Hi Sara! You wear so many different hats and your roles in the industry have evolved so much since I first met you with Schmovie. We'd love to have an update... and congrats on both an Emmy nomination and a TAGIE! 

Thanks so much, Mary! Well, I split my time between inventing toys and games, and writing/developing kids animated TV series. I founded Galactic Sneeze, a toy and game invention studio, with my husband Bryan Wilson back in 2011. We started off by self-publishing a couple party games, but ultimately made the transition to licensing our concepts to other companies, ranging from a Goat Yoga Party Game that comes with an inflatable goat (Kikkerland) to a plush Tickle Pup that kicks its leg when you scratch its belly (MGA) to a hilarious Netflix “Trending Now” Game (Spin Master). We also do consulting work - we helped Jet Blue design Get Packing, a game that actually came with an airline ticket inside, and collaborated with Billie to create No Worries if Not, a women-centered board game that players literally cannot win.

At the core, inventing products and writing for kids TV are both centered around playfulness, storytelling, and creative problem-solving… although they’re clearly very different formats and flex different creative muscles. Funny story - a few years ago I had just finished writing the content for a dirty adult party game for a client. He called me up and asked, “I have another game I’d love your help with, but it’s a family game. Do you only write adult content?” I explained that my day job was writing for Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood… the animated preschool series on PBS. We had a good laugh. Working in these two different industries has been a healthy balance for my brain. It keeps things fresh when you’re writing for Charlie’s Colorforms City by day while developing a Curb Your Enthusiasm party game at night.

Do you have a mantra that you live by?

A few years ago, I came across a TEDx talk by advertising creative director, Chuck Anderson. The theme was, “If you do something, something will happen.” It just clicked for me. There’s always an adventure to be had, a connection to be made, or a treasure to find… and you never know where a particular experience may lead you. Even if you do something and it doesn’t turn out as you hoped (or you fail miserably), you’ll learn something along the way. Bryan and I use this mantra in our household to help motivate each other as well as our 12-year-old daughter. When you look back at some of the best things that have transpired in your life, you can often trace them back to some random thing you did that led to another thing that led to another… and voila! But you never could have planned it that way if you tried. Because if you do something, something will happen.

What are you working on now?

I’m working on a variety of projects. Galactic Sneeze is cooking up a bunch of new concepts, including plush, dolls, and party games. We frequently collaborate with our good friend Will Sakran, a fellow inventor with an electronic engineering background, who I first met while working at Fisher-Price many years ago. We have complementary skill sets, and work together super well. In fact, about one third of the products we’ve licensed have been collaborations with him! So if Bryan and I are a dynamic duo, then I guess with Will we’re a terrific trio.  Also, our daughter has recently transitioned from mainly starring in our sizzle videos, to now helping us develop new ideas. So, we’re starting to pitch some things that were spearheaded by her, which is really fun.

I’m also currently developing a couple new animated series with a writing partner. The kids TV industry is having a tough time at the moment and there aren’t a lot of new shows getting greenlit, but I’m remaining hopeful. I’d like to think I bring a unique spin to series development, since I can harness my background in the toy industry to weave in consumer product potential in a meaningful way.

We’re celebrating the recent release of Fork Milk Kidnap, a hilariously irreverent adult party game with Hasbro. It’s like FMK, but more forked up. It’s really fun to play, and leads to ridiculous conversations about hypothetical scenarios. Who would you make a Chia Pet out of: Abe Lincoln wearing only his top hat, a flirty Trader Joe’s cashier, or a turducken? After pitching to Hasbro for many years, this is our first game with them to hit store shelves, and we’re thrilled. And, we’re excited that Floats McGoats (light family strategy game) and Snarkas (family card game) from Hootenanny Games are heading into major retailers as we speak! On the kids TV side of things, Wonderoos just dropped on Netflix in July. It’s from Atomic Cartoons and brings relatable preschool "firsts" to life in a playful way. I was the story editor (heading up the writing), and am so proud of how it turned out.

If you look back at yourself 10 years ago, is this where you thought you’d be? Where did you think you’d be? What changed? What went right?

Ten years ago, Bryan and I were known in the industry as “the Schmovie guys”, because we had just self-published our first party game, Schmovie, in 2013. Manufacturing and selling our own product was so much work (and outside of our wheelhouse), and we said we’d never do it again. So naturally, we did it again; in 2016 we published an adult party game called Spank the Yeti via Kickstarter. After those two games, we realized that our strength (and what we enjoyed) was the inventing and designing part. We didn’t excel at (or enjoy) manufacturing, shipping, warehousing, logistics, invoicing retailers… or the countless other tasks that go into making a game a success. When we transitioned to licensing our concepts rather than making them ourselves, we had a lot more success (and sleep). Coming up with a great game isn’t enough, which is why we truly value the publishers we’ve collaborated with over the years. So, thank you, partners! To date, we’ve had 18 products on the market with more coming soon.

Last year brought some big milestones for us. And since my mom isn’t here in this interview to list my accomplishments, I’ll have to mention them myself. Together with Will Sakran, we were awarded the 2023 TAGIE for Toy Innovator of the Year! Galactic Sneeze was also a finalist for Game Designer of the Year in two categories at Mojo Nation’s 2024 Play Creators Awards in London. And, something beyond my wildest dreams - I was nominated for my first Emmy for writing on Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood. We didn’t win, but that whole “it’s an honor just to be nominated” saying is totally true. It’s been a non-stop hustle over the years - juggling jobs, working nights and weekends, burning the candle at both ends, lots of rejection, questioning our life choices - all while also raising a child. It’s about perseverance. And at the core, I love what I do, which is create experiences that bring people joy. It’s extra special that I get to do this with Bryan, and I’m proud to say we’ve come a long way from being “the Schmovie guys”.

Were you obsessed with any toys, games or objects as a kid?

My favorites were Spin Art, Lite Brite, Speak & Spell, and Merlin. Also, I had Star Wars action figures and The Love Boat action figures, which made for some very creative role play scenarios. I’ll just say… Princess Leia and Isaac (everyone’s favorite bartender) shared some private moments on the Aloha Deck.

Who would you invite to your dream dinner party?

Steve Martin, Tina Fey, Neil deGrasse Tyson, Jeff Golblum, Michelle Obama, and Bryan Wilson (my husband, not the Beach Boy). Wait, can dead people come too? If so, let’s throw in Jim Henson, Betty White, and David Bowie. Oh and my Grandma Sadie. I’m going to need a bigger table.

What’s in your fridge?

Too much stuff to warrant going out to dinner tonight, but not enough stuff to make anything good.

Who is your celebrity crush?

Steve Martin, always and forever.

Favorite movie of all time?

Best in Show

Summer or Winter?

Fall.

Tell us about your hobbies?

I’ve gotten into bird watching since moving from Brooklyn, NYC to the NJ burbs a few years ago. I have a great pair of binoculars, a bunch of books on birds, and a fantastic birdsong identification app called Merlin Bird ID (from Cornell Ornithology Lab). Our town is home to Montclair Hawkwatch, an official Audubon sanctuary where you can ascend to an incredible lookout. During migration season you can observe a constant stream of hawks and vultures… and even peregrines and eagles. It’s pretty spectacular. Oh and last year, I volunteered to transport an injured goose to Raptor Trust, a wild bird rehabilitation center. It was an epic (and smelly) road trip… and a story for another time.

This interest in birds isn’t completely new. I actually had two pet birds as a kid: Ziggy, a canary-winged parakeet, and Mr. Ed, a blue budgie. I desperately wanted them to learn to talk. I even bought this special cassette tape where you could record yourself speaking and then it would loop over and over and over and over again. So I recorded myself saying “Hello” about 20 times in a row (with slightly different inflections), and then just left it playing on loop for my birds. Ziggy and Mr. Ed never did learn to talk, but I’m pretty sure they got driven completely insane by that tape and would’ve murdered me in my sleep if they had the chance. I also had a subscription to “Bird Talk” Magazine. Don’t judge me. The 80s were a weird time.

What advice would you give a young adult graduating from high school or college today?

If you do something, something will happen.