January 24, 2024– Tamara Botting has a very special place in my heart as she was the very first author that I published at Pandamonium Publishing House. She’s the author of Unfrogged, Big Bother Brother, Pants, and Spoiled Rotten (with more books on the way!). Let’s get to know a little bit more about her:
We asked Tamara what inspires her to write: “There hasn’t really been one source of inspiration for me; each book I’ve written was sparked by something different. With Unfrogged, I just really wanted to try doing a novelization of a fairy tale. One of my favourite books in my youth was Beauty by Robin McKinley, which is a retelling of Beauty and the Beast. Since I didn’t want to copy her, I decided to choose a different fairy tale as my starting point. Beauty and the Beast had always been my favourite fairy tale, but I did have a soft spot for the Frog Prince, too – probably more so now! Pants was inspired by one of my nieces and two nephews. I was babysitting that group of siblings a fair bit for a while, and for a time, the funniest thing in the world to them was the phrase ‘banana pants.’ That made me think about other kinds of pants, like cranky pants and fancy pants, and the idea just kind of grew out of that. Big Bother Brother and Spoiled Rotten are both about sibling relationships. I have five brothers, so that’s something I have a lot of experience in. It can be weird growing up with siblings around, because there are times these other humans in the house are the most annoying creatures on the planet, and then there are times when they’re your best friends. It can feel like emotional whiplash.”
What do you like to do when you’re not writing? “I’ve got a couple of interests besides writing. Probably unsurprisingly, I like to read. Also unsurprisingly, I like to be creative and make stuff – I can pretty much always be seen knitting or crocheting when I’m out in public (including when I go to the movies), and I like to dabble in different arts and crafts; lately that’s been different types of painting.” I’ve seen Tamara’s crocheting and painting and unsurprisingly she’s very talented at both!
What do you hope for in 2024? “My hope for 2024 is to embrace the new adventures. I’ve started the year in a transition period, so I’m not quite sure where I’m heading, but I want to enjoy the journey as much as I can along the way.” That sounds wonderful!
Here’s where you can find Tamara’s books:
Canada: Spoiled Rotten: Botting, Tamara: 9781989506745: Books – Amazon.ca
USA: Unfrogged by Tamara Botting, Alex Goubar, Paperback | Barnes & Noble® (barnesandnoble.com)
Globally: http://www.pandamoniumpublishing.com/shop
