No, you are not nuts! You are correct that today is Thursday, not Tuesday!

But I have a last-minute debut to share with you and since it’s for a Christmas book I wanted to squeeze it in before the holidays!

Before we get to our debut-ess and her delightful book, however, we have goodies to distribute!

The randomly selected winner of last week’s giveaway, a signed copy of ARE YOU STRONGER THAN AN ANT? by Karen Morgan, is. . .

DEBORAH BUSCHMAN!!!

Congratulations, Deb! Now you will be the lucky person to find out if you actually ARE stronger than an ant! The rest of us will just have to wonder! Please email me so I can organize getting you your book!

And this week our debut-ess, Maria Antonia, is offering a giveaway of her book, THE CHRISTMAS ELEPHANT (U.S. address only) OR a PB manuscript critique (non-rhyming, fiction please). (Choice of the winner!) To qualify to be in the random drawing, please leave a comment below by Monday December 9th at 3PM Eastern!

Now, it is my pleasure to introduce you to this week’s Tuesday Debut, Maria Antonia, and her book, THE CHRISTMAS ELEPHANT!!!

Title: The Christmas Elephant
Author: Maria Antonia
Illustrator: Laura Zarrin
Publishing House: Paraclete Press
Date of Publication: October 8, 2024
Fiction or Nonfiction: Fiction
age range of your book: 3-8

Ellie wants to be an elephant in the Christmas play but her know-it-all sister says she’ll ruin everything. When Baby Jesus goes missing, Ellie must find him, or the play will be ruined (but not because Ellie is an elephant)!

SUSANNA: Welcome, Maria! We are so delighted to have you with us today! How wonderful to get to hear about the path to publication of a Christmas book so close to the holidays! Where did the idea for this book come from?

MARIA: I have a background in theatre, mainly as a stage manager, so I have lots of theatre-related stories. I wrote a magazine story about a little girl who had stage fright (that was published in Clubhouse Jr. magazine in December 2020). That story got me thinking of other potential mishaps that happened on stage, like that one time involving a missing Baby Jesus doll. So I added that to my story. Now I needed a main character. I thought of one of my nieces who used to wear an elephant costume everywhere, and that’s how Ellie, my little elephant-loving girl was born. These different ideas came together to create what would become my picture book, The Christmas Elephant.

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

MARIA: My “zero draft” for this story was written at the end of May 2019. I worked on it throughout June of that year, and I felt it was ready by mid-July. There was something about this story that just came together so quickly, pretty much in a month and a half. Of course, I did do tweaks to it later on, including an R&R for one publisher. And once the book was picked up by my publisher, my editor had a few small changes.

SUSANNA: Did you go through many revisions?

MARIA: My writing process begins with a “zero draft.” For this story, I started with a working title: An Elephant Among Sheep. The basic premise was this: A little girl wants to be an elephant instead of a sheep in the Nativity play. I started typing … snippets of dialogue or description—trying to find the story in the idea.

I think when it came down to it, my final count is 33 revisions! Each time I made a notable change in the text, I went to a new document—keeping the previous drafts in case I wanted to go back! (Note: The changes in some of those drafts were very slight, just some rewording a bit here and there.)

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

MARIA: I tend to go through several rounds with my critique partners. I think you learn to know when a piece is ready. There are no big notes. Nobody’s bringing up questions about motivation, plot holes, etc. Changes are minimal and the story feels “right.” 

SUSANNA: When and how did you submit?

MARIA: In July 2019, I got immediate agent-attention for this book. She asked for more stories, however … I had not heeded the warning to have three more polished manuscripts at my fingertips! Argh! I went back to working on new manuscripts that fall. In early December, I queried my now-agent. I received an offer of representation in March 2020. The Christmas Elephant went out on submission, but … well, Covid happened. On top of that, every publisher seemed to already have their Christmas book. Nobody wanted mine.

Back to writing. I had read a story about a runaway sheep which I thought would be great for a magazine story. But then in 2021, I reworked it as a picture book. My agent sent it out in March 2022. While we had interest in the book, ultimately the publisher passed. That was very hard news. Finally in June 2023, my agent submitted my Runaway Sheep to Paraclete Press. When they expressed interest, she mentioned that I also had a Christmas book. They asked her to send it. By August 31st, they were talking about a two-book deal and they wanted to publish The Christmas Elephant by next Christmas! 

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”?

MARIA: The book was submitted to my publisher at the end of June. Within a few days they expressed interest but they told my agent not to expect anything until the end of summer. By the end of September, the official offer came for both books. So … it took three months.

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 (if you care to share 😊)

MARIA: The official offer came at the end of September, and yes, it was in an email from my agent. It was exciting, but I’m also quite pragmatic. I went back to my agent with a list of questions!

As for celebrations, I have a piggy bank, which is actually an owl named Athena. So for every agent/editor pass, Athena gets a coin. Part of my celebration was to open her up and take out the money. There was $137 in there! I don’t really know how many rejections that actually entails other than that it’s probably close to 200. (Because I live in Canada, we have dollar coins (loonies); but I also put in quarters for some of the magazine passes.) I used that money from all those rejections to buy some fun swag, including buttons, elephant socks, and an elephant bag.

The Athena Book Bank

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

MARIA: Because my book was a Christmas book, they wanted it for Christmas 2024. That meant it would be released in about one year’s time, which is fast in the world of publishing. I got the offer on Wednesday, September 27th. Ten days later, on October 7th, I signed the contract … which happened to be Thanksgiving weekend here in Canada!

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

MARIA: Because my publisher is a smaller house, I wasn’t expecting a huge advance. And it wasn’t! But my publisher has been supportive on the marketing end of things. They gave me bookmarks and designed a book trailer for me and activity pages!

The thing I was most concerned about was who the illustrator would be. While I didn’t get veto power or anything, I did get to offer names of illustrators. And I would definitely suggest that any pre-published author start a list of names of illustrators whose art you like. Even now, I have an “Illustrator Bank” of websites I can share. My publisher ended up going with one of my choices: Laura Zarrin. She did a wonderful job with the art.

SUSANNA: I love the idea of an “Illustrator Bank” – such a helpful thing to have! Can you tell us a little about the editorial process?

MARIA: We had several rounds of revision. They wanted a little more at the end of the story, so that’s where we focused our attention. The rest was just word choice. My editor took out lines that she felt weren’t necessary to tell the story. One of the lines was a favorite line of mine! I emailed some critique partners to ask their opinion. Should I fight for it? They told me to let it go. And, looking back, they were right. I can’t even remember what the line was, so it wasn’t key to the story after all. Moral: Don’t be scared to kill your darlings!

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

MARIA: When we submitted the story to the publisher, I did have a few art notes in the text. I try to keep my notes to a minimum, but I do think they are necessary if they’re important to the plot. My two art notes were as follows:

(Art: Ellie wears an elephant costume.)

(Art: Piper carries away the manger, leaving the doll behind.)

text copyright Maria Antonia 2024, illustration copyright Laura Zarrin 2024, Paraclete Press

text copyright Maria Antonia 2024, illustration copyright Laura Zarrin 2024, Paraclete Press

I saw the first sketches for the book by early December 2023. My editor shared her notes for the illustrator with me and asked my opinion and if I had additional notes. This happened throughout December and January. It was fun to see the art go from sketches to the fully-colorized final product, bringing my story to life. I think Laura Zarrin was able to capture the atmosphere of the theatre very nicely. I absolutely LOVE the scenes that show the view from backstage!

text copyright Maria Antonia 2024, illustration copyright Laura Zarrin 2024, Paraclete Press

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

MARIA: I got a review from School Library Journal! I happened to be doing a search on the title of my book and the review popped up as a result. That was a very nice surprise! I immediately emailed my publisher to let them know. They didn’t even know yet. I was so excited I mixed up the word order and asked them if they’d seen the review in Library School Journal!

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

MARIA: I got an advance copy of my book in June 2024, about nine months after I signed my contract. Of course, I had to do an “unboxing” video, but I saved it for “Christmas in July” and posted it on July 24th! The rest of my advance copies came in August, well before my October release date.

I don’t know how many copies were in my first run. I do know that Scholastic picked up my book for their book fairs! I think there were 3000 books in that order. What was super-exciting was when a writer friend emailed to say she had seen my book at the book fair at her kids’ school. To prove it, she sent pictures. It was an amazing feeling!

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

MARIA: My publisher provided a dedicated website for my book, a book trailer, physical bookmarks, and an activity guide. They booked me for podcast and radio interviews. I also did my own legwork to get other interviews and guest blogposts. So, I guess you could say it’s teamwork! We have a shared online spreadsheet where we keep track of who we’ve contacted and when we book an interview, etc. 

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

MARIA: I organized my own blog tour for the release of the book on Tuesday, October 8, 2024. It was called “The 12 Days of the Christmas Elephant” and lasted 12 days until the date of my book release party on October 19th. In addition to this, I posted every day on Instagram and periodically on Twitter/X and Facebook.

My publisher hosted a virtual book launch on the date of the release. I got two of my nieces to help me celebrate. We played some games and included the audience in the fun. I also did a reading of the book. (We went an hour. If there’s one thing I learned from that experience is that one hour is a tad long. I would recommend 30-45 minutes.) 

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

MARIA: It was in 2017 that I first submitted a picture book manuscript to a publishing house that accepted unagented submissions. When that went nowhere, I started to look into finding critique partners. I discovered Kidlit411 Manuscript Swap on Facebook in 2018 and started to make connections with other writers. I got my agent in 2020 and sold my book in 2023. From start to finish, that’s six years. Or it’s seven years if you count how long it took for me to hold the book in my hand!

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?)

MARIA: For picture book writers, definitely have those four polished manuscripts ready to go before you query. And make sure to find your people! Your critique partners will be invaluable. They help critique your work, but they will also be there for your good news and the times when you need a lift because you’ve logged yet another rejection. (I’d also recommend getting your own Athena piggy bank. It kind of sucks when you have to put in a coin, but then you remind yourself of some cool thing you get to buy with all the money when the time comes!)

And keep learning! Watch videos, read blogs, participate in webinars. I really like the various writing contests out there, like the ones you put out, Susanna. These contests give prompts, and I know they helped me write to a certain word count. And they’re fun too! While I never made the winner’s circle, I did get an honorable mention in the 2019 Holiday Contest for my “great portrayal of sibling interaction and a nicely executed twist ending!” Those words were validation and a boost for me as a writer.    

SUSANNA: I am so glad you had a good contest experience, Maria! Anything else you’d like to share about your book’s journey from inspiration to publication?

MARIA: You are your book’s first and foremost champion. If you really believe in it, then keep at it. Use the waiting time to keep improving as a writer. Write more books. And realize that not everything you write is meant to be published. I think it’s okay to sometimes write something just for the joy of it. 

SUSANNA: That is very good advice. I think we should always write for the joy of it because the writing joy comes through to the story. We will not sell everything we write, but if we don’t love it, no one else will! Thank you so much for taking the time to participate in this series and paying it forward to other writers, Maria! We so appreciate the opportunity to learn from your experience! Wishing you all the best with this and future titles!

Readers, if you have questions for Maria, please post them in the comments below and if she has time I’m sure she’ll respond! And remember, your comment puts you in the running to be the randomly selected winner of a giveaway of Maria’s book, THE CHRISTMAS ELEPHANT (U.S. address only) OR a PB manuscript critique (non-rhyming, fiction please). (Choice of the winner!) if you post it by Monday December 9th at 3PM Eastern!

Author Maria Anotonia
Maria Antonia is a children’s book author of such books as The Christmas Elephant and Barnaby the Runaway Sheep. She has also published stories in children’s magazines such as Spider, Storytime, and Clubhouse Jr. In addition to writing, Maria also enjoys sipping a nice cup of hot tea and capturing the world with her camera. She has lived in Sunny Spain, Busy New York City, and currently resides in the Great White North of Canada. Visit http://www.mariaantoniawrites.com and sign up for her newsletter to get fun downloadable activities each month.

Social Media / Website Links:

Website: www.mariaantoniawrites.com
Blog: https://ofmariaantonia.wordpress.com
Newsletter Signup: http://eepurl.com/ilQzvc

Twitter/X @ofmariaantonia1
Instagram @ofmariaantonia
Facebook @ofmariaantonia

Publisher: @paracletebooksforkids (on Instagram)
Illustrator: @laurazarrin (on Instagram)

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

Paraclete Press
Indiebound/Bookshop.org
Amazon
Barnes&Noble
ChristianBooks

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!