For this week’s blog post, I had the privilege of interviewing Rachel Pellegrino, the owner and publisher of Little Lamb Books, an award-winning publisher of children’s books.
Launched in 2015, Little Lamb Books has produced almost a dozen titles, all of which have won national awards, including two golds in the Benjamin Franklin Awards. Rachel is passionate about collaborating with fellow publishers as well as empowering authors to be successful. Based in Texas, Rachel talks with her hands, offers individual author coaching, prefers Pepsi to coffee, and has a growing plush lamb collection much to her daughter’s delight.
In this interview, Rachel talked about why children’s books matter, how stories can help adults see through the eyes of a child, and how God called her to take a big leap of faith in starting Little Lamb Books. The pandemic has significantly affected Little Lamb Books and their ability to continue to produce titles, and at the end of the interview, Rachel shares about their current Kickstarter campaign and how you can help support the continuing mission of Little Lamb Books.
Okay, let’s jump into the interview!
What led you to start Little Lamb Books?
Rachel: “There were a few reasons for starting Little Lamb Books. As a teacher for 15 years, I know how important reading is for kids. So, I wanted to build a company that was focused on creating inspiring stories, entertaining characters, and colorful settings. The second reason, but ultimately even more important than the first, was a desire to leave a legacy of faith for my daughter. There are some really great books in stores and of course, the classics are terrific, but I couldn’t find books that were both entertaining and faith-filled. I want her to grow up having books full of God’s truths that she can cherish and pass on to her kids and their kids.”
Why do children’s books matter? Why are you passionate about publishing these stories?
Rachel: “We know from statistics that the nurturing and one-on-one attention from parents during reading aloud encourages children to form a positive relationship with books and reading later in life. Plus, books matter because they help a child build vocabulary and practice communicating, learn emotional responses, and broaden their imagination. I’m passionate about this because families need books that not only are silly, full of adventure, or simply sweet, but also share biblical truths and teach important values that can help a young boy or girl lean into God’s love for them.”
How can adults also benefit from reading stories for children?
Rachel: “Adults learn how to not be so self-absorbed when reading to children. We know children learn new perspectives and build bonds with those who read books with them. We all can remember someone who took that interest and spent the time with us. But, as adults, it allows us to see the world through their eyes, to stop thinking about how we perceive a story, a moment, a situation and see it through the eyes of a child. On top of all that, it helps us to slow down, to take a breath, and get off our phones so we can really share in a moment with our children, who absolutely, beyond anything else, crave that one-on-one time with us.”
What is one of your favorite recent or upcoming titles published by Little Lambs?
Rachel: “I love ALL of our titles. They each hold a special meaning to me from our debut picture book The Bubble Who Would Not POP! by Shelly Roark to the first young adult title, LAUNCH, in our Rise of the Anointed series by Jason C. Joyner, our books are all well-edited, fully developed, and lovingly released into the world. Our upcoming titles are beautiful, including the art for The Christmas Color by Tori Higa. Stunning! I could talk about each of them for days!”
When it comes to your publishing business, have you ever followed God into something that made you feel scared or uncomfortable? What was the outcome?
Rachel: “Honestly, starting the company was me following God into something that was scary. He called me to step outside my comfort zone, which was the classroom, and asked me to take a huge leap of faith. The publishing industry has been changing in big ways over the past decade due to digital platforms and new reading habits. Plus, it’s a capital heavy investment. I jumped into the fray by starting a company from scratch and the outcome has been both amazing and challenging. But, we will celebrate our fifth birthday in September, and I love the authors I partner with, love the editors, designers, and illustrators we work with and I can’t imagine doing anything else.”
What is one of your greatest dreams or goals for the future of Little Lamb Books?
Rachel: “My dreams for this company are vast and deep, and go from basic ideas to very detailed goals. For instance, I long to annually release 10 wonderful titles for families to enjoy with readers of all ages. This is a general idea and quite doable. However, I also dream of one day opening our offices in a location where we can produce, manufacture, and distribute our titles all in one space. That’s a much bigger, much more detailed goal that takes planning. Some of my dreams scare me because they are so big and give me strong feelings, but I know that everything happens in God’s timing, and to quote a fave movie, I just need to keep doing what God tells me is “the next right thing.””
How have the pandemic and accompanying shut-downs affected your small publishing house?
Rachel: “It has been extremely impactful for our small business. Having books be deemed “non-essential” hurt so many publishers and bookstores, but especially small independent companies and their schedules, manufacturing, shipping, and sales. When COVID-19 hit, we already had our Fall 2020 catalog in production. We had to move several of our titles to next year. We’ve lost between 80-90% of our sales and that revenue is needed in order to continue producing titles. It’s been difficult because we didn’t qualify for the Payment Protection Program and didn’t receive any government offered loans, so we’ve been taking it one day at a time, one project at a time.”
How can we help support Little Lamb Books in its ongoing mission?
Rachel: “Right now, we are hosting a campaign on Kickstarter, which is a crowdfunding platform like GoFundMe. The difference here is that we don’t receive a penny unless we reach our goal amount. We are currently 40% funded, but we have just one week to reach our goal of $15,000, which is what we need to finish our current catalog of titles and prep for the new ones coming in 2021.
Here’s how it works: For the remainder of the campaign, which ends August 4, those who support our mission and our books can make a pledge to help support our project, ranging from $1 to whatever folks can afford.
For that pledge, a reward equal or lesser value to your pledge can be selected from the variety offered on our landing page. Payments will not be processed at the time you make your pledge, and you can change your mind right up to the final deadline.
If the final deadline comes and we’ve reached our goal, then everyone gets charged the amount they pledged and we get to work printing and mailing our books and t-shirts and such. But if for some reason we don’t meet our goal, then the whole thing is called off. No one gets charged, no fees are applied, and of course, no one gets any rewards.
We love publishing children’s books and we have so many more wonderful stories and illustrations to share. This Kickstarter campaign is just one way to help us do that.”
Want to learn more about Little Lamb Books?
You can learn more about Little Lamb Books by finding them on Facebook, Instagram, or on their website at littlelambbooks.com. You can also follow along with Rachel Pellegrino on Facebook, Instagram, or by visiting her website, rachelpellegrino.com.
And, last but not least, you can find the Little Lamb Books Kickstarter Campaign here!
Rachel, thank you so much for taking the time to share a bit of your story and ministry with us! We are grateful for all you do for the children’s publishing industry.
And friends, never forget… you are onederfully created.
Love,
Becca
