Happy Thursday Critters! Today we have a follow-up interview with picture book author Brooke Hartman! I love getting the opportunity to check in with authors and illustrators after their debut has come out to hear all about their experiences in publishing. Brooke stopped by Critter Lit in December 2020. You can read her first interview with us here.
So without further ado, please welcome back Brooke Hartman!
It’s great to have you back on Critter Lit! We can’t wait to hear all about what you’ve been up to since your last visit!
Tell us about your latest book:
The Littlest Airplane, illustrated by John Joseph, is a nonfiction STEM title wrapped in a fun, fictional story about a bush plane who doesn’t feel his own self worth—he isn’t brawny like the cargo plane, fast like the jet plane, or nimble like the turbo prop plane—until he realizes his unique features enable him to complete a very special task.
Interior art from THE LITTLEST AIRPLANE by Brooke Hartman, Illustrated by John Joseph, published by Alaska Northwest Books
Interior art from THE LITTLEST AIRPLANE by Brooke Hartman, Illustrated by John Joseph, published by Alaska Northwest Books
Interior art from THE LITTLEST AIRPLANE by Brooke Hartman, Illustrated by John Joseph, published by Alaska Northwest Books
Last we spoke you had released your debut book. Can you share some of your experiences since your first book came out? How are things different? How are they the same?
The Littlest Airplane is now my third title, with five more books launching over the next year, and can I just say that I never (ever, ever) thought I would get to this point in my writing career! Landing that first publication contract was a dream come true, but since then I’ve learned a LOT, not only about the writing process, but the publishing and marketing aspect too. There’s so much more to a “book making gig” than you can ever imagine until you’re up to your elbows in it!
What do you find inspiring right now?
The vast amounts of fun, educational, and uplifting KidLit releasing into the world. The pandemic brought this industry to a slow crawl, and books launched during the height of COVID, including one of my own books, suffered due to lack of in-person events and promotional opportunities, but I feel like everyone—authors, readers, and publishers alike—are truly making up for that now. Books are flying off the shelves, including The Littlest Airplane (haha)!
What has surprised you the most about working as an author?
How much marketing and publicity an author has to do on their own to enable their book to thrive. In the ‘olden golden days’ of publishing, authors went on extended paid book tours involving stretch limos and champagne receptions (that’s how I imagine it… don’t burst my bubble!), but now even bestselling authors have to rely on themselves to do much of their own promotion, from social media and web design, to arranging blogs and scheduling events. You have to wear a dozen hats and balance them all on your head at once.
What is your favorite thing about being an author?
The kids who love my books. Finding out a reader enjoyed your story is simply the best feeling in the world.
What do you find difficult working as an author?
Rejection. You’d think at some point a published author wouldn’t feel the sting of rejection anymore (whether from a publisher, a reader, or sometimes your own agent!), but it still hurts all the same. I’ve combated this with trying to stay focused on books I have out or my next project, but it’s still hard to get past those ever-present “No’s.”
Anything you are habitual about when it comes to creativity?
I do love me a good coffee shop to write in. Something about being away from my own house (and the pile of laundry, and kids asking for snacks, and closet that needs organized) helps me focus on the creative process. My neighborhood Starbucks jokes that they’re going to have my name engraved into “my” table one day!
Can you share a positive experience you’ve had in the Kid Lit community?
There are too many to count! The KidLit community is so supportive of one another. I’m currently in a 2022 picture book marketing group called the PB RockITeers (get it?), and we’re constantly sharing Tweets and Instagram posts or reviewing one another’s books in an effort to lift up each other and our forthcoming projects. But I feel this support extends far beyond KidLit to the writing community, in general.
Recommended reading?
My girls and I love just about anything from Josh Funk, Brian T. Higgins, Deborah Underwood, and Aaron Blabey, but occasionally we’ll pick up a fun nonfiction or nonfiction crossover, like Jocelyn Rish’s Battle of the Butts.
What is something you wish someone had told you when you first started writing?
Join SCBWI, get a critique group, and go to writing conferences and workshops TODAY! Do not finish your manuscript first or wait until you think it’s perfect, because there are so many facets of your story you won’t even consider until someone else (or lots of someone elses) lay eyes on it.
What’s up next for you?
I have one more title releasing this year, and four more releasing in 2023: Watch Out for the Lion (Page Street Kids), All Aboard the Alaska Train (West Margin Press), Klyde the Kraken Wants a Friend (Hazy Dell Press), and Little Narwhal Lost (West Margin Press). I’m a little nervous about launching so many books in one year, but I keep reminding myself this is my dream! Aside from that, I have a few projects out with submission through my agent right now, so fingers crossed that dream will continue in 2024 and beyond.
Anything else you’d like to share with aspiring authors and illustrators?
Don’t spend too much time on one project. It’s okay to bounce around a little and let projects simmer for on the backburner. When you pull them out again, you’ll be able to look at them with fresh eyes and maybe even fresh ideas!
And last, but not least, favorite book character?
Seriously you want me to pick ONE? You are cruel. If I was forced to choose just one, it’d result in an epic battle between Gaudior the winged unicorn from A Swiftly Tilting Planet and Penelope the T-Rex from We Don’t Eat Our Classmates. I’m not sure who would win, but I’d pay serious cash for tickets to that fight.
Huge thank you to Brooke for stopping by to visit with us again! Congrats on all your upcoming books!
BROOKE HARTMAN is an Alaskan mom and award winning author of silly, serious, and sometimes strange stories for children and young adults. Forthcoming titles include Klyde the Kraken Wants a Friend (2020, Innovation Press), Pega Sisters! (2022, Page Street Kids), and The Littlest Airplane (2022, WestMargin Press). When she isn’t writing, you can find her fishing, flying, and having fun with her family, enjoying all the magic Alaska life has to offer.
FOR MORE INFORMATION about Brooke or her work, visit her online, or follow her on social media:
Twitter: @BrookesBooksAK
ORDER THIS BOOK To order a copy of THE LITTLEST AIRPLANE, click here.
WIN A COPY! Want to win a copy of THE LITTLEST AIRPLANE?! Leave a COMMENT below or RETWEET this post on Twitter. One lucky winner will be announced on Thursday, April 7th! US addresses only please.