Author Interview – Kathy and Karen Honaker

Book Details:

Book Title:  Traveling Tootsie by Karen and Kathy Honaker
Category:  Children’s Fiction (Ages 3-7),  38 pages
Genre:  Children’s Picture Book
Publisher:  Mascot Books
Release date:   Nov, 2022
Content Rating:  G. Suitable for everyone.

 

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**** 2023 Family Choice Award ****

Book Description:

Have you ever wished you could go away on your parent’s business trip or hide in their suitcase to explore a new city all on your own? Well, Katie and Steven sure have! They wonder why they always have to stay home when Mommy or Daddy travel for work. Once their favorite yellow teddy, Tootsie, comes up with the idea to stow himself away for Daddy’s trip to Washington, DC, Katie and Steven realize that they’ll be able to travel along, too—but just not in the way they first imagine!

 

Buy the Book
Amazon ~ B&N 
Politics and Prose
BAM ~ indiebound ~ Bookshop.org
Mascot Books

 

Meet the Authors – Kathy and Karen Honaker:

Kathy and Karen grew up in the Chicago suburbs and moved to Virginia as teenagers. They enjoyed many family vacations, which began their love of travel. They both reside in Virginia with their families and continue to instill a love of travel with their own children. This is their first children’s book written together, about a favorite childhood memory that they always wanted to share with others to enjoy. They hope to inspire a sense of adventure in you!

connect with the author: website ~ twitter ~ facebook ~  instagram  ~ goodreads

When did you first know you wanted to be an author? 

We didn’t always know we wanted to be authors, but we grew up with a dad who was a writer/journalist so we’ve been exposed to writing since childhood.  We had fun writing funny plays and pretended to be news broadcasters and would write the stories, but we didn’t consider becoming authors until adulthood.  We had the idea for a children’s book, and it all started when we took a class about how to  write children’s books, and here we are!

When you are not writing, what other hats do you wear? What do you do for fun?

When we are not writing, we are both working and raising families. We enjoy vacationing together, cooking, and watching our kids play sports. 

What is your favorite genre to read? What about that genre draws you?

We both enjoy mysteries and historical fiction.  We like the suspense of mysteries and how the stories are thought provoking and you get to feel like a detective while reading them.  We enjoy how historical fiction books are a fun way to learn about different time periods and events in history in an entertaining way.  Both genres are a great way to learn through reading!

What is your favorite thing about this time of year? And why?

We are coming out of winter, which is a time to slow down and spend more time inside with family and friends. Snuggled up on the couch watching a good movie or a football game is an ideal Sunday afternoon. After all of this indoor time we are now getting ready to be outside more and we are enjoying the return of more daylight, warm sunshine, seeing the flowers bloom, and hearing the birds chirping!

What historical figure do you admire and why?

We find it difficult to pick just one – we both admire strong women who have put their own lives on the line to help others.  When reading stories about women like Harriet Tubman, Rosa Parks, Amelia Earhart, or Eleanor Roosevelt,  you can’t help but feel grateful for them and their bravery and dedication to their beliefs and causes.

Who did you have in mind as you wrote the book?

When we wrote “Traveling Tootsie” we had our late dad in our thoughts.  The story is based on a childhood memory that we shared with our dad when he would travel for work. We wanted to honor his memory and create a story that would entertain and capture children’s imaginations and inspire them to start their own family “Traveling Tootsie” tradition.

As a former K-12 school librarian I have to ask – what is your favorite children’s book?

We both immediately knew the answer to this question! There are two of us so we picked two books! “The Little House” and “Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel” by Virginia Lee Burton.  We own them as adults and loved sharing them with our own children.

I love those two books – I regularly read Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel to my students when I was a librarian.

What advice would you give to a child or teen who wants to be a writer?

The advice we would give a a child or a teen who wants to be a writer is to keep a notebook, write in a diary, and keep a log of your ideas.  As an adult writer, these will be a priceless resource into the minds of a child or young adult and will help with character development, plot ideas, and writing from their perspective.

We also would say to stick to your ideas.  Don’t let others derail your stories with their opinions!

Thanks for joining me today – my readers and I love learning more about authors.

Enter the Giveaway:

 

Traveling Tootsie by Karen and Kathy Honaker Book Tour Giveaway
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