Welcome to the last Tuesday Debut of 2023, everyone!

The holidays are upon us, and that means that the Holiday Writing Contest opens TOMORROW! Which is why WINTER: A SOLSTICE STORY was the last PPBF for this year (even though it posted on Saturday – oops! 😊) and this is the last Tuesday Debut because The Countdown is about to start! 🎄☃️❄️

But first, we get to have a glimpse of this sweet debut full of fun facts about animals. Please join me in welcoming this week’s debut-ess, Jamie Siebrase, as she shares her journey to publication with TONIGHT! A Bedtime Book!

Title: Tonight! A Bedtime Book
Author: Jamie Siebrase
Illustrator: Eric Parrish
Publishing House: Muddy Boots
Date of Publication: November 2023
Fiction with lots of facts
age range of your book: 3 to 7

An educational twist on the classic “goodnight” book! Like every night, a boy imagines he’s a different animal. “I’m a baby lark,” he says. His mom explains that baby birds are called hatchlings, and it’s time for this hatchling to go to sleep. “But hatchlings don’t sleep in beds, they sleep in nests,” the boy says. Tomorrow he might be a mountain lion, a bighorn sheep, or a chipmunk. As the list goes on, the mom wonders if her son will ever fall asleep.

SUSANNA: Welcome, Jamie! We are so thrilled to have you with us today! Where did the idea for this book come from?

JAMIE: The book is dedicated to my middle son because he inspired it. When he was little, and I used to tuck him in at night, I’d say, “You’re my little prince,” and he’d say, “No, I’m a….” He’s a super hero dude, so usually he’d pretend to be Spiderman or The Flash. But I thought it would be cute to write up the story with baby animals instead. And then sneak in a few facts so kids would learn while reading with their caregivers.

SUSANNA: How long did it take you to write this book?

JAMIE: I’m a disciplined writer who spends time writing every day, but honestly, this specific book just came to me in a flurry. I wrote up the initial manuscript in a few days, then tweaked it, just slightly, over the years and years I was waiting to be published.

Jamie at her “writing desk” 😊

SUSANNA: Did you go through many revisions?

JAMIE: I got maybe fifty or sixty rejection letters before finding my editor at Muddy Boots, so I had the manuscript for Tonight on my desktop for about ten years, and I’d come back to it from time to time, rereading the story, editing a word here or there. I don’t think a writer needs ten years to do this, but I do think it is helpful to have at least a few weeks or months away from a manuscript before coming back to edit. As a journalist, I always like to write up a story, walk away for as long as the deadline allows, then do the editing at the last possible minute. The more time I have away, the more mistakes I see.

SUSANNA: When did you know your manuscript was ready for submission?

JAMIE: I’m a perfectionist and a pessimist, so if I waited until a manuscript felt ready, I’d die with a thousand unpublished manuscripts locked away in a safe. Once I’ve read through a story or manuscript so many times that I want to vomit, that’s a pretty good indication that it might be time to send it off. I also like to have my dad and at least two or three writer friends review a manuscript before I start submitting it. My dad is the best editor around, so he catches stupid errors. Other writers can tell me what craft-related mistakes I’ve made. (My dad can’t do that important work because he loves me too much.) I’ve been a journalist for so long, and I’ve learned to let go of my ego. If somebody tells me something sucks, then it probably does, and I’m glad to rework it.

SUSANNA: When and how did you submit?

JAMIE: Why do you ask? Do you know an agent that wants me?!

In all seriousness, no, I haven’t had any luck finding an agent yet, but I’m definitely looking. In the meantime, I submit manuscripts to publishers who accept unsolicited manuscripts. I spend a ton of time researching the publishing houses and their editors before submitting work, and it takes too much time away from writing. That’s one reason I wish I had an agent.

SUSANNA: How long after you found out about your book going to acquisitions (if you did) or after you submitted were you told it was a “yes”?

JAMIE: I went back and forth with my editor at Muddy Boots for a couple of years. That was during the pandemic, and things were weird. We signed contracts in 2021, almost a decade after I wrote the book.

SUSANNA: When did you get “the call”, which these days is more likely to be “the email”? (best moment ever! 😊) and how did you celebrate?

JAMIE: I’d completely given up hope on Tonight, and I couldn’t believe it when, after two years of exchanging emails with my editor, he finally said, OK, it’s a go. I was excited, but I’m not a super peppy person. A few days after my editor told me the news, I was drinking coffee with my husband at the kitchen table and said, “Oh yeah, that picture book I wrote is finally being published.” Ben was way more excited. He is my best friend and cheerleader.

SUSANNA: How long was it between getting your offer and getting your contract to sign?

JAMIE: About a week, if I’m remembering correctly. I was ready to go, but since I’ve got legal training, I did have a few contractual things I wanted to negotiate.

SUSANNA: Was the contract what you expected in terms of advance, royalty percentage, publication timeline, author copies etc.?

JAMIE: I don’t want to share too many details. I went with a small publishing house, and the advance was lower than I would have liked, but I’m not complaining. Everything else in the contract, including royalties, is industry standard. I’m never expecting to make a ton of money on my writing. I write because it’s the thing I love doing. I went to law school, and some days I think, “Why couldn’t I have been the kind of person who loved being a lawyer and making real money?” But I wouldn’t have been happy doing that. I wake up every day excited to write, and you really can’t put a price tag on enjoying your job. As Annie Dillard wrote in The Writing Life: “How we spend our days is, of course, how we spend our lives.”

SUSANNA: Can you tell us a little about the editorial process?

JAMIE: There weren’t really any tweaks my editor wanted to make by the time I sold the manuscript to Muddy Boots. I’d been tweaking it for almost ten years, after all! You’d think something could be pretty polished after that much time. We took out a couple of words in the opening scene, per the illustrator’s suggestion, and then removed two scenes entirely to fit the standard 32-page formatting that I didn’t really know about until the book got picked up. I’ve been a journalist for almost twenty years, and I try not to get attached to my writing. Editors are always changing copy I submit. I’m fine with it. They do their job, I do mine. I know not every writer feels that way, but that’s my opinion.

SUSANNA: What was your experience of the illustration process like?

JAMIE: I had a great experience with illustrator Eric Parrish. I don’t think all illustrators are this way, but Eric is so collaborative and fun to work with. I really didn’t know what to expect since it was my first PB, and I didn’t include many illustration notes in my manuscript. Eric and I had quite a few Zoom calls along the way. He showed me all the sketches, asked for my input, and then kept me updated as he worked. I’m not a visual artist, so I think I would have been fine with him taking the lead and not showing me anything. But that said, it was really fun and exciting seeing his process unfold, and he might have spoiled me forever!

text copyright Jamie Siebrase 2023, illustration copyright Eric Parrish 2023, Muddy Boots

SUSANNA: Did you get to see advance reviews from Kirkus, SLJ, etc? What was that like?

JAMIE: Nope. To be honest, I’m still learning about how advance reviews work. I don’t know if my publisher asked for them, but I sure wish I’d have done a little more homework on this aspect of marketing when the book was still in production. I attended an SCBWI conference in the fall, long after the book went to print, and that’s when I first learned about Kirkus, SLJ, etc. I’ve always been a learn-as-I-go gal, and I’ll know for next time if I’m lucky enough to have a next time 😊

SUSANNA: How long did it take from offer to having the first copy in your hand?

JAMIE: About two years.

SUSANNA: What kind of marketing and promotion has your publisher done for this book?

JAMIE: As far as I can tell, this is probably the biggest difference between big and small publishing houses. Muddy Boots has been amazing to work with, and they’ve gotten my book into the hands of so many booksellers. Their distribution channel is incredible, and I couldn’t have done that on my own. I have, however, been doing most of my own marketing. It’s not that I don’t like marketing—I do—but with three kids, my time is my most precious resource, and marketing detracts from time I could spend creating new content.

SUSANNA: Describe any marketing/promotion you did for this book.

JAMIE: I’ve been reaching out to influencers and teachers, as well as all the local news outlets in Colorado. I also have postcards for the book that I hand out, and I’d like to do more to connect with librarians. I’ll have a table at the CCIRA conference in 2024.

SUSANNA: How long was it between the time you started writing seriously and the time you sold your first picture book?

JAMIE: Ten years, but I was already a published author when I sold Tonight. I have three nonfiction books, and I’ve been a journalist by day for close to twenty years now.

SUSANNA: What is the most important/helpful thing you learned on your way to publication? (Or what is your most helpful piece of advice for up and coming writers?)

JAMIE: Hmmm. Just one thing? That’s tough! Whenever I meet young people who are new to writing, the first and last thing I tell them is: Don’t give up. If you saw how much rejection I get on a regular basis, you’d think I’m one of the most delusional people in the world. But if there’s one thing that’s really stuck with me from my legal training, it’s that you have to let things roll off your back and keep going. If you have to make a living to support a family, then maybe don’t quit your day job yet. But also, don’t quit writing just because a few people tell you no. What do they know?

Also, OK, can I do one more? I’ve learned over the years that it is so important to be a lifelong student. I’m a professional writer with decades of experience, and I’m still learning from other writers and editors all the time. I’ve met plenty of writers who have huge egos and major chips on their shoulders. If you aren’t willing to take opportunities to grow as a writer (and person), you’ll be stuck in the same place forever.

SUSANNA: Anything else you’d like to share about your book’s journey from inspiration to publication?

JAMIE: I think we’ve covered everything! Phew! Thanks so much, Susanna, for giving me space to share my book and personal story with other authors. I appreciate it!

SUSANNA: Thank YOU so much for taking the time to participate in this series and paying it forward to other writers, Jamie! We so appreciate the opportunity to learn from your experience, and wish you all the best with this and future titles!

Readers, if you have questions for Jamie, please post them in the comments below and if she has time I’m sure she’ll respond!

Author Jamie Siebrase

Website: jamie-siebrase.com
Instagram

You may purchase Jamie’s book at:
(all links below are book-specific)

Indiebound/Bookshop.org
Amazon
Barnes&Noble

We can help our debut authors successfully launch their careers by:

– purchasing their books

– recommending their books to friends and family

– recommending their books to our children’s teachers and librarians

– recommending their books to our local libraries and bookstores

– suggesting them as visiting authors at our children’s schools and our local libraries

– sharing their books on social media

– reviewing their books on Goodreads, Amazon, Barnes&Noble, and other sites where people go to learn about books.

Thank you all for stopping by to read today!  Have a lovely, inspiration-filled Tuesday!  Maybe today is the day you’ll write your debut picture book 😊

Missed any previous Tuesday Debuts?  Check them out HERE!