Oh, my friends!
I have been waiting for this day for soooo long. Words can't even express how truly happy I am to be sharing the COVER for my debut picture book, THE MONSTER ABOVE THE BED, words by me, illustrations by Steph Lew.
And now that we have a cover, we also have some VERY exciting preorder campaigns going on, with even more to be added later. So make sure to read to the very end of this post, because you are not going to want to miss these things!
And now, because I cannot wait even one more second...
The COVER
of
THE MONSTER ABOVE THE BED
credit for which goes 100% to Steph Lew
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EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!
Isn't it gorgeous??!
Steph did such an amazing job and I am absolutely gobsmacked every single time I look at it. And do I pull it up multiple times a week just to see it again? Yes, yes I do. I am completely in love with Blossom, my loveable and terrified little main character who Steph brought to life so well. I am crossing all of my fingers and toes that we can get some merch going on because don't you just need a Blossom stuffie?! I know I do!
Please show Steph a ton of love today because she knocked this one out of the park. I feel so grateful because she is seriously making my dreams come true! It's been so fun to collaborate with her on this project.
Now... I am thrilled to announce a preorder campaign for THE MONSTER ABOVE THE BED. I have been so blessed along this path and part of what I love to do is give back some of the things I've learned along the way. From the Kids' Choice KidLit Writing Contest to the PB Rising Stars Mentorship program, I love bringing the kidlit community together. So when thinking about what I wanted to give as a "thank you" for preorders, it just made sense to me to offer some FREE webinars in return for these early orders.
And I'm so excited about the things I've been working on!
There will be THREE webinars created specifically for picture book creators and TWO that are more suited for school visits or for your kiddos at home.
You can choose when to preorder based on which webinar you would like to attend. And I mean... if you want to attend more than one, I'm not stopping you from ordering multiple books... they do make great gifts ;)
(OR, see below for how to pay to attend and I'll donate a book to a classroom in need).
Order any time before June 19th to attend
June 20th
8:00 PM Eastern Time
In this webinar, I will be discussing how to decide what kind of career you want in publishing, how to find an agent that best fits that vision, how to convince yourself to stay out of the query trenches until you are truly ready, how to know when you are ready, and MORE. We'll talk about everything from craft to queries to the author-agent relationship to submission and beyond. I'll answer your business questions and you'll leave feeling like you can be the author you want to be with the tools to get there.
Order any time between June 20th and August 14th to attend
Crafting an Eye Catching Query: How To Stand Out In The Trenches
August 15th
8:00 PM Eastern Time
(Registration Opens June 21st)
If you attended my webinar last year, you will still want to catch this new, improved, and revamped version. We'll be talking about how to go beyond the formulas to really help your book shine. We'll be talking about catching an agent's attention for all the right reasons, pitches that sell, and what makes a query exciting. I'll be sharing what worked for me as an author and what stood out to me on the mentor side during PB Rising Stars.
Order any time between August 15th and October 9th to attend
Using Dramatic Irony in Picture Books
October 10th
8:00 PM Eastern Time
(Registration Opens August 16th)
Kids love knowing something that the characters don't yet know. I'll be talking about my focus on dramatic irony in THE MONSTER ABOVE THE BED, analyzing how it works is books like This is Not My Hat, Life on Mars, The Wall In The Middle of the Book and MORE. We'll talk about how dramatic irony can add humor, tension, or both! I'll walk you through some exercises on writing for kids with dramatic irony and help you develop some of your own ideas for using the device.
Order any time between now and November 8th to attend your choice of an author School Visit**
How Books are Made: From Idea to Final Copy
November 9th
1 PM Eastern Time
In this school author visit, I'll share with students my experience from first idea through publication on THE MONSTER ABOVE THE BED. We'll focus heavily on the importance of persistence in the face of rejection, revision even when you think things are good enough, and how to become a published author. I'll read THE MONSTER ABOVE THE BED and take questions from the students.
What If I Am The Monster?!: Overcoming Perceptions and Judgements
November 13th
1 PM Eastern Time
In this school author visit, I will talk about my purpose behind writing THE MONSTER ABOVE THE BED. I'll read the book and discuss the importance of not judging or othering people, seeing past differences, and rejecting prejudices. We'll talk about who the monster was in my story, why judgements might have been made, and how Blossom found the truth.
**NOTE: You can gift the school visits to your child's teacher/classroom! So you don't have to be a teacher yourself if you'd like your child to have one of these opportunities.
Whoooo. I'm already *slightly* tired just looking at this, but in the MOST excited way possible! I truly cannot wait to meet with you and hopefully give back in a meaningful and useful way. I can't thank my kidlit community enough for all of the support I've had.
Now, I know that not everyone is in a place to preorder, so I also want to include and thank all of you who make a library request for THE MONSTER ABOVE THE BED. By making a library request, you can choose to attend ANY one of the above webinars!! Woo Hoo! You can do that by filling out THIS FORM HERE to submit proof of your library request.
Can you preorder one book to attend one of the webinars and do a library request to attend another? YES!
What if you don't want to preorder or make a library request, but you still want to attend a webinar?
You can purchase a "ticket" to the webinar, and I will then use the money to buy a book for a classroom in need. AND that classroom will get to come to one of my virtual school visits! That's a win-win-win. Purchase webinar tickets (and by so doing, make a donation to a teacher), in my shop. (Cost is $30 to cover the book, tax, and shipping).
I just want to note that if you already preordered THE MONSTER ABOVE THE BED during the B&N preorder sale last week (or any other time), you are already eligible to attend the Playing The Long Game webinar, OR one of the school visits, so don't miss your chance to register!
Alright, that was a lot of information to take it. If you're still with me, THANK YOU!
For getting this far, I do want to offer you a
GIVEAWAY OPPORTUNITY!
One lucky reader will receive a FREE TICKET (no preorder or library request required) to ANY of the above webinars of their choosing (the winner can choose a webinar for themselves, or donate to a classroom).
To Enter:
Like and Retweet THIS TWEET -OR- share THIS INSTAGRAM POST (or both!)
That's it!
Bonus Entries for
Commenting Below
Tagging a friend in THIS TWEET (one bonus per tag)
Subscribing to my newsletter HERE (it's okay if you were already subscribed, no need to resubscribe)
Thank you so much, my friends, for being a part of this journey. I honestly cannot wait to share this book with you and for each of you to meet Blossom!
Until Next Time, Be Kind Humans, Kailei
About Kailei Pew
Kailei Pew is a wife, mother, and children's book author represented by the amazing Emily Forney of Bookends Literary. Kailei's upcoming books include THE MONSTER ABOVE THE BED, illustrated by Steph Lew, KID-VENTORS, illustrated by Shannon Wright, and I SEE COLOR, co-authored with Valerie Bolling and illustrated by Laylie Frazier. Kailei cannot wait to get her books into your hands!