12 Apr Sarah Bagley Steele and THE HAPPIEST KID

It’s always such fun to meet new kid lit creators, and although some of you may know her already (and if not, you need to), I just met author Sarah Bagley Steele. She is the talented author of THE HAPPIEST KID, which debuted from Yeehoo press in March. I am thrilled that she’s here!  Before we learn about Sarah herself, I want to tell you how much I love this book. THE HAPPIEST KID is about a child who, although is usually the happiest kid, finds herself unhappy and doesn’t know what to do with those feelings. I’m not going to spoil the book for you, but I will say that it validates ALL feelings and helps children handle them.

EL: Now, on to Sarah! First of all, welcome to Writing Between the Lines, Sarah. Will you tell us a little about yourself?

SBS: I’m originally from San Diego but moved to New York almost 20 years ago and have been here ever since. I live in Brooklyn with my husband, two kids, and a dog. My background is in theater; I worked as a Literary Manager off-Broadway for many years, and I also produced outdoor Shakespeare in Pennsylvania for ten summers.  I have always loved crafts of all sorts – (I brought my hot-glue gun with me to college) – and I love sharing activity ideas, as well as books on my website and Instagram feed.

EL: That’s amazing! I wish I were crafty, but disaster will ensue if I get too close to a hot glue gun. I love that you have a theater background. Do you think that background helped you transition to writing for children? 

SBS: The experience of reading submissions and being on the other side of things in an industry with a similarly low success rate has been helpful, I think, in processing the highs and lows that come with writing. The karma is real! And any time spent talking story with other storytellers is informative, regardless of the medium. I’m grateful for these conversations.

EL: Is this your debut? It is such a wonderful book. Will you tell us how you got the idea? I love the idea of normalizing sadness in children. It happens! But will YOU tell everyone a bit more about your beautiful book, please?

SBS: It is my debut! And thank you so much. I got the idea when I felt sad about something and bumped into a friend on the street. She asked how I was doing, and I immediately said, “Great! Wonderful!” almost like a reflex. It made me think about the ways we hide feelings and wonder if my very cheerful daughter ever does the same.

EL: SEL books are so important, but they are not always easy to write. After all, we need our audience to relate to them, which can be tricky. Can you talk a little about this?

SBS: I knew I wanted to write a story about a happy kid who felt sad, but I also knew it needed a plot kids would want to follow. This is where the cloud came in, which my character Sally tries to hide over the course of the book.

The idea for the cloud came from a line I wrote in a college essay about “stuffing my pain in my pocket.” The image stuck with me over the years, and I thought of it when struggling to activate this story. What if, instead of talking about how Sally felt sad, sadness was an object she literally tries to stuff in her pocket? I hope that giving the character a lively journey for readers to track (Can she zip the cloud in her backpack? Will it stay put it she shoves it behind her back? What if she sits on it?) helps kids invest in and relate to the story without it feeling overly didactic.

EL: You did a good job with that! Do you have a favorite part of the book? Or is that like asking you to choose your favorite child?

SBS: My favorite part is when Sally holds the cloud in her hands and takes a moment to really look at it for the first time. 

EL: I love that too! Will you tell us a little about your road to publication? Was it straight, winding, easy, hard? Can you give us a bit of a timeline?

SBS: I sold The Happiest Kid directly to the publisher, Yeehoo Press. I submitted it in February 2020. In June 2020, I received a revise and resubmit request from my future editor, Zhiqiao Wang, along with the most helpful feedback. He engaged with the main character in a way others had not and asked insightful questions that helped me unlock the story. I dove headfirst into a rewrite, sent it off, and received an offer three weeks later.

EL: Do you consider yourself a pantster (fly by the seat of your pants) or a planner? Or a combination? Do you have a specific writing routine? If so, will you share? 

SBS: I’m a planner. I spent much of my career reading new plays and writing script notes, and I know that influenced how I approach story and structure as a writer myself. I make little charts plotting out how a character changes over the course of a story. Sometimes the theme or idea of a story comes to me first, and sometimes the actual plot, but tracking how a character changes and why is always central to the process for me. As for a writing routine, I try, though it doesn’t always work out! I prefer to write in silence, which often means when everyone else is asleep. I like stretches of quiet – walking the dog, riding the subway – sitting with a story in my head, working it out like a puzzle.  

EL: What is your favorite part of your particular road to publication?

SBS: I began the journey of this book by sending queries to agents and, while I received positive feedback and even one revise and resubmit request, ultimately, I never received an offer of representation. I was about to shove the manuscript in a drawer and move on when I read on MS Wishlist that Yeehoo Press had an interest in children’s books about emotions.

As a querying writer, it’s hard to know when to keep working on a manuscript, and when to move on to something new. The Happiest Kid was the right story for the right person at the right time, and I’m glad I continued to research submission opportunities when querying didn’t pan out. My favorite part was receiving the very first email from my future editor expressing interest in the book.

EL: That’s always so exciting! Do you write in another genre aside from PBs?

SBS: Middle Grade is my favorite genre to read, and I aspire to write it. I have an unfinished and abandoned Middle Grade draft that has recently crept back into my dreams. I think it’s time to revisit it.

EL: Definitely do that! Getting back to this book, will you tell us a little about the incredible illustrations and the illustrator?

SBS: Aren’t the illustrations beautiful? Elsa Pui Si Lo and Clarice Yunyi Cai did such a wonderful job capturing the emotions of the main character. The cloud too. I had not imagined the cloud would have any facial expressions, but Elsa and Clarice really made the cloud come alive as a character. The artwork created a two-sided relationship, and the book is stronger because of it.

EL: I agree. The illustrations are wonderful, and the cloud as a character is brilliant! What advice do you have for aspiring kid lit writers?

SBS: Read as much as you can. Don’t shy away from hard topics or dumb anything down for kids – they are crazy smart and know if something isn’t honest. Follow trade announcements, join online groups and connect with other creators. Join a critic group. Don’t be afraid to reach out to other writers with questions or for advice. Believe in each manuscript, but allow yourself to move forward and grow. 

EL: Such great advice! Thank you. 

To learn more about Sarah, visit her website at https://www.sarahbagleysteele.com/

GIVEAWAY TIME! Sarah is happy to give a copy of THE HAPPIEST KID to one l lucky winner in the US. As always, let me know that you follow this blog (please sign up if you don’t follow it already) and comment on this post to get in the running. 

Thank you again, for visiting us, Sarah, and congrats on a beautiful book!

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If interested, I’d love you to check out my website, http://www.EllenLeventhal.com, to learn more about me, my books, and my school visits.  Until next time, be well!

Ellen