Behind the Scenes of Making a Children’s Book: Spring Sings by Ellie Holcomb

When you read a board book to a child, it often takes only a few minutes. You turn the page twelve times, and story time is complete (unless of course, a little one asks for “just one more”).

You might be surprised to know that the book that took five minutes to read likely took eighteen months or more to create. Working in publishing, I’ve watched hundreds of children’s books slowly come to life, and holding a long-awaited, newborn book for the first time is still a special kind of joy. Ellie Holcomb’s Spring Sings is a fun example of how a kids’ book can grow from a mere idea to a real live book, one that will hopefully inspire imagination and touch hearts for years to come.

Let’s take a look behind the scenes of the making of a children’s book.

The Idea Behind a Children’s Book

I was blessed to work with Ellie on her first three books for kids, so we needed to decide what book four would be. In late summer 2023, she started with a list of ideas. Maybe the new project could be based on one of her existing songs, or a favorite scripture. She decided the book would celebrate a season—spring, the time when God makes the world new again. We didn’t land the title until much later, but we had a theme to explore, one that Ellie hoped would help young readers connect to the life-giving story of Jesus.

The Words in a Children’s Book

Next Ellie set to work writing the first draft of the manuscript. She and I sent edits back and forth to get each line right. When a book has limited words, each one matters, especially when working with rhyme. So we scrutinized—Were the lines fun to read? Did they inspire engaging illustrations? Would a tired parent easily pick up on the rhyme scheme and enjoy reading the book again and again?

Fans of Ellie’s award-winning music love that she also records music for each of her children’s books. That means our editing process comes with an extra challenge: her books need to be not only readable but also singable. My most-enjoyed editing afternoons have been spent with Ellie and her guitar as we’ve revised, rearranged, and sung each stanza.

Ellie eventually landed on the right rhymes and lines for book four, ones that could happily become lyrics as well. And although we debated our title options for months, Spring Sings was the winner.

Behind the Scenes of a Children’s Book’s Art and Design

Interior sketch

Painted interior

Cover sketch with another title we considered: Spring Song

Final Cover Art

As we buttoned up the manuscript and better knew what the book would sound like, we turned on another part of our creative brains to visualize what the book would look like. Ellie wanted it to feature sweet children and animal friends surrounded by the riotous, blooming colors of spring. But we needed just the right illustrator to bring the vision to life.

Our team works with art agencies who represent children’s book illustrators from around the world. For Spring Sings, Ellie chose the incredible Laura Ramos, who creates light-filled, whimsical worlds children can delight in. We shared our ideas with Laura and sent her detailed art direction for each spread, from the first glimpses of buried spring to the closing garden party scene.

Laura’s first sketch arrived in April 2024, slowly followed by all the interior spreads for our review. After several rounds of feedback, we moved on to the painted versions and watched as the spring color began to fill the pages. Ellie requested that a few favorite real-life children be drawn into the book, so you can find them celebrating alongside the bunnies and butterflies.

As the art was completed over the next several months, our B&H Kids graphic designer, Diana Lawrence, carefully married the type and art on each spread. We finished with several rounds of proofing and final touches, including a glitter choice for the cover, which I consider book jewelry! In August 2024, we finally sent the files to the printer in China to start the six-month wait. Meanwhile, marketing began in full force.

Behind the Scenes of Marketing a Children’s Book

A key part of releasing a new children’s book is telling the world all about it. For Spring Sings, the marketing included an all-day photo and video shoot complete with a gorgeous backdrop and a working garden swing! Our Lifeway marketing and creative teams built an in-studio spring world, and Ellie entertained us all, resulting in tons of assets we could use to promote the book as the countdown continued.

Finally, the printed copies made their way across the ocean, and the big February 2025 moment arrived—release day! After many months of ideating, rhyming, illustrating, designing, and marketing, Spring Sings was available for families to read—and sing—along.

Ellie had wanted to create a book to celebrate the beauty of spring and show young readers that God’s love makes all things come alive, including His Son. The resulting Spring Sings is indeed a happy celebration of the season, one of those books I hope little readers will ask for again and again.

---

Want to check out more children’s books? Browse our list of books to give at a baby shower.

---

About Michelle Prater Freeman

Michelle Prater Freeman leads the team at B&H Kids. She has spent much of her career writing, editing, and ideating books for children, and her favorites are the ones that share the love of Jesus. She lives with her family outside Nashville, where she and Ellie are already busy on book five.