Creator Corner: Author Lana Button and Illustrator Yong Ling Kang
Welcome to Creator Corner, a blog series where we interview the creators of our recent and upcoming books. For this post, we interviewed Time to Leave, Laverne! author Lana Button and illustrator Yong Ling Kang, whose book published March 10, 2026!
Owlkids Books: Lana, what inspired you to write this book?
Lana Button: My friend’s young daughter amazed me when we went places like the library and the park because her behavior was stellar—right up until we had to leave. I understood her struggle was common, and I was inspired to capture it in a story.
Owlkids Books: Yong Ling, what was the inspiration for your illustrations in this book?
Yong Ling Kang: When I first read Lana’s manuscript, her lines created very strong images in my mind. I was reminded of my encounters with weather in Canada’s seasonal climate. In every season, even when the weather may seem imperfect, there is always something nice about it.
Winter might be cold but there is beauty in the snow that covers everything up. It rains very often in spring but the temperature is very comfortable. The sun is glaring in summer but it comes with nice warm energy that makes me want to be outside. The grey sky in fall that makes reds and orange colors pop. These moods were on my mind when I was illustrating this book.
Owlkids Books: Lana, what was the most enjoyable part of bringing this story to life? What was the most challenging part of the process?
Lana Button: The most challenging part of writing Time to Leave, Laverne! was discovering what worked for Laverne in managing these thunderstorms. In fact, I’ve been working on this story for more than ten years. I put Laverne in several different scenarios, trying to help her calm those storms. So, by far, the most enjoyable part of writing this story was naming her stuffies! I was so happy these stuffies came to the rescue! I loved adding some humor to the situation by giving them such practical people names.
Owlkids Books: Yong Ling, what was the most enjoyable part of illustrating this book? What was the most challenging part?
Yong Ling Kang: I really enjoyed the time in the early stage where I was doing rough sketches. It is when I got to connect deeper with the story and learn about the character as I figure out what to express in the scenes.
The most challenging part of this book was painting the final art! There were so many things to take note of simultaneously, like the amount of water, pigment, movement, timing, etc. Sometimes, it takes multiple re-paintings of a page to get to the right image.
OKB: Lana, what do you hope readers will take away from this book?
LB: I hope this story help kids find strategies that would work for them when they are faced with big feelings of disappointment. I hope that kids will chuckle over the situation, so brilliantly illustrated by Yong Ling Kang, but will also feel supported and understood. We all have moments where we battle with not-so-sunny-reactions to challenging situations.
OKB: Yong Ling, what do you hope readers will take away from this book?
YLK: Because regulating our emotions is a constant practice of understanding ourselves and the situation, I hope this book can help readers find their own creative way of regulating their emotions. And trust that it will often lead to a healthier outcome!
OKB: Lana, what’s an interesting fact people may not know about you?
LB: When I was a little girl, I had a favorite bear named Teddy who was very interested in whatever I had to say to him (I think I got better at naming stuffies as I got older).
OKB: Yong Ling, what’s an interesting fact people may not know about you?
YLK: I have two animal plushies. A sheep named Croissant, and a platypus named Zhu Zhu (means pig in Chinese). Just looking at them makes me smile.
Thank you so much Lana and Yong Ling for taking the time to do this interview and creating a wonderful book! We hope readers enjoy Time to Leave, Laverne! as much as we did!
Grab your copy today!
