I'm pleased to present my recent interview with children's author, Deb Hockenberry!
DMc: Do you hold a day job while continuing to follow your writing muse? If yes, what is your career beyond authorship? If not, how do you keep your day structured so you are productive?
DH: No, I don’t have a day job. I’m retired. How do I structure my day? That’s a great question! I work in the afternoon and work on writing or marketing. Sometimes something will come up and take priority. I really should start making to-do lists of what I have to do. It would help me immensely.
DMc: Please share the titles, genre, publisher and synopsis of each of your published books.
DH: I only have one book published; a picture book. I have three more in the works. Here’s the information on my book:
TITLE: WHERE CAN WE HAVE THE PARTY?
GENRE: Children’s picture book for ages 3 to 8.
PUBLISHER: CreateSpace (now KDP)
SYNOPSIS: Giraffe wants to have a party for his friend Chimpanzee, but there’s one problem. Where can he have the party? What kind of party will it be?
He asks his friends for ideas, but for one reason or another they won’t work. Where can they have the party and what kind of party will it be?
‘Where Can We Have the Party?’ is a short picture book of twenty-seven pages. It’s aimed at three to eight-year-old children.
This is a great book that fosters cooperation, friendship, understanding, caring, loyalties and creativity. So, when anyone out there wants to have a party, do what Giraffe does!
DMc: What is your process in creating your characters? Do you create a profile outline or other technique?
DH: My process for creating characters is two-fold which usually happens when I develop the story idea. When I develop the story idea, I can ‘see’ the characters. From there I create a character chart to figure out what their personalities are, how they would be dressed, how they would react to a situation, and the rest of the details of the characters. I learned to do this at the Institute of Children’s Literature and it really works!
DMc: What is your process in creating your storylines? Do you create an outline, free write or other technique?
DH: I don’t have much of a process. First, I free write. Second, I write an outline to make sure it reads smoothly and to find those little details that I’ve missed. From there, I either self-publish or submit to traditional publishers.
DMc: Do you attend writer’s workshops and conferences? If yes, what do you feel is the most important aspect of attending?
DH: There aren’t any writing conferences in my area and since I don’t drive, I currently can’t travel to any physical conferences. I can only attend online. I used to attend a fantastic online one that was open to all genres. It was called The Muse Online Writer’s Conference. I really miss that. Since writing is solitary, it’s so important to be with like-minded people. You always learn something new which is good for this ever-changing profession of ours!
DMc: Please share with our readers your current work-in-progress, your marketing strategy and how to reach you.
DH: My current work-in-progress is will be another Hungle Bungle Jungle book with Giraffe and the gang. This book will show that everyone can do things no matter what the problem is. Like the other Hungle Bungle Jungle book, it will show that with teamwork any job can get done. I didn’t intend to put lessons in the books. That just happened. I feel that in today’s world that it’s so important just to have books that entertain. Hopefullly, they’ll even make the child laugh! That would be fantastic!
I’ve learned the hard way that before your book is published, you start marketing. I’ve done some things like readings, book fairs, Amazon Ads, and Facebook ads. I even put my book cover in a book cover contest. ‘Where Can We Have The Party?’ came in third place and I won a bronze digi-badge for that. My illustrator was thrilled! I’m currently reading all I can on marketing and have joined a wonderful group about marketing. I can honestly say that I don’t have a strategy for marketing … I’m learning. At least I know to start marketing before I publish, now!
Deb, it’s been an honor to interview and profile you at Write What Inspires You! Wishing you all the very best personally and professionally. I look forward to reading. your book Where Can We Have the Party at my Facebook Live Story Time on Saturday, October 17 at 9 am EST.
Thanks for interviewing me, Donna. It’s been fun doing this!
Deb, I've enjoyed our time together as well.
Learn more about Deb Hockenberry at:
‘Where Can We Have The Party?’ page
Twitter: @debhockenberry
Interested in staying connected beyond the Internet? Please feel free to opt-in to my Write What Inspires You Newsletter! I promise not to fill your email inbox, for I send out my emails no more than 1-2 times per month.
Opt-in today to the Write What Inspires You! Newsletter and join parents, teachers, and colleagues who receive Donna’s newsletter and receive two FREE e-Books: “The Story Behind the Books” and “Marketing Tips”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Best wishes,
Donna M. McDine
Multi Award-winning Children's Author
Ignite curiosity in your child through reading!
Angel's Forever Home ~ March 2019 ~ Mascot Books ~ 2019 Purple Dragonfly Honorable Mention Picture Books Six and Older
Dee and Deb Off They Go Kindergarten First Day Jitters ~ December 2015 ~ Guardian Angel Publishing, Inc. ~ 2016 Purple Dragonfly Honorable Mention Picture Books Five and Under and Story Monster Approved
A Sandy Grave ~ January 2014 ~ Guardian Angel Publishing, Inc. ~ 2014 Purple Dragonfly 1st Place Picture Books 6+, Story Monster Approved, Beach Book Festival Honorable Mention 2014 and Reader's Favorite Five Star Review
Powder Monkey ~ May 2013 ~ Guardian Angel Publishing, Inc. ~ 2015 Purple Dragonfly Book Award Historical Fiction 1st Place, Story Monster Approved and Reader's Favorite Five Star Review
Hockey Agony ~ January 2013 ~ Guardian Angel Publishing, Inc. ~ 2015 Purple Dragonfly Book Award Honorable Mention Picture Books 6+, New England Book Festival Honorable Mention 2014, Story Monster Approved and Reader's Favorite Five Star Review
The Golden Pathway ~ August 2010 ~ Guardian Angel Publishing, Inc. ~ Literary Classics Silver Award and Seal of Approval, Readers Favorite 2012 International Book Awards Honorable Mention and Dan Poynter's Global e-Book Awards Finalist
No comments:
Post a Comment
Thank for you taking the time out to visit with me and to learn about my writing career.
Please be sure to leave your blog address so I can reciprocate.
I look forward to visiting you too.