Welcome to SCBWI-MI's Book Birthday Blog!
Where we celebrate new books from Michigan's authors, illustrators and translators.
Congratulations to Karen Finch on the release of Spring Scenthound
How did you come up with the idea for your book?
Literally, right outside my back door to a path that leads straight up into the woods where my dogs and I have spent many seasons together. Shortly after winter, I think we all get “spring fever” from being indoors too long, from shorter daylight hours, and from missing that vital connection to nature we need. In 2022, while taking Renée LaTulippe’s Lyrical Language Lab, I wrote a poem titled Spring’s Release, reflecting on the first signs of spring that my dogs and I have noticed over the years in our woods and along several other nature trails in southwest Michigan. With revisions, that free verse poem turned into a lyrical picture book.
This 2021 photo of my old dog, Star, and pup, Olive, happened to have been taken on March 3rd—SPRING SCENTHOUND'S book birthdate!
What is something you hope your readers will take away from your book?
My hope is that readers will be encouraged to use super-sensing eyes, ears, and noses to take note of not only spring, but all of nature’s seasonal changes.
What was the most difficult part of writing this book?
My first drafts reflected my own musings about wandering in the woods with a dog. I needed to be more child-focused. And, as a very visual person, I tend to get ahead of myself and forget that readers can’t see what I’m seeing, so sometimes phrases or sequences needed to be clarified or struck altogether.
What are your marketing plans for the book and where can we find it?
I’ve been fortunate to be a part of Instagram’s PBMIX26, a 2026 debut and established author marketing group. And I’m excited to be celebrating the book launch at my local dog park’s gathering spot, The Thirsty Hound in Kalamazoo, tonight from 5-7 pm. Later this month, I’ll be doing an evening reading at Dix St. Elementary School in Otsego. Next month, on April 16th, I’ll be doing a storytime at Bookbug in Kalamazoo from 10:30-11:30 am, and a storytime at Rolling Rabbit Books in Byron Center on April 28th. In May, I’m scheduled for an interview on Jena Benton’s Simply 7 blog. The book is available on Bookshop.org, Barnes & Noble, and Amazon.
What's next for you?
A combination of revision work (especially one based on a critique I received from our SCBWI MI Critique Carousel last fall) and writing new picture book drafts and poems. Plus, keeping up on craft and industry webinars and querying and submission opportunities.
More about the book . . .
SPRING SCENTHOUND is a lyrical picture book that expresses the powerful bond between a nature-loving kid and her scent-centric dog who both know “there’s spring outside…” But their bond is tested when their explorations separate them, and daylight begins to slip away.
Published by: Tilbury House
More about the author . . .
Karen Finch is a debut picture book author of SPRING SCENTHOUND (Tilbury House) and a contributing poet in Pomelo Books anthologies, Things We Feel, Things We Wear, and What is a Friend? Karen lives with her husband in Michigan, in a little house with a big, glacial moraine for a backyard.
Instagram @karenfinchwrites
This is so terrific, Karen! Congratulations and kudos on all the work and love you have poured into your story. All the best as the words of your heart journey forth. Happy Book Birthday!
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