musings on mice and mail

When I was a teenager, a friend challenged me to face my current bout of writer’s block by sitting down and writing a short story, just for fun, about something I love. The result was a tale about a mouse living in a P.O. box; mice and mail being two literary themes I’m continually drawn to. Now, I really and truly love mail. I love writing and receiving letters and packages. I love seeing rows of P.O. boxes and the new stamps. However, I have had pet mice and they left something to be desired. My favorite mice are now fictional.

Not long after, I let another friend, Megan, read the story. I don’t remember the details, but she insinuated she’d like to illustrate that story one day. She being a talented artist, I told her I thought that’d be great. In the mean time, the years rolled by. I wrote, illustrated and published Always Plenty. Megan went to college, got married and started her career. Every once in a while we’d talk about “doing a book” together. When she moved back to our hometown and started working at the boutique I was managing, we began to rehash the idea. Always Plenty was on the shelf at the boutique, showing us that it could really be done. We decided to make plans.

Originally “making plans” meant sitting on my bedroom floor, surrounded by picture books, pointing out what we loved most about various illustrator’s styles. Eventually it meant meeting for coffee and working on a layout, exchanging lots of text messages and, when her husband’s job took them out of state, exchanging letters (because we both have an irrepressible love for snail mail.) We always knew we’d finish the book eventually, but a couple of years passed between that meeting on the floor and the day I flew to North Carolina to pick up the portfolio.

Megan’s illustrations were worth the wait! I was thrilled to finally sit on her couch and thumb through them and then, today, to scan them and see them blown up and shining on my computer screen. The combination of my “just for fun” story and Megan’s artwork is Anonymouse. 

Anonymouse is a fully illustrated picture book about a mouse named Parsnip Peppersnatch who must face his fears to help a lonely girl named Philippa. Anonymouse is about friendship, courage and the power of the postal service. I am currently working on the details of bookmaking and publishing, but I am still hoping to release Anonymouse before Christmas, 2018.

Thanks in advance for joining in our celebration! I will do my best to keep everyone up to date. In the meantime, follow my new Instagram account, @carolinekraftwriter to peek into the process!

Photo credit: Jeweliet Kraft