What a perfect time to have a baby…a book baby, that is! And it was love at first sight…for me and for School Library Journal who gave it a STARRED review!!!

Now this is a cover that puts you in a good mood, right? It looks like party-time at the monster’s house but someone’s not happy. Kids need a bit of silliness and joy these days.
Here’s a little bit about the book from the Amazon sales page:

A hilarious and heartwarming picture book about a sweet little monster who really wants to celebrate a not-so-monstery holiday: Valentine’s Day.

“There are powerful messages about the nature of love on almost every page.”—School Library Journal (starred review)

Snoodle is an unusual monster. She loves candy hearts, fun parties, fuzzy kittens, fancy hats, sparkly stickers, and . . . valentines! There’s just one problem: Monsters don’t do Valentine’s Day!

And when Snoodle tries to throw a Valentine’s Day party for her monster friends, nothing goes right. Every attempt to show them what love looks like turns into monster mayhem! With each disaster, Snoodle tries to be patient and kind, and to not be rude or get easily angered. But if the party isn’t perfect, how can Snoodle convince the other monsters to be her Valenslime? 

Debut author Kris Tarantino and New York Times bestselling illustrator Cori Doerrfeld bring to life a wonderful cast in this laugh-out-loud exploration of the true meaning of love.

And we are so lucky! Debut author Kris Tarantino was kind enough to stop by to share the inspiration for the story, plus the challenges and humorous moments on the path to publication. PLUS, she and her publisher are offering a giveaway, so please make sure you leave a comment.

ME: WELCOME, KRIS! THANK YOU FOR STOPPING BY TO SHARE YOUR PATH TO PUBLICATON WITH US.

KRIS: THANK YOU FOR HAVING ME ON YOUR BLOG, VIVIAN! I’M THRILLED TO CELEBRATE MY BOOK BIRTHDAY HERE.

Inspiration for this book:

The inspiration for Be My ValenSLIME came together after years of experiencing people who repeatedly demonstrated a lack or void of love and kindness. I found myself saying, This doesn’t feel like love. What’s love anyway? Then the idea of exploring What’s love anyway kept rolling around in my head. And I thought what better way to get down to the kid-level on the topic of ‘love’ than with the opposite kind of character—a mash-up of monsters (typically viewed as a nasty unloving group). But they all couldn’t be monster-y. Then Snoodle burst on the page, along with the fun title, and the rest was history.

Challenging moments:
I had a multi-step challenge with the acquisition of Be My Valenslime.

I met both my agent and editor at an online conference (covid time). During my One-on-One with the editor, I chose to spend my time pitching her as many of my stories as time would allow. I wanted to gauge her interest on each story because we all know that writers are only allowed to send one manuscript to a faculty member post-conference. It turns out she was looking for holiday books and lit up when I pitched Be My ValenSLIME. She asked me to send her the manuscript post-conference (which I did). And then said they only work with agented authors. Gulp. I told her I was working on that part.

Post-conference, I signed with my agent. Hooray! As this was happening, the editor got back to me and said there was internal interest and would I be willing to revise and resend? Then reminded me that they only work with agented authors. I replied that yes, I’d be happy to do an R&R, and told her I just signed with an agent!

First, my agent and I went through two months of revisions. After the R&R was sent, the editor said she took it to an acquisitions meeting. The group was very interested, but no offer, yet. They wanted to see more storylines developed with Snoodle and the monsters. There was talk of making this into a picture book series, maybe, no promises. Did I hear that right? A possible series?!

I had to think of 6-8 additional story summaries. I’d never done this before, but I was determined to try. So, after another 4 weeks, the series ideas were done and sent. Shortly after that we received a formal offer! Even though the offer ended up being for one book (and not a series) the acquisitions group still thought a series was a future possibility.

Surprising editorial moment:
At the editorial kick-off meeting, I learned that there had been even more internally discussion about the monsters. The original story that sold had Snoodle (the main character) and groups of other non-specific monsters. My editor asked that I develop a few of the monsters, have them appear alongside Snoodle as secondary characters, and give them personalities and character traits. Enter in—Iggy, Zee-Zee, and Fleck. There were other changes to the story as well. Overall, we went through three rounds of revisions over two months. My editor’s vision ultimately made the story much stronger!

Surprising amazing incident:
Once the manuscript was ready for art, my editor asked me to put together a list of illustrators who I thought would be a perfect fit for the story. I was shocked. Afterall, it’s well-known in the industry that the author doesn’t pick the illustrator, the art director and editor do. I was honored and delighted that they asked for my input, even if they decided to pick someone else. So, I poured over all my favorite picture books and put together a list of illustrators, including why I liked their style, and how it could best fit Snoodle and her monster friends.

And here’s the cool part. My editor put together a list too. And Cori Doerrfeld was on both of our lists! How amazing is that? I love it. And, it turns out that one of Cori’s favorite things to draw is… you guessed it—monsters!

ME: Oh my gosh! Kris! What an AMAZING story of how your story came to be. Lots of writing and rewriting! Lots of patience and perseverance! We are so proud of you!!

Dear friends, here’s a little bit about Kris, although with all that she shared with us, I bet you feel like you know her already.
Kris Tarantino is a children’s book author. She’s member of SCBWI and the 12×12 Picture Book Writing Challenge. She has participated as a faculty speaker on several SCBWI Writer/Illustrator Panels, and has won numerous writing and mentor awards. Kris holds a B.A. in Business, Marketing, and Art. Prior to writing children’s books, she worked in marketing, licensing popular characters for companies that make fun products like toys, books, and balloons. Kris is represented by Keely Boeving at WordServe Literary. You can find her online at www.kristarantino.com, as well as Twitter, Facebook, and Linkedin.

To connect with Kris and learn more about her books:
www.kristarantino.com
LinkedIn:  Kris Tarantino                   (22) Kris Tarantino | LinkedIn
Twitter: @kris_tarantino                    Kris Tarantino (@Kris_Tarantino) / X (twitter.com)

Facebook: Kris Tarantino          (20+) Facebook 

Thank you so much for spending your precious time here with us. Please make sure you leave a comment for a chance to win a copy of BE MY VALENSLIME – and please share on your social media to spread the word.
Other things you can do:
Buy the book
Review the book
Put the book on your Goodreads WANT TO READ SHELF
Ask your local library to purchase copies for their collection.

This is the last planned post of the year, dear friends. Stay safe as the New Year approaches…find joy, be kind, and love each other.