Introducing HELLO OVER THERE!

Most people understand that there are two ways a picture book gets made. The first is by an author-illustrator, a single creator who makes both the words and images. The other is a collaboration between two separate people, one who writes the words, and one who draws (or paints, or collages, or embroiders) the pictures.

The books I write always get made in this second way. If you saw my attempts to draw people and animals, you would immediately understand why. This way of working entails specific challenges and unique joys.

What people don’t always know is that when an author and illustrator collaborate, they rarely meet, or even speak directly. There are important and interesting exceptions to this rule, but this is how it generally works, and it’s by design. Think of it kind of like a relay race, with four people on each team— the author, the editor, the art director, and the illustrator. The author writes the story, passes to the editor, and they pass it back and forth between them like a baton, working to fine tune the text. Once that’s done, the editor and the art director work together on a vision for the illustrations, hire an illustrator, and pass the story to them. The baton come back to the author briefly at various points during the process, but always mediated through the editor and art director.

There are good reasons to keep us apart, mostly to do with insuring the illustrator has the autonomy and freedom they need to do their job without bossy authors bugging them. That said, I’ve often wished there were more opportunities for cross-pollination between writers and artists. After all, we are all drawn to this singular art form, which is both oral and visual in nature, so presumably were all interested in both sides of the equation, and the unique way those words and images alchemize to tell a compelling story. I know I am! I’ve learned so much from talking to my illustrator friends and colleagues about how they think and work.

So.

In this new series, I will invite writers and illustrator to reach across the divide and ask each other one question about their experience of creating the book they’ve made together. I hope you’ll come along for the ride!