Candy Wellins

20 Questions: Our Favorite Podcasts

Welcome back to our series, 20 QUESTIONS!,

where we answer questions about writing, reading, and author life.

(Note that we enjoy the series so much we’ve decided to just keep the questions coming!)

This month’s question:

What book-related podcast are you listening to?

Candy Wellins

“What Should I Read Next?” with Anne Bogel

Guests share three books they love, one they hate and what they’re reading lately. Host (and book whisperer) Anne Bogel recommends three books that would make a great next read.  I have found so many titles to add to my TBR through this podcast as well as tips to improve my reading life. It’s a game changer as well as a really entertaining listen.

—Candy Wellins, author of A GEODUCK IS NOT A DUCK, illus. Ellie Peterson (Little Bigfoot, 2024)


Isabella Kung

“Literaticast” by Jennifer Laughran

I may be biased since Jenn is my agent, but it is popular amongst the kidlit community for a reason! Jenn has years of experience as a bookseller and a reputable agent. She is very knowledgeable about the children’s book industry and invites all kinds of interesting guests, from award-winning creators, agents, editors, booksellers, librarians, and more! Their conversations are fun, interesting, and I always learn something new from each episode—gaining a much deeper understanding about the inner workings of our industry, and her book recommendations are always stellar!

—Isabella Kung, author and illustrator of NO SNOWBALL (Orchard Books/Scholastic 2022)


Carrie Finison

“3 Point Perspective:
The Illustration Podcast” with Will Terry, Lee White, and Jake Parker

I’m not an illustrator, but I really enjoy listening to this podcast about both the craft and business of illustration. The hosts sometimes interview other artists—many from the children’s publishing world, but some not—about their practice and how they make a living in illustration; they sometimes take listener questions and review portfolios (they produce it as a YouTube show as well, so you can look at the illustrations they’re discussing); and they sometimes just banter and share information among themselves about the book publishing business, where they find inspiration, and what practices are effective for them (or not) and why.

—Carrie Finison, author of PIGS DIG A ROAD, illus. Brian Biggs (Putnam, 2024)

20 questions: Drawing from real life versus making things up

Welcome back to our series, 20 QUESTIONS!,

where we answer questions about writing, reading, and author life.

(Note that we enjoy the series so much we’ve decided to just keep the questions coming!)

This month’s question:

What in your latest book is drawn from real life, and what, if anything, is made up?

Valerie Bolling

“In my RAINBOW DAYS early reader series, Zoya and her puppy, Coco, love to create art together. In THE ORANGE WALL, Zoya paints her room. When she finishes painting, she decides to… (spoiler alert) paint a mural on one of the walls. The idea for what she paints on that wall was inspired by my own experience. I enjoy walking in the woods, and so Zoya paints a scene of herself, walking in the woods with her dad and Coco.” 

– Valerie Bolling, author of RAINBOW DAYS: THE ORANGE WALL, illustrated by Kai Robinson (Scholastic, 2024)


Candy Wellins

“A GEODUCK IS NOT A DUCK examines the very real geoduck, the world’s largest species of burrowing clams. Pronounced “gooey duck,” a made-up news crew (comprised of a talking Sea Star, giant Pacific Octopus, and Otter) is on a mission to find an actual gooey duck. A knowledgeable crab is full of real facts about geoducks that are misunderstood again and again.”

–Candy Wellins, author of A GEODUCK IS NOT A DUCK, illustraded by Ellie Peterson (Little Bigfoot, 2024)


Margaret Chiu Greanias

In HOW THIS BOOK GOT RED, Red, a red panda, recognizes that none of the books are about her kind of panda, so she decides to write her own. In the midst of struggling with writing her story, she sees a town where red panda representation is missing: in books, in merchandise, all the way down to the doll a baby red panda holds. The idea behind this story came from my childhood growing up with very little positive Asian representation in media and books. Like the baby red panda holding the giant panda doll, the dolls I played with looked nothing like me. 

– Margaret Chiu Greanias, author of HOW THIS BOOK GOT RED, illustrated by Melissa Iwai (Sourcebooks Jabberwocky, 2023)


Hope Lim

“In Sourgrass, when Sofia and May venture out into the wild field, they nibble the stems of sourgrass and giggle. This scene came straight out of my kids’ preschool years. I chaperoned a field trip to a community garden located up on a grassy hill, and watching them smile under the bright sunshine in a field of sourgrass is one of my favorite memories from my kids’ preschool era. The two characters, Sofia and May, and the resolution of their story are made up. However, all the fun things Sofia and May enjoy in their yards and beyond come from real life. As a child, I played outside all the time, running through the fields and climbing mountains, and my kids also loved being in nature, always finding ways to have fun. I used these real-life memories of being outside in SOURGRASS.”

– Hope Lim, author of SOURGRASS, illustrated by Shahrzad Maydani (Beach Lane Books, 2024)

Free Virtual Visits with Soaring ‘20s Authors for World Read Aloud Day

Mark your calendars for February 7, 2024 — it’s World Read Aloud Day! 

LitWorld started World Read Aloud Day (WRAD) in 2010 to honor the power and joy of reading. To celebrate, authors and illustrators come together each year to offer virtual classroom visits around the world. 

Several Soaring ‘20s authors and illustrators still have spots available (see below). 

Most virtual visits go something like this:

1-2 minutes: Creator introduces themself and talks a little about their books.

3-5 minutes: Creator reads aloud a short picture book, or a short excerpt from a chapter book/novel

5-10  minutes: Creator answers a few questions from students about reading/writing.

1-2 minutes: Creator book-talks a couple books they love (but didn’t write/illustrate!) as recommendations for the kids.

Before you sign up, most authors request you have the following available.

  • School name, grade level/teacher name, and approximate number of students

  • Platform (ex. Zoom, Google Meet, Skype)

  • Cell phone number for day-of-event emergencies

NOTE: Please pay attention to each creator’s time zone when scheduling. We are located across the US!

To check availability and/or schedule with an individual creator, click on the links below.


Lindsay H. Metcalf

Sign-up link

Book: Outdoor Farm, Indoor Farm

8:30 am-2:50 pm Central Time


Angela Burke Kunkel

Sign-up link

Book (choose one): Digging for Words: José Alberto Gutiérrez and the Library He Built, Penguin Journey, or Make Way: The Story of Robert McCloskey, Nancy Schön, and Some Very Famous Ducklings

8:30 am-3:30 pm Eastern Time


Susan Kusel

Sign-up link

Book: The Passover Guest

8 am-2 pm ET


Candy Wellins

Sign-up link

Book: A Geoduck Is Not A Duck

9:30 am-3 pm CT


Patricia Newman

Sign-up link

Book (choose one): Any of my recently published titles

7:00 am-1:30 pm Pacific Time


Melanie Ellsworth

Sign-up link

Books: Clarinet and Trumpet, Hip, Hip…Beret!, and Battle of the Books

9:30 am-1:20 pm ET


Isabella Kung

Sign-up link

Books: No Fuzzball! and No Snowball!
9 am-1 pm PT