What's the opposite of a 'Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day'?

When she was a girl growing up in Janesville, one of Lisl Detlefsen 's favorite books was “Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day” by Judith Viorst. It made her feel seen and understood.

“It can be remarkable and wondrous to be a child, with the promise of so many possibilities, but it can be scary and overwhelming, too,” Detlefsen says. “While I write for kids today, sometimes I also write for the child I was.”

Detlefsen carried that with her as she went on to major in art at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, then married a fifth-generation cranberry farmer. She did editorial freelance and consulting work while raising their two boys, and the road to publishing was long — but once she finally published her first children's book in 2015, “ Time for Cranberries ,” an avalanche of books followed. This year in April she released her eighth book, “ At the End of the Day ,” illustrated by Lynnor Bontigao and published by Knopf/Penguin Random House — ironically, her agent pitched it as a modern take on, you guessed it, “Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day.”

“I still appreciate how that book validated my feelings as a kid, acknowledging that it's okay to feel mad or frustrated or bored or disappointed sometimes,” Detlefsen says. “I wanted to address those feelings in my book, too, while still ending with the positive feelings of love and comfort and the hope of a new day tomorrow.”

Detlefsen recently visited Mystery to Me to promote “ At the End of the Day ,” and she'll be back to the bookstore this fall (Nov. 9) when she launches two more books. Until then, we caught up with her for a web-exclusive Q&A.

You've explained how “At the End of the Day” was pitched and its parallels to your favorite book, but where did it first come from?

I began writing it during the last election cycle, when I heard no end of pundits saying, “At the end of the day, what really matters is that …” It got me asking myself, “What does really matter at the end of the day?” It got me thinking, too, about how the life of a kid — and parent! — often has two distinct shifts: the school or workday, and then the cramming-in of all the life-stuff after that, such as dance class or music lessons or a doctor’s appointment or grocery shopping, etc. And then there’s the whole bedtime routine, which can be lengthy and even challenging at some stages of childhood.

You published your first picture book, "Time for Cranberries," in 2015. How long had you been working toward publishing a children's book, and how did that first one happen?

That book began as a college photography project when I was a senior art major at UW–Madison. After I graduated, I had a dummy manuscript version with a non-fiction text and hand-colored, black and white photographs as the illustrations. When I visit schools, I love telling kids how it took 10 years and 34 different drafts before I received an offer of publication on what became “Time for Cranberries.” If that isn’t a lesson in perseverance and working toward a goal, I don’t know what is!

By the fall of this year, you will have published 10 books since 2015 — what has that been like?

Publishing is very often a game of “hurry up and wait,” so sometimes it feels as though it has been a slow and winding journey to reach this point, but to look back on the last 10 years and see 10 books on my shelf? That’s honestly quite a thrill. I am tremendously grateful to be able to write children’s books professionally, a dream I’ve had since before I could properly hold a pencil.

What does a day-in-the-life of a picture book author/cranberry farmer/parent look like? What does your writing process look like, and how does your life show up in your books?

Before I was published and when my kids were small, my days were a little more chaotic as I stayed home with them and did freelance writing, editing and consulting work-for-hire while also seeking publication for my own projects. Now that my kids are in school — and my oldest has his driver’s license! — I am fortunate to have more focused writing time during the day, and then the after-school hours are often a blur of dinner and after-school activities ranging from baseball games to track meets to music lessons. (This sounds a lot like “At the End of the Day,” doesn’t it?!) I work out of my home office and my husband manages the farm, so we often get to see each other during the day, either for breakfast or lunch or just in passing! But every day can be a little bit different, which I love, too — some days, I have meetings with my critique groups or virtual or in-person school visits or even some travel. Other days are much quieter, with one of my two cats on my lap while I type.

Some of your writing so far could be categorized as "agvocate" — what does that term mean to you, and how unique is it to try to reach kids in this way?

I grew up drinking cranberry juice every morning at breakfast, yet I didn’t have a true understanding or appreciation for what it took to get that juice from the farm to my table. Once I met my husband, a fifth-generation cranberry farmer, I was suddenly immersed in everything it takes to care for the plants that grow these beautiful berries. This led to “Time for Cranberries,” but then visiting schools for that book made me more aware of how many kids shared my childhood lack of knowledge about agriculture. This grew into a topic I am extremely passionate about, both from a writing and speaking standpoint. I may not drive a tractor or delivery truck during harvest, but being an “agvocate” by speaking to kids and adults about the importance of agricultural books and ag literacy has become my way of supporting our family farm.

By contrast, your new book and the two still to come this fall are not related to ag — what led to that turn, and what are you looking to explore in each?

I have an Ag in the Classroom friend from Illinois who calls my upcoming book, “Still There Was Bread,” my wheat book — so he would argue with you there! But both books are indeed passion projects for different reasons. “Still There Was Bread” was a project born during COVID quarantine. For my entire life, my mom has made these pull-apart rolls that everyone loves. Like most bread, they take a fair amount of time and effort to master making, and like many of us, I didn’t seem to have the necessary time or inclination until I was sheltering in place. Being at home so much made me long to talk to my grandma, who had endured quarantine in 1949 while pregnant and caring for my infant mom and grandfather, both of whom had polio — all without Netflix or audiobooks or Zoom calls. The phrase, “Yet still there was bread,” hopped into my head, and it led me to write about all the good and bad times that my family has seen, accompanied by the same simple bread for sustenance.

My other upcoming book, “Each Day is a Gift,” was prompted by a writer friend who commented that her neighbor always says each day is a gift one chooses how to unwrap. This idea captured my imagination, thinking about how some days are more like boring, white tube sock gifts and some days are like new bike gifts, and some are gifts you didn’t ask for but love anyway and some are gifts you’d prefer to return, thank you very much. The art for both books is beautiful, and I can’t wait to share both with readers this fall.

What makes a compelling picture book (besides the pictures themselves), and where do you start when you have a concept or an idea?

Often a picture book comes to me as a flash of an idea or even a title. I think several things make a picture book compelling: One is that they have to bear repeat readings, which any parent who’s read the same book over and over at bedtime will tell you! I think another is a spark that helps a reader think about something in a new way, whether that’s a pair of work boots or a cranberry farm or a loaf of bread!

What is it like to work with illustrators?

I’m a very visual thinker, and I think that’s one reason why I absolutely love working with illustrators. One of my favorite parts of the publishing process is receiving first sketches for a new picture book. Picture books are a marriage of words and art, and I love seeing what my co-creators are bringing to the storytelling table. Every illustrator I’ve had has brought unexpected surprises that make the book better than what I could’ve envisioned alone.

Your website has lesson plans, educator guides and other activities for kids. How often are you out visiting classrooms? How many each year, and how do you fit that into your schedule?

I love speaking and doing author programs, and visits to schools are definitely my favorite. Some of my programs focus on agriculture and cranberries — our state fruit! — and others are geared toward the writing process. I use each of my books for a different focus. For example, “If You Had a Jetpack” and “On the Go Awesome” work well together to talk about parts of speech because of how I use adverbs and adjectives in these books. “Catkwondo” and “1, 2, 3, Jump!” both fit into discussions about Social Emotional Learning as they both depict main characters overcoming the fear and anxiety that comes with trying new things. And I’ve used “Farm Boots,” my first rhyming picture book, to introduce kids in both elementary and middle schools to writing poetry with a simple rhyme scheme.

I’ve visited a handful of schools in the Madison area but hope to visit more. I’ve also visited my hometown of Janesville a few times, which has been wonderful, too. School visits do take time away from my writing time, but I find that it’s well worth it to come back to my computer with fresh appreciation for my readers and usually a new idea or two as well!

On top of all this, you co-host a podcast?

I do! One of my dear friends lives out in Massachusetts, and during COVID, her family and mine would do monthly gatherings over Zoom. Sometimes we’d all watch a movie, sometimes the four adults would play an online game. During these Zoom calls, the one constant was that Alison and I would wind up sharing stories that were inevitably about the things we’d wished we’d said in a given moment as we are both what we call “assertiveness challenged.” Our husbands would listen to these discussions and proclaim that this should be a podcast, and somewhere along the line that turned from good-natured ribbing into genuine encouragement. We just released our first season and are currently planning season two of our podcast, “ All the Things We Should’ve Said ,” available in places like Apple Podcasts and Spotify.

Where do you look for inspiration and ideas?

I feel like ideas come to me, rather than something I have to look for. Being out in the natural world tends to inspire me, and my kids have always been a wealth of ideas, most especially when they were little. I’ve always been a “What if?” thinker, which can be tough from a general living perspective, but is great — possibly even essential — for a writer! A writing mentor of mine told me that my "what if" thinking is my author superpower — I just have to remember to save it for the page. Those words have had a profound impact on my mindset ever since.

What do/did you find most challenging this book or any of your others? And/or the publishing process/business in general?

My mother would tell you I’ve never been a particularly patient individual, and publishing stretches my ability to wait to the limit at times! For example, though I had an offer on the text for “At the End of the Day” just a week after it went out on submission, I then had to wait nearly four years for its release date. Thankfully, I do think the end result with illustrator Lynnor Bontigao’s beautiful, emotive artwork was well worth the long wait.

What is your advice for readers (and even writers) of children's books, and what is the important role they play? Or what is the best advice you ever got, that you try to follow?

My first editor once told me, before I was published, that in her experience, passionate people usually succeed. I think that’s helpful advice for those writers out there who are struggling to find the right publishing home for their work, but it still applies on the other side of publication, too. When I get an idea, the first question I ask myself is, “Am I passionate about this topic?” If not, I probably don’t want to invest the necessary months and years it will take to write — and then discuss and promote! — a book about it. If the answer is “Yes!” then I know I’m on to something. Whatever you do in life, shouldn’t it begin with something that makes you feel a spark of passion?

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