Book Birthday Blog With Deb Pilutti

 

Welcome to SCBWI-MI's Book Birthday Blog!

Where we celebrate new books from Michigan's authors, illustrators and translators.

 

Congratulations to Deb Pilutti on the release of The Dinosaur in the Garden

 

How did you come up with the idea for your book?

This never happens to me, but one morning at 3 a.m., I woke up with the words, “She waited with the patience of a creature who has waited for millions of years,” in my head. I got up and wrote that down and made a few sketches about what I thought it meant. I just looked at the sketches again today and  honestly, I have no idea what it is! At the time, I decided that it was a story about a dinosaur who wanted to be found by a curious girl, and about the land that they both lived on and how it changed over time.

What is something you hope your readers will take away from your book?

I mostly hope they have fun reading a story about a girl and a dinosaur. But if they also come away thinking a little about deep time, and how things are always changing and how if we are curious to look around us we might see something really astonishing, that would be OK too.

 

 

What was the most difficult part of writing and illustrating this book? 

When I wrote the first version of this story, I thought it was the easiest book I had ever written. That is, until I learned that no one wanted to publish it. The first version was pretty fanciful, which may have created a dichotomy with the more informational aspects of the story.  I spent over a year revising the text many, many times. I thought it might never be published and put the MS away for a while. Eventually, I took it out again and was able to find a way to resolve some of the issues. I want to give a shout out to my critique groups and partners for all the time they spent on this one! During the final Illustration phase, I also made a lot of changes to the artwork. So really THE DINOSAUR IN THE GARDEN ended up being the most difficult book I have worked on, but I love where it ended up. 

 

What are your marketing plans for the book and where can we find it?

I’ll be having a book launch at Schuler’s in Ann Arbor on June 4, along with Lisa Wheeler. We will be having a Dino-themed event. The book should be available in bookstores and online on May 21.

What's next for you?

FISH DON’T GO TO SCHOOL is being published next year by Little, Brown. It’s a story about Henry, who battles a case of school jitters by wearing his favorite sparkly fish costume to class on the first day. I’m finishing up the art now and having a blast painting a kid in a fish costume.

More about the book . . .

After waiting millions of years, a T Rex thinks a curious girl might just find the clues he left behind, making his story part of hers. 

This lyrical picture book captures the vastness of geologic time while also showing how close the traces of the distant past can be—as long as we are curious enough to look.

Publisher: G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young Readers, an imprint of Penguin/Randomhouse

More about the author . . .

Deb Pilutti feels lucky to have a job where reading, playing with toys and watching cartoons is considered “research.” Her publishing clients include Simon & Schuster, Henry Holt, Penguin Random House and Little Brown & Co.
 
Deb lives in Ann Arbor, Michigan with her husband, Tom, and Australian Shepard, Tater. She enjoys hiking, camping, reading and hanging out with friends and family.

Twitter and Instagram: @dpilutti