Welcome
to Poetry Friday! This week’s Round Up is hosted by Check It Out blog. Be sure to click over and enjoy all of the poetic goodness
being shared. This week, I’m so honored to bring you an interview
with poet/author Heidi Bee Roemer. I began writing poetry after
taking a class with Heidi, and she has been someone that I admire
both personally and professionally ever since. She is as sweet as she
is incredibly talented. Heidi has a new rhyming picture book, PeekityBoo- What You Can Do (Henry Holt, March 2019), coming soon to a
bookstore near you, and today, she is sharing a little bit about this wonderful new work.
Hello,
Heidi! Welcome to the blog and thank you for joining us for Poetry
Friday!
1.
How did you get the idea for your latest rhyming picture book,
Peekity
Boo- What You Can Do?
The
idea for Peekity
Boo!
was sparked by two things. One was sweet memories of my two little
boys (long since grown) splashing in the tub, snuggling up with a
book, and kissing them goodnight. The second was musing how fun it
would be to experience those moments with grandchildren someday.
Babies are so precious! After all, "There are ears to nuzzle.
Towel to snuggle. Belly to tickle. Toesies to wiggle!"
2.
What was the writing process like for this book? Did it come together
quickly, or were there lots of revisions? Did it find a home right
away, or did that take some time?
It
was all rather miraculous. Once I stumbled upon the lovely word
pattern, the story came easily, the sale was quick, and revisions
were minor. I submitted the manuscript to my former editor at Henry
Holt. Christy Ottaviano is the wonderful editor who snatched another
manuscript of mine from the slush pile a few years ago and published
my debut book in 2004, Come
to My Party and Other Shape Poems.
3.
This book has lots of fun language. What’s your favorite line? Any
particular reason for that choice?
Blippity
Blub! I'm glad you asked that question, Kim! My favorite line is
"Buggity boo! Now what do we do?" which is paired with an
illustration of a toddler looking crestfallen as the bubbles in his
bathtub disappear down the drain.
The
reason? I love playful words and silly nonsense phrases. As a toddler
myself, I went wild every time I heard a song called "The
Hawaiian War Chant." The lyrics were, "Whicky whicky
WHACK! Whicky whacky WOO! Bugbug BOOO hoo! BOOO hoo!" My mother
said she couldn't believe my reaction when she played that old 45. I
would roll and flop around on the floor in a hysterical heap of
giggles and wiggles. When the song ended, I begged her to play it
again. And again. Until I was happily exhausted. I liked that song
apparently.
4.
Tell us about the illustrations. Did you include any illustration
notes with the manuscript? Was there any collaboration with the
illustrator, Mike Wohnoutka?
I
didn't feel the need to include illustrator's notes and had no
collaboration with my illustrator. Mike instinctively knew just how
to capture the characters with simplicity and sweetness. His
illustrations bring this little boy and his family to life with a
glowing warmth and coziness. The endpapers feature smiling
teddybears, bunnies, ducks and whales. Mike's artwork is delightful!
5.
Who is your audience for this book? Where can we pre-order our
copies?
Peekity
Boo What YOU Can Do!is
geared for wigglers,
droolers,
pint-size poopers,
toddlers,
crawlers
and
chewers
and all readers ages 5 to 105. Available March 19, it can be
pre-ordered through Anderson's Bookshops
(https://www.andersonsbookshop.com/shop),
IndieBound.org., Amazon or Barnes and Noble.
6.
Do you have some other books in the pipeline? What’s on the horizon
for you?
Ah!
I'm expecting again! New books, that is. Two board books
Who Says Uh Oh?
and
Who
Says Peekaboo?
will be published this fall. Hide-and-Seek
at the Construction Site: A Lift the Flap Book
is
a companion book to Hide-and-Seek
on the Farm
(2018).
Lastly, The
ABC's of Kindness
will be available in 2020. All are published by Highlights Press.
Bio
From the moment Heidi hatched from her chrysalis, she was an itty
bitty bookworm who devoured books. Heidi fell in love with children's
books for a second time when she began reading to her two little
boys. In 1992, Heidi sprouted her wings, joined the Society of
Children's Book Writers and Illustrators, plugged in her shiny new
word processor and began writing for children in earnest. She has
since sold over 400 children's poems and stories to dozens of
children's magazines and anthologies and has several picture books to
her credit including
Come to My Party and Other Shape Poems,
What Kinds of Seeds are These? and
Whose Nest is This?.
She is a former instructor for the Institute of Children’s
Literature and a writer-in-residence for Chicago Public schools.
"Heidi Bee" has given hundreds of presentations at schools,
libraries and other literary venues. For more information, visit
www.heidibroemer.com.
