Book Giveaway: FREE TO BE FABULOUS! David McMullin

Author David McMullin’s debut picture book, FREE TO BE FABULOUS!, illustrated by the fabulous Robbie Cathro, comes out on April 30 with Clarion Books. They have agreed to send a copy to one lucky winner in the US.

All you have to do to get in the running is leave a comment. Reblog, tweet, or talk about it on Facebook with a link and you will get additional chances to win. Just let me know other things you do to share the good news, so I can put the right amount of tickets in my basket for you. Sharing on Facebook, Twitter, or reblogging really helps spread the word about a new book. So, thanks for helping David and Robbie.

If you have signed up to follow my blog and receive it every day, please let me know when you leave a comment, and I will give you an extra ticket. Thanks!

BOOK DESCRIPTION:

An exuberant and affirming picture book about self-expression, allyship, and celebrating differences.

Daniel is obsessed with his favorite pop star Fabulina and can’t wait to show off his signature shimmy-kick to her biggest hit “Strong, Brave, Free” at the school talent show. After winning the talent show, Daniel feels euphoric. But Daniel soon realizes that not everyone loves his shimmy-kick. The Mean notices with persistent jokes, whispering, and harmful words. Daniel begins to feel small, never wanting to shimmy-kick again. He hides. But with the help of his friends and his fans, Daniel emerges—all eyes on him—dancing in the face of the Mean, in solidarity with his classmates. Strong. Brave. Free.

BOOK JOURNEY:

As writers, we often hear the advice – write what you know. My life is fun, funny and joyful. That’s what I know. That’s what I write. But of course, all lives are more than one thing. One day, I sat down and seriously listened to that advice. What did I know? What, from my childhood, might kids be able to relate to?

The answer was – feeling different.

I was that kid who didn’t enjoy the activities the other boys seemed to enjoy. I spent my time at home in my bedroom secretly singing and dancing. It wasn’t until college that I started joining choirs and auditioning for musicals and taking dance classes. Freedom!

But one day, a well-meaning professor pulled me aside and said, “David, are you aware that when you sing, you come across as somewhat effeminate.” What? I was a closeted gay man. That statement meant that the thing I loved most was revealing my secret! I nearly quit. The good news is I didn’t. In fact, I pursued musical theater with gusto, and eventually ended up as a performer on Broadway.

My book, FREE TO BE FABULOUS!, is the story of Daniel, a boy who is obsessed with his favorite pop-star, Fabulina. After dancing like her at his school talent show, the bullying begins. But Daniel realizes that the thing he is teased for is what brings him his strength. I hope readers are emboldened by Daniel and his bravery to be himself.

Now, for the book itself. Originally, it portrayed viral videos, cyber-bullying, pop-stars, reporters, and talk shows—it was big! That is what my editor saw. Their first R&R (revise and resubmit) was to add more lyrical language. Easy enough. I could do that. Their second R&R was to simplify. Okay, it was a lot of work, but I moved the story from the internet to the boy’s school. Their third R&R was to simplify even more. At this point I was lost. What more could I do? In desperation, I actually wrote an entirely new story that I hoped addressed the editors concerns. Luckily my critique partners talked me off of that ledge. So I started back with the basics. Who was my character? What did he want? How could everything in the story lead to him getting that thing?

The story was very different from my original submission, but its heart had reappeared. The editor made an offer.

The editing process was quite easy. Since we had done so much work pre-offer, we really only had to make adjustments based on the art—making sure text and art worked perfectly together. And, oh that art! The moment I saw Robbie Cathro’s first sketches, I knew we had something special.

DAVID’S BIO:

David McMullin is a picture book writer, illustrator, and children’s poet. His debut book, Free to Be Fabulous! comes out April 30, 2024 with Clarion at HarperCollins. His poems are featured in several magazines and anthologies.

Honors include an SCBWI Ann Whitford Paul Award, a Writing with the Stars mentorship, an Astra International Picture Book Writing Contest award, and a Madness Poetry championship. David and his husband are currently full-time world travelers, bird nerds, and YouTubers. In past careers he was a Broadway actor, an educator, and a children’s librarian. David is a proud representative of LGBTQ+ creators as a member of the Nevada SCBWI Equity and Inclusion team. He looks forward to announcing some new projects soon.

ROBBIE’S BIO:

Robbie is an illustrator and storyteller living in Bristol, UK, where he creates fun and lively work from his desk in The Island Studios.

He loves bright colors, limited palettes, atmospheric textures, and layered characters. His work is inspired by animation he loves, folk tales, as well as the small stories he finds in his day-to-day life. He has worked with Airbnb, The Sunday Times, The Natural History Museum, Aquila Magazine and Anorak Magazine, where he has produced children’s activity spreads, editorial imagery and illustrated narratives. Robbie loves nothing more than getting a brief that covers a subject from all the way across the world – whether that’s the animals and inhabitants of Yosemite Park, Chinese Inventors, Victorian Ghosts, or a damsel in distress being rescued from a tower by giant owls.

Robbie is represented by Alex Gehringer

David, thank you for sharing your book and journey with us. This is a very important book for children. Many young children will see themselves in little Daniel, which will help them brush off the MEAN, negative voices that many children face daily. As many adults know, the MEAN voices can follow you around for the rest of your life.

I love how Robbie illustrated the MEAN voices using the vague shape of eyes to present the MEAN voices as characters. Robbie’s classic colorful comic book illustrations are perfect for David McMullin’s uplifting story. When kids close the book, they will realize if they ignore the Mean Looks, MEAN Words, MEAN Jokes, MEAN Names, and Voices, like Daniel, they will be Free, to be Fabulous just like him. Good luck with the book!

Talk tomorrow,

Kathy