Revealing the cover of a picture book is like when the curtain is lifted off an important piece of art at a museum. We get a peek at the creative process that has been ongoing for a year or more with input from editor, art director, and perhaps even the author. We gaze at the brilliance that teamwork generates.

WOW! Pretty awesome, right?
And there’s another WOW because the author and her publisher are offering a GIVEAWAY…one lucky winner will receive a copy of BRAINSTORM when it launches July! Make sure you leave a comment and share/tag friends on social media to be entered…more details at the end of the post.

Book Title: Brainstorm!
Written by: Rebecca Gardyn Levington
Illustrated by: Kate Kronreif
Publisher: Sleeping Bear Pres
Release date: July 15, 2022

And hurray! We are so lucky because author Rebecca was kind enough to stop by to share a bit about her book and also the story behind the story and the path to publication – and I know we all love to hear how books came to be!

ME: Welcome, Rebecca!

REBECCA: Hurray right back, Vivian. I’m so glad to be here.
My debut Brainstorm! is a rhyming concept picture book that begins with a little girl sitting in a classroom, frustrated because she can’t think of anything to write about. (Hmm, sound familiar?) As she stares at the storm brewing outside – kerplink! – a tiny thought falls from the sky. The girl gradually finds herself surrounded by a whirlwind of words, pictures, and ideas swirling all around her, as she eventually becomes caught up in a happy downpour of her own creativity.

Brainstorm! is targeted to children in grades K-3, who are beginning to learn how to shape and sharpen their idea-generation and storytelling skills. It includes writing prompts and a glossary that parents and educators can use to encourage kids to have fun playing with their new ideas.

ME: Where did the idea for Brainstorm! come from? 

REBECCA: One rainy October day, much like the little girl in my story, I had a terrible case of writer’s block. I was doing my best to keep my B.I.C. (“Butt In Chair”), but my brain felt like the weather — cloudy, gloomy and gray. Instead of staring at the blank page, I found myself looking at the rain outside my window when I felt the drop of an idea…

What if…

 IDEAS poured down from the sky?… Like a…

…rain storm?…

No! Wait!

Like a….

                                    BRAINstorm!

I immediately began writing what I originally thought would remain a short little poem. But over the next months, I kept coming back to it and tinkering. I kept adding more and more to the storm on the page – VERB clouds filling the sky, ADJECTIVES swirling around, funny PHRASES and wacky WORDS falling down in a torrential downpour. I was having so much fun getting drenched by this magical storm of ideas along with my MC. Before I knew it, I had a fully formed first draft!

Kate Kronreif did an incredible job with what I realize now was an extremely difficult manuscript to illustrate. I mean, how does someone illustrate a line like: “An easy breeze becomes a blast/of funny phrases flying past?” Thank goodness Kate and my editor, Sarah Rockett at Sleeping Bear Press, totally understood my vision and really took it to the next level.

I hope this book inspires all writers to embrace their creative storms and have FUN stomping around in their puddles of possibility!

Vivian, thank you again for hosting the cover reveal of Brainstorm! I am beyond grateful for all your generosity and support over the years and I can’t wait to share the rest of Brainstorm! with everyone on July 15, 2022 !

And good luck to everyone entering #50PreciousWords!

ME: Thank you so much, Rebecca! I loved everything that you shared!

And dear readers, we all know that books need support…please help authors and illustrators spread the word about their books. Here’s a few specific things Rebecca suggests you can do for BRAINSTORM!

Brainstorm! is available NOW for pre-order wherever books are sold.

And please addit to your “To Be Read” shelf on GoodReads too!

Here are some links! (Thank you in advance for your support!)

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Brainstorm-Rebecca-Gardyn-Levington/dp/1534111484/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=&sr=

B&N: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/brainstorm-rebecca-gardyn-levington/1140898205?ean=9781534111486

Bookshop.org: https://bookshop.org/books/brainstorm-9781534111486/9781534111486

Indibound.org: https://www.indiebound.org/book/9781534111486

Target: https://www.target.com/p/brainstorm-by-rebecca-gardyn-levington-hardcover/-/A-85893568

GoodReads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/60485305-brainstorm?from_search=true&from_srp=true&qid=VwXMLtsbXh&rank=2

Here’s a little bit more about Rebecca:

Rebecca Gardyn Levington is a children’s book author, journalist, and poet with a particular penchant for penning both playful and poignant picture books and poems — primarily in rhyme.

Her debut picture book Brainstorm! (Sleeping Bear Press, 2022) hits bookshelves this summer. She has four more rhyming picture books releasing in the next two years, including the inspirational I Will Always Be… (HarperCollins, 2024).

Rebecca’s poems have been or are scheduled to be published in Spider Magazine, Highlights High Five, The Caterpillar, Countdown/The School Magazine, and Honeycake: The Jewish Magazine for Creative Kids as well as in the anthologies Hop To It: Poems To Get You Moving, Imperfect II: Poems About Perspective, An Anthology for Middle Schoolers, and Chicken Soup for the Soul: The Magic of Cats.

Rebecca has a master’s degree in magazine journalism from NYU and a bachelor’s degree in communication studies with a specialization in business administration from UCLA. In her life B.C. (“Before Children”), she was a freelance journalist who wrote and edited feature stories for numerous national magazines and newspapers.

Rebecca lives in the suburban jungles of New Jersey with her husband and two boisterous boys. She is represented by Kaitlyn Sanchez at Context Literary. To learn more, visit www.RebeccaGardynLevington.com and follow her on Twitter at @WriterRebeccaGL.

And here’s a little bit about illustrator Kate Kronreif:
Kate Kronreif is a British illustrator specializing in picture books. She studied fine art in the UK many moons ago before working in London and New York as a graphic designer. She now lives in Vienna, Austria with her family. To learn more about Kate, visit www.katekronreif.com. 

Please remember to leave a comment to be entered in the giveaway of a copy of BRAINSTORM. And please share the post on social media, that helps spread the word about the book and increases the number of people who will pre-order the book. When you share on social media, please tag one or two friends who should know about this book for their kids. And maybe someone who enters #50PreciousWords will order this book for the literacy initiative. That would be awesome!

I have a feeling I don’t need to say much about why everyone needs to pop back here tomorrow. It’s the start of #50PreciousWords! Along with a fabulous team of judges, I’m ready to read all of your precious words!