Today's guest is Sybrina Durant, author of the children's picture book, CLEO CAN TIE A BOW. Sybrina is here today to answer questions about her life, writing and goals.
Are you a morning writer or a night writer?
I am definitely a day writer, although there are times, when I am really
thinking hard about a story, that I wake up in the middle of the night with an
idea. At those times, I have to get up
right then and there and write it down or it will slip away by morning.
Do you outline or are you a pantster?
I am an outliner. . .and an index carder. . .and a spread-sheeter. . .and an
inspiration pic collector. I use all kinds of methods to develop my places and
characters but then there are also times when I am writing by the seat of my
pants. You never know when a new
character will present itself and suddenly become as important or more
important than all the others.
Which comes first – plot or character?
How about a “need”? For instance with my “Learn To Tie With The Rabbit and The
Fox” series, those stories were based on a “need” to come up with a fun way to
instruct others how to tie a tie. Cleo’s
Tie A Bow story didn’t come along until many years later because I just
couldn’t figure out how to use the same methodology as I had used in the tie a
tie books. When I finally broke away
from the idea that the instructions had to be based on the fox chasing the
rabbit, I was finally able to come up with an even more fun way to present the
instructions. In Cleo’s story, a helpful fox actually assists a long eared
rabbit to keep her ears from dragging on the ground. This story is much more
kid friendly.
Noise or quiet when working on your manuscript?
Most of the time, I need complete silence. I am too easily distracted by the
sounds coming from a radio or television. There are times when I will play
music but it is only if I am writing a musical scene or an actual song for the
story.
Favorite TV show? Anything
science fiction or fantasy. In the past, I’ve watched every episode of Star
Trek, Dr. Who, Stargate, Smallville , and even Dark Shadows. That one really goes back! For current
options; I love Discovery, Outpost, Mandalorian, Pandora, Supernatural (I hate
that it has finally ended) and Snow Piercer.
Favorite type of music? I guess
I’d have to say Pop or Pop Rock music is my favorite. I’ve written a lot of songs in those genres
over the years and I write songs for most of my books, too. If you’re
interested in hearing other songs besides the one for this book, look me up on
Youtube. My channel is Sybrinad.
Favorite craft besides writing? Marketing and promoting have as much appeal for me as writing does, maybe even more so. That’s why I call myself an author/entrepreneur. One idea always leads to another. I promote Cleo Can Tie A bow (and my other books) every single day on several social media sites. I use a service called Postfity to schedule daily posts on Pinterest, Instagram, Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn. Every weekend, I spend time building the graphics to post. In addition to that, I also schedule blog posts to be published every day. These posts are not all necessarily about the book itself. This is where the entrepreneur part comes in. The Rabbit and Fox book series has inspired two online stores for Sybrina’s Book Blog. One is The Rabbit and The Fox Book Store where you can find rabbit and fox books by other authors as well as lots of fun rabbit and fox themed gifts. Cleo’s love of bows inspired the other online store, “Girls Love Bows Gift Shop.” There are hundreds of bow-themed gifts there for any bow-crazy girl. How do I do this? Well, since I am an Amazon associate, I can find related products to post on my blog and maybe make a little extra coin here and there. You can also find Sybrina’s Unicorn Book Store on my blog. I list nearly 1,000 unicorn books for sale on it. Anyone can do the same thing I’m doing with ideas and characters from their books. Having an online store is fun and can be potentially profitable, too.
Favorite outdoor activity? Looking out the window at nature. I am not much of an outdoor person but I love to look at nature. I am blessed to have a house on a beautiful lake where my office window gives me a perfect view of the water. It is very serene.
Your goal in life?
My goal in life is to be well known for something that helped lots of
people.
Your most exciting moment? When I published my first book. Back then, I thought that being a published author meant that people were just going to find my book because it was “out there”. Boy, was I ever wrong. Little did I know that after making your book available to the public is when all of the really hard work begins. Promotion and marketing really is a full time effort. If you don’t do it consistently, chances are that no one will ever know your book exists. If you don’t do it at all, your book is almost guaranteed never to be read by anyone. If you are an author who has published a book, time to get busy!
Sybrina Durant is the author of The Rabbit and The Fox Learn To Tie Series of Books which include Learn To Tie A Neck Tie With The Rabbit and the Fox in English, Spanish and Tagalog; Ned Can Knot A Neck Tie; Nellie Can Knot A Neck Scarf and the newest addition, Cleo Can Tie A Bow. She also the author of The Blue Unicorn Series of books and has an online book store which features, unicorns, rabbits, foxes, and how to tie books plus gift items related to those things plus lots of bow-themed gifts.
WEBSITE & SOCIAL LINKS:
Website: https://sybrinapublishing.wordpress.com/cleo-can-tie-a-bow-book/
Blog: https://sybrinapublishing.wordpress.com/cleo-can-tie-a-bow-book/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Sybrina_spt
Cleo can tie a bow. She learned what she knows from a rabbit and a fox. They can teach your child how to tie a bow, too. This fun picture book is intended to be a family bonding parent-child activity. It’s a great way to learn to tie shoe laces.
Praise
Cleo Can Tie A Bow: A Rabbit and Fox Story is an educational picture book for children written by Sybrina Durant and illustrated by Pumudi Gardiyawasam. Cleo loves bows! All of her shoes have bows, and she always has a bow in her hair. If you look at her dress, you’ll notice that it has a bow and a sash around her waist. Even her fingernails are decorated with little bows. And her bedroom? Yes, you guessed it. There are bows everywhere — on the bed, on the curtains over her windows; even her stuffed bunny’s ears are tied into a bow. Cleo learned all about tying bows from a story about a rabbit with very long, droopy ears and the friendly fox who had the perfect solution.
Sybrina Durant’s Cleo Can Tie A Bow: A Rabbit and Fox Story is two stories within a story. Children are introduced to Cleo who then introduces the story about how she learned to tie a bow. In her introduction to the book, Durant recommends that parents share the story with their children, so they can learn to tie a bow along with Cleo. She suggests using long ribbons to simulate the fox’s moves or shoelaces. Both stories are engaging and fun to read, and the instructions given by the fox work quite well. I was pleased to note the author cautions that, despite the storyline, one must never practice bow tying moves on a real bunny. Pumudi Gardiyawasam’s colorful and fun illustrations work quite well with the story, and the profusion of bows on Cleo’s wardrobe, room, and bunny will entice young readers to try their own hands at tying a bow. The author also provides a link for a video version and the “Cleo can tie a bow song.” Cleo Can Tie A Bow: A Rabbit and Fox Story is highly recommended.
–Readers Favorite
1 comment:
Thank you for hosting Cleo Can Tie A Bow on Blogging Authors. I appreciate it. :)
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