February Newsletter Part 2: The Draft That Wouldn't

How I Almost Didn't Write Love, Escargot -- plus more cycling stories and not one but two sweepstakes giveaways

A Story Behind The Story

When I started working on Love, Escargot in 2020, writing a love-themed book for my favorite French snail seemed like a no brainer. Escargot is so eager for the reader’s affection and approval, I was sure that the third book in the series would almost write itself.

Au contraire.

A dozen drafts in, I was no closer to having a story. Or maybe I had a story, it just wasn’t good. The book felt flat, overly-complicated, labored. There was a plot. There were jokes. But somehow it felt forced. After we’d passed the manuscript back and forth a few times, my editor, Joy Peskin, suggested I start fresh.

Stumped, I returned to Escargot’s origins. He had started out as a puppet that I used to take with me for school, library, and bookstore appearances. Much of his personality had developed during the dozens of improvised conversations I had with children (and sometimes adults) during those events. In performance, Escargot frequently revealed his shyness, which he valiantly tried to cover up, along with his love of fashion and dancing. And so, as I searched for the spark that would animate this new book, I spent some time playing. If you had walked into my house, you would probably have heard me mumbling to myself in a French accent — as well as singing, shouting and lecturing. Escargot talked with me. He talked with my cat. He invented new dances. He tried on different costumes.

And suddenly, I had an idea that I knew would work. Snailentine’s Day. Escargot’s love of fashion and dancing ended up making an appearance in the book, along with his attempts to cover up his shyness. So did some of the silly participatory stuff I do with kids during school visits.

After I turned in the new manuscript of, Love, Escargot, I got a quick reply from Joy:

“Ooh-la-la! You did it, Dashka Slater! I love it. I know this one was difficult to get just right, but you did it!”

Phew! All that was needed then was for Sydney Hanson to work her customary magic with the illustrations. Which, I think you can agree, she did.

So what’s the writing lesson here? For me, it was that children’s books require childlike approaches — playfulness, silliness, and that openness to failure that is sometimes called “beginner’s mind.” My expertise was what got in the way in those initial drafts, leading me to get too clever by half.

Don’t forget to download your adorable Escargot Snailentines to send to the Snailentine of your choice.

And if you’re in the Bay Area, come see me in person at Linden Tree Books in Los Altos, CA on Sunday, February 5 at 11 am to learn a snail dance and find out just how silly I can get. (Spoiler: very.)

Two Snailentine’s Day Giveaways!

Between now and February 7, the good people at Merrymakers Inc. are hosting an Escargot Snailentine’s Day giveaway on Instagram. They’ll be giving away three Escargot gift sets (book + plush toy), plus one plush toy and one copy of Love, Escargot.

To enter, follow me, @princessamanita, and @Merrymakersinc on Instagram. You’ll find all the information posted there.

(If you don’t want to leave it to chance, you can use the code ESCARGOTPLUSH at the Merrymakers webstore to receive 25% off both the book + plushie gift set and the plush toy by itself.)

Meanwhile the folks at MacKids have their own sweepstakes going — this one offering a big batch of nine terrific love-themed books. You can enter it here.

I Heart Books

Still looking for books about love? Here are three more heartfelt picture books that make my own heart go pitter pat:

All the Beating Hearts by Julie Fogliano and Cátia Chien

My Heart by Corinna Luyken

Yak and Dove by Kyo Maclear and Esme Shapiro

Responses to January’s Wild Blue Newsletter

After I posted about the origins of Wild Blue, many of you wrote to share your own bicycle stories. Some were about bicycle names:

“My daughter named her first two wheeler 'The Iron Donkey' because it was so heavy and hard to pedal, not the gliding, free-flowing smooth wheeling ride she'd imagined!” – Cathy Ballou Mealey

Some were about learning to ride:

“I still remember the feeling of freedom and mastery I had when I first rode my 2-wheeler without falling.  . . I felt much more masterful and accomplished and FREE than when, about 10 years later, I learned to drive a car.” – Barbara Appel

Fellow cyclist Merrilee Profit shared some information about Alison Stone, often called the Pink Lady, the pink-clad cyclist in the cycling photo I included in the last newsletter. A legend among Bay Area cyclists, Stone’s stuffed moose and bright pink panniers are a common and delightful sight on Bay Area back roads. She was 58 when this article was written, which means she must be around 73 now, and she has logged more cycling miles in more astonishing places than I can even dream about. Cycling = freedom, indeed.

A reminder: you can pedal your own vicarious miles by pre-ordering Wild Blue. Why pre-order when the book will be out in less than two weeks? Robust pre-order sales help a book get noticed by retailers and that’s particularly important for quiet, lyrical books like Wild Blue. Plus you’ll get the book that much sooner.

Thanks again for all your support.

Dashka