Chatting with Kelly Starling Lyons!

Author Feature: Kelly Starling Lyons!










NEATE: Eddie's Ordeal by Kelly Starling Lyons

DF: You are the author of several children’s books: One Million Men and Me, NEATE: Eddie’s Ordeal and forthcoming Ellen’s Broom and Tea Cakes for Tosh. How did you start writing for children?

KSL: As a child, I rarely saw children’s books featuring African-American kids. That’s why it moved me so much to see them as an adult. The first picture book I read with an African-American character on the cover was Something Beautiful by Sharon Dennis Wyeth. That story spoke to me in such a special way. I knew I had to add my voice.

The first story I wrote for kids was called Butterfly Wings. It was a story about a girl who wanted time to hurry up and make her taller. It was never published, but it still has a special place in my heart. The next was more personal. Isaiah’s Cake was about my brother’s relationship with our grand-dad and how he coped when my grand-dad passed away. For the first time, I started getting personalized rejections. That let me know I was on the right path.

My break came when Just Us Books invited me to try out for their chapter book series, NEATE. I won the assignment to write book #4 about character Eddie Delaney. With the publication of NEATE: Eddie’s Ordeal, I was a children’s book author. A few years later, Just Us Books made another of my dreams come true by publishing my first picture book, One Million Men and Me.

One Million Men and Me by Kelly Starling Lyons

DF: I remember the Million Man March being a highly publicized historic event. What inspired you to write One Million Men and Me? What has been the response from parents and children about your book?

KSL: I attended the Million Man March and was transformed by what I saw. So many images touched me -- a sea of Black men spread like a quilt across the Washington Mall, brothers of all beliefs and backgrounds hugging and praying as the voices of speakers soared around them, an amazing youth addressing the masses like that was what he was born to do. Then, I saw a little girl walk past the Reflecting Pool clutching her daddy's hand. Her eyes, big as quarters, glittered like diamonds. She looked like a little princess among kings.

Years later, when I started writing for children, I thought back to that amazing day and that sweet girl there with her dad. I realized that I was there for a reason that day just like she was.

I’ve been blessed to receive wonderful feedback from parents and children about One Million Men and Me. Adults tell me that it takes them back to that historic day. They thank me for keeping the memory of the March alive and sharing it with young people. Children share special moments they’ve spent with their fathers and father-figures. They tell me how much it means to have books that feature characters like Nia and her dad.

DF: Tell us about your forthcoming books, Ellen’s Broom and Tea Cakes for Tosh. What inspired you to write these stories?

KSL: Ellen’s Broom (G.P. Putnam’s Sons) is set during Reconstruction and celebrates black history and family relationships. It was inspired by a cohabitation register I saw while researching family history in a North Carolina library. When I told my mentor at the Writers Workshop at Chautauqua about the cool record I found, he said there was a story in there. I had never thought of it that way. But I reflected on what he said and started writing Ellen’s Broom that week. I feel so blessed that it’s being published. It feels surreal to see the proofs for the book. Daniel Minter created such beautiful illustrations. Can’t wait to celebrate its release on January 5, 2012.

Tea Cakes for Tosh (G.P. Putnam’s Sons) is probably the story that’s closest to me. Though I made Tosh a boy, my grandma and I had the same kind of relationship Tosh has with his grandma Honey. My Gram made the best tea cakes and told wonderful stories about her own grandma who would carry tea cakes in her apron pockets and pop them into her children’s mouths just when working on the farm got tough. That inspired me to envision a story where the oral history about tea cakes and recipe went back even farther. And when Honey, like my grandma, started to forget things, I made Tosh her memory. Tea Cakes for Tosh is illustrated by E.B. Lewis and debuts fall 2012.

DF: What were some of your favorite books when you were a child?
KSL: As a kid, I loved Miss Nelson is Missing, Wrinkle in Time, Bridge to Terabithia. As an adult, some of my favorite children's books are Something Beautiful by Sharon Dennis Wyeth, Coming on Home Soon by Jacqueline Woodson, Mabel Dancing by Amy Hest and The Memory String by Eve Bunting.


DF: Any tips for aspiring children’s writers seeking to be published?
KSL: I’ll pass along another great piece of advice I got at Chautauqua: “Write the story only you can tell.” So often, we hear about topics that are hot right now. Sometimes you wonder if you should scramble to work on something that will fit those trends. But I believe it’s the story from your heart that will get you published. Dig deep and write about what matters to you.

Visit Kelly's official website www.kellystarlinglyons.com and connect with her on Facebook at www.facebook.com/kellystarlinglyons .