Zetta Elliott's Blog, page 3

Cynsations 2

I’ve been consuming a lot of narratives about publishing lately—Yellowface, then Colored Television, and now I’m watching the Hulu adaptation of The Other Black Girl, which disturbed me when I read it a few years ago. I’ve complained about the publishing industry for years but seeing another author’s searing critique—even in fiction—can make my stomach twist. But this weekend I’ve been able to interact with folks who’ve managed to stay genuine and generous in spite of the pressure to perform another kind of (cut-throat) identity. Marti Dumas has a new series that brought her to Chicago, Secret Society of Rebel Girls: Nina and the Mysterious Mailbox, and we had a chance to catch up. We both started out as indie authors and we both intend to continue self-publishing since the traditional publishing industry opens some doors sometimes but still doesn’t want particular kinds of stories.

In other good news, I did my second interview for Cynsations, which was founded by author/publisher/changemaker Cynthia Leitich Smith. Gayleen Rabukkuk has a background in journalism and the questions she asked were complex and thought-provoking. Here’s one.

You included scenes set during the Red Summer of 1919 in The Oracle’s Door. What tips do you have for writers who want to provide young readers with honest portrayals of traumatic historical events?

I try to curate and calibrate. I’m selective about what I include in my story and I try not to get too graphic. I’m 52 and I tear up every time I read the last chapter of my novel!

It’s fine if kid readers get emotional, too, but I don’t want them to be afraid or ashamed. The Chicago Race Riot of 1919 lasted over a week; I felt that was too much for my audience, which I imagine is likely seven to ten-year-olds. And ultimately, The Oracle’s Door is still a dragon tale!

You can read the whole interview here. I’m anxiously waiting for IngramSpark to approve my files for The Witch of the Woods. I have to have copies for this event on my birthday! Then later than evening I head to Copenhagen…it’s for research—really!!

It’s all about belonging…

That’s the title of the latest episode of The Children’s Book Podcast featuring yours truly. It’s always a pleasure and an honor to speak with author/educator/librarian Matthew C. Winner. We first met four years ago when A Place Inside of Me came out; it’s one of Matthew’s favorite picture books and we got a lot of love last week during our Pittsburgh visit. Since it was Banned Books Week, I talked a lot about the two challenges to our book in VA and TN, and the way the community rallied around their kids’ right to read. Our presentations at Environmental Charter School were so well received that they’ve decided to make it an annual tradition! Noa and I were treated like rockstars, and one fan of mine was so starstruck she couldn’t read out the introduction she had prepared with her friends. Turns out one of my hosts, Betsy, has a sister who works at the school and SHE introduced Lana to the Dragons in a Bag series. I left a copy of the prequel for their school library, and The Oracle’s Door may be in more libraries thanks for Literacy Nation, Inc. President Richard E. Ashby, Jr. reached out after another Black mover-and-shaker librarian, Tracie D. Hall, tagged him on a Facebook post where I urged people to consider not just banned books, but the many books by marginalized authors that never get published due to bias in the industry. Here’s some great advice Richard offers to libraries:

Right now I have some interest from two editors at a boutique press but I’m not holding my breath. Purple has finished the 17 illustrations for The Witch of the Woods and today I’ll review them so she can make final revisions. Then we design the book and hope that IngramSpark sends me a perfect proof (ha)! It’s the first day of October so I’m still hopeful that the book can be ready by mid-month. Halloween is near…

back to PA

Tomorrow I head back to Pennsylvania for a 3-day visit to Pittsburgh. Kate’s Book Bash has arranged a school visit and parent event on 9/26, and an educator event at Riverstone Books on 9/28. In between I’ll have time to catch up with Noa Denmon; we collaborated on A Place Inside of Me (for which Noa won the Caldecott honor award!) and Noa is illustrating my Juneteenth book that got postponed after the last illustrator was arrested…

I’ve been sharing A Place Inside of Me a lot lately because it’s #BannedBooksWeek and we faced two challenges in TN and VA that ultimately were unsuccessful due to community resistance (read this great article about teenager Julia Garnett’s activism). If you want to know what you can do to join the fight against censorship in our schools and public libraries, head over to Ruby’s and Pearl’s, Edith Campbell’s new School Library Journal blog. Edi’s got a list of quick, easy actions that will support banned authors and keep important, inclusive books in kids’ hands. Earlier this week I found out that my poetry collection was challenged again—this time in Oregon. The reason? “Objection: Unknown.” The outcome? My book was “retained” by the public library. But many books by LGBTQ authors are pulled from the shelves, which HAS to stop.

Lastly, I know the blog subscription service hasn’t been working lately and we’re trying to sort it out—apologies for the inconvenience! We made some adjustments but you may need to resubscribe by hitting the little orange button on the top right.

spooky yet sweet

I’ve never really been a fan of Halloween—not as an adult, at least. I don’t stand at the door and dispense candy to the local trick-or-treaters; instead I place a box of books outside and collect whatever’s left an hour later. This year I’ll hopefully have copies of THE WITCH OF THE WOODS to share with my neighbors’ kids. Purple designed the cover and I think it’s fantastic! We’re almost done with the illustrations and I did a final round of edits to the text earlier today. We’re sending Halloween vibes with the spiders and spooky forest, but the witch in my story is actually running a secret seed bank underground (hobbit style!) Stay tuned for the release date. I’ve been invited to read it for story time at a new arts space on the South Side—on my birthday! Hopefully the happy ending will soothe any anxiety the wee ones might experience over the sick infant and dead bird decomposing in the forest…

fog

At the start of the month I scheduled a Zoom with a grad student in the UK…and forgot! Even after waking up early so I could run all my errands and be home in time for the call. Yesterday I thought my zoom was at 9:30 but it started at 9, and I would have missed my vaccine appointment today if the pharmacy hadn’t sent me a reminder text half an hour in advance. Brain fog! I used to think the pandemic made me forgetful (what day is it?) but now I’m pretty sure it’s menopause. I forgot to pack toothpaste for my trip to San Diego but I don’t think I forgot anything major. Amazon failed to deliver the books I’d ordered but we had enough on hand for Saturday’s event at the New Children’s Museum. What an amazing space for families! The Octavia Butler exhibit was colorful and creative—there was a bus kids could ride just like Octavia used to, a library, and a treehouse. Outside in the museum’s park there were mats for kids to sit on and cozy blankets, an art station where kids could color characters from my novel, and a dragon art kit to take home! As an author, I couldn’t have asked for a better gift—all I had to do was show up and read from my book and take questions. I signed some books afterwards and took photos; the kids were young but still engaged. The day before I got to present for two hundred fifth graders and talked for the first time about the 1919 Race Riot that rocked Chicago. The kids were shocked but I think I struck the right tone; I’m not going to sanitize history but I also don’t want them to feel afraid or cynical. The kids were also interested in my very first book, Bird, and I could tell some of them had family members who have experienced addiction and incarceration.

I came home tired and I’ve had a migraine every day this week. But when publishing fatigue sets in, nothing clears the fog and energizes me like talking to kids. When I knelt to take a photo with one little boy, he surprised me by throwing his arms around me! Which reminded me to stop fussing and see the day as the blessing it was. I chose the 14th because my favorite astrologer called it a day of abundance and it really was. I was given a tour of the museum by my wonderful host Megan and then I soaked up a little sun at the Seaport before heading to the airport to catch an afternoon flight to San Francisco. There I spent a few magical hours with friends I usually only see on Zoom before flying back to Chicago. On Friday after my school visit I went to the zoo and saw the pandas. I took a long walk through Balboa Park. I didn’t sleep a wink because my hotel was next to a nightclub that didn’t wind down till 4am, but that’s not what I’ll remember when I look back at the photos from this trip. I’m so grateful for the chance to connect with old friends and new fans.

On the plane I watched When Harry Met Sally—it’s the only movie that makes me think of fall! Now I’m listening to Billie Holiday singing “Autumn in New York.” We might hit 90 tomorrow (groan) but the equinox is this weekend and next week’s supposed to cool down. One more trip to Pittsburgh and then I can settle down and hopefully start to write again…

the finish line…?

Our pub date is officially the 14th but the paperback has been up on Amazon for a few weeks and the ebook went live in the Kindle store last week. On Monday, after all kinds of chaos caused by one possibly inexperienced and/or incompetent UPS driver, the hardcover was also approved and enabled for distribution. So…are we close to crossing the finish line? Hardly.

After all the hard work that goes into self-publishing a book, I now face the daunting task of promoting the prequel. On Sunday I participated in a wonderful community event organized by Three Avenues Bookshop. Kids recognized the series and were excited about the prequel; the booksellers kindly offered to notify the five winners of the raffle. I gave away 25 copies on Goodreads; that hasn’t resulted in any new ratings or reviews so far, but a fifth positive review was added to NetGalley today. I just got my copy of the IBPA catalog that goes out to bookstores; my quarter-page ad is on the very last page. Will anyone notice? Will it make a difference? I just checked the website of IL’s biggest indie bookstore and they won’t carry any book that can’t be returned. Bookstores traditionally have a pretty sweet deal: a 40% discount off the retail price and the right to return any unsold books. High yield, no risk—the kind of investment I can’t afford to offer as an indie author. If a store orders my book, they’ll have to commit to selling it. I’m guessing that means they’ll only order the prequel when a patron requests it—so if you’re able, please go to your bookstore and make a request! Another way to help authors is to ask your public library to add The Oracle’s Door to the children’s collection. Some libraries won’t acquire a book that hasn’t been reviewed by a major outlet but major outlets won’t review self-published books…I hear those policies are slowly changing but I guess time will tell. It should help that most libraries already have several titles of mine.

Tomorrow I head to San Diego for a Friday school visit and Saturday launch event at the New Children’s Museum. On Monday I’ll be taking over the Sankofa’s Pen social media feed. That’s a group started by Nadia Hohn to connect and promote Black kid lit creators in Canada. Though I live in the US, Nadia always includes me in every initiative, which I appreciate. Next Friday I talk to Matthew Winner for The Children’s Book podcast; other folks expressed interest in doing an interview a couple months ago and I have followed up but I’m keeping my expectations low. Promoting this book is my responsibility so I’ll just keep looking for opportunities to connect with kids. My November gig in Detroit looks like it has been canceled, but I met with a friend today who suggested a possible Halloween event at her private school. And, of course, I’m still working on the picture book with Purple! We’re ahead of schedule so that book should definitely be ready by the end of this month. Here’s another sneak peek:

“Questing for Peace in Fantasy Worlds”

If you missed our conversation at the National Book Festival in DC, the recording is up now on the Library of Congress YouTube channel (along with all the other sessions). I can’t bring myself to watch it but I enjoyed our discussion in real time!

autumn’s abundance

We sow and then we reap…it’s been a busy summer and I’m looking forward to the prequel’s publication (on September 14!) as well as harvest festivals, Halloween, and general fall fanfare (no pumpkin spice for me, though). I even ordered a new autumnal wreath with a decorative raven and a few friendly bats! It’s no longer 110 degrees here in Chicago but it’s still muggy and the temperatures don’t drop overnight. I’m ready for brisk mornings, and wool sweaters, and hot cider, and strong winds that make you shiver…my bingo card is almost complete and I’ve only got a few days until Labor Day, the unofficial end of summer. Kids are heading back to school, friends are dropping their teens off at college, and I’m gearing up to launch The Oracle’s Door! If you’re in Chicago, join us on the 8th at Three Avenues Bookshop for their end-of-summer book bash! I’ll be giving away five copies of the prequel and you can place an order for the hardcover. Tootsie rolls, a Chicago sweet treat, are the favorite food of Palmaran dragons and I’ll have some of those on hand, too.

If you’re in or near San Diego, join us at the New Children’s Museum—they’ve got more books to giveaway and a free art kit that shows you how to make a fire-breathing dragon! Then at the end of the month I’ll be in Pittsburgh for a few days. It’ll be the first time since our book came out four years ago that Noa and I will be presenting together…can’t wait!

dazzled by DC!

I woke at 4am today–again. It’s supposed to hit 107 degrees here in Chicago so I got out for a run at 7am and now it’s not even 10am and I feel like I’ve done all I want to do for the day! I was also up early on Friday but then my 8:30am flight was delayed three hours so I got into DC later than expected. Shadra and I had arranged to attend the NBF author dinner together but she was tired after the first week of classes and I was weary, too…so I skipped the dinner and went to the National Portrait Gallery instead, which was amazing. Having my portrait painted has been on my bucket list for a while and I find the many different styles of portraiture fascinating—especially this quilted portrait of Octavia Butler by Bisa Butler (no relation). I’ve always been dazzled by Mickalene Thomas’s portraits of Black women, which glitter with Swarovski crystals. I try to take new head shots every year and there are only four months left in 2024…portraits seems to combine how you see yourself with how you want the world to see you. But what if being your authentic self means you don’t “look good?” The UK royals have had some appalling portraits done in the past few years, but not all portraits are meant to be displayed in public. If I was going to be the only one looking at my portrait, how honest would I need it to be?

Saturday was a whirl but my amazing author escort Andrea made everything easy—she got me to every session on time despite the crowds, and captured everything including my unexpected encounter with Carla Hayden, 14th Librarian of Congress! Story time was a little intense because the kids ranged from 2-12 and the carpet with beanbags was set in the middle of the bustling exhibit hall. I felt like I was shouting and asked to be moved closer to the kids but ultimately think it went okay. I never know how A Place Inside of Me is going to be received; with two unsuccessful challenges fresh in my memory, I try to be upfront about the content to avoid any potential unpleasantness…but several parents thanked me for my reading and copies were given away afterwards. We’re out here sowing seeds…

Before story time I sat down with a Library of Congress staffer and answered questions about the impact their collections have had on my writing. I got to gush about the amazing black and white photographs of Aldine Square that I found online—including blueprints of the row houses. I gave Ms. Hayden the short version of that story along with a copy of The Oracle’s Door. I gave another to my escort, which left 8 for the festival attendees. Folks seemed excited about the prequel, so that’s encouraging! Now if only I could get past these last few hurdles and get the paperback, ebook, and hardcover DONE…

There was a line of eager readers waiting to attend our afternoon session. Almost all of them were there to see JC Cervantes, I think, but I still appreciated the chance to be in conversation about mining our cultures for magic. Our moderator Ashleigh asked some really rich questions, which made that one of the best festival sessions I’ve ever done! I grumble about how Random House never sends me anywhere to promote the dragon series but I really was grateful to have been sent to DC. I love the city, the mix of Black people, the abundance of art…but I can’t afford the coast any more. My friend Deborah was born in DC and has lived there her entire life; she admits that the relatively recent spike in rents/home prices makes DC less accessible than before. But where there’s a will, there’s a way…

evolution

Stories start in all kinds of different ways. Sometimes a friend’s gift presents me with an idea; other times world events send my imagination reeling. Last summer the wildfires in Canada blanketed US cities in orange smog. I was inspired to write a slightly dystopian story about a girl who lives in a camp for climate refugees. Her baby sister can barely breathe and with her parents’ attention elsewhere, the girl slips away to spend her days exploring the dead forest. There she meets the Witch of the Woods who turns out to be a healer who runs a seed bank. I can see the artwork in my mind’s eye but only a talented artist like Purple Wong can turn that vision into reality. Here’s one spread in progress, starting with my sad sketch:

A few more edits and we’ll be ready to move on to the next illustration…stay tuned for more sneak peaks!

Many thanks to everyone who entered the giveaway for The Oracle’s Door on Goodreads! We had over two thousand entries and books for the twenty-five winners went out late last week. We’ve got two reviews posted already and hope to get more before the pub date of September 14. I’ll be giving away copies at the National Book Festival next weekend as well. If you’re in or near DC, hope to see you there!