1. What’s your name?
Betsy Bird!

2. Where were you born?
Kalamazoo, Michigan

3. Where do you live?
Evanston, Illinois

4. How many books have you written?
Seven. Three picture books, two books for middle grade readers, and two books for adults ABOUT books for kids. 

5. Why did you want to be a writer?
When I was a kid I loved writing stories. Honestly, I wrote them constantly, from pretty much the second grade onward. Two of my aunts were writers, you see, and that made it clear to me that it was an actual job. So I just assumed I’d someday be a writer myself when I grew up. 

6. Where do you get your ideas?
Absolutely everywhere. I’ll just be walking down the street and something someone says or something that catches my eye might give me an idea. My friends and family are used to me stopping a conversation to whip out my phone and write down an idea that comes to me. And sometimes they turn into pretty good books!

7. What was your favorite book as a kid?
I had a couple! My favorite picture book when I was really little was A Time to Keep by Tasha Tudor (nobody, and I mean nobody, paints more delicious chocolate cupcakes than Tasha Tudor). When I got older I got a book from the Scholastic Book Fair called The Girl With the Silver Eyes by Willo Davis Roberts about a girl with superpowers. That’s still one of my favorite books for kids to this day!

8. What advice do you give to kids who want to be writers too?
My advice is kind of silly but here goes: Do you want to be a writer? That is awesome. Now here’s the good news. If you want to be a writer, and then decide for a while to do something else, you can always go BACK to being a writer later. It’s perfectly okay! You can literally be a writer anytime that you want! It’s your choice!

The Long Version

Born in Kalamazoo, Michigan, undisputed center of the universe, I grew up and promptly left Michigan the moment my legs could propel me southward. I didn’t get far. I was an English/Fine Arts major at Earlham College in Richmond, Indiana (home of recorded jazz, and don’t let anyone tell you otherwise) then set my sights on Portland, Oregon. When that didn’t pan out it was Minneapolis, Minnesota. Then New York, New York.

In the midst of all this I somehow managed to get a library degree and a job at New York Public Library, eventually becoming their Youth Media Specialist (a.k.a. the person who bought all the kids’ books for Manhattan, Staten Island, and the Bronx).

I created the children’s literary blog A Fuse #8 Production and schmoozed as no one had ever schmoozed before. The result? Books for kids and books for adults about children’s literature. I am now the Collection Development Manager of Evanston, IL. Stop by. We’ll have lunch. It’ll be nice.

                   “Timeless messages about big dreams… ”

The Short Version

I am an author, librarian, reviewer of children’s literature, public speaker, and podcaster (not necessarily in that order). I am the author of numerous picture books, two books for kids ages 9–12, two books for adults about children’s books, and more. I currently reside in Evanston, Illinois with my two kids, husband, and cats Izzy and Hilo (named after the graphic novel series by Judd Winick).

WHY IS IT CALLED A FUSE #8 PRODUCTION?

Once upon a time my grandmother gave me her car. I was in college, broke, without any particular means of moving around, and that car gave me a bit of freedom and independence I had never known. It was also ugly as sin. The car, a 1989 Buick Century, had all the paint missing from its roof since it had spent the better part of its life sitting in the hot sun of my grandmother’s retirement community parking lot. I did not care. It was wheels and I was happy to have them.

During the summer after I graduated from college, I was spending the summer in my college town doing small jobs. One day I parked the car in front of my apartment, removed the key, and all of a sudden the electrical locks started going up and down, up and down, like the poor car was possessed. I screamed, exited the vehicle… then did absolutely nothing about it. The next morning the car battery was dead. It soon became clear that the electrical system was on the fritz. So, without a dime to my name, I took it to the mechanic.

The mechanic who saw me probably could tell at a glance that anyone driving a dilapidated 1989 Buick Century lacking in any and all paint on its roof probably wasn’t rolling in the dough. So, in a moment of mercy, he reached into the glove compartment and pulled out… Fuse #8 from the fuses in there. He told me in no uncertain terms that it controlled the radio, windshield wipers, turn signal, and electric locks. All I had to do was plug it in when I drove, and remove it when I parked. Easy peasy! 

I drove that car for years and years. I drove it from southern Indiana to Portland, Oregon. I drove it years later from Portland, Oregon to Minneapolis, Minnesota. And there, in Minnesota, I met and married my husband. The car survived all of this. 

My husband was a filmmaker at the time, and one day he happened to mention that he needed a good name for his production company. I suggested… A Fuse #8 Production. It just sounded like it should be the name of something. He didn’t go for it, but the name stuck in my mind. And when I decided, after reading an article in School Library Journal, to start a children’s literature blog of my own, that seemed like the perfect name.

It has everything to do with a janky 1989 Buick Century and nothing at all to do with children’s books. I do not care. The name? It is good.

PHOTO DESCRIPTIONS AND PHOTO CREDITS. PLEASE NOTE, PHOTOS ARE RANDOMIZED: Kate on the left in all black, shades and leather jacket smiling broadly. Betsy is on the right wearing glasses, a collared shirt and a quizzical expression. PHOTO BY ANDREW ATIENZA / Betsy in a book store with rows of books behind her. She has spread her arms and hands expressively to matcch her wondering face. Listeners are facing her. PHOTO BY SUSAN RAMSEY / Betsy laying on an oak wood floor, propped up on an elbow with a confident expression. She is surrounded by copies of Long Road to the Circus in an arc around her. PHOTO BY BETSY BIRD / A school photo of Betsy as a 13-year-old wearing a red turtleneck, large glasses and a big smile. / Betsy on the left wearing a silly grin while biting down on a gingerbread person cookie and wearing a christmas sweater. An illustrator is on the right, sporting a big grin, a thumbs up and holding onto a small dog while wearing a christmas tree sweater. / Betsy on the right wearing a white dress with a quizzical expression and holding an empty cup. / A cover of the School Library Journal featuring Betsy (seated, in the middle) along with other authors, all of whom are also bloggers. / Betsy seated on a stage and reading a book to listeners below. / Betsy and her sister Kate are holding books titled Sisters while looking non-plussed and simultaneously curious. PHOTO BY ANDREW ATIENZA / Betsy wearing a top hat and suit jacket seated next to a puppet of Gaucho the ostrich. PHOTO BY SUSAN RAMSEY / A baby photo of Suzy being held by her mother. PHOTO BY SUSAN RAMSEY / Betsy dressed up in a lion costume, posing with her arms held out and paws up. / Illustration of a character with a butterfly net by ANDREA TSURUMI / Illustration of Betsy on a blue background by MARK TUCHMAN / A Fuse #8 3-d staged set of Kate and Suzy created by DANA SHERIDAN / An illustration of Betsy as a librarian, complete with library stamp by LEUYEN PHAM / An illustrated fuse with lots of character created by AARON ZENZ. / Betsy pen-illustrated giving a reading in a book store by GARETH HINDS. / A more formal chalk illustration on brown background created by NATHAN HALE. / Betsy as the Secretary Bird in POP! Goes the Nursery Rhyme illustrated by ANDREA TSURUMI. / Photograph of Betsy standing in front of an ivy wall by TAYLOR GLASCOCK. / Betsy at a book reading holding up a children’s book with an expressive face.