Featured Interview With Stephanie M. Ward
Tell us a little about yourself. Where were you raised? Where do you live now?
I’m a writer with wanderlust! I grew up in Spokane, Washington on the west coast of the U.S. but left for college in California and have been moving around ever since. Most notably, I spent a year traveling to 33 country across all seven continents and that’s when I came up with the idea of writing stories for children about amazing places around the world. After a few years living in various cities in the U.S. (San Francisco, New York and Seattle), I moved to Paris for three years and now live in Sydney, Australia with my husband and young son. It’s probably not surprising that my first children’s book is about travel!
At what age did you realize your fascination with books? When did you start writing?
I have always enjoyed reading, especially if there is a challenge involved. I loved school fundraisers where students were sponsored to read as many books as possible in a month. As an adult reader, I’ve collected “Best of…” lists and track what I read on a fairly complex spreadsheet as well as on Goodreads (which is completely addictive).
I always say that it took 10 years to write my first children’s book, but the reality is that I’ve been writing my whole life. Professionally, I spent over 15 years in PR and Marketing writing everything from press releases to white papers, executive bios to product blurbs. In the midst of all that, I contributed to the book Tana’s Habitat: The Ultimate Guide to Finding and Affording Your First Place and wrote articles for a number of travel blogs.
So did it really take 10 years to get a short, children’s board book on the market? Well yes and no. It was exactly 10 years ago when I left for my trip around the world and I wrote a lot while we traveled. It took a couple of years (while back in the corporate world full time) to go through all of that writing and decide which story to finish (and then actually finish it). I originally decided to pitch publishers so another year went by of finding appropriate contacts, polishing query letters and learning the process. I realized quickly that the traditional publishing process would take a very long time, so I decided to go the independent route. I hired an illustrator, had my manuscript copyedited, researched self-publishing platforms, built a social media platform, created a website, learned to format an ebook, etc. It all takes time. Throw in a couple of new jobs, a couple of international moves, a baby and there goes 10 years!
Who are your favorite authors to read? What is your favorite genre to read. Who Inspires you in your writings?
I always seem to be reading classics. My all-time favorite book is Anna Karenina. However, I also read many books at a time (I never know what I’mll be in the mood for). So on my nightstand I could have a classic, Australian historical novel (I always try to absorb myself in the culture of wherever I’m living), current humor or chick lit book (sometimes reading is just for fun), memoir of a famous chef (I love food, but cannot cook to save my life) and, of course, tons of children’s books.
Tell us a little about your latest book?
Wally the Warm-Weather Penguin is a board book for children 1 – 4 years old. Wally is an Emperor Penguin from Antarctica who isn’t exactly like the other penguins. Wally is always cold and dreams of life on a tropical island. When Wally learns about a place that is always sunny and warm, he sets sail for the Galapagos Islands and discovers an amazing world of tap-dancing crabs, racing hundred-year-old tortoises and diving birds with bright blue feet (and a very funny name).
Currently, Wally the Warm-Weather Penguin is available as an ebook. The book has been formatted for tablet devices and computers and is optimized to highlight the brilliant, full-color illustrations by Ecuadorian illustrator, Vanessa Landin.
In addition, a portion of the proceeds from the sale of Wally the Warm-Weather Penguin is donated to the Galapagos Conservancy (galapagos.org) to support conservation efforts in the Galapagos Islands.
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