A Day at the Lake invites the reader
to jump right into the colorful sights and playful sounds that accompany
long summer days at the lake. To celebrate its release earlier this week, we’re
kicking off its very own blog tour right here! We had the opportunity
to ask the pair of wordsmiths—and friends—who wrote the book to give us this
exclusive first look at the story behind its magic.
 |
| Stephanie Wallingford |
1. What
inspired you to begin writing books for children? How are children's books special?
Stephanie
Wallingford: I’ve been writing my whole life. I’ve always liked
poetry and combined with a love and deep appreciation of art and illustration,
picture books are a perfect match. Besides, what’s more special than sharing a
book with a child?
Dawn
Rynders: I have loved writing since I was old enough to string together
words that I copied out of my mom’s magazines. Once I came around to
studying good children’s literature in college, I found myself thinking, “I
wish I had written that…” Then one day, Steph challenged me to try our
hand at writing a book and we found the words and rhythm of A Day at
the Lake.
2. The
book is definitely filled with playful rhymes and sounds—it's almost musical. How did you develop
this ear for language?
SW:
Once we had established the rhythm of the writing, it served as a great
framework for writing. We did start to think and talk that way for a while—kind
of annoying to the people around us for sure, but…lots of laughs.
DR:
I love the process of discovering the right word for a phrase. It’s like
a puzzle just waiting to be put into place…
3. How do
you collaborate as writers? What is your process like?
