Valerie Bolling
Let’s Dance! (Boyds Mills & Kane) is Valerie Bolling’s debut picture book. In addition to being an author, Valerie has been an educator for more than 25 years. When she taught elementary students, it was difficult to find diverse literature for them. Thus, she is passionate about creating stories in which all children can see themselves and feel valued and heard.
A graduate of Tufts University and Columbia University, Teachers College, Valerie currently works as an Instructional Coach with middle and high school teachers.
Valerie and her husband live in Connecticut and enjoy traveling, hiking, reading, going to the theater, and dancing.
Twitter: @Valerie_Bolling
Instagram: @LetsDanceBook
What’s the oddest thing a reader has ever asked you?
The oddest question I was asked was in a blogger interview. The question was: "If you could be any kind of donut, what would you be?"
Two other interviewers asked questions that stand out not for their oddity but because they are super creative. (1) "What do you think the dancers in your story might choose for a personalized license plate? You have 8 characters. Go!" (Janet Johnson) I responded: DANC4EVR.
(2) "What other picture books do you think Let's Dance! is in conversation with? Any picture books by marginalized authors that you'd recommend?" (Alaina Lavoie)
This Is It Daria Peoples-Riley: The girl in this book is preparing for a dance audition. She is psyching herself up, knowing she wants to “strut her stuff” at the audition, making sure she does her best to secure a spot. The children in my book are dancing freely. They’re doing what they enjoy and are not worrying about being perfect. They’d probably tell the girl in This Is It, “You’ll be fine, Girl! Don’t stress. Just dance! You got this!”
The Proudest Blue by Ibtihaj Muhammad: The relationship between these sisters is so beautiful. The confidence the older sister exudes wearing hijab is wonderful. Even when she’s teased, she knows who she is and is proud, setting an example for her younger sister who looks up to her. In Let’s Dance! there’s a girl dancing in hijab, and I think she might like to meet these sisters and encourage them to join her in dancing.
Saturday by Oge Mora: I love that the main character and her mother do something special together every Saturday, and I especially love how they created their own puppet show. Let’s Dance! would say to them, “The next time you’re inside on a Saturday (maybe because the weather dictates a “stay at home” day), put on some music and dance together!”
Crown: An Ode to the Fresh Cut by Derrick Barnes: This book is so fly! After these boys and men get their fresh cuts, they feel “magnificent, flawless, like royalty.” Now they need to dance, to “leap high, fly-fly-fly!”
Last Stop on Market Street by Matt de la Pena: The neighborhood community that this book celebrates is similar to the global dance community of Let’s Dance!. We are all connected and can bring joy to one another. I can also imagine that if music was played at the community center, people would start dancing!
Julián Is a Mermaid by Jessica Love: I love the scene where Julián is dancing with the mermaids. Spoiler alert for my book … the ballet spread includes a child leaping high whose gender is indiscernible as a shout-out to boys who like to dance and children who may be transgender. Julián and this child might like to meet each other, talk, and … of course … dance.
Sing a Song: How “Lift Every Voice and Sing” Inspired Generations by Kelly Starling Lyons: Singing and dancing go together, so Let’s Dance! and Sing a Song would enjoy talking to each other. Let’s Dance! might ask, “Can Kelly write a rhyming book about singing? Sing a Song might ask, “Can Valerie write a book that shows the history of a particular dance and how it was passed on through generations?”
The Undefeated by Kwame Alexander: I can imagine an intersectionality between Let’s Dance and Kwame’s masterpiece like, “This is for those who continued to dance their way through life, despite inequity and injustice. This is for the undefeated who still continue to dance. So, let’s dance … to celebrate them, to celebrate us!”
The Day You Begin by Jacqueline Woodson: This book demonstrates how we’re all different yet all wonderful. Let’s Dance! would add that we all have our own way of dancing, too. Despite our differences, we all have something in common; both The Day You Begin and Let’s Dance! convey this message. In fact, the first sentence of my pitch for Let’s Dance! was “Dancing is a universal language, even though we all have different ‘accents.’”
Just Ask! by Sonia Sotomayor: The subtitle of this book, Be Different, Be Brave, Be You, is what dancing is all about. Do your own dance; add your own flair; you don’t have to move like anyone else. Just BE YOU!
What’s the difference (at least for you!) between being a writer and an author? How do you shift gears between the two?
A writer is who I am and what I do. I’ve always been a writer but have only become an author recently. An author is a title; it is something on the outside. A writer is who I am on the inside. Even if I wasn’t a published author, I’d still be a writer. All the rejections in the world can’t take away that aspect of my being … my soul.
There’s only a shifting of gears from writer to author when I do an event. I wear my author hat, but my true writer self comes through in my honest approach, responding to questions about writing.
Have you ever experienced Imposter Syndrome?
Absolutely. I sometimes wonder if I just got lucky with Let’s Dance! I haven’t had any other manuscripts accepted for submission, and my queries to agents haven’t yet resulted in The Call.” When I do my events, I wear my author persona proudly, but, at other times, I have self-doubt … especially when faced with so much rejection.
If you could create a museum exhibition, what would be the theme?
Diversity.
What brings you great joy?
So many things bring me joy – spending time with my husband, family, and friends; being active (going for walks, exercising, dancing); helping others; traveling; making connections in the writing community; eating good food; and, of course, reading and writing.
