A little over a year ago I met Kelly of Are You Finished Yet. She was one of the first bloggers I started engaging with in my blogging infancy. She allowed me to sit at the “cool table” and made me feel included and not at all stupid or out of my league. Since then I’ve gotten to know Kelly much better. I’m a huge fan of her writing, but I’m an even bigger fan of her spirit which shines through her writing. But who knew that in addition to writing for her award-winning blog and raising her children that she was cooking up something else?
That’s what. In all her ample spare time she’s been writing and illustrating a book! Meanwhile, I’m still trying to figure out how to change my blog header. Ahem, anyways, this book you guys. It’s awesome. It’s a story your kids will love. One you will love. And the pictures? I pause in the middle of reading it to my five year old just to study the pictures! There’s so much detail and character and life in these drawings.
So to celebrate this new it’s-awesome-and-should-be-on-your-kids’-shelves book, I got the opportunity to interview Kelly! It was almost like having a real life conversation with her, which is so cool. Especially since as I read her answers I was giggling and talking out loud. To myself. *evidence of my crazy will be in italics after Kelly’s answers*
Enjoy!
***
Is “mayhem” a term used often in your family? Should we assume that come Friday the Suellentrop household is one big party?
Absolutely. In fact, weekends at our house is where I got the title for the book. My husband started referring to that time as Absolute Mayhem, because it meant we were all home and weren’t as dictated by a schedule. Mostly it meant he had more time to have fun with the kids. To this day, when he gets home from work on Fridays, he opens the door and says “Absoluuuuuute… ” and the kids yell, “MAYHEM!”
*Aw, your husband sound like such a fun dad! I want to be at your house on a Friday sometime to yell out “Mayhem!” I’ll even do a cheer or a cartwheel or somethin’, ok?*
What sparked the idea for this book?
Like I said, it all came from this little tradition my husband started. Now to be clear, the mayhem at our house isn’t quite what it is for Lulu and Milo. Like, my kids get to have soda and we have movie nights or something. But I loved the idea of how even mundane things can feel special when you are able to break out of the routine of the week. Everyone looks forward to the weekend for one reason or another. And I wanted to capture that little feeling of anticipation and magic we can feel in our everyday lives, while still honoring the hard work and responsibilities that make us appreciate the times we get to have fun.
*I LOVE movie night! And I get what you mean, everything is more fun on the weekends! Except for laundry.*
I love the illustrations! How did you hone your drawing skills? Did you have any formal art education?
Drawing has always been one of my creative outlets, even as a kid. I used to spend hours in my bedroom listening to music and drawing people out of my teen magazines. I took art all throughout high school and some in college. I wanted to minor in art, but as an English major, I had a hard time keeping up with all the time-intensive art projects on top of the copious amounts of reading I had to do. So you could say my formal art education ended there. But I have never really put down my drawing tools, and I have spent a lot of time over the last few years studying the work of other children’s book illustrators, as well as playing around with my own characters until I came up with Lulu and Milo.
*I was an English major too! That is so rare in the blogging world, right?*
Where and when and how do you write?
I keep myself on a schedule with my blog, Are You Finished Yet. I post every Tuesday, so that forces me to keep writing even when life gets busy. Now that both of my kids are in school all day, it is much easier to find the time. I have come to treat it like you would any other job. I drop my kids off at school, come home, get some breakfast and tea, and go to my office. (My husband and kids converted our extra bedroom into an office/art studio for me this past Mother’s Day, and that really helped me get into the mindset that I am now writing for a living.) I spend most of the day there working on things related to the book and writing upcoming blog posts until it’s time to get the kids. But you know, even though I have time during the day, I do find that I often get most inspired late at night. Sometimes I stay up late and run with it, and sometimes I will simply jot down notes and tackle it the next day.
*Schedule? Hmm… interesting concept… And what is it about writing in the wee hours? Is it the quiet or just our creative time? Whatever it is I blame it for my puffy eyes and my morning disposition.*
What advice or words of wisdom do you have as a bonafide published author?
That just sounds weird. Because I always thought of authors as eccentric, super-smart people who pounded on typewriters in front of sun-filled windows and hung out at coffee shops with other eccentric, super-smart people. And now I’m an author. But I write in between loads of laundry, hang out in carpool lines, forget what I went in to the kitchen for, and have trains of thought interrupted when I realize I need to run to Walmart for toilet paper and spaghetti sauce. I mean, like, I’m just a person. But maybe that’s the wisdom here. We’re all just people. Like, Oprah’s just a person. And that means if you’re a person you can become a bonafide published author… or Oprah.
Oh, and patience, hard work and faith are probably good things to have as well.
*Ooh! Ooh! I want to be Oprah! Can I be Oprah? That sounds like fun! Plus, she’s a bonafide published author too! See, two birds… wait… sorry. Forgot to turn on the dryer… damn you laundry!*
Do you have more mayhem brewing? Will we get to see more of Lulu and Milo in the future?
Well, I live with two sources of constant inspiration: my kids. I wrote Aboslute Mayhem with the intention of it being the first in a series of Lulu and Milo stories, and I have the beginnings of about three more manuscripts floating around at the moment. The question right now is, which will become book #2.
*As long as we get to see more of Hippo too. He’s my favorite.*
***
Isn’t Kelly awesome? I know you’ll love her book. So will your kids and nieces and nephews and cousins… And one of you will get to win one right here! Just leave a comment or question and I will randomly choose the winner! Easy! And if you don’t win? No worries! You can go here: http://www.amazon.com/Absolute-Mayhem-Kelly-Suellentrop/dp/0692311017/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1415717713&sr=8-2&keywords=absolute+mayhem
and here: http://kellysuellentrop.com/
So, speak to me people! Do you think we should all show up at Kelly’s house on Friday? What do you look forward to on the weekends? Are you dying to know who Hippo is?
20 Responses
Agreed that laundry on the weekends is no fun. This was awesome to read–I recently became interested in the idea of writing a children’s book, and now I look for inspiration at every turn.
Sabina, I was you four years ago! So you can definitely do it!
Ahh thank you for the encouragement! My friend and I said it in passing one day that I should write and she should illustrate–but I’m actually fairly serious about it.
The fact that you have an illustrator already is an awesome step forward! You SHOULD be serious about it!
Yes! Sabina! You should definitely go for it! That would be awesome!
Sounds cool! In place of ‘mayhem’, Einstein, had he been alive, might have preferred to use the term ‘entropy’ perhaps?!
Perhaps! And I think Einstein would be completely cool with letting loose on the weekends!
How do we know where the line between a little mayhem and my house resides? Id really like to find my way back.
Ha! I agree! Maybe Kelly’s next book should focus on how to keep the mayhem in check!
Gretchen, can I just tell you how much I loved your little side comments? I was worried my answers would be boring, but how could they be with your commentary? Awesome. And yes, you can come over any Friday. I fear the screaming of “Mayhem” may be as about as exciting as it gets though 🙂 And good catch on laundry being no fun on the weekend. That is devil’s work no matter when you have to do it.
Thank you so much, my friend. You are so wonderful for doing this. And by the way, it only became the “cool table” once you started sitting at it.
Kelly, I am so excited to get to talk about your book! You are one of my favorite people in the blog world and I seriously am eternally grateful to you and Emily for being so nice and welcoming to me! And I want to order some copies for my daughter’s school, I was going to ask you about it but I just saw a link on your website!
Yes!! And if they want to do a Skype visit to the classroom, I’m totally down with that if they have the capability. They could be my first out-of-state “author visit”!!
Really? That would be so cool! I’ll let the school know!
You asked much better questions than I did. I’m mad at you. Grrrrrrr…..
Kelly is awesome! So is this book! And, I suppose, Gretchen, that you are, too.
Of course she is. No fighting at the cool table.
Scott, thank you friend. I admit I haven’t read your or Emily’s posts. I wanted to avoid them until I posted this one. I’m weird that way. I’m paranoid that I’ll inadvertently steal someone else’s ideas! That and I had to crawl into my little hole for a few days and disappear. Now I can go read it and see which of us would make a better Diane Sawyer. 🙂
Well…you would, obviously. You asked better questions and your parts match hers more than mine do.
This is fantastic. I gave it some shares and such. I’m always looking for nice books to read to the little one and enjoy childrens’ books myself. Someone just gave me an Amazon gift card, so I’ll surely be checking it out.
I am so glad I followed that link. Gave it some shares and such (redesigning Sourcerer right now, is why I am over here in costume instead of using my regular account).
I think you’ll love it! As will the little one! Thanks for giving some shares, I’m hoping to catch up on all Twitter, FB and blog communication tonight. I’ll be in contact!
All right. No biggie on the communcation as far as I am concerned. I’m working in the alchemy lab tonight, so won’t be doing much text chatter, but I will be seeing notifications.