We’re so thrilled for our dear friend and WB team member, Susan Johnston Taylor who currently has a plethora of good news worth celebrating! Congratulations, Susan.
Please share your exciting news! I signed with Mara Cobb at Martin Literary Management, my second picture book with Gnome Road Publishing was recently announced, and my debut won a Crystal Kite Award.
How long have you been writing/pursuing an agent/publishing deal? I have been a full-time freelance writer since 2008 (with a few contract writer stints here and there). I started writing for kids in 2016 and started querying in 2017. I sold my debut picture book on my own to Gnome Road Publishing in 2021 and it came out in 2023.
What fears/hopes did you have before working with Bethany privately or taking a Writing Barn class? I think my fears got more intense the longer I’d been querying. At first, I naively assumed I’d get an agent pretty quickly because I was already widely published in magazines. But there’s a steeper learning curve to picture books than I realized. Each January, I’d say “maybe this is the year I sign with an agent!” and I’d feel disappointment when I sent out dozens of queries with no offers of rep. What if I NEVER sign with an agent? I wondered. But it just took more time and persistence.
How did the WB programming aid you in both the craft and business of picture book writing? I have met so many fantastic authors, instructors, and critique partners through Writing Barn programming in-person and online. I also joined a critique group with other Writing Barn students and we met every month for years, supporting each other through submissions, rejections, book announcements, book launches, and more. I’ve learned so much about the craft and business of writing by reading and critiquing their work.
What Writing Barn class(es) or other programs (WSS, CTC, VERGE, etc.) have you participated in? I’ve taken picture book classes 1-4, Bethany’s SEL/social justice picture book class, Nancy Churnin’s PB bio class, Heather Montgomery’s class on writing nonfiction for kids, Rob Sanders’ WSS for Nonfiction Writers, and I now teach Canva for Authors at the Writing Barn. WSS for Nonfiction Writers had a huge impact on my author career, because it gave me the confidence to send out If Pets Wrote Poems, which will be my second trade book. I’d put that project aside after getting some very discouraging feedback during an agent critique. Rob saw my vision for the project and encouraged me to keep going with it instead of putting so much stock into one person’s opinion. Hey, even Stephen King faced rejection before becoming a NYT-bestselling author!
What is a takeaway you will carry with you far beyond this good news as you continue to build and develop your career? Keep doing the work, and good things WILL happen. (Not always the good things you hope for, but sometimes good things can surprise you.)
Any advice you have for writers/creatives having trouble staying the course in pursuing their goals? Take breaks when you need to so that you can return to the page refreshed. Try different creative disciplines when you feel stuck on one project or you’re feeling discouraged in your writing. In addition to writing, I do subversive cross-stitch, film and edit videos, and sing. These creative projects fuel one another and keep me feeling energized and inspired.
Writers can purchase Susan Johnston Taylor’s ANIMALS IN SURPRISING SHADES everywhere now!
About Author Susan Johnston Taylor
Author/singer/actor Susan Johnston Taylor is passionate about storytelling on the page and the stage. She’s worked as a freelance writer for over a decade with articles published in The Boston Globe, Entrepreneur, Fast Company, Highlights for Children, and numerous other publications. She’s also written over a dozen books for the educational market and is an instructor and part-time staffer at the Writing Barn.Her debut picture book, Animals in Surprising Shades: Poems About Earth’s Colorful Creatures (Gnome Road Publishing, 2023) won an SCBWI Crystal Kite Award for the TX/OK chapter. Her second picture book, If Pets Wrote Poems, unleashes March 10, 2026 with Gnome Road Publishing. Learn more at staylorwrites.com.