Butterfly Gardening, Silent Films, and Butternut Squash with Author Jill Dana

Hello and Happy Book Birthday to today’s kidlit author and extra special bonus episode guest, Jill Dana! Her latest book, Butternut and the Flying Butter illustrated by Anusha Santosh releases TODAY (September 24, 2024)!🎂🎉

Author Jill Dana

Some Highlights:

The origin of the name for “German chocolate cake.”

What is butterfly gardening?

Paying attention to what inspires you.

All the different levels of enjoying stories, allowing them to become something new with every reading experience.

Embracing the performative aspect of picture books, they’re often meant to be read aloud.

Viewing picture books as a silent film to imagine the page turns and watch it play out.

Constraints on creativity, why do they make stories better?

Mind blowing food facts!

Links Mentioned🔗:

Jill’s website

Jill on Link.tree, Twitter, Facebook, Tiktok, and Instagram

Jill’s critiques

PB Sunrays

Picture Book Gold

Book Recommendations📚:

Butternut by Jill Dana, illustrated by Rachel Tan-Hwee on Bookshop, Amazon, and Barnes and Noble

Butternut & Buttercup by Jill Dana, illustrated by Rachel Tan-Hwee on Bookshop, Amazon, and Barnes and Noble

Butternut and the Flying Butter by Jill Dana, illustrated by Anusha Santosh on Bookshop, Amazon, and Barnes and Noble

Story Genius by Lisa Crohn

Let Liberty Rise!: How America’s Schoolchildren Helped Save the Statue of Liberty by Chana Stiefel, illustrated by Chuck Groenink

The Tower of Life: How Yaffa Eliach Rebuilt Her Town in Stories and Photographs by Chana Stiefel, illustrated by Susan Gal

Yusra Swims by Julie Abery, illustrated by Sally Deng

Author Jill Dana

Stay tuned for your regularly scheduled interview with author Melissa Trempe! And catch up on past interviews like this gem with author-illustrator Jo Renfro.

Gina is a professional ghostwriter with over three years of experience and special expertise in content marketing. Her narrative nonfiction short story, “Bullet Hole,” was published November 2019 in Potato Soup Journal and again in their spring 2020 anthology of favorites. She has written for Imperfectly Perfect Mama, Thrive Global, Property Onion, and more. She is an active member of SCBWI and 12x12 Picture Book Challenge.
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