09 Jun Author Laura Roettiger and a Giveaway

Whenever anyone asks me the best part of writing for children, my answer is “Connection.” I love connecting with kids through school visits (I cannot wait to get back to in-person visits!) and connecting with so many wonderful people who write and/or illustrate kids’ books. Although Laura Roettiger and I haven’t met in person YET, I feel like I know her. So I am thrilled to welcome her to “Writing Outside the Lines.”

Welcome, Laura. Let’s talk about Aliana Reaches for the Moon. I love that book. Is there a story behind the story? If so, please share.

Thanks for asking, Ellen. I had several different sources of inspiration for Aliana and Gustavo, including my own children and some of my students from years of teaching in Chicago. My last year teaching, I had some of the sweetest children and was especially touched by the love between siblings. Moving to a remote area in the Roosevelt National Forest west of Boulder, Colorado, I discovered the brightness of the moon when it wasn’t diminished by light pollution. These are the main two elements I combined to write ALIANA REACHES FOR THE MOON.

I don’t want to give anything away to people who haven’t read it, but one thing I love in your book is the mixture of art and science. Are you a person who enjoys both science and art?

YES, I love both. My own visual art is photography. I’m inspired by nature and Colorado is a great place to enjoy both. I love art in all its forms; from the beautiful illustrations in picture books to paintings in museums. Regarding science, I think it’s fascinating. I had one daughter in particular who was always taking things apart, building, and exploring. She spent a lot of time experimenting and I allowed my children to be creative and messy. Aliana definitely is modeled on that.

Aside from the wonderful writing, the illustrations are gorgeous!

Will you tell us a little about your road to publication?

I was lucky to have a publisher interested in my book (Eifrig Publishing) when it was very rough and needed a lot of revision. She gave me excellent feedback, and we worked on it for over a year until we had the contract. I probably should have waited to submit until I knew more about the current market, but it worked out.

It certainly did work out! What are you working on now? Anything in the pipeline you’d like to share?

I’m working on a few new picture books. I’m on target for my 12×12 drafts this year. Last year was a bit of a disaster writing-wise, if I’m being honest. I didn’t do any writing from April – December, but I committed to writing again for 2021. I’m also working on an MG which is in the very rough stage of character maps, and I have some plot points but not enough of a story arc yet, so I can’t decide if I should just get a crummy first draft written and worry about that later, or sit and think about it a lot without doing any actual writing past the first page. As I read this, I know I need to stop procrastinating. Thanks, Ellen.

Ah, procrastination, my dear old friend. We’ll work on this together. 🙂 Aside from writing yourself, you boost others with your blog. I know it’s so appreciated. Tell us a little about how that got started, what your goal for it is, and how you keep going.

Thanks, Ellen. As part of my recommitment to writing, I decided to revamp my blog and offer author/illustrator interviews. So far everyone has included a giveaway which makes it more fun for everyone and easier to promote. As you know, I have each interviewee include a photo of themself as a child. That’s my favorite part of the interviews and I love letting people know they won a prize.

I loved being on your blog. Thank you so much again! What do you enjoy doing when you’re not writing?

I spend as much time as possible outside every day, and a lot of that is hiking with Charlie, my Goldendoodle. I also enjoy cooking, and that was a good creative outlet during the pandemic. Also, travel is a passion of mine and now that we are vaccinated, I’ve taken a few trips and hope to plan a few more for 2021 and beyond.

Oh, yes. Anyone who follows Laura on social media knows Charlie. If you don’t follow her, you should. She has a lot of good info and great things to say. And then, of course, there’s Charlie.

Check out Laura and Charlie here. Both kind of cute, right?

Here’s how you can stay in contact with Laura (and probably get to know Charlie!)

LauraRoettigerBooks.com to order a signed copy, follow my blog or connect with me for virtual and in-person visits.

I’m @ljrwritenow on Twitter and Instagram

And now for the GIVEAWAY! Laura has generously offered a signed copy of Aliana Reaches for the Moon to one lucky reader in the U.S. To get in the running, please comment on this post. If you’d like to have more than one entry, please let me know that you are a follower of this blog or that you just signed up.

Laura, thanks for visiting with us today!

Happy Summer, everyone!