Hello, friends! And welcome to the blog! It's been quite some time since I've done a PB23Bunch Feature, but I was holding on to this one to help Susan celebrate launch week! Susan and I actually share a debut day, which is super exciting. And that means that Susan's beautiful debut, WAITING FOR TOMORROW drops, well... tomorrow! (Did I specifically wait to run this feature today specifically so I could say that I'm anxiously waiting for tomorrow for my copy to arrive? Yes, yes I did.)
I'm really excited for this book and hope you'll snag your own copy!
Kailei: Hi, Susan! Can you tell us a bit about yourself and your writing journey?
Susan: Thanks so much Kailei for the opportunity to talk about my writing and the book. It’s so
great to get to talk to another debut author!
I think I’ve always done some sort of writing since I was very young – whether poems, or
short stories, but it didn’t seem like a thing you could do, like, as a job. So I wrote in other
ways, as a technical writer, and eventually getting a job in communications. I had it in my
head that it was too hard, and that I was too old to start something like “becoming a writer.”
But one day I found myself turning 40, newly divorced, and I got this feeling that I had
nothing to lose. Writing for kids had always been in the back of my mind, and I thought well,
it’s now or never.
Kailei: I love that so much! It's truly never too late to give up on your dreams and I love that you went for it rather than worrying the timing was bad. What inspired your debut book?
Susan: It really started with the phrase – “but when is tomorrow?” – which ended up in the book. I could hear it very clearly in my head, a little girl asking, anticipating. I don’t know where that phrase came from, but from there, I brainstormed what that girl might be waiting for, anticipating about tomorrow. I ended up sharing some childhood memories with my sister, and that got me thinking about two sisters – and the story evolved from there.
Kailei: That sounds wonderful! I'm so excited to see exactly what you did with it. And what a seriously kid friendly question... What IS tomorrow?!
What message would you like for your readers to walk away with?
Susan: I’m not sure if there is a message, but I think I want readers to walk away with a feeling of having walked through the small bits of life and feeling the warmth of them.
Kailei: That is so beautiful. I love those important slice of life moments. When does your debut hit shelves?
Susan: October 24, 2023!
Kailei: HOORAY for tomorrow!!! Before I let you go, where can we follow you online?
Susan: I’m only on Instagram @susansyoon and you can also visit my website
www.susanyoon.com Thank you for the interview Kailei!
Kailei: Absolutely! Thank you for joining me!
GIVEAWAY OPPORTUNITY!
Susan is generously offering one lucky reader a pb ms critique!
To enter:
Follow PB23Bunch on Twitter
Follow Susan on Instagram
For a bonus entries:
About Susan Yoon
Susan Yoon is a writer of books for children and an avid hobby doodler. She has a debut picture book, Waiting for Tomorrow, coming out in 2023. Hope you’ll check it out. Growing up, Susan was not an avid reader or writer, although she did both, very slowly and steadily. Eventually her love of writing caught fire, and although she's done all kinds of writing — from poetry to screenplays to short stories — it was writing stories for kids that made her feel like her words had found their true home.
About PB23Bunch
The PB23Bunch is a diverse group of 12 authors and illustrators with Picture Books debuting in 2023. We cannot wait to get our books in your hands!!