B.R. Duray is the author of the new children's picture book The Mood Swing. He is also a filmmaker, and he lives in Los Angeles.
Q: What inspired you to write The Mood Swing?
A: My father passed away when I was 10 years old, and I still remember the emotional ups and downs that came with grief. As a kid, stories helped heal my heart—and I always hoped to give something back. The Mood Swing is a love letter to families and children experiencing loss or navigating big, heavy feelings.
The idea came to me kind of like a charm bracelet—one piece at a time. One evening I was walking past a swing set on a beachside playground in Los Angeles, feeling nostalgic. I decided to ride the swing for a while, remembering how fun it was as a kid to imagine blasting off into space at the top of the swing arc.
That moment—the feeling of an upswing and a downswing—made me think of the emotional swings we go through in life. When the phrase “Mood Swing” popped into my head, with the obvious set piece of an actual swing-set, the ideas started flowing, and the story began to take shape.
I knew I wanted to tell a story that could help kids process grief and loss—something I once needed myself. Slowly, I pieced it together: a love letter to kids about managing hard emotions, woven with the whimsical magic of a swing set -- an anchor point that other kids could use when they’re out playing to connect to the story.
Q: What do you think Momes’s illustrations add to the book?
A: Momo Enokida (aka Momes) brought the heart and soul of the story to life through her stunning illustrations. Every single page—from the front cover to the endpapers—was hand-illustrated on her iPad using ProCreate and Photoshop. She poured so much love, care, and time into each page, creating true portals into a whimsical, emotional world.
Illustrations are the doorway into the imagination—especially when you’re talking about Big Emotions. Each drawing carries emotional cues and tiny details that reward close attention.
Momes and I both understood that children love discovering little secrets within artwork. In a time when so much art is generated quickly or through AI, we run the risk of losing that sense of intention. But I believe kids can feel when something was made with care—and I think they’ll feel that when they see Momes’ art.
Q: Did you know how the story would end before you started writing it, or did it evolve over time?
A: I always knew the story should end with Peter shifting his focus away from his imagination and into his body. After I lost my dad, my mom took me to grief counseling, and one of the most helpful tools I learned was to reconnect with my body: to notice the ground under my feet, the sun on my face, the wind in my hair.
That’s how I knew I wanted Peter’s mom to help him find peace—not by changing his emotions, but by anchoring him in the present moment, in the act of swinging itself!
What came later was Peter seeing his father as a Blue Star in the sky. That element emerged from my own healing process—building a spiritual relationship with my dad after he was gone. I wanted Peter to feel that same comfort, to know that love can continue even after loss.
Q: What impact did it have on you to write this book, and what do you hope kids (and adults) take away from it?
A: Writing The Mood Swing felt like completing a karmic loop that started the day my father died. So many people—family, friends, and the stories I clung to—helped me through my grief. I wanted to give something back. My hope is that this book can offer comfort and hope to anyone, especially children, who feel heavy with loss.
Grief can feel impossibly lonely, especially for a child. But I hope The Mood Swing creates a gentle, imaginative space where kids—and adults, because losing a parent brings out the child in all of us—can express their emotions and begin building an invisible relationship with the people they’ve lost.
Q: What are you working on now?
A: Right now, my greatest hope is that The Mood Swing reaches the families and children who need it most. I’d love for it to be a tool for grieving families—and a joyful, healing story for anyone navigating the ups and downs of life.
I’m also developing several follow-up stories featuring Peter as he learns to deal with other big emotions of growing up—each told through a whimsical, fantastical lens like The Mood Swing. I’m imagining it as a kind of series, like Curious George, that can bring light and healing magic to families for years to come.
Q: Anything else we should know?
A: The Mood Swing is also a short film! It was adapted into a live-action short produced by a Hollywood production company. It premiered last summer at the San Diego International Kids’ Film Festival, where it won the Jury Prize, and it will premiere this summer in Los Angeles at the LA Shorts Festival! By the fall, it should be available to watch online on YouTube.
--Interview with Deborah Kalb
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