Interview with Debut Author Vicky Fang

Happy Thursday Critters! I hope this post finds you healthy and safe. Today, debut author Vicky Fang has stopped by Critter Lit to share her road to publication in celebration of her TWO debut books! I’m so excited to share these books with you.

So without further ado…please welcome Vicky Fang!

Where do you live?

I live in Mountain View, California with my husband, my two amazing little boys, and two pet death feigning beetles.

When did you know you wanted to write children’s books?

I had been designing technology products and experiences for kids for several years. When I began reading books to my kids after they were born, I became really excited about books as an interactive experience. That's when I knew I wanted to write books.

Tell us about your road to publication, what did that involve for you?

I guess you could say it was a series of fortunate events. I joined SCBWI and 12x12, I won a Writing With the Stars mentorship with Peter McCleery, and met my critique partners at an SCBWI conference. I worked with Stortyteller Academy's Arree Chung and found my agent, Elizabeth Bennett. There have been so many amazing people and moments along the way, but those feel like the most critical ones. It took me little under two years to get my first offer, which is pretty fast in picture book time!

What do you do to shake the rust off or get new ideas?

I find that I just need to let things go and not worry about new ideas all the time. Giving my brain space to breathe, and even to not do anything for a while, is the best way for me to come up with something I'm actually excited to write. My other trick is to email my amazing agent and ask her if there's anything she'd like to see from me. She's remarkably good at suggesting things that play to my strengths but stretch me in a new direction.

Tell us about your debut book.

I actually have two debut books!

The first is my debut chapter book, Layla and the Bots: Happy Paws, illustrated by Christine Nishiyama and launched on May 5 from Scholastic Branches. It's about a rockstar-slash-inventor and her crew of Bots who design, build, and code awesome inventions to help people they meet at their shows!

The next is my debut picture book, Invent-a-Pet, illustrated by Tidawan Thiapinnarong and launching on June 2 from Sterling Children's Books. It's about a girl who discovers a mysterious machine in her living room and must figure out the formula for her perfect extraordinary pet. It introduces the basic concepts of problem solving, inputs and outputs, functions, but most importantly - the idea that the extraordinary can be found all around us.

And last, but not least, favorite 80s movie?

Goonies. I watched it every Tuesday for a year with my best friend, Amanda. Usually followed by Ferris Bueller because it was on the same VHS tape - but Goonies was the real event.

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Huge thank you to Vicki for stopping by Critter Lit today! Congrats on not one, but TWO debuts!!!

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VICKY FANG has designed technology experiences for kids at Google and Intel Labs, where she’s designed robots, installations, games, activities, and more. She started writing to support the growing need of early coding education, particularly for girls and minorities. You can visit Vicky at vickyfang.com or on Twitter @fangmous.

FOR MORE INFORMATION you can visit Vicky at vickyfang.com or on Twitter @fangmous.

BUY THIS BOOK To purchase Vicki’s books, click here.

WIN A COPY! Want to win a giveaway copy of Vicky’s debut book, INVENT-A-PET?! Leave a COMMENT below or RETWEET this post on Twitter. One lucky winner will be announced on Thursday, May 28th! US addresses only please.

Interview with Debut Author Cathy Ballou Mealey

Happy Thursday Critters! Today we have an interview with author Cathy Ballou Mealey! Her debut picture book, WHEN A TREE GROWS, illustrated by Kasia Nowowiejska, just released this month with Sterling Children’s Books. I’m so excited to share this brand new book with you all today! Here’s a sneak peek:

When Moose sees the inviting tree where Squirrel has built his nest, he rubs his itchy antlers against the trunk—and sets in motion a chain of comic catastrophes. The tree falls and wakes Bear, who stumbles into Moose, who causes a truck driver to swerve off the road. But then Squirrel jumps onto that truck and ends up in the city, all alone. Who will help him get home? And how will Squirrel thank them? Kids will love this adorable picture book, with its irresistible animal characters and rhythmic text that’s made for reading out loud.

So without further ado…please welcome Cathy Ballou Mealey!

Where do you live?

I have lived in Massachusetts all my life. I grew up just below the Vermont/New Hampshire border, and went to college in Metrowest. After a decade in Cambridge, I’m currently on the fabulous North Shore.

When did you know you wanted to write picture books?

I wrote my first picture book in 2010 to enter the Cheerios “Spoonful of Stories” contest. Even though “Ozzie the Oyster” was definitely not ready for publication, my prize was discovering a passion for the craft of picture book writing. After attending conferences, classes and workshops, I joined SCBWI, the 2012 12X12 Challenge and two critique groups. I have been writing, revising and studying ever since.

Tell us about your road to publication, what did that involve for you?

Drafting TREE took roughly 6 weeks before I had a preliminary version to share with critique partners. I used multiple revision tactics to trim text and tighten the storyline. I plastered sticky notes on my door to rearrange the scene sequence. I pasted sentence strips into a book dummy loaded with stick-critter sketches. When friends urged me to send out the revised TREE, I started to query agents. In May 2015 I signed with Liza Fleissig of Liza Royce Agency and by December TREE was putting down roots at Sterling Books for Children.

Can you share a bit about your process?

Scribble my idea into a notebook and mull it over. Develop a pitch. Research some related non-fiction titles from the library about moose, squirrels, bears, etc. Mull some more. Write a long, rambling draft. Chew on word choices. Revise, re-write. Plunk text into a word cloud generator like WordItOut or Wordle, draft a few rhyming lines, make a dummy with stick figures. Revise until it is ready for critique group. Mull over feedback. Revise, rinse, and repeat until ready!

What do you do to shake the rust off or get new ideas?

Go for a long walk outdoors. Visit a museum. Browse the greeting card section of my favorite stationery store. Bring my son to a playground and eavesdrop on the kid chatter!

Anything you can’t live without while you write?

A window. Natural light. Being able to gaze at the sky or trees. I watched a lot of squirrel activity while writing When A Tree Grows, and kept my camera close at hand.

Any authors and/or illustrators who inspire you?

Every up-and-coming writer yet to be published inspires me. Making book dreams come true is tough, especially when balancing the demands of career, family life, and community responsibilities. Those who consistently carve out time to nurture that writing spark inspire me to work harder, write better, persevere.

I have so little drawing ability that I am floored by almost every illustrator’s work in one fashion or another. Particular favorites to pore over include Catherine Rayner, Hadley Hooper, and Melissa Sweet. I’m so grateful to Kasia Nowowiejska for her dedicated efforts to make WHEN A TREE GROWS the very best book it could be.

Dream project to work on?

This is such an interesting question! I can’t name a specific dream project. However, there are certainly manuscripts that I’ve pored blood, sweat and tears into that I would love to see become real, live books one day.

Interior Spread - WHEN A TREE GROWS

Tell us about your debut book.

WHEN A TREE GROWS is a rollicking read-aloud that follows a zany chain of events triggered by a broken tree, a cranky Bear, a nut-loving Squirrel and his loyal friend Moose. Kirkus gave it a lovely review, saying “Laugh along as a story about a tree in the forest comes full circle, bringing three creatures along for a bumpy but fun ride.”

What’s up next for you?

Next up for me is a still-secret picture book with an amazing publisher in Canada. A sloth and a squirrel team up for a special mission. Look for an announcement soon, and a book sometime in 2021!

And last, but not least, favorite 80’s movie?

An 80’s movie set in 1963 - Dirty Dancing.

RIP Patrick Swayze.

“Nobody puts Baby in a corner.”

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Huge thank you to Cathy for stopping by Critter Lit today! We are so excited for your debut and can’t wait to see what’s next!

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CATHY BALLOU MEALEY lives with her family north of Boston, where she delights in watching silly squirrel antics and is waiting patiently for a moose to appear. Her favorite nut is the hazelnut and her favorite cupcake is cardamom crème.

Her debut book, WHEN A TREE GROWS, is a rollicking read-aloud that follows a zany chain of events triggered by a broken tree, a cranky Bear, a nut-loving Squirrel and his loyal friend Moose.

FOR MORE INFORMATION about Cathy and her work, visit her online here or follow her on social media:

Twitter: @CatBallouMealey

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/cathy.mealey

Instagram: @catballoumealey

TO ORDER Cathy’s book, ring up your local bookstore or click here.

BOOK GIVEAWAY!

Want a chance to win a copy of WHEN A TREE GROWS?! Comment on this post or share it on Twitter. One lucky winner will be selected Thursday, April 18th! US addresses only please.

What's up on deck? Tune in next week for an interview with debut author Natascha Biebow!