TANYA KYI LLOYD is the author of more than 25 books for children and young adults. Her most recent works are Me and Banksy (Penguin Random House) and Under Pressure (Kids Can Press). Tanya lives in Vancouver with her husband and two children.
What was your favourite book when you were a child?
I loved A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle. And I still love it today!
Did you ever write a fan letter to an author?
I’m not sure I realized that was possible. I grew up in a small town and while my house was full of books, most of them were classics or hand-me-downs. It wasn’t until high school that I realized authors lived and worked in the real world.
How did you learn to write for children?
After university, I got a job doing graphic design at Whitecap Books, a publishing house in North Vancouver. At the time, they were looking for someone to write a book about famous Canadian Girls. I must have walked by the publisher’s office at just the right moment… The book was Canadian Girls Who Rocked the World, and writing it showed me how much fun children’s books could be to research and create.
What is your favourite activity that has nothing to do with writing?
Picnics! Preferably on a grassy spot near the beach.
Who is your favourite kids’ author now?
That’s a hard one. I admire so many writers. Rebecca Stead is one of my favourite, because she gets the emotional tone of her books so perfect. Rachelle Delaney constantly makes me laugh. I secretly wish I were half as cool as Heather Smith. The list continues…
Do you have a new book coming out soon?
This is Your Brain on Stereotypes (Kids Can Press) comes out in Fall 2020. It’s all about how our brain sorts and categorizes, somethings without our conscious knowledge. I learned SO much while writing it, and I can’t wait for its release!
What are you writing these days?
I just finished the editing changes on a picture book called Our Green City, to be released by Kids Can Press in 2022. (So long to wait!) It’s my first real picture book, and I’ve never had so much fun working on a project. It makes me happy every time I open the manuscript.
Can you share one strange, weird, or wonderful thing about you?
I’m very good at finding things. In our house, “nothing’s lost until Mommy can’t find it.” But I’m thinking of denying people my finding abilities, so they stop losing things so darned often!
Do you write regularly, or just when you feel like it?
I try to write for a couple hours every morning. Life sometimes gets in the way, but I do my best.
How do you like editing and revising?
I actually enjoy the editing process. I think of editors as people who are trying to make me sound smarter than I really am.
What question do you wish I had asked?
Do you have a writing group?
I have the best writing group ever: Stacey Matson, Rachelle Delaney, Kallie George, Lori Sherritt-Fleming, Kay Weisman, Sara Gillingham, and Holman Wang. They are wise and funny and I’m sure I would get nothing written without them.
Next up: Cathey Nickell