Hello friends and welcome to my fourth blog post. Today I have the super talented author-illustrator Meredith Crandall Brown here to talk about her picture book MILK AND JUICE: A RECYCLING ROMANCE. I promise, you’ll be hooked on your first read.

But before we dive into this adorable story of love, I want to share an article I came across that I found absolutely fascinating. Did you know that humans aren’t the only ones who recycle? From birds, to spiders, to lobsters, there are so many animals who repurpose resources around them to make homes, nourish their bodies, and attract both food and mates. You can read more about these fascinating creatures right here.

Photo credit: Mathieu Meur/Stocktrek Images

I don’t know about you, but I think this could make an adorable picture book. Now, let’s get back to Meredith and her recycling romance.

Where do you live and what is one of your favorite things about it? 

I live in Portland, Oregon.  I love that it is full of friendly, creative people and walkable neighborhoods.  

It sounds lovely. There is nothing better than surrounding yourself with creative people. Can you tell us what inspired MILK AND JUICE: A RECYCLING ROMANCE? 

It was breakfast, and I was goofing around with my kids.  As I pulled a gallon of milk out of the fridge, I joked that it was getting ripped apart from its true love.  We all thought that was hilarious, so I continued the story all the way through to the character’s ultimate fate of getting recycled.  

That is perfect! Your children must have loved being with you at the start of this amazing story. Did you know right away that you wanted it to be an informational fiction? 

Nope.  I wrote it as a funny romance.  To me the most important theme of the story was about never giving up on love.  The informational aspect was pretty obvious and a huge bonus.  However, I really don’t like preachy books.  When I was a kid they made my eyes glaze over.  I want to make kids laugh!  So when Clarissa Wong, my wonderful editor at HarperCollins (she’s now at Scholastic) suggested some informational back matter I got a little stressed…until I thought of doing a comic–  perfect solution!  So that’s how those little characters came about at the end of the book.  I love those guys.  

My girls and I LOVE those little guys, too! Back matter is so tricky and you definitely nailed this one. Can you tell us how long you worked on the story until you thought it was perfect? 

Milk and Juice was ready for my agent, Stephanie Fretwell-Hill, to see after about a month of work.  The dummy came together really quickly.  Usually I let things settle for a bit before sending them along, but this story felt really ready and I wanted her insights early on because she’s a wonderful editor and gives very honest feedback.  As I recall she loved it and told me to go straight to color samples.  I should emphasize that this is a very rare occurrence!  Usually manuscripts and dummies take many rounds of edits.  You shouldn’t feel like your book idea isn’t good enough to publish if it takes a long time to develop.  Just keep at it. 

Once I started working with Clarissa, she asked me to cut it from 40 to 32 pages.  Oof!  I took out an entire adventure in the middle of the story.  But it made the book better!  I also had some great suggestions from my incredible art director, Erica DeChavez.  Those are harder to summarize.  I feel so thankful to have had such thoughtful people to work with for my debut.  

Wow! It sounds like you had an incredible team cheering you on. And congratulations on having a solid manuscript hot off the press! That is always a great feeling. What did your critique group think of this adorable romance? 

Where would I be without my critique group?  They are the best.  They were very into Milk and Juice and thought it was hilarious.  In the beginning there was a little hesitation about it being too romantic for kids, and possibly turning it into a friendship story.   But that would’ve meant cutting my favorite line, that they “…kept each other cold through long, hot nights”.  I decided to stay true to the original heart of the story.  It can be tricky when you try to guess what will sell.  I don’t recommend it.  You could end up diluting your story.  I think it’s best to write straight from your heart and then listen to what your agent says.  If they don’t think they can sell it, then do the recommended changes.

I agree, “…kept each other cold through long hot nights” was the best line! I think love is so important. Kudos for staying true to the original heart of the story. Is there anything new on the horizon? Exciting news, stories brewing, anything else? 

I’ve always got lots of stories brewing!  But nothing I can share today.  Hopefully soon!

Well we are all looking forward to more from you. Do you have any tips or words of wisdom for your fellow authors and illustrators?

Try and create each book knowing that even if it doesn’t get published, it has a purpose.  Personally, I think working on books is fun–  it feels good to create and solve story problems.  If it weren’t my job, it would be my hobby.  Professionally, I think every book you create can be helpful in moving your career forward, no matter its destiny.  For example, the first dummy I finished got me connected to my amazing kidlit community.  Another dummy got me in conversation with a couple of well-known agents. I didn’t end up signing with them, but it made me feel credible and gave me confidence to keep going.  My next dummy, along with the previous ones, got the attention of Red Fox Literary (during an SCBWI summer conference critique), and is how I found my wonderful agent Stephanie.  I haven’t sold any of these books.  Maybe someday I will, but no matter what, they helped develop my storytelling craft, and were important steps in my career.    

That’s incredible, Meredith. I love that you pointed out how each story made you a stronger author-illustrator. We all need to remember that even if our stories don’t sell, they are still worth their weight in gold.

Thank you for sharing your wisdom with us, Meredith.

MILK AND JUICE: A RECYCLING ROMANCE is Meredith’s debut picture book. You can learn more about Meredith and download fun activities for kids on her website: www.crandallbrown.com

You can also find her on Instagram:  @crandallbrown

That’s it. Thank you all so much for reading. I hope you enjoyed this interview as much as I did.

Lindsey is the creator of two imaginative little girls, the wife of an extreme sport enthusiast, and a member of many picture book critique groups. In her spare time, she enjoys watching webinars, attending conferences, and borrowing outrageous amounts of picture books from her local library.