My Crocodile Does Not Bite My new picture book, "My Crocodile Does Not Bite" is now shipping from Amazon and Barnes and Noble. The Barnes and Noble listing even has the positive Kirkus review in the item description.

I've been busy doing top secret spy stuff involving time traveling and all, so I haven't had a chance to blog for the last few years.

I'll write about those adventures some day, but for now there's more important news to share.

Namely, my new picture book "Vacation's Over! Return of the Dinosaurs" is now out.

It seems that dinosaurs are not extinct after all. They have just been on vacation on board a space ship and now they are back home.

And wow, do they ever have laundry to do, lots of mail to pick up, photos to develop...etc.

Hope they left enough water out for their pets while they were gone.

Blog Tour : Dotti Enderle

I've been extremely fortunate to illustrate a book that was written by a truly gifted author, Dotti Enderle. (and I'm really lucky because I'm going to illustrate another of hers later this year)

Dotti has a wonderful wacky sense of humor and her writing absolutely sparkles.
As the last stop on her blog tour, I asked Dotti the tough questions.

Joe : How long does it take you to go from idea to final manuscript?



Dotti : LOL! Sometimes years! But for picture books, I generally get the idea, hear the alliteration and start writing. Of course, that’s just the first draft. I’ve learned over the years that is distance is my friend. I have to put something away for awhile to be objective. But I like it when I’ve put so much space between readings that I’d forgotten most of it, and think, “Wow…I wrote this?” But then sometimes it’s “Ugh…I wrote this?” (sigh) Distance is my friend.



Joe : Please describe for us your writing process - do you work from an outline, do you fly by the seat of your pants and then revise, etc.?



Dotti : I’ve done both. Mostly I’m a pantser, but my current WIP is a YA that I’m writing from a 28-page, 15,500 outline. The novel has five main characters, and I needed the plot outline to keep from digging myself into a hole. But I’ll admit, the writing process hasn’t been fun. Writing from an extensive outline takes away the mystery and surprises from writing blindly as I usually do.



Joe : When you were a child did you want to be writer when you grew up? (or at least when you got older since the jury is still out on whether or not you have ever grown up)



Dotti : Yeah, they’re definitely still deliberating! Yes, I wanted to be a writer when I was younger. I didn’t think I’d ever have the patience to write a novel though. It seemed so daunting. But when I wrote my first novel back in 1999 (published 2002), I just took it one scene at a time, and eventually I got there. I still take it one scene at a time…in both my writing and my life.



Joe : What writers do you most admire?



Dotti : Kimberly Willis Holt, Kevin Brooks, Jeanne DuPrau, Scott Westerfield, Ally Carter, and many more. I invite you to read their books rather than elaborate.



Joe : If your publisher told you they would agree to any marketing idea short of a Super Bowl ad, what would you request?



Dotti : Why not a Super Bowl ad? I’d behave myself. No ripped bras. No streaking. Just me holding up my book like a Campbell’s soup can, saying, “Holy cow! You gotta read this book cause my publisher just spend like a bazillion dollars on this Super Bowl ad!” But then again, if I’m wearing a pair of Levis and swigging some Bud Light at the same time, maybe the publisher wouldn’t have to pay so much.



Joe : Name 5 items that you would bring with you if you knew you were going to be on a desert island for 3 months.



Dotti : Jared, Jensen, Jake, Jesse, and…uh…I guess some food. (All my fantasy guys have J names. Even Johnny.)


Thanks Dotti! Make sure you check out Dotti's latest book Grandpa For Sale published by Flashlight Press.

Also see Dotti's other interviews by clicking on these links.
Cats and Jammers Studio
Karen's News
Ellie McDoodle
Elizabeth O Dulemba
Kim Norman

Even Joe Kulka has a blog.

Joe Kulka?

Who's he? And why should I waste time reading his ramblings?

Other than the fact that you are already here, I can't think of one.

You probably would be better served picking up a book.

Like maybe this one, "Wolf's Coming!"

Wait a minute. Looks like I wrote that too.

Oh well.

Maybe my illustrations will keep you coming back.

Hope so. Thanks for stopping by.

Here's a sample spread from "Wolf's Coming" to whet your appetite.

Joe