Joining us today for Creative Spaces is author Mara Rockliff (although you may also be familiar with her books under the pen names Lewis B. Montgomery, Nan Walker, and Eleanor May). She is the author of the chapter book series "Milo and Jazz Mysteries", named ALA Best New Books for the Classroom; Get Real: What Kind of World Are You Buying?, an ethical consumer guide that is now in its third printing and was a Green Earth Book Awards honor winner; and the picture book The Busiest Street in Town, which was an IndieNext pick.
January has been an exciting month for Mara as she had two books published: My Heart Will Not Sit Down and The Case of the Diamonds in the Desk, #8 in the Milo and Jazz mystery series. She also has three upcoming picture books with Candlewick including Me and Momma and Big John, which will be published in summer 2012.
I guess I would describe it as a little odd, because I have a desk, but I don’t work at it. Mainly I work in an old green recliner in a corner of my office. When I’m really serious, I need to spread my notes around me, so I skip the office and go work in bed.
My chair and filing system.
Describe a typical workday.
It starts about 8:30, when I go upstairs to drink tea, waste time online, and recover from the daily agony of getting my eight-year-old dressed and fed and out the door to school. How much time I waste depends on how far along I am with whatever I am working on. If I’m on chapter 8 of the first draft of a ten-chapter book, I might just check my email and get right to work. If I’m about to start chapter 1, I’ll read Miss Manners and Fuse #8, visit the Blue Boards, follow a few links from Twitter, watch a YouTube clip of Jimmy Stewart dancing with Eleanor Powell, and by then more emails have come in and soon it’s time to walk the dog and, oh, well, looks as if I’ll have to start that book tomorrow.
List three of your favorite things in your workspace and why they are meaningful.
1. A letter from Ray Bradbury from 1986. He was one of my two favorite writers when I was a teenager (the other was Kurt Vonnegut), and I was very happy when I wrote to him and he wrote back himself—I could tell from all the typos and handwritten corrections, now very faded.
2. A Cat in the Hat that Dr. Seuss drew for me when I was seven or eight and met him at an autographing. I framed it myself, which is why the signature is mostly obliterated by ancient Scotch tape.
3. My collection of mother’s day cards, one of which reads in part: Here’s a cheer for a good Momma! The Momma cheer! Who’s a good Momma? You! Who’s a really good Momma? You! Who’s the best best Moooooommmmmmaaa in the wwwooooorrrlldd??? Yyyooo!!!
Do you have any rituals in your work habits? If so, describe them.
Does pathological procrastination count as ritual? Today I swept the stairs. Not a good sign.
What do you listen to while you work?
Nothing, unless it gets noisy and then I turn on the fan. Or if it’s really bad, Simplynoise.com. If I’m not actually writing, I might listen to Pandora. I like the Contemporary Bollywood station.
What is your drink and/or snack of choice while you’re working?
Champagne and truffles, naturally. But I settle for tea with milk, no sugar, and whatever’s in the fridge.
What keeps you focused while you’re working?
Deadlines! As Samuel Johnson said about the prospect of being hanged, they concentrate the mind wonderfully.
Do you write longhand, on a computer, or another way?
Computer, always. But I scribble notes by hand, usually on a one-sided sheet of paper folded in half.
How do you develop your ideas?
On a walk, or in the bath. Then notes. Then drafts.
If you were forced to share your workspace but could share it with anyone of your choosing, who would it be?
A nice, calm golden retriever. Instead I have a small, neurotic poodle-spaniel mix who creeps into the office, lurks unseen at the foot of my chair, and waits until I’m totally absorbed in what I’m doing before suddenly bursting into ear-shattering frenzied yaps. This gives my heart a workout and eliminates the need for an expensive treadmill desk.
My dog with a beet juice mohawk.
What is the best piece of writing advice you’ve heard or received?
“The art of writing is the art of applying the seat of the pants to the seat of the chair.”
Thank you to those of you who have visited this little patch of internet over the years. I'm taking a blogging break for the rest of 2011. I hope to return in 2012 with more Creative Spaces interviews, Light and Round roundups, and I have high hopes for additional blog posts and fun fodder. I hope you'll keep stopping by!
Joining us today for Creative Spaces is author Jo Ramsey. She is the author of the Reality Shift series and the Dark Lines series published with Jupiter Gardens Press. And this month she had two (yes, two!) YA novels published.
The first is Cluing In, published with Featherweight Press. Cluing In is about Jamey who breaks up with his girlfriend after their endless arguing only to learn that she's jumped into a relationship with another guy. Rumors fly about his ex-girlfriend and when she comes to Jamey for help, he refuses to listen, a decision he later regrets when his ex-girlfriend takes drastic action.
The second book now available is From the Ashes, the fifth installment in the Reality Shift series. In From the Ashes, Shanna is juggling both a potential new love interest who is taking her to the Harvest Dance at school and trying to prevent a dangerous entity from another reality from finding a portal into our universe.
There is also much to look forward to from Jo in 2012. She has--make sure your head isn't close to a counter surface when you read this because your jaw is going to drop--FIVE young adult novels scheduled for publication. (I'm pretty sure in the time it took me to put together this interview post, Jo drafted a new novel.) As a slow writer myself, you can bet I studied her responses for the secret to her productiveness. I've concluded it's a combination of experience, discipline, and organized dedication. She's an inspiring example of what can be possible if you set your mind to it.
In a word: cluttered. I share a computer room with my husband and my 13-year-old daughter. (My 16-year-old has a laptop and prefers to use it in the living room.) The room is supposed to be a child's bedroom, so it's pretty small, especially when all three of us are in it. My husband and my daughter each have their own desktop computer and desk, and then I have all the things you see in the photos.
My desk is an old drafting desk from the 1940s that I bought at a flea market ten or twelve years ago. I love the thing too much to get a bigger desk, even though I could really use one.
On the wall above my desk, I have . . . everything. LOL. I have calendar pages for the current month and next month so I can keep track of appointments, blog appearances, and so forth. On a bulletin board on that wall, I keep track of my daily writing/promotion schedule, along with projects that are past first draft stage. I have notes on the wall, some that are reminders of things I need to do and some that are motivational. Above all that is my cover gallery; I print out a 5x8 copy of each of my book covers and just tape them to the wall. That isn't visible in the picture because there are some non-YA covers up there.
Next to the desk, I have a small set of shelves where I keep the binders that organize my several series (at last count, I'm dealing with four YA series and two, possibly three, romance series), printer paper, envelopes, etc. That's right beside the window next to my desk. The window looks out over our back porch and down the side street we're on the corner of.
In front of the window is my filing cabinet, where I keep family paperwork and my publishing contracts. It's one of my cat's favorite perches, because sunlight comes in the window most of the morning. Beside the filing cabinet is a large bookcase where I keep my "swag" (the postcards, bookmarks, etc. that I give away) and my author copies of my books.
Aubrey the cat next to Jo's shelves of books and swag.
On the other side of my desk from the shelves is a closet door that I've pretty much turned into a second bulletin board, and that's where I keep track of what projects I'm working on, which ones I need to work on next, and what's been accepted and released.
Where Jo keeps track of her works-in-progress.
Describe a typical workday.
There's no such thing in my world, really . . . If it's a weekday, I get up at 5:30, shower, fix a cup of tea, and then sit down at the computer to check emails and maybe do a little writing amidst getting my daughters up and off to school. On Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, after I drop off my 13-year-old at school, I go to work at my day job until about 1; on Tuesdays and Thursdays, after I drop her off I come home and get to work on some writing.
Most days, I try to write at least 1500 words on each of the projects I'm working on. Because I also write adult romance under a top-secret pen name, I'm almost always working on at least two projects. If I have edits from a publisher, or I'm working on something that's under deadline, those take priority. I also visit social networking sites, do blog posts and interviews (like this one), and if there's time I write a short story or article.
List three of your most favorite things in your workspace and why they are meaningful.
I think my most favorite is my cover gallery. Some of the cover art is absolutely stunning, in my opinion, and I love looking up there and realizing that I actually wrote all of those books. I've wanted to be a published author since I was about five, and having those covers there is visual confirmation that it's really happening now. Another favorite is one of the motivational quotes I have taped above my desk. It's something a friend said to me a couple years ago when I was very ill and facing major surgery. And the third thing is my desk, as I mentioned above. I've had it for such a long time, and it's been through a lot with me. And it was sold to me at the flea market by a good friend of mine who has since passed away, so it makes me think of him and how kind and supportive he was.
Do you have any rituals in your work habits? If so, describe them.
I started to say I don't have any rituals, but I guess I do.
I have a small markerboard on my desk, and each morning I list the things I hope to accomplish that day, both writing-wise and family-life-wise. When I finish the first draft of a story, I make a small tag with the title on it and tack that to the bulletin board above my desk, where it begins to move through my process; the board is broken into categories. Pre-Submission Edits; Waiting for Response (for things that I've submitted); Awaiting Publisher Edits; and Requested Publisher Edits. I also have a section for revise/resubmit requests (when a book isn't quite up to snuff, but the publisher's willing to give it a second chance if I fix some things) and for books that are ready to submit but I haven't yet decided where to send them.
When a book is accepted, I make a colored tag for it and put that on the closet door. When that book is released, I add the release date to the tag.
What do you listen to while you work?
I don't usually listen to anything. Music or other noise distracts me very easily most of the time. However, sometimes if it's too quiet I can't settle down to work, so I'll listen to my playlist on Playlist.com, which has such a variety of things I can't even begin to list all the songs or types of music.
What is your drink and/or snack of choice while you’re working?
In the mornings, I have tea and hot chocolate. Most of the rest of the day, I drink flavored "fizzy water" and pretend it's soda.
What keeps you focused while you’re working?
Some days, nothing does . . . Mostly it's sheer determination. I have attention issues, and if I don't clamp down on myself, my mind wanders everywhere except where it's supposed to go. Other days, I need music to help me, because the silence starts to bother me.
Do you write longhand, on a computer, or another way?
I write on a computer. It makes revising and editing much, much easier for me. Plus I've been doing it this way so long that I now type about twice as fast as I can write longhand, which lets the ideas flow more easily.
How do you develop your ideas?
When I get an idea, I usually make a few notes about it. Sort of a freeform brainstorm where I just write down the main characters and the major plot points that I think will be in the story. Then I start writing and see where the story ends up.
If you were forced to share your workspace but could share it with anyone of your choosing, who would it be?
I'm already forced to share it. I guess if I have to share, my husband and daughter aren't too bad to share it with.
What is the best piece of writing advice you’ve heard or received?
Just write. Don't get hung up on the first draft to the point that you don't even finish it; just write it and know that if it comes out a mess, you can fix it afterward. You can't revise or edit what isn't on the page.
Joining us today for Creative Spaces is author Anna Staniszewski. Her debut middle grade novel, My Very UnFairy Tale Life, was recently published by Sourcebooks Jabberwocky. Here's a taste of My Very UnFairy Tale Life from Anna's website:
"Is your magical kingdom falling apart? Twelve-year-old Jenny is on the case, whether she likes it or not. Saving the world might sound exciting, but for Jenny it’s starting to get old—even staying in the real world long enough to take a math test would be a dream come true! And when you throw in bloodthirsty unicorns, psychotic clowns, and the most useless gnome sidekick ever, Jenny decides that enough is enough. She’s leaving the adventuring business and not looking back. Or. . . is she?"
In addition to her own blog, Anna (along with author Alisa Libby) maintains "First Page Panda", an online resource for readers to get previews of middle grade and young adult books.
To learn more about Anna Staniszewski, visit her website and blog. And now, let's take a peek inside her workspace!
Describe your workspace.
I have a small office dedicated to writing. It's cozy and filled with books, but for some reason I've almost abandoned it recently. Instead, I've been curling up on the living room couch with my laptop. My posture hates me, but I guess I must like being in a nesting position when I'm being creative.
Describe a typical workday.
I teach part-time, so my schedule is different depending on the day, but typically I spend time in the morning answering emails, blogging, and doing other internet activities. Then I take the dog for a nice long walk and let my brain wander. After that, I like to get some writing or teaching-related work done. I find that I do my best writing in the late afternoon; often when dinnertime comes around I'm busy typing and don't even realize my stomach is growling. When I'm about to chew off my own arm, that's when I know it's time to quit.
List three of your most favorite things in your workspace and why they are meaningful.
1. My dog, Emma. She's a huge distraction but also a comfort to have nearby.
2. My notebook. Whenever I'm feeling particularly stuck on a character or plotline, I get out my notebook and start jotting down ideas to get the creative juices flowing again.
3. My craft book collection. I'm a tiny bit obsessed with books on the craft of writing. I use them quite a bit in my teaching, but I also find that a touch of writing wisdom from James Scott Bell or Donald Maass is often just what I need to give me a fresh perspective on my WIP.
Do you have any rituals in your work habits? If so, describe them.
When I'm ready to dive into a long writing session, I usually have to make some tea before I can start. And maybe nibble on a cookie or two. Baked goods, warm beverages, and writing all seem to go together.
What do you listen to while you work?
I can't really listen to music while I work, especially if it has lyrics, but I've found that having a Red Sox game on low volume in the background while I'm revising creates the perfect amount of white noise for me. (And, as an added bonus, I can cheer when something exciting happens.)
What is your drink and/or snack of choice while you’re working?
Earl gray tea with a touch of milk and sugar, Fig newtons, and chocolate!
What keeps you focused while you’re working?
I'll be honest: sometimes nothing keeps me focused! When I'm having a really hard time keeping my mind on work, I set a timer for twenty minutes and force myself to buckle down for that time. After that, I can usually get into the groove of things. I do find that when I'm revising, I'm usually much more motivated than when I'm drafting. I think that's because drafting is often messy and meandering, whereas revising is more orderly and analytical; I'm a control freak, so I like making things nice and organized.
Do you write longhand, on a computer, or another way?
I mostly write on the computer, but when I'm brainstorming or trying to solve a problem, that's when I get out the pen and paper.
How do you develop your ideas?
Very very slowly! I usually start with a bare-bones idea and add layers to it as I go. My first drafts tend to be very dialogue-heavy, essentially just characters standing around talking about their problems. In revisions, I try to figure out how to turn those conversations into action.
If you were forced to share your workspace but could share it with anyone of your choosing, who would it be?
My husband and I shared an office for a couple of years and it actually worked out pretty well. We would distract each other sometimes with funny YouTube videos and such, but when it was time to get to work, we were pretty good at focusing. It felt nice to be working together side-by-side.
What is the best piece of writing advice you’ve heard or received?
A friend and writing partner had this bit of wisdom when I was querying my first novel and not having much success: "Maybe this isn't the book that's going to get you published." I realized she was right, and that I just had to keep working on new projects. My next manuscript landed me an agent, and the one after that got me a publishing contract. I learned that you always have to keep creating; you never know which book will be The One.
The Princess of Las Pulgas was published in 2010 by Westside Books. From Lee's website, "Carlie Edmund has everything: a loving family, good friends, a perfect home and wealth and status; then in her junior year of high school all of that changes. How will Carlie take on the challenges of living in a different world, a world where she doesn't "fit" and where nothing is as it should be?"
To learn more about C. Lee McKenzie, visit her website or her blog.
Describe your workspace.
I love this idea of describing where a person creates. I've often imagined the settings where Dickens or Austen wrote and wondered how those places influenced the words they set down. I feel like the luckiest person when I consider my workspace--I actually have two. The first is my desk upstairs in my office where I do a lot of my writing. While it's always in chaos, it looks out onto a redwood forest where there's no human noise most of the time. My office is filled with lots of bird noise and squirrel activity. One daring Wallenda-type squirrel, high-wires it across the front of my house daily. He's the only critter that I stop writing for, and I think he has to be some kind of inspiration. My second workspace is in my garden where I love to take a print out of my WIP to read or where I like to read what others have written.
Describe a typical workday.
I can't say I have a typical workday. I'm not an "organized" writer in any sense of the word. Some days I write nothing, but others I'll fill up pages. I've stopped worrying about goals and word counts and just let whatever happens be enough. I have days when what I write might as well be a grocery list. Then along comes all of this prose that I love. It's an amazing process and, as I see it, my job is to appreciate the good and the bad that is part of that process.
If there's anything typical at all, it would be that I'm up early--about 4 or 5 when I'm writing. Usually I can't sleep anyway because I'm writing in my head. I seldom write at night.
List three of your most favorite things in your workspace and why they are meaningful.
The view is my most favorite thing. When I need some perspective on what's important in a story or in my life, I just have to look out at the redwoods. That perspective is there. I love my computer. I switched from a PC a few years ago, something I never thought I'd do because I'd always been a PC user. I got so tired of all the hacking, and then they came out with Vista and that did it. I'm an Apple user now. My desk is the third thing I adore! It's huge. I used to have this old-fashioned roll-top that I'd lugged around with me for sentimental reasons. It never had enough room. Then I splurged on my super modern wrap around the room desk. It's always a mess, but I have more room for that mess now and that makes me happy.
Do you have any rituals in your work habits? If so, describe them.
I know it's a quirky ritual, but I like to wear my hoodie when I write. Well, it's really a signal to my family. When I'm at the computer with my hood up that means DO NOT TALK TO ME UNLESS THE HOUSE IS ON FIRE. When it's not up I'm only dealing with email or blogging, so they can ask me anything then.
What do you listen to while you work?
Nothing. I love to write when there's silence around me because there's so much noise inside my head. The characters are yammering on and on, my muse is doing her "Now you've got it" mantra, and my self-doubt editor is trying to get her two cents in. Silence, please!
What is your drink and/or snack of choice while you’re working?
Coffee is my morning must. I splurged again and this time on an espresso maker so I could have the very best first-cup-in-the-morning coffee. Now, I'm a caffeine snob and can turn down anything perked.
What keeps you focused while you’re working?
That's hard. When I'm into a story focus isn't an issue. I enter the story, see the place where it's happening, hear the people as they talk or think, and am a part of the action. When I'm trying to find a story, distraction is my middle name and I find it hard to sit at my desk. I often leave the house, take a hike or walk up to the creek a few miles away. That helps me think and get my focus back.
Do you write longhand, on a computer, or another way?
Mostly I write on the computer, but I do take notes on just about anything at hand if I'm not at my desk. I have odd looking grocery receipts with things like, "Don't kill the dog in scene three, chapter two." written on the back.
How do you develop your story ideas? Do you use an outline, let the muse lead you, or another technique?
Once I have an idea, I try to wrestle that onto the page in a single sentence. I put that sentence in the header of my document, so it appears on each page. As I write, I use that as a guide. Sometimes I change it when the story wants to go in a slightly different direction. I've found this sentence to be a real challenge, but if I don't take the time to write it I'm always sorry. Besides, if I happen to be stuck in an elevator with an important agent or editor and the conversation turns to what I'm writing, I have my "elevator pitch" ready. Very handy.
If you were forced to share your workspace but could share it with anyone of your choosing, who would it be?
My cat, Al. I call him the "Fur Person." I'd share that space with him, but nobody else. He's the only writer who understands me and my writing style. He even knows when to curl around the keyboard and offer suggestions. No other person can do that.
What is the best piece of writing advice you’ve heard or received?
Write in scenes. That helped me a lot. Instead of having to tackle a whole book or chapter in my head, I can think about a small, but meaningful chunk of writing. If I can write one good scene, then another will follow and another until I have a chapter, until I have a book. Yep. That advice has been invaluable.
Joining us today for Creative Spaces is author and illustrator Tom Lichtenheld. Tom has fifteen books and counting to his credit, including the New York Times bestsellers Goodnight, Goodnight Construction Site (written by Sherri Duskey Rinker), Shark vs. Train (written by Chris Barton), and Duck! Rabbit! (created in collaboration with Amy Krouse Rosenthal).
His latest picture book is titled E-mergency! and was created in collaboration with Ezra Fields-Meyer. E-mergency! has a fascinating backstory behind its creation. I'll let Tom fill you in:
"Tom Fields-Meyer, a freelance journalist, decided to write a memoir about raising his son Ezra, who has high-functioning autism. As part of his research, Tom read other memoirs, among them Amy Krouse Rosenthal's Encylopedia of an Ordinary Life. Tom contacted Amy for advice and mentioned in passing that Ezra had an idea for a children's book about animals. Amy mentioned it to me and also told me Ezra had done a video on YouTube called 'Alphabet House'.
I viewed the video and was immediately intrigued by the idea of a letter being injured, wondering what would happen as a result. Of course, everyone knows a person can't work when they're in the hospital, so I figured the same would be true of a letter; it would have to be taken out of commission while recovering and temporarily replaced by a substitute letter. Chaos and hilarity would certainly ensue, especially if the injured letter was 'E', the most frequently used letter in the English language.
I contacted Tom and asked if Ezra would be interested in seeing what I could do to extend the story into a book, and he was very excited by the prospect. From there, I wrote a first draft, sketched out the first half of the book, and put together a proposal for Victoria Rock, my editor at Chronicle Books. Victoria loved the idea, so we were off and running.
As much as I'm thrilled with the book we created together, meeting and learning about Ezra made the process of creating it a uniquely joyful, educational, and inspiring experience."
Tom Lichtenheld was also generous enough to share a bit of the process behind creating E-mergency! Before we get to his Creative Spaces responses and photos, I thought I'd share that here:
My first sketch after seeing Ezra's video. The note above is from Victoria Rock, my editor at Chronicle.
I decided to make the lead character female because I've noticed that kids default to assuming characters are males.
My favorite illustration in the book. Yes, it's small and incidental, but I love the way the characters look so befuddled. This is a good example of how my first sketches often have lots of personality, which I try to retain as they evolve into finished art.
Four preliminary sketches for one page. I finally settled on the fourth one.
The finished illustration from the sketch above.
Be sure to read all the way to the end of Tom's interview to see some outtakes from E-mergency! that didn't make it in the final version.
If you'd like to learn more about Tom Lichtenheld, visit his website and blog. Now let's take a peek at where he creates his work. . .
Don't be fooled, it never looks like this.
Describe your workspace.
It's a large-ish room over our garage, custom-built as a studio, with lots of windows and a high ceiling. Much nicer than the freezing cold basement where I worked when we first moved into the house. I'd be happy to work here 12 hours a day. Oh, wait, I already do that.
The mess means work is being done.
I keep an ever-evolving stack of admirable book nearby. Here's what I'm drooling over this week.
Describe a typical workday.
Ideas start popping (Freudian slip; I initially wrote "pooping.") into my head when I'm half-asleep at 5 am, so I work on them while still half-asleep, then get up and, if they're any good, run up to the studio to do some rough sketching or writing. I have breakfast, exercise, then go to work. I try to take care of the administrative stuff first, because once I get into drawing or writing it's all-consuming. I'll break for lunch, either at home or a nice walk to the little downtown a few blocks away. Then back to the drawing board for the afternoon and evening.
Scooter critiques my character designs for an upcoming book Zero the Hero.
There's method to my madness. Appearances are organized in yellow file folders, new book ideas in blue.
What media do you use and which is your favorite?
I use line art printed on watercolor or colored paper, then apply color with a variety of mediums. I've used a variety of techniques for my books, from colored pencils to watercolor to crayons. I switch techniques partly out of curiosity but mostly because I like to use a technique that's appropriate for each book.
Currently, I'm using a new medium called Pan Pastels. They're cakes of fine powder, applied with a small sponge. I like the medium because it's more like drawing than painting, which suits my talents. I can use masks and friskets, and I can work reductively (a fancy word for "erasing."). I also like that the final product looks a bit like a lithograph.
A rough sketch, done with a brush pen.
Finished line art, also done with a brush pen, as seen in the photo.
Left: Color from the cakes is applied with a small sponge. Right (close-up): Then I add some texture with colored pencils.
I do use the computer in my process, but only to scan my pencil drawings, then turn them into line art in photoshop. I print the photoshop art onto the final paper with a large format laser or inkjet printer.
I've dabbled in creating art digitally, but here's what I've discovered; the process is not nearly as joyful as putting marks on paper. I've spent four hours working on a computer illustration, been marginally pleased with the result, but then realized the process was more labor than love. So I will probably always defer to more traditional mediums.
List three of your most favorite things in your workspace and why they are meaningful.
Practically speaking, 1. Mac 2. Large format printers 3. Cool new taboret from Ikea, full of magical art supplies. Emotionally, 1) my wife, when she comes up to organize my appearances, do my accounting, and critique my work. 2.) Scooter, our cat. 3) A photo of my parents.
Do you have any rituals in your work habits? If so, describe them.
Studio Rules:
1. At work by 8:30 a.m.
2. Shoes must be worn after 8:30 a.m. (this prevents the 'working all day in PJs' phenomenon)
3. No working past 11 p.m., otherwise I'm useless the next day. If I need to catch up, I get up at 3 or 4.
4. Exercise daily, no matter how busy you are.
Mr. Brush helps with painting.
What do you listen to while you work?
During the day, I stream a public radio rock station from Minneapolis called The Current. I like 60% of what they play, tolerate 30% of it, and detest the rest, but it keeps me, you know, current.
At night, Public Radio News, also from Minneapolis.
No, I don't live in Minneapolis, but I used to. For anyone who's paying attention and knows the city, you'll notice that any skyline in my books is Minneapolis. Love that Foshay tower.
"O" and "E" head out for their promotional tour for E-mergency!
What is your drink and/or snack of choice while you’re working?
Water, mostly, but every other day I get a diet coke, which is poison but I love it, especially from the fountain at the nearby 7-11. A guy needs a vice.
Everyone in the studio gathered around to see this award when it arrived last week.
What keeps you focused while you’re working?
It's a struggle, what with emails, marketing, correspondence and social networking, but I remind myself that the book I'm working on is my employer, and my employer doesn't take to slackers.
Do you write longhand, on a computer, or another way?
Longhand when working on rough concepts, then on the computer when I'm getting seriously into a manuscript. I prefer to write on the laptop, in a corner or out of the studio. Trains are good, coffee shops work, too. When I'm working with Amy Krouse Rosenthal, we meet at a hipster coffee shop where we resemble everyone else hunkered over their journals and laptops.
The light in the studio is often more interesting than the art.
How do you develop your story ideas? Do you use an outline, let the muse lead you, or another technique?
Initially I just roll with it and try not to over-think anything, just letting it happen. Then I go back to see if anything makes sense. Sometimes I'll use a tried-and-true structure as a crutch. For instance, I used Joseph Campbell's Heroic Journey as a template for Bridget's Beret. And I'll try some other devices, like a two-part ending, or a circular ending.
For me, book ideas rarely come to me fully-formed, but they often come from a single doodle with a general idea behind it. I put all these doodles up on a wall, then work on them until something rises to the top.
These dog and cat doodles have me thinking about doing a book that's all black and white images. It might be called "Doggy Do," which of course, would be about things that dogs do.
At a school appearance, a boy asked me a question about a snail, which got me thinking about--and drawing--snails. This might become a story about an adventurous snail.
What aspect of illustrating do you find most challenging and why?
Drawing and painting. Oh, wait, that's the entire process! Seriously, I know so many illustrators who are so much better than me that it's hard to accept anything I put on paper. I am not a very good draftsman, meaning I'm not good at drawing a thing so it looks like that thing. I once had to have Eric Rohmann show me how to draw a dog's butt. Honest. And painting terrifies me. In fact, I'm avoiding it right now. On the upside, I do recognize that my initial sketches are often my best work, so the challenge is to not wreck the sketch as it evolves into an illustration. My writing partner, Amy Krouse Rosenthal, recently responded to a sketch I sent her by saying something like "If you overwork this sketch I will kill you." Motivating stuff.
Studio helpers Scooter and Reba.
If you were forced to share your workspace but could share it with anyone of your choosing, who would it be?
Anyone who's doing creative work. When it gets lonely up here I consider renting out space in an architect's office, just to be around other people who are making things.
What is the best piece of writing/illustrating advice you’ve heard or received?
I have a drawing from a second grader on my wall that says "Are you riting a book right NOW?" It reminds me that none of the other things I do around here matter if I'm not riting a book right NOW.
*Bonus* Emergency! Leftovers
Part of my process is to create a collection of miscellaneous gags that can be included as needed. I keep these nearby as I'm sketching out the story, always looking for an opportunity to use them. By the time the book is done I invariably have a few that--due to space or better judgment--get left on the cutting room floor. Such is the case with these.
January has been an exciting month for Mara as she had two books published: My Heart Will Not Sit Down and The Case of the Diamonds in the Desk, #8 in the Milo and Jazz mystery series. She also has three upcoming picture books with Candlewick including Me and Momma and Big John, which will be published in summer 2012.
