Happy Thursday Critters! Today we have an interview with author Deb Adamson whose newest board book, I MISS YOUR SUNNY SMILE, illustrated by Anne Zimanski, just released with Blue Manatee Press this week! I’m thrilled to have Deb with us today to talk about her books, process, and journey in publishing.
So without further ado, please welcome Deb Adamson!
Where do you live?
I live on the shoreline of Connecticut.
How many years have you been in publishing?
My first picture book was published around 20 years ago by Millbrook Press. I took an extended pause from querying until a few years ago.
Do you write full-time?
I do write full time but I also teach a memoir writing class for adults weekly.
What inspires you to create picture books?
I never know what is going to inspire me to write— a conversation with my hairstylist, a news article, another book I’ve read. I really have an unending supply of ideas. It’s just a matter of finding one that takes flight and becomes a worthwhile manuscript. So many do not. But sometimes the ones that resist developing just need revisiting at a later date.
What surprised you the most working as an author?
I’m most surprised by how much I love seeing and illustrator’s interpretation of my words. When I receive a fully illustrated book with my words coming to life through pictures I am just tickled. The surprise is seeing if an illustrator envisions the work as I do.
What is your favorite thing about being an author, illustrator, or author/illustrator?
The best part about writing kids books is the kids who read them! I really enjoy school (or now Zoom) visits and hearing kids’ reactions to my books. It’s why I write for this age. Their enthusiasm and interest is what fuels me to want to keep writing.
What do you find difficult working as an author?
The most difficult part of being an author are the days when the writing just doesn’t flow. And no matter how many years I’ve been at it, I am not always kind to myself when this happens. I should know by know that writing is not always easy.
What do you do to shake the rust off or get new ideas?
When this happens I sometimes go for a run, stroll my garden, or pull out my sketchbook and watercolors. Switching gears is the best approach to shake off writer’s block.
Anything you are habitual about when it comes to creativity?
I try to write every morning. I’m an early riser and part of the #5amwritersclub on Twitter. We check in with each other and then we get down to business putting words to the page. This supportive writing community has boosted my word count more than I can say.
Can you share a positive experience you’ve had in the Kid Lit community?
I’m part of the kid lit promo group, 21FORTHEBOOKS. We are all children’s book author/illustrators being published in 2021. This amazing group has been the best support for book launching. We cheer each other on and provide one another with moral support. A few of us have especially needed that this year due to Covid, printing delays, bookstores closed and virtual launches. I feel especially lucky to be a part of it.
Recommended reading?
How about Scooper and Dumper by Lindsay Ward? :-) I really enjoyed your newest picture book title and the message of friendship and teamwork. I write in rhyme too, so I know how challenging it can be. You really nailed it!
(Thank you Deb!)
What has been the highlight of your career thus far?
The highlight of my career has been watching my newest title, I Miss Your Sunny Smile, finally make it to publication. It was on its way several years ago by a Big Five publisher but when it made it to a marketing meeting it was rejected. Ever since then, I worked hard to find it a home, so I can’t wait to finally share it with children. Especially now, during a time when I know so many are struggling with isolation due to the pandemic. I think this book may be of some help.
What is something you wish someone had told you when you first started writing?
That even though you got two books published it was still going to be just as challenging to get the next one accepted for publication. Publishing children’s books is one THE MOST competitive endeavors. I think I read somewhere that getting accepted for publication has odds comparable to winning a lottery!
Can you tell us about your newest book?
I Miss Your Sunny Smile is a board book aimed at ages 0-3. It is written in rhyme. This little story will hopefully help parents guide young children through a bad day. We all have them, and the youngest of children have yet to figure out how to navigate them. In this story the small child is aided by his mom who helps him redirect and in the end locate his elusive smile. It’s a timely title for a time when small children are especially struggling through social isolation due to the pandemic. It’s my hope that it helps parents and kids in some small way during this trying time.
Interior art from I MISS YOUR SUNNY SMILE by Deb Adamson, illustrated by Anne Zimanski
What’s up next for you?
I have two picture books being published in 2021 by independent publisher, Blue Manatee Press. Both are written in rhyme. One is a DIY book, following a family around their back yard as they build a swing set. It’s called, Bing, Bang Pling, Now We Swing! The other is A Christmas Eve Wish For Santa, a sweet story to help send off Santa with best wishes for his big night. And then in 2022 Scott Joplin’s Maple Leaf Rag, a nonfiction picture book biography, will be published by Starbright Books.
Anything else you’d like to share with aspiring authors and illustrators?
Don’t go it alone. Find yourself a supportive writing group either locally or online. Join the SCBWI. Also become a part of Twitter and the kidlit conversations that take place on that platform, daily. Writing can be such a solitary exercise so finding a clan helps make the highs higher and the lows lower.
And last, but not least, favorite 80s movie?
The Breakfast Club. What an awesome coming of age film. Those five main characters who became known as the Brat Pack were so believable in their high school clique mentalities.
Huge thank you to Deb for stopping by Critter Lit today! Congrats on your newest book and we can’t wait to see what you write next!
DEB ADAMSON writes picture books, board books, chapter books and middle grade novels. She also writes for adults— both fiction and nonfiction. Her books are silly, sweet and often a combination of both. Deb sometimes write in rhyme, mostly because she believes children enjoy how it rolls off the tongue like word-song.
In addition to writing for kids, Deb has also taught them, in “Shel Silverstein” poetry workshops. She teaches an ongoing adult memoir and essay writing class, which, through the years, has helped her grow as a writer more than she can say. Deb is a former broadcast news journalist, freelance essayist and syndicated columnist for Gatehouse News Service. Her column about homeschooling her son was read in over 250 print newspapers nationally, as well as online. For ten years Deb was in Public Relations as a spokesperson for a major U.S. Aquarium where she got to do really cool things like coordinate and accompany national news reporters from CNN and the New York Times to observe wild dolphins in the waterways of Hilton Head, South Carolina. She also organized major news coverage of many rehabilitated and released whales and seals along the coast of New England. Deb has appeared a couple of times with a penguin or two on NBC’s Today Show. She is a member of The Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators. (SCBWI)
Deb lives in Connecticut in the company of three amazing and much loved, guy varieties- My husband, teenage son and orange-cat-extrorindaire, Fatty Lumpkin, AKA Lumpy.
FOR MORE INFORMATION about Deb follow her on social media @DebAdamsonBooks
ORDER THIS BOOK To order a copy of I MISS YOUR SUNNY SMILE, click here.
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