Will Hillenbrand In Conversation With

Our guest blogger Cate Lee interviews illustrator Will Hillenbrand.

What is the best part about being a children’s picture book author/illustrator?
The very best part is my audience. When I see the faces of young children who are engaged with books- my books- it delights my heart. To think that I might play a part with their becoming readers and thinkers is an additional benefit.

Have certain authors and illustrators influenced your work?
My favorite illustrator is Ernest Shepherd. I just love his work; it touches me so deeply. The first illustrator/storyteller that I remember from my childhood is Beatrix Potter. My grandmother read The Tale of Peter Rabbit to me; that book was my welcome mat to the world of children’s books. I have met and known so many talented and wonderful picture book creators that my list would be longer than Santa’s Christmas list, too long to share with you here.

What was your inspiration for the Bear and Mole series?
My inspiration was my relationship with my son, Ian. When he was little, my wife (Jane) and I read a book to him that he fell in love with- The Mole Family's Christmas by Russell and Lillian Hoban. Ian loved that book so much that he role-played the boy character by digging everywhere like a little mole. For his third birthday, I drew a picture of him as if he were a mole and we transferred that picture onto a couple of t-shirts and a book bag.

A month or two later, Ian tried to wake me up early in the morning to play (Jane was at school teaching Kindergarten). I was very sleepy and he tried everything to wake me up but nothing worked until he came up with a specific plan. He went to the foot of the bed, untucked the sheets, climbed underneath and tunneled, like a little mole, until he found my big fat toe which he then gave a gigantic tweak. That is what I call A MOLE ALARM CLOCK with no snooze button.

After making him breakfast that day we drove to his favorite playground where he played and played. When he was tired/sleepy, we drove home. Then he asked me to tell him a story. I told him that I couldn’t think of any. That made him very unhappy which in turn made me unhappy. So, I thought about the main character being a little mole. He then perked up, knowing that the coming story would be about him. I then said that the Mole had a best friend... and Ian suggested a bear. I thought, now I have two characters but no story, what to do? Then I remembered what had happened between us that morning and with a little embellishment I retold the morning's events adding sound effects including an enormous snore for the bear. Ian loved the story. I sketched out the story in my journal so I could remember it. Many years later, I made it into the book, Spring Is Here.
The first book was so successful that the publisher wanted to make it into a series. Spring Is Here was followed by Kite Day and Off We Go! 

What's your next project?
I’ve completed a fourth Bear and Mole story entitled All for a Dime! and Bear and Bunny written by Daniel Pinkwater. It’s a companion book to Bear in Love which was published two years ago. Both books will be out later this year. Currently, I’m working on the illustrations for Me & Annie McPhee which was written by Olivier Dunrea. It’s a fun, cumulative rhyme featuring an ever-crowded tropical island and is set to be released in Spring 2016.

Need more Will Hillenbrand? See this SCBWI Kite Tales Interview.

 

The Management would like to thank Will Hillenbrand and Cate Lee, SCBWI Kite Tales Illustrative Liaison - SCBWI LA Region Online Blog for this interview.

Nancy Thibert, A Painter's Interview

by Catherine Lee, Contributing Editor

One of the featured artists this month is Nancy Thibert, a Canadian painter and teacher, who creates beautiful collages mixed with a bit of realism - simply unique. Recently, she opened up painting classes and will have a solo show in May 2014 at the Leo Koo Gallery in Vancouver, B.C., Canada. I hope you enjoy this interview.

1.  When did you start your creative journey?
I started my creative journey the day I was born.  I've always been creative in one way or another, as nearly all children are, if they are given the slightest opportunity with materials in hand.  I did not consider art/illustration as a career until university, when it became clear I couldn't take the pressure of pre-veterinary medicine.

2.  What mediums and materials do you use for your artwork? 
I use a wide variety of mediums and materials for my illustrations and paintings - fabric dye, acrylic, oil, oil stick, charcoal, pencil, graphite sticks, canvas, various types of linen, and fabric.  I work with modeling paste, wax medium, sand, wood chips, paint chips, feathers, plastic netting and many other small objects and materials I've got floating around.

I'm returning to working in a very small format again, so will be using watercolour, oil and chalk pastels, pencil crayons and water soluble wax crayons.  It just depends on which medium seems to suit my subject the best.  I understand it's wise to have Photoshop skills as well.  It happens that my new landlords teach Photoshop, so over time I'll be adding this skill to my tool kits.

3.  When did the interest and love for unicorns come? 
I do have a love for unicorns though it came as an adult.  I was never exposed to them as a child and didn't even know what they were, until I was in my teens.  My real love and interest in them came in 2001, when I discovered a photographic book called Unicorns I Have Known, by Robert Vavra.   He was a great friend of authors James Michner and Ernest Hemingway.  He got his career start actually by doing all the photos for the now iconic book Iberia, written by Michner.  Now in his mid-seventies, he was world-renowned in the 1970's and 80's for taking animal photography and making it an art form.  He created beautiful color changes and transparent collage manipulations long before digital photography ever hit the scene - a true master of the medium.  It was so easy for me to believe the stunningly beautiful creatures on the pages of his book were real unicorns.  And to top it off, Vavra is an exceptional writer as well, telling the story of how he came to photograph them, and how he wove an interesting and credible tale.  I was immensely captivated from cover to cover.  From that point on, I became quite obsessed with unicorns and learned everything I could about them, which fortunately isn't much.  I got copyright permission from Robert to paint the images in his book, which is where the subjects of my unicorn paintings come from.

Nancy Thibert and her dog

4.  What style does your art resemble? 
It's a bit of a Heinz 57.  It's eclectic, collagy, combined with realistic elements.  I'm not actually sure what it resembles, to be perfectly honest.

5.  Where do you find your inspiration? 
I find them from nature, animals, art history, history and children's and teen stories, mostly with the odd picture or photography book thrown in, as was the case with Robert Vavra's Unicorns I Have Known.

6.  What artists do you admire?
Many, many artists and illustrators, and I do try to incorporate similarities into my work, but it never works out the way I want it to, if I consciously try to incorporate their style.  So, I just do what I do and let their influence show up however it does in my expression.

7.  What do you like best about being an artist?
The freedom that it allow me to express my soul, i.e. . . who I really am.  The expression part of it is usually very easy.  After that, I find it very hard, a lot of times, when it comes to marketing and promoting my work.

8.  What advice would you give other artists, who are just starting their careers in art?
If you're an extrovert - go for it!  If you're an introvert - be prepared to do other jobs to keep a roof over your head as you build your career, because promoting and marketing yourself and your work is very difficult for introverts.  I'm an introvert, so I know what I speak of.  To everyone - learn how to market and promote your work or find someone who will do a great job of that for you and be prepared to pay them for that service.

9.  Where can you work be seen? 
Currently, my work can be seen at my retail studio on Main Street in the tiny town of Nanton, Alberta, Canada where I also teach classes to adults and children.  In May, 2014 I have a Contemporary Solo Show at the Leo Koo Gallery in Vancouver, B.C., Canada.

10.  How can people find you?
They can contact me by calling at 403-560-7860, by sending me an email to nanthibert1@me.com or by visiting my website, www.nancythibert.com.  I'm also on facebook as NancThibert, Peaceful Mind, Peaceful Heart Studio & Classes and Nan Thibert Fine Art.  My twitter page is nancythibert@peacefulmindnan.

Nanton, population 1800, is about one hour directly south of the City of Calgary, population 1,000,000, which is famous for the Calgary Stampede, one of the largest outdoor rodeos and exhibitions in the world.  People from all over the globe attend each year.  This is oil and gas, farming and ranching country, similar to Montana and Texas.  We also have a number of First Nations reserves in the province, one of which is the largest in Canada; and three of which are about an hour south of Nanton.  Alberta is quite literally the land of "cowboys and Indians".  You can see large herds of cattle and horses, giant farm machinery and oil and gas wells in the space of a mile as you drive along the highway south or north of Calgary.  Also, Nanton and Calgary are only 45 minutes from the Rocky Mountains, so think Denver, Colorado.

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Thank you Nan Thibert for your wonderful insight and interview.  Below is her symbol for her art courses available for both kids and adults.

The Management would like to thank Catherine for providing us with this interview. For more on Catherine Lee visit www.artistsandwritersinc.com

Writers can sign up on there...and get news...and also agency listings...and also exposure to publishing companies...they actually go in there to look at artists and writers.

In Conversation with Robin P. Glasser

Robin P. Glasser

by Catherine Lee

From one exquisite life as a professional ballet dancer, Robin turns the page in her career to become an illustrious illustrator. She is best known for illustrating the Fancy Nancy series of children's books. I hope you enjoy our conversation together!

1. How long did it take for you to decide to dive into illustrating for children's books?
I had a whole other career in the arts before I went back to school to study to become a children's book illustrator.  I was a professional ballet dancer until I hurt my back just before turning 30; I had to find another direction for my life.  I'd always loved to draw, and I was always drawn to children's books, so when I applied to Parsons The New School for Design as a (very old) first-time college student, it was with a very specific course of study in mind.  That, then, was the decision to dive into illustrating for children's books.  Actually being hired to draw my first children's book (Judith Viorst's Alexander, Who's Not (Do You Hear Me? I Mean It!) Going to Move) took another five years from when I graduated.  Five years and two babies.

2. It seems like you're doing some wonderful amazing things. Was it fun to do Sarah Ferguson book?
So much fun!  She's got a wonderful sense of humor and we've kept in touch over the years.  I've been very lucky to work with many amazing authors, from children's book icon Judith Viorst, to radio host and consummate story-teller Garrison Keillor, to the penetratingly sharp Lynne Cheney...and my wonderful and very clever baby sister Jacqueline Preiss Weitzman.

3. Fancy Nancy is such an adorable series, and will the series be an endless call? Can you give us a hint on the theme of the next one coming out?
We plan way ahead, so the cover of the next big illustrated book, Fancy Nancy and the Fanciest Doll in the Universe (which is coming out April 23rd), has been featured on websites for many months already, but I literally just finished the illustrations two weeks ago!  Now I am working on the cover of the third chapter book, Nancy Clancy Sees the Future...but Jane (O'Connor) hasn't even written the story yet.  Jane is amazing -- I'll keep illustrating Fancy Nancy stories as long as she keeps coming up with good ideas, and believe me, I don't think she will ever run dry.

4. How long does it take for you to do a complete book? And do you see the copy before print to make sure everything is good? But I bet the printed finished product is best!
Jane and I have a brilliant editor -- Margaret Anastas -- and a hugely talented art director, Jeanne Hogle.  We all work together, along with dozens of creative people at HarperCollins, to make each book as good as we can.  I recently had some health problems, so the Fanciest Doll had to wait for me to get better, and thus I completed it in four months, from start to finish.  That's crazy fast, but the circumstances were unusual and I had a deadline to meet.  The illustrations for A is for Abigail, by Lynne Cheney, took me two years to complete.  And with all the history I learned while drawing that book, I felt like I had completed a master's degree in American history!  The first time the book is in my hands is magical -- and it's even more fun to see it featured on a shelf in a book store!

5. Must be nice to do this while having a family too! How do you like that?
I work odd hours of the day or night, depending on my deadlines and who is actually at home (my children are now ages 21 and 18).  But I worked throughout my children's lives -- in fact, I was offered an audition for that first Judith Viorst book while I was literally in labor with my son Ben -- so I can't imagine my career any other way. I'm so lucky to have awesome kids, a sensational partner in my husband, and a career doing something I really love.  Sure it's all a balancing act, but isn't everyone's life?

6. It's been a over a decade of doing illustrations. Is there any other areas that you would like to branch out into?
While I was waiting to land my first book -- a very long five years -- I did other things in illustration, like greeting cards and theater programs and posters.  But I love to tell stories, and children's book illustration offers that opportunity.  I'm pretty happy in the niche I have found.

7. What would you tell someone that aspires to be a children's illustrator?
Know what's out there -- browse the shelves at books stores and libraries and figure out the trends.  Objectively compare your work to what you are seeing.  Try to attend panel discussions at book festivals or professional organizations to learn from other illustrators. Look into joining the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI) to garner ideas about the field from editors, agents, and published illustrators and authors. Take classes and keep honing your craft. And keep positive and keep going -- it takes a long time to become an "overnight" success!

8. What was your best time, the beginning, middle or where you are now?
Oh, definitely where I am now.  My children are in very good places, and they have grown up understanding that finding one's passion is a big key to happiness.  I have a great life partner in my husband Bob, who lets me do my own thing at all the crazy hours I choose to do it.  It wasn't always like this -- for a long time I was a single mom always strapped for time and cash, and I am very proud that my illustration work has brought security and comfort to us all.

9. What do you enjoy your life the most about being an illustrator?
The projects I work on tend to be humorous; I crack myself up all the time as I sit at my drafting table.  It is very happy work.  I also love that HarperCollins has given me the opportunity to continue to "perform" -- a joy I have had since I was a young ballet dancer.  When I go out on book tours, I love to meet my Fancy Nancy fans who are, more often than not, dressed to the nines and totally adorable.  I get to share my love of books with them.

10. Must have been exciting being a professional ballerina. Could you tell us what that was like?
I was fortunate to be in a dance company -- Pennsylvania Ballet -- that had a tremendous touring schedule, so we did a lot of performing all over the country.  Ballet is hard work, often painful, with the drudgery of daily classes, sewing ballet shoes, and lots of laundry.  But you get out onto that stage, under the lights, with an audience before you, and you become truly alive.  Your body moves, the music moves you, and the experience is exhilarating. I was also fortunate to be in a company of people who were remarkable and fun as well as being talented dancers, so I was lucky in my friendships as well.  And, by the way, I was never a "ballerina" -- like a general in the army, the title "ballerina" is reserved for a specific level of attainment.  I was a "soloist"...and, as you might imagine, given my second career as Fancy Nancy's illustrator, I specialized in dramatic or humorous roles.

11. This is a silly question, but I like to always ask one. What is your favorite color? And what is your favorite time of hour and why?
My favorite color used to be blue, but Fancy Nancy has been good to me, so perhaps my new favorite color, like hers, is Fuchsia! My favorite hour of the day is when my husband brings me my coffee in the morning and we chat for a few minutes before starting our days.


We thank Robin P. Glasser for this lovely interview.  May her artistic success continue. For more about Robin Glasser, visit her website.

Catherine Lee is a contributing editor at Pen & Ink Blogspot.