Today is Day 1 of a virtual tour for, A Caterpillar, a Bee, and a VERY Big Tree, a new book by D.B. Sanders and Dicksy Wilson. In today’s post, find out more about D. B. and Dicksy.

Meet the Authors

Authors D. B. Sanders & Dicksy Wilson With Their New Book

Brother, D.B. Sanders, and sister, Dicksy Wilson grew up in Tulsa, Oklahoma in a time when kids played outside and stayed outside until the street lights came on. They didn’t have computers and video games so they would entertain themselves with their imaginations; building cities for their Matchbox cars out of blocks, writing little skits to act out with their puppets for their parents. They also grew up with an appetite for books and enjoyed Dr. Seuss, Richard Scarry and many other authors.

Their parents encouraged them to try new things and to think outside the box. They say their father would often make up silly songs and entertain everyone while on vacation or on long car rides. Their mother would often sing in the kitchen while making dinner and both parents would make even the most everyday tasks more enjoyable. They recall how their grandmother was a child at heart and would often get on the floor and play with them, encouraging them to use their imaginations and build blanket forts out of her dining room chairs and blankets.

As adults, while watching their children swim, they came up with the first line of the book “In a quiet backyard quite a bit like your own, a little green caterpillar crawled all alone” and they were on their way. They wanted to write something that would encourage positive reinforcement and teamwork. It was a labor of love. Getting together was something of an effort as they were both busy working, but they utilized any free time and made slow but steady progress on the book. The authors say it was fun to see the progression of the characters from inception to completion of the manuscript. Sometimes they had no idea what was going to happen next in the book, and would brainstorm about how to get characters out of a perilous position. They enjoy writing in rhyme scheme and utilizing the sing-song way in which the book can be read to children. The positive message they hope for kids to take away from the book is that you can do anything if you put your mind to it, and even though we are all different in our own unique way, we all have something we can contribute.

They both say they would like to start working on a continuing story about Gus and Shoo, and hope someday soon to sit down and write that beginning line that will have them hooked until the manuscript is complete. Perhaps there will be a few new characters in the book that kids can relate to.

Follow the virtual tour for their new book all this week. Just go to the National Writing for Children Center to get the links.