It was an amazing hour as not only did Chris Van Allsburg answer questions from the audience, but he would often refer to his many published books while talking. He shared stories about how he got started writing books (he originally went to the University of Michigan as an art major primarily studying and practicing sculpture). He also shared how he got some of the ideas for his stories. This was fascinating for me, and there were several moments where I was just blown away by how easy it seemed to be for him.
Some of what I thought were highlights from the question and answer discussion:
* Chris’ take on e-books: He was quite candid and frank about this saying that when it comes to picture books, the reader really loses out. He cited several of his books, one being The Polar Express
, as examples because of their format and layout, the quality of resolution in the pictures is drastically lowered by making it fit onto an e-reader or iPad.* While I’ve been a fan, I had never seen his book: Bad Day At Riverbend
. I was enthralled by his description of how he came up with this story, which is basically the characters in a coloring book reacting and trying to figure out some of the strange things going on in Riverbend (A child has scribbled in crayon on the pages…but they don’t figure it out). Incidentally, this book is dedicated to one of his daughters, who happened to have an affinity of scribbling in crayon in not just coloring books.
* On the question of which of his books is his favorite: I loved his answer, “The next one I’m going to work on.”
* One little girl asked a great question: “Did you ever want to give up when your editor didn’t like your story?” Chris shared that he wa
What a treat to see him in person!
I LOVE Van Allsburg! I fit in a Van Allsburg unit with at least three grade levels each year. In fact I just wrapped up the ZTHURA section of the 3rd grade Van Allsburg unit and we’ll be moving on to THE WRETCHED STONE (it’s awesome!). I love that my students come away with a greater appreciation for him beyond the Polar Express movie. Most of my students agree, BAD DAY AT RIVER BEND is his creepiest book. THE Z WAS ZAPPED is also a great book that I’ve turned into a vocabulary guessing game for my 2nd graders.
Awesome, what a treat! It is hard to pick a favorite of his, but I would probably choose, his first book, A Garden of Abdul Gasazi. Did he talk about Fritz? He commemorates the special dog in each of his books. I have a sheet to keep track of where you find him on my blog.
http://www.happybirthdayauthor.com/2010/06/happy-birthday-chris-van-allsburg-june.html
Did you get a book signed?
Yes, it was very cool to listen to him and see him in person!
Wow, that’s awesome! I’m fascinated with the BAD DAY AT RIVER BEND but I can see how it’s kind of creepy.
It was very cool man! I read through his first book yesterday and I really loved it. He did mention the dog!
I didn’t get a book signed. It would have taken over an hour I’m sure and I needed to get home because my wife had plans. I was disappointed but she rarely has a night out, so it was okay.
Oh man! Oh well! It will still be something you will never forget.
What a great opportunity. We love his books. I would have loved to have taken Ninja A!
What an incredible treat to see one of the best picture book creators in the biz. His art is so inspiring and haunting and whimsical. Staring at his work motivates me to write better and in a more visual style. Great post. Thank you for sharing.
Thank you so much for posting this. It seems Chris Van Allsburg offers so much for adults as well as children. I remember first discovering The Mysteries of Harris Burdick and being totally captivated. He’s inspired me to draw as well as write.
Great to find your website!