Welcome to author Ashley. Thanks so much for taking the time to fill out 27 Questions so readers can better get to know you and your work! 1. What got you started writing to begin with? Originally, I began my writing career as a musician and as a film student at Chapman University. It wasn't until my interest from film and TV production and screenwriting shifted to early childhood education after completing my BFA that I started focusing in on writing picture books. I started writing "A Little Goes a Long Way" while I was teaching piano to young students and working as a nanny to 3 small boys while living in Ireland, just after graduating from Chapman. It was during this time while working with all of these wonderful children that I came up with the idea. During my years as a preschool teacher I found I was reading a lot of 'fluff' to the children at circle time so it was really then that I realized how much I wanted to push this particular project to get it out there. I wanted to see more books in the classroom that had relatable lessons and that could spark a bigger discussion. In "A Little Goes a Long Way," Fin learns to be more careful with how much he uses while helping with the chores around the house, which is a great starting point for discussing conservation, preservation and moderation. 2. What was the first thing you wrote? "A Little Goes a Long Way" was the first children's book I wrote that has been published. 3. What inspires you? Great stories with important lessons that inspire children. 4. Do you “people watch” for your writing? I love to observe children as they play to learn all about their world so that I can inspire and instigate creativity and relatable lessons in the stories that I write for them. 5. Who are you favorite authors? Dr. Seuss, Eric Carle, Ezra Jack Keats, Anna Dewdney, Julia Donaldson, Maurice Sendak, Audrey Wood 6. What is your favorite book? 'Where the Wild Things Are' by Maurice Sendak 7. What genre do you most like to read? It sounds silly, but my favorite genre to read are children's picture books. I love to study what works, how it's put together as the illustrations marry the text. I love the simplicity and complexity of using as few words as possible to tell a really great, fun and ultimately powerful story. 8. What genre do you write? Is this reflective of what you read? I love writing for children. As a singer/songwriter in my past, it comes natural for me to write in rhyme and meter. 9. What genre do you have a difficult time with that you wish you could write? I wish I could write fiction for adults. I've been brainstorming how to go about writing a story about a woman who finds balance in a depressed, unbalanced emotional state. She is struggling with postpartum depression, addiction and a fighting marriage but somehow ends up finding peace with the voices in her head. 10. What kind of research do you do or have you done for your story? At this point, my current idea is just a blog in my head. It's mostly based on my life right now and would be purely for self expression and creative outlet. 11. Do you have any writing rituals like eating chocolate or lighting incense? Ideas seem to come me either when I am running or as I lay down at night to go to sleep. It's very inconvenient when you have a 5 month old baby still waking 1-2 times in the middle of the night! 12. Do you listen to music while you write? If so, what kind? The only way I can write is in complete silence. I need to focus on the voice in my head and there is so much noise around me in daily life as it is. It's nice to comb out all other noise and focus in on my thoughts. 13. Introduce us to your current book (this is the latest and greatest, only choose one). "A Little Goes a Long Way" is about a little boy named Fin and his little dog, Sausages, and together they learn to use only what they need as they help with the chores around the house. I was featured at the OC Book Festival on the Storyteller Stage and Pretend City Children's Museum as part of their Author Series last year and have done several reading tours both domestically and internationally. The book has won 3 awards so far including 'Runner Up' at the Hollywood Book Festival in 2014. 14. How long did it take you to write it? It took 7 years of rewriting, discussing, reading aloud to children and adults, focus groups and editing to get it just right for publication. This particular project was in and out of the self publishing process before it was picked up by a small press which meant it also saw 2 other artists in the past. Ultimately we ended up with the very talented Vivian Nguyen. 15. Which character(s) of yours do you most relate to? I generally write in the point of view of the child. I have 2 boys under the age of 3 and have always worked with children ages 0-6. I like to think I know the young child well. 16. Who is your favorite character in this story? I love Fin because he is just like any other young child who is absolutely free in his world to wander and explore yet his willingness to help is adorable because he just can't seem to get it right. In the end he learns to be more careful with how much he uses and learns to not be so wasteful, which I think is a valuable - and relatable - lesson for any young child to learn. 17. Which character is the best role model for readers? Fin is my main character in the story and I suppose he is the best role model for my readers because he learns how to be more careful, which is ultimately his goal. 18. How did you decide on your cover? My artist designed the cover. When we won the first 2 awards we decided to make the title stand out a bit more and add 'Award Winner!' to the front cover with the award seals on the back. 19. What do you hope people discover while reading your story? I have put together several activities with free downloads on the website (www.alittlegoesalongwaybook.com) including suggestions for teachers on how to incorporate the book into their classroom. My hope is that my readers and teachers take advantage of these materials. I've also had fans along the way tell me how they use my story to talk to their kids about how not to be wasteful in their daily lives and that is something that I love hearing! This little story is a springboard for a bigger conversation about conservation and ultimately that is what I hope little ones take away from as they read my story. 20. Have you written anything else? Tell us about it/them. I originally wrote "A Little Goes a Long Way" as a series. The second is called 'A Little Kindness goes a Long Way.' The third is told in the point of view of Sausages, the dog in the story, and he learns to be a good dog. I have yet to come up with a title. I have a separate series that I have written as well and each one of these stories follows a different character who learns something specific as their name suggests: 'Lazy Daisy,' 'Squirrely Hurley,' 'Choosy Susie' to name a few. 21. Do you experience writers block, how do you deal with it? It's so frustrating when you actually have the time to sit down and write and can't for whatever reason. For me, I have so much stress going on in my current world that it really takes some time to wipe away those stressing thoughts that circle my head to make a clear canvas so I can 'draw' with my creative thoughts. I find meditation, yoga or just a nice cup of green tea helps with finding peace. 22. What do you not like about writing? It takes time - which I don't seem to have anymore these days with 2 small children!! 23. Are you working on anything now? My most current project is paired with an instructional video on swimming and it will be using real photographs as the visual as opposed to illustrations. I have a few other ideas in the works as well using this type of photography art visual. We'll see what happens in the coming months! 24. How do you market your work? "A Little Goes a Long Way" has won 3 awards so far and it's not only gratifying to me as a writer to gain this sort of recognition but it's also a great tool to market your work because it now has validation. I can now market myself as an 'award winning author' and that gives me momentum. I use social media, goodreads giveaways, school tours, teaming up with other small businesses, libraries , schools and fellow authors, book readings, signings and festivals to help promote my book. Organizing these types of events to help market the book is half the battle. Getting the book published was easy. When I have readings I also play an interactive song with the kids, I bring coloring sheets and stickers and also have a website that has free downloads and printable activities (www.alittlegoesalongwaybook.com). It's not about making money at this point, but rather getting myself out there and having fun! 25. What would you say to readers? When I do my readings, I always ask the children if there is anything they can think of at home or at school where they have to be more careful with how much they use. Lately, what we mostly discuss is our current drought situation here in California and how we can be less wasteful when it comes to water conservation. I always tell my readers to try and use just what you need so you're not being wasteful! 26. What would you say to writers aspiring or otherwise? When I get asked to give young writers advice, I always say keep reading but STUDY what you love. Study what works and what doesn't and then ask why. Picture books are so simple, but it's the simplicity of it that makes it so hard to write. I have to remember who I am writing for. When I write for the young child I know I can't use too many words. I know that their tiny little brains can't handle too much information at once. I know that they can't be sitting down for that long. I have to allow the illustrations to tell the story too. Marrying the text with the illustrations and finding your formula are key to writing picture books. Thinking about how the pages will turn with the flow of your text is another element to writing in this genre. There is a lot of visualization that goes into writing this genre and it gets quite technical when you think about all the details involved. Keeping it simple is a challenge but it's what works. 27. Where can one purchase your book(s)? Amazon, Amazon UK, Barnes and Noble online, Ingram and other expanded distribution channels. It is also available in small local bookshops and toy stores around the country. Please take advantage of the website that provides FREE downloads including my featured song, a video and the audio book. There are also free printable activities and posts about the making of this book. Check out more info at www.alittlegoesalongwaybook.com! Social Media WEBSITE: http://www.alittlegoesalongwaybook.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/A-Little-Goes-a-Long-Way/605158366162933 Twitter: https://twitter.com/ashleymillsmon #alittlegoesalongwaybook #alittlegoesalongway
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