Fur and Features by Janet Halfmann: Blog Tour & Giveaway

This giveaway is now closed, thank you to everyone who entered and congratulations to Staci, comment #50, who said, "I'm following on Twitter @MommaStaciA. Thanks!"
One of our favorite children's authors Janet Halfmann has a newly released book. I'm a stop on her very first book blog tour! You might remember my reviews of her titles Little Ant on Park Street and Little Skink's Tail. Today she joins us for an author interview in promotion of her new book Fur and Feathers! Please view the book trailer below to learn a little bit about it (if you're reading this via email subscription please click over to see it.)



ER liked the story right away, intrigued by the idea of giving the animals new coverings. We love crafty things around here and had a lot of fun talking about how funny a polar bear would look with things like pom poms instead of fur.

She also loved how Sophia added her own touches to the animals like little stars on the ladybug instead of just dots. In fact the next time we saw a lady bug she inspected it for stars. She was a little disappointed that it wasn't Sophia's lady bug! I thought that was really cute. The story must have really come alive to my four year old.

While this story had a big shot of fantasy and make believe in it, there were still plenty of opportunities to talk about things science concepts like classification. I was very impressed by the online Teaching Activities provided by publisher Sylvan Dell to support the title. The art scavenger hunt and the various sets of animal sorting cards were great tools to use with Fur and Feathers. A very imaginative story with beautifully detailed illustrations, I could think of many educational connections for it. It'd be a great addition to a personal or classroom library! Now it's time for an interview with author Janet Halfmann!

Can you describe the writing process that went into writing Fur and Feathers?

I noticed on Sylvan Dell Publishing’s website that they were looking for a book on “animal wraps.” Right away, that topic intrigued me, so I brainstormed possibilities. Some of my ideas:

• A child tries to figure out what to wear by visiting various animals—such as visiting a duck and deciding to wear a raincoat and boots.
• A little monster tries on the coverings of various animals and finally decides he likes children’s clothes best.
• A windy storm blows off all of the animals’ coats, mixing them up in a huge pile. A little monster gives the animals his T-shirts to wear while he helps the critters find their own clothes.

In the end, I kept the windy storm, but made it a dream storm, so the story could be more fanciful. The monster became a little girl named Sophia. I thought it would be silly and fun for Sophia to share her clothes with the animals, but the story needed something more. That’s when I thought of the huge sewing box I always had handy to fix or create whatever while my kids were growing up.

Sophia could use items from the sewing box to create new coats for the animals. It took lots of imagining to figure out what items might work to create some of the coats, such as the pinecones for the snake’s dry scales.

As I was writing the story, Sophia (or perhaps the kid in me) wanted to add special touches to the coats. Coming up with these, such as the little red heart behind the polar bear’s ear, was one of my favorite parts of writing the story.
How long does it take for a book to go from idea to published?

It varies greatly. Fur and Feathers took me only a few weeks to research and write. But other books, such as Seven Miles to Freedom: The Robert Smalls Story, which required a great deal of research, took me about two years to write, counting all the revisions.

Once a manuscript is bought by a publisher (this can take years of submitting), it usually takes eighteen months or more before the book comes out. For Fur and Feathers, the time from idea to published book was about 2 1/2 years.
Are you involved in the illustration process?

The publisher almost always chooses the illustrator. Publishers work with many different illustrators and know who will do the best job on a particular book. Usually, the illustrator and author do not even talk to one another. I think it’s done this way so that the illustrator is free to create his/her vision of the story, just as I was free to write the story.

For some books, I’ve been shown sketches, mostly to see if something was inaccurate. But for other books, I didn’t see the art until the book was published.

The illustrator of Fur and Feathers is Laurie Allen Klein, who also illustrated my Sylvan Dell book Little Skink’s Tail. I was ecstatic when I found out Laurie would be doing the pictures! She even put Little Skink in the new book (look at the bottom of the whirling storm) and Little Skink’s Tail is on the bookshelf in Sophia’s room. What fun!
What kind of research went into writing Fur and Feathers?

I read every book I could find on animal coats and coverings, which I discovered was not many. I also looked for everything on animal coverings that I could find on the internet, which had many great resources from zoos and other educational and science organizations. I wanted to include critters from each animal group to make the book as educational as possible. Once I had chosen the animals to feature, I also researched their specific coverings.

What do you hope readers will take away or learn from your books?

I hope kids will come away with an appreciation and respect for all of nature. And I hope they will realize how every part of our world is interconnected—how the lives of people and polar bears and bats and fireflies all affect one another in so many ways.
What is the best part of writing books for young readers?

The best part is that I love what I do. I am living my dream. I love doing research, trying to make characters come alive, playing with words.

I also love seeing children enjoy the stories I write. Nothing makes me happier than when a child wants to hear one of my books again and again.

Is there something a fan of your books has told you that influenced what you write about or that was particularly meaningful to you?

Some reviewers of my books have said that they like how I make the reader care about the animals in my stories. That means a lot to me.
Giveaway:
Janet and Laurie have personalized a hardcover copy of Fur and Feathers for one of my readers!

To win, tell me who you'd like read it to and why {or} leave a question for Janet Halfmann or the illustrator Laurie Allen Klein, in the comment section.

For Extra Entries:
I'd love it you'd like to follow me via Google Friends Connect, email, Facebook, or Twitter so you'll be the first to know about giveaway opportunties in the future! Spreading the word is also appreciated. Just let me know what you do in a separate comment for each.

Giveaway open now through August 20th to US residents. Good Luck!

For More Chances to Win:
I'm the second blog to host the Fur and Feather's Blog Tour. There will be more chances to win a copy of the book or an e-license to Sylvan Dell's books at many of the stops so check it out!



Disclosure: An reviewer's and giveaway copy of Fur and Feathers were provided. The post relates my own unbiased opinions and experinence with the book and yours may differ.