Welcome, everyone!

It’s a book birthday Tuesday Debut!

Of COURSE there will be cake!
(need you even ask?! 😊)

If you’ve spent any time around this blog at all, you know of my dedication to everything sweet – especially cake 😊

If I knew how to make Kadooboo I would do that for today’s debut, but since I don’t, you’ll just have to make do with regular cake.

Wicked Windmill Cake, recipe at My Evil Twin’s Kitchen

YUM! That is all I have to say!

Oh! Except for Happy Book Birthday, Shruthi! 😊

Onto other goodies, I’m happy to announce that the winner of Tara Hannon’s generous giveaway of a signed copy of BIRTLE And The Purple Turtles along with a bookmark and a vinyl sticker, is ROBDONART123!

Congratulations, Robin! I know you will love it! Please email me with your snail mail address so we can get your prize to you!

Now, please join me in welcoming the lovely and talented Shruthi Rao, today’s Tuesday Debut-ess, sharing her journey to publication with KADOOBOO!: A SILLY SOUTH INDIAN FOLKTALE!

Title: KADOOBOO!: A Silly South Indian Folktale
Author: Shruthi Rao 
Illustrator: Darshika Varma
Publishing House: Page Street Kids
Date of Publication: Feb 6, 2024
Fiction or Nonfiction: Fiction
age range of your book: 4-8

This modern retelling of a South Indian folktale blends playful wordplay with delightfully quick pacing in a story about friends, family, and food—the perfect recipe for a satisfying story time.

SUSANNA: Welcome, Shruthi! Thank you so much for taking the time to join us today. We are excited to hear all about how this delightful story went from an idea to the bookstore shelf! Where did the idea for this book come from?

SHRUTHI: It’s from a folktale my grandmother used to tell me! It always made me giggle.

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

SHRUTHI: It’s funny, but I don’t remember writing the first draft. I just found it in an old folder on my computer when I was “cleaning”. The first draft was just a translation of the original, with a more child-friendly ending. I came back to it off and on over the months wondering if there’s anything I could do with it. At some point, I started playing around with it, and things started falling into place. So, technically, the answer to this question is “It took years”, but the number of hours I spent on it doesn’t reflect that vast period of time!

SUSANNA: Did you go through many revisions?

SHRUTHI: I did. Every time I rewrote it, I found another twist or a new element I could add (or subtract!) After we went out on sub with it, I got an R&R (Revise and Resubmit), and so I ended up doing several more revisions before the final version.

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

SHRUTHI: Generally, I’m never sure. As my previous response shows, even after I thought it was ready, my editor’s feedback showed me there was more I could do with it.

But in general, I know my manuscript is as ready as I can make it when I find myself obsessing over minute details of language, rather than mulling over the bigger picture like structure and angle and plot points and arcs and so on.

SUSANNA: When and how did you submit?

SHRUTHI: My agent and I went out on submission with this a couple of months after I signed with her. This was in Jan 2022.

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”?

SHRUTHI: We went out on sub in late Jan, and got an R&R request almost immediately. I worked on it, and sent it back within days, and we got the final yes in mid Feb. Thinking back, things moved pretty quickly!

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

SHRUTHI: I knew there was interest from two houses, and we were waiting for the final decision from both. My agent called to tell me that one passed, but the other said yes! It was lovely! I called all my loved ones one by one and relived the excitement with each one.

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

SHRUTHI: A little more than 2 months.

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

SHRUTHI: I had no idea what to expect at that time. I now know that the advance I received then wasn’t spectacular, as expected for a debut author signing with a smallish press. However, I must say here that the marketing, support and personal attention I’ve received from Page Street has been great, better than I’d expected. 

The timeline given to me was 2 years – and I wasn’t surprised, as I had heard that publishing moves slowly here in the US. (I was used to India’s publishing timelines where things move much quicker)

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

SHRUTHI: Even before the book was acquired, editor Kayla Tostevin (who is, much to my sadness, no longer working in kidlit) sent me detailed notes for an R&R. I loved her ideas, and revised based on her notes (and added a little bit more that seemed to fit with these new ideas). Suddenly, the manuscript seemed to pop! Page Street Kids sent us an offer based on the revised manuscript. After that, the edits were minimal.

Throughout everything, Kayla was wonderful to work with.

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

SHRUTHI: I got lucky that Darshika Varma did the illustrations for the book. I was in the loop throughout the process. The editors sent me the initial character sketches for my opinion, and then they sent me the final images. I had very little feedback to share, and what I did was taken into account. Holding the F&G in my hands was surreal. It’s a beautiful book, and it’s all thanks to Darshika’s illustrations, and of course, the art directors of Page Street.

Darshika’s vision was beyond anything I’d have imagined. She set it in the 90s, in a quiet town – the landscape was just right for a South Indian town with a diverse population. I’m really in awe at the little details she brought in, and their accuracy!

My art notes were minimal. The story didn’t need any, really. But here’s an example of one of the half dozen notes I shared.

[Two friends playing indoors. The aroma of frying wafts towards them.]

Sizzle, hiss, pop! Something’s cooking!

Hot oil and dough. Coconut and cardamom.

“Smells yummy!” says Kabir.

“Appa’s making kadooboo!” says Anya.

text copyright Shruthi Rao 2024, illustration copyright Darshika Varma 2024, Page Street Kids

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

SHRUTHI: We got a lovely review from Kirkus. They called it, among other things, “Bouncy, Joyful and Delectable.”

SUSANNA: That’s wonderful! Congratulations! It certainly looks like it is all those things. How long did it take from offer to having the first copy in your hand?

SHRUTHI: About 20-21 months.

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

SHRUTHI: Page Street has been so far pretty hands on and supportive in terms of marketing. They’ve set up book events, Instagram book tours. They’ve created stickers, bookplates and bookmarks. They’ve also created an activity sheet.

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

SHRUTHI: It’s still early days, but I’m promoting the book on social media. I have some book events scheduled, both online and offline.

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

SHRUTHI: I am a published author in India, and I have been writing for more than 15 years. I have 16 children’s books (in English) and a number of stories, features and articles published. So I’m not new to writing. I’m new to American publishing, though. I began trying to break into the US publishing industry only in early 2021.

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?)

SHRUTHI: Maintaining a sense of equanimity is essential. The ups and downs of publishing can be hard on a person.

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

SHRUTHI: It’s a funny thing but this manuscript wasn’t even in my submission package when I was trying to submit to agents. I knew it was cute, but I didn’t think it had enough of the “it” factor yet. But when my agent’s MSWL asked for books that bring neighborhoods alive, I remembered this manuscript, and sent it to her along with others when she asked to see more work. She immediately knew that this story would sell quickly. She was right.

Thank you so much for having me! It was a joy to share my publication journey with you and your readers!

SUSANNA: Thank you so much for joining us today, Shruthi! It was wonderful to get the opportunity to learn from your experience! Here’s wishing you all the best with this and future titles! Readers, if you have questions for Shruthi, please post them in the comments below and if she has time I’m sure she’ll respond!

Author Shruthi Rao (who likes to snack on Kadooboos! 😊 Anything sweet, really!)

Webite: https://www.shruthi-rao.com/
Fb: facebook.com/shruthi.rao.writes
Insta: @shrutree
Twitter: @shrurao
Bluesky: @shrurao

You may purchase Shruthi’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!