1. Why do you write the kinds of books you do?

I started writing because of my daughter. She never wanted to go to sleep. At least not without me. When she was 3 months old and was trying to put her to bed, I remembered how I also had trouble sleeping when I was little.  The problem was that I could remember not sleeping, which meant that during these memories I was not 3 months like my daughter,  but at least 5 or 6. My future of sitting in a dark room convincing my daughter to sleep played out in my head and a picture book was born. 

2. Do any of the books you write come from your own childhood?

Yes, they also come from dreams I have had, and issues I run into while being a parent. 

3. Is writing easy for you? Do you feel lonely being a writer?

No. Some days are good, some are bad. Often after I have someone look over my first drift, I feel like I need to cry in a corner because I feel like a fraud and would not be able to pass fifth grade English. I do not feel lonely at all. I love the quiet and when I write sometimes I feel like a movie is playing on the inside of my head. 

4. What are some of your favorite books.

Love love love all brandon sanderson books, and the books seekers by alexander ott

5. How long have you been writing? How did you start?

I have loved stories since I was little. This is a little embarrassing but I used to go down by the creek behind my house and tell stories to the birds and the trees. Once  two boys heard me. I saw them running away and laughing. So I stopped telling my stories out loud. 

6. Can your describe your writing process

I am a procrastinator. So I will decide that I will write that day and put it on my todo list. Then I take the kids to school, make dinner, go running, clean the house, and when there is nothing else to do, then I sit down and write. 

7. Where do you get your ideas?

When I procrastinate, I am a lot of times out in the world, playing (well chauffeuring) my kids around, being outside and living. There I get my ideas. Also dreams and issues I have run into that bother me. 

8. When you begin writing a picture book, do you know what the ending will be?

I always know the beginning and the end… the middle gets messy sometimes. 

9. You’re a grown-up, so how can you write about things that happened to you a long time ago?

Often those things I write about are memories of my childhood that made a big impact. I might not know the details anymore, but I remember how I felt. 

10. How long does it take to complete one of your books?

This is a hard question to answer. My first book took four years or more. I was a new writer and had no idea what I was doing. I re-drew my illustrations so many times, made so many book dummies, and made every mistake there was to make. But I learned a lot and kept editing and fixing the book. Also sometimes I get excited and start a few projects all at once but then don’t finish any of them. One book I wrote in a year, but then took another year or two to edit.