Intrigued by a new children’s book by an author I had read before, I asked author Marcia Laycock for an interview which she gladly accepted. We set a date and had a great interview.

 

Carolyn Wilker: Hello Marcia, Thank you for agreeing to this interview, Marcia. The idea came about rather spontaneously last evening and I appreciate you taking the time.

Ever since I taught preschoolers, I’ve been fascinated with picture books, both the story and the art that goes with it. Even if I were to go looking for an adult book for myself at the bookstore, I usually spend time in the children’s section, because I too am writing and curious about the new books coming out.

I enjoyed reading Merrigold’s adventures just as much as my grandchildren enjoyed hearing the story. They joined in on repeat lines with me, willingly and I might say, gleefully. The art is just as delightful as the story.

Was there a moment that started this story? Can you tell us about it?

Marcia Laycock: I was chatting with my daughter about some of the things she and her older sisters did when they were young. One of the things we laughed about was the time Katie (my oldest) ran away from home – packed her little bag and went a block and a half to her best friend’s house. We also chatted about how hard it is for parents these days to keep their kids from constantly demanding things. My daughter wanted to foster contentment and thankfulness in her kids but acknowledged that it was very hard. As I drove home I thought that combining these two things would make a good kids’ book so I started playing what if. Eventually the idea evolved into Merrigold’s Very Best Home.

Merrigold is a little girl who thinks God has put her in the wrong house because her parents make her eat vegetables she doesn’t like and take naps when she’d rather play. So she decides to go out and find a new home. Merrigold doesn’t walk. She doesn’t run. She marches! 😉 She visits a puppy, a pony, a chick, a fox and finally a piglet but finds that none of their homes are suitable. In the end she goes back to her own home where she is welcomed and loved by her parents, and realizes that it’s the very best home for her. Readers have said it reminded them of the story of the Prodigal Son.

I’ve been thrilled to see how engaged the kids become in the story as it’s read to them. Many parents and grandparents have told me the kids want them to read it again and again. Some even have it memorized! Hearing these comments is thrilling!

CW: Who did you most have in mind for your audience?

ML: Little kids from about age 3 to 7. Kids younger and older have loved the book too. I first read it to my granddaughter when she was just 2 and it held her attention even though there were no pictures to look at yet.

 

CW: Stories evolve as we write and revise. One of mine was an oral storytelling adventure long before it was made into a book. As a fellow writer, I’d like to know how long it took for this story itself to come to completion.

ML: I did several drafts over about a two week stretch, then sent the one I liked best to my daughter and my publisher at Siretona Creative Publishing. They loved it and made a couple of suggestions. Then I wrote the final draft. So that process probably took about a month, from when I started to final draft.

 

CW: As a creative writer, we know picture books take partnerships to come together. Can you tell me a little about your process with your illustrator? Did you envision a particular style of art when Merrigold came to life?

ML: This was an entirely new process for me so I wasn’t quite sure how to go about it at first. I googled a few illustrators, but didn’t see anything that really grabbed me. It was a good exercise, because it helped me realize what I didn’t want, which helped me narrow down the style I was looking for. I was attending a women’s Bible Study group at the time and asked them to pray that God would lead me to the right person. Afterwards, a woman told me that the leader of the Bible study had a daughter who had been at university with an illustrator. I talked with her and she connected me to Kyla Wiebe. As soon as I checked out her portfolio on her website I knew I’d found the person I was looking for.

CW: For anyone who hasn’t had a picture book published, they might like to understand how long was your process? That includes the publisher’s part.

ML: It took a while before Kyla could begin because she was working on other projects. Then it was several weeks of back and forth time, starting with thumbnails to decide exactly what I wanted for each bit of text. Kyla sent me a few different versions of each illustration until we settled on the ones I wanted. Then she did the black and white line drawings where we narrowed down more detail, and finally the colour pictures.

Once that was all done Kyla sent them to Colleen at Siretona and she began designing the interior of the book. There were a lot of decisions to make – would the text be on the same page as the pictures or on an opposite page? Then we had to decide the dimensions of the final product, what would go on the back, what fonts we would use for the title and blurb, did I want a dedication page, etc.

I was fortunate to have some help from Travis Williams, a book designer who has also published with Siretona.

Once that was all decided Colleen sent me a final proof and then submitted the book to Ingram. We ordered some proof copies which took about 3 weeks to get here, and Colleen also suggested we get a quote from a local printer (Blitz Print) in Calgary. We ordered a few proof copies from them too, for comparison. I was a bit surprised that we all preferred the print run from Blitz Print, so I made a bulk order from them. It was in early November when the books arrived and I began going to Christmas fairs and markets with Colleen and others from Siretona. The book was well received.

 

CW: Tell us about the indiegogo process, please. How did it start, and has it worked out to your satisfaction?

ML: I entered into that process with fear and trembling. I knew it would take a lot of work. A lot of ‘what if’s’ whirled around in my brain – what if no one contributed? Where will the money come from if I only get a small portion of what is needed? (I had set a goal of $2,000. to pay for the illustrations).

But Colleen encouraged me to be “bold and courageous” so I began the rather long process of deciding the levels of donations and what ‘perks’ I could offer. That was a tricky process because I couldn’t afford to do anything lavish but wanted to try and give the sponsors something they’d value.

Then it was all about spreading the word and asking people to support the project. I was totally stunned when the campaign raised almost half of what was needed in the first few days! I was blown away and humbled by what God was doing. In the end the campaign surpassed my goal of $2,000. and we were able to move forward to publish the book.

 

CW: You’ve written devotionals, adult novels, and now a children’s picture book. What’s coming next?

ML: Well, I’m almost finished another fantasy novel for middle grade readers, and I have another series that’s on the back burner right now. I’ve also become more serious about the idea of writing a memoir in recent days, so have begun to work on that as well.

 

CW: For anyone who wishes to secure a copy of Merrigold’s Very Best Home, Marcia, can you tell them where it’s available?

ML: If you want a signed copy you can order from my website

You can also purchase it from Siretona Creative Publishing

From Amazon in Canada

Amazon in US

CW: Thank you for agreeing to this interview, Marcia. Much success to you on this book and whatever comes next.

ML: Thanks, Carolyn – it was great to be with you today.