The Picture Book Buzz - Interview with Sonja Anderson

Maria Marshall
Sep 1
8 min read

Sonja Anderson is a Swedish American elementary school librarian with an EdM from Harvard University.

She and her Norwegian American husband, Jeff, live in Seattle, Washington, where their two daughters grew up participating in their church’s annual Santa Lucia pageant. Dala horses, straw ornaments, pepparkakor cookies, and Swedish candelabras make their holidays festive and bright. She is delighted that her first picture book celebrates her favorite Swedish traditions. Her other books for children aren't Swedish, but kids find the animal characters just as charming!

Collage of the three covers of Sonja Anderson's books - on the left, the Mount Rainier lodge. In the middle, owl perched in a tree with a fox and badger below. On the right, a owl flying along a seashore.

Sonja is the author of Mount Rainier's Historic Inns and Lodges, co-written with Jeff Anderson (2017), Sophie Topfeather Superstar (2016), and Sophie’s Quest (2015).

For more information on Sonja Anderson, see our earlier interview (here).

Her newest picture book, A Christmas Wish for Little Dala Horse: A St. Lucia Celebration, is releasing on September 9^th.

Welcome Sonja,

Tell us a little about yourself. (Where/when do you write? How long have you been writing? What is your favorite book to write?)

I’ve been hooked on writing since elementary school, when an essay I wrote about “Why I Love Christmas” was selected to be read at an all-school holiday assembly. I guess I shouldn’t be surprised that my debut picture book is about Christmas, my favorite holiday!

I write every morning before heading to my local elementary school in Seattle, Washington, where I work as an assistant librarian. As a former teacher, I love being surrounded by new and old books for children. Middle grade fiction and picture books are my favorite books to write. It’s fun to have both long and short projects going at the same time, so if I get stuck on one, I can jump into the other.

I think it's a wonderful full circle to have your debut picture book be about Christmas, and especially a Swedish tradition. What helps you to be inspired? (perhaps a certain place, music, activity, etc.)

Working in an elementary school library is a source of never-ending inspiration! I love to see which books the students find interesting or funny or that touch their hearts so much that they have a difficult time returning them! I felt like I had “made it” as an author when one student eventually confessed that she kept renewing my first novel because she read it eight times! That book had been inspired by an argument my daughter had on the school playground, and this new picture book was originally inspired by the stack of “Gingerbread Man” books checked out by the kindergarten teachers.

What a wonderful experience! So, what was your inspiration or spark of interest for A Christmas Wish for Little Dala Horse?

Book Cover - standing in front of a house decorated for Christmas, a boy and a girl hold up Dala horses in front of their grandmother.

One January, while checking in the stack of Gingerbread Man books that Kindergarten teachers had read to their classrooms before the break, I noticed a wide variety of stories: Gingerbread Baby, Runaway Dreidel, Runaway Tortilla, Runaway Matzoh Ball Boy, Runaway Latkes, etc. It got me thinking—why not a Swedish version? A thin, crisp ginger “pepparkakor” cookie is my favorite Christmas cookie, so the thought of it “got the juices flowing,” so to speak! The final version morphed into something very different than those stories, but that’s how it got started.

Great cover! I like the "why not a Swedish version" impetus and especially love the way you modified it to perfect fit Christmas. What was the hardest or most challenging thing about writing A Christmas Wish for Little Dala Horse? And what was the most fun?

The hardest part was the request from my agent to focus, not on a runaway cookie, but on the Dala horse, and to turn the story into a quieter, more unique, and heartwarming tale. I loved taking a deeper dive into my family’s history and Swedish traditions, but the more personal the story became, the more deeply I felt that I wanted to get it right. I worried that the story would be too “niche” and that only Swedish Americans would be drawn to it; it’s a little ironic that the more specific a story becomes, the more universal it seems to be, too.

My publisher was open to my idea of hiding a small Swedish gnome, called a “tomte,” on page after page throughout the story. It was so much fun to see how the illustrator tucked them into hiding spots! Children will have so much fun hunting for them, year after year.

That is a really interesting discovery on universality. And I did enjoy looking for the tomte throughout the book. Is there anything special you want your readers to know about A Christmas Wish for Little Dala Horse?

The main adult in the story is a widowed woodcarver, who keeps her husband’s memory alive by continuing his business of carving Dala horses and other things. The book has become a way for me to remember my dad, too! My dad was a dentist who turned to woodcarving in his retirement, and the first thing he ever carved for me was a little blue Dala horse. He passed away the day after the contract for this book was signed, and his last intelligible words to me were, “That’s so wonderful!”

When Talia Messina, the editor at Tyndale, heard this story, she surprised me by arranging for a special blue candelabra to be illustrated near the dedication I wrote in memory of him.

Oh my gosh, Sonja! So heartbreaking, and also such a loving, and special tribute to him and your family. How many revisions did A Christmas Wish for Little Dala Horse take from first draft to publication?

There was the first major revision, when I changed the book from a "Runaway Gingerbread Man" story to a story about the Dala horse who wants to know what it means to be loved and to experience his first Christmas (Jul, in Swedish), and a little girl who needed a friend to help her participate in the Santa Lucia pageant. We, my agent and I, changed the woodcarver from a man to his widow in another revision, and there were several rounds of refining the story with my critique group and with my agent.

Once the book was accepted by Tyndale, we had a couple more rounds. We had one more round of changes just hours before the manuscript was sent to the publisher, based on feedback from my niece! She helped me see where a page turn could be smoother and the ending a little bit better, and my editor agreed and made it all happen, right at the last minute. I’m so grateful for everyone who participated in making this the best it can be.

Wow! How amazing and nerve wracking that must have been. But what a treasure for your niece to be able to be an integral part of the book's creation! When you first saw Agnieszka Potocka’s illustrations, did anything amaze or surprise you? What is your favorite spread?

Internal spread - on a snowy night, in a snow covered village, a procession of 14 diverse kids, 6 in pepparkakor cookies outfits, 4 in straw hats carrying stars, 3 in green wreathes carrying candles. And the front girl (Santa Lucia) wears a wreath with candles on her head.,

Text © Sonja Anderson, 2025. Image © Agnieszka Potocka, 2025.

I’ve been enamored by Agnieszka’s charming illustrations since I first saw the well-researched skirt on the widow woodcarver, and the glow of the Swedish candelabras. My favorite spread is the one of the villagers following the Santa Lucia procession through the village and up to the church. I can practically feel the chill of the snow, and the warmth of the community coming together to celebrate reminds me of why Christmas can be so special.

I also love the simple illustration of Little Dala and his friend, Old Dala, watching out the window and waiting for Christmas. Little Dala isn’t sure what Old Dala means by the stories of Jul, but he doesn’t want to miss out! I can relate to that feeling of anticipation, the joy of Advent, as we wait for the arrival of Christ, and our celebration of his coming into the world.

It is such a stunning image, I can see why you like it! What makes you passionate about being a children’s author?

When students at my school, or other children I know, see an adult leaning into her own interests and developing her skills, it encourages them to do the same. I’ve seen kids develop a love of writing simply by attending one of my book launch parties! More importantly, though, being a children’s author allows me the opportunity to share what is most important to me in fun and creative ways, like sharing special traditions and life-affirming faith and hope.

How has the publication journey of A Christmas Wish for Little Dala Horse differed from your other books?

Tyndale is a much bigger publishing house than the publisher who put out my children’s novels. After I signed my contract with Tyndale, they sent me a booklet with information about the publishing schedule and what to expect when. They also sent information about the whole team, including marketing and public relations people! Everything, from beginning to end, has been professional and delightful.

Book cover - early sepia photo of the parking lot and Mount Rainier Lodge.

The non-fiction book about Mount Rainier National Park was an interesting process, too, because once our proposal was approved (which didn’t take long at all), my husband and I knew that if we followed the series guidelines, we’d have a book at the end of it. Fiction publishing, and picture book publishing in particular, feels much more difficult to get right and through the publication process.

Oh, that sounds like a magnificent publishing process! And writing to proposal is indeed, in some ways, much easier - once you get the proposal written. Are there any new projects you are working on now that you can share a tidbit with us?

Years ago, I lived in Japan; I have always longed to bring some of that experience to life in a new novel for kids. That dream is getting closer! My unpublished middle grade historical novel, Blossoms in the Wind, just won first place in the Cascade Christian Writers annual contest. It is set in the same time period as Shogun.

Congratulations! We will be keeping an eye out for your next book(s). 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?

I recently spent part of an afternoon driving through Chinook Pass, a region of Washington State that goes right by Mount Rainier National Park. The glaciers were a stark white against a brilliant blue sky, and the wildflowers danced in a light breeze. Oh, how I wished I could stay longer! I love Mount Rainier; it is truly spectacular and never fails to cause this Ohio girl to be in awe. After my research on Scandinavia for this picture book, though, I’ve been reminded of the fjords in Norway. The fjords would be so awe-inspiring to see in person as well!

I might have guessed that. ☺️I hope you do get to visit the fjords someday! Thank you, Sonja, for sharing with us a bit about yourself and your new picture book.