Giveaway and Interview with Picture Book Writer Kirsti Call ~ by Christy Mihaly

A big GROG welcome to picture book author Kirsti Call. Kirsti is offering a signed ARC (advance copy) of her forthcoming picture book, Mootilda's Bad Mood ... just comment and/or tweet to be entered in our giveaway (details below)! 

   GROG:  Welcome, Kirsti! I know that in addition to writing, you co-host the new Picture Book Look podcast, and you're a Cybils judge and co-coordinator of Reading for Research Month (ReFoReMo). 
    Before we talk about your books, please tell us a little about ReFoReMo. What does it involve, and why should GROG readers participate?

    Kirsti: ReFoReMo was originally Carrie Charley Brown’s idea, and when she asked me to join in on the fun, I was thrilled. We had both judged for the Cybils awards, which helped us understand how reading great books helps us write great books. Paying attention to what I love about a story, and attempting to add those elements into my own stories, is one of my favorite ways to improve my writing. We wanted to share that with others.

Well, thanks to you and ReFoReMo for sharing all those mentor text insights. What more should our readers know about ReFoReMo?

    Kirsti: ReFoReMo is not only for writers, but for librarians, teachers, and kids. Though we post every Tuesday all year long, March is our challenge month. That's when authors, educators, librarians, agents and editors share insights and favorite mentor texts that we can read and learn from. 

ReFoReMo is a great resource for anyone who loves picture books. Now, what can you tell us about judging the Cybils?

A: For the last six years, I’ve read all 300-ish nominated picture books for the Cybils award over a two-month period. This picture book overload totally helps me understand the market, what editors love, and what I love about picture books.

Read, read, read, right? Kirsti, you're also a marriage and family therapist. Does that work give you story ideas or otherwise inform your children's books?

Kirsti: I love using bibliotherapy in my work as a therapist. Reading and discussing books in therapy helps people process and heal. This work definitely influences my stories and what I write. In fact, if you read my forthcoming picture book, Mootilda’s Bad Mood (Sept. 1, 2020, Little Bee), you'll notice a very obvious connection between the story and my work as a therapist. 

Spread from Mootilda: "We're in a bad mooooooood!"

Mootilda's Bad Mood is co-written with Corey Rosen Schwartz and illustrated by Claudia Ranucci. It's about a cow in a bad mood. Where did this fun idea come from?

cover

   Kirsti: Corey and I joke about her being in a bad mood and me being in a good mood all the time.  We thought it would be fun to take that dynamic and explore how a cow in a bad mood would approach life ... and overcome all the cow-tastrophes that make her feel worse and worse. 

Uh-oh, cow-pun alert!! Kirsti, how does the co-writing process work differently from solo writing?

MOOTILDA swag!

   Kirsti: Corey and I have written many manuscripts together. In fact, we have another book coming out in the fall of 2021 with Little Brown. It’s called "Cold Turkey!" Writing together involves lots of texts and messaging in google docs and talking on the phone. It’s a much more social than writing solo.

  Big congratulations on Mootilda, Kirsti (and Corey and Claudia). I'm sorry, though, about the timing.
How have you been promoting your new book in the midst of the covid-19 closures and cancellations?

Book Launch in the Time of Covid (Sept.5)

Kirsti: Little Bee is planning a virtual book tour that we’re excited to participate in. We have a couple of virtual events coming up on Sept. 5 at The Writing Barn, and Sept. 8 at An Unlikely Story. We’re also considering a socially distanced book launch at a farm featuring cows and ice-cream. We’ve created some digital assets that we’ll be offering with pre-sales. In fact ...

** ALERT! GROG Bonus! **  

... if any GROG readers pre-order Mootilda, they can DM me on Twitter, Facebook, or Instagram to receive a signed bookplate, sticker, and mood-o-meter coloring page. 

We’re trying to be creative in these uncertain times. But one thing I am certain of, "Mootilda's Bad Mood" is something that will resonate with many people given the pandemic.

    These days it takes extra imagination and energy to get our books into readers' hands. Good luck with your launch! What else would you like GROG readers to know about you and your books?

    Kirsti: I’m super excited about another book that’s coming out with HMH in March—Cow Says Meow. I’m not certain why all of my upcoming books feature farm animals, but I do have a pair of cow shoes I can wear for each release date! 

    

Kirsti Call (whose cow shoe [and foot] appears below) is the co-host of the new Picture Book Look podcast and co-coordinator of ReFoReMo. She reads, reviews, revises and critiques every day as an "elf" for the 12x12 Picture Book Challenge, a blogger for Writer's Rumpus, and a critique group member. She's judged the Cybils award for fiction picture books since 2015. Kirsti has a picture book, MOOTILDA'S BAD MOOD (Little Bee) coming in the fall of 2020. COW SAYS MEOW (HMH) and COLD TURKEY (Little Brown) release in 2021. Kirsti is represented by Emma Sector at Prospect Agency.

For the GIVEAWAY: 

Your name will be entered for a chance to win Kirsti's signed ARC if you: 

(1) comment on this post (below) explaining why you'd like to win the ARC.

(2) tweet about this post, mentioning GROG and Kirsti Call, and tag me (@CMwriter4kids). 

Do both to get two chances!

We'll draw the winning name and post it on the GROG post next week. Good luck!

And remember, if you pre-order Mootilda's Bad Mood, contact Kirsti to get your swag. 

Find her here:

www.kirsticall.com

www.writersrumpus.com

www.reforemo.com

@kirsticall (Instagram)

Kirstine Erekson Call (Facebook)

@kirsticall (Twitter)

Thanks for visiting GROG! 
(And don't forget to leave a comment ...) 
Christy Mihaly

What Good Writers Do ~By Suzy Leopold

Showing up where you are with what you have is what good writers do.

Are you showing up where you are with what you have? 

In January, many writers set goals and resolutions when the 2016 calendar began. Perhaps it is time to revisit your set of writer’s goals.

Think about and check your list of short-term goals and your long-term SMART goals. Has your plan provided you with the results that you set out to achieve?

First Step: Set Goals

Second Step: Get to Work

Third Step: Stick to It

Fourth Step: Make a Plan

Fifth Step: Achieve

If your established plan is working, celebrate your accomplishments both big and small. Perhaps there are some areas where you can improve. Adjust as need be. For more information see a previous post Ready or Not. It's Time to Show Up.

As I look back on the first three months of 2016, I note there are some days when I stumble with the Third Step: Stick to It. Sometimes just sticking to my plan and sitting down to begin writing is all it takes. 

It’s easier to make unacceptable excuses for not writing today:

It must be writer’s block.

I’m waiting for inspiration to strike.

I don’t want to stare at this blank page.

No excuses allowed. Stop the stagnation. Dismiss negative thoughts that zap your productivity. Surround yourself with positive thoughts and find determination. Sure, there will be some days when you skip and stumble a step or two when  writing does not happen. It's okay. Take small steps and move forward without being critical of yourself. Think about what works best for you and your writing career.

There are many days when I feel I can justify my unacceptable excuses for not sticking to it. Yet, I know I need to believe in my voice and learn to ward off the urge to procrastinate. 

Making time to write is both a matter of desire as it is discipline. It takes determination. 

Writing can be compared to exercise. You feel better once you’ve done it.  

Created by my
Cousin Sheri McCulley Seibold

If inspiration is eluding you consider crafting a new story. Select an idea you wrote down during Tara Lazar's PiBoIdMo Writing Challenge. Feel accomplished after revising a manuscript. Refer to a stack of books as mentor texts from the research that you did during ReFoReMo, with Carrie Charley Brown. Participate in Angie Karcher's RhyPiBoMo that she hosts this month. Writers will grow and learn from the many resources, lessons and writing prompts. 

Write a blog post about a recently read book about the craft of writing that you found inspiring. Set a timer and chase after your daily word count. Consider establishing some agreed upon rules, expectations and most importantly accountability with a critique partner or group. By checking in with a writerly friend, I feel I can do a better job of holding myself accountable to my promises and aspirations than just checking in with myself. Perhaps heading to your local indie book store or the public library you will find some ideas and inspiration, along with time to read and write.

Time to revise & edit.

A stack of mentor texts.

One more thought. Take your writing serious. Make sure you go to work because this is your job. Your boss does not accept excuses for lack of inspiration, for feeling tired, for not showing up nor other lame excuses that you can think of. And don't forget the importance of having a set of business cards. This is your career.

Business cards

So grab your writer’s tools: a computer, a journal, a pen or a pencil, a highlighter, a dictionary, a thesaurus, a stack of mentor texts, a cup of hot tea and turn on some music to find your muse. You can do it! Yes, you can!

Would you like some sugar or
a slice of lemon with your tea?

One thousand crumby words on paper are better than one hundred thousand fabulous words that are in your head.

Make writing a habit and you’ll see improvement in you writing.

A writer writes. Write, always.