MARMALADE BOOKS: How young were you when you started drawing? Were you always a doodler?
]]>I’m so pleased to introduce you to Russ Willms. Russ has spent many years in advertising as an illustrator and graphic designer in our hometown of Victoria, B.C. But he is also an award-winning children’s book illustrator and author. We featured his most recent book Elephants Do Not Belong in Trees in our May Picture Book Box.
MARMALADE BOOKS: How young were you when you started drawing? Were you always a doodler?
RUSS WILLMS: I remember enjoying drawing when I was young, but when I was around 13 years old, I really got into drawing. A lot. It was mostly just hockey players and other sports figures. My school notebooks were covered with my drawings. Another guy in my class, Al, also was drawing on his notebooks. We started sharing our drawings. We inspired each other and eventually we went to art school together. We were best friends for many years. We are still in touch.
MARMALADE: One of your first books, Brewster Rooster was published in 1993. I still remember its wonderful illustrations. This book was a Governor General’s award finalist and a Mr. Christie’s Book Award Gold Winner. What was it like to have that kind of recognition early in your children’s book career and do you have any interesting memories from that time?
RUSS: Yes, Brewster Rooster was my first picture book. It was very exciting to see it take off and win a few awards. I was also asked to be a judge for the Governor General’s Awards 2 years later. That was amazing to see all of the entries and debate the strengths and weaknesses of over 100 picture books. It wasn’t easy but we finally decided upon a winner!
MARMALADE: The characters you create are wonderful, quirky animals. Do you only draw animals and why? Some of your animals are almost humanlike. Are they inspired by people you know?
RUSS: Over the years I have created many illustrations with people, but when it comes to picture books I really prefer to use animals. The animals represent people, kids mostly, without excluding anyone. Any kid can relate to an animal character.
All my characters are inspired by people I know or people I’ve seen in movies or TV.
We all know someone who is stubborn or super positive or is grumpy. These character traits from real people are what go into developing my illustrated characters.
MARMALADE: What is your process for writing and illustrating? Which comes to you first, story or images?
RUSS: It is a bit of both. I often doodle characters, some of which inspire me to think of a story in which they could be a main character. More often though, I imagine a story idea and write it down. Then I develop a character to fit the story. This can take a lot of sketching. If it is a dog character for instance, there are so many different types of dogs. You have to do a lot of exploring to find the right fit for that character.
MARMALADE: Tell us about your award-winning advertising agency, Suburbia. Why did you go into advertising and did children’s books go on the back-burner for awhile?
RUSS: When I was in Art School (Albert College of Art) my plan was to be an illustrator and work in a studio for someone. But a couple months before I graduated the economy tanked. I ended up taking a job in an advertising agency as an art director. There were few options at that point. That is where I met my wife, Mary-Lynn. A few years later I took some time off to help raise our 3 and 4 year old boys. Mary-Lynn continued to work at an advertising agency for another year. That is when she developed a plan to start our own company. Suburbia Studios. At first I was illustrating and doing graphic design. It was at this time I illustrated my first three picture books. With the studio getting busier and busier, I steered away from taking on picture book assignments. They were just too big of a project to fit in. I continued to do other editorial work for business and children’s magazines through the years.
MARMALADE: About 6 years ago you created an app for children called Zooper ABC Animals. Can you tell us about it?
RUSS: I really wanted to get back into children’s picture books but I didn’t think I was capable of writing a story myself. The app world was taking off and I knew if I created an app I didn’t need a publisher. I could go straight to the marketplace with whatever I created. As long as Apple approved it of course. I started with an ABC app. I thought even I can write “A is for Alligator.” It was a really fun project with lots of humour and animation. I couldn’t do it all myself. I had help from some of the team at Suburbia, which I was really grateful for. After 3 years of work, it finally launched. I got great reviews but few sales. I realized it is tough to go up against “Grover’s ABC App” from Sesame Street. That is when I decided I wanted to get back to the traditional world of children’s picture books. That meant facing my biggest doubt. Can I write a story?
MARMALADE: Earlier this year, Elephants Do Not Belong in Trees was published with Orca Books here in Victoria. Was this a story you have been working on for awhile and where did the idea for this adorable elephant come from?
RUSS: Back in 2016 I was trying to get an agent. That meant writing a story and sending out a ‘query’ letter to a couple dozen agents. I received several ‘no thank you’ letters back. On my third story, which was Elephants Do Not Belong In Trees, I finally had an agent who wanted to represent me. That story with a dummy was sent out to around 25 publishers in the US and Canada. Orca Books were the first to buy one of my stories. I was thrilled to finally have a book that was going to be published.
The story idea came to me as we were in Italy for a friend’s wedding. As we drove down this one road there was a tree with a tall trunk and a very bushy top. Not knowing which animals were wild in that area I began to wonder what animals would live in a tree like that. It doesn’t take long to go to the silly side and wonder if an Italian alligator, a hippo or even an elephant might live in a tree like that. And then I thought about what problems might occur with an elephant living in a tree.
MARMALADE: You have a couple of new books publishing soon. Can you tell us about them and do you have any more projects you are working on?
RUSS: When Orca Books bought my elephant story, they also bought a story of mine, called Quiet Please, about a giraffe who just wants to read his new book. Unfortunately his brothers and sisters are the noisiest animals in the forest. That book is coming out in the spring of 2022. I also have a new book coming out with Houghton Mifflin Harcourt this September, called Who Will Pull Santa’s Sleigh? It is a story about how Santa ended up choosing reindeer to pull his sleigh. Apparently, many animals were invited to try out for the job. And just recently, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt bought another story of mine, called Parker’s Place. This will come out in the spring of 2023. It is the story about a dinosaur that wants to live on a farm.
MARMALADE: What do you do when you aren’t creating your quirky animals?
RUSS: We sold our Suburbia business 2 years ago, so now I can focus my energy on creating children’s picture books. Coming up with the next idea will always be the challenge. Other than that, I like to read, ride my bike and play pickleball!
My thanks to Russ Willms for this interview. What fun to be able to have a career creating adorable characters for children. Pat Oldroyd
]]>Very Rich by Polly Horvath
"A treasure for kids who love adventures."
Ten-year-old Rupert Brown joins a very rich family, The Rivers, for Christmas dinner. He goes on some very wacky adventures with them, including travelling in a cardboard box time-machine, cooking magic food, and even getting kidnapped!
These adventures give him a new perspective of life, very different from his poor life in the “very poor’ section of town.
I think this story shows imagination will actually make you very rich...very rich with happiness! My favorite part is when the librarian tells Rupert that library cards are free! Then he realizes he can finally read stories with his favorite sister, Elise! It’s just such an exciting book, and I love how enthusiastic Rupert is about all the adventures that he’s having and how he waits, fantasizing about what would happen next. Very Rich is now pretty much my favorite book, filled with many thrilling adventures.
The Witches Graphic Novel by Pénélope Bagieu
(Based on the book by Roald Dahl)
“For those of us who love Roald Dahl, this graphic novel of The Witches will amaze you.”
Beware children of the world! The witches are plotting to turn children everywhere into…MICE! Brave boy Bruno Jenkins and his wise grandmamma set out to expose these witches ONCE…AND FOR ALL! While suffering loss of limbs, and the threat of Death, will these brave heroes rise up in time to stop The Grand High Witch from adding to the rodent population? Courage can come in all shapes and sizes, even the tiniest mouse can be a hero!
These big and colorful pictures will bring you right into the story, and the characters are drawn just as I thought they would look! I think this book was really fun to read and I recommend it to other kids. It was a funny adventure with great details and drawings. My favorite part of the book was at the end when the mouse-boy is in his house. There are ladders everywhere and he takes a bath in a tea-cup. It was super cute!
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MARMALADE BOOKS: You live in Stony Plain, Alberta, just outside of Edmonton. Have you always lived there? You must like the cold and snow!
]]>MARMALADE BOOKS: You live in Stony Plain, Alberta, just outside of Edmonton. Have you always lived there? You must like the cold and snow!
MIKE BOLDT: It’s not always been the Stony Plain area, but I’ve lived in Alberta all my life (except for one year in South Korea), so I’m pretty used to the weather. I suppose I do enjoy the snow and cold for at least a couple months each year.
MARMALADE: What were you like as a kid in school? Were you doodling all the time? Did you always want to write and illustrate children’s books?
MIKE: That’s exactly what I was like in school as a kid. I doodled much of each class on the backs of my notes and assignments. I also read a LOT, though didn’t really realize that a career in publishing was an option until much later in life. As a kid, I wanted to work on comic books or for an animation company.
MARMALADE: It must have been great fun working with Dev Petty on the I Don’t Want To Be A Frog series? Will there be a 5th book?
MIKE: “Great Fun” would still be an understatement for how much I enjoyed working on the FROG books with Dev Petty. She’s such a talented writer and I love her sense of humour. I’ve learned a lot from her as an author too. While there isn’t a 5th FROG book in the works right now, I am very excited to share with you that we are working on another book together. If you like to laugh, you’ll probably like it.
MARMALADE: I’m a big fan of fabulous picture book illustrations, especially if they are humorous. I’ve been enjoying your books for some time now. It didn’t hit me until I fell in love with Find Fergus that your work reminded me of another illustrator I’m a fan of, Dan Santat. Then I find out that you and Dan are friends and a conversation with Dan lead to Find Fergus. How did you meet Dan?
MIKE: Thank you! That’s a huge compliment for me as Dan has been like a mentor to me, and someone who I have a lot of respect for. Years ago when I was trying to break into publishing, he put out an ad looking for assistance and I helped him color his first graphic novel, Sidekicks. We met at San Diego Comic Con later that year and became really good friends. He’s taught me so much about the industry and helped me with my own work too. Dan and I, along with a few others, have a sort of virtual studio and have been “meeting” online almost daily for the last 10 years.
MARMALADE: Please tell me there will be another Fergus book. Fergus is just too adorable for one book!
MIKE: Well, I can’t guarantee that there will be more Fergus books, but I’ve definitely been working on new ideas for this silly bear. I have to figure out where Fergus would go from his first book, whether it’s more search and find, more practice making progress, or something else entirely. Fergus is my favourite character I’ve ever come up with so far, and I want to make sure I take him in the right direction that really captures his potential.
MARMALADE: As a busy and popular presenter at schools, thanks to the pandemic you must miss visiting schools in person. Have you been doing visits virtually?
MIKE: You’re right, I have been doing a lot more virtual visits with schools since this pandemic started. While it’s not quite the same as being there in person, it’s been a great way to continue to connect with students. I do as many as my schedule permits right now, and ever since another book I’ve done, BAD DOG, was nominated for a Blue Spruce Award, the flood gates have opened on the requests.
MARMALADE: How old are your kids and what do they think of having a children’s author/illustrator for a Dad?
MIKE: We have three kids (10, 12, and 14) who all love books. While they still pick up the odd picture book off my shelf, or encourage me about my latest picture or book I’m working on, they’re really into novels and graphic novels right now. And thankfully, they’ve grown up with me doing this for a career, so it’s pretty normal for them to have a dad who works from home and makes books. It’s my hope one day that they’ll be able to pursue a career that they’ll enjoy as much as I do making books.
My thanks to Mike Boldt for this interview. How lucky we are to have such talented children’s authors and illustrators in Canada! Pat Oldroyd
]]>I'm excited to share with you our very first guest blogger, Eric Fan. Eric is one half (or now 1/3) of the very talented Fan Brothers team. If you love kids books, then the Fan Brothers should be on your radar. Even better, they're Canadians, from Toronto. Eric and his brother Terry are the authors and illustrators of two of my favourite books, The Night Gardener and Ocean Meets Sky.
]]>I'm excited to share with you our very first guest blogger, Eric Fan. Eric is one half (or now 1/3) of the very talented Fan Brothers team. If you love kids books, then the Fan Brothers should be on your radar. Even better, they're Canadians, from Toronto. Eric and his brother Terry are the authors and illustrators of two of my favourite books, The Night Gardener and Ocean Meets Sky. They also illustrated The Darkest Dark, The Antlered Ship and The Scarecrow. This is an amazing collection of published books in just over four years. On September 1st, we were introduced to another spectacular Fan Brothers book and low and behold we discover there is another brother named Devin! Their new book, The Barnabus Project is a real treat and we knew we had to feature it in our September Picture and Early Readers Book boxes. I was so pleased when Eric agreed to write a post for my blog and to share with us how Barnabus came to be. Thank you Eric! ~ Pat Oldroyd
Where do stories come from?
Sometimes - impatient to be heard - they rush straight into your brain like a locomotive from some distant land where ideas must live. Other times they need to be coaxed slowly into existence, like a turtle from its shell. Stories can whisper or shout, swoop or sail, float or sink (tragically). They hide, they wait. More often than not, they hibernate.
The Barnabus Project had a very long hibernation.
I forgot to mention another place stories come from, and that’s pictures. We’ve all heard the cliche before, that a picture is worth a thousand words. It turns out that a thousand words or less is basically the perfect word count for a picture book, and indeed The Barnabus Project started its life as a picture. A little drawing done by Devin nearly thirty years ago.
The drawing itself went missing over the years, through various moves and the chaotic tumble of life, but the story persisted. From the moment the drawing was created, a story bloomed around it: the story of a little creature named Barnabus who was half-mouse and half-elephant. He had been genetically engineered to be a “Perfect Pet” but had failed to live up to that standard of perfection. Now he plotted his escape from the secret lab where he was kept out of sight as a “failed project”.
When Terry and I were two books into our picture book career, after The Night Gardener and Ocean Meets Sky had published, we remembered Barnabus once again. Perhaps, we thought, it was time to rouse him from his long hibernation. Terry mentioned the idea to one of our publishers over dinner, and she loved it. All that was left was to bring Devin on-board and get to work drafting the text, and creating the visual world of Barnabus.
First, I had a mission though: where had the original drawing gone? It seemed a shame to lose it, especially now that we had a publishing deal. I had the vaguest notion that I had saved it and filed it away somewhere, but where? It was a small drawing, so maybe I had used it as a bookmark. I spent half a day searching through every one of my books and old sketch pads, leafing through them to no avail. I looked through boxes of memorabilia, old envelopes stuffed with tax receipts and long-forgotten birthday cards. As a last resort I searched through my storage locker. I had been meaning to clean it out anyway and this provided me with a good excuse. I pulled out every box and plastic storage bin and settled in for a day of leafing through more books and endless papers. I threw out entire garbage bags stuffed with junk: old story drafts, broken knickknacks, fossilized tubes of paint, but still no Barnabus. Finally, tired and near defeat, I moved a few more boxes at the back of the storage locker, revealing my dusty old espresso machine (in need of a new water pump) and a large stock pot, half-filled with cards and more ancient art supplies. And what do you know: there at the bottom of the pot, peering up at me after so many years, was Barnabus:
Now came the real business of making him into a book. It’s one thing to have a drawing and another to breathe life into that drawing. Drafts were written, sketches exchanged. We’re often asked how it’s possible for three artists and three writers to work on a single project together, but we’ve had a little practice. During Barnabus’ thirty-year hibernation we had collaborated on many other projects together in the interim: stories and screenplays, t-shirt designs and illustrations. Collaboration was second nature at this point.
The first stage with nearly any picture book is to work on the concept sketches. Here are a few examples from our sketchbooks:
With the dummy approved we moved on to final art. We still work traditionally, in pencil and graphite, with some work done digitally: in particular, all of the images were coloured in Photoshop. Working digitally also allows us to combine our various independent drawings and composite them together into a seamless whole. Here are some examples of the pencil drawings prior to colouring:
If there’s any lesson in all this it’s to never give up on an idea. Sometimes they just need to hibernate in a stock pot for thirty years until they’re ready to meet the world. We hope you enjoy meeting Barnabus and hearing his story. He’s waited a long time for his curtain call, and we couldn’t be happier to see him venture out into the world (just don’t mention stock pots to him; he’s still a little sensitive).
* The Barnabus Project is available on our website while quantities last
* check out my interview with the Fan Brothers from July 2018 when we featured their book, Ocean Meets Sky in our Picture Book Box.
* you can reach the Fan Brothers through their website.
]]>MARMALADE BOOKS (MB): One of your primary teachers told your parents that you should go to art school. What were you like as a student during those early years? Is this where you perfected swinging backwards on chairs?
]]>Ross Collins is from Glasgow, Scotland. He is the author and illustrator of our feature January 2020 picture book, What Does An Anteater Eat? I’ve been a fan of Ross’ for many years and was thrilled to use his book There’s a Bear On My Chair in our very first Marmalade Picture Book Box back in 2016. What I love most is his sense of humour both in writing and illustrating. When I did my research for this interview, I was pleased to discover Ross is just as funny as his books. If you have an opportunity, visit his website at rosscollins.net.
MARMALADE BOOKS (MB): One of your primary teachers told your parents that you should go to art school. What were you like as a student during those early years? Is this where you perfected swinging backwards on chairs?
ROSS COLLINS (RC): I’d perfected swinging backwards on chairs long before that. I’m very gifted in that area. My time at Glasgow School of Art was a mixed experienced. It gave me the space and time to develop my art, focus on what field I might like to work in and to learn from and enjoy my friends there. On the other hand I didn’t get on with the tutors who had little respect for the art that I liked so that was a bit of a struggle.
MB: You graduated from the Glasgow School of Art in 1994 and in the same year won the prestigious Macmillan Children’s Book Prize for your first book, The Sea Hole. This must have been incredibly exciting. Were you able to strictly illustrate and write from that time on?
RC: It was amazing to win the MacMillan and it really helped me to get my foot in the door of the industry. Being Scottish at first I wouldn’t tell the publishers that I was trying to see that I’d won it (we don’t like people who blow their own trumpet here) but I soon realised that it opened doors so started to mention it. I drew for a lot of magazines and newspapers for about a year after leaving art school but then finally the children’s book work took off, I got a good agent and I’ve never had a real job since. I’m very lucky to do something I love for a living.
MB: You’ve illustrated and/or written over an amazing 130 books, many about animals. I take it you must love animals. Do you have a favourite?
RC: I’ve always loved animals. I think if you can’t empathise with animals it says something about you as a person. It’s hard to pick a favourite animal they are all so amazing in their own ways. I have a real soft spot for sloths and manatees but I guess you can’t beat a dog for an animal that you can really develop a relationship with.
MB: I read that you are a cat juggler. My cat, Marmalade wanted me to ask you to elaborate on that.
RC: My lawyer has advised me not to comment on this.
MB: I was interested to read that in 2015, you supported a campaign to give illustrators equal prominence to writers. Can you tell us more about this campaign and do you feel that five years later a difference has been made?
RC: I’m not sure if it was a ‘campaign’ rather than just a few nice authors and disgruntled illustrators pointing out the obvious. The fact is that a great deal of children’s books depend as much if not more so on the pictures as they do on the words. However, historically the author’s name will always take prominence and sometimes the illustrator will be mentioned as an afterthought or sometimes not even credited. There should really be more parity. A basic example is that on Amazon an illustrator cannot easily list all their picture books together - but an author can. I’m not sure there has been any difference made since the campaign.
MB: You have won many awards and honours over the years. Is there one that means the most to you?
RC: I can’t name one - that wouldn’t be right. Naming a few seems boastful but I’d like to say:
The UKLA Award as it’s voted for by teachers and I owe teachers so much.The Amnesty International Carnegie Honour because having my work recognised by such an important organisation was just amazing. And The Scottish Children’s Book Award as it’s voted for exclusively by thousands of children and ultimately it’s their voices that matter. Oh - and the Award for Talking about All the Awards I’ve Won. That’s a good one.
MB: Have you ever been to Canada?
RC: I have! But I’d love to see more. I visited Montreal a long time ago when I could barely afford a muffin in your country. I got freaked out as everyone was speaking French and my talents do not lie with languages. A few years ago I also visited Vancouver which was wonderful. There were lots of great memories from that trip but one of my favourites was seeing the way the Canadians identify their police dogs - nose prints. It’s still one of my favourite photos.
My thanks to Ross Collins for this interview. What a wonderful gift you have to make kids (and adults) smile and laugh. Pat Oldroyd
*cover photo of Ross Collins by Chris Close
]]>MARMALADE BOOKS (MB): The Scarecrow is a very special book. From the first time I read it, I knew it was destined to win many awards. Can you tell us what inspired you to write about a scared crow and a scarecrow?
]]>MARMALADE BOOKS (MB): The Scarecrow is a very special book. From the first time I read it, I knew it was destined to win many awards. Can you tell us what inspired you to write about a scared crow and a scarecrow?
BETH FERRY (BF): That is very kind. Thank you. The Scarecrow is a book very close to my heart. The inspiration for The Scarecrow came simply from the word scarecrow. As you’ve just noted in your question, if there’s a scarecrow, there must be a scared crow and I thought wouldn’t that make an interesting story. So the story began as an unlikely friendship story. But as I began writing it, I decided that the scared crow should actually be a nestling. With that decision, it seemed natural that the scarecrow should take on a kind of parental role. This is where this book becomes personal for me because I began to see the scarecrow as my father and the baby crows at the end of the book as his grandchildren. My father had five grandchildren who brought him so much joy. I had never seen my father happier than when he was with his grandchildren and it gave me great joy to subtly include this in the book. So the ending of the book is my nod to the love parents give their children and to the gift that children give their parents by making them grandparents. I wanted the story to show that love and kindness are a cycle and all the love and kindness you give eventually comes back to you.
MB: You've worked with many wonderful illustrators including Tom Lichtenheld. You've said that working with Tom was very collaborative, which usually isn't the case. Did you work closely with the Fan Brothers? Have you had a chance to meet the brothers yet?
BF: You are correct about collaboration being rare in the picture book world. When Tom and I worked on Stick and Stone, we did not collaborate at all and didn’t actually meet until a year after the book was published. But lucky for me, we did eventually meet and we just clicked with each other. This is what led to the collaboration on our next book, Ten Rules of the Birthday Wish. It was fascinating and rewarding to edit and write together and we loved it so much, we are doing it again. I feel very lucky to work with someone who is as smart and kind and talented as Tom.
As for the Fan brothers, I was lucky enough to meet Terry and Eric at ALA (American Library Association) in June of 2019. We had a lovely dinner with our publishers at Harper Collins and I was so happy that I could tell them in person how much I loved their art and how it elevated the book and perfectly portrayed the warmth and heart of the story. Both Terry and Eric were generous and kind and humble. We had a lot of fun talking about art and books and the creative process. The picture book world is lucky that Terry and Eric found their way into it. As for collaboration, we did not collaborate at all, but I was able to see sketches as the book progressed. I’m sure you can imagine how delighted I was every step of the way.
MB: Your first book Stick and Stone in 2015 was a great success. Can you tell us about the journey to getting your first book published?
BF: Like so many writers, I’ve always dreamed of becoming an author and when my youngest started 7th grade I thought now or never. So I joined SCBWI (Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators) and gave myself two years to see if this was something I could do. I began writing very long, rhyming stories that were truly terrible and the allotted two years were zooming by. In 2011, I challenged myself to write a story under 200 words which addressed a universal theme. I decided to write a friendship book because, of course, there weren’t too many of those. LOL! But I really had no idea what to write until I heard a song called Drops of Jupiter on the radio. This is the line which spoke to me: “Can you imagine your best friend sticking up for you even when I know you’re wrong.” It stopped me in my tracks and I thought: This is what I’m going to write – a friendship story about a stick who sticks up for his friend. I began writing it in prose, but I couldn’t keep to the 200-word count limit I had set for myself, so I decided to try it in rhyme and it worked. My first draft was pretty darn close to the final draft. I had written it in April and I got my agent – the wonderful Elena Giovinazzo of Pippin Properties – in the fall. She sold the story to HMH (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishers) in December and it was the craziest, scariest and most wonderful nine months of my life – apart from having my three children, of course!
MB: If my research is correct, you will have 5 books published this year, 3 next year and 4 in 2021. You must be incredibly disciplined and organized. What's your secret?
BF: Well, I’m not sure if that is true. The dates of publication rely on so many factors – the timeline of the illustrator, the season the publisher picks for the book and the publisher itself. I work with lots of different publishers so sometimes there is an abundance of books in one year. I usually have three or four stories going at a time and sometimes a book takes two years from start to finish and sometimes it takes five years, so when that happens you can wind up with five books in a single year! Each and every book has a different path to publication, but each one brings me great happiness and satisfaction.
MB: I've read that you have a bulldog named Chaucer. We had a bulldog named Winston in our family. They can be incredibly smart and funny dogs. I don't think I've ever laughed as hard as I did when I saw Winston jumping on a trampoline. Do you have a funny story about Chaucer?
BF: Oh my gosh, our first bulldog was named Winston too, and he was the best dog we’ve ever had. Chaucer is our new bully and he is two years old. He is much more mischievous than our Winston ever was - who definitely never jumped on a trampoline as yours did. Chaucer, however, does love to jump - to catch bubbles! The height he achieves is mind-boggling. He also enjoys eating dandelion puffs. I can’t imagine they taste good, but he can’t resist them.
MB: What do your kids think of having a successful children's author for a mother?
BF: Thank you for asking this question. It probably won’t come as a surprise that my kids are proud of me. And this just tickles me because I am so proud of them and mutual pride is a pretty amazing thing. I was lucky enough to stay at home with my kids while they were growing up so, in the back of my mind, I always wondered what they would think of that when they were old enough to consider me as a person, rather than just their mom. I really began my career in 2011 so I think they were at the age where they could appreciate what I did and, even though I waited so long to begin, I think they were proud that I finally made my dream of becoming an author come true. It’s a great example to them as well as they are now considering what careers they should pursue: it’s never too late to do what you love.
Thank you so much, Pat, for the interesting and thoughtful questions. It has been my favorite interview ever. Best of luck with all you do and thank you for the kind words regarding The Scarecrow.
-Beth
Thank you, Beth. It has been a pleasure to get to know you better and to share our love of books and bulldogs! Pat Oldroyd
]]>Marmalade Books (MB): You graduated from Harvard with a degree in Physics and you thought about being a vet. Now you are a successful children’s book author. How did you ultimately make the decision to be a writer?
]]>David Zeltser is the author of our feature book from our August Picture and Family Boxes. The Night Library (beautifully illustrated by Raul Colon) has been described as The Polar Express meets The Night at the Museum. It’s a wonderful adventure about the magic of books and libraries, with a little help from the lions that guard the New York Public Library. David’s other books include Lug, a middle grade novel series and picture books Ninja Baby, Stinker, The Universe Ate My Homework and Codzilla.
Marmalade Books (MB): You graduated from Harvard with a degree in Physics and you thought about being a vet. Now you are a successful children’s book author. How did you ultimately make the decision to be a writer?
DAVID ZELTSER (DZ): It’s hard to tease out all the different factors, but I think the biggest one might have been freedom. It’s a privilege and a joy to follow my imagination wherever it leads me.
MB: This year you had two picture books published with two different publishers. You must have been incredibly busy. Did you write the books one after the other or did some of the work overlap?
DZ: I wrote them separately. There was some overlap when it came to editing, but picture book publication dates are usually more dependent on publishers’ marketing strategies and the availability of the right illustrators.
MB: You and your friend Julia Chiapella started a free writing center for kids called Word Lab in your hometown of Santa Cruz, California. Can you tell us more about it?
DZ: When I was five years old, my parents took me out of the Soviet Union in hopes of a better life in America. Growing up with very little money in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, I benefited from many kind people and helpful organizations. I’ve tried never to forget that. A few years ago, as an author and a relatively new parent, it felt like the right time for my wife Fiona and me to help kids in our community. Inspired by 826 Valencia in San Francisco (created by Dave Eggers and Nínive Calegari), I approached the Young Writer Program’s Julia Chiapella about creating a fun and imaginative writing center for kids attending Santa Cruz public schools. With the help of many generous people, we created an ‘imaginarium’ called the Chamber of Heart and Mystery (at the Museum of Art and History) and an adjacent afterschool writing center called the Word Lab. Along with a passionate staff of volunteers, I have the honor of helping our students create, edit and share their work with the community. (Bookshop Santa Cruz even put their anthologies on sale!) On a personal note, many of the kids who participate come from immigrant families like mine at a time where many such families are being increasingly marginalized. The Word Lab is here to give Santa Cruz kids the safe space, undistracted time and mentors they need to write and have their voices heard.
MB: You and your eight-year-old daughter Naomi were so kind to write our Marmalade readers a letter for our Night Library boxes. What does Naomi think about having a Dad who is a children’s book author?
DZ: As you know, I enjoy delegating, so I asked Naomi to answer this question. Here’s her response:
“It’s really fun, but it can also have its drawbacks. There was this time when I was at school and saw a girl reading one of my dad’s novels, Lug: Dawn of the Ice Age. She said it was one of her favorite books but when I told her who wrote it she didn’t believe me. I had to show her my dad’s photo on the book jacket!”
MB: In The Night Library, a young boy has a nighttime adventure meeting Patience and Fortitude, the much-loved lions that guard the New York Public Library. What inspired you to write about these beautiful statues?
DZ: The lion statues always seemed magical. But years after I’d moved to sunny California from NYC, I put a photo of the snow-covered statues in a random ideas folder. Then, one day, the picture suddenly spoke to me. The other inspiration was reading The Polar Express to my daughter.
MB: Are you working on a new project that you can tell us about?
DZ: I’m always working on picture books, novels and screenplays, and never know what will strike next. Right now, I’m having the most fun collaborating on some very different picture books with two close friends who are also extremely talented illustrators—Benjamin Arthur and Rob Court.
My thanks to David Zeltser and his daughter Naomi for this interview and letter to our readers. It was a pleasure to get to know you a little better. Pat Oldroyd
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MARMALADE BOOKS (MB): You graduated from the Cambridge School of Art in 2009 winning an award for the Best New Talent. Then in 2011, Julia Donaldson (Room on the Broom, The Gruffalo) chose your book Fluff and Billy, as one of her favourite picture books of the year. This must have been very exciting and an inspiring way to start your career as a children’s author and illustrator. Did it help to open doors for you?
]]>Nicola Killen is the author and illustrator of The Little Rabbit, the feature book in our March Picture Book Box. Nicola worked in greeting card design before going to art school. She lives in Cambridge, England.
MARMALADE BOOKS (MB): You graduated from the Cambridge School of Art in 2009 winning an award for the Best New Talent. Then in 2011, Julia Donaldson (Room on the Broom, The Gruffalo) chose your book Fluff and Billy, as one of her favourite picture books of the year. This must have been very exciting and an inspiring way to start your career as a children’s author and illustrator. Did it help to open doors for you?
NICOLA KILLEN (NK): Studying on the MA course at Cambridge definitely opened a lot of doors for me. The course leader, Martin Salisbury, arranged appointments to see some publishers while we visited the Bologna Book Fair in 2008 and that's when I first had interest in my work. A lot of publishers also visited our graduation show so that really helped too. Winning the award was the icing on the cake! I ended up working on my first books with the publisher who awarded it, and they gave me the chance to spend a week in their offices to learn more about how publishing worked. Julia Donaldson choosing Fluff and Billy as one of her books of the year was such an honour and a real surprise! It was lovely to think that someone who I respected so much had enjoyed my work!
MB: In the summer of 2017 I discovered your charming book The Little Reindeer and knew I would feature it in our December Picture Book Box that year. I was thrilled to hear that there would be a sequel. The Little Rabbit is our feature book this month. Will there be more stories about Ollie and her magical adventures?
NK: Thank you so much for featuring Ollie in your book boxes. I know that there will be at least one more Ollie adventure as I am working on it at the moment - I'm busy painting all the pictures right now! I don't know how much I can tell you, but it will be out in 2020!
MB: How did the idea for Ollie come about?
NK: I was trying out making pictures in black and white, using ink and dry brushes. My friend had recently bought reindeer sleep suits for her two little girls and I'd made some little sketches of them which were on my desk. So I started painting and soon I had a picture which was just like Ollie on the front cover of The Little Reindeer! Everyone I showed it to really loved that picture so I started working on story ideas. The reindeer book started as a simple board book with die cuts, but my publisher thought it would work better as a picture book – and they were right!
MB: Your black and white illustrations, with a few splashes of colour and die cuts to give hints of the page to come really make the books standout. What were some of the techniques you used to create these beautiful books?
NK: I paint the images using ink and brushes on cartridge paper. Sometimes I cut stencils to help me paint the correct places. These can take a long time to cut, especially if they are for double page spreads, but make the painting much quicker! When I've done all the painting, I monoprint the linework over the top. Then each piece is scanned and I add the colour digitally.
Working out the die cuts can be difficult as they have to work on both sides, so this is usually a case of trial and error. I think it's definitely worth it though – I always loved peeking through die cuts when I was a child (and still do)!
MB: Do you have any new projects coming up that you can tell us about?
NK: I have a book coming out in the UK this summer called My Name is Bear! It's about a bear who needs to learn some manners and is painted in the same way as Fluff and Billy (but with much more detail). And of course there's the next instalment of Ollie. After that I'm going to be doing lots of drawing and experimenting to generate new ideas!
MB: Have you ever been to Canada?
NK: I haven't been to Canada yet, but would love to visit someday!
My thanks to Nicola for this interview. It has been a pleasure to get to know you and your beautiful work better. Pat Oldroyd
]]>MARMALADE BOOKS: Kit, I've long been a fan of your work. As a bookseller for the past twenty years, I regularly recommended your books to customers. It’s no surprise to me that you have won many awards. I've often felt that people don't appreciate how vital and beautifully written books are for young readers. So I was certainly excited for you and Canadian children's literature as a whole, when you were named a Member of the Order of Canada (“for your contributions as an author of Canadian literature for children and young adults”). It doesn’t happen very often that a children’s author or illustrator is recognized in this way. What does the award mean to you?
]]>Kit Pearson is a much-loved Canadian children’s author. Her award-winning novels include The Guests of War series (The Sky is Falling, Looking at the Moon and The Lights Go On Again), Awake and Dreaming (winner of the Governor General’s Award) and the just published Be My Love (companion to The Whole Truth and Nothing But the Truth). Also recently published The Magic Boat, a picture book she wrote with partner Katherine Farris. The Magic Boat is a lovely story about shyness, friendship and imagination. Marmalade Books was pleased to feature it in our February 2019 Picture Book Box. Kit and Katherine live in our hometown of Victoria, B.C.
MARMALADE BOOKS: Kit, I've long been a fan of your work. As a bookseller for the past twenty years, I regularly recommended your books to customers. It’s no surprise to me that you have won many awards. I've often felt that people don't appreciate how vital and beautifully written books are for young readers. So I was certainly excited for you and Canadian children's literature as a whole, when you were named a Member of the Order of Canada (“for your contributions as an author of Canadian literature for children and young adults”). It doesn’t happen very often that a children’s author or illustrator is recognized in this way. What does the award mean to you?
KIT PEARSON: It’s absolutely thrilling! At my age it’s a wonderful recognition of my vocation, and of course it’s terrific that they have recognized the importance of writing for children.
MARMALADE BOOKS: Kit, although you wrote a picture book many years ago, you have primarily written novels for young readers. What made you decide to go back to writing a picture book? Are you planning more in the future?
KIT PEARSON: I wrote this book because Orca (Book Publishers) asked me to write a picture book with a story set on the West Coast. It was so much fun that perhaps I’ll try another one some day.
MARMALADE BOOKS: Kit and Katherine: What was your inspiration for The Magic Boat?
KIT PEARSON & KATHERINE FARRIS: The inspiration came from a photo of an old boat half buried in the sand that we both remember seeing – unfortunately we cannot remember where!
MARMALADE BOOKS: Katherine, you are a wonderful gallery artist and have appeared in many local art shows over the last several years. Would you ever consider illustrating a book written by Kit? (Check out Katherine’s wonderful work at www.kfarris.com)
KATHERINE FARRIS: Years ago I did illustrations for the odd magazine article. Now I’m more comfortable with paint and large brushes. Illustration (and drawing people especially) is not my forte! Since the publisher tends to choose the graphic artists for their books, I don’t think that particular partnership will happen anytime soon.
MARMALADE BOOKS: Kit and Katherine, you've known each other for many years. How did you meet?
KIT PEARSON & KATHERINE FARRIS We have lived together for almost 14 years. We met through a mutual friend in Vancouver.
My thanks to Kit and Katherine for this interview. I look forward to your future collaborations. Pat Oldroyd]]>
MARMALADE BOOKS (MB): We both got our start in the children’s book business working at Munro’s Books, one of the leading independent bookstores in Canada. How did you transition to being a children’s book editor?
]]>Ann Featherstone is the senior editor at Canadian publisher Pajama Press. She also happens to be my sister. And as her sister, I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to feature her wonderful new book, A World of Kindness in our October Picture Book Box as well as interview her for our blog.
MARMALADE BOOKS (MB): We both got our start in the children’s book business working at Munro’s Books, one of the leading independent bookstores in Canada. How did you transition to being a children’s book editor?
ANN FEATHERSTONE (AF): I was approached by an emerging publisher in Victoria. He often came into the bookstore for advice, and in 1990 when he offered me a job as managing editor, I decided to take the leap. I spent ten years shaping the children's program at Orca Book Publishers, and I'm proud of that. But I had to teach myself to be an editor in those days; I was on my own. So there were times when the experience was humbling. I had a degree in English Literature, which helped quite a bit, but the learning curve was pretty steep at first.
MB: Can you tell us the story of how this lovely book came to be?
AF: The publisher, Gail Winskill, has a precocious granddaughter, who was just entering Grade One. She soon had her first negative experience with another student who was mean to her, and her mother counciled kindness in response. But it wasn't until she asked her grandmother how to be kind that Gail thought it was time for Pajama Press to do something on the subject. So the publisher, managing editor Erin Alladin and I discussed the approach we wanted to take. And early on, we decided we didn't want to tell a story. Instead, we wanted to show children images that they could use to tell their own stories about what kindness means. After some research by our managing editor, and more discussions, I took all Erin's work and distilled the text into a series of questions. These questions are quite simple at first; it's easy, for instance, to say please and thank you. But later on, the questions are a bit harder. How easy is it to share something that is important to you, like your first bicycle? While Erin and I went back and forth on the text, Gail approached our Pajama Press illustrators to obtain images from our books that would work on every spread. Some of them did original work and donated it to the project, which was really lovely of them. The royalties for this book will be donated to Think Kindness, an organization that promotes school and community programs that focus on kindness.
MB: What does an editor do?
AF: First, acquisitions. I go through stacks of submissions (around 1,800 received last year—I am a fast reader), consider what I think may work for our program, and show it to the publisher and defend it as a possibility for our list. Then, substantive editing. Once a book is under contract, I reread the story and point out all the areas that need improvement: character development, point of view of the narration, story arc, pacing, thematic development, general syntax that will need attention, minor plotlines that are not resolved. Sometimes this work is partially done in general notes I send the author in advance of the contract, so the author can decide if she or he agrees and can assure us that they see the same vision for their story and are willing to put in the extra work. Then I move on to the copy edit. I go through the new version of the story line-by-line, look for problems in sentence structure, word repetitions (everybody has favourite words they use over and over) that need to be addressed, too many run-on sentences, word choices that affects tone, too many exclamation marks, that sort of thing. And of course I must standardize spelling and form (for example, the narrator cannot write "okay" on one page and "ok" on another). Then, once the author and I are happy, the text goes to the designer for typesetting. Then I consult with the publisher and designer on the cover concept. While the designer is working, I create a style guide, which informs a proofer for instance that we want to see the word "t-shirt" rather than "T-shirt," etc. So I create a spelling list of frequently used words in the text. Also, we have house-style rules that the proofer needs to know in order to proof the typeset text. Once this is done, I look at the proofer's results, throw out anything that I think is just too picky (even though I prefer them to be picky!), and pass it back to the author so they can weigh in with any objections they might have. I send the changes to the designer and supervise the corrections to make sure nothing has been missed.
In the case of picture books, I do roughly the same thing as above, but then I also work with the publisher and designer on art direction. My job here is to make sure that the author's vision is retained in the artwork, that the planned art will bring added value to the story rather than simply illustrate the mechanics of the story. So sometimes we will discuss visual subtexts that an illustrator can add to a project (as in a lighthearted story when pets appear in the background and fool around, even though they aren't part of the story. Or in a more serious story, when an artist adds visual elements that reinforce the theme, like weather that mirrors the emotional state of the main character). Sometimes, when the art is detailed, I make a decision to go back to the author to point out where areas of text may no longer be necessary, like when a text points out that someone is wearing a blue shirt (if we are going to see a blue shirt, does the text need to say it anymore?). And I keep checking the process, from rough drawings to detailed drawings to finished artwork, comparing the story to the art to make sure there is no disconnect between the text and the illustrations.
MB: You’ve worked with many wonderful Canadian children’s authors and illustrators over the years and the books that you’ve helped come to life have won many awards. I won’t put you on the spot by asking who was the best to work with (and who wasn’t), but do you have a favourite book that you were involved with?
AF: Come on, Pat! You know this is like asking me which of my kids I love best! But like parenting, sometimes it is the problem child you have the most feeling for because you invested so heavily in them. And when they turn out well, you are so proud. One of Orca's earliest picture books, Waiting for the Whales gained me a cherished friend in (author) Sheryl McFarlane. At that time, I was pretty new to editing picture books, but I knew vaguely what I wanted, and Sheryl had the kernel of a story that was so beautiful and moving. But I kept pushing and pushing for changes to improve it. Poor Sheryl wrote, I think, nine drafts of that story until we were both satisfied it was perfect. And it was. We wouldn't change a word of it. It won the Governor General's Award for Illustration—and you don't get nominated for a poor story that just happens to be beautifully illustrated. Ron Lightburn's art in it is fabulous. That book cemented Orca Book Publisher's reputation as a children's publisher across the country, not only on the West Coast.
Just last year, I edited Sherri Green's middle-grade novel Missing Mike. She is a dream of a writer, but something was missing in the story for me. I kept mulling it over until it hit me. Mike, our heroine's beloved dog, goes missing early in the book when the family is suddenly evacuated because of a wildfire. I just didn't know Mike as well as Cara the heroine did, it was hard to strongly identify with her pain and determination to find him again. I talked to Sherri, who is also a really generous person. And she took my suggestions on faith. She agreed to add some flashbacks that took us to the shelter when Cara first insists on choosing Mike. Then Sherri added little scenes when Cara and Mike slowly begin to bond. So now we really knew Mike as well as Cara did. By the time I reread Sherri's third draft, I kept tearing up. Every edit drove me crazy because I knew I was about to get to those spots in the story when I would start crying again. But I felt as if I were losing Mike every time I worked on that story. I won't tell you the ending, but you will cry happy tears, I promise.
MB: Okay, maybe I should put you on the spot. How about a juicy story from one of the projects you were involved with. Names are good.
AF: No names; what, are you kidding? I will tell you that I once worked on a picture book where the author and illustrator were best friends and solidly invested in the project together...until they had a creative difference about the book. It was my job to intercede. I learned early on that it is a mistake to let authors and illustrators confer and work together. They will both have to compromise at some point. No matter how hard they try to be generous about each other, authors and illustrators will always have a slightly different vision of the book in their head. So it is better for the publishing house to take the reins of a project, protect it as a separate entity, take all responsibility for decisions that someone may be unhappy about, and keep their own final vision in mind. After all, the publisher is footing the bill. In this particular case, the author and illustrator were no longer talking by the time the book launched, and they wouldn't even appear in the same room together. It taught me an early lesson. When it comes to inexperienced authors or illustrators, I sometimes have to remind them that they own only half of the story; they have to play nice and share the project. And sharing is sometimes easier if they never meet until the book launch! And it's always better if they blame me instead of each other; then they can remain good friends.
MB: Our love of books came naturally since we had a father who would read an armful of books every week. My appreciation for books came a little later but you would go to the library regularly with Dad. Do you think this is what inspired your love of reading?
AF: Oh yes. But I remember that libraries almost didn't happen for me at all. Dad would just leave me at the entrance to the children's section every Saturday while he went off to the adult section. My first time there, I chose my books and carried them up to the librarian's desk. She immediately took them from me and put them on the return cart. I was so shy that I didn't tell her that I wasn't returning books; I wanted to borrow those. So I went home empty-handed that day. Dad never said a word about it. The next week I got up the courage to ask the librarian if I could take my choices home, please. And she said yes! Holy cow! What a concept! And I'll never forget when Dad decided I was ready for the adult section. I was eleven, and I chose Defoe's Journal of the Plague Year. Dad never said a word about that either. I was horrified and delighted by that book—and I still have a perverse attachment to plague stories. If you remember, Mom and Dad never censored our reading material. If we bought comic books, nobody turned a hair. When I started reading Harlequin Romances, I think Dad shuddered a little, but nobody objected. I got to decide myself when it was time to move on to Gone With the Wind, which led me to To Kill a Mockingbird and The Member of the Wedding. Nothing is better than discovering a book for yourself when you are a kid.
MB: Growing up you were team Eloise and I was team Madeline. Was Eloise your favourite book or did you really have another?
AF: Actually, I wasn't a fan of Eloise until I was a mom. But I do still love her excruciatingly. I also loved The Cat in the Hat, Curious George, The Story about Ping and The Camel Who Took a Walk (our brother's favourite picture book to this day, I think!). And I knew every word of Madeline and the Gypsies. When I graduated to novels, I adored The Incredible Journey. And then Mom bought me my first copy of Anne of Green Gables, and I obsessed over her for years. Then there was The Wind in the Willows. Those characters positively sang to me.
MB: What do you see for the future of children’s book?
AF: When e-books were first introduced, I was a bit worried. But it hasn't hurt children's books' sales at all. But what we have come to realize, unfortunately, is that the Canadian market for children's novels and picture books isn't as healthy as it was in the 80s and 90s; it's been slowly declining for years, just as independent bookstores have struggled or closed down in the face of chains and online selling. And what has happened in the last thirty years to the teacher-librarian? Now it is almost impossible for a small publisher to survive on books that emphasize Canadian themes and locations, because there aren't enough booksellers in this country, or school libraries with decent budgets anymore. And the cost of publishing has gone up at the same time. The Canada Council helps tremendously with funding for Canadian-authored projects, but at Pajama Press, we have also learned to thrive by finding a wonderful American company that distributes and sells us in the United States. Libraries there want hardcovers (where there is a better profit margin for the publisher and author), not paperbacks, which booksellers and many libraries only want. Our market south of the border is mostly school and public libraries. I'm grateful to them. This past year we were on the New York Times list of best picture books of the year (eight books were chosen and we had one of them!), and we won a major award administered by the American Library Association. We continue to be recognized south of the border and internationally. That is what you have to do to survive—hope the situation in Canada will improve one day, and in the meantime, cast a wider net. It's a lofty goal to claim you will only publish the finest stories you discover. For us, the reality is different. We must find the best quality stories, yes. But we also must fulfill the market's needs at the same time. And that is the challenge.
The Butler Girls: Pat (Oldroyd), our late mother Mary and Ann (Featherstone)
My thanks to my dear sister Ann, for letting me twist her arm to do this interview. I couldn’t be more proud of you. Pat Oldroyd
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MARMALADE BOOKS: Can you tell us a bit about your childhood, growing up with parents who were artists? Did they inspire you to become an artist?
]]>Acclaimed paper artist Elly MacKay is the author/illustrator of our feature book this month, Red Sky at Night. Her previous books have included If You Hold a Seed, Shadow Chasers and Waltz of the Snowflakes. Elly studied print making and illustration at art school. Her technique for creating her illustrations is quite detailed. First she inks her characters and the backgrounds on Yupo paper. Then cuts out the layers and sets them up in her miniature theatre. She lights the scenes and takes multiple photographs, altering the lenses, light and filters to create atmosphere. Elly takes her inspiration from Victoria Paper Theatre and Tunnel Books. She lives in Owen Sound, Ontario, with her husband and two children.
MARMALADE BOOKS: Can you tell us a bit about your childhood, growing up with parents who were artists? Did they inspire you to become an artist?
ELLY MACKAY: They’re great. Their names are Joan and Steve Irvine. They were always doing something interesting. My mom is a writer, and paper artist (and teacher too) and my dad is a potter and photographer. They live in a converted church out in the country. My options for entertainment out there were to play outside or to join in and make things too. We didn’t have any kids next door so every weekend in the summer my mom would invite all the kids in a 5-10 km radius to our ‘box club’. We used cardboard boxes, spray paint and duct tape to built dragons, time machines and mini puts. Art seemed like a natural thing to do as an adult too. I do remember my guidance councillor in High School being pretty skeptical about my life plan. I’d done really well in Math and he had convinced me to apply for a scholarship. I got it, a full scholarship to Waterloo. Then, I turned it down and went to the Nova Scotia College of Art and Design instead. Most parents would have told their kids to take the scholarship, but to their credit, my parents didn’t. Not a word. I won’t pretend being an artist is all smooth sailing but I love this life and those fiercely independent, creative and kind people that raised me.
MB: How long does it take for you to create an image?
EM: Oh, it really depends. When it is for a book, I give myself a couple of days. Some are quite complex. There is the planning too and sometimes it just doesn’t feel right and I need to redo it. Other times, especially when I am just playing in the studio, I can create several images in a day that I like. It is a really different process.
MB: Do you have a number of theatres or do you complete one image and then take it down? It must be terribly hard to take a theatre apart!
EM: I have a couple of theatres. I leave an image up until I get the image approved from a publisher. I go on to the next image in the other theatre. The layers of paper are taken down quite easily. I hold things up with tape and wires.
MB: How did you make the leap to children’s books?
EM: I always thought it would be a wonderful job. When I was in university my illustration professor had me do his overflow work and I really enjoyed it. I did a few things for children and my prof set up a meeting with a publisher for me. It was a great opportunity but I wasn’t ready. Later, after I had my daughter I thought I’d work on a portfolio. I put my work on Etsy (https://www.etsy.com/ca/shop/theaterclouds) and an agent found me there.
MB: How did the idea for Red Sky at Night come about?
EM: It actually started as another book. The book was called Clouds. The manuscript was as nebulous as the topic. I couldn’t figure out how to put words to it. In the meantime, I was playing with these old weather sayings. I found them so interesting and the science behind them too. They fit the theme but not the story I had already submitted. My wonderfully kind publisher, Tara Walker said I could move forward with Red Sky at Night instead. But... the original Cloud story hasn’t left me. Maybe someday.
MB: Your mother wrote a book about pop-up books. Have you considered doing a pop-up book yourself?
EM: I love pop-ups. I think it would be such fun, and while I love making pop ups, I don’t know how I would go about taking the paper engineering itself that would work for a book and translating it into something for a publisher to have cut and printed. I’d love to learn.
MB: Is there a classic children’s book that you would like to illustrate?
EM: I think a classic would work well with my illustration style. It is nice to have something familiar when the illustrations are unusual. It is tricky though. So many classics are already beautifully illustrated and who would want to try to compete with that.. like Wind in the Willows. Or the classics are stuck in a time that I don’t want to travel to. Anne of Green Gables was an exception. L. M. Montgomery was ahead of her time. There are some writers telling stories that create new mythologies/tales. That really appeals to me.
MB: Do your children create their own paper theatres?
EM: My daughter does. She makes little figures to put in the theatre. My son hasn’t really. When he makes art, he tends to use his whole arm so I pull out the big roll of paper. They are both so creative in different ways.
MB: Can you tell us a bit about your next project?
EM: I’d love to. The book I’m working on right now is called The Secret Fawn, written by Kallie George. It will be published by Tundra. It is about being the smallest kid. I think it will really appeal to that youngest child in a family or to anyone that has ever had an encounter with a deer. I am just at the sketching stage, looking forward to turning those sketches into paper worlds.
My thanks to Elly for this opportunity to have a glimpse into her beautiful world of art. Pat Oldroyd
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MARMALADE BOOKS (MB): In your first book Let Me Finish, you worked closely with illustrator Isabel Roxas, which is not usually the norm. Your new book Drawn Together, has few words and is such a fabulous and important collaboration with illustrator Dan Santat. How did it come about that Dan would be the illustrator? You didn’t work directly with Dan this time but did you give him notes about how you saw the illustrations for the story?
]]>Minh Le is the author of our feature book this month Drawn Together, an amazing look at the barriers that many children (and adults too!) face with relatives from different cultures who speak a different language. Minh drew on his own experience with his grandparents who were from Vietnam, where his parents immigrated from. Minh was born in the US and grew up in Connecticut. If anyone knows about picture books, it’s Minh. Not only has he written about children’s books for many publications, he writes his own blog, Bottom Shelf Books. Currently, he is serving as a judge for the 2018 Boston Globe-Horn Book awards. Always a picture book fan, it was his wife who persuaded him to write a book.
MARMALADE BOOKS (MB): In your first book Let Me Finish, you worked closely with illustrator Isabel Roxas, which is not usually the norm. Your new book Drawn Together, has few words and is such a fabulous and important collaboration with illustrator Dan Santat. How did it come about that Dan would be the illustrator? You didn’t work directly with Dan this time but did you give him notes about how you saw the illustrations for the story?
MINH LE (ML): Thank you for the kind words, I really feel like I hit the illustrator jackpot with my first two books!
For Drawn Together, it was our amazing editor Rotem Moscovich who made the connection. Fresh off his Caldecott win, she mentioned to Dan that she thought the two of us might be a good fit for a book... so I got this email from my agent that night saying that we have an opportunity to work with Dan and I needed to send him 2-3 book ideas within 2 days. Dan’s life was about to be completely swept away by the Caldecott madness and we had to strike while the window was still open.
No pressure. ;-)
I had just come back from the hospital with my second son, so was up at 3am rocking my newborn to sleep and trying to figure out “How do you write a story for someone who just won THE BIGGEST AWARD IN CHILDREN’S LITERATURE??” Fortunately, this is the story that came from that.
As for notes, most of this story takes place in the pictures so I did have to rely on illustration notes. But I always try to keep a light touch and only include the info necessary for Dan to know what was going on in the story/narrative. The details of how that all visually came together and how the scenes came to life, I wanted to leave in Dan’s talented hands.
MB: I’ve read that Drawn Together was an emotional journey for both you and Dan. You both describe connecting with your roots and your grandparents. Sadly you lost your own grandfather just before the book was published. Did you feel that writing this book helped you to deal with the passing of your grandfather?
ML: It definitely has, thank you for asking. It’s been a kind of blessing because in the year since he passed, I have spent so much time out there sharing this story about our relationship. Sharing his spirit and memory with people (and having them in turn share their own stories with me) has been a pleasant surprise that has made him feel extremely present in my daily life.
And as someone who loves and believes fully in the power of books, I can’t think of a better way to honor his memory than by giving him a place on the shelf.
MB: In addition to writing two wonderful books, you are a children’s book reviewer, blogger, write articles for publications like The New York Times and Huffington Post, are a key-note speaker, presenter, a father of two boys and your day job is as an early childhood policy writer. How on earth do you manage it all?!
ML: Ha, that answer depends on the day. ;-) Life is very full right now and every now and then it dips over capacity... but it is full with wonderful things so I can’t complain. My wife and I both put our family first, but we believe that part of being good parents is showing our kids that it is important to devote time and energy to the things that you believe in. So when they see my wife (who does amazing work in international education & advocacy) working late into the night or see me visiting schools and squeezing in writing wherever I can, we’re hoping to set a positive example for them.
With the world the way it is right now, we want our boys to know that part of being a strong family is being able to engage with the world around us. It’s important to do what we can to add something positive to counteract the negative.
MB: I bet your house is full of children’s books which your sons must love. How many books do you think you have accumulated?
ML: HA, to give you an idea, when people ask me to describe our home I often say: “Imagine a bookstore and a library got into a fight... during a hurricane.” My boys live in this magical world where they get boxes of free books delivered to their door every day. The year is barely halfway done, but we’ve already received well over a thousand books so far.
And while we do have a wonderful collection of books, my wife and I have also identified over a dozen local schools, libraries, and other deserving organizations that can put the books to good use. So once I’m done reviewing, we get the added bonus/joy of donating hundreds upon hundreds of books, getting them into the hands of children and families who truly need them.
MB: Can you tell us a little bit about your job as a childhood policy expert?
ML: Sure! I work for the federal government (starting during the previous administration) on a national program that helps low-income working families pay for child care. I write policies and regulations for the program to help States invest the money in ways that will hopefully serve the most families possible while also ensuring that children are in safe and high-quality settings.
It’s a much different kind of writing, but I like to think that it’s related because both kinds of writing are in service of children and families. (Though of course, writing picture books is much more fun.)
MB: Thank you Minh. Congratulations on this amazing book.
ML: Thank YOU for having me and for sharing our book with your readers!
]]>MARMALADE BOOKS (MB): In order to convey the language barrier that the boy and his grandfather had in Drawn Together, there was very little text. Your illustrations were so important to the story. How much direction did you get from author Minh Le and/or your editor? And while we’re at it, how did it work for Dude!? This hilarious high concept book (illustrated by you) only has one word by Aaron Reynolds, expressed in many different ways.
]]>Dan Santat is a very talented author and illustrator of over 60 books. He lives in southern California with his wife, two sons and a variety of pets. In 2015 he won the Caldecott Medal for his book Adventures of Beekle: The Unimaginary Friend. This prestigious medal is awarded annually by the Association for Library Service to the artist of the most distinguished American picture book for children. Dan is the illustrator of our feature book this month, Drawn Together.
MARMALADE BOOKS (MB): In order to convey the language barrier that the boy and his grandfather had in Drawn Together, there was very little text. Your illustrations were so important to the story. How much direction did you get from author Minh Le and/or your editor? And while we’re at it, how did it work for Dude!? This hilarious high concept book (illustrated by you) only has one word by Aaron Reynolds, expressed in many different ways.
DAN SANTAT (DS): Everyone was fairly hands off on the art notes for Drawn Together. Minh was very open to interpretation in his manuscript allowing me to use either Thai or Vietnamese cultural aspects for the story. The story had a dragon in the plot and I knew of a fairly ornate dragon (or serpent) in Thai mythology so I went in that direction also knowing that the decorative clothing in Thai culture would also lend to a very detailed and ornate look for the book. I actually had no idea how the art was going to look in the book because I was exploring the story with the intention that the style of the art was going to reflect that of the characters in the story rather than my own. Spreads typically take me a day to complete, and in this case it was taking me anywhere from three to eight days. I just called the art finished once it “felt right”. I’ve worked with the folks at Disney-Hyperion for years now and they’re generally used to my art process and they know what to expect. My editor, knowing I could typically finish a two page spread in a day called in to my studio asking me if everything was okay because I was being a little quiet. All I could say was, “I think I’m on to something, but I don’t know what.”
I’m glad the book has been received well.
As for Dude!, Aaron was very specific about the narrative of the book because the script absolutely needed that information for me to illustrate the story. The page would say “Dude!” and then have art notes in parentheses to give me an idea what it all meant and what was going on in the story. It was amazing. It was a story that I wish I had written.
MB: While writing or illustrating many authors and illustrators play music that inspires the feeling of what they are working on. Did you have a soundtrack for Drawn Together? I can imagine some great dramatic action music while the grandfather and grandson battle out their artwork.
DS: I’m not really a soundtrack guy when I work. I much prefer watching TV shows and movies while in the studio. I watch everything and it would be hard to nail down what it was I was watching at the time. Game of Thrones, Westworld, and even network TV. On the occasion that I do listen to music I’ll typically listen to a local college radio station located in Santa Monica called KCRW. You can stream them on the internet if you’re curious.
MB: You’ve talked about how much your family has influenced your work. Adventures of Beekle for the birth of your son. (I love that his first word was Beekle). I was very touched when you talked about After the Fall. You’ve said it was a love letter to your wife as she dealt with horrible anxiety and postnatal depression. Do you feel that becoming a husband and a father has changed the way you approach your work?
DS: Yes, I’d say that life experiences have become a huge source of inspiration for me. I typically try to think of a life experience that we can all relate to as people and then I try to convert the emotion that is associated with that particular experience into words and images. I think that capturing that emotion is everything to the story.
MB: Is there an artist that inspires you?
DS: I’m inspired by people who are passionate about anything they do, not just art. I’m inspired by people who love a particular craft so much that they put their heart and soul into it wether it’s cooking, or acting, or whatever. I try to approach my art with an intense love of the thing I’m doing at that moment because I know that the passion will make it the best work I can do.
MB: Your sons are older now but I’m sure they loved to have you read to them. Did you test out your own stories on them and what was their reaction?
DS: I actually never read any of my stories to the kids. They get really embarrassed when they know the underlying context of a story is about them so I spare them the embarrassment. They also love to read what they choose and I don’t want to be the dad that says, “Oh, you want to read Wimpy Kid? No, no. I’ve got something better!”
MB: I’m crazy about so many of your books and I love the extra surprises that you’ve hidden in the books. I have to ask you, was there something special about the date October 24, 2059 in Are We There Yet?
DS: October 24, 2059 is the day my youngest son turns 50 years old. The book is dedicated to him and he’s so impatient about things that I wanted to leave him one more thing to be patient for.
My thanks to Dan for this wonderful interview. You are amazing and I look forward to every new book you are involved in. Pat Oldroyd
]]>MARMALADE BOOKS (MB): Terry, I assume you are the oldest? You were born in Illinois and then you moved to Hawaii where Eric was born? Which island did you live on and can you tell us a bit about your life in paradise?
]]>Terry and Eric Fan are the creators of the recently published, Ocean Meets Sky. This amazingly detailed and enchanting book is the second for the Fan Brothers as both authors and illustrators. In 2017 their first book The Night Gardener, won the prestigious Ruth Swartz Children’s Book Award and a Blue Spruce Award. They also illustrated the gorgeous The Antlered Ship by Dashka Slater and The Darkest Night by astronaut Chris Hadfield. These incredibly talented brothers are from Toronto, Ontario.
MARMALADE BOOKS (MB): Terry, I assume you are the oldest? You were born in Illinois and then you moved to Hawaii where Eric was born? Which island did you live on and can you tell us a bit about your life in paradise?
TERRY AND ERIC FAN (E&TF): Yes, I’m about a year-and-a-half older than Eric. We lived in Oahu for about three years in the early 60’s. Dad earned his PHD in Philosophy at The University of Hawaii in Honolulu. I only have vague, but very happy, memories of that time because we were so young. One of my first memories is being on the beach - I’m pretty sure it was Waikiki Beach. From photos during that time it seems like we were always on the beach and very tanned! That may be the reason I feel such a strong affinity towards the ocean and am always happier when near a large body of water. I don’t think it’s a coincidence that Eric and I ended up living in “The Beaches” neighbourhood of Toronto, which has a long boardwalk that runs along Lake Ontario.
MB: When and what brought you to Toronto? By the way, Canada is pretty happy to lay claim to you now!
E&TF: Our dad was offered a full-time teaching position at York University in Toronto, so we moved there in 1970. We’ve lived in Toronto ever since, but are still dual U.S./Canadian citizens.
MB: I recently saw a video of you both creating a picture. You passed the picture back and forth, each taking a turn working on it and then finally both working on it at the same time. It was fascinating to watch. It was almost like you were twins with the exact same image in your heads. Is this normally how you work? Do you ever disagree on the direction of the work?
E&TF: We live close to one another and whenever we get the chance we like to work that way. Sometimes, for the sake of practicality, we work on elements separately and then upload them to a shared Dropbox folder. Then we’ll both colour and put together full scenes in Photoshop and often refine/modify each other’s work to one degree or another. We’ve developed a kind of “artistic dialogue” over the years that’s intuitive and has served us pretty well so far.
Of course, as with any partnership, we occasionally have disagreements, but we always manage to work them out. When working on a project together we both have the same goal in mind, so we put aside our egos and focus collectively on getting the best result we can. It’s important to keep an open mind and to really listen to different ideas or viewpoints. This doesn’t just apply to our own working relationship, but also to the editor and art director of a project. Working on a picture book is a very collaborative effort so co-operation and respect on all levels is vitally important.
MB: How does it work with writing a story?
E&TF: Usually we’ll get together and have brainstorming sessions where we toss ideas back and forth and most of our story ideas come out of this process. Then we both work on the text and it invariably goes through many edits before we arrive at a final draft. Sometimes the text or story will also change depending on the art work. The “flow” is so important in picture books, so we try to create stories that can be understood on a visual level.
MB: Your new book, Ocean Meets Sky is an absolute work of art. There is so much amazing detail that it should come with a warning for parents “This book cannot be read quickly!” It feels like you could have many sequels as each page is a story in itself. Where did the idea for the story come from?
E&TF: Wow, thanks so much! The original inspiration came from a standalone design that was done many years ago. We always thought there was a good story behind it, but it took a lot of brainstorming and quite a number of different drafts to arrive at a story we were happy with. Even though the text in some picture books may seem simple, I think people would be surprised by how much thought and effort goes into it. It’s a real challenge to write within the confines of a typical picture book structure because the story has to be told in a very economical and concise way.
MB: One double spread from the book is the Library Islands. There are stacks of books (including your own The Night Gardener) and all sorts of beautiful birds. Many of the books on the page are classics, a book on astronomy etc. Were these your favourite books growing up?
E&TF: That was one of our favourite scenes. It was kind of our love letter to books and to libraries. We did that particular spread when we were attending the Sendak Fellowship, and it was a turning point where the book finally started to come into focus. Sendak collected books, and there were bookshelves in all the studios and farmhouses at Scotch Hill farm, all stacked with books... it was kind of like being on our own library island. Some of the books titles in that scene were made up, but the real ones were definitely some of our favourite books growing up.
MB: Are you working on a new project and can you tell us about it?
E&TF: We’re currently working on final art for The Scarecrow, written by Beth Ferry. It’s due to be published in the Fall of 2019 by Harper-Collins. After that we’ll be working on our own story entitled The Barnabus Project, which will be published by Penguin-Random House Canada. Our younger brother, Devin, will also be joining us on that one. The three of us working together should be an interesting experience!
My thanks to Terry and Eric Fan for this interview. It was a thrill and an absolute pleasure to get to know more about you and your wonderful work. Pat Oldroyd
]]>MARMALADE BOOKS (MB): What was it like growing up in Australia?
]]>MARMALADE BOOKS (MB): What was it like growing up in Australia?
SOPHIE BLACKALL (SB): I spent a great deal of my childhood in Australia up a tree with a book. My brother was usually in the tree next door, also with a book. We had a brilliantly designed, poorly executed rope, pulley and basket system between trees to exchange books. (We were in our Famous Five period, and fortunately Enid Blyton was prolific enough to keep us fueled.) We only ever read paperback books in trees. For one thing, the book exchange was precarious, and many books went flying down to no man’s land between the branches. Also, my tree was a pink peppercorn and oozed sticky sap. And also, we didn’t always remember to bring our books down with us, and even though this was hot, dry South Australia, it sometimes rained.
On my walk home from school I would pass the butcher shop and ask for some of the paper he used to wrap meat to draw on. He would roll up a few sheets and slice a piece of mortadella into the bargain. (I’ve been fond of butchers ever since.) If I wasn’t lurking about the butcher’s or up a tree, I was at the beach.
MB: What inspired you to move to New York?
SB: To our great surprise, we won green cards in the diversity visa lottery which gave us three months to pack up our lives and move to the US. It was a grand adventure. We had a three year old and an infant and we rented a tiny apartment in Brooklyn, sight unseen. It was full of mice and a rotting mattress, but…it was still a grand adventure.
A lot has changed since then, but New York never fails to sweep me off my feet.
MB: On your Instagram account you recently shared pictures of your literary dream of a trip to England, including the home of Beatrix Potter. Can you tell us more about this trip and the things that excited you the most?
SB: Ahh! I am having the very best imaginable time, researching a book for grown ups about the houses of my favorite writers. One of those writers is Beatrix Potter. I just came back from the Lake District in England, where I stayed at Yew Tree Farm, one of the many farms she owned in the area. After her death she left 15 farms including Yew Tree and Hill Top, which is now a museum, and several thousand acres of land to the National Trust so that the astonishingly beautiful country would be protected for the enjoyment of all. She was an extraordinary woman, an exquisite painter, an inquisitive thinker, a meticulous naturalist, a passionate conservationist and is a hero in the Lake District. She also fell in love, had her heart broken and fell in love again, in the middle of her life. Her first fiancé, who was also her first editor, Norman Warne, died shortly before they could be married. She kept his umbrella and his ring for the rest of her life.
I am having a wonderful time thinking about my favorite books and what they mean to me, then traveling to those authors’ houses to see what I can discover of them there. I am drawing the things they left behind and thinking how our possessions define us.
MB: I’ve read that you hide a whale in each of your books in honour of Moby Dick and in Hello Lighthouse, you can find a whale in almost every illustration. It seems that this new book brings together three things that you really love; lighthouses, whales and the sea. What is it about these things that inspire you?
SB: I grew up by the sea. I first drew with sticks in the sand. I pine for the sea if I’m away too long. As Melville writes, “There is nothing surprising in this. If they but knew it, almost all men in their degree, some time or other, cherish very nearly the same feelings towards the ocean with me.”
I picked up Moby Dick when I’d been away from the sea too long. Books have a way of finding you at the right time. And if the time is right, Moby Dick, like New York, can sweep a person off her feet. My obsession with Moby Dick took me to New Bedford and beyond. On a beach in Cape Cod, I picked up a whale rib which now hangs above my bed. Whales began to work their way into my books, hidden mostly. But finally, in Hello Lighthouse they appear, as you say, on almost every page, if only as the weather vane atop the cupola.Lighthouses are both compelling and comforting. I love the contrast between the stormy sea crashing against the tower and the cozy round rooms inside, like curling up with a book on a rainy day.
I was working on Hello Lighthouse during some of the most turbulent times I’ve ever known. It was a great comfort to escape into my painting, to transport myself to a tiny island out at sea.
Recently a child at a school visit asked, “What were your emotions like when you made Hello Lighthouse?” I told him that there were a lot of bad and sad and crummy things happening in the world when I made this book, and that when the world is full of such things, books offer an escape to a different, kinder world. And if we can’t find exactly the world we seek in a book, then we can make our own book and our own world.
MB: The level of detail in your illustrations for Hello Lighthouse is amazing. There is so much to discover here, like finding the whales, the anchors on the wife’s dress, the bunny slippers on the daughter, the details in the cut-a-way of the lighthouse and the gorgeous waves reminiscent of The Great Wave print by Hokusai. Did you have trouble knowing when to stop and did you have more that you wanted to add?
SB: The best books are the ones you don’t want to finish making. But then you get to live with them out in the world. It’s such a pleasure sharing Hello Lighthouse with readers, and getting to visit more lighthouses now the book is out, seems too good to be true.
MB: Are you working on a new project and can you tell us about it?
SB: Like Beatrix Potter, I always have a dozen things going at once, and like Beatrix Potter, I have bought a farm. (Only one, so far.) Right now, Milkwood Farm is an abandoned dairy farm in upstate New York on 21 beautiful acres of rolling hills and wildflower meadows and meandering streams. But in two years time, it will have been transformed into a place for writers and illustrators to gather and spend time together, writing, drawing, talking, walking, eating, drinking, thinking. You can find out more about the project here! www.milkwoodfarm.org
My thanks to Sophie for this interview. I've only scratched the surface of her very interesting adventures in writing and illustrating. It's always such a pleasure to learn more about the talented and inspiring authors and illustrators in the world of children's literature. Pat Oldroyd
]]>MARMALADE BOOKS (MB): You were born in Israel and went to New York for art school. What was it like making a big move like that?
]]>I Am a Cat is Galia’s debut picture book as both author and illustrator. It’s a story about Simon, an average house cat. He tries to tell Lion, Cheetah, Puma, Panther and Tiger that he is just like them. The big cats look shocked and then start laughing hysterically. It takes some convincing but the big cats have no choice but to recognize that Simon is just like them, just smaller. I love the illustrations and all the cats. Their expressions carry the story so much further.
MARMALADE BOOKS (MB): You were born in Israel and went to New York for art school. What was it like making a big move like that?
GALIA BERNSTEIN (GB): It was amazing! There was so much to do and see and so much art! On my first drawing class in art school, we went to sketch in the museum of modern art. Paintings I only knew from books were everywhere!
I walked to school everyday on 5th Avenue, it felt like I’m in a movie.
I did think the winters were too cold at first. I wore a giant parka in October! I’m sure that’s very funny to Canadians... I love the New York winters now.
MB: You are such a creative person. From magazine work, textile print, ceramic art and sculpture to drawing and painting with watercolours, acrylics and digital art. Do you have a favourite or do you love it all?
GB: I love them all! I love working with my hands and building things, if I’ve been working digitally for a long time, my fingers will start itching to make something, to get dirty. Most of my work these days is digital, so once in a while I have to take a break and do something fun and messy.
MB: How old were you when you knew you wanted to be an artist?
GB: Art was a huge part of my life for as long as I remember. It was so much of who I was, that for a time I resented it. Everyone I knew expected me to be an artist, which made me rebellious as a teenager. That ended when I got my first illustration job. I immediately knew it’s what I want to do. I was 18.
MB: I Am a Cat is your first book as both author and illustrator. I understand this was an idea you have worked on for many years. How did the story progress through the years?
GB: In my early teens I had an idea for a cartoon about a little cat, who was laughed at by big cats because he wasn’t cat enough. In art school, I developed it into a story and wrote the monologue for each big cat. The ending was different initially and I was never happy with it. Originally, the big cats sent Simon on a quest to prove he was worthy of being a cat. When I read the story again, two years ago, it suddenly hit me, why does Simon need to prove anything? He knows he’s a cat, we know he’s a cat, if the big cats don’t think so, let them prove it! And so, a new Simon was born, strong and confident. The book was finally finished.
MB: I’m partial to tigers and perhaps that’s why I love marmalade cats. Of all the cats you created for this book, which was your favourite?
GB: Well, Tiger does get the funniest lines in the book...
I love big cats! I always have. I’ve done very little research when I drew the cats in the books, because I’ve been researching them all my life. The first big cat I started drawing, when I was four or five, was a lion, so I have a soft spot for lions. The way Lion sits in the book, with his front legs crossed, is also a homage to my regal (but tiny) dog Oliver who always sits like that. I also always loved Bagheera from The Jungle Book, so panthers are a personal favorite as well.
MB: Can you tell us a bit about your next project? Will you continue to write as well as illustrate?
GB: I am currently working on my second book as writer-illustrator and it will be published in early 2019! It’s about a little baboon girl with a very large, loud and loving family. Perhaps too loving sometimes...
I am super excited about this book, and can’t wait for you guys to see it!
My thanks to Galia for this interview. We can’t wait to see your new book too! Pat Oldroyd
]]>Thanks to the internet, television and books, there is a greater opportunity to learn more about subjects like gender identity issues in children. Many picture books are available for children 4-8 years old including Morris Micklewhite and the Tangerine Dress, Princess Boy, Jacob’s New Dress and I Am Jazz. There is also a TV show about transgender teen Jazz Jennings. Plus numerous middle grade novels for 8-12 year-olds, and young adult novels for 12 and older.
I finally had an opportunity to read a middle grade novel that has been on my TBR (to be read) pile for awhile now. Not every parent will want their child reading this or any book about gender identity issues. But for those who are open to it, I feel that the story is appropriate for the 8-12 year-old range. And beyond the subject itself, it shows characters that are empathetic, non-judgmental and caring. I really loved George by Alex Gino and it will go on my list of unforgettable books. George is a girl with a pretty big, stressful secret. The world sees her as a boy. George and the story’s narrator refer to her as a girl and so I found it easy to quickly also think of George as a girl. No one knows George’s secret, not her family (although we come to learn that they think she is gay), not even her best friend Kelly (a girl). Things come to a head when George and Kelly’s class puts on a play based on the book, Charlotte’s Web. George loves this book and desperately wants to play Charlotte. Kelly knows how much George covets the part of Charlotte, and the two spend a great deal of time practicing and learning the lines. When George auditions and reads the part of Charlotte for Ms. Udell, the teacher is extremely annoyed. “You know I can’t very well cast you as Charlotte. I have too many girls who want the part. Besides, imagine how confused people would be.” Ms. Udell offers George the part of Wilbur but she declines. George mutters to herself, “Stupid. Stupid body. Stupid brain. Stupid boys and stupid girls. Stupid everything.”
Everything starts to pile up all at once for poor George. Kelly gets the part of Charlotte. And even worse, George is being bullied by two boys in the class who obviously sense that something isn’t quite right with George and start calling her a “freaking girl.” Kelly drags George away, telling her not to listen to the jerks. George finally has enough nerve to say to Kelly, “What if I am?” Then George arrives home to find that her Mom has discovered her prized collection of girl magazines. The magazines have given her such comfort and now an angry Mom tells George she’d better not find him wearing her clothes or shoes. “That kind of thing was cute when you were three. You’re not three anymore.”
The next week is depressing for George. She doesn’t talk to Kelly and her Mom doesn’t say anything about the magazines. Fortunately, Kelly comes around and is very accepting of her best friend. Together they devise a plan for George to take the role of Charlotte in the play. They hope that everyone, including George’s mom, will see that she is a girl. George finally comes out to her family, and it’s encouraging when they begin to accept who she truly is. She even has an opportunity to be her true-self – Melissa. Kelly invites her on a trip to the Bronx Zoo and suggests that she dress as Melissa. It will be safe because no one in the city will know her.
I’m sure that not all transgender children have as positive a reaction to their coming-out from family and close friends that George has. But it is heartwarming to see how it could be. George is a perfect book to encourage conversations on gender identity and acceptance of those around us.
]]>MARMALADE BOOKS (MB): You were born in Swaziland, grew up in Singapore and spent time in numerous other cities including Edinburgh before settling in Los Angeles. What took you to these places and which was your favourite? Have you been to Canada?
]]>Nicola is the author/illustrator of our February 2018 feature book, What’s Next Door? It is the sequel to Open Very Carefully. A fabulous read-aloud and fun interactive book about the very charming Carter the Crocodile.
MARMALADE BOOKS (MB): You were born in Swaziland, grew up in Singapore and spent time in numerous other cities including Edinburgh before settling in Los Angeles. What took you to these places and which was your favourite? Have you been to Canada?
NICOLA O’BYRNE (NO): My parents were international school teachers before they retired, and we moved around a couple times. I did a gap year in Kenya before I moved to the UK for university, where I met my Dutch/American husband during my first year at Edinburgh College of Art. He had always wanted to live in different places, and it felt normal for me. We moved to Los Angeles together a couple years ago. I do think moving gets harder as you get older, but it's always exciting and interesting, too.
I have been to Canada, several times, and I love it! I had my first ever apple bran muffin at the YMCA in Vancouver. I almost studied at the Emily Carr Institute of Art and Design. I had to accept my place at Edinburgh before I found out I'd been accepted at Emily Carr. In the end, Edinburgh was a good choice for me, but I would move to Vancouver given half a chance. I'm still trying to persuade my husband! I love it there, the ocean, the mountains, and that lovely city tucked between... it's a special place. My sister studied at McGill in Montreal, and we visited her there, but it was a bit cold for me. I went on a camping trip with my family around Victoria, BC, and Whistler, and it's one of my most fondly remembered holidays. I went back to be a facilitator at a month long youth leadership seminar at Pearson United World College, also in Victoria, and I saw the northern lights on the drive over from the airport, just like that! I'll never forget it. Vancouver Island is beautiful. Japan and Canada are probably my two favourite places. This answer became long but I got excited thinking about it.
MB: You started drawing at an early age. Did you start writing at the same time?
NO: I was always writing stories when I was little. Once I wrote a fractured fairy tale, and my ever encouraging teacher laminated the cover, stuck a Dewey Decimal System label on the spine and catalogued it in the school library! I was so proud! The story I wrote then was not totally dissimilar to The Last Book Before Bedtime (Nosy Crow). I stopped writing fiction for a long time through my teenage years, and when I started again in University it was very hard going. It did not come naturally to me at all. I regret not keeping up my creative writing throughout high school; my English teacher encouraged us to do it, but I was always so tired. I still struggle with that aspect of my job, but I also very much enjoy it.
MB: While in Edinburgh, you studied at the Edinburgh College of Art, graduating in 2010 with a BA in Visual Communication. You speak highly of the school. It seems they helped you on your way to a successful career with an amazing (if I'm correct) 9 books in 8 years.
NO: The Illustration Department at ECA is amazing. My teachers were all successful illustrators, and had diverse skill sets, from digital illustration to traditional woodblock printmaking. The Printmaking Department was completely open to us and free to use, and I took it for granted at the time, but thinking about it now, it was an incredible resource. I loved the mix of traditional methods and more modern techniques. There was an emphasis on drawing skills and life drawing, and sketchbook work. We had live briefs and lectures about book keeping. There was also an emphasis on independent study, which was frustrating for some visiting students who were more used to structured classes, but in my opinion, it was vital in my first few years as an illustrator to know how to work by myself without any outside motivation. Jonathan Gibbs, the Head of Department, is a talented printmaker. I always valued my tutorials with him because he'd glance at your work and provide insights into what you were trying to do when you felt like you'd been grasping at smoke. He'd always be right! I cannot recommend that department highly enough. I am still in touch with some of my teachers such as Jill Calder. She has recently had a beautiful book published with Bloomsbury called The Picture Atlas, by Simon Holland.
MB: Another graduate of the Edinburgh College of Art whom you said was a great influence on you, was children's author/illustrator Catherine Rayner (one of my favourites). Catherine was graduating as you were entering the college and you had an opportunity to meet. What was it like to meet her and have you stayed in touch?
NO: I met Catherine Rayner twice, once when she was a graduating student, and once when she came back to ECA to give a lecture. The first time she was kind enough to talk to my Mum and I about her experience as a student at ECA, and I do not think she realised the depth of the impression she left on us. The second time, having gushed about her at length to my Head of Department, Jonathan called out to her, "I THINK SOMEONE HERE WOULD LIKE TO MEET YOU!" at the end of her lecture. I blushed red as a tomato and couldn't think of what to say. She is very lovely. I have emailed her a couple of times with questions, but I'm not in touch with her. It's difficult to chat with people you admire so much.
MB: Was it your interest in baking that inspired The Great Dragon Bake Off? This book hasn't reached Canada yet, but with a recent popular Canadian edition of the Great British Bake Off, I'm hoping it will arrive soon! With a main character/dragon named Flamie Oliver and references to The Great British Bake Off, I'm sure it will be a big hit. Did you get any feedback from Jamie Oliver or the TV show?
NO: I love baking and I wanted to do a book filled with cake, but what inspired The Great Dragon Bake Off was actually the back story of one of the contestants. He was studying to be a lawyer but he really wanted to bake. His story resonated with me, because when I had wanted to be an illustrator several family members, particularly my Grandmother, had told me I was wasting my potential and I'd never amount to anything. After my first book was published, my Grandmother said she'd made a mistake, but that was 7 years later, which is a long time to carry someone's disapproval. I wanted to write a feel good book about being yourself, and about having some sense of self worth. The dragon character was originally named Heston, but one of the team at Bloomsbury suggested Flamie Oliver and I loved that name. I have never heard from Jamie Oliver, and I'm not sure he's read the book. If he has, I hope he likes it!
MB: Our feature book for February, What's Next Door, is a sequel to Open Very Carefully. You illustrated both books and took over writing duties this time around from Nick Bromley. I adore Carter the Crocodile and the interactive aspect of the books. Will there be more in the series?
NO: It's possible there will be more, both Nosy Crow and myself are up for it, but for now we have put it on hold. I have a new book coming out with Nosy Crow this year which is a bit different. The book still deals with some abstract concepts but has a more linear storyline. We're very excited about it and I hope to explore more ideas in this new direction, for now. As tempting as it is to want to continue stories with familiar characters (after all, they're like family!), I think you need a good reason to do it.
My thanks to Nicola O’Byrne for this interview. It was a pleasure getting to know more about this very talented author/illustrator.
]]>I recently read two books on bullying that have really stuck with me. Excellent reads for 8-12 year olds, parents and educators.
Restart by Gordon Korman has quite a different take on the subject. Chase is a grade 8 student who falls off a roof and wakes up in the hospital with amnesia. He knows he’s Chase but doesn’t know who Chase is. He doesn’t know anyone. He doesn’t know that he was great at sports and he doesn’t remember that he was a notorious bully. He gets the chance to essentially start over but it isn’t easy when the kids at school, especially the ones that were his victims, have trouble believing that he’s not the old Chase. He continues to have flashbacks of his old life and the things that he’s done. Now he has the chance to decide if he’ll go back to his old life or make amends and become a better person.
Posted by John David Anderson was also a very interesting read. Timely too, as many schools are looking at banning cell phones. That’s just what happens in Posted. When cell phones are banned at school, a group of middle grade friends develop a new way to communicate. They start leaving post-it notes on lockers with messages for each other. It catches on quickly and before they know it, there are colourful sticky notes all over the school. But sadly, the tone of the messages turn cruel and the notes are being used as an anonymous way for kids to bully each other. Now the school has a new problem on their hands. There were some wonderful passages in this book, my favourite of which was “Words accumulate. And once they’re free there’s no taking them back. You can do an awful lot of damage with a handful of words. You can destroy friendships. You can end a marriage. You can start a war. Some words can break you to pieces. But that’s not all. Words can be beautiful. They can make you feel things you’ve never felt before. Gather enough of them and sometimes they can stick those same pieces back together.”
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I received an advance copy from the Canadian publisher Pajama Press. It immediately reminded me of Shaun Tan’s book The Arrival, published in 2007. I never forgot this migrant story. Also wordless in graphic book style, it was the perfect way for the “reader” to really feel what it would be like to arrive in a foreign country, not able to speak or read the language or understand the culture. It would look like an alien world.
Mel Tregonning was obviously inspired by Shaun Tan’s work and created a similar opportunity for readers to see what it would be like to walk in the shoes of a child suffering from debilitating anxiety. This poor young boy is uncomfortable around kids and just doesn’t fit in. He struggles with his school work and his relationship with his family. We are shown that he’s being eaten by little demons that haunt him at school and follow him home. A classmate, his teacher, his parents all try to help, but it isn’t until his sister confides in him that she too has anxiety that we begin to see some hope. He starts to have some relief after talking to his parents. The final pages show the boy recognizing that many of his schoolmates also have demons chasing them. In turn, the boy shows compassion to a little girl who is also suffering.
Sadly, the author passed away before the book was finished. Her family was determined to see the book completed and turned to Shaun Tan, who completed the final few pages and made sure the book reached publication. An afterword by Barbara Coloroso tells us that reaching out to others for help is the first step. This is an important book for pre-teens and young teens that deal with or know someone that deals with anxiety. A must for middle grade school libraries and would be an ideal conversation starter for classrooms.
Like The Arrival, Small Things is also a book this bookseller won’t forget.
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Peter H. Reynolds is the author and/or illustrator of over 50 children's books including The Dot. This book was the inspiration for International Dot Day, which encourages creativity. This year over 10 million children and adults are expected to participate in over 170 countries. Peter’s new book The Word Collector, is the feature book in our January Picture and Family Book Box. It's the story of a young boy named Jerome who loves to collect words. Jerome’s discovery of the meaning of the words and how he can use and share them makes for another heart-warming, delightful book from one of my favourite author/illustrators.
MARMALADE BOOKS (MB): You and your twin brother Paul were born in Canada. Although, it doesn’t seem that you spent many years in Canada before moving to the US, can you tell us about your Canadian connection?
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MARMALADE BOOKS (MB): You and your twin brother Paul were born in Canada. Although, it doesn’t seem that you spent many years in Canada before moving to the US, can you tell us about your Canadian connection?
PETER H. REYNOLDS (PHR): I’m still a Canadian citizen and I love Canada. Our parents, Hazel and Keith emigrated to Canada after WWII. We ended up moving to Boston, but my birthplace, Weston, Ontario is still a special star in my life’s constellation.
MB: Do you have a funny twin story you would like to share?
PHR: When I was about 6 years old, the phone rang and I answered. I spoke to the person calling who finally asked me, “Can I speak with someone older?”
“Hold on, I’ll get my brother. He’s 14 minutes older than me.”
MB: I’m a huge fan of your work. Your books inspire and encourage creativity in children. And your illustrations are so charming. I have several favourites. Which is your favourite?
PHR: Thank you for the kind words! Picking favorites is difficult, but if I had to choose it would be my book, “Ish.”
MB: Having been a children’s bookseller for many years, it has been a dream of mine to own my own children’s bookstore. In 2003, you and your brother opened The Blue Bunny in your hometown of Dedham, Massachusetts. It must have been very exciting. Can you tell us a bit about the store?
PHR: Owning a bookstore is indeed dreamy. I recently added a cafe as well, so it’s even dreamier. I noticed 15 years ago that our town didn’t have a bookshop so I decided to open one. Located in Dedham, MA in a historic building built in 1924, The Blue Bunny is a charming shop with hardwood floors and tin ceilings. I’m there quite a bit and love meeting folks who have travelled - sometimes many miles - to visit. To see our bookshop: www.bluebunnybooks.com
MB: You and Paul have also collaborated in a company called FableVision. Can you tell us about it?
PHR: FableVision is a children’s media company creating animated films and interactive media. We are located on the top floor of the Boston Children’s Museum in downtown Boston. It’s a wonderfully creative space filled with writers, animators, programmers, producers, designers and educators. To see our studio: www.fablevision.com
MB: Writing, illustrating, visiting schools, owning The Blue Bunny and Fablevision, and I believe you have two children. You must be incredibly busy but it still comes through that you truly love your work. How do you manage it all?
PHR: My plate is definitely full - but I love what I do and do what I love. That’s the fuel to get it all done. I also don’t do it all alone. I know how to build teams of creative, mission-driven people. Growing up with a twin brother, I always had a collaborative partner.
MB: Your new book The World Collector is about a boy who collects words. Did you collect words as a child?
PHR: I started my informal word collection in about 4th grade when a teacher pointed out that I was using some surprising vocabulary. The word “ancient” was one of those words. From that moment on, I was searching for wonderful words I could use to weave stories and express myself. I do have a few journals packed with my favorite words.
MB: You inspire and encourage many authors and illustrators. Is there an author or illustrator that inspires you?
PHR: Charles Dickens is the author who really inspired me at a young age. His stories were often about the underdog trying to survive. His commitment to social justice really moved me and still does. `I also love Roald Dahl who I imagine must have also been inspired by Dickens.
My thanks to Peter H. Reynolds for this interview. You are an inspiration to children, authors, illustrators, parents and booksellers too. -Pat Oldroyd
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MARMALADE BOOKS (MB): How young were you when you knew you wanted to be an author and an illustrator? Which came first?
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MARMALADE BOOKS (MB): How young were you when you knew you wanted to be an author and an illustrator? Which came first?
SANNE DUFFT (SD): I must have been about eight or nine years old, when I decided to be a children’s book illustrator when I grew up. Here in Germany, the books by Swedish author Astrid Lindgren are very popular, and were, not only for my generation, very present in our childhood lives. I adored the images by the Estonian illustrator Ilon Wikland, who illustrated a lot of her stories. Not only did I know I wanted to illustrate children’s books, I knew I wanted to illustrate exactly the way she did.
But later in my life, other dreams came along, and I did a lot of other things: First, I thought I wanted to make what I then thought was real art.
I learned marble sculpture and applied for art college. But before going to college, I wanted to see a bit of the world, which brought me to Northern Ireland, where I was going to spend six months - and ended up staying for more than three years! Then I discovered art therapy as a profession in which I could be an artist, and also work with people.
Later, when I had my children, I realized I wanted to spend as much time as possible with them while they were little. I loved being with them, and found myself filling sketchbooks with little sketches of them. I guess this reawakened my childhood dream.
Becoming an author was something I never planned or even dreamt of. It just happened, as some of the images I drew asked for words to go with them. I was lucky enough to have some wonderful people around me who helped me and encouraged me to turn these words into stories.
MB: I adore The Night Lion and the charming illustrations. How did the idea for the story come to you and how long did it take to get to the publishing stage?
SD: Thank you! First, there was an image which I made for a promotional postcard to send to publishers: A little boy lying asleep with a big lion. Don’t ask me where the idea for that came from… However, there it was, and I had the feeling that there could be a story to go with that image. In a process which took about two years, the story evolved, very much like a jigsaw puzzle put together from different elements, which came to me bit by bit. Some fragments for example were contributed by my children’s nana, my mother-in-law.
MB: You spent time in Northern Ireland working with special needs children. Can you tell us more about that?
SD: In Northern Ireland, I lived and worked at a Camphill Community, which is a boarding school for children with special needs, set up like a little village. An incredibly beautiful and inspiring place, for the children who live there as much as for young people from all over the world, who come there for a stretch of time to help and to learn.
MB: What is your hometown of Tuebingen, Germany like?
SD: I love Tuebingen. It is a picturesque little medieval town, with tiny houses in narrow alleys, cobblestone streets, a castle and a river running through it. I love living here. The town is large enough to have everything I need. There is even a bookstore specializing in children’s books! And it is small enough to easily get away from. From our house, it takes a short bike ride or a walk to be out in the fields or the woods.
MB: How old are your children and what do they think about having a mother who is an author and illustrator?
SD: My son is almost 16 years old, my older daughter is going to be 14, and my youngest has just turned eight.
All in all they like it, although my teenagers think I should be making ’cooler’ stuff. They are the most honest and straightforward critics I have, and this really helps me. (I don’t think I’ll ever live up to their expectations, though, but I guess that’s what it’s like to be a mother of teens…)
My youngest is a great fan of my work. She celebrates every new book with me.
She also draws and paints a lot and sometimes joins me in my studio to work alongside me.
MB: Have you ever been to Canada?
SD: I have, and I loved it! When I was sixteen, I had the opportunity to take part in an exchange program with a girl from Aurora, Ontario. I stayed there for a few months, and went to school with her. Luckily, I was there for part of the holidays, too, and got to spend some time at their little holiday cottage at Georgian Bay, which I absolutely loved. Over here in Europe, it is hard to find untouched nature like that.
MB: What is your next book?
SD: At the moment, I am working on the illustrations for a collection of fairy tales (most of them by the Grimm brothers), and on black and white illustrations for a chapter book about a little girl and her granny. This will keep me busy for while. After that, I’ll illustrate once more a story I have written. I do hope the one or the other of them is going to make its way to Canada.
My thanks to Sanne for this wonderful interview. We welcome you and your beautiful books to Canada. – Pat Oldroyd
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MARMALADE BOOKS (MB): You are a wonderful storyteller and I love how you can really tap into the mind of a child. When did you know that you wanted to be a writer?
]]>Susan Verde is the author of I Am Yoga and I Am Peace, feature books in our October boxes. She lives in East Hampton, New York with her 3 children and a dog named Gizmo. In addition to being an award-winning author, Susan teaches yoga and mindfulness to children and is a frequent contributor to online yoga magazines.
MARMALADE BOOKS (MB): You are a wonderful storyteller and I love how you can really tap into the mind of a child. When did you know that you wanted to be a writer?
SUSAN VERDE (SD): Thank you so much for the compliment! I think I have always known I wanted to be writer. I wrote poems and stories as early as I can remember and continued all though college. I always loved picture books and knew that was my favorite genre when I became an elementary school teacher. I didn’t know I would become a published author but I knew how writing made me feel and filled my soul.
MB: Your collaboration with illustrator Peter H. Reynolds is brilliant. Normally, authors write and it is the publisher that matches the stories up with an illustrator. That wasn't the case with you and Peter. How did your partnership happen?
SV: Yes, Peter and I had an unusual beginning. I was taking a class he was teaching at the Southampton Children’s Literature Conference and I was a huge fan! One of the perks of taking his workshop was being able to show him my writing. Peter came across my poem The Museum and said, “this is a book and I want to illustrate it!” Of course I said YES!! And from there we spent the next few months creating a dummy and sent it off to his agent (who became my agent) and the rest is history. Our publisher asked us to write more together but we had already begun collaborating on many projects. It is pure joy writing for Peter!
MB: You were an elementary school teacher with a Master's in Reading Remediation. What advice do you give parents when their children are struggling to learn to read?
SV: My advice is always to pick books that interest your child. Don’t worry about difficulty level or whether it’s a comic or a novel. If your child has a passion start there. When he/she feels engaged and valued it is more likely he will take a chance with more advanced reading in the long run. Let them see success and take the pressure off of both of you. Also, if you feel there is an issue than reach out for help. There is no stigma. Let that go and just find the support you need.
MB: When did you begin your yoga journey and at what point did you start teaching children?
SV: I have been practicing yoga on and off since college. At various stressful points in my life I turned to my practice to get me through. After my own children were over 3 I decided I wanted to work with kids again but not full time in the classroom. I wanted to make a difference and help them cope with the stresses I knew they experienced. Because my practice helped me so much I thought it would be a wonderful tool for children so I began teaching kid’s and am always learning and studying more effective ways to bring them the practice of yoga and mindfulness.
MB: I personally started practicing yoga about eight years ago and am surprised and amazed at what I come away with every time I unroll my mat. Your books I am Peace and I am Yoga have really got me thinking about the benefits to children learning yoga and mindfulness at an early age. Our world might be a very different place. What are your feelings about this?
SV: I often say that I wish I had these practices when I was a child. If I had known how to manage my emotions and treat myself with kindness it would have made such a difference. When we can reach children we can effect the world in a positive way. Imagine if we all knew how to be compassionate and empathetic and love ourselves. What a place this world has the potential to be. Kids are our best hope.
My thanks to Susan for this interview. Her writing and teaching to children is such an inspiration. – Pat Oldroyd
]]>MARMALADE BOOKS (MB): When did you know you wanted to be an illustrator?
]]>Dean Griffiths is the illustrator of Best Pirate, the feature book in our September Picture Book Box. This is the third book in the series about Augusta the (dog) pirate. The series has received the Rainforest of Reading Award, a Kirkus Review star (both for Bad Pirate) and a glowing New York Times review (for Good Pirate). Dean is from Duncan, British Columbia.
MARMALADE BOOKS (MB): When did you know you wanted to be an illustrator?
DEAN GRIFFITHS (DG): I've always loved drawing, but it wasn't until I was 12 and bought a copy of Iron Man #135, where he battles the Titanium Man across New York until they end up at Rockefeller Plaza on the ice rink. I still remember sitting on the chesterfield at my grandparents’ home in Moose Jaw, and being totally absorbed in it. It was like watching a movie, and there was a scene where they are in the subway where I told myself that drawing stories is what I wanted to do for the rest of my life. It's interesting how crappy stuff can inspire us (not that Iron Man #135 is garbage, but it's a far cry from Wind in the Willows, or Lord of the Rings).
MB: You are a very talented award-winning illustrator but I understand you struggled in school. Any advice for kids who are having a tough time themselves?
DG: I did struggle in school, especially in the area of math. I just could never get my head around numbers. If you're struggling in school, try not to stress about it, and know that you have talents and interests that you can trust in. No one is brilliant at everything, and that is a good thing. If you have a difficult time at math, or struggle with science, don't let it frustrate you, and don't think there is anything wrong with that struggle, if you are working as best you can. At some point you will realize what you love to do, and you'll see the gift you have there, and that is what you are meant to do.
MB: Your animals have such great expressions and human qualities. They are so consistent from page to page and every angle. How do you do it?
DG: Thank you! It's a lot of practice. Drawing, drawing, and more drawing. I still have struggles to get a character to fit into their environment, but I love that challenge. After I have decided on a scene, it may take pages and pages of sketches to get the character looking properly. For example, with Augusta, I studied hundreds of photographs of Springer Spaniels, from all possible angles, and did hundreds of sketches of her. And it wasn't until the third book, that I felt I was really starting to get a handle on her. There are still some angles that I have a hard time with, and to get it done right takes a lot of drawing, and sometimes there just isn't the time due to deadlines, which is a shame, but such is life.
MB: You used a different process to create the artwork for the Pirate series. Can you describe it?
DG: "Bad Pirate" was my dive into digital colouring. A few years before, I bought a Wacom Cintiq tablet, computer and Photoshop software, and with the aid of a good friend of mine, and my art director, I learned on the job. The process is simple, I still draw on paper, and then I scan those drawings at a high resolution and place them into a "canvas" in Photoshop. As an example, I just finished a poster illustration for Chemainus Theatre for their production of The Little Prince. The image size they wanted was 13" X 19". So I created that size, and placed the scanned drawing onto it as a layer. That drawing layer will stay at the top, which is set to "multiply" mode. In multiply mode, all the other layers of colour that I place will be seen underneath. In that illustration, the star field is the bottom layer, then some of the gaseous formations above that, then the bright starts, then Asteroid b612, then his boots, etc, etc. There are many videos of the process online, and most much better than I could ever do. Photoshop has all sorts of brushes so that you can make your painting look like chunky pastel, thick, rich oils, or even light, fluid watercolour. The possibilities are endless!
MB: The illustrations for the Pirate series are so detailed and fun. You must have had a ball creating them. What kind of research did you do?
DG: Thank you, oh it was so fun (except when I had to work all night)! I've always loved history (one of the few subjects I was able to do well in at school. eh, heh, heh), so getting to research pirates, and all the different ships and clothing and weapons of that time was a joy. I have a copy of The Ship: An Illustrated History, by Bjorn Landstrom which he produced in the mid sixties, and it is one of my absolute, all-time favourite books. It's fun to get all the rigging right in portraying the vessels. I love adding the little details like the ornamentation on their belt buckles, or the hilt of their swords, that is way too fun.
MB: Of all the characters you have created, which one was your favourite?
DG: That is hard, but I guess, it would be Augusta. I love her like crazy. She's a sort of quiet, in-the-background kind of character, but she has a wonderful strength and resourcefulness, and is very loving and caring towards her family and crewmates. Plus, she is a joy to draw!
My thanks to Dean for this interview and for the opportunity to get to know more about him and his work. I’m a huge fan.
*The first book in this series, Bad Pirate is included in our Pirate Box. You will find this box located on the Special Boxes page of our website.
]]>MARMALADE BOOKS (MB): When did you know you wanted to be a writer? Did you have anyone to inspire and encourage you?
]]>MARMALADE BOOKS (MB): When did you know you wanted to be a writer? Did you have anyone to inspire and encourage you?
KARI-LYNN WINTERS (KLW): I came to know that I wanted to be a writer (late to the game) when I was 30 years old. I was inspired by a creative writing course at UBC (University of British Columbia), and especially by my professors, Alison Acheson, Judith Saltman, and Theresa Rogers, as well as by my writing groups.
MB: You are a mother, playwright, poet, school presenter, associate professor at Brock University (have I left anything out?!) not to mention the author of twenty-five books published over the past 10 years. How on earth do you manage to do it all?!
KLW: My passion is writing and performing. My purpose is to share literacy strategies and write engaging stories for children. Both my passion and my purpose lead a pathway to my goal—to continue presenting to children and to make a positive difference in the world. Thus, to state it plainly, I CAN’T NOT write, perform, and teach. Aside from my family and loved ones, literacy is the most important aspect of my life.
MB: You also enjoy travelling. What was your favourite trip and why?
KLW: I love traveling to the Caribbean, because this exotic place relates to (and even looks like Dean’s illustrations in) the pirate books. My favourite trip was to St. Lucia for the Rainforest of Reading Festival. Here, 8,000 students came out—many of them dressed like pirates. What an ARR-some event!
MB: How old are your children? What do they think about having an award-winning author for a mom?
KLW: My son is 17. My daughter is 12. Although they get tired of me asking them to listen and re-listen to my stories (draft copies), I think that they are secretly proud of their mom. At one point, my daughter wanted to be an author—Just like me!
MB: Teachers have raved about your entertaining school presentations. Do you have a fun story about a memorable school visit?
KLW: Teachers are notorious for volunteering their teacher friends during my performances. I always try to choose the nominator, not the nominee. Then everyone laughs, including the nominator him/herself.
MB: I’ve been a big fan of your pirate series – Bad Pirate, Good Pirate and now Best Pirate. Each book is full of fabulous pirate lingo and explores three characteristics of being a successful pirate. Can you tell us a bit about your process to create the books? It must have been great fun.
KLW: It is great fun! Partially because I love the characters and partially because I love working with Dean (illustrator Dean Griffiths) and the people at Pajama Press. My process is different with every single book. Some ideas come to me quickly. Others take longer. Once the story is drafted and I am happy with it, I send it to my incredible editor Ann Featherstone. What a talent she is! Alongside, Gail Winskill (another incredible talent), these two women make edits and recommendations for the manuscript. I use their suggestions to strengthen the story, to pose questions, and to better understand a reader’s perspective. Then, when I am happy with the changes that I’ve made, I send the edited manuscript back to them.When approved, the story and the illustrations are put together by Rebecca Bender (yet another incredible talent). It’s a cooperative process, but I rarely talk to Dean Griffiths (the illustrator) until after the book is published. This is because many publishers like to let each creative person (author and illustrator) have their own creative vision. I absolutely adore Dean’s work!
My thanks to Kari-Lynn for this interview. It has been a pleasure to get to know more about this very talented woman and her passion for children’s literacy.
MARMALADE BOOKS (MB): When did you know you wanted to be an author and an illustrator? Which came first?
]]>MARMALADE BOOKS (MB): When did you know you wanted to be an author and an illustrator? Which came first?
AURA PARKER (AP): I always wanted to make kids books because I love stories. If you consume a diet of stories, as I did from a young age you will find they multiply, and before you know it they are growing out your ears! They say a picture is worth a thousand words and I always felt like I had a thousand pictures, and that means a lot of words to go with all the pictures! The art came first as I pursued a career in design and illustration, but I have equal love for both writing and drawing – and when they are combined I get completely carried away! From a young age I kept journals. When I was a teenager I did a lot of babysitting where I would tell the kids silly bedtime stories, making them up on the spot. I drew constantly as a kid and I just never stopped.
MB: Can you tell us a bit about the creation of Twig, from inspiration to publication?
AP: I wrote Twig in a big flurry of excitement and it draws on many threads of ideas knitted together, my surroundings, my kids, personal memories, and at the same time it is completely made up too. Twig is about Heidi the stick insect on her first day at Bug School and I wrote it when my son Saxon was about to start Kindy, a big transition where you have to negotiate many new things at once, fitting in, making friends. Entering the world of the schoolyard is new and exciting, but not without its own anxieties. When I was a kid I started a new school and I got off on the wrong foot on my first day. It stayed with me, that feeling, the feeling of wanting to belong that is at the heart of this story. Since the book came out lots of exciting things have happened and I have been out and about talking to kids about writing, illustration and creative confidence – I even have pet stick insects that come along with me.
MB: Did you spend time researching bugs for Twig? What was the most interesting thing you discovered?
AP: Stick insects have wings! Yes, they can fly! Not far, likely just far enough to get out of danger. And their wings are beautiful, like a butterfly. I do look at pictures of real insects for my illustrations, but more often I'll draw from my imagination. Bug School is an imaginary place, my insects walk, talk, drink tea and go to school – so much fun!
MB: What are the ages of your children? What do they think about having a Mom who is an author/illustrator?
AP: I have three kids aged 7, 9 and 11. They are proud of me and Twig is dedicated to my youngest son Saxon. ‘For Saxon, whose curiosity and love of insects inspired this book’. I am lucky to have them to bounce ideas off and we have lots of creative adventures together, building, making and inventing things.
MB: What would you like parents to share with their children when they read them this book?
AP: Books are a good catalyst for talking about feelings. There are a lot of ideas in Twig from friendship to belonging and inclusion. My advice is to enjoy your books for the sake of the story, snuggle up and let them simmer! See what comes, listen to your kids. I love it when you read a book and then find yourself thinking about it later, and I hope that is what happens with Twig.
MB: Have you ever been to Canada?
AP: We took a trip to Canada last year with my kids as we have family living over there. We visited Toronto, Ottawa and Quebec in September when the leaves were about to turn for fall. The green colour of the trees is refreshing, so different to Australia. In Toronto we went to the ROM (Royal Ontario Museum) and the Aquarium and drank up the art galleries with our eyes! We went to Pink Lake and marveled at the colour of the water too. Canada is beautiful and I would love to visit again as we came back with heads and hearts full of wonderful memories.
AP: Thank you for having me on the blog. I was going to write something funny about marmalade, but I got into a jam! Ha! Aura xx
My thanks to Aura for this interview. I thoroughly enjoyed discovering her beautiful work and getting to know a little bit about her. Pat Oldroyd
]]>MARMALADE BOOKS (MB): Do you ever have more than one book idea in your head at time?
]]>MARMALADE BOOKS (MB): Do you ever have more than one book idea in your head at time?
Ashley Spires (AS): Always! For the past few years I'm always working on 2-3 books at a time though they are usually at different stages. I'll be writing the first draft for one while I'm roughing out the illustrations for another and then finishing up final art on the third. I try to pace myself, but it all inevitably bottlenecks and I don't sleep for a month!
MB: As an author/illustrator, do the pictures or the story come to you first?
AS: It really depends on the story. With Small Saul it all started with a doodle, but with The Most Magnificent Thing it started with my own feelings of frustration. I think half my books start with a picture and half with a story idea.
MB: You’ve written and illustrated picture, graphic and non-fiction books for kids. Are there any other types of books you would be interested in creating?
AS: I'd love to try a middle grade illustrated chapter book. I've illustrated one for another author, but I've never tried to write one myself. You can do so much with humour in that format!
MB: Your books are very encouraging and inspirational to kids. Did you have a teacher or someone else that inspired you as a child?
AS: The mother of one of my closest friends was a children's librarian. She is the one who introduced me to Roald Dahl and Barbara Reid to name a few. Even when I was too old for picture books she would share books with amazing illustrations in them to inspire my artwork. I think she knew I should be making books long before I did!
MB: You grew up with pets and your parents owned a pet food store in Tsawwassen, B.C. You’ve described yourself as a “crazy cat lady.” I’ve been seeing many pictures recently of some adorable kittens on your Instagram account. What is your current cat count? What is the most number of pets that you have had a one time? (No judgement, I'm animal crazy myself!)
AS: Well growing up we definitely had a lot of pets. People used to dump their cats around my Dad's business and he brought everyone home. Most of my childhood we had at least 8 cats and a dog. Nowadays I have three cats and a dog, though I do like to foster orphaned kittens for my local shelter. I have had seven cats and dog in my house for the last five weeks but my foster kittens all went to their forever homes yesterday. And I'm already itching for the next litter...
My thanks to Ashley for this interview and giving us a glimpse into her amazing world. Pat Oldroyd
]]>MARMALADE BOOKS (MB): When did you know you wanted to be a writer?
]]>MARMALADE BOOKS (MB): When did you know you wanted to be a writer?
Kyo Maclear (KM): I had my first inkling at age eighteen. I was studying fine art at university and a beloved prof (video artist Colin Campbell) encouraged me to start writing art essays for publication in magazines. I loved writing alongside images. I felt a responsibility to chose words that would honor and amplify the work. It was fun. And a puzzle. It made my brain happy.
MB: I love the idea of relating a spork to your own experience growing up in a mixed race family. Have you always thought of yourself as a spork or did the idea come to you while you were writing the book?
KM: Well my mum is Japanese and my dad is white-British so I definitely saw myself as a cultural hybrid growing up. Occasionally it was painful (with moments of feeling like a misfit) but mostly I liked being in that spork space between languages, cultures, and countries. I think it made me see the world in less binary ways. So those feelings definitely motivated and motored the writing of the book. At the same time, I wanted to create a story for my kids, who are very mixed, and for anyone who has ever felt they don't quite fit in.
MB: What would you like parents to share with their kids when they read the book to them?
KM: Hmmm. I don't know. Be open to the unknown? Embrace multicutlery? Avoid slots? Welcome your own uncategorizable spirit?
MB: What do your sons think about having a Mom who's a writer?
KM: They've never known anything else so it's just run-of-the-mill to them. Occasionally they'll weigh in with an opinion. They have great narrative instincts. P.s. I just conferred with my younger son who tells me: "I think it's cool to see how the books get made, seeing the sketches and the proofs and then the final book. It's like magic."
My thanks to Kyo for this interview. I enjoyed getting to know her a little better and understanding what it's like to be a spork in Canada.
* Check out this great video of Kyo, her kids and Spork!
* If you wish to purchase the June Picture Book Box which includes Spork, we have a few left on our Shop Now Past Boxes page.
]]>I Am Canada by Heather Patterson, was originally published in 1996. Heather's free verse poem has been given new life in this special edition for Canada's 150th birthday with artwork by thirteen of Canada's finest illustrators. This project by Scholastic Canada was not just to celebrate Canada's birthday but also Scholastic's 60th Anniversary. It's the perfect book to commemorate this special year. Each illustrator has a double page spread to interpret a few lines of the poem. The book showcases from a child's view, everything good about our country. From the freedom to run, swim, toboggan, read, learn and dream to our seasons, cultural diversity and beautiful geography. At the end of the book, both author and illustrators talk about what Canada means to them. The illustrators are (as well as just a fraction of their work): Jeremy Tankard (Grumpy Bird), Ruth Ohi (Fox and Squirrel), Barbara Reid (plasticine artist, Zoe's Year), Jon Klassen (I Want My Hat Back), Marie-Louise Gay (Stella), Danielle Daniel (Sometimes I Feel Like a Fox), Ashley Spires (Binky, The Most Magnificent Thing), Genevieve Cote (Without You), Cale Atkinson (To the Sea), Doretta Goenendyk (A Harbour Seal in Halifax), Qin Leng (A Family is a Family is a Family), Eva Campbell (The Matatu), and Irene Luxbacher (The Imaginary Gardener).
Spork by Kyo Maclear and illustrated by Isabelle Arsenault. A spork is a cross between a spoon and a fork and this book was a perfect way for Kyo (who has a British father and a Japanese mother) to explain to her sons what it's like to grow up in a multiracial family. A great opportunity to start discussions about individuality, tolerance and finding your place in the world. Originally published in 2010 and now finally in paperback, it was Kyo's debut children's book. It won numerous awards including the 2010 IBBY (International Board on Books for Young People) Outstanding Books for Young People with Disabilities. Isabelle's work has achieved international recognition and won the Governor General's Award for Childrens Literature an amazing three times. As well, two of her picture books were named as New York Times Best Illustrated Books of the Year. For Spork, she used mixed media (pencil, colour pencils, collage, gouache) and assembled digitally. The idea was to reflect the hybridity of Spork through the usage of different mediums and techniques. I loved Isabelle's retro looking illustrations which were inspired by vintage kitchen references and a typical colour palette from the 50's. This box includes a letter from Kyo to our readers.
]]>MARMALADE BOOKS (MB): When did you know you wanted to be a writer and an illustrator? Which came first?
KELLY COLLIER (KC): I knew I wanted to be an artist of some kind ever since I was little. I loved drawing and my parents encouraged me and my siblings to draw. I was in high school when I started thinking about drawing as a career. After high school I applied and was accepted to Sheridan College's illustration program and that was where I fell in love with children's books.]]>MARMALADE BOOKS (MB): When did you know you wanted to be a writer and an illustrator? Which came first?
KELLY COLLIER (KC): I knew I wanted to be an artist of some kind ever since I was little. I loved drawing and my parents encouraged me and my siblings to draw. I was in high school when I started thinking about drawing as a career. After high school I applied and was accepted to Sheridan College's illustration program and that was where I fell in love with children's books. After graduating I managed to get freelance work illustrating for newspapers and magazines but never managed to get work illustrating picture books. I really never intended to write, I find writing really challenging. I only started because I would get an idea for an image and I really wanted to put text in it and so I would make up stories to go with the illustration.
MB: Was this the first book that you submitted?
KC: No, not the first but this was the first book I had submitted in a REALLY long time. I found myself a few years out of art school feeling discouraged and behind on bills. I was working as a server in a restaurant to make ends meet and I guess I started working at the restaurant more and more and pursuing illustration less and less. I managed to let about 10 years slip by without illustrating a single thing professionally. I was actually looking to go back to school when my sister saw a doodle I had done of Steve and said she thought he would make a great character for a children's book. I remember rolling my eyes, thinking that my dreams of illustrating were long gone. But after thinking about it I thought maybe there was a story to go along with this funny looking horse and it wasn't like I had much to lose. So I submitted it to Kids Can Press and the rest is history.
MB: What was your inspiration for the book?
KC: I think Steve came from a few different places. I had a dog at the time that inspired his goofy look and personality. My brother also has a great sense of humor and I drew from that as well.
MB: What would you like parents to share with their kids when they read them the book?
KC: I think there are a few lessons parents and teachers can pull from this story. I think there is a lot of pressure for kids in today's world with social media to "out shine" each other. I think it's important for kids to grow up appreciating their authentic self. They are exceptional for being who they are without the "likes, tweets, and snap-chat filters"
My thanks to Kelly for this interview and for the chance to get to know her and Steve a little bit better. Pat Oldroyd
* if you wish to purchase the May Picture Book Box which includes A Horse Named Steve, we have a few left on our Shop Now Past Boxes page or the September 2018 Picture Book Box containing Team Steve is available here.
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