Six Questions with Ellen Ramsey

Ellen Ramsey's love of reading and writing led her to careers as a teacher, technical writer, and author of stories for children. Her debut picture book, A Book for Bear, received the Moonbeam Award for the Best First Book (Picture Book category) and was nominated for a Keystone State Literacy Association “Keystone to Reading Elementary Book Award.” When she is not reading or writing, she loves hiking and watching butterflies, birds, and bees, and nighttime star gazing and watching flying squirrels.

Visit Ellen's website to learn more about her and her work, or connect with her on social media:

IG: @ellenlramseybooks

Facebook: @ellen.l.ramsey.5

X: @ellenlramseyl

Bluesky: @ellenlramseybooks

1. How did you begin your journey as an author?

I started writing as a child. In grade school, my friends and I wrote a one-act play that debuted in a neighbor’s garage. In college, I wrote a one-act play that was performed in the college’s laboratory theater. Then, for many years, I concentrated on raising my daughter and on my day jobs, first as a junior high and high school English teacher and then as a technical writer and editor for an environmental consulting firm. Finally, at the urging of my mother, an artist and elementary school art teacher, I started writing for children—first articles, stories, and poems for magazines—and then picture books.  

2. What’s the best piece of advice a mentor has given you? 

Here is advice from two of my favorite authors that I’ve heard speak at writing conferences:

Read, read, read.

Richard Peck:

“We write by the light of every book we have read.”

“Read 1,000 books for every book you want to write.”

Writing is magic!

Susan Cooper: "The best ideas come from whisperings, signs, echoes from what haunts your memory and your mind. Writing is magic, and the writing process is part of a ritual to cast a spell.”

3. What do you feel you’ve gained from being a part of the children’s writing community?

The best part about writing for children is the people you meet! As a book lover, I frequent libraries and bookstores and enjoy participating in writing events. Book-loving teachers and librarians, agents and editors, authors and illustrators, parents and kids—what better company can there be! I was thrilled that MacKenzie Haley, who has a superb visual sense of humor, was chosen to illustrate A Book for Bear. I greatly appreciate the advice from the authors and publishing professionals who have critiqued my work and their recommendations about marketing strategies.

4. Where did you get the idea for A Book for Bear? What was your inspiration?

The inspiration for the book came from my experiences as a book lover. When I was a child, my sister and I loved to sit under a card table with a special table cloth that created a little house with a front flap as a door. My sister, who is three years older, read books to me. When I learned to read, I read books to my teddy bears and to the cats who loved to the hide in this miniature house. They were always an attentive audience. Now I love to read aloud to children of all ages and to teddy bears!

5. If you could tell readers one secret about this book, what would it be? 

The “secret” is really a “surprise” created by the editor, art director, and illustrator. The book has an “undie.” If you remove the book jacket, the second cover is a surprise that ties in perfectly with the ending of the story.

6. What’s a particularly striking or memorable reaction someone has had to this book?

I appreciate several memorable reactions to A Book For Bear. A librarian at an ALA conference mentioned that A Book for Bear was her son’s favorite book and showed me photos of him reading the book on the airplane trip to Philadelphia. On Halloween, two parents posted photos of their daughters costumed as the character Ellen with a red jumper and blue hair. In one case, the whole family had costumes. Dad was Bear; the daughter was Ellen; the baby, dressed in red, was the book the color of ripe red raspberries that Bear wants to find; and the mom (because her daughter had received the book as part of Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library), was costumed as Dolly.

If you're a traditionally published picture book or middle-grade book creator and you'd like to be featured on this Six Questions blog, drop us an email to get on the schedule.