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Michelle Henninger sent this illustration in to help us celebrate Thanksgiving. Michelle prefers a traditional approach of pen/ink, and watercolor: with a touch of digital thrown in for good measure. She is a member of the Society for Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators, she was a New England SCBWI Ann Barrows Illustration Scholarship recipient. She was the first 2014 featured illustrator on Illustrator Saturday. She is represented by Christina Tugeau at CATugeau.

THANKSGIVING PRAYER
by Eileen Spinelli

Thank you for the world–still sweet.

Thank you for the food we eat.

Thank you for the honeyed sun

that spoons its light on everyone.

Thank you for the leaves that fall

in glowing piles near the wall,

for kindness in a stranger’s face

and every unexpected grace.

Thank you for the starry dark,

for children laughing in the park,

for cozy towns and sleepy farms,

for dreamers, dancers, babes in arms.

Than you for all hearts that sing

of hope in spite of everything.

Fall Favorites
by Carol Murray

Pumpkins, round, upon the ground,

and children playing ball,

Scarecrow tips his tattered hat,

and waves to one and all.

Sleek black cats on fuzzy mats,

reclining, large and small,

and every size has starlit eyes,

like diamonds at The Mall.

Wine is chilled, and home is filled

with friends, both short and tall.

Hooray! Hooray! Thanksgiving Day.

Favorite things of Fall.
by Carol Murray

A Thanksgiving Toast

Here’s to years of happiness

and months of sunny skies,

To weeks of reaching mountain peaks,

and days of caring eyes,

To hours of hope and tenderness,

and minutes of delight,

On second thought, we wish you love,

We’re giving thanks tonight.

Thank you to Michelle, Eileen, and Carol for sharing their work to help us celebrate Thanksgiving. Hope everyone enjoys the day.

Winners:

Darlene Beck-Jacobson won Gayle Aanensen’s book BETTER THAN GOLD.

Joanne Roberts won SPAGHETTI SMILES by Margo Sorenson.

Congratulations! Winner please send me your addresses so they can be sent out.

You may wonder why I did not post the poems for the Thanksgiving Poem Contest yesterday. That is because Carol Murray was the only one to send in a poem for the contest and the default winner. Thank you Carol.

Talk tomorrow,

Kathy

Author of twenty-nine books, Margo Sorenson was born in Washington, DC, and spent the first seven years of her life in Spain and Italy, living where there were few children her age, so books became her friends. She finished her school years in California, graduating from the University of California at Los Angeles. After teaching high school and middle school and raising a family of two daughters, Margo is now a full-time writer, writing primarily for young people of all ages, toddlers through high schoolers. Margo enjoys writing for young readers since she believes they are ready for new ideas and experiences, and they really enjoy “living” the lives of the characters in books. 

Besides winning recognition and awards for her books from various groups, including the American Library Association, Margo was invited to donate and archive her working papers with the internationally-known children’s literature collection, the Kerlan Collection, at the University of Minnesota.

A couple of weeks ago I featured illustrator David Harrington. One of this new books was Spaghetti Smiles written by Margo. I thought it might be fun to hear about her journey as a writers, so I interviewed Margo and below are the answers to the questions I asked:

What was the inspiration behind writing Spaghetti Smiles?

The primary inspiration for this book was the question I always tell students during school visits: “What if?” Watching and listening to people in many different places can serve as the impetus for a wacky and crazy idea, if you ask yourself, “What if?” about what you see and hear. For example, for SPAGHETTI SMILES, one of my ideas was generated by the fact that our daughters used to have sleepover birthday parties in elementary school, and what they loved to do was to have “make-your-own-pizza” parties. The girls would line up in front of all the ingredients and create their own pizzas, some making faces and some making designs. I always wondered, “What if?” the pizzas could rearrange their own faces? The other “What if?” question popped into my head when our favorite Italian restaurant lost its neighbor, a toy store. The store remained vacant for some time, and I wondered, “What if?” a bank moved in next door? Or a post office? Or a gas station? What if things got mixed up between the restaurant and its new neighbor? What would be some of the wacky things that might happen? Because I love cooking Italian food and Italy (and lived there as a little girl) and reading, everything fell into place.

Back Cover of SPAGHETTI SMILES

How long did it take you to write your new book?

I wrote the first draft in 1992! Yep, that’s 22 years! There was a lot of revising and there were many, many rejections of various versions, but, I really wanted young readers to find out about Jake and Uncle Rocco and let their imaginations loose, so I kept going.

Title Page

How long did it take you to find a home with Pelican Publishing?

I queried them in 2010, received an invitation to send the manuscript in 2011, and received the offer in 2012. It took two years to get it published, which is fairly typical for a picture book. As you well know, publishing does move slowly, but, the book was worth the wait, because I am so happy with everything that Pelican has done for the book, including signing up awesome illustrator David Harrington, whose whimsical illustrations really bring the story to life!

What did you major in at the University of California in Los Angeles?

I majored in medieval history – yes, I was a geek, and you could say I still am!

It sounds like you lived in lot of places around the world. Is there a story behind that?

My father was in the US Diplomatic Service when I was young, so I was partly raised in Spain and Italy, before I returned to live in the US for the first time – what a shock! J After I grew up and married, my husband’s job took us lots of places, which is why we lived in California, Hawaii, and Minnesota. Different locations are great for writers, because absorbing the new atmosphere and all the sensory details can combine to make writing richer and more varied.

What inspired you to start writing children’s books?

Some of the parents of my students encouraged me to write, after I had taught their kids to write for national contests, such as the Scholastic writing contest.

What was the title of your first published book?

My first published book was HOW TO SNEAK UP ON A GOOD BOOK, a reading record book that I co-authored with my school’s terrific librarian, Anne Polkingharn. It is now out of print, since people realized they could Xerox many of the pages (gasp!) and thus stopped buying it! It was fun devising creative projects that kids could use to report on books they read, and it is the only one of my 29 books that is out of print.

When did that come out and how did you get the contract for that book?

That was published in 1994, and I researched educational publishers, happily finding Perfection Learning Corp. J Then, they offered me contracts to write a total of 21 more books for them for their enrichment and supplemental literature reading program, many of which are for reluctant readers.

Do you have an agent? If so, who?

I do not have an agent, nor have I ever had one. I wouldn’t mind an agent, but, open communication would be key. Being in the loop and knowing what is going on are very important to me. I’ve been very, very fortunate to have wonderful editors and publishers, so an agent hasn’t been necessary. For example, North Dakota State University Press/North Dakota Institute of Regional Studies just re-released my middle grade historical fiction TORI AND THE SLEIGH OF MIDNIGHT BLUE as an ebook, simply because they believe in the story, which means a great deal to me.

It looks like you have written books from young children to young adult, plus fiction and non-fiction. Do you gravitate to one more than another?

That’s a hard question –except for the non-fiction! Although I loved learning about new ideas and had fun writing the books, I am pretty much done with non-fiction, simply because some of it felt like homework! I wrote TSUNAMI and HURRICANE before the internet was as ubiquitous as it was today, and I trudged through the snow (yes, really!) to the Edina (MN) City Library to do my research. Making sure facts were correct and making sure they were explained in a way that makes sense to young readers were a challenge – and I ended up using about forty bibliographic sources for each one. Whew! What was fun was making some lasting friends writing TSUNAMI when I interviewed the two geophysicists who ran the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center and the International Tsunami Warning Center, and we are still in contact to this day. When my family goes to Hawaii, we try to stop by the PTWC in Ewa Beach, Oahu, and say hello! I enjoy writing picture books and I enjoy writing young adult, but, because of the current young ages of my grandchildren (the Adorables) I gravitate more to writing for younger readers right now. But, as a writer yourself, you know that is liable to change anytime!

At this stage in your career, do you still find you need to revise when writing a new book?

Whoa! Are you kidding? J I’ll put manuscripts away for a while and then take a look at them much later and wonder, ‘What was I thinking???’! It’s all about revision, all the time!

Do you still receive rejection letters?

Absolutely! When I do author visits, I always ask the kids to guess how many pounds of rejection letters I’ve received (that’s just the letters, not the manuscripts!) – I’m up to over 35 pounds!

Do you feel your writing style has changed over the years?

My writing style has definitely changed – thanks to editors and my critique partner, children’s author Bonnie Graves (    THE BEST, WORST DAY, MYSTERY OF THE TOOTH GREMLIN, etc.). Her voice rings in my ears: “Spare! Spare!” I hope I use words more economically these days – and I definitely use fewer (if any!) adverbs. Some of my earlier books like DANGER CANYON (still my best seller!) use more adverbs than I’m comfortable with using these days, but that doesn’t seem to keep young readers from reading them!

Are you someone who follows a daily routine with your writing?

I don’t follow a daily routine, unless I am working on a manuscript. Then, I start early in the morning, (with plenty of coffee!), and write like crazy. If I’m not working on a manuscript, I’ll try to daydream “what ifs” in odd moments, and write those ideas down to work on later.

Do you ever do any research when you write a fictional picture book?

I definitely do research when I write fictional picture books. We writers owe it to our young readers that the backstory is accurate, even though a lot of it might not even appear in the story. When I was writing Ambrose the Medieval Mouse stories (AMBROSE AND THE PRINCESS, AMBROSE AND THE CATHEDRAL DREAM) for Liturgical Press, I even sent the manuscripts to my former medieval history professor, the late Dr. Bryce Lyon, professor emeritus, Brown University, for vetting, making sure all the details were accurate. He was delighted to be of use and was a big help. As one example of many, my manuscript read, “Peasants and farmers crowded into the cathedral,” and he wrote me that “peasants *were* farmers,” so I deleted “farmers.” He was tickled that I dedicated both books to him as well as to my dear, supportive family.

How do you market yourself to secure school visits?

My author website has a whole section on my author visits, and I try to make sure that my name is found on various websites that list authors who do school visits. I also do twenty-minute complimentary Skype visits, and there are some websites that list those, as well, including that of my virtual author friend Kate Messner. Sometimes, I’ve even gotten a school visit through Twitter, such as this past September, when my friend and School Library Journal Librarian of the Year Michelle Colte (Hale Kula, Schofield Barracks, Wahiawa, HI) suggested through a Tweet to another librarian, Debbie Vandersande of Kahala Elementary, that she contact me for a visit – and it happened!

What is your greatest success story?

My greatest success story is when I hear from young readers that something I wrote spoke to them in some way – that they connected with the characters and the story. That’s really the reason I think that any of us authors write; when I was growing up, reading broadened my horizons and let me live lives I never thought I would, and I hope I can do the same for young readers.

What are you working on now?

I’m working on a YA novel set in Italy, which is under submission, and a number of picture books, including UPSIDE-DOWN PUPPY and NO NAP, GRANDPA. I love the whimsy of picture books and thinking outside the box, and I love to hear young readers giggle!

Do you have any words of wisdom for writers looking to publish a book?

Yes, though it’s always tricky, since writing is so personal, especially at the very beginning of a writing career. One of my favorite sayings is from Ellen Kozak: “The First Commandment for writers is ‘Thou Shalt Not Fall In Love With Thine Own Words’.” I can’t tell you how many times I’ve done that – it’s embarrassing, actually! Find a good critique partner, take your time, revise, revise, revise, and never give up.

Thank you Margo. I enjoyed reading your answers. Good Luck with the book. Keep in touch. Use http://www.margosorenson.com/ to read more about Margo and her books.

Talk tomorrow,

Kathy

David Harrington’s affinity for art began at an early age, when he enthusiastically drew on floors, walls, furniture, and other inanimate objects. A native of southern California, Harrington pursued a career in illustration by enrolling in the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, where he earned a BFA with honors. As a student, his favorite classes were figure drawing and painting. 

In his professional career, Harrington has illustrated numerous children’s books. He believes that they open a door to a new world, and he admits that he studied books for hours on end as a child. In addition to children’s illustrations, Harrington creates advertising images for toys, games, food packaging, educational materials, medical equipment, and various other products. 

Bold lines, sharp contrast, and vibrant colors render Harrington’s images stunning and memorable. He portrays real emotions such as fun and excitement through playful and accentuated cartoon images. The clarity of detail that Harrington gives to the page can bring a child’s imagination to life. He is the recipient of a WWA Spur Awards Storyteller Award for his illustrations in Pecos Bill Invents the Ten-Gallon Hat. David lives with his wife and children in Laguna Hills, California.

Here is David sharing his process:

This illustration is from a book I’m currently working on where some bandits steal all the ice cream in town during the middle of summer!

First, very rough, fast sketches trying to capture the energy, mood, emotion etc. Once I have a rough sketch I like then I keep tracing it and making revisions until I get to the final sketch.

I put the final sketch on a medium value, textured background. I keep it on a separate layer so it can be removed later.

Starting with the face, I put down a thin, base skin tone letting the background texture show through. Then I start building up the dark tones adding just a little red color to the nose and cheeks and a few high lights.

I keep building up the darks and start introducing some blues, purples and greens into the shadows.

When I have the colors and values of the face where I want them, I’ll start on the rest of the figure working from light to dark.

For the ice cream, I put down a medium tone trying to let the background texture show through. I then added a lighter color to one side and hit the other side with a faint shadow.

Lastly, I added the background, leaving some of the original texture untouched. I removed the sketch and then I add fine line detail.

Spaghetti Smiles by Margo Sorenson – published by Pelican Publishing Press (September 15, 2014). How many books have you illustrated for Pelican Publishing?

Spaghetti Smiles was just released and that was the fifth book I’ve illustrated for Pelican Publishing and I’m working on another right now.

How long have you been illustrating?

I’ve been illustrating professionally for about 25 years.

How did you decide to attended At Center College of Design in Pasadena, CA to study fine art?

During high school I took some Saturday classes at Art Center and fell in love with the school.

You say in your bio that figure drawing and painting were your favorite classes? Is that still a favorite thing for you to illustrate?

Absolutely, anytime there are figures in an illustration, whether they are stylized or realistic, it’s always fun and they bring life to the piece.

What was the first art related work that you were paid?

I painted store windows at Christmas time when I was a teen.

Did the School help you get work?

Yes they did, I got some work doing movie poster concept sketches for Warner Brothers right after graduation.

Do you feel the classes you took in college have influenced you style?

I don’t know, my style has been changing over the years.

What type of work did you do right after you graduated?

About six months after graduating I took a full time job as an art director/illustrator at a small company doing mostly sports art.

How did you make the decision to jump into freelance work?

I had been trying to make the transition to freelance by working at night but then when I got laid off unexpectedly from my full time job, I decided that -Now is the time.

When did you decide you wanted to illustrate for children?

I did a lot of soft drink advertising work for a good client and he asked me if I could illustrate a Children’s book, so I gave it a shot- and loved it!

When and what was the first children’s book that you illustrated?

It was called Gabby, about a little girl and a science fair project that went wrong resulting in a giant bubble-gum monster.

Do you consider that book to be your first big success?

No, but it opened my eyes to how much fun Children’s book are to illustrate. I love creating characters.

Do you have an agent or artist rep.?

No, I don’t have a representative but am not opposed to one either.

Do you have any desire to write and illustrate your own picture book?

Yes I have written some books and hope to be an Author/illustrator someday.

Are you the same David Harrington who does fantasy art?

No that is another David Harrington, although I have done some fantasy art over the years.

How did you get the contract to illustrate, Since We’re Friends: An Autism Picture Book at Sky Pony Press?

I don’t remember how I got that contract, but I remember it was two books.

How long did you have to illustrate each one?

The whole process from sketches to final illustration takes about four to five months.

Would you be willing to work with an author who wants to self-publisher their picture book?

Yes I would if I like the story.

What illustrating contract do feel really pushed you down the road to a successful career?

I did about a dozen Book covers for Pee Wee Scouts from Random House and that led to more work.

When is the title of the pirate book that you are working on and when is it coming out? Is that your next book that will hit the book shelves?

It’s a cowboy book titled Whistling Willie and should be released in the Spring of 2015.

Have you done illustrations for any children’s magazines?

Yes, mostly Club House magazine.

What materials do you use to paint your color illustrations?

Well it started with acrylic paint and pencils and over the years has transitioned to a Mac computer, graphic tablet and Photoshop.

What types of things do you do to find illustration work?

Once or twice a year I send out promotional post cards to publishers. But word of mouth is how I get most of my work.

What is the one thing in your studio that you could not live without?

My Mac!

Do you try to spend a specific amount of time working on your craft?

I try to find time to experiment and learn new techniques or try different media. I love oil painting and sculpting!

Do you take pictures or do any types of research before you start a project?

Yes I do a lot of on-line research and look for inspiration.

Do you think the Internet has opened doors for you?

Yes, it has changed everything about this business, from research to communication to the way finished projects are delivered.

Do you use Photoshop, Illustrator, or Corel Painter with your illustrations?

Yes, Photoshop and sometimes Illustrator. I have tried painter and that’s a good program too.

Do you own or have you used a Graphic Drawing Tablet in your illustrating?

Yes, Wacom Cintiq, it’s amazing!

When did you start using the computer to paint your illustrations?

That was a very slow transition, about 15 years ago I would just add the final details to an illustration in Photoshop. Then at some point I would finish a painting half way and then complete it with the computer using a mouse. Now, all or almost all of the art is created using a Graphic Tablet.

What are you working on now?

Right now I’m jugging about 12 different illustration jobs including Whistling Willie from Pelican Publishing.

Do you have any material type tips you can share with us? Example: Paint or paper that you love – the best place to buy – a new product that you’ve tried – A how to tip, etc.

My favorite is Winsor & Newton oils on canvas, from Art Supply Warehouse in Westminster, CA

Do you have any career dreams that you want to fulfill?

Yes, I would like to illustrate the stories I’ve written.

Any words of wisdom on how to become a successful writer or illustrator?

You must be persistent, never give up and always strive to improve.

Thank you David for sharing your journey and process with us. Please let us know when your new picture book comes out , in addition to all your future successes. We’d love to see them and hear about them, so we can cheer you on. You can visit Daivd at: http://www.davidharrington.com/

If you have a moment I am sure David would like to read your comments. I enjoy reading them, too, even if I don’t always have time to reply. Thanks!

Talk tomorrow,

Kathy