write: I doodle and write at the same time. The images and words come together at the same time. Perhaps this is the way most comic strip creators function.

What has frustrated you the most in putting these books together?
What has frustrated me the most?  Probably just generally making "dumb" mistakes that someone more seasoned would not make. For example, when I put these books out, initially I did not print age ranges on the covers or in the descriptions, and that was a big mistake. Sales increased after I added the age ranges, and my reviews got better, too.

What has pleasantly surprised you in the process?
The pleasant surprise is the positive reviews from so many people that I do not know.  I did not really expect so much support from readers.

What do you know now about publishing you wish you had known sooner?
The thing I wish I had known most about publishing is trim size. I have lost a lot sales due to the fact that my books are a hard size to display in a retail store. I chose 8.5 x 8.5, and I wish I had chosen 8 x 8.  Why? Because bookstores and retailers have lots of racks that hold 8x8, but the 8.5 x 8.5 size books just do not fit in the racks.  I still need to take the time to resize them all.  It is on my to-do list.

What advice would you give someone who wants to write children’s stories?
Before I released my books, I was told that children's literature is one the very hardest genres to break into because there are so many people doing the same thing. And this is SO true! It seems like just about everybody I talk to has an idea for a children's book. There is absolutely no shortage of ideas and excitement in this genre. 

Unfortunately I have met several people who have spent thousands (even tens of thousands!) of dollars for illustrations and layout services only to end up with "a basement full of books" that they cannot sell. 

Considering the low profit margin and the huge competition, be careful not to set your earnings expectations too high. Do the math before you bet the bank: how many books do you need to sell to break even?  You need to know that right up front.

So my advice is this: remember that this is a business.  Do not invest without a clear plan.

What is the best writing advice you've been given?
I did solicit advice from a few parents and an educator before releasing Emergency Last Tuesday at Two.  This book deals with the sensitive topic of a fire at an elementary school.  I was very worried that I would handle it incorrectly.  And the piece My School Burned Down Last Tuesday at Two.  I was told it sounded too violent.  I assume this was good advice because I have had no complaints that the book is too violent since the name change.

How much time daily do you have for writing?
I have no time for my own writing right now.  I am doing layout and illustrations for a client, which is very time consuming.  I am also working on other projects not related to writing.

What message would you like parents and children to take away from your books?
I want to encourage parents to have educational conversations with their toddlers/small children. All of my books provide many opportunities for these conversations. Here's some questions they might want to discuss with their children after reading my books:  What should you do when you find a stray cat? Why do you think the little girl tried to sit on her baby sister? How do you think Jay is feeling about losing his school to a fire?

What future plans do you have for writing?
I hope to start on another small series of children's books beginning in 2015.  I cannot divulge much about the project because it involves other people, but the series would encourage positive behavior in children and center around a particular character (perhaps similar in nature to a Curious George or a Fat Albert type series).  There is a lot of possibility for success with this project, but I haven't completely committed to it yet.

I am also under contract for some Spanish educational workbooks, but it is a very slow and relaxed project so I have no good estimate for when they will be available.

If you would like to learn more about Billie and her writing, here are some links to get you started.
https://www.facebook.com/WooliLabs
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Eat-and-Play-Healthy/371843852953307
 http://woolilabs.com/wooli-books/
 http://www.amazon.com/Billie-Webb/e/B00EO2DKGQ

Helping Children Cope: Author Interview with Esther Adler

You’ve recently published your first two children’s picture books. One is called “Angry” and the other “Sad.”
Actually, three books now. I just published "Happy as well. This is the full list:

Angry: Helping Children Cope With Anger (link)
Sad : Helping Children Cope With Sadness (link)     
Happy: Helping Children Embrace Happiness (just published - link)
Jealous: Helping Children Cope With Jealousy (coming soon)

Who or what inspired you to write on these two topics?
As a practicing Licensed Mental Health Counselor (LMHC) specializing in children, I saw first-hand how children struggle with understanding and expressing their feelings. When I couldn’t find the type of book I was looking for on the market, I was inspired to write them myself.

These are part of the ColorFeeling series of books. What do you mean by that?Each book in the series focuses on a different feeling. To help children relate to abstract feelings, I found that it is helpful to associate a feeling with a color. Hence, “ColorFeeling” For example: Angry is red, Sad is blue, Happy is Yellow, and Jealous is Green.

Who helped you polish your story?
I am lucky to have several colleagues in the field that I can turn to for feedback. I also employ a professional editor. And special thanks to my children for all their constructive criticism and input. J

Are you active in any writing critique groups?
Not at this time.

Prior to writing this book, what was your publishing and writing background?This is my first series. I never envisioned myself as being an author. I work full-time and I’m a full time mom to 6 wonderful children. It’s interesting how life takes us down paths that we often do not anticipate. Life is full of wonderful surprises!

Who encouraged you along the way?My family and friends have been a big support.

The publishing company, Bright Awareness Publications is your company. What made you decide to start your own publishing company?  I had a specific vision for how I wanted my books to look (illustration wise) and traditional publishers generally control that (not the author).  It can take years to publish with a traditional publisher.  These days, traditional publishers provide very little marketing support for new authors. By creating my own publishing company, I can afford to spend money on marketing.

Did you send your manuscripts out to other publishers or agents prior to that?
No, for the reasons I stated above, it wasn’t necessary since I had already decided to start my own publishing company.

What are some of the promotions that you’ve done for the book that have been the most successful?My husband has been focusing on the marketing side of the business. (I can do it a lot, but I can’t do it all J.) We have been testing the waters with various marketing channels. However, it’s too early to tell which would be the most successful.

How did you go about finding an illustrator?I found one online. Her name is Shrutkirti Kaushal and she is a pleasure to work with.

What did you look for in an illustrator?For the ColorFeeling series, I looked for an illustrator that was able to draw vivid, uncluttered illustrations and animals expressing a full range of emotions. Based on the feedback I received, I am confident that we did actually find the perfect illustrator for this series.

Do they work strictly from your text or do you give them suggestions of how you want the story to be done?
Both. I provide the text and the overall scene for illustration, but I encourage Shrutkirti to offer suggestions and to be creative.

What has frustrated you the most in putting these books together? How much time it takes! People think that children books are easy to write because there is so little text, but every word has to be carefully considered to meet the desired objective. Since these books are also being used by educators and counselors in a classroom and/or therapeutic settings, I need to take that into consideration as well. Finally, illustrations take a lot of time since it’s an iterative process with a lot of back and forth between the illustrator and myself.

What has pleasantly surprised you in the process?The positive feedback I’ve been receiving from educators, parents and children. There is nothing more gratifying than to be pestered with, “When is the next book coming out already!”

What advice would you give someone who wants to write children’s stories?To keep it simple. In my books, I work with the illustrator to keep the illustrations as simple and vibrant as possible. I found that cluttered illustrations tend to distract children.

What is the writing best advice you’ve been given?To be open to constructive criticism and alternate perspectives.

How much time daily do you have for writing?I write mostly over the weekends. However, I have the books at the back of my mind all the time. Anytime I get an idea I jot it down.

What message would you like parents and children to take away from your books?For Parents: Children often struggle with expressing their feelings. Additionally, when a child does express their feelings, they don’t always identify the correct feeling that they are experiencing. Parents can help their child understand their feelings better by discussing their feelings with them in a loving, caring, and non-confrontational manner (the ColorFeeling books are ideal for this.)

For Children: Expressing thoughts and feelings can be difficult. Keep in mind that when you express yourself to someone who loves and cares about you, the end result is that almost always you WILL feel better. Your loved ones want to help you. Expressing yourself shows strength!

What future plans do you have for the publishing company?I am currently working on the next four books in the ColorFeeling series. I am also planning to publish additional therapy-related series. Stay tuned!

Is there any other tips about writing or publishing you’d like to add?Writing books is a lot of fun, but it takes a lot of time and effort.

That's all for today's interview. If you'd like to learn more about Esther and her writing, here are some options to follow-up.
http://www.amazon.com/Esther-Adler/e/B00IZTGB10

http://www.brightawareness.com

The worksheets from the books can be printed for free:

http://www.brightawareness.com/printables.html

Writing for the Love of the Craft: Author Interview with Michelle McBeth

You’ve recently published your first children’s picture book, A Case in Candy Land. When did you decide to write this book?
Although I have been writing bits and pieces of children's books over the past twenty years, I actually began my writing as a career in January 2013. In December of 2013 I decided to write a short chapter book series for readers who don’t read much because books are simply too long for them. I had a lot of fifth grade students like that when I was teacher. This book is only ten short chapters and full of illustrations for more interest. I tried to make the wording simple for a quicker read. It still comes out to fourth grade level though based on sentence length and word difficulty.

In order to find a high interest concept, this book started from an alternate universes idea that popped into my head. But I thought it would be too mature for the age group I wanted to write for, so it eventually morphed into this story about a world where people travel from one land to another through the Hall of Travels. Each land is unique in its purpose such as Candy Land, Toy Land, Hairstylist Hollow, and Doctor Dale. Traveling only takes a moment. It is like a time machine, but instead of changing times, you change lands.

Who helped you polish your story? I had a few friends who read my manuscript as well as my two sons. My sons hear a lot of, "Read this please and tell me what you think." Based on their comments as well as what I know about polishing techniques, I made changes in my manuscript.  

Are you active in any writing critique groups?
I do not currently have a writing critique group, but I am actively seeking one specifically for authors of children's literature. I believe this kind of feedback can be extremely valuable to writers.

Prior to writing this book, what was your publishing and writing background?
I have been writing stories since I was four years old. Off and on throughout my life I have submitted small pieces for publication in school newspapers and journals. I began writing children's books about twenty years ago, but did not feel that things were clicking in place for me to be able to publish until last year.

In 2013 I had a children's short story series published in a local journal. I also self-published a parent guide for Autism that year. Children's fiction has always been my true love--both reading and writing--so I am pleased to be coming back to it in my new Hall of Travels series.

Who encouraged you along the way?
My two teenage sons have been my biggest fans. A few years ago, I found out my younger son had been sneaking into my stash of writings. He was impressed with what I had written and encouraged me to finish my books and start publishing. My sons are not afraid to tell me what is good and what is bad about my writing either!
Did you try the traditional route of seeking a publisher and/or agent to market your book? Because I felt I had the skills to self-publish, I chose to try that route first. I have not yet sought out an agent or publisher, but I have not discounted the idea. I chose to self-publish after meeting a fellow author in December 2012 who was self-published. She told me about some of the advantages of self-publishing and how easy the process could be.

Tell me about the process. How did you decide where to publish? How much research did you do?
After meeting the self-published author who had published through CreateSpace, I began researching the process and what this company had to offer. I did not shop around because I felt this company perfectly fit what I wanted. Another reason I did not shop around was because I did not need any of the additional services self-publishing companies often provide. I had the skills and the resources to do the design, layout and illustrations without outside help.

The majority of the research I did before designing the book involved what a good layout looked like. I researched font type, size, margins, bleed, illustration size, etc. This was time consuming on my first book.
What are some of the promotions that you’ve done for the book that have been the most successful?I am still in the beginning stages of learning how to self-promote my books. To date I have run a Goodreads Giveaway for my book, I have printed postcard sized flyers that I give to everyone I come in contact with, and I have given free books where I believe it would do the most good.

I feel that promoting myself locally has had the biggest impact. Giving my book to the local library and schools is a great way to become known in my own community.
How did you go about finding an illustrator?
I am an extremely fortunate author because I have two sons who are artists! My fourteen year old son, Ryan, who has the drawing style I needed for this book, was my illustrator. Our informal agreement was that when the book(s) began to make a certain amount, he would receive a percentage of royalties.
    
Did he work strictly from your text or did you give him suggestions of how you want the story to be done?
I told Ryan exactly what I wanted for each illustration and then left it to him to draw it in his own style. After each illustration was complete, I reviewed it and then asked for edits if I felt the picture did not quite convey what I wanted.

What has frustrated you the most in putting these books together?
Doing everything myself in the publication process has its rewards, but is also frustrating because it is so time consuming. I could have had this book written in a month, but it took four additional months for layout, design and illustration. Creating my own Kindle version of the book was frustrating as well because I don't own an e-reader. This made it more difficult for me to figure out how the concept worked. I won out in the end!
What has pleasantly surprised you in the process?
I have been pleasantly surprised by how professional the book looked when I actually had one in my hand. Other people have also commented on how professional it looks. I can hold that book in my hand and say, "I created this!" It is an awesome feeling.

What suggestions do you have for someone who wants to write children’s stories?
First, find out what kids are reading. Read books written for different age groups to find out what the differences are. Second, find a way to spend lots of time with children. Observe them. See what kids like, how they behave, what makes them tick. Then, write, write, and write some more. Read your work to children to get feedback from the audience you are writing for.

Submit your work. Take rejections as feedback, not as a sign that you should stop writing. When you get negative feedback listen with a discerning ear. Some of that feedback will make you a better writer. However, always stay true to yourself and your style. Above all, love what you are doing. That love and passion for your work is the proof that you are doing exactly what you should be!

What is the writing best advice you’ve been given?
The best advice I heard from a fellow author is, if you are writing to make a bunch of money, you are in the wrong business. You should be writing because you love it so much you couldn't imagine doing anything else.

How much time daily do you have for writing?
I spend several hours a day writing in some capacity whether on my blog or writing stories. I also spend quite a bit of time arranging stories in my head before writing them down. 

What message would you like parents and children to take away from your book? 
All of my books and stories are written with one thing in mind. I want the readers to feel they enjoyed themselves. And after closing the cover of the book, I want them to have a smile on their faces. If they learn something new from the book, such as new words or concepts, well that's a bonus. A Case in Candy Land is spiced with humor and fun characters to create the fun factor. My author blog is called, "Sunshine On A Rainy Day" because this is what I want to be to my readers. In my opinion, there is already enough darkness in the world. I do not want that reflected in my books.
What other books do you have in process?
I am currently creating the sequel to A Case in Candy Land called Trouble in Toy Land. The first book was written in Henry's voice (the main character). The second will be written in Amelia's voice (the next door neighbor).

After this book, I will consider publishing a new series for middle school that I have begun writing. It is one boy's humorous perspective on puting up with his crazy family.
Is there any other tips about writing or publishing you’d like to add?
My additional advice as a self-publisher is, unless you have the skills to create a complete book yourself, consider trying the traditional route first. This way you can concentrate on the writing and allow them to concentrate on the publication. There are trade-offs either way and you have to carefully consider which would be the better choice for you. 
That's it for today's interview. Hope you'll take Michelle's advice and submit your writing for publication. However, before you do make sure it is professionally edited and polished.

If you'd like to learn more about her writing and blog, here's the links...
http://michellejmcbeth.wordpress.com
https://www.facebook.com/michellejmcbeth

Interview with author, Darren Farrell on the book, Doug-Dennis and the Flyaway Fib

Today's interview is with Darren Farrell is is both an author and illustrator. He definitely has the thought process of a child and the whimsical style of James Thurber in my way of thinking. You might feel that way too, once you start seeing the curious meandering of his answers. So away we go!

A sheep named Doug-Dennis and an elephant named Ben-Bobby are an unlikely pair of friends. What made you create this duo?
Actually, when I first began writing this book, Doug-Dennis was a boy. A boy with crazy hair and a large elephant for a best friend. It just seemed odd that a boy would have an elephant for a best friend. Odd in a cool way. I happen to love elephants. My current bedside table is a large elephant-shaped plant pedestal handed down from my grandmother. Also, my first pet was an Indian Elephant. (I
made that up.)

As my agent and I worked on the art for the book, we decided to think about making Doug-Dennis an animal and I ended up going with another personal favorite – the sheep. I went to the University of North Carolina and our mascot is a ram. So maybe that’s why the sheep holds a special place for me. One day I hope to have a little sheep farm. (I am not making that up.)

Is there any significance to their hyphenated names?
You can blame the hyphenated names on my deep south roots.North Carolina is where I grew up, . I have always been intrigued by the southern Billy-Bob, Bobby-Ray double first name tradition, so I endeavored to pick two alliterative names that really don’t belong together but still somehow managed to have a memorable ring. My goal is to give almost every future character a double name.

Are you planning other books for this duo?
Other books for this duo are penciled in, but there are a number of other books in the pipeline and I will probably have one or two of them published before getting back to a Doug-Dennis book.

Are the poster characters in the front of the book waiting to have their own books as well?
Some of the characters in the circus posters may wend their way into other books I’m working on, in particular a few have made appearances in a chapter book I am toiling away on right now.

This is your first published children’s picture book. Prior to this book what other publishing credits did you have?
Prior to this book, I had written a couple of magazine articles and quite a number of print and television advertisements. I went to journalism school and then moved to New York and started work in advertising. I have created spots for the Library of Congress, the NFL and lots of other folks.

Did you work in graphic arts design before doing this book?
I have always been a writer. Doug-Dennis and the Flyaway Fib is my first experience being paid to create art. Early on, as I showed the initial stages of this book to friends and friends-of-friends, people responded favorably to my sketches and characters, and so I continued developing them. Eventually, with lots of sage guidance from my agent, the art arrived at a place where everyone was extremely happy.

I have always worked around talented art directors and have been friends with a handful of very thoughtful designers. I watch them work. I learn their computer shortcuts. I see what they think of various layout ideas. Also, I soak up New York City. NYC is full design inspiration – the crazy fashion I pass on the street, the odd chocolate wrappers and foreign food packaging, the crazy store window dressings, the art museums - I soak up graphic inspiration all over the place.

What writers or illustrators inspire you in the children’s genre?
I’m a huge fan of Oliver Jeffers. His artwork and craftsmanship is stunning. I want to give Mo Willems a great big hug for being so dang awesome. Dan Yaccarino has a timeless simplicity to his books that resonates with me. I read and re-read and re-re-read Where The Wild Things Are to remind me how powerful boiling writing down to its bare essentials can be.And I buy new books all the time for my 2-year-old son, so I probably have about 500 more author-illustrators I could include here. Shel Silverstein, David Shannon, Etc.

Tell me about the process of getting this book published. How did you go about finding a publisher?
It took me several years to have this book published. Initially, I created 14 little homemade books and gave them out to friends and asked each friend to give me a tough critique. The very first person I handed one of these books to was a friend-of-a-friend who worked at Bloomsbury. She immediately took a shine to the book and to the artwork (which gave me confidence to keep pushing on it) and she worked with me to shape it. I took her feedback and feedback from plenty of others and kept working.

Eventually, a friend from North Carolina named Trip Park, who is a wonderful children’s book illustrator, connected me with Elana Roth, who became my agent. She cracked the whip and worked with me on the art for a solid 8-months. It was eight-months of working on this book like a madman, while also holding down a full-time job. So lots of LATE nights and early mornings. When she was happy, we wrote and illustrated an amusing pitch packet and sent it off. 2 days later, we had a book deal. It happened that fast. Dial loved it and we had a great time making the final tweaks together.

What was the most frustrating part of getting this book published?
Nothing was really frustrating about getting this book published. Of course there were bumps along the way and A LOT of hard work went into creating it, and it did take me a long time to stumble down the right path, but that is just how life works. I have a great working relationship with Dial and have an excellent agent. It’s all good.

What has been the most surprising – in a good way?
The most surprising thing about having this book published is a) I am still a combination of surprised and elated any time someone genuinely relates a story of how much their nephew or daughter or neighbor loves it, b) I was surprised how much work can go into promoting a book – planning readings in bookstores and schools can be another full-time job.

Since you are both author and illustrator which did the publisher want to change more – your writing or the illustrating?
My art changed drastically from concept to publication. As I mentioned earlier, I am a writer by trade and my art is a constant process of discovery and experimentation. I have done several presentations where I show how the book essentially stayed the exact same from spread to spread in concept and in writing – while the art underwent massive changes.

The art started out black and white. The only color was pink for the giant pink eye on each character. I kept it very minimalist. The second color I added was yellow. Then my agent pushed me to really color the entire book and so gradually added a little bit more (blue and red) and a little bit more and a little bit more color until you have the explosion of colors you see in the final. I also worked very hard to add depth to the backgrounds, so initially the backgrounds were flat and more abstract, but in the final book, you’ll see other people and trees and characters from the circus posters.

What’s your favorite way of promoting this book?
I love doing school readings. The creativity and positive energy in a classroom is fun to be around. I love making kids laugh and I have a blast hearing what they have to say.

What do you know now about getting published that you wished you had known earlier in your writing career?
An agent is important. I would have started looking for an agent sooner. But things really worked out perfectly, so I can’t complain.

What advice would you give someone who wants to write or illustrate children’s books?
Work your butt off. Study award winning books. Read and re-read authors and illustrators you love. Give your book to friends and friends-of-friends and tell them to be harsh - seek out harsh criticism and use it to make your book better. Find a great agent who truly believes in you.

Do you have any books in the publishing process right now that you’d like to tell me about?
I am working on my next picture book right now and it is tentatively called ‘Thank You Octopus.’ It’s a funny look at the friendship between a little boy and his pet amigo Octopus, who is well-meaning and innocently annoying at the same time. Should be really funny. I will go to art on this book in a couple of weeks.

I hope this inspires you to go out and buy his book. Here's a direct link. I hope you will enjoy it as much as I did. If you'd like to know more about Darren and his upcoming works and appearances, I am including a link to his blog here.