Would you leave a loved one without a hug? Come behind the picture book publishing scenes with author / illustrator Amy Nielander and her Page Street Kids Editor Courtney Burke where they share how GRAMA’S HUG went from #kidlit idea to bookshelf reality and how this whimsical story cut through the acquisition curtain.

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Amy Nielander is a children’s picture book author / illustrator and SCBWI member with her latest picture book, GRAMA’S HUG coming out January 28, 2020 with Page Street Kids Editor Courtney Burke. After seven years of attending conferences, writing, rewriting, illustrating and re-illustrating stories, Amy’s career took a giant leap forward in 2014 when she became a Silent Book Contest finalist (THE LADYBUG RACE, PomegranateKids). Amy spends most of her time being a busy mom and wife, visiting schools, attending conferences and bringing ideas to life. She loves traveling and being active with her family and has found exercise to be a great way of getting unstuck on stories. She is also an active member of the Perfect2020PBs group of picture book authors and illustrators with children’s books releasing in 2020.

As with some of our other behind-the-book interviews, we’ll start by hearing from Amy and finish with thoughts from her editor, Courtney.

Author / Illustrator Amy Nielander

Amy, it’s a pleasure to gleam experience from your journey as an author and illustrator. It takes grit to make a book. Even beyond grit, it takes faith, hope, and love. A story is a uniquely personal creation that, when shared with others, becomes an extension of ourselves. Sharing stories and ideas makes us vulnerable and at the mercy of others’ judgement. How did your book come to exist? How did you go about overcoming the fear of rejection that ultimately led to acquisition? What does this book getting published mean to you?

The idea for GRAMA’S HUG landed in 2013 when I was walking my daughter to school one morning. As we neared the entrance, the bell rang and kids ran in. Then, I heard a parent yell out “I am not leaving without a hug!”. I couldn’t get that sentence out of my head and immediately wondered “What would you do if you just stayed here…without that hug?”

This led to the very first draft of the picture book I titled I AM NOT LEAVING WITHOUT A HUG. I shared it later at a SCBWI Round Table Critique. After reading my manuscript, I looked up to find blank expressions. I went home knowing I had to dig deeper. That new focus triggered a childhood memory which turned the story around. I filled it with every emotion that memory rattled…love, loss, sadness and joy. Then GRAMA’S HUG began to take shape.

There were still holes in the story with the new direction. The dummy ended up being wordless and very conceptual. I couldn’t tighten it up. I started developing other stories in the meantime and would only share GRAMA’S HUG if agents (I had been querying) wanted to see more work. It wasn’t until I attended the Rutgers Children’s Council Conference when I refocused my revision efforts. I applied to the conference with a different story and after reviewing feedback from my mentor, I had about five minutes left to share other stories.

She looked at I AM NOT LEAVING WITHOUT A HUG and advised me to prioritize the story. I hit the ground running after the conference and six months later I had a revised picture book dummy. When it came time to curate my submission list, Kristen Nobles was at the top. She had seen the original version a few years back and liked it, but ultimately turned it down because it needed more development. Since she had moved to Page Street Kids, I wanted to query her with the new version.

About a month after I submitted the dummy, I received a response from Courtney. They liked the revised story…but felt a new ending was needed. I revised again and resubmitted. About a month later, I received an offer!

As far as overcoming the fear of rejection, I’ve been rejected so many times I’ve grown a little numb to it. I feel only shards of discouragement now versus giant blows like in the beginning! When that fear creeps up, I try to cut through it with faith and think of how far I’ve come. I try my hardest to believe my story will find the right home if I just keep trying.

Having GRAMA’S HUG out in the world is a tremendous gift. It will be seven years this spring since I first heard those words! I hope my journey inspires others to keep believing in their work and vision. Most importantly, it’s no longer my story in a way! It belongs to the reader and how they interpret it. I’m honored to watch kids turn the pages now. I hope they find moments that resonate with them for life.

Nothing brings people together like a great book. Not only for those of us reading it, but you and the incredible team necessary to create and publish it. What was the publishing process like for you? Were there any ups or downs? Any surprises? Is there anyone special you’d like to mention that helped make this book a reality?

The publishing process was quite different than my first picture book, THE LADYBUG RACE, which is wordless. I was working with text and how to best convey a broad passage of time via illustrations and words. Since the story was based on a relationship that was building over the course of several years, pages had to reflect that time lapse seamlessly for the reader. So yes, there were ups, downs and surprises as feedback was collected. But in the end, we have a tender yet powerful book.

Courtney was incredibly supportive and receptive throughout the process. We bounced ideas back and forth and GRAMA’S HUG would not be the story it is today without her partnership. Melia Parsloe was the designer and pulled details together to make the entire book sing. My agent, Adria Goetz, lives on the opposite side of the country, yet felt very close in spirit the entire scope of the project. My critique group was vital and lifted me up during challenges. And of course Kristen Nobles provided me with encouraging feedback early on and believed in the project from the very beginning.

Many book creators began their creative journey in childhood, though some find it for the first time later in life. How far back can you see life experiences taking you along the author/illustrator path? Was there an “Aha!” moment that you knew making books was the life for you?

I grew up with a dynamic storytelling mom, so stories have been a part of my life since I was a child. I remember experimenting with writing as a 4th grader. We had a typewriter at home and I really loved the act of typing words on a page. I remember practicing the sentence “Once upon a time…” over and over and over again to see where it would lead me (I also wanted to be a super-fast typer!).

I kept journals and was a pen pal throughout my elementary/middle school years. My grandma and I exchanged letters for a while and when I attended summer camps, I always left with addresses of new friends. When I moved to Chicago after college, I lived by myself. Drawing, writing and reading comforted me. My “Aha!” moment came later in life in the form of a “What if?” moment. I made a picture book dummy for my mom (she wrote the story and I illustrated it) after I had left my job to raise our children.

Picture books were becoming a big part of our world at that point and I wondered…“What if I could do this?” My mom and I queried the story but it was ultimately rejected. Since I enjoyed the process of pairing art and text so much, I wanted to explore my own stories. I always felt like I had more to give creatively and being an Author Illustrator turned out to be the perfect fit for me.

Making picture books is a skill and an art. What was/is your process for taking your ideas and turning them into a beautiful story? How do you know which thoughts are worth spending time on and which should be left in your notebook of ideas?

My stories are usually tied to a personal experience. That could be a memory, something I saw, something I heard, an encounter I had, an interaction I observed. That idea is then wrapped up in emotions I’m either currently feeling or have felt. An example of this process is THE LADYBUG RACE. It was written when a severe rift was moving through my family and I just wanted us to come together again.

The main idea formed after I ran a race with my husband, but introducing hundreds of ladybugs into the story was purely driven by my need for…wholeness. I wanted to feel closeness again and that guided the graphic narrative. I remember working with up to five hundred layers in my digital file, trying to manage every unique ladybug! It was outrageous when I think about it now. But I was searching for harmony at the time and that led to a story solution. I think that process determines which thoughts are worth spending time on. If a story helps me cope or find answers in some way, I think it will help others too.

Page Street Kids Editor Courtney Burke

Courtney, thank you for also sharing your perspective of this beautiful book and the industry at large with us. There’s something uniquely special about this story. Many manuscripts are submitted yet only a few pass through the trials by fire. What is it about this story that made you have to have it? What impact do you hope it has on readers everywhere?

When I first saw Amy’s sketch dummy of Grama’s Hug, the relationship between Grama and May was so clear and endearing in the art that I just fell in love with these characters. But the element that hooked me was how the story showed May’s dream and her hard work to make it come true. The confidence she displays is inspiring, and a story exploring both the value of ambition and of caring for others—and that these two do not have to be at odds—felt incredibly refreshing to me. I hope that readers are impacted by the model of Grama’s unwavering support and May’s energetic drive, and that this story leaves them with a reminder to cherish even (or especially) small moments with ones they love.

Though unique in its own right, a book has to fit on store shelves somewhere. What comparable books might this story sit beside and in what ways is it similar to them?

Some comparable books that this story would fit in are others that show the bond between grandparents and grandchildren–I’d think of books such as Drawn Together (by Minh Lê, illustrated by Dan Santat) and Julián is a Mermaid (by Jessica Love). While the specific focus of each of these stories is different, they highlight not only the love between the generations in a family, but specifically how they support and learn to understand each other. This is similar to what we see in the interactions in Grama’s Hug, as well as a sense of whimsy and imagination!

The publishing process from rough draft to finished product is chalk full of revisions, changes, and new directions. What changes were made to this story that helped it along the way or what aspects were left unchanged because they were simply perfect the way they were?

One of the biggest editorial changes made to this story was adding much more narrative text. The story started out nearly wordless, but as we revised we realized we needed to bring out the narration and dialogue to help the reader follow along on Grama and May’s journey. Diving deeper into the specific voices of these characters added a whole new level to the story.

There is one particular image that has stayed nearly the same throughout the whole process: a stunning moment towards the end of the story where we see Grama and May in separate, dark rooms processing their feelings before a big goodbye. The emotions are so real and complete, I always felt it was the grounding piece throughout other changes.

Thank you Amy and Courtney for sharing your publishing journey with us!

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Happy writing and be sure to follow Amy Nielander and Courtney Burke on Twitter: @NielanderAmy @CourtneyBBooks.

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