Interview: Mary Munson
- Little Thoughts Press
- Mar 23
- 6 min read
Mary Munson is a children’s author and early childhood special education teacher who believes the best stories make children laugh while helping them grow. Inspired by many years working with young children, she writes stories that nurture kindness, resilience, and joy while inviting readers to feel a sense of wonder about the world around them. Her books blend meaningful learning with humor and heart in ways that feel natural, engaging, and full of discovery. When not writing, Mary enjoys being in nature, playing the drums, doing puzzles, cooking and laughing with friends and family.
Little Thoughts Press: Your story “The Perfect Collection” wonderfully captures the particular anxieties and small, but very real emotional turmoil in the lives of young children--something like not having a proper collection for Show and Tell is a big deal for little kids! Right now, families and communities are confronted with so many upsetting and truly harrowing experiences that it can be hard to remember that in addition to these larger world problems, our kids are also still facing the everyday emotional struggles that come with growing up. Drawing on your experience as a special education preschool teacher, what advice can you offer to parents, fellow educators, and anyone who works or regularly interacts with young children about making space for the full spectrum of children's emotional experiences and struggles? How can fellow kid-lit writers bring this same awareness and connection to their own writing?
Mary Munson: This is a great question, because as you mention, the larger world problems are very real and some of the smaller emotional struggles that children face can be overlooked. I think the most important part of recognizing and helping children with their emotional experiences and struggles is really tuning into their expressions, body language, and the questions they ask. Children are pretty transparent with their feelings even before they can name them or begin to know how to manage them. Stating how they may feel, “you look sad,” or “your body looks tight, are you angry?” can help them begin to express themselves and open up conversations. We use simple picture cards of emotions to help children show how they feel and then offer one or two strategies for calming like “belly breaths,” or counting while inhaling and exhaling. There are lots of great images children can use, like “smell the flowers” (for deep inhales), “blow out the candles” (for exhales). It's important to remember that all behaviors are a form of communication. Keeping a consistent routine and schedule also helps children feel safe in their lives.
For kid-lit writers, remember that kids may feel deeply about some things and not others. So, it is important to stay true to your character’s personality. Do they get so angry and run away? Climb a tree? Throw things? Or withdraw? What happens to your character's body when they are happy? Are they skipping, jumping, or rolling on the floor laughing? There are so many ways to show readers how your character experiences emotions. Pick what works for your character and story and show the complexity of emotions children have. They may be young, but they do feel big feelings and the more we write about them, the more children will be able to understand how they feel and what to do with those feelings. One of my favorite books that shows the complexity of a child’s emotions is When Sophie Gets Angry, by Molly Bang. It shows a child who moves through the cycle of anger and back to calm, ending in the loving welcoming of her family. It’s perfect for young children.
Little Thoughts Press: What is your favorite thing about working in a preschool classroom and what advice would you give to fellow writers about depicting this specific age group in books and stories?
Mary Munson: This is a hard one because I really love my job. I was a classroom teacher for 22 years and now I am a special education teacher in a public-school pre-k program. I think my favorite part is watching children learn and make connections. For example, we just had a lesson on sap and maple syrup and watching them realize that the syrup for their pancakes starts out in a tree, was incredible. Seeing their world expand like that is incredible. And then all the questions they have about it, “Can my tree make syrup?” “How does it get to the store?” “Can you eat it right out of the tree?” We are fortunate enough to go to a farm to see the process firsthand. Some children come back with new words like, “spile” and “evaporator.” Some kids talk about eating pancakes. Others simply love the bus ride. Seeing the different takeaways from the same experience is always fascinating to me. It really speaks to the uniqueness of children.
This age group is excited and is experiencing so many new things every day. I prefer reading stories that are shorter and inspire big questions and thoughts. When writing for this age group, keep it simple, honor real life and how a child experiences it physically and emotionally. I love writing lyrical stories with sparse text and onomatopoeia. Expressing big ideas or feelings with a well-chosen word excites me as a writer.
Little Thoughts Press: Our Better Together issue is all about community and people working together to make the world a better place. What are some actions, big or small, that you take to help make the world better? Are there any organizations that are doing good, important work that you want to shout out?
Mary Munson: I help the world be a better place by focusing on children’s wellbeing. Teaching feelings first seems to be the most useful approach in all of teaching. People need to learn how to get along and listen to each other. We value kindness at our school, so practicing kindness does make the school a wonderful place to be. My debut picture book, Love Will Turn You Around (2023), is about kindness, friendship and working together. I often do author readings around town that focus on love, turning tough situations around, problem-solving and teamwork. Living in CT I want to give a shout out to the Choose Love Movement that helps make schools the kind and loving places they should be.
Little Thoughts Press: How did you get started writing kid-lit and what do you find most challenging and rewarding about writing for kids?
Mary Munson: I wrote stories in elementary school and was fortunate enough to have teachers who encouraged me to continue writing. Over the past thirty years, I’ve connected with SCBWI, 12x12 Picture Book Challenge, and many online parts of the kid-lit community. I have met incredible authors, illustrators, and visionaries, all working to bring important messages to children.
I find the most challenging part to be waiting, waiting for responses from agents and editors, and waiting for publications.
Little Thoughts Press: Which kid-lit authors and books were your favorites growing up?
Mary Munson: Oh, I loved the greats! I loved Alan Alexander Milne for Winnie the Pooh, Astrid Lindgren for Pipi Longstocking and Judy Bloom for knowing how I felt as a pre-teen!
Little Thoughts Press: And what about today? Any kid-lit writers you love and want to shout out?
Mary Munson: Peter Reynolds, I love so many of his books and I had the chance to meet him a year ago, he is a wonderful man, but you can also tell that from his books.
Chris Rashka intrigued me early in my writing career for telling stories using very few words, my favorite is Yo! Yes!
And David Shannon, for No! David! This is a book I use every year in every classroom. It’s simple and perfect for young children who are learning about rules.
Little Thoughts Press: What advice would you give to young writers?
Mary Munson: Certainly to keep writing, write what you know, what you think, and write how you feel. Write and enjoy the process, embrace creativity–it truly is the highest form of intelligence.
Little Thoughts Press: Is there anything else you wish I had asked? Any upcoming projects, publications, or other news you'd like to share?
Mary Munson: I just got some encouraging news about the very first manuscript I ever submitted for publication. Now it has undergone numerous revisions over the years but in the last revision, I feel it is stronger than it has ever been. It is currently sitting on an editor's desk...so yes, I am again waiting.
You may then ask, when did you write this original manuscript? I will take a breath and say... over thirty years ago!
And one more thing to the aspiring young writers, don’t ever give up.
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