Hello dear blog friends! It’s Monday…and I wanted to provide you with a positive start to your week. And what could be better than a COVER REVEAL!
The kid-lit community is filled with incredible people…and when long-time friend Tonnye Fletcher reached out to let me know she had a new book, MUSIC PLANTS HOPE, illustrated by Natalia Bruno, launching next May, I knew I’d want to help her celebrate! It’s an honor to welcome her to Picture Books Help Kids Soar.
ME: Thank you so much for stopping by, Tonnye. Our readers love to find out the story behind the story – and we appreciate your time. Can you tell us a little bit about the book?
TONNYE: It’s a joy to be here, Vivian. I’m so happy to be sharing the cover of my debut picture book on your blog!
MUSIC PLANTS HOPE, illustrated by Natalia Bruno and published by Reycraft, flies into bookstores on May 26, 2026
It is the story of the concert for plants in Barcelona during the Covid 19 Pandemic. The brief prologue and epilogue tell the facts of the story, but the rest tells the story of the impact of the music – a lyrical retelling of the concert from the moment the string quartet steps onto the stage until they exit the stage.
ME: What inspired you to write this story?
TONNYE: On June 25, 2020, Alice Fugate tweeted this:”I don’t know how exactly just yet but could there be a picture book story in this quirky delightful scene? 🙂 #mswl” (https://x.com/AliceSFugate/status/1276122872352845824) I took her up on her challenge and wrote 3 different versions of the story: an expository nonfiction account of the concert, a story that followed one of the plants from the nursery, through the concert and home with the healthcare worker, and this lyrical account of the concert.
ME: Can you share a humorous incident and/or challenging moment on the path to publication?
TONNYE: Well, I wrote three versions, inspired by Alice’s tweet, went on to polish all three stories through several critique groups, sent her all three with the hopes that she would like one of them, but no, it was a rejection for all three of them. Not even a R&R – nothing. She said, “I enjoyed learning a little more about this musical event (and listening to Puccini’s piece). I’m afraid however that these various versions seem to lack focus and structure, and I’m not as in love with them as I would want to be in order to move forward and will therefore stand aside.” I queried the story and pitched it many more times before Winsome Bingham of Reycraft picked it up from a pitch party in Feb. 2023.
ME: Oh…a pitch party! Many writers ask me if those are worth doing…and I guess, based on your experience, the answer is YES! Thank you so much for sharing all of this with us!
ME: Dear blog followers…here’s a little info about Tonnye: Tonnye Fletcher is an M.Ed, National Board-certified veteran teacher with experience in second and third grade classrooms, as well as k-2 music. Tonnye is a strong literacy advocate, leading a local council of the NC Reading Association and volunteering within NCRA in various capacities. She is passionate about reading, music, and the intersection of those two. To that end, she hosts PBJamz, a multimedia blog series highlighting picture books with musical hooks. Tonnye participates in SCBWI and in Julie Hedlund’s 12×12 Picture Book Challenge. She is represented by Joyce Sweeney of the Seymour Agency. At home, Tonnye and her husband, Shane, and a few feline fur-babies, live on a family farm they share with extended family. There are many family dinners around the table in the 1882-built Victorian farmhouse that they will be renovating for years to come.
And here’s a little info about the illustrator: Natalia Bruno is an illustrator who lives in a small town called Veronica, in the Buenos Aires province of Argentina, with her husband and two cats. She has always loved telling stories and has been drawing since she could hold a pencil. Her journey down the path of visual arts began when she studied photography a couple of years ago. At the same time, she became interested in the world of illustration and picture books, which led her to take several art workshops. Her work tools are traditional: gouache, acrylics, oil pastels, and colored pencils on paper.
We all know that there are ways WE can help new books become a success. We can: Buy the book Review the book Tell friends about the book (please SHARE on your SOCIAL MEDIA) Ask your local library to purchase copies for their collection
FOR WRITERS, ILLUSTRATORS, PARENTS, TEACHERS, LIBRARIANS, AND BOOK LOVERS EVERYWHERE
TODAY’S GUEST
LINDSAY LESLIE
I’ve known today’s guest quite a few years. We first met virtually, as most of us in the kid lit world do…on social media, in Facebook groups, and perhaps at an online class or webinar. But in 2018, we were part of a debut picture book group, New in 19…and we formed a panel, along with Monica Fields, Ishta Mercurio, Bea Birdsong, and a few others to put together a panel proposal for NCTE Conference that was going to take place in Baltimore that next November. Luckily, our proposal was accepted…and, although I dragged my feet booking a hotel room and found myself without a spot to stay, Lindsay was amazing and offered to let me room with her! She’s the BEST!
And so, when I heard that Lindsay has a NEW book, GUS HEARTS THE BUS, coming out in just a few days, I just had to let everyone know about it. She’s a fabulous person…and a fabulous writer.
Lindsay Leslie is the award-winning author of So You Want to Build a Library (Capstone), Dusk Explorers, Nova the Star Eater, This Book is Spineless (Page Street Kids), and Rock & Moss: The Physics of Friendship (Kiwi Co.). Her next picture book, GUS HEARTS THE BUS (illus. by Geeta Ladi), hits the shelves on July 1, 2025, with Sleeping Bear Press. She lives in Austin, Texas, with her husband, sci-fi/fantasy/horror novelist Ryan Leslie, two teenagers, and two fur-beasts (a.k.a. dogs). Visit her at lindsayleslie.com. Website: www.lindsayleslie.com IG: @lindsaylesliewrites Threads: @lindsaylesliewrites Bluesky: @lindsayleslie.bsky.social
Geeta Ladi is a passionate picture book illustrator who began her creative journey working with children to address learning challenges in math and science. For over a decade, she designed learning toys, led creativity camps, and used storytelling to simplify complex concepts. These experiences led her to illustrate picture books, including the award-winning My Brain Is Magic by Prasha Sooful. Based in Chennai, India, Geeta loves to travel and draw people and architecture.
IG: @geetaladi_illustration
ME: And now that we know a little bit about our guest and her illustrator, let’s welcome Lindsay! Lindsay, thank you so much for stopping by to chat with us. And thank you for the generous giveaway of a copy of GUS HEARTS THE BUS…note to blog followers: please make sure you leave a comment at the end of the post for a chance to win…and please share the post on your social media for extra tickets in the giveaway hat. And now…for our chat with Lindsay! Who were your favorite authors/illustrators when you were a child?
LINDSAY: It’s a joy to be here, Vivian. I have a hard time reaching back to when I was reading picture books as a young kiddo, but know I loved them! The only ones that come forward in my memory, which makes me assume they were my favorites, were the Sweet Pickle series. I remember reaching for Stork Spills the Beans, Very Worried Walrus, and Zip Goes Zebra a lot. When I got a little older, my favorite authors were Beverly Cleary, Judy Blume, Roald Dahl, and Shel Silverstein. My GOATs!
ME: What do you know now that you wish you knew when you first started writing?
LINDSAY: That Twitter would blow up? I jest, but not really. I invested a lot of time building a wonderful community there filled with writers and authors across the world, and I enjoyed the heck out of it in its prime. But then, we know how that story goes. I’m still struggling to find that same feel with the other social media offerings, and I’m also more than a bit exhausted with social media. Raise your hand if you agree! Also, I had great connections via Facebook only to have a hacker come through my linked Instagram account and lock me out of my Facebook account. I couldn’t regain control and had to restart, so goodbye to that community. I guess what I’m trying to say here is, social media will come and go. Find your community in other ways and hold them dear. I’m so glad to have my awesome critique group, my local SCBWI chapter, 12×12, and my writerly husband, plus the connections I’ve made over the years that I foster the best I can. Surrounding yourself with wonderful and talented writers is the best thing you can do. You will learn so much and have fun along the way.
ME: Where do you like to write – inside, outside, special room, laptop, pen and paper?
LINDSAY: I’m a fan of my office, which I recently repainted a deep teal. The room is so moody and snuggly, which makes me feel ready to write. When I get to writing, I love pencil and paper, specifically—a really sharp Ticonderoga and a pad that flips top to bottom rather than a spiral notebook.
ME: When do you write – early morning, late in the day, middle of the night, on schedule, as the muse strikes?
LINDSAY: I’m all over the place on this one. It’s mostly when I have the time coupled with when the mood strikes. Sounds not very productive, yes? And you’re right. I think this year I’m going to have a serious chat with myself and figure this out. A lot of this comes from the COVID years. It took my mental focus away. I also have an issue with having too much time and then getting complete paralysis as to what to do, so I do housework. Again, can anyone relate?
ME: Why do you write for children?
LINDSAY: I have so many answers to this question, but the answer jumping out to me right now is I write for the child in my heart—the one who is taken with an idea, because I think there is a child out there who might be taken with it, too. With my most recent book, GUS HEARTS THE BUS, illustrated by the talented Geeta Ladi, I became fascinated with childhood passions. They are like a first love. They take over your mind and space as a child, and there’s nothing more precious. I also believe that those passions tell a child a lot about themselves and what might be down the road for them. So, that idea became my passion, and I had to write the story.
ME: Also, if you have any thoughts or advice for aspiring writers, please share.
LINDSAY: Advice can be a double-edged sword. Just as I say when I give a critique, take what works for you and pitch the rest. So, what I would say is don’t believe the hype. Yep. When folks say, agents are looking for author-only clients or this market is sooooo tough. You know what? Just move forward and keep trying. Read all the picture books (current, yes, believe this hype). Be a keen observer and write down your ideas in a notepad. Create a writing process that works for you, because we are all different and that’s a wonderful thing. If you can’t find your way with a particular story, put it away and give it time. Build up your tolerance to rejection, because it’s going to happen when you are pre-agented and after. Don’t let rejection stop you from doing what you love, as that would be such a disservice to yourself and your future readers. And be the most persistent (but kind and considerate) person ever, as that will move the needle.
ME: Oh my goodness! Lindsay, thank you so much for sharing so much of your journey…with such honesty and authenticity. Can you tell us a little bit about what inspired you to write this story and/or any humorous incident and/or challenging moment on the path to publication?
LINDSAY: I love the inspiration for this story, because it was my son, Mars! When Mars was about five, we took him (and his younger brother) on a city bus for the first time, so we could go explore downtown Austin. From the moment we stepped on that bus, something lit up inside Mars. He became fascinated. What happens in GUS HEARTS THE BUS happened in real life, for the most part. I, of course, took writerly liberties. Now that Mars is 17, I see how his passion for buses has evolved and where it might lead him. I know that so many kids will see themselves in GUS, whether they love buses, too, or they can relate to having such a passion. Also, the way I wrote GUS pulls from Mac Barnett’s The Important Thing About Margaret Wise Brown (artfully illustrated by Sarah Jacoby). I built in a lot of room for children to ask themselves questions and think about themselves as they listen or read the story. I would love nothing more for a young reader to connect some dots as they read GUS.
ME: You are the best! So I’ll keep on going…do you have anything else you want to talk about that parents, educators, writers, librarians might want to hear. 🙂
Fewer than half of parents of children up to 13 years old say reading aloud to children is “fun for me”. Gen Z parents, who grew up with technology themselves, are significantly more likely than Millennials or Gen X to view reading as “more a subject to learn” rather than a fun or enriching activity.
Almost one in three (29%) children aged 5–13 think reading is “more a subject to learn than a fun thing to do”, up from 25% in 2022. This growing association of reading with pressure rather than pleasure is contributing to disengagement.
More than one in five boys (22%) aged 0-2 are rarely or never read to. Only 29% of boys in this age group are read to daily, compared to 44% of girls, underscoring early disparities in exposure to books.
I have so many thoughts and questions about these findings, but I can’t pretend to know everyone’s situation, and it’s unfair to generalize or conjecture. But what I do know is my lived experience as a parent. I found such joy in reading to my boys. At first, I made up my own (shortened) stories to go with the illustrations of board books and picture books, as my kiddos only had so much attention to give. Then, I loved reading all the words verbatim and acting out the various characters while pointing to the pictures together. Then, I loved reading chapter and middle grade books to them, sharing in the delight of what’s-going-to-happen-next and the anticipation of being able to read another chapter. And to this day (my kids are now 15 and 17), I love talking about the books we read and reminiscing about the times we did read together, because they remember. All of this reading together impacted them in ways I see and ways I won’t ever see, because it’s hidden in the fabric of their being. Reading books to your kiddos is love. Goodness, I hope this trend turns around.
ME: I hope so, too! Lindsay, this has been fabulous…and I know you are not done yet because this is Will Write for Cookies and I know you have a wonderful recipe to share with us…so, take it away, dear friend.
LINDSAY: OK, so I’m not doing a cookie recipe. Eek! Since I am an ex-pie company owner, I probably should offer up a pie recipe and my never-fail crust recipe. Here’s one of my favorites
Tart Cherry Pie
Crust (Makes two):
3 cups of all-purpose, unbleached flour (King Arthur is the absolute best) 1 tablespoon sugar 1 teaspoon salt ½ cup of vegetable shortening 1 stick of refrigerated unsalted butter, cut into tablespoon-sized cubes 9 tablespoons ice water
Combine flour, sugar, salt, vegetable shortening and butter into the food processor. Pulse ten times, one second for each pulse. Add three tablespoons of ice water, then turn on the processor for 10 seconds. Add three more tablespoons of ice water and turn on processor for 10 more seconds. You might need to shake the food processor a bit. Add three more tablespoons of ice water and turn on the food processor. Wait for the dough to become one large clump. Divide the dough in half, flatten each into a disc and cover with foil; refrigerate.
Filling:
2 – 14.5 oz cans of tart cherries in water (This is important. Don’t get the cherries in syrup or pre-made filling) 3/4 cup white sugar 1/4 cup of cornstarch 1/8 teaspoon of salt 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/4 teaspoon almond extract
Drain cherries and reserve the liquid. In a saucepan, combine sugar, cornstarch and salt. Turn on medium/low heat and stir in cherry liquid. Bring to a boil, stirring often. Reduce heat and let simmer until thickened. Add butter, almond extract and cherries.
Heat oven to 450 degrees. Roll out dough into a 9-inch pie pan. Add filling. Place in oven for 10 minutes, then reduce the temperature to 350 and place a sheet of foil over the pie to protect the crust from burning. Continue to bake at 350 for 30 minutes. Enjoy!
This looks like the PERFECT summer pie…maybe some of you will try it for your 4th of July picnic or BBQ. Meanwhile, we are all grateful to Lindsay for sharing so much insight and love with us…and for her generous offer of a giveaway of a copy of GUS HEARTS THE BUS when it launches on July 1st from Sleeping Bear Press. Of course, you probably don’t want to wait to see if you are the one lucky winner…so you can preorder from her favorite indy bookstore, and get a SIGNED copy delivered to you as soon as it launches. Here is the preorder/order info: Sales order links:
I am probably one of the luckiest people in the world – I get to share beautiful brand new books all the time! It’s like a party 365 days a year – and I’m so glad you stopped by to have some cake and sing a Happy Book Birthday welcome to WORDS BETWEEN US, written by Angela Pham Krans and illustrated by Dung Ho and published by HarperCollins TODAY!
VIVIAN KIRKFIELD - Writer for Children 