JOS: Well, I think the second that you tell someone that you’re going to publish, they say, “OH MY GOD, you’re going to be the next JK Rowling!” and it’s like “Can we not put that expectation out there?” Because that’s not going to happen. This isn’t that type of book. I’m not that person and I didn’t write that book. And that’s okay! I think part of the beauty of being in a group with these other debut others that I’m in is there’s such diversity. There’s 175 of us with our first YA and it ranges from a woman who already has a movie in production to people who probably didn’t get an advance and their publishing house is very small. We’re all friends on Facebook… and you can get really insecure if you’re not selling rights to 12 different countries like so-and-so. But you have to think about where you were two years ago. It’s all very comparative. You have to stay focused.
Joanne O'Sullivan introduces fascinating people and places to readers through books, articles, and blog posts. Her award-winning science, sustainabilty and travel books for kids include "Migration Nation" (Charlesbridge, 2015) and the 101 Before You’re 12 series. She has lived in a sixteenth-century Italian palazzo and a modern Korean high-rise, but now calls beautiful Asheville, North Carolina home. When she and her environmental activist husband and artistic kids aren’t out in the woods, she’s usually planning her next big trip to faraway places. Between Two Skies will be released April 29 by Candlewick Press.