Tag Archives: interview

The BiblioFiles Presents: Ellen Oh

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Ellen-62_72_bwJust posted! An interview with award-winning author Ellen Oh!

Born in South Korea and raised in New York City, Oh was originally a “boring lawyer” (her words, not mine!) before she decided that writing children’s and YA books is where her heart truly lies. Oh is also one of the founding members of We Need Diverse Books, a non-profit organization with a mission to change how the publishing industry promotes and highlights the voices of marginalized authors, including (but not limited to) LGBTQIA+, Native, people of color, gender diversity, people with disabilities, and ethnic, cultural, and religious minorities.

It is difficult to summarize Ellen Oh’s books because she delves into a prolific multitude of topics and genres. There is the spooky supernatural Spirit Hunters series, the classic fantasy of The Dragon Princess and the Prophecy series, the retelling of Asian myths in A Thousand Beginnings and Endings, the suspense and horror of Haru: Zombie Dog Hero, the touching historical novel Finding Junie Kim, and the modern day You Are Here: Connecting Flights. She has also contributed essays and short stories to multiple collections.

Though Oh’s range is vast, running through all her works are three beautiful threads: 1) Her wry sense of humor and perfect comedic timing; 2) Her experiences as a Korean American and what that means historically, personally, and culturally; 3) Her powerful strength in writing about difficult, painful, and terrifying things while still encouraging readers to have courage and faith.

Oh’s most recent young adult novel is The Colliding Worlds of Mina Lee. It’s senior year for Mina Lee, and her father has her life set and planned and none of those plans involve art school. Mina pours her creativity into her webcomic, The School of Secrets. Suddenly and shockingly, she wakes to find herself actually in her webcomic, interacting with her characters. The stakes are high, and the consequences serious as her epic story twists, turns, and rockets to its conclusion.

Follow this link to the BiblioFiles interview

Image courtesy of Ellen Oh

The Little Bakery with a Big Heart

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Is there anything more perfect than pies and picture books? Meet the amazing Jenn Carson, owner of LiLLiPiES bakery! I first met Jenn when she was doing farmers markets and delivering her amazing baked goods to my favorite local coffee shop. Long time blog readers might also remember that Jenn as the architect of this truly astounding Strega Nona house that was part of our 2013 Gingerbread Cottage Challenge.

jens cakes and pastriesOver the years, Jenn’s business has grown exponentially, culminating in a fantastic bakery that also serves delicious breakfasts. And now…she’s a children’s author! It took absolutely no convincing for me to photograph her happy busy eatery, and chat with her about this heartwarming story of baking and family.

Hi Jenn! Tell us a little about yourself!

Hi Dana! I am Head Baker and owner of LiLLiPiES bakery in Princeton. I also teach Artisanal Bread Baking at Mercer County Community College’s Hospitality program. My husband, Ken, and I have three adult children as well as a sweet doggy named Lucy.

You already have an amazing cookbook…what inspired you to write a picture book as well?

I have a background in elementary education and have always seen the importance and beauty in parents baking with their children. Plus, I had a blast collaborating with Sofia for the original cookbook and wanted to work with her again.

Tell us a little about the lovely family that fills the pages of this story…

Pie For My Birthday is a true story of our son, Sean’s 6th birthday. It’s a story about listening to each other, patience, cooperation, and teamwork. In the end, our family worked together to make little pies for Sean’s class.

These days, Sean (that little kindergarten boy in the book) works as a project manager here in New Jersey. James, (the impish little brother in the book) is a civil engineer working in Brooklyn. Sara, (the teeny baby sister in the book) is a college student, majoring in Music and Business. Ken (the Dad) is a Pharmaceutical Chemist who focuses on cancer therapies. We still enjoy cooking together very much.

What was it like to work with the illustrator, Sofia Schreiber?

Working with Sofia was absolutely wonderful. She actually knows my kids and Ken quite well and was able to show their personalities in her paintings for the book. Watching her progression week to week brought me to tears quite often. She is really an amazing talent.

Ok, so this is technically not a question, but we were SO excited to see a donut recipe in the back of the book. Your donuts are LEGEND!

Haha! Glad you enjoy them. I started making them for farmers markets. One farmers market had their opening day on National Donut Day. I thought it would be fun to bake my cake recipes in donut pans, so that customers could try our cake. When the next week came around and the donuts were not offered, I got quite a few requests to bring them back. They’ve been on the menu ever since.

If you were send one message to the little future bakers who read this book, what would it be?

Bake on!

Amazing Author: Saanvi Singal

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May I introduce someone wonderful, marvelous, dedicated, and talented?

Quick backstory: during the pandemic, my library launched a program called First Draft. Young writers would email drafts of their creative works, and I would give constructive feedback and writing advice. Over the months and years, some writers sent multiple chapters of stories.

Today, we are proud to feature Saanvi Singal, a First Draft alumna who went on to publish her very own book!

Isabel Johns and the Lion of Power is the story of intrepid Isabel Johns and her friend Ashley, who embark on an epic and danger-filled quest to defeat a terrifying fur monster. Full of science, magic, action, and suspense, the two girls journey into enchanted lands to find the magical gems needed to vanquish their powerful enemy.

Saanvi submitted her manuscript to Young Inklings, a non-profit mentoring program dedicated to the support and enrichment of starting writers. And wouldn’t you know it, she was one of two writers selected for publication! I attended her book launch and was just SO proud!

Hi Saanvi! Tell us a little about yourself!

Hi Dr. Dana! I am a sixth grader, and live in Battery Park City in Lower Manhattan. I love reading, writing and spending time with my friends.

Where did the idea for this book come from?

I took a filmmaking class after school while I was in fourth grade. My two best friends were part of the same class. While looking for inspiration for characters for my first film, I thought of the costume kit that my little sister had received as a birthday present.
There were three different costumes in this kit, a gardener, a scientist and an explorer. I decided to choose these as my film characters and imagined myself as the explorer and my two friends as Ashley the gardener and Professor Bob, the scientist.

As I was working on my film, my teachers in ELA introduced a fantasy writing unit. The planning sheets and organizers in this unit helped me build on the story and I decided to continue to write this script, making it into an eleven chapter book.

What was your writing process like?

I started drafting my first chapter and shared it with my parents. They loved it and encouraged me to keep writing and plan a story line. Using the organizing tips I learnt from my teachers in ELA at school, I planned out my story and started drafting. Once I was done with my first draft, I went back and started editing and revising. I spent time thinking through how I could zoom in to specific moments and add details to ‘show not tell’. I also reached out to resources who could help me with the editing process. I found the First Draft program at Princeton University Library and shared my first few chapters with Dr. Dana, who gave me a lot of great tips and ideas on how I could make my writing stronger.

What was the most difficult scene to write and why?

The most difficult scene to write about was when Isabel encountered Scaly. This was a battle scene and I struggled to find words that could help me show the intensity of the fight. I wanted to describe the scene well so as to create a graphic image in the mind of the reader.

Can you tell us a little more about Young Inklings?

Young Inklings is a non-profit group that mentors school-age authors, guiding them through the revision process, while also helping them talk about and publish their work. As a non-profit, they donate all royalties from the works they publish to charity.

What was the most surprising thing about writing a book?

The most surprising thing was that I wrote a whole book! It was amazing to me that I was able to accomplish a goal as big as that. I thought this to be a very difficult task, which needed a lot of hard work and patience.

Any words of advice for young writers?

I would tell young writers not to be afraid to express themselves. I would tell them that if they have an idea, however crazy it may seem, go ahead and write it, because if all authors were nervous of sharing their thoughts, we would never have all the wonderful books we have now. I would also tell them to not give up, even though the road may seem hard. Finally, my advice is to put all one’s imagination into one’s book, make it your own and make it BETTER!

Author images courtesy of Shonali Gupta. Book illustrations courtesy of Young Inklings. Cover art by Francie Towne, interior illustrations by Saanvi Singal.