Illustrator Interview: Kavita Ramchandran Discusses Her Illustration Process

Cynsations is celebrating its 20th anniversary by switching to a quarterly publishing schedule, featuring in-depth interviews and articles. Thank you for your ongoing support and enthusiasm!

By Suma Subramaniam

I’m thrilled to welcome Kavita Ramchandran to Cynsations today. Kavita talks about her illustration process for her most recent book, When I Visited Grandma,

Continue Reading Illustrator Interview: Kavita Ramchandran Discusses Her Illustration Process »

Reflections on Cover Design with Author Suma Subramaniam & Illustrators Sandhya Prabhat & Shreya Gupta

 

By Suma Subramaniam

I’m honored to be in conversation with my artist-collaborators and share the inside story of the cover-design process for our upcoming debut fiction and nonfiction picture books, Namaste Is A Greeting, illustrated by Sandhya Prabhat (Candlewick, October 2022), and She Sang For India: How M.S.

Continue Reading Reflections on Cover Design with Author Suma Subramaniam & Illustrators Sandhya Prabhat & Shreya Gupta »

Editor Interview: Levine Querido’s Nick Thomas on Perspectives & Accessibility

By Elisabeth Norton

Today I’m talking with Nick Thomas, Senior Editor at Levine Querido, an independent publisher of books for young readers that was founded by Arthur A. Levine in 2019.

Nick, thank you for joining me! 

Thank you for having me! Cynsations is one of my favorite websites—I use it as a resource all the time to learn from creators and publishing people I respect.

Continue Reading Editor Interview: Levine Querido’s Nick Thomas on Perspectives & Accessibility »

Guest Post: Rajani LaRocca Writes About Her Process For Evoking a Story Set in 1980s

By Rajani LaRocca

My novel in verse Red, White, and Whole (Quill Tree Books, 2021) is set in 1983. It’s about thirteen-year-old Reha, the child of Indian immigrants, who is torn between the worlds of her parents and her friends at school. Like many teens her age, she wants to wear cool clothes, and go to a middle school dance.

Continue Reading Guest Post: Rajani LaRocca Writes About Her Process For Evoking a Story Set in 1980s »

Kristy Everington and AG Ford Talk About Writing, Art, and Isobel Adds It Up

By Suma Subramaniam

We’re pleased to welcome the author-illustrator team of Isobel Adds It Up (Penguin Random House, 2021), Kristy Everington, and AG Ford to Cynsations.

In this lovely picture book, Isobel is a problem solver . . . addition, subtraction, multiplication, division! But trying to figure out who is causing all the noise next door is one problem she can’t quite work out.

Continue Reading Kristy Everington and AG Ford Talk About Writing, Art, and Isobel Adds It Up »

Author & Illustrator Interview: Kavita Ramchandran & Srividhya Venkat talk on Dancing in Thatha’s Footsteps

By Suma Subramaniam

We are pleased to welcome the author-illustrator team of Dancing in Thatha’s Footsteps (Yali Books, June 2021) to Cynsations!

Written by Srividhya Venkat and illustrated by Kavita Ramchandran, Dancing in Thatha’s Footsteps (Yali Books, June 2021) is a story about staying true to yourself and following your heart.

Continue Reading Author & Illustrator Interview: Kavita Ramchandran & Srividhya Venkat talk on Dancing in Thatha’s Footsteps »

Author Interview: Anna-Marie McLemore on Representation & Their Writing Journey

By Suma Subramaniam

We’re thrilled to welcome Anna-Marie McLemore to Cynsations today.

When you look back on your writing journey, what are the changes that stand out?

I’ve gone from coming from a place of thinking I had to apologize for my identities—especially my intersectional identities like being queer and Latinx—and thinking I had to apologize for including them in my stories,

Continue Reading Author Interview: Anna-Marie McLemore on Representation & Their Writing Journey »