Carrie Finison writes children’s books with humor and heart, including Dozens of Doughnuts; Lulu & Zoey: A Sister Story; Hurry, Little Tortoise, Time for School; and Don’t Hug Doug, which was named an American Library Association (ALA) Notable Children’s Book in 2022. Her newest book is Pigs Dig a Road, a humorous story about road construction and teamwork. She lives in the Boston area. Visit her online at www.carriefinison.com or follow her on social media @CarrieFinison.
1. What are some of the key ingredients that make a great book for kids?
For me, all great books for kids share similar elements, although they might achieve them differently. They all have a concept that draws kids into the story. It could be a high-interest topic like dragons or trains, or an unusual, intriguing topic like a lonely lobster, or a pet glacier. Great books for kids also appeal to readers’ emotions—whether that’s humor, heart, or somewhere in between. You’ll FEEL something when you read a great book. And finally, great books leave readers thinking about the story after they’re done and (hopefully) wanting to re-read the book, or read a sequel—to spend a little more time with the characters and in the world that the book has created.
2. What one piece of advice would you like to give to aspiring kidlit authors?
The best advice I have for someone just starting out is to write more than one thing. While it is important (for sure!) to learn how to revise, don’t spend all your time working and re-working the same story. I remember meeting an editor at the first conference I went to. She had lovely, complimentary things to say about my picture book manuscript, and then asked me what else I was working on. Umm…this is it? That didn’t feel like a great answer! As you write more stories, the skills you’ve developed as a writer will be reflected in your new work.
3. Once you’ve created a first draft, what’s your next step? Critique group? Check in with your agent? Tuck it away to let it age?
It depends on the story and how I feel about the draft I’ve completed. If I’m really excited, I sometimes send it off to my critique group right away. But usually I’m more cautious and put it away for a while. It could be a few weeks or even months of cycling through drafts before I send it to my group. Generally, I want to make it as polished as I can before I get their take on it. But if I have a big question about a story—for example about the voice, the theme, or the ending, I might send an earlier version and ask them to comment with that question in mind.
4. Who should read Pigs Dig a Road?
Pigs Dig a Road is for anyone who likes humorous picture book stories, but especially for kids who are into big vehicles, construction projects, and of course pigs!
5. What was the most challenging thing you faced while writing/researching this book?
There were a few challenges while writing Pigs Dig a Road. First, I knew nothing about road building, and did lots of research to make sure I had all the steps described accurately—although condensed a bit to fit the format of a picture book story. I also wanted to make sure I depicted all the different big trucks that are used. Then, my editor challenged me to actually NAME all of the different trucks in the text. Since the story is written in rhyme, it was quite a challenge to rework the text to add in words like ‘excavator’ and ‘compactor’ and make read smoothly.
6. If you read this book to a room filled with kids, what message would you want them to leave with?
My first goal is always just to entertain readers. I hope they find some of the silly mishaps in the book funny, and I hope they like seeing all the big trucks in action. The theme of the book is about working together, so I hope that when readers close the book they’ll think about the groups they are a part of—whether that’s in a family, a group of friends, or a classroom—and how they can contribute to the group. Even young children can help out and play their part in cleanup, meal preparation, and more. We work better when we work together!
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