Celebrating the Season and More with Erin Dealey

This month, I am super excited to Interview Erin Dealey and share her joy of kidlit and

holidays with our readers. Aside from wearing many hats (Language Arts/theater teacher, speaker, agent assistant, and former SCBWI CA Co-RA to name a few), Erin is a multi-published picture book Author. Notably, her many seasonal picture books have earned her the distinction of being what Heather Macht and I call a “Celebration Connoisseur”! So this interview is a real holiday treat!

Lynne Marie: As one holiday book lover to another, please tell share the story behind the story of your first winter book.

Erin Dealey: Thanks for having me, Lynne, and for the kind words! I wrote my first winter book, DECK THE WALLS (Sleeping Bear/ Illus. Nick Ward), about the kids’ table during the holidays, as a performance piece for my high school theater kids. The school had an annual holiday assembly and they asked the drama department to perform something non-denominational. A few years later we heard that Sleeping Bear was looking for an unusual twist on the holidays and submitted it. It’s now part of my holiday book presentation, and always fun to get the audience involved in the Fa La La’s.

LM: What inspired you to continue to write holiday books?

ED: I wrote my second winter themed book, SNOW GLOBE WISHES (Sleeping Bear/ Illus. Claire Shorrock), about the worst snow storm of the year and a little girl’s special wish, during a time when it felt like the world needed an extra hug. At least, I did. It was my hope that SNOW GLOBE WISHES might be read throughout the winter season, year after year. I am so very thrilled that it was selected as an Anna Dewdney Read Together award honor book last year.

I really didn’t set out to write any more “holiday” books, but then during the pandemic, the boat lovers in the family were disappointed when their beloved Holiday Boat Parade was canceled. I thought I would cheer them up by sending them a picture book about boat parades and there wasn’t one. CHRISTMAS AHOY! (Sleeping Bear/ Illus. Kayla Stark) is the result, and I am so very excited to be signing books this season at the boat parade in Santa Cruz CA where it all began!

LM: From your experience, what are the pros and cons of writing holiday books? What are the benefits of having more than one themed book to represent a given season?

ED: To me, the pros of having holiday books is that I get to celebrate and read my books with readers young and old –and even Santa – each year! The crazy thing (possibly a con, but I’m not complaining) is that holiday books are typically released by the publisher in late summer/ early fall, when no one is ready to talk about Christmas. So for CHRISTMAS AHOY! – which came out in July when I was working up at Fine Arts Camp (Everyone sang Happy Book Birthday to me that day). We had a “launch” in September at Face in a Book, with boat crafts and a mini-regatta. You end up getting very creative with events–haha.

LM: How do the seasonal books fit into your author plan (if you have one)?

ED: My author plan? Hmmm… I guess it’s basically to keep creating as long as the ideas come to me. I know that sounds vague, but so far, so good. If you’re wondering if my goal is to have a book for every holiday, the answer is no, but then again–with PETER EASTER FROG (Caitlyn Dlouhy Books/ Illus. G. Brian Karas) and a few others (see next question)–it sort of seems that way.

LM: Tell us a little bit about your other holiday books and what inspired them, and/or what makes them unique? First off, the amazing illustrators and the worlds they have created are what make each book so magical. I can’t thank them enough.

Peter Easter Frog: PEF is part parody like DECK THE WALLS, but part prose. It’s fun when readers figure out the pattern and try to guess what happens next. And the scenes with the bunny. Oh, my!

DEAR EARTH, FROM YOUR FRIENDS IN ROOM 5: (Harper Collins) Illustrator Luisa Uribe added so much to this. Have you seen the spread with the sea turtle and the fish? At first glance, you don’t notice that one of the fish is a plastic bag.

THE HALF-BIRTHDAY BOOK: (Genius Cat Books) Illustrator Germán Blanco added so much fun to this book! I wanted it to be a Half Birthday party in a book, with lots of fun, inexpensive activities to celebrate half birthdays in school and at home. He added half objects on every spread, which adds another level as an introduction to fractions and half & whole. .

K IS FOR KINDERGARTEN: (Sleeping Bear) I wrote this book because my friend’s son could NOT wait for Kindergarten to start. Each spread has Kinder Countdown activities to do while kids are waiting, and also Kinder Challenges for kids and teachers to use year round.I love the energy of Joseph Cowman’s lively illustrations of a kindergartner’s daily activities.

LM: Now that we have spanned the calendar with your many wonderful holiday-themed books, what holiday books do you have on the horizon, if any? If not, please tell us a little bit about your upcoming book.

ED: Thank you so much for asking. My next book, JUST FLOWERS, will be released from Sleeping Bear in March 2024, with absolutely stunning illustrations by NYT Bestselling Kate Cosgrove. I suppose we can call it my Spring book, about a budding young botanist named Izzy, a very grumpy neighbor who only loves his roses, Izzy’s random acts of kindness, and lots and lots of flowers. Here’s the cover reveal from Fuse8 (Betsy Bird): https://afuse8production.slj.com/2023/10/26/cover-reveal-and-qa-a-peek-at-just-flowers-from-erin-dealey/

LM: Answer a question you wish we had asked you.

ED: A fun question might be: Why is there a gondola in CHRISTMAS AHOY! ? The answer is in the book’s backmatter, but I’ll share it here. In my research for this book, I learned that Newport Beach CA, has had a boat parade for over 100+ years, which started with a gondola and eight row boats and paper lanterns. The spread with the gondoliers is my way of honoring the history of the boat parades.

LM: Share what is your favorite holiday and why?

ED: Well, I start watching holiday movies in October, so there’s that. But really, I love any day that is filled with joy and community. It doesn’t have to be one of the biggies. A few years ago, my agent gave me a sign that says: CELEBRATE. It is on display all year.

Happy Celebrations to all!

Erin

Bio: Erin Dealey's original career goal was Olympic Gold Medal tetherball player. When that didn't happen, she became a teacher, theater director, actor, mom, screenwriter, playwright, blogger and author of 16+ children’s books (so far). She welcomes any opportunity to visit schools around the world, motivate students to read and write, and celebrate the ARTS in Language Arts. Dealey lives in northern California with her husband. You can find her online at erindealey.com and on social media as @ErinDealey. (She will follow you back!)

Links:

Blog: Blog - Erin Dealey, Children's Author

Website: Erin Dealey - Children's Author, Teacher, and Presenter