The three signs Halloween is coming: Target puts out decorations in July; kids start to talk about costumes in September; and fun, but spooooky books release all fall. One super charming new title I was excited to discover is by author-illustrator Kimberly Shrack. I caught up with Kimberly to learn more:
Me: Congratulations on SPOOKY SCOUTS (Margaret K. McElderry Books, Fall 2026)! What a fun read for kids who like their spookiness tempered with a lot of sweet humor and heart. What inspired you to create this book?
Kimberly: Feral preschoolers! My oldest daughter went to a co-op preschool where the parents took turns volunteering in the classroom. On one of my days, the kids were just on one, going from calm to absolutely bananas in a matter of seconds. I thought, Yeesh, they’re like werewolves! That’s when I got the idea for the Luna character, a little werewolf that changes on a dime, even if she doesn’t want to. I initially wrote Luna into a school setting, but it wasn’t quite right for the story I wanted to tell. I wanted her to face the anxiety of potential embarrassment head on, and discover the cool community that can happen when you share your weirdness instead of hiding it. The woodsy setting gave me a little more flexibility in how that could happen, and bringing in the scouts allowed me to really highlight the “community of weirdos” angle.
Me: Speaking of: did you feel like a ‘weird’ kid?
Kimberly: As you can probably guess from my answer above, that’s a yes. I was an extremely anxious, over-thinking kid. I worried about everything, all the time, and cried at the drop of a hat. I still remember that horrible feeling of knowing the tears were coming, but not being able to do anything to stop it. And let me tell you, crying in math class because you’re confused doesn’t exactly earn you a spot at the cool lunch table. The crying, combined with my love of theater and questionable fashion choices, planted me firmly in the “weird” category. I’m still there, but I dress better now. Mostly.
Me: Your scout troop is so vivid and cute. Can you share about your character design and illustration process?
Kimberly: The Spooky Scouts went through lots of iterations before they landed on their final forms! My process involves lots of sketching and even more erasing. I typically start with character sketches in a 3/4 pose. The first versions are always the most complex and detailed, and then I take bits and pieces away. I stop when I hit a balance between simplicity and recognizability. From there, I sketch the character in a variety of actions. There are always more changes at that point, typically to the proportions and limbs. It’s a back and forth process of drawing, erasing, and drawing again. I know the character is done when it feels done, which I know is a totally unsatisfactory answer, but also the absolute truth. When I have the line work pretty well figured out, I start experimenting with color. For a cast of characters like Spooky Scouts, I do all the colors at once to ensure they are balanced and coordinate well. Nothing worse than spending lots of time of a character only to see their colors don’t present well next to one another!
Me: How did you get into creating books for kids?
Kimberly: Before I got into children’s books, I was a professional calligrapher — yes, it’s a real job! I know, I couldn’t believe it either! But the thing about calligraphy is that it generally requires special, in-person events. So when 2020 hit, I found myself in need of a major pivot and an upgraded portfolio. I began to lean more heavily into my illustration work, and took online portfolio-building courses, including one on children’s book illustration. And that was it. I was hooked.
Me: What are you working on next?
Kimberly: I just wrapped up the illustrations for my next picture book BRAAAINS! with LBYR. BRAAAINS! follows a little zombie on his quest to find his missing dog named—you guessed it—Brains. When the dog wanders into a human town, chaos ensues! It’s a really fun, spooky story, and it publishes in July 2027. Right now, I’m working on an unannounced picture book for 2028. Stay tuned for more!
Me: Sounds fun! Thank you so much for chatting, Kimberly. Wishing your book much success!
To learn more, please visit Kimberly Shrack.
author photo by Heather Lewis
