Interview: Kailei Pew

SARAH STEINBACHER: Your first early chapter book, SUPER VILLAINS IN TRAINING: THE FANTASTIC FREEZE RAY, is “a fun spin on the theme of resilience” (School Library Journal). If you went to the super villain academy SVT, what type of villain would you be?

KAILEI PEW: Ooooh! I love this question. Since I (sadly) don’t have any secret super powers, I think I’d be a lot like Vicky! I would use my brain to invent wickedly awesome gadgets and gizmos, and add some extra sparkle for good measure!

Now, if I ever happened to gain super powers, I would definitely hope to fly! I think you could be a super awesome villain if you could fly. But since I don’t have a vat of toxic goo lying around, maybe I could just invent some sort of device to let me fly. Something like rocket-powered boots?

SARAH STEINBACHER: For the SUPER VILLAINS IN TRAINING series, you partnered with Scholastic through their New York Times bestselling chapter book line, Branches. With engaging illustrations by Estrela Lourenço on each page, how did you approach the project differently from a more traditional chapter book format?

KAILEI PEW: Working with Scholastic Branches has been an absolute dream! I am so grateful for the process. My editor, Katie Carella, is so wonderful to work with and she has really helped me understand the form. The full-color Branches books are almost like a chapter book-graphic novel hybrid. So for this project, I had to think about dialogue a LOT more than I would have for a more traditional chapter book. Branches books are also leveled books, so you have to be really extra aware of your word choice and sentence structures. And finally, because they are so highly illustrated, I was asked to include way more art notes than I’ve ever used before. And then partnering with Estrela has been a BLAST! We are in touch frequently and both feel so grateful to be working on this project together.

SARAH STEINBACHER: Your middle grade nonfiction book, KID-VENTORS, is “a captivating exploration of the ingenuity of young people who defied norms and persevered to see their inventions through” (Kirkus) and “an absolutely vital purchase for libraries that want to inspire and inform kids about their power to make a difference” (School Library Journal). Which kid-ventor was your favorite to write about and were there any other memorable kid-ventors that you researched but didn’t end up including in the final book?

KAILEI PEW: It’s so hard to choose just one favorite, because I love all 35 stories in this book! One of the kids that I really resonated with was Fatima al Kaabi. As a girl who had to fight to prove herself in classes and situations with only boys, I really admired her strength and resilience. Plus, she invented super cool robots, and who doesn’t love that!!

It was also so fun to learn that a lot of familiar items I use were invented by KIDS! The popsicle, the trampoline, the windsurfer… all invented by kids!

SARAH STEINBACHER: You originally wrote KID-VENTORS as a nonfiction picture book but changed formats after receiving an R&R from your acquiring editor. What was that process like and what R&R advice do you have for new authors?

KAILEI PEW: The process was honestly a LOT of hard work. To go from a very brief picture book to a very long Middle Grade was hard and stretched me as a creator more than anything else I had done at the time. But it was also so exciting to be able to tell more stories of kid inventors and really tell the FULL stories in a way that the picture book version didn’t allow.

I always tell authors, if you get an R&R, first make sure that the suggested edits resonate with you. I’ve received multiple R&Rs that I passed on, because they were not in line with my vision for the project. The suggestions for KID-VENTORS made me super excited and I knew right away it was something I wanted to do. But then, I truly took my time making the edits. R&Rs don’t expire, so don’t rush the process. Make sure to take your time and do it well!

SARAH STEINBACHER: Your debut picture book, THE MONSTER ABOVE THE BED, offers “a terrific opportunity to discuss what happens when we face our fears and work through what’s actually behind them” (School Library Journal). What did you fear as a child and how did you face it?

KAILEI PEW: From the time I was about 8 years old, I was truly afraid of failure. To the point that I wouldn’t even try new things because I didn’t think I would be good at them. I missed out on a lot of cool opportunities because I was too afraid to try/worried I would fail. I had to face that fear by realizing I didn’t have to be perfect and being willing to fall down so to speak and pick myself up again. It is actually my fear of failure and my deep perfectionism that led me to write SUPER VILLAINS IN TRAINING, because I wanted to write a story about a little girl who was okay with not being perfect, and even wanted to be a little naughty.  

SARAH STEINBACHER: You’ve written across a variety of kidlit formats (fiction, nonfiction, picture books, chapter books, and middle grade). Which format is your favorite to write?

KAILEI PEW: Currently, chapter books are my favorite! I think it is such a fun age group to write for! Plus, the form is slightly longer and allows you to do so much, while still being relatively short and snappy. And writing about super villains is an absolute BLAST, so there’s a chance it’s mostly the topic that I love! Haha. But truly, chapter books are so fun, and immensely important for emerging readers.

SARAH STEINBACHER: You’ve also partnered with KiwiCo Press and Scholastic on work for hire projects. What has that experience been like for you and how did you first get involved in it?

KAILEI PEW: My agent, Emily Forney, actually gets me all of my work for hire projects. She is very good at making connections with editors and pitching me for projects that she knows I would be a good fit for. There are a lot of paths into work for hire opportunities. I know a lot of authors who are able to get work for hire gigs on their own, but I can’t speak to the opportunity since Emily has always gotten me those jobs. For my very first project, I went through an “audition” of sorts, sending in sample work. After that, once my foot was in the door, I received opportunities for more work directly without having to reaudition.

SARAH STEINBACHER: What marketing advice do you have for authors on school/library visits and online networking?

KAILEI PEW: Do what brings you joy! There are so many ways to market a book, and truthfully, a lot of it feels like “throwing spaghetti at a wall” to see what sticks. It’s hard to know for sure what (if anything!) will “move the needle,” so I always say to do things that make you happy. For me, that is investing in the kidlit writing community by giving back with critiques and being accessible, and getting out in front of kids. I love school visits deeply, so I do a LOT of cold emailing/outreach to librarians to get gigs. For me, being with the kids and fostering a love of reading has been everything I’ve hoped for as a kidlit creator!

SARAH STEINBACHER: Do you have any other projects you’d like to share?

KAILEI PEW: SVT 2, 3, and 4 all release within the next year!

Follow Kailei through her website and Instagram.

*****Order Kailei’s debut SVT chapter book, THE FANTASTIC FREEZE RAY, available now.*****

*****Pre-order Kailei’s next two SVT chapter books, A WICKEDLY EVIL PET and PROJECT SLIME, available 6/2/26 and 11/3/26.*****