BIO:
Allyn came
from a family of writers. Her father wrote and owned the town newspaper in
Edgerton, Ohio and her mother wrote a weekly column. One of her sisters is a
freelance editor/writer in the commercial industry. Watching Allyn’s journey to
publication convinced her sister and her 85 year old mother to team up and
write a novel of their own. They were published in 2012.
Kailee Finds Magic IN Words is Allyn’s second children’s
picture book and is the sequel to her first book titled The Pea In Peanut Butter. Both were published by FutureWord
Publishing. Allyn has also been
published in various children’s magazines. Look for her next book, Hippo Bottomless scheduled to be published by FutureWord in 2015.
She is a
graduate of the Institute of Children’s Literature and a member of the Society
of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators. Allyn has also recently been added
to Futureword Publishings permanent staff where she helps out with
administrative duties.
Allyn lives
in Baton Rouge, La with her husband, two crazy dogs and one fat cat.
AUTHOR INTERVIEW:
I had Allyn answer a few questions so that you could get to know her a little bit. She is quite the character, so sit back, and enjoy.
1. Can
you tell us a little about yourself?
Well I hate to bore your readers right
off the bat but if you insist! I was raised with my two older sisters and
younger brother in the small town of Edgerton, Ohio. One day when I was 15 and
desperate for a boyfriend, my sister’s boyfriend paid a boy named Brad one
dollar (best dollar he ever spent!) to walk me home from school. I later
married that boy (going on 34 yrs now) and we now live in Baton Rouge, LA. I
didn’t begin my writing career until about five years ago. Sometimes it takes
me awhile to wake up! But I finally did and have discovered that my passion is
in writing children’s picture books.
2. What
are you currently working on?
I’m currently working on my first
attempt at self-publishing a picture book titled The Color of Love. I’ve chosen a local illustrator in my writing
group so we are having lots of fun going over the illustrations. She is doing a
great job and I can’t wait to see this book in print. Courtney knows how long
I’ve been working on this one!
I’m also in the process of getting
another picture book, Hippo Bottomless published
through Futureword Publishing. I’ve seen the first draft of illustrations and
hopefully it will be out the end of this year or early 2015.
And I’m always working on a new picture
book so that never stops!
3. How
did you decide what genre and age group you wanted to write for?
I researched and researched about the
different genre’s and age groups until I finally decided it was the little ones
I wanted to write for. I’m in love with good picture books and little kids so
it seemed like a magical fit.
4. If
you could meet any author in the world, who would it be? Why?
Oh I don’t know, there are so many
great authors out there! I guess I’d really like to have a sit down chat with
JK Rowling. The first question I would ask her is, “What’s it like to get a big
royalty check?”
5. What
advice would you give someone just starting out?
Do your research. Find out what type of
book it is that you want to write and for what age group. Without knowing that,
you’ll probably just go round and round and chances are you’ll have a tough
time finishing a story. Once you discover that, find out all the rules and
guidelines for writing in that genre and do it right. Polish up your story to
the best of your ability, get others to critique it, and spend the money to get
it edited properly. Then begin submitting! You can’t fulfill your dream of
being published if you don’t submit first!
6. What
would you say is the most difficult challenge you’ve encountered with your
writing?
Definitely marketing the book once it’s
published. I am having serious problems with this as I have always stunk at
selling anything. I cringe at the thought of being pushy or asking anyone for
money. But I’m getting better and someday I’m hoping it will pay off. I just
want to get my books in mother’s or father’s hands and in their children’s
imaginations!
7. If
your life had a theme song, what would it be?
Oh my gosh, you’re going to laugh but I
think it would be Carrie Underwoods song Before
He Cheats. I want my husband to hear those words over and over in his brain
and know that I will key his beloved 1939 Ford if he ever tries that on me!
Plus, it’s just a fun song to sing.
CURRENT RELEASE:
THE GIST:
Kailee doesn’t like to read. But, when her mother forces her to practice reading, she
discovers that words can take you on all kinds
of magical adventures!”
As an added, FYI, this is book two of Kailee's world. If you haven't checked out book 1, THE PEA IN PEANUT BUTTER, you should. It's fantastic. You can find that: Here
LINKS:
For those interested, here are some links for you to find her latest release:
