Have you ever had a favorite item of clothing when you were young? Do you remember the heartbreak of growing out of it?
Jenn Moudahi is a Métis author, clinical counselor, and mom. Stories are a common thread in her life—she writes them as an author, listens to them as a counselor, escapes into them as a reader, and allows too many at bedtime as a mom. Growing up, Jenn spent countless hours with her own mom learning to create Indigenous art, often helping to teach workshops throughout British Columbia. Jenn lives in Western Canada with her husband, two kids, and two purrfect cats. You can learn more about her at her website or follow her in Instagram or BlueSky.
CHARLOTTE’S NEW MOCCASINS is a picture book all about young Charlotte who is devastated to find out that her favorite pair of moccasins can no longer be worn. She visits her Grandma and learns how to make a new pair. Each piece and part is chosen with joy and pride.
Welcome Jenn!
Me: Can you tell us a little bit about your writing journey? When did you start writing picture books? How has that brought you to writing this picture book?
Jenn: Absolutely! As a kid I loved to write, but I fell away from writing after high school. Later (much later, ha!), in 2022, I was on maternity leave and reading A LOT of picture books. I started to get the writing itch again and thought maybe I could write a kid’s book. However, I’d never imagined that I’d write anything other than an epic fantasy novel and knew nothing about the kidlit world. That meant diving in and learning as much as I could. I sent out my first query in April and signed with an agent that November. During those months, I attended SCBWI’s summer conference where many speakers talked about writing a story that only you could write. After some memory mining exercises, I concluded that growing up learning Indigenous art from my mom was actually not that common. My memories of us being together in her workshop is what led to the creation of Charlotte’s New Moccasins. In February 2023, I accepted an offer from Karen Boss at Charlesbridge, and now we’re here! It still feels surreal.
Me: I love that you are explaining how moccasins are made from a child’s point of view, yet this isn’t nonfiction OR a how-to. What gave you the idea?
Jenn: I wish I could say I set out trying to accomplish this, but I more stumbled my way here! Some pieces came about naturally as I reflected on being a kid in my mom’s workshop and watching her work…the sense of companionship and wonder are lived experiences for me. However, writing as an adult, I did get a bit too technical in the first drafts, and had previously included more details about the moccasin-making. Working with Karen has been a delight and she helped guide the process of cutting my very long manuscript into the version you see today. Many of the details just moved to the backmatter, so I was happy that they were still in the book.
Me: You have brilliantly found the heart of the story with Charlotte’s emotions from the very beginning of the story. Was this always an element of your story from the first draft? Or did that come about through multiple revisions?
Jenn: Thank you, this comment makes me so happy! I work as a clinical counsellor, so emotions might be one element of writing that comes more naturally to me––or at least is on my radar. 🙂 It helped to draw on my own memories here, as I absolutely loved being in my mom’s workshop growing up. I think that this was always a part of the story, but multiple revisions cut away the weeds so that Charlotte’s experience came more to the forefront.
Me: The illustrations by Rhael McGregor are perfect! They absolutely capture Charlotte’s joy and energy. Were there any illustration surprises for you? Any favorites?
Jenn: I love Rhael’s illustrations! One surprise that brings me a lot of joy is that Charlotte is wearing purple overalls. This sounds like a minor detail, but purple has been my favourite colour my entire life and I am OBSESSED. To see Charlotte’s outfit for the first time was just the icing on the cake. I also love how Rhael showcased the relationship between Charlotte and Grandma…like you said, it’s perfect! My favourite spread shows Grandma tracing Charlotte’s feet and then Charlotte cutting out the pattern.
Me: I love all of the back matter that you have included about moccasins. Was that your idea to include? Or was that someone else’s suggestion (agent, editor, etc.)? Was there anything that got left out or you wish you could’ve included?
Jenn: Thank you! I personally love when books have backmatter, so I did want to include information at the end of this one––especially because there were all sorts of details that didn’t fit or didn’t make the cut in the main text.
Society has spent so long trying to erase Indigenous culture, so being able to share information about moccasins in this way feels very meaningful and important. Again, I’m grateful to have worked with Karen on this, because she fully supported and encouraged me to include details in the backmatter. So much so, that originally there was only one page allocated for backmatter, but through our revisions together, she suggested that we combine a few pages from the story so there would be room for two pages of backmatter. Yay! There are always more layers of detail that could be added, but I’m very happy with what’s in the book. 🙂
Me: What is one thing that surprised you in writing this story?
Jenn: Hmm, I was surprised I enjoyed writing in prose! All my manuscripts prior to this (including what I queried with) were rhyming stories. I also couldn’t believe how easy it was to let the word count get away from me when I’m not working under a strict meter and rhyme scheme.
Me: You are a Métis author. You learned and taught indigenous craft with your mom growing up. Did you have a special pair of moccasins that you loved as much as Charlotte does her’s? What made you want to share this story with young readers?
Jenn: I’ve got a big grin on my face, because YES I have a pair of special moccasins! When I was a teenager, I asked my mom for moccasins using leather from 3 different dyed hides: purple, blue, and green. Being the wonderful human she is, I don’t think my mom even batted an eye. She made me the most untraditional traditional pair of footwear I’d ever seen, and I still have them today. I loved that I didn’t have to fit into the stereotypical Indigenous “box”, and this is what led to Charlotte choosing two colors of leather in the book. Traditional doesn’t have to mean exactly the same…there can be personal flair mixed in too.
And I wanted to share this story for several reasons:
- For Indigenous families/children to see themselves represented in a book and to foster a sense of pride about that part of their identity.
- To promote cultural awareness and share knowledge that hasn’t always been available.
- To plant the seed that traditions/culture can evolve and grow, we don’t have to do exactly the same as our ancestors for it to be meaningful.
- To inspire creativity, a desire to learn from others, and value family.
I love that. Thank you for stopping by my blog today.
Dear readers, this book is published today. Happy book birthday Jenn! If you’re looking for a book full of fashion, heritage, and individuality, this is it. You won’t want to miss it.