Category: Author Interviews

Counting Crows: A Conversation Between Jane Yolen and Adam Stemple

On By Only Picture BooksIn Author Interviews

As part of a whirlwind blog tour to support their new co-​authored picture book, Jane Yolen and Adam Stemple share thoughts about the genesis and writing of Crow Not Crow.

(OPB doesn’t do many non-​Monday posts, but when we do a Bonus Goody, it’s always going to be worthwhile like this. Enjoy!)

JY: I remember the first time you talked about teaching your wife Betsy how to bird using something you called “Crow Not Crow.” She was a Minneapolis girl and really didn’t know one bird from another. But you had been taught to bird as a child by your father who had grown up in the mountains of West Virginia. I thought Crow Not Crow might make a great title for a picture book, but since it wasn’t my idea, I left it alone. Only much later did I start bugging you about it.

AS: The actual teaching idea started out as a joke, splitting all of the bird kingdom into two classes: Crow and Not Crow. But the more Betsy and I joked about it, the more useful it started to seem. She got really good at telling crows from not crows, and we quickly added other birds into the mix. Now, she’s a full-​fledged (pun intended) birder.

When you first mentioned doing Crow Not Crow as a picture book, I didn’t see it. I hadn’t written in any kind of illustrative medium and hadn’t yet learned to think visually while writing. But after writing three graphic novels with you, I was suddenly eager to work on Crow Not Crow.

JY: That is the core of writing picture books–thinking visually. You have to think in double page spreads, as scenes. You have to understand what makes the reader want to turn the page.  But you also have to think like both a poet and a storyteller–compression and expansion. How to tell the story as if it is as tight and lyrical as a poem. (And I DON’T mean it needs to rhyme!)

Of course, adding the fact that we were two people writing one story from the point of view of a child only made it harder. It sounds really complicated put that way–but in the end, it was as wonderful as a dance.

AS: I like the fact that the form is compact and constrained. Constraints help me be more creative. I’m forced to rethink all the crazy ideas I have and mold them into a usable, readable shape. It’s that shaping that makes them come to life. Without constraints, I fly off into the ether, ending up with pages of stuff that gets tossed in a drawer, never to be seen again.

JY: I agree–there is something to be said for constraints in art. You learn them so you can eventually change, reorder, even violate them. A picture book–like a sonnet, a haiku–has certain parameters. And we slip into them as if putting on a special outfit: the ballerina has her tutu and toe shoes, the football player has pads, and clowns a red nose. We write picture books knowing the page count, understanding the page turn, aware of the child audience. Constraints but not restraints. Like grammar, we need it at the base of our picture book.

But I also love to work on books with you–and your brother and sister. Such partnerships come with other constraints. Family meetings without the fraughtness. Yes, you and your siblings are all truly good writers. But even more, when we work together on books, we deepen and broaden our relationships, for now we have more than just family gossip to sustain our visits. We talk art, craft, business–and new ideas as well. Besides, in books like Crow Not Crow, we bring back great memories of your dad, and what a wonderful husband and father he was. Not only did he teach all of us to bird, and was unsparing in sharing his own knowledge of the outdoors, he was also a great first reader for me. I know he would have loved this book because–as the original inspiration for Pa in my book Owl Moon–he cared deeply about good, honest, and lyrical books for kids about the natural world.

And when we write something like Crow Not Crow, it becomes a part of his legacy.

 

Author Interview: Antoinette Portis

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Antoinette Portis is the subject of this month’s author interview, and I have to confess–I’ve been looking forward to this one for some time. Anyone who can get away with using words like “Froodle” and “Frints” in picture book titles is awesome. Obviously.

We cover her bio pretty well in the Q&A below, so let’s close out this intro by sharing two of her books that I totally dig. Go (re)read them now. Seriously.

Website: www.antoinetteportis.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/antoinette.portis
Twitter: @portisa
Instagram: www.instagram.com/bathingonthemoon
Goodreads: www.goodreads.com/author/show/129061.Antoinette_Portis

RVC: When did your interest in writing first show up?

AP: When I was in sixth grade, my best friend and I vowed that we were going to each write and illustrate a book. It took her 5 years before she presented me with one that she’d written in pencil on lined paper.

It took me much, much longer to hold up my end of the deal. 30 years!

RVC: Along the way, you went to art school, too.

AP: Right. I was terrified of writing after a freshman poetry class, so I veered toward visual art instead and got a BFA at the UCLA School of Fine Arts. I was also a video performance artist, but guess what? There’s wasn’t a career in that waiting for me. I started working in the commercial realm as a graphic designer so I could make a living and still be creative. Over the years, I was an advertising art director, making print advertising and TV commercials.

Then I had a baby and did a lot of freelance work in advertising.

RVC: And you found your way into working for Disney.

AP: I got a 3‑day gig at Disney working for a creative director I’d known from my advertising days. She was head of Creative Resources at Disney Consumer Products. I ended up staying there for almost nine years. It was super fascinating to be there, to be part of this huge American cultural thing–not all of which I agreed with.

I loved the creative challenges. My team did so much good work that at the end of each day, my mouth would hurt from smiling.

In advertising, “cool” was what you wanted, but at Disney, “cute” was a major vocabulary word. I got completely indoctrinated into cuteness, into the world of child-​friendly creative.

RVC: Why did you make the shift from that amazing job to the world of kidlit?

AP: I still had this secret part of me locked away in a treasure box–the artist who wanted to make her own stuff.

As I moved up the corporate ladder, pretty soon I wasn’t working directly with my creative team any longer. Most of my job was sitting in meetings with pages of tiny numbers on the table in front of me. I’d be in business meetings all day, return to my desk at 6pm to catch up on my work, then finally leave around 7:30pm, or later. I wasn’t thinking much about color and design anymore, but about deals and Target sales numbers. I was like, “What am I doing here? My soul is dying.” I wanted to see more of my kid and get back to being a creative person again.

Disney is an intellectual content provider, but I wanted to make my own IP.

I decided to leave. We’d had a bunch of layoffs, and it came to the point where they paid people to leave voluntarily. It was a perfect opening. I felt like a bird in a cage and the door creaked open for me. I could fly.

I think of that time as me being birthed out of the corporate world to what I was really supposed to do with my life.

So now I was home and could think about what kind of stuff I wanted to make. I considered going back to making site-​specific sculptural installations–something I’d done in art school. Or should I make children’s books, which was something I knew I’d wanted to do since elementary school? I weighed which arena would be more welcoming to a middle-​aged woman and that helped me decide on picture books.

Well before Disney, I took a class at Otis College where I wrote a picture book manuscript that I’m just now getting around to illustrating. Full circle.

RVC: Were you writing the whole time?

AP: Not while I was at Disney. There was  group of us at Disney–me, a poet, a painter, a knitter, etc.–who kind of met up and encouraged each other not to drop our dreams, but honestly, with Disney, everybody’s too busy to do anything else.

After Disney, I took children’s book classes at UCLA extension and Art Center College of Design (Marla Frazee’s class). I went to SCBWI conferences so I could understand how the publishing business worked.

I wrote a couple of manuscripts that I thought were okay. I’d paginated them and made them into little dummies. I started to get a sense of the rhythm of a 32-​page story, how it unfolds, how the whole thing works as a unit.

RVC: How did it go from there?

AP: The first book I submitted was promptly rejected. I revised and sent it out again, and it got rejected again.

Then I learned that Barbara Bottner–a writing teacher I had in 1993 before I started at Disney–was moving back to the area and starting up a guided critique group, so my current writing group just migrated over to hers.

I showed her the manuscript that got rejected. I was proud it. It was a smart idea. Cute. Clever.

Barbara looked at it, tossed it on the table, and said, “No, you’ve got to write something that matters to you.” Her theory is that we each have a specific age that we connect with as a writer. She wanted me to go back to my childhood and mine it for something that really mattered to me.

I had ideas. (I have lots of ideas–I keep lots of lists.)

One idea was based on my memory of playing in cardboard boxes. I remembered how much fun it was as a kid to do that–to entertain ourselves with our own imaginations. I first pictured the book as line drawings of a kid sitting in a box, with transparent overlays to show what they were imagining. But that wouldn’t work–you’d see the overlay before the box. The imagination part needed to come second. So the reveal had to follow a page turn. Which turned me on to the power of a page turn in a picture book. You really feel that power when you read out loud to kids–they shout out what’s on the next page before you’re turned. It becomes a guessing game or a chance to show off their knowledge.

Once I saw what format would work, the text came easily–72 words just popped out. It was one of the really lucky times where the whole thing came together fast without a lot of pain and agony.

It’d be great if every idea unfolded like that. But no.

RVC: What lessons from those business world experiences proved most helpful in creating your own picture books?

AP: You have to grow a thick skin. You have to know that more than one idea will come to you.

In the advertising world, you pull an all-​nighter coming up with creative based on a strategy the account guys have given you. You come up with something brilliant and pin it up in the conference room, then the business guys come in and announce that they’ve changed strategies. Here’s the new one. So now go be brilliant again.

You might want to cry, but you go at it again. In advertising, creatives are thought of as an idea factory. You HAVE to be that–that’s your job.

I’ve seen in many picture book classes how there can be a preciousness–this is MY ONE idea. Like you’re never going to have another good one, so you cling to it and nurse it for years and years, even if it’s not working, or it’s not going to make it in the marketplace.

You’ve got to be able to let go when an idea isn’t working, or when you’ve beaten the life out of it. There’s not just one idea that’s doled out to a person in their life. There’s an endless supply of ideas!

And it helps to be strategic in the sense of how a book has a theme, an idea you’re trying to convey. You can’t have 17 themes crammed into a 32-​page picture book. The main idea–whatever it is–has to be set up in the beginning and then paid off at the end, hopefully in some surprising and satisfying way.

RVC: In a recent interview, you said, “Imagination is a super power all children possess–and it’s one they can exercise freely. I can’t stop wanting to celebrate that!” How does this impulse play into the creation of your own picture books?

AP: Imagination is a big theme for me in my work–it keeps showing up. But I don’t want to tell children “Use your imagination!” I want to show and reflect back to children how they do use their imaginations. I want to do it on their terms–not through the understanding of an adult.

Kids don’t run around saying, “I’m going to imagine now!” They just play. They make stuff up. The line between reality and imagination is blurred for a kid. It’s seamless how they move from one to the other.

RVC: Since we’re talking about the element of play, let’s talk about your illustration. It seems that you like to change up your art style from book to book. How do you know when you’ve got the right match for the current project?

AP: I spent my entire corporate career being an art director. My job was to have an idea, then hire someone else to bring that idea to life. Before the internet, we had these thick reference books with the portfolios of all these amazing illustrators. You’d leaf through it, page after page, to find the artist or photographer with the exact right style for the job. Now I write a manuscript and think, argh, I can only hire myself! Where’s my big fat book of art styles to pick from?

The manuscript I’m illustrating now, I wouldn’t (and couldn’t) have tackled 20 years ago. Finding my voice as an illustrator is an ongoing process. Getting away from drawing with a thick black outline opened up new terrain for me. I’m working looser, letting accident and spontaneity be more a part of the final result. I now spend a lot of time experimenting with different materials and tools. I’m loving sumi ink and big funky brushes these days. I’m making leaf prints, cutting stamps out of erasers, and there are clouds of vine charcoal dust settling on my drawing table. I’m following my intuition more–being open to more inspiration. So now I’m finally ready to illustrate the first picture book manuscript I ever wrote.

The process of growing reminds me of something Neil Gaiman said. He’d had the idea for The Graveyard Book decades before he wrote it, but he didn’t feel like he could do the idea justice so he let it sit until he was ready. And one day he was. (And it’s an amazing book!)

I have ideas that I never see myself illustrating because they require a style outside what I do. I’m never going to be, for example, an oil painter.

Some people are masters of a specific style. They might only work with a certain pen, or a particular paint set. They’ve perfected their craft over years and they’ve mastered it. That’s a wonderful thing. But it’s not how I work. I get a real charge out of not knowing exactly how I’m going to illustrate a book beforehand. I might do 6 different art styles and then talk with my editor about which one works best.

Apparently, I like to be mildly terrified at the beginning of a project.

RVC: You were lucky enough to be a Sendak fellow in 2010 (which seems mildly terrifying to me since he’s intimidatingly terrific!). What was the real takeaway from that experience?

AP: The real takeaway for me was the appreciation for what an amazing human Maurice was. Having him as a friend was a beautiful, beautiful thing. And having him believe in my work was awesome.

Plus there’s the friends I made there. Rowboat Watkins was a fellow Fellow, and we’re still friends. We share work back and forth, and we can count on each other to be honest and thoughtful.

I remember Maurice being so disheartened by how commercial the world had become, and how so many publishers were more concerned with enhancing stockholder value (e.g. making a profit) than in bringing great work to the marketplace. So he told us that we’ve got to be spies, to sneak depth and meaning into our work so the corporate overloads don’t even notice it’s there.

Maurice made the point in many interviews that just because picture books are for children, that doesn’t mean they are devoid of psychological truth. He certainly proved that in his work–Where the Wild Things Are is still the gold standard for what a picture book can accomplish. He didn’t condescend to children, or patronize them. He recognized them as fellow human beings. Picture books can deal with the deepest, most profound ideas. And like great novels, they do it obliquely, not by hitting you over the head with their philosophy.

For example, there’s Jon Agee’s wonderful The Wall in the Middle of the Book. You could write a dissertation about that book. But if you told someone sitting next to you at a dinner party that you’d read this great book and then told them it’s a picture book, they’d laugh in your face. But the Agee book is funny, engaging, and profound. It’s a perfect creation. And so on point for our times.

A good picture book IS a spy. It’s sneaking meaning into your life without you noticing.

RVC: I’m a fan of that Agee book too–it’s one of the OPB 18 Favorites of 2018. But let’s circle back to something we’ve touched on before: writing groups. What role does a writing group play in your process?

AP: I’ve heard people say, “I’ve read my book to my kindergartner and he loves it!” as if that guaranteed a book’s success.

No. You’ve got to get through the gatekeepers (agents and editors and acquisition committees) who are both savvy and jaded. Editors see zillions of manuscripts, so you’ve got to hone your writing and submit something that already works. They’re not going to fix it for you. Their job isn’t to mine raw ore. You have to hand them a gem and they will polish it. That means you have to put your text through the filter of other people’s eyes to make sure it’s working the way you meant it to.

Sometimes I find myself defending my work in my critique group because I know what I was trying to say, and to me, I said it. But they’re not getting it. So I listen and the pushback helps me clarify my aim, so I can set about communicating better. A crit group lets you know if you’ve actually communicated.

There’s a whole complex dynamic as a book unfolds in the space of a crit group. Sometimes there are wrong turns. There’s a rhythm to the process that took me years to internalize. The most important thing is that you can’t take a crit of your writing personally–it’s about elevating the work.

But yes, sometimes the feedback is painful. Sometimes you just gotta cry on the drive home. Then you get back to work and rewrite that sucker.

I’m still in a critique group. I can’t go all year, though, since I spend a part of it illustrating and that requires total immersion. I need to be completely focused for that. It’s the other side of the brain and once I’m hanging out there, it’s all about pictures.

Anyone who is serious about making picture books should join a crit group with people whose ideas and talent you respect. (Patiently building mutual trust is required.)

In my class at UCLA, a group of us decided, “Hey, we’re helping each other, so let’s form a critique group together.” That’s what I was hoping would happen as I took each writing class, and finally a group of us clicked. And some of us have been together for a long time now, maybe 15 years.

RVC: Wait feels like a special book for you. In what way is your relationship with that book different than you have with others?

AP: There are two special things about Wait–one is formal, the other is the heart and soul part.

With Not a Box, there’s a push and pull between adult and kid. It’s about a child’s imagination, but also about a child defending it against the disbelief and casual cynicism of adults or some other bystander who’s not into playing along with them.

Back to that memory of my brother and I sitting in a cardboard box in our driveway, playing train. I can picture my mom washing dishes, looking out at the window at us,  thinking, “They’re going to leave those boxes out there and I won’t be able to get the car into the garage …” You know–the practical stuff adults think.

Another time, we used every single sheet, blanket, and towel in the house to build a fort. When she asked us to clean it up, we were like, “No, it’s fantastic. Leave it up forever!” (She might have cried. But then she sicced Dad on us and we had to take it down and do a lot refolding. A lot.)

I’m interested in that kind of dichotomy between the child’s world and the adult world, which is so much a part of growing up. Kids are constantly getting into trouble and breaking the boundaries set for them, often accidentally.

The idea for Wait came when I was sitting in a café and a mom walked by with a boy (about 2 years old) who broke free and ran over to look at a bug on the windowsill right in front of me. He was rapt.

She grabbed his hand and dragged him down the street.

Hello, picture book!

That happens a billion times a day, where an adult’s agenda overrides a child’s agenda. Kids learn about the world by looking at things that adults have already learned to take for granted or are too busy to stop and see. Kids are fascinated by the ants in a crack in the sidewalk and random seed pods. Adults stomp right on past them.

This tug of war is a poignant situation, and I’m on the kids’ side. That’s the emotional underpinning of Wait.

One version of the book had variations of what the mom says, like “Let’s keep moving, buddy,” etc. I thought the book need that to be interesting. But then I realized that the narrative unfolds in the pictures–that’s where the interest lies. So a super-​tight, terse structure worked perfectly. The dialogue is just a simple back and forth. The mom says “Hurry” and all the child says is “Wait.” Until the end, that is, when the mom capitulates and things switch. That change becomes a big, big moment.

To figure out this book, I felt like I had to put everything I’d ever learned about picture books into it. In the pictures, there’s foreshadowing, repeated motifs, and visual jokes. But the real challenge was to create a visual narrative, not relying on poetic text, that had an emotional payoff.  I wanted to let readers figure out what the theme is. It’s clear and it’s there, but not actually spoken. I never want to speak a theme.

RVC: That sounds like a truth from the business world, too.

AP: The same thing is indeed true in advertising. With an ad campaign, there’s always the underlying strategy. You had to think of a tagline to support it, but you couldn’t use the strategy as the tagline.

A strategy might be “Our cars are better” or  “Drive our cars and everyone will think you’re cool.”

But you had to find a clever, funny, or powerful way of communicating that concept, so people would be emotionally or intellectually engaged with it.

RVC: Beyond the obvious–finish the work, proofread, send it out, etc.–what’s the best practical tip you have for aspiring picture book writers?

AP: The main thing is to be open to criticism. Be more committed to making the work better than to sticking with the germ of an idea as it originally came to you.

A novelist (I can’t remember where I heard this) once said that whatever initial idea you had for a book–whatever that one thing was that spurred you to spend years writing it–might need to be discarded as the idea takes on its own life and evolves into what it needs to be, its final form.

In a picture book, sometimes your favorite sentence has to go–the one that’s the most beautiful thing you’ve ever written. The book around it has gone to a new place, so bye bye beautiful sentence. (Maybe you’ll find a new home someday.)

I once heard Jon Klassen say that you have to be true to the idea. It’s all about the idea, not about you or your self expression. Once the idea is in existence, it tells you the rules if you just listen. It tells you what it needs.

RVC: Is this ever a challenge for you?

AP: Sometimes there’s a wrestling match. The book says, “You know I’m not going to work if you hang onto that thing you’re hanging onto,” but I dig in my heels. It might take me a while to face up to the fact that something I really like needs to go.

Manifesting an idea requires rigor and sometimes an idea has to whup you upside the head to get your to listen.

RVC: Alrighty–it’s time for the SPEED ROUND! Quick questions. Even quicker answers. GO! Guiltiest TV binge-​watching pleasure?

AP: It’s a show on Acorn (Australian TV) called “800 Words,” about a columnist whose wife died so he moved from Australia to this funky town in New Zealand with two teen kids and he writes a column for a dinky local newspaper. My husband and I are both addicted. He says, “Let’s see what George is up to,” which is ironic because George is never up to much and that’s what’s so great about the show.

Continuous mellowosity.

RVC: Favorite literary villain?

AP: The Grinch, but from the book, not the modern movie versions. I think the green guy is on my mind because Christmas kind of wore me out. Sometimes I wanted to pack it up in a sack and stuff it in the back of a cave myself.

RVC: If you weren’t in the kidlit biz but you still left your job at Disney, you’d now be a  ______?

AP: I’d freelance in graphic design to make a living and then be writing and making art on the side. Maybe there’d be cardboard sculptures all over my walls.

RVC: Best dinner foursome made up of picture book characters?

AP: I’d like to have dinner with Winnie the Pooh, Owl, Piglet, and Eeyore. I feel like I’d have a great time with them.

We had those books when I was a kid, but I didn’t really read through them all until high school. I remember finishing them late one night and sobbing because I couldn’t go to the Hundred Acre Wood. I fervently hoped, when I died, that’s what heaven would be like. But now, writing for kids, reading and drawing with them, my life is its own Hundred Acre Wood.

RVC: Funniest picture book you’ve recently read?

AP: My friend Rowboat Watkins wrote a book Rude Cakes that has has one of the funniest page turn reveals ever.

RVC: Three words that sum up what a great picture is/​does.

AP: Says something true about being a human being.

I’m going past three words here, but it’s important–a picture book isn’t didactic but rather something that tick-​tick-​ticks in the back of your mind like a time-​release capsule. It unfolds in your thought and moves you in some way. It makes you feel connected to your own humanity, and maybe makes you able to see your own behavior in a way that resonates for you. And maybe even changes you a tiny bit.

RVC: Thank IS worth going past the three word limit. Thanks so much, Antoinette!

Author Interview: Tara Lazar

On By Only Picture BooksIn Author Interviews2 Comments

This month’s author interview is with Tara Lazar (rhymes with “bazaar”), a mother of two who is “pushing a stroller along the path to publication.” You probably know her thanks to her terrific website/​blog as well as her quirky, funny picture books, such as these.

Before we launch into the official OPB interview, let’s get to know Tara a bit via a quick Truth or Lie game. Which of these feels as honest as a cue ball? Which seem as bogus as a four-​dollar bill?

  • Tara chooses cheese over chocolate every single time.
  • Tara walks with a blue cane.
  • Tara once lived in a house that was pink, pink, pink.
  • Tara’s a former figure skating champion.
  • Tara’s hamster, Ozzie, is the world’s cutest.
  • Tara can’t stand coffee.
  • If Tara were stranded on a deserted island and could only have one type of food every single day, it’d be tacos.

Answer Key: All are true! (Yep. Even the thing about coffee.)

So now that you’re starting to get a sense of what Tara’s all about, read on and learn more about the amazing Tara Lazar who sometimes wishes her name were “Tara Laserbeam.” (Spoiler: She’s s total hoot!)

Website: www.TaraLazar.com
Blog: www.TaraLazar.com
Twitter: @taralazar
Facebook: www.facebook.com/authortara
Pinterest: www.pinterest.com/taralazar/

RVC: So what type of kid were you? And how did that childhood prepare you for a career as a picture book author?

TL: Teacher’s pet. Super sharp, but also crazy-​weird. Creative. Writing, acting, drawing, or making something all the time.

I think the acting prepared me to write with a strong voice. I become the character. Being weird as a kid means you are cool as an adult. I never grew up past 8, probably because my parents separated shortly after then and my innocence was shattered. I try to remain that 8 year old as much as possible. In fact, most of my strong memories come from that time period.

RVC: How big of part did books and reading play into those early childhood years?

TL: A big part. I remember my elementary school library telling me that Ally Sheedy wrote and published She Was Nice to Mice at just 12 years old. I was 8 at the time and although 12 seemed like a lifetime away, it was also close enough to become a goal, to become an author myself. It only took me 30 more years!

RVC: I’m always interested in how someone’s first picture book happened. What’s the story of YOUR first picture book? 

TL: I have told this story before, so I am going to boil it down to its most essential elements–I wrote new stories constantly. I brainstormed new ideas several times a week. I stopped submitting and concentrated on my craft. I attended conferences and learned. I made writing friends. After almost two years of this, I wrote The Monstore, my breakthrough manuscript which my critique partners assured me would sell. The Monstore helped me land my agent, Ammi-​Joan Paquette, and my first contract for that book followed shortly thereafter.

RVC: How vital is it for aspiring picture book writers to find an agent first?

TL:  I think now more than ever it is advantageous to have an agent. More houses are closing their doors to unsolicited submissions simply because they receive too many manuscripts to sort through efficiently and find the treasures. An agent opens doors for you and also helps to guide your career.

It is not impossible to be published without one–my friend Josh Funk was discovered in the slush pile–but I think you will get a bigger advance and a bigger publisher (with greater distribution and marketing power) with an agent.

RVC: What does your writing process look like?

TL: First comes the concept, which I write down. Then there’s a lot of thinking. It marinates in my mind subconsciously until I know I’m ready to give the first draft a shot. It’s a gut feeling I cannot explain. Typically it’s weeks or months after the initial idea, but if the idea gets me super excited, then it’s sooner. 7 Ate 9 happened right away, idea then manuscript. BOOM, BOOM.

Because of this marination, when I finally get butt in chair, the first draft emerges in somewhat decent shape, and quickly–anywhere from a day to a week.

I spend far more time thinking about a story than I do actually writing it.

Then the story goes to my critique group for a round or two. I don’t do more than two revisions for my group because we all lose that “fresh look” ability, and I believe there is “over-​revising.” Then I give it to my agent who often gives me editorial notes and I revise until she is happy with the story (again, no more than two rounds) and ready to submit.

RVC: There’s no way around it–you’re a prolific writer. Beyond the two-​revisions-​and-​onward strategy, do you have any tips for those who struggle to get projects done?

TL: I think all writers have an undeniable need to write. But it’s important not to compare your output to another writer. We all have our own pace and we need to respect that. My best advice is to learn your process.

What works best for you? Routine? No routine? Experiment and find out.

RVC: So let’s talk about PiBoIdMo (Picture Book Idea Month), which you created in November 2009. Why did you create it? 

TL: PiBoIdMo was patterned after NaNoWriMo, hence the awful name. I began it because I believe picture books are all about great concepts. And to have a winning concept, you need a lot of concepts from which to choose. For every twenty to thirty story ideas, maybe one is worth pursuing. If you spend every day recording at least one idea, you will have a trove of potential stories by the end of the year and never be without one to write.

RVC: And PiBoIdMo became Storystorm in 2017 because…

TL: Again, the name was the worst. I would have created a better name had I thought about it for more than two seconds. No one could pronounce PiBoIdMo and the name didn’t conjure up and idea of what the event was. So I chose Storystorm to suggest a story brainstorm, and I moved it to January so it comes after the holidays instead of during them.

New year, new ideas, a fresh start.

RVC: In addition to being a successful picture book author, you’re a frequent speaker on MS. How do those two careers align?

TL: Get around, over, and through obstacles any way you can. Don’t let them stop you. This message is applicable to writers as well as those who suffer from chronic illness.

RVC: You’ve got a couple of new books coming out soon. Which has the most unusual path from initial idea to publication?

TL: Your First Day of Circus School. The manuscript had so many art notes that it was difficult to read through and understand. So my agent suggested putting it in grid format, which I blogged about here.

https://taralazar.com/2012/​10/​03/​art-​notes-​in-picture-​book-​manuscripts/​

RVC: How many number puns did you have to throw out to make 7 Ate 9 work? And is that more or less than you have to toss during the revision process of your other picture books?

TL: I didn’t throw any out. The important thing when writing with puns is to ensure the story still makes sense with them. The mystery of the story and the solution can be understood by all ages. With the exception of the title, no major plot point relies on a pun.

With all my books, I am more likely to be adding during revision than cutting.

RVC: Okay, it’s time for the Lightning Round! Zippy quick answers, please. Ready? Who’d you rather have as a week-​long houseguest–Sauron or Voldemort?

TL: Voldemort, because he’s English and if I serve Twinings Earl Grey, he’ll most likely act civilized.

RVC: Top three cheeses in order of yumminess?

TL: Manchego, goat cheese, and burrata.

RVC: Norman’s (from your book Normal Norman) middle name?

TL: Frank.

RVC: Name an up-​and-​coming picture book author whose work is always on your MUST-​READ list.

TL: Oh, there are so many!  This field is bursting with talent! But since I just bought Neck & Neck, I’ll say Elise Parsley.

RVC: Your #1 goal as a picture book writer.

TL: To keep being a picture book writer!

RVC: Favorite thing a child has ever said about one of your books?

TL: It happened just last week–a girl said, “you are the author of FAMOUS books.”   She complimented my lemur sweater, too, for bonus points.

RVC: Thanks so much, Tara!

Author Interview: Lynne Marie

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This month’s author interview is with Florida writer Lynne Marie. Before the official OPB interview starts, let’s get to know a bit about her via a Ten Cool Bio Factoids list. Enjoy!

  1. Lynne’s favorite 3 places? The library. The World. Disney.
  2. She lives on a lake in South Florida “which she shares with many feathered and scaled friends,” including a a Great Blue Heron named Baymax and four Wood Storks named Michelangelo, Donatello, Raphael, and Leonardo (and of course, her daughter Kayla, son Kevin, and Schipperke puppy, Anakin).
  3. She’s originally from Nesconset, NY but has lived in Sanibel, FL and in Hollywood, FL.
  4. Each year, she tries to read 1,000 picture books. Most years, she succeeds!
  5. Former pets include five hedgehogs: Nike, Willow, Sirena, Athena, and Hamlet as well as a Schipperke name Dante and an African Bullfrog named Bully.
  6. Hedgehog Nike was the inspiration for Lynne’s two Hedgehog books.
  7. She studied English at SUNY Empire State College.
  8. She has two children who “always provide lots of inspiration for her stories.”
  9. She’s a longtime SCBWI member (since 2000).
  10. She loves to travel … which is probably why she also works as as travel agent.

So without further ado, here’s the OPB interview with Lynne, plus a few links if you need more Lynne Marie magic!

Website: www.literallylynnemarie.com
Blog: literallylynnemarie.blogspot.com
Twitter: www.twitter.com/Literally_Lynne
Instagram: www.instagram.com/pictures.by.pixel.pixie
Facebook: www.facebook.com/WordsandPictures.by.LynneMarie
Critique and Mentorship Website: www.thepicturebookmechanic.com (Coming Soon!)

RVC: Prior to getting your first book deal, you had a lot of success in the magazine world with hits at Spider, Hopscotch, Family Fun, Writer’s Digest, etc. What was your first professional writing credit? 

LM: I have been writing practically all my life and majored in English and Children’s Literature in College and drafted pleadings as a Paralegal, so I did have some experience and skills when I started in magazines. I was fortunate enough to have a small tidbit published in Family Fun Magazine (a parenting magazine) in 1997 as my first official magazine credit. Then, I had another small tidbit published in their book, Games on the Go, in 1998. That’s all it took for me to get the “publication bug” and I have been writing with an eye toward publication ever since!

RVC: What was your most meaningful strike in the magazine marketplace?

LM: Hands down, the most important strike was when I sold my story “Arachne’s Thread” to Highlights for Children, in or around 2003. Ironically, this is scheduled for publication in March 2019.

RVC: My goodness, that’s a long time from acceptance to publication.

LM: “Arachne’s Threat” is a Greek myth about spiders — I think it was really well written, however I was surprised they bought it because it was a little dark for them. I submitted it anyway because they didn’t have many Greek myths and it was one of my favorites and it sold.

Highlights pays upon acceptance and then puts it in a topic folder for future consideration. I guess the world is ready for such myths now 😉

RVC: So you’ve been seriously studying the art of writing picture books for about two decades thanks to college classes, online classes, conferences, and more. What helped the most? What role did mentors and writing critique groups play into your development?

LM: I dabbled in book reviews, poetry, and parenting articles for a while before finding my way to picture books in 1999. Once I decided on that path, I went to Borders and purchased a copy of the Children’s Writer’s & Illustrator’s Market and joined SCBWI (Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators). I would have to say, without a doubt, that SCBWI helped the most. 

I have attended conferences on Long Island, in NYC, Massachusetts (NESCBWI), upstate NY (Hudson Valley SCBWI), Western Pennsylvania, Eastern Pennsylvania, New Jersey, LA (each of these several times), Florida and even one in Madrid, Spain. This organization provided knowledge, information, connections, resources and opportunities. In fact, my first book sold indirectly through a NY conference (the editor passed it along to a colleague) and my second book sold as a result of that as well, and my fourth book sold to Meredith Mundy of Sterling as a result of a critique at the 2016 Orlando Florida Conference. She didn’t take the critique submission as she had too many dinosaur books on her list, but asked what else I had. So, I pitched Moldilocks and the 3 Scares, and she asked that I send it. It’s coming out from Sterling in fall 2019. 

RVC: You’ve said that the thing about picture book writing is that it’s NOT about good writing–instead, it’s about great writing. Help clarify that important distinction.

LM:Yes–I’ve also said that great writing is just a foundation for success. The truly essential quality is great storytelling. It doesn’t matter how lovely your writing is if you can’t effectively tell a story and grip the reader to follow your character and seamless plot wherever he/​she/​it goes. 

RVC: What’s the most unexpected tool in your writer’s toolbox?

LM: Hmmm…I would have to say reading, because it’s just so much a basic and not surprising answer that it is often overlooked. Each of my books that have been published are a result of reading at least 50–100 books on similar themes and topics and making sure that my book was as good as, if not better, than the rest AND that it filled a hole in a publisher’s market and list. 

I also think you learn gads from participating in an active critique group AND really considering criticism whether you agree with it or not. 

RVC: What do you get out of your work as a book reviewer and a writer for Children’s Book Insider?

LM: My work as a book reviewer makes me an educated reader, which is essential for success. It also feeds into what I wrote above. This year, I am a Cybils Elementary and Middle Grade Nonfiction Judge, so I am getting to read and review the best of the best! I am truly getting a sense of what publishers are looking for nonfiction, what they’ve published and even, what they haven’t yet published. 

With Write for Kids (Children’s Book Insider), I am getting a chance to share my connections with others and make new ones through the editors and Agents that I interview, as well as learn and get invaluable information from the other columnists who I write with via our monthly e‑zine.

RVC: Let’s talk about your two Hedgehog books. What was the process of developing the character of Spike?

LM: Spike was inspired by my actual Hedgehog, Apollo Nike, who I called Nike and nicknamed Spikey Nike. He was very nervous and would spike a lot around people and noises. No one could hold him but me. Though he had a prickly exterior, he was fine with the right person, and that’s where the idea of Sheldon came from (someone who can handle him physically). 

I thought about equating him with a child and realized that a bus ride would be very scary and unnerving for him, especially if it hit a bump. And wham! The story was born. As always, figuring out the solution was the challenge, but also fun, as I considered which animals he could and couldn’t sit next to. Of course, Sheldon the Turtle, won the seat. 

RVC: Does Spike have more adventures in him?

LM: I truly hope that he does.

RVC: You’ve got a new picture book that just came out. What’s the story of how The Star in the Christmas Play came to be?

LM: The Star in the Christmas Play is one of my older stories that was inspired by a stuffed giraffe that my daughter had named Raffi. The idea began with a character and his flaw/​story problem–he was too tall to do what he wanted to do. From there, I did have quite a challenge in envisioning a solution for being too tall, so I flipped it in my mind and started to think of the things that a giraffe wouldn’t be too tall for. Because some of them were too obvious and/​or visited in other books, my mind raced past them. Then I thought of “to be a star.” 

From there, my mind tumbled around with the word “play” (movie star or lead in a play) and a variety of scenarios until I settled on one of the most famous stars of all (the Star of Bethlehem). From that point, everything came together so nicely and I knew what Raffi wanted in the story–to be the “star” of the Christmas Play. 

After completion, I put this away and only looked at it from time to time. Until…I saw the Sparkhouse Family (now Beaming Books) Contest. I didn’t really have much in the way of religious-​themed book beside this one (although religion is really just the backdrop and the theme is accepting yourself and finding your own way to shine), but I sent it along anyway. Sometime after the close of the contest, Andrew DeYoung contacted me to tell me although my entry didn’t win, they couldn’t stop thinking about it and and were sending it to acquisitions the next month! Thankfully, it passed through and came to life in the capable hands of Lorna Hussey, illustrator of my second book, Hedgehog’s 100th Day of School.

RVC: Want to tease us about picture books under contract?

LM: Both Moldilocks and the 3 Scares (Sterling) story and/​or Let’s Eat! Mealtimes Around the World, are scheduled for release in fall 2019. Moldilocks is a Goldilocks retelling starring a zombie girl and monsters, so of course, I am extremely excited about this. It adds another level to the story in that the lives of  three monsters who feel something is missing become “just right” when an orphaned Zombie girl sloshes across their porch and into their hearts. And Let’s Eat is a fun exploration of meals and customs of children from 13 countries across the world. We intend to offer a lot of supplemental materials via both my blog and the Beaming Books blog, like recipes and other fun information.

RVC: Speed Round! Ready … go! Worst name for a hedgehog?

LM: LOL. Probably Prickles. 

RVC: Most underappreciated food joint at Disney?

LM: Oh, gosh–I could do an entire interview on this. For fast food at Magic Kingdom, Casey Jr. They have a really tasty Vegan Slaw dog. For full service–everyone wants to eat at Cinderella’s Castle but my absolute favorite is 1900 Park Fare where you get to meet Cinderella and the Prince, but even better–the Wicked Stepmother and the Stepsisters. And the buffet is decent too. 

Since this has become more popular over the years on its own, I’ll add the buffet at Trail’s End at the Fort Wilderness Campgrounds AND breakfast at the Garden Grill in Epcot. 

RVC: Favorite writing venue?

LM: At home, in my office on my computer, surrounded by all my books and inspirational tchotckhes. I love my writing space. 

RVC: Best picture book of 2018?

LM: Oh, goodness! This is a tough one. But thinking of the books that I just read, I really loved Bully by Jennifer Sattler and Lost in the Library: A Story of Patience and Fortitude by Josh Funk. Misunderstood Shark by Ame Dyckman, If Wendell Had a Walrus by Lori Mortensen, just to name a few because I honestly could go on and on and on.

[Sidenote from OPB: Check out Lori’s fall 2018 interview with us!]

RVC: The most important reason aspiring writers should join SCBWI?

LM: I am a HUGE fan of SCBWI for so many reasons. However, joining SCBWI and going to conferences is only part of the recipe for success. You have to do the work. Read, write, revise, critique, be critiqued, read, write, revise, repeat.

RVC: Three words that describe your approach to picture book writing.

LM: Humor. Heart. Imagination. 

RVC: Thanks so much, Lynne!

Author Interview: Lori Mortensen

On By Only Picture BooksIn Author Interviews1 Comment

This month’s Author Interview is with Lori Mortensen, an award-​winning children’s book author of more than 70 books and over 350 stories and articles. Her recent picture book releases include If Wendell Had a Walrus, Chicken Lily, Mousequerade Ball illustrated by New York Times bestselling illustrator Betsy Lewin, and Cowpoke Clyde Rides the Range, a sequel to Cowpoke Clyde & Dirty Dawg, one of Amazon’s best picture books of 2013.

When she’s not letting her cat in, or out, or in, she’s tapping away at her computer, conjuring, coaxing, and prodding her latest stories to life. Sometimes takes a break and answers marvelous questions posed by Ryan G. Van Cleave at Only Picture Books.

For more information about her books, critique service, events, and upcoming releases, visit her website at www.lorimortensen.com.

Blog: http://lorimortensen.blogspot.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/lorimortensen
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lori.mortensen.77
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/90109.Lori_Mortensen

RVC: At what point did you realize that you were a writer? What were the warning signs?

LM: Interestingly, I didn’t begin writing until I was a stay-​at-​home mother of three. Up until then, I was an avid reader, but writing never occurred to me. I’d never met a writer, and the whole thing seemed completely out of the realm of possibilities. However, when I had my own children, I was reintroduced to children’s literature and began to wonder what I could write.

Taking a gigantic step, I signed up for a writing course through the Institute of Children’s Literature. Although I was a complete beginner, I soaked up each lesson like a sponge and each step was a thrilling challenge. When I sold my final assignment to a children’s magazine, I was hooked. If they wanted this story, maybe they’d want another. And if they bought something, maybe another publisher would too. I’ve been writing ever since.

It’s been my privilege to be a writing instructor for the Institute of Children’s Literature for the past 12 years which continues to be a rewarding, full-​circle experience.

RVC: How does your teaching at the Institute inform your own writing?

LM: The particular course I teach is writing for children’s magazines. After reading and critiquing hundreds of manuscripts, it’s easy to see the common mistakes nearly all new writers make. When I began writing many years ago, I made them too. But over time, challenge by challenge, writers improve as they put in the time to understand and hone their craft.

Most students are surprised at the work and persistence it takes to succeed. Some decide writing is not for them. However, when students catch the vision and are willing to put in the work, success follows. Teaching is a regular reminder that writers can improve, and whatever measure of success they achieve is in direct proportion to the effort they’re willing to put into it. It’s a truism for nearly anything in life.

RVC: What are a few of those common mistakes that nearly all new writers make?

LM: The most common mistakes have to do with point of view and conflict. Many new writers create a cast of characters and then try to tell everyone’s story all at once. By jumping from one point of view to the next, they end up not telling anyone’s story. If there was a main character, they were quickly lost in the shuffle.

Lack of conflict is another common mistake. Many new writers don’t realize that there needs to be a story problem for the main character to face and resolve. Without conflict, there is no story or reason to keep reading. Who resolves the story problem is just as critical. Many times, new authors just can’t help putting parents in charge. The parents tell the main character what to do and teach them a lesson that’s usually about not lying, stealing, or cheating. It’s a challenge for new authors to see things from a child’s perspective instead of the wise, responsible adult’s.

RVC: Your Twitter bio claims that you’re the not-​so-​proud owner of a “misbehaving muse.” Tell me more.

LM: If I could tame that muse, I certainly would. As it is, sometimes ideas land at my feet and blossom into wonderful, exciting projects, and other times it’s a wrestling match to see who will come out on top. While many writers lose count of all the ideas popping into their head, for me it’s more like a Sherlock Holmes affair. Instead of fending off a deluge of ideas, I have to pluck them out of my world like shiny pennies waiting to be found. In either case, it’s an exhilarating and rewarding process to see an idea come together in its finished form.

Now if my muse would get on the ball, I’d get bushels of projects done!

RVC: What does your writing process look like, and what role does revision play in it?

LM: My writing process begins with an idea. Where that idea comes from is the challenge. Sometimes an idea lands at my feet. Other times, I show up at my computer with nothing in mind and know I need to get started on something. I often start the process by immersing myself in the collection of picture books in my bookcase. Sometimes the rhythm of the language sparks an idea. Other times, it’s an illustration or style that gets me thinking. Then, I start writing and see where it takes me. Many times, I don’t know where it’s going when I begin, but as I progress, new ideas come to mind and the story begins to take shape.

Getting through the first draft is the biggest hurtle because it would be so easy to toss it in the bin at this point. What a horrible, ill-​conceived mess! But luckily, I’ve learned to trust the revision process. How many times do I revise? Numbers aren’t important, but quality is. When the manuscript is as good as I can make it, I share it with my trusted critique partners knowing they’ll see things I missed. Once the feedback is in, I return to the revision process. I may not agree with everything they’ve said, but their feedback is invaluable. They not only celebrate what’s wonderful about the manuscript, they help me see where it falls short and how it can be improved.

RVC: Why picture books?

LM: Although I’m an avid reader of adult literature—cozy mysteries, biographies, and a variety of nonfiction, I love to read and write picture books. To me, they’re like mini masterpieces—clever, humorous, smart, informative, whimsical, and unforgettable—all packed within 32 pages. I love the awesome mashup of the words and art and the challenge of writing what I would love to read.

RVC: The first book of yours that I ever ran across was Cindy Moo, where a cow hears the age-​old nursery rhyme and decides to prove that cows CAN jump over the moon. How do you know when rhyme is right for a book—like it is for Cindy Moo—or when it’s going to get in the way of the story?

LM: In the case of Cindy Moo, it was clear from the beginning that I would tell this story in rhyme because it was based on the rhyming nursery rhyme, Hey Diddle Diddle. I wrote the Cowpoke Clyde and Dirty Dawg series in rhyme because it seemed like the perfect way to capture Cowpoke Clyde’s rambunctious efforts to catch ol’ Dirty Dawg. Rhyme has a rhythm so I used it to magnify the energy and pace of the chase. As you noted, however, rhyme isn’t suited for everything.

For me, the key is finding the voice of the story. Some ideas lend themselves to rhyme and others don’t. For example, when I began writing If Wendell Had a Walrus, this opening line came to mind: “One day Wendell was minding his own business when a walrus floated by. Of course, it wasn’t a real walrus. Just a cloud one. But when Wendell saw it, he started thinking about real ones all the same.” In this instance, writing it in prose captured the thoughtful nature of the moment where the character was simply looking up at the clouds and imagining.

RVC: Music or silence when writing?

LM: Silence. I’ve always thought it would be great to write with music percolating in the background, like having a direct link to some musical muse. But silence works best for me. When there’s music, or even conversations going on in the background, it makes it harder for me to listen to the stream of thoughts going on in my head which is the essence of writing.

RVC: Dream illustrator you haven’t yet worked with?

LM: What a great question. For someone who writes picture books, this is the dream, icing-​on-​the-​cake question, indeed. Although I have dozens of favorites, my top illustrators would have to be Peter Brown, Oliver Jeffers, and Rowboat Watkins. Their work is so fresh, so original, so … emotionally satisfying! The last may seem like an odd category, but one of the things I love about their work is the brilliant way they convey their characters’ emotions along the way.

A few more favorites include Tracey Campbell Pearson, Levi Pinfold, and Poly Bernatene. (I could go on and on!) Interestingly, one of my recent favorite picture books was Marilyn’s Monsters written by Michelle Knudsen and illustrated by Matt Phelan. I was thrilled when Matt Phelan came on board to illustrate my latest picture book release, If Wendell Had a Walrus.

RVC: The name of your “megafluffy” cat is …

LM: Max

RVC: If your 70+ books got involved in a literary deathmatch—totally Mad Max style—which title would the last one standing? And which would you have been secretly rooting for?

LM: Wow! That creates an interesting mental picture, doesn’t it? I think Cowpoke Clyde and Dirty Dawg would come out on top, fer sure. Clyde would grab his rope, lasso the lot, then get on with washing his ol’ Dirty Dawg. Yee-​haw! No need to root for him because Cowpoke Clyde would have it in the bag all along.

RVC: Best compliment a child has ever given you about your books?

LM: “Read it again!”

RVC: Thanks so much, Lori! 😊

 

Author Interview: Liz Garton Scanlon

On By Only Picture BooksIn Author Interviews

This month’s author interview is with Liz Garton Scanlon. I had the pleasure of witnessing two days of her talking about picture books at the June 2018 SCBWI Summer Workshop in Orlando. Let’s be clear—I filled two pads of paper with scribbles/​notes.

She’s got bunches of things worth sharing as introductory bio material, but let’s just focus on the 10 factoids about her that I find most fascinating. Without further ado, they are:

  1. She “wrote an overly long autobiography in second grade.”
  2. She’s lived in Colorado, Wisconsin, Ohio, England, Colorado (again), California, and Texas, where she has since lived for many years. (Austin, Texas shout out!)
  3. She aspires to one day beat her family at board games.
  4. She has “dozens of cousins.”
  5. She has “very curly hair.”
  6. She is “darn good at shuffling cards.”
  7. She teaches at the Vermont College of Fine Arts.
  8. Her dream breakfast? Strong coffee and gingerbread pancakes.
  9. She works, mostly, in a “closet-​sized studio at an old library table.”
  10. Joanne Woodward narrated a video Liz’s second book, All the World.

And the bonus factoid #11? She’s the author of lots of picture books, including these three (below) that I dig quite a bit.

      

Website: http://lizgartonscanlon.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/liz.g.scanlon
Twitter: https://twitter.com/lgartonscanlon
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/liz-garton-scanlon-8045533/

RVC: I can see where degrees in journalism and English can lead you to the path to writing for kids. Same with editing a poetry journal. But corporate marketing communications? Was writing picture books an antidote to that? Or did that offer you skills that translated better than one might expert to writing picture books?

LGS: Ha ha—this question makes me laugh! YES, writing picture books is an absolute antidote to writing corporate communications. I left that job after one too many conference calls sent me to bed with a migraine. When I finally got up, I knew I was done.

That said, the work served me in many ways. First, it made it possible for us to have babies, pay our mortgage, and send my husband to graduate school all at the same time! But also, corporate work provided a steep learning curve in subject matter that was new to me since it required precision on a deadline and it asked for brevity and flair. I think I got to be a better writer through all that, so I’m thankful.

RVC: A Sock Is a Pocket for Your Toes is a fun title. That was your first picture book, too, right? What’s the story of how that came to be?

LGS: Yep, that was my first book. I wrote it when my eldest daughter was a baby. I was getting her dressed one day and said, “Look, a sock is a pocket for your toes!” and instantly, I was flooded with more than enough pocket metaphors to fill a picture book! But it wasn’t just my first book—it was also a mini-​education in writing rhyme for kids. I had submitted a manuscript that was, metrically, very loose—almost free form—and my editor asked for exactitude. Predictable syllabics and rhythm for the read-​aloud set! This makes sense when you think about it, but it was a tough lesson to learn because revising rhyme is excruciating.

RVC: Let’s talk about rhyme a bit more. Pretty much everyone likes it … when it’s done well. How DOES someone write/​revise for rhyme? Any strategies? Tips?

LGS: Oh, rhyme. It’s so good when it’s good, isn’t it? So musical. So memorable. But boy, is it tricky. Here’s the thing—it’s more than coming up with a few decent end rhymes. It’s coming up with perfect end rhymes that actually serve the story at hand. That say what we want them to say. That say what the story needs (rather than forcing an illogical digression just to make the rhyme work). And it’s about perfect meter, too. Rhyme is nothing without meter, so we need a regular syllabic pattern along with the rhyme scheme, and we need to make sure we’re not having to put the emPHAsis on the wrong syLABble when we read it aloud.

As for revising, we must be willing to unravel the whole thing if necessary. We tend to think that once rhyme is drafted, it’s sacrosanct. But sometimes we have to pull it apart—and even toss out darn good lines—to get it right.

RVC: On one hand, the story of how A Sock Is a Pocket for Your Toes is one of those easy-​peasy it-​worked-​like-​magic tales, right? But didn’t it also have quite a few hiccups/​challenges along the way?

LGS: Sure, every book has its hiccups. And speaking of rhyme and meter, I wrote and submitted that manuscript with no discernible pattern to it at all. I thought I was composing jazz, and that the variations were creative and fun! My editor helped me see that I was making it almost impossible to read aloud and I’d done away with all the rhythmic predictability that makes rhyme so pleasurable to kids. Honestly, A Sock Is a Pocket for Your Toes served as my own mini picture book boot camp, and I needed it.

RVC: Your Caldecott-honored picture book, All the World, was illustrated by Marla Frazee. What was it like working with her?

LGS: I was a serious devotee of Marla’s work long before she was my illustrator or my friend. In fact, our first-​ever contact came via a fan letter I wrote her after reading the Clementine books with my girls. Her illustrations in All the World made the book what it is—a physical place of beauty and comfort and communion open to every reader. And making it together was, really, a deep pleasure. The process was more collaborative than most picture book projects in that we spent time over many months—via phone and email, and with our editor Allyn Johnston of Beach Lane Books—massaging the text and illustrations until the marriage was just right.

I’ll always treasure that experience and the final product.

RVC: Speaking of collaborations … you’ve successfully written picture books with Audrey Vernick. What’s your secret? What do you get out of collaborating? How do you make it work so well?

LGS: Key to collaboration is admiration and connection and respect. If I didn’t adore Audrey and her writing—and vice versa—I don’t think this would work. Also, we do something kind of brave (or crazy)—we write by passing a Word doc back and forth, and we don’t use comments or edit mode. At all. When it’s our turn, we just add and delete and amend as we see fit. Without permission. We take absolute ownership—until it’s time to send it on. In that way, the piece is completely ours and then again, not ours at all. The result is that we’re deeply engaged but not egoic, which is good for the work and our own well-​being. Also, it’s really fun.

RVC: While I’m sure that you had some degree of fun while writing of all of your books, it seems that Kate, Who Tamed the Wind might’ve also provided a lot of challenges for you. Far more than usual, right?

LGS: That book. Oh, mercy. It took more than fifteen years from idea to publication. And more than 100 drafts. There are rhymed and unrhymed versions. Versions with a man, a woman, a little boy, a little girl. Versions written in past tense and present.

Honestly, if there was something to try, I promise you I tried it. What I wanted, in the end, was something lyrical, relational, environmental, cumulative, mystical, personal, read-aloudable—and I guess it just took me a long, long time to achieve all that.

RVC: Let’s talk about the drafting process. You’ve got an interesting idea regarding the value of those first drafts.

LGS: Anne Lamott talks about “shitty first drafts,” and this is just my version of that. I constantly remind myself that a first draft doesn’t have to be lovely. It doesn’t have to flow, or be the right shape or length. It doesn’t have to be good at all! It just has to reveal itself to me.

It’s a place where I get to bumble about, where I get to walk myself into the story—to tell myself the story. Once I’ve done that, then it’s time to figure out how to tell it to everybody else.

RVC: Speed round! Hardest word you’ve ever managed to rhyme well.

LGS: Oooo, I’ve got a few. Lemonade. Steadfast. Strut. I do love the puzzle of a good rhyme!

RVC: An illustrator you’d love to work with on a future book of yours.

LGS: I have SO MANY ILLUSTRATOR DREAMS. Many of them, of course, have been answered! (I’ve been very, very lucky in this regard.) As you know, I just spent a day teaching with Floyd Cooper at the Florida SCBWI conference and I love that man and his work, so that would be pretty great. But I’m also always yearning to work with up-​and-​coming female illustrators who are still having a harder time getting noticed in the picture book world. More than half my books have been illustrated by women and I’m liking that track record.

RVC: If you had to write longhand, would you use a pencil or pen?

LGS: Pencil—as long as it was really sharp.

RVC: If you never became a writer, you’d instead be …

LGS: A lawyer. I like arguing and I did well on the logic portion of the GRE. So, yes. A lawyer … but living on a horse farm.

RVC: Best late-​night snack?

LGS: Popcorn with chili powder and brewer’s yeast.

RVC: Favorite non-​kidlit genre to read?

LGS: I always have a novel, a collection of short stories, and a book of poetry on my bedside table. I choose based on time of day, emotional state, and exhaustion level.

RVC: Best compliment a child could ever give you about one of your books?

LGS: “I’m gonna write a book like this someday.”

RVC: Thanks oodles, Liz!