The Picture Book Buzz - Interview with Kristi Mahoney
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- 5 min read
Kristi Mahoney lives outside of Boston, MA with her husband, son, daughter, and seven fur-family members.
Kristi loves animals of all kinds, so it’s not surprising they’re a big part of her writing.
Kristi is the author of Alpacas Make Terrible Librarians, illustrated by Chantelle and Burgen (2024).
Her newest picture book, Owls Make Terrible Teachers, was released on April 28th.
Welcome Kristi,
Tell us a little about yourself. (Where/when do you write or illustrate? How long have you been writing and illustrating?)
I’ve been writing picture books for about eight years. After lots of practice, persistence, help from the kidlit community, and some good luck, I was fortunate to debut my first published book in 2024. I usually write in the morning surrounded by a few of my many animals in a sunny spot in my house in Massachusetts. Snacks and iced coffee are important too.
It's great to "meet" you Kristi. What is one of the most fun or unusual places where you’ve written a manuscript?
I love this question! The most fun place I’ve written a manuscript was on a winter writer’s retreat with all my critique partners. We wrote for hours in a beautiful house by the water, took breaks to eat delicious food, bundled up for a walk on the beach, and read/discussed picture books. There is something about being surrounded by all that creative energy that works magic.
That sounds like an amazing retreat! What was your inspiration or spark of interest for Owls Make Terrible Teachers?
Pairing two unlikely things together can be funny and I had this idea of putting animals into unlikely professions. Owls and alpacas happen to be two of my favorite animals and they’re super interesting. As far as their jobs, I wanted to place them in kid-friendly places where their traits might be “terrible.” For example, owls being nocturnal might be a fun fact, but having to go to school in the middle of the night because your owl teacher is nocturnal is pretty terrible (and exhausting)!
Oh my gosh, that is hysterical! That is such a funny scenario. What is the hardest or most challenging thing about writing Owls Make Terrible Teachers? And what was the most fun?
Because this book is part of a series, I wanted readers to love it just as much as Alpacas Make Terrible Librarians. I was challenged with making sure it had a similar feel as the first book but also be completely fresh and unique. Not to mention, it had to be funny! The fact that a completely new character is introduced, it’s a new setting, and it takes place in the middle of the night helped.
The thing that’s really fun about writing this book (and this series) is finding hilarious facts about animals and using them in the most unexpected ways. For example, owls have extremely long hidden legs. There was no question that the owl teacher needed to be in a situation where he would have to run fast. Enter the gym class scene where the owl challenges the class to a hurdle race. Also, watching your teacher do any sort of physical activity is fun in itself!
You are so right about that! How many revisions did Owls Make Terrible Teachers take from first draft to publication? How does this compare to Alpacas Make Terrible Librarians?
Both Owls Make Terrible Teachers and Alpacas Make Terrible Librarians went through dozens of drafts and many critique partners. But there’s something top-secret about these books that I can share. Although it’s the second book in the series, I actually wrote my first draft of Owls Make Terrible Teachers BEFORE writing Alpacas Make Terrible Librarians. Once Gnome Road acquired Alpacas, it was the brilliant idea of my editor to switch up the ending to “hint” at another terrible animal situation. It worked perfectly that the same cast of characters that encountered the Alpaca would head to school to tell their teacher and discover…Owls Make Terrible Teachers. Everything about these two books is ultimately better because of the team that helped create them.
Thank you so much for this top-secret, amazing tidbit Did anything surprise or amaze you when you first saw Chantelle and Burgen Thorne’s illustrations? What is your favorite spread?
Text © Kristi Mahoney, 2026. Image © Chantelle Thorne and Burgen Thorne, 2026.
Seeing the Owl teacher for the first time was such an incredible surprise. He’s turquoise, sports a bright orange tie with mouse skulls, and is absolutely perfect! Chantelle and Burgen Thorne add so much humor with their illustrations. It’s hard to pick a favorite spread, but the gym class scene that shows the Owl’s long legs makes me laugh, and the circle time scene where we say goodbye to the owl makes my heart full.
Seeing an owl running the track, during gym class, is adorable and so funny! What's something you want your readers to know or learn about Owls Make Terrible Teachers?
I’m hoping readers will learn something new about owls they didn’t know, but ultimately the goal is to appreciate all the incredible “human” teachers in the world!
Already worked for me, as I didn't know that owls have really long legs. Are there any new projects you are working on now that you can share a tidbit with us?
At the end of Owls Make Terrible Teachers there’s a hint at another animal that’s terrible at his job. I would be thrilled to work with Chantelle and Burgen Thorne and Gnome Road again!
I’ve also been stepping out of my comfort zone and have been inspired to write humorous stories that don’t feature animals. I even wrote a lyrical non-fiction manuscript. I don’t know who was more surprised, me or my critique partners! When a story finds me that won’t let go, I’ve learned it’s important to listen.
Intriguing! I wish you the best of luck with all of these and look forward to seeing what you do next. Last question, what is your favorite National Park or Forest, regional park, or city park (anywhere in the world)? Or the one you’re longing to visit. Why?
The Cape Cod National Seashore is my favorite National Park to visit because even though I’ve been visiting since I was a kid, and have been hundreds of times, it still fills me with awe every single time!
Thank you, Kristi, for sharing with us a bit about yourself and your new picture book.
Be sure to come back Friday for the Perfect Picture Book #PPBF review of Owls Make Terrible Teachers.
To find out more about Kristi Mahoney, or to contact her:
Website: https://www.kristimahoneybooks.com/
(X) Twitter: https://x.com/kristi_mahoney
