Every story has a beginning and so does every writer.

Suzanne Poulter Harris was born in Northern Ireland and taught geography two miles from C. S. Lewis’s childhood home in Belfast. After trading her classroom to travel the world as a U.S. Air Force spouse, she settled near Washington, DC, where she teaches elementary school reading. The Boy Behind the Wardrobe: How C. S. Lewis Grew Up to Create Narnia is Suzanne’s debut picture book. You can learn more about her at her website or follow her on Instagram or Twitter.

THE BOY BEHIND THE WARDROBE: HOW C.S. LEWIS GREW UP TO CREATE NARNIA is a picture book biography all about the famous writer C.S. Lewis. This story explores his childhood, his loves, and all of his young influences that might have impacted his future writings and it’s gorgeously done. Beautiful text is combined with lush illustrations that really capture the magic of Narnia.

Welcome Suzanne!

Me: Can you tell us a little bit about your writing journey? When did you start writing? How has that brought you to writing this picture book?

Suzanne: Teaching first grade reading in Colorado re-ignited my passion for picture books as a medium for storytelling. After sharing countless picture books with my two daughters, I thought perhaps I could write one. But being a military spouse meant frequent stops and starts on my writing journey as we moved every year or two—Italy, Germany, Texas, South Korea (2 moves!), and Virginia. You could say I took the scenic route.

I joined SCBWI and started learning the craft of writing picture books in 2012 while my younger daughter was in kindergarten (she’s now a college sophomore!). In 2013, I joined Julie Hedlund’s 12×12 and the following year connected with a wonderful critique group. By this stage, I had six solid stories ready to submit.

One of those stories caught the eye of a new agent in a Twitter contest. I signed with Storm Literary Agency in January 2015 as one of their first clients—we have since parted ways. We got some great feedback on my work, including a couple of revise-and-resubmit requests. One manuscript made it to a big 5 acquisitions meeting … but no offer. Around this time, I took a narrative nonfiction writing course and was hooked. I studied numerous picture book biographies and then challenged myself to write one.

Me: I love the way you’ve approached and told this story. What gave you the initial idea for this picture book?

Suzanne: Thanks, Jena! I was born and raised in County Down, Northern Ireland and taught geography two miles from C.S. Lewis’s childhood home in Belfast. I grew up reading The Chronicles of Narnia. The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe is still one of my favorite books today. Although C.S. Lewis was sent to boarding school in England and remained there throughout his working life, he yearned for the rolling hills of County Down and returned home often. Much of his inspiration for Narnia came from the landscapes of his childhood. My initial idea was to showcase these places in a beautiful picture book.

Me: I feel like C.S. Lewis is a subject around which MUCH has been written, and it can feel like everything has already been told about him. Yet you found beautiful new material to focus on and wrote it in a new way. Why was it important to you to tell this story about him? Why did you want to share it with young readers?

Suzanne: When I started my research back in October 2015, there were no picture books about C.S. Lewis. Now there are several. It was important for me to tell his story because firstly, I saw myself in his journey. If this imaginative boy from my little corner of the world—who loved to tell stories and secretly dreamed of being a poet—could become a world-famous author, then maybe I too could achieve my publishing dream. And perhaps children might also connect with that hope, especially those living on the periphery. When I was growing up, I rarely saw people from Northern Ireland on mainstream British television, so when a local person “made it” on the U.K. mainland or in America, it felt like a huge accomplishment.

I was also fascinated by C.S. Lewis’s world-building, partly due to my background as a geography teacher. I loved how the landscapes, coastlines, and castles of his childhood inspired Lewis to create a magical world that has stood the test of time. Yet he was also curious about ordinary things—like a wardrobe as a doorway to another world. I hope THE BOY BEHIND THE WARDROBE inspires young readers to look at their surroundings through the lens of their imagination and try to write their own stories. Children believe in possibilities that we as adults might dismiss. C.S. Lewis’s story invites children to embrace that sense of wonder and creativity, while discovering the joy of reading and writing. As a literacy interventionist, I’m excited to share this inspirational story with kids in the classroom.

Me: Can you talk about how you came to publish with Eerdmans? Did you shop the story around? Or was this the only publisher you submitted to?

Suzanne: In some ways, I wrote this story with Eerdmans Books for Young Readers in mind. My go-to mentor text was a book they’d published as part of their Incredible Lives for Young Readers Series—The Right Word: Roget and his Thesaurus, written by Jen Bryant and illustrated by Melissa Sweet. This beautiful, lyrical picture book was a 2015 Caldecott Honor winner.

When we were getting ready to submit, my agent already had another client’s story on submission with Eerdmans, so she made an initial list of five editors at other publishing houses. While most editors liked the celebration of imagination and creativity in the story, a few felt there was a disconnect between a middle grade author and the younger picture book audience. Based on this feedback, I did another round of edits.

Then, while volunteering with SCBWI at the Texas Library Association convention, I connected with Kathleen Merz, the acquiring editor at Eerdmans Books for Young Readers. We started chatting about books. When I mentioned my C.S. Lewis story, Kathleen’s face lit up and she said she would love to read it!

It was several months before I received the offer. I had moved to Seoul and had almost given up hope. Then, on December 1, 2017, my agent emailed me with the wonderful news that my manuscript had received unanimous enthusiasm from the acquisitions team at Eerdmans, and they wanted to publish my story!

I knew Eerdmans had the vision to publish a beautiful book. And I’m thrilled that THE BOY BEHIND THE WARDROBE is now part of the Incredible Lives for Young Readers Series that helped shape my early manuscript.

Me: What is one thing that surprised you in writing this story?

Suzanne: I think writers would appreciate some nuggets I uncovered about “The Inklings,” the group of Oxford friends who met weekly to read aloud and critique each other’s work. C.S. Lewis’s brother, Warnie, wrote in his diary, “We were no mutual admiration society … To read to the Inklings was a formidable ordeal.”

I was surprised to learn that while C.S. Lewis was instrumental in encouraging J.R.R. Tolkien to keep writing The Lord of the Rings and was for some time his only audience, Tolkien did not feel the same about The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe. When Lewis first read aloud his manuscript, Tolkien dismissed it as a carelessly written jumble of unrelated mythologies. In fact, he felt the whole Narnia series was too allegorical.

Me: The illustrations by Mira Miroslavova are gorgeous! I love the way she played with light all throughout the book. Were there any illustration surprises for you? Any favorites?

Suzanne: Yes … many favorites and surprises! I think visually when I write, but I picture more realistic scenes in my head. I had included an art note about a telescope in the spread where Jack (C.S. Lewis) and his brother spy on ships in the bustling Belfast Lough. I love how Mira used that little note to bring whimsy and wonder to the illustration. She surprised me by creating a visual delight so much better than anything I could have imagined. My father-in-law teared up when I first showed him that spread.

Other favorites include the double page spread showing Animal-Land/Boxen, where Mira’s artwork bursts off the pages with life and imagination. Then there’s the wardrobe spread, which Mira reworked from an earlier sketch, surprising us with her spectacular visual storytelling.

And yes, Jena—the way Mira played with darkness and light throughout the book was very effective. She reimagined the scene where Jack’s mother dies. The darkness makes us feel the weight of the moment, almost engulfing us in Jack’s overwhelming sense of loss. Yet the light from the candle gives us a hint of hope.

Me: Do you have any advice for aspiring picture book writers?

Suzanne: My advice would be to treat writing like any craft. Work hard to improve your skills but have fun with it! Experiment to find what you enjoy writing—nonfiction, humor, heartfelt stories, or rhyme—and read recently published books in that genre. I often have 20+ books checked out from my library. I read library books to find comp titles for manuscripts. I study other books as mentor texts if I’m struggling with a particular aspect of a story, whether that’s voice, pacing, or strengthening the emotional arc. Sometimes, I type out other texts to see how the words flow on the page without the illustrations.

Get involved with the writing community—online or local writing groups. This will help you keep going through the inevitable rejections, and you’ll learn so much from other creators. Try stepping outside your comfort zone. Attend conferences or volunteer at a writing event. You never know where it might lead!

That is great advice. Thank you for stopping by my blog today Suzanne!

Dear readers, this book publishes next week. It’s a wonderful look at the life of C.S. Lewis and the influence his childhood had on his writing, as well as the influence his imagination had on so many readers around the world. Trust me when I say, you won’t want to miss it!