KidLit Connection: Getting to Know Author-Illustrator, Angela Quezada Padron

A banner with white background featuring colorful illustrations of a girl with wings over the water, an older couple smiling, green hills, a blue house with fence, instruments, and palm trees. Text read: Angela Quezada Padron. Author/Illustrator. Children's Books. Fiction. Nonfiction. Educational.
A headshot of Angela Quezada Padron. She has long brown hair, brown eyes and is smiling while wearing a pink and purple floral blouse. There are palm trees and a city in the background.

Welcome to the latest KidLit Connection interview! I’m so pleased to introduce Angela Quezada Padron, an author and illustrator of children’s books, including picture books, board books, and novels. Her debut author-illustrated picture book, AS THE SEAS RISE: Nicole Hernández Hammer and the Fight for Climate Justice (Atheneum Books for Young Readers) just released this June! She’ll share more about this book in the interview.

Angela writes and illustrates both fiction and nonfiction stories. Her nonfiction work celebrates people in the Latino community who have made a difference in the world and within their community. Angela has worked as a freelance writer, illustrator, fine artist, and curriculum designer for educational publishers. She is a lover of nature, music, and sports. When she’s not writing, drawing, and painting, you can find Angela creating music, collecting seashells, and enjoying the natural world.

An Interview with Children’s Book Author and Illustrator, Angela Quezada Padron

First, we’d love to hear more about you as an illustrator and author. Can you tell us more about you and your work as a creator of books for kids?

Thank you so much for this opportunity to interview with you and share about myself. I write and illustrate fiction and nonfiction children’s books, mainly picture books but also board books and novels. In 2007, I started an illustration master’s program through the Academy of Art University in San Francisco, and I graduated with my MFA in 2011. In 2012, I illustrated a few books for McGraw Hill, an educational publisher. Then in 2014 I was hired for two books—THE HERO IN YOU by Ellis Paul (Albert Whitman & Co.) and MY BODY BELONGS TO ME by Jill Starishevsky (Free Spirit Publishing). I was also a semi-finalist in the Tomie de Paola contest through SCBWI in 2014, and I was offered the chance to illustrate a story called FIREFIGHTER MOM in Cricket Magazine in 2016. I felt like I was on a roll! Then things died down and I didn’t have any luck until 2021 when Atheneum Books picked up my first author/illustrator book, AS THE SEAS RISE. Since then, I’ve had some other illustration projects with educational publishers, and sold three other books due out between 2025-2027.

An illustration of a kitchen scene. Two older women cook on a stove to the left. Two younger children cook at a countertop to the right. One of them looks concerned about what's inside the pot she's opening. Art by Angela Quezada Padron.

How did you start creating children’s books? Was there anything in particular that inspired you to pursue it?

A photo of Angela Quezada Padron as a little girl, smiling and holding up a picture she drew.

I’ve actually been creating books since I was little. My mom saved many of my “books” that I wrote and illustrated as early as four-years-old. Most of the books were about her when she was pregnant with my younger brother, me meeting Santa Claus, or Snoopy. I also saved my stories from my seventh-grade creative writing class. I didn’t realize, though, that this could be a legitimate path for me until I began teaching in my mid-20’s. Working in schools exposes you to more children’s books. As I read more books, I became more interested in studying about the authors and illustrators and how they got their books published. Some time in my early 30’s, I came up with a story idea but wasn’t sure how to format it or where to even get eyes on it to try and publish it. 

I joined the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI) in 2004, and I’ve been on this path ever since. I joined a critique group, of which I am still a part of (shoutout to the Aventura Critique Group in Florida)! My writing friends and critique partners have helped me so much with telling me what works and what doesn’t in each of my stories. They’ve shown me how to strengthen my work and tighten my word choices. Without them, there is no doubt I would never have been published. 

A book cover for AS THE SEAS RISE: NICOLE HERNANDEZ HAMMER AND THE FIGHT FOR CLIMATE JUSTICE by Angela Quezada Pdron. An illustration of a woman with long dark hair, wearing glasses and a white button-down shirt. She is surrounded by different children working together to build a diorama. Behind them is the ocean.

Your most recent book, AS THE SEAS RISE: NICOLE HERNÁNDEZ HAMMER AND THE FIGHT FOR CLIMATE JUSTICE (Atheneum Books for Young Readers) just came out in June—congrats! This is a powerful, lyrical biography about a Latina environmental scientist and climate activist who has worked for climate justice in vulnerable communities.  Can you tell us more about this story and what inspired you to write and illustrate it?

Thank you so much! It truly was an honor to create this book about Nicole. After attending a 2020 SCBWI online conference about nonfiction children’s books, I became interested in writing a children’s book biography about a Latina figure who was involved in science in some way. After doing some searching online, I came across an article about Nicole Hernández Hammer where it stated that she was invited by First Lady Michelle Obama to attend the State of the Union address in 2015. Nicole was recognized due to her work advocating for climate justice in communities of color and educating others about how climate change was affecting the health of people in Latino communities. That inspired me to learn even more about her, as well as about sea level rise and climate justice. I wouldn’t call myself an advocate for climate change or justice, however I am conscious about how I’m contributing to climate change and climate justice and always looking for ways to support, adjust my ways and beliefs if needed, and learning what actions I can take to make this world better. 

A spread from the book AS THE SEAS RISE by Angela Quezada Padron

When I was writing the book, I found her on LinkedIn and took a chance to message her and said: ‘Hi, I have this story. I would love to interview you.’ And she said, ‘Sure.’ So we set up a time on Zoom and we chatted. I wanted to verify things that I had read. She gave me other insight, too, that had not been in any articles. I told her I would share this story with her once I had finished writing it, which I did. Within two or three months I got an offer from Atheneum (Books for Young Readers). I kept Nicole in the loop the entire time. I paid her a consultation fee, to consult throughout the book. We stayed in contact throughout the entire creation of the book, which obviously lends more credibility to the book.

Angela painting for AS THE SEAS RISE

When working on AS THE SEAS RISE, what was one of your favorite parts of the project?

I really enjoyed my conversations with Nicole and learning about her life. Throughout the process, she sent me photos of her and her family to use as references for the illustrations. She also taught me a lot of the correct terminology to use when speaking about climate justice (for example, we shouldn’t say we want to “help” frontline communities but rather “partner with” frontline communities so they can get the services and support they need to stay resilient against climate change). 

What was one of your biggest challenges when working on AS THE SEAS RISE?

A nonfiction 48-page biography is probably one of the hardest books to make, especially as my author/illustrator debut. Most books are 32 pages, with fictional stories you can make up the characters and places, and you have more freedom to stylize the characters and backgrounds. With biographies, you have to be as accurate as possible with the facts and the depiction of the person. And, when the person is still alive and you’re communicating with them, you want to be EXTRA exact to do them proud. I had the pressure on myself to try to make it as perfect and accurate as possible.

In addition, my father was ailing and passed away in 2021, right in the middle of me working on the final text. Then I was dealing with some health issues in the spring of 2022 that affected me finishing the art. But I pushed through it and got it done!

From reference photo, to line drawing, to finished color page from the book AS THE SEAS RISE.

We’d love to hear more about how you work! What sort of process and tools do you use to create both your illustrations and writing?

In the past, including for AS THE SEAS RISE, I would do most of the illustrations by hand using pencil. First, I do a lot of research and find photos that will inspire some or all parts of a drawing. Sometimes it’s the right background or object I needed, and sometimes it’s just a pose I needed. I often look at videos and then take screenshots while videos are playing because that allows you to capture a person in action rather than a posed shot. For the cover of SEAS, I saw a Twitter post about kids making models of their communities protected for climate change. Nicole and I thought that would be a good theme for the cover, and the editor agreed!

A series of thumbnail sketch line drawings by Angela Quezada Padron.
Thumbnail sketches from AS THE SEAS RISE

After I had my ideas, I would draw thumbnail sketches to get a sense of layout and how to paginate the text. Then I did more refined thumbnails. Once I had the layouts decided, each part of an illustration was drawn by hand on vellum using Prismacolor Col-erase pencils. I find vellum to be a beautifully smooth surface that doesn’t smear, and the col-erase pencils have a nice texture as well as don’t smear like regular pencils. I would scan them into my computer, clean them up and adjust as needed. Once the editor saw the sketches and gave feedback, I made necessary adjustments and then drew the final outlines.

Then I would print all of the parts – people, objects, backgrounds – onto several pieces of BFK Rives paper which is mainly used for printmaking. It’s thick, doesn’t really warp and can hold a lot of layers of paint and coloring. Plus it has a nice texture to it. I would tape the paper down onto wooden boards and then color in the drawings with gouache, watercolor, pastel and/or colored pencil. After that, I would scan all the painted papers back into Photoshop, put each part on its own layer (meaning, the people and objects would be placed on individual layers in Photoshop) and then add in my original sketches as overlays to make sure the lines were clean. I would then finish in Photoshop to clean up, resize, and change color of any part if need be. 

From AS THE SEAS RISE:
A scanned in drawing, background painting, and painted figures before they are assembled together digitally.

However, after doing a 48-page picture book like SEAS in this style, I realized that I need to work digitally more to save time and to save my aging hands from tiring out! So, now I tend to draw parts by hand still on vellum, scan them in and then redraw over them in Photoshop or Procreate. I do a combination of coloring digitally and scanning in painting or textured paper to fill in the illustrations like digital collage. Some of my work on my website was created with digital collage in this manner, and some were done by drawing and coloring by hand, then scanning in and putting them together digitally.

A peek into Angela Quezada Padron’s creative workspaces

You have three other books you’re currently working on which will be out in the future. Can you tell us more about them?

I would love to! FROM THE FIELDS TO THE FIGHT: HOW JESSICA GOVEA THORBOURNE ORGANIZED FOR JUSTICE comes out with Atheneum Books in 2026. Jessica worked with Cesar Chavez during the grape boycott to fight for equal rights for farm workers and labor unions. That is being illustrated by the talented Sol Salinas. The next book, AN ISLAND CALLED HOME (Eerdman’s Books, 2026) is a fictional story about a girl who visits her father’s home country for the first time and learns about her extended family and her bilingual and bicultural heritage. It’s based on my life with my father who is from the Dominican Republic, and I will be illustrating that one. Lastly, LUCIA’S GOALS (Lee & Low), which is being illustrated by Christina Barragan-Forshay, is about a girl who wants to play soccer but battles through sexism, racism, and inequality to make her dream come true. The publication date is not finalized yet but should be out in the next couple of years. 

Some people might wonder why an illustrator wouldn’t illustrate all their books. The truth is my style doesn’t always fit with the stories I write, and I don’t want to be limited to only pursuing books that I could best illustrate. 

What is your greatest wish for your work as an illustrator and author?

What a great question. I focus on the stories that have an emotional tie-in that will allow readers to connect to the story in some way. I think about how a particular story will inspire and impact kids and encourage them to read more. For example, I hope books like SEAS and FIELDS inspire kids to take action against injustice, while LUCIA can show what perseverance is, and ISLAND can show readers another culture or family situation they may never have known about. Some of my other stories I hope to publish will just make kids laugh or entertain them and others may warm their hearts. In the end, I create the stories because I love to and want to share my ideas and creations with the world. But to me, it’s most important that the kids enjoy reading them and connect with the stories. Otherwise, there’s no point in doing them at all. 

Is there something you would like to tell aspiring children’s book illustrators and authors who hope to be published someday?

Definitely look into organizations like SCBWI to learn about the industry and connect with others. Do your research before submitting to agents and editors to make sure your style and goals match with theirs. Write and illustrate what you love, not what the trends say you should do. Illustrate in the style and medium YOU want to, not in the style others tell you you should. BUT, always be open to feedback and suggestions. Find other creators to connect with so you get that honest feedback and encouragement. Most importantly, never give up. It can take years to get your first book deal or project and when you do, all the hard work will have been worth it!

I also want to acknowledge Giuseppe Castellano from The Illustration Department. A few years ago, I was feeling like my work wasn’t good enough and doubting myself. I signed up for a portfolio review and mentorship with Giuseppe, whose advice and encouragement were essential to help me rebuild my portfolio and come up with ideas for the compositions for AS THE SEAS RISE. Publishing really is a collaborative effort!

Learn More About Angela Quezada Padron

To learn more about Angela Quezada Padron and to see more of her work, follow her on social media and visit these links:

Angela is represented by Sera Rivers at Speilburg Literary.

Are you a published or soon-to-be published illustrator or author/illustrator who loves creating books about nature, animals, the environment, social justice, or mindfulness? I’d love to chat with you for a KidLit Connection interview! Send me a message.

KidLit Connection: Getting to Emma Reynolds—Author, Illustrator, and Climate Activist

Author-illustrator, Emma Reynolds stands outside of the Wonderland Independent Children's Bookshop in Retford, UK. She is smiling and holding her two books, AMARA AND THE BATS, and DRAWN TO CHANGE THE WORLD. The logo from DRAWN TO CHANGE THE WORLD is in the window of the bookshop.
Emma Outside Wonderland Independent
Children’s Bookshop in Retford, UK.

It’s the end of 2023 and time for the final KidLit Connection interview of the year! I’m so thrilled to share this conversation with author and illustrator Emma Reynolds. Emma is a talented creator who advocates for environmental conservation through art and stories. Her debut author-illustrated picture book AMARA AND THE BATS (Atheneum) is an award-winning story that shows children how they can make a difference to creatures big and small through peaceful protest. And her latest book DRAWN TO CHANGE THE WORLD (HarperAlley) is a collaboration with other artists who illustrate powerful stories of climate justice from around the world. Emma also founded #KidLit4Climate, bringing authors and illustrators from around the globe together in solidarity with youth climate strikes.

Outside of her work as an author and illustrator, Emma volunteers for her local bat conservation group and loves spending time outdoors. She lives and works in Manchester, UK. Emma can sometimes be seen running interactive workshops for kids and families, speaking at events, and sharing her work at conventions and conferences. In this interview, Emma shares more about her books, her process and inspiration, and what it takes to be a creator in the KidLit industry. I hope you enjoy hearing from Emma as much as I did!

An Interview with Children’s Book Creator, Emma Reynolds

First, we’d love to hear more about you as an illustrator and author. Can you tell us more about you and your work as a creator of books for kids?

Hello! I’m a children’s illustrator-author from Manchester, UK. I make books about nature, activism, and hope through action—showing readers the powerful tangible things we can all do to make a difference in our communities.

I love creating characters and imagining their worlds, how they think and feel, and showing empathy as they navigate the challenges and emotions they experience throughout their journeys. I’ve always loved books with pictures in them most, and after thinking ‘Oh no I should be reading long adult books but I don’t enjoy them’ in my teens and stopping reading for a little while, I discovered graphic novels in my school library and this re-invigorated my love of reading. Now I’m a huge advocate for visual literacy and that picture books and illustrated books are for all ages, not just for children. I even wrote my University dissertation on the power of visual literacy in increasing student’s confidence and abilities, and how this should be taught from primary age all the way to adulthood.

How did you get your start creating children’s books? Was there anything in particular that lead you to pursue it?

I’ve always loved drawing and making art my whole life—in school my favourite subjects I loved were English, Media Studies and Film Studies. I found art classes too prescriptive and uninspiring in secondary school but I still continued to draw in my free time, and I pursued Illustration with Animation at university—and while there I learnt about the picture book process, and this re-invigorated my childhood dream of being a picture book illustrator and author!

Your work is very focused on advocating for the Earth and shedding light on climate change through the eyes of children. I love this! Can you tell us more about what inspired you down this path?

Yes! This wasn’t an intentional path I set for myself but it has happened naturally relating to my interests and the stories that were inside me ready to be told. When I was in primary school I was really interested in science (but felt I wasn’t good enough at maths to pursue it, and the lessons in secondary school were so dry), and I love that I’ve managed to honour that interest in my dream job as an author-illustrator by making accessible science communication books.

I have other stories inside me waiting, and I’ll know when they’re ready to be told.

A full-page illustrated spread from AMARA AND THE BATS by Emma Reynolds. Different children and grown-ups together are planting trees and plants and setting up various things to help with bat habitat. There is text about how the people made the environment more bat-friendly.
Spread from ‘Amara and the Bats’ by Emma Reynolds, Published by Atheneum/Simon & Schuster

Your most recent book, DRAWN TO CHANGE THE WORLD, is an amazing collaborative project with other illustrators, bringing to light the stories of young climate activists from around the world. Can you tell us more about this really important book?

We worked on Drawn for three years, after I pitched it in 2020. Drawn to Change The World: 16 Youth Climate Activists, 16 Artists is a middle grade graphic novel with each activist biography illustrated by a different acclaimed artist from around the world. It has extensive backmatter including activist interviews on the power of community, and illustrations to explain the science. Drawn focuses on the need to centre Indigenous solutions and intersectional climate justice, and also speaks on how we need more artists to transform society and tell new stories about our future—allowing us to manifest them into reality. Drawn features Indigenous, Black, Latina, Asian, LGBTQ+, disabled and neurodivergent climate activists, illustrated by incredible artists from all over the world, it was such an honour to work with them.

‘Drawn to Change The World: 16 Youth Climate Activists, 16 Artists’ Published by HarperAlley.

Creating DRAWN TO CHANGE THE WORLD obviously involved working with lots of other people. Can you tell us more about that process and what it was like compared to other books you’ve done?

Yes so it was very different from how I would create a book normally, as I plan everything visually and work on the illustrations and text in tandem when I’m the author-illustrator. But as I was writing the script for other artists to illustrate, I had to prepare the script in advance. As each artist only had 4 pages (2 double page spreads) per activist, I actually thumbnailed them out to scale to check everything would physically fit, and then reverse engineered this into a script for the artists. I didn’t share my rough thumbnails with them though, as I wanted them to be able to freely express themselves in the panels and lay it out as they see fit.

The process as a whole involved a lot A LOT of admin and emails and back and forth haha. I absolutely could not have done it without my editor Megan Ilnitzki and publishing team taking on the lion’s share of that labour as my advance only goes so far, and I still spent an enormous amount of time checking everything and going through PDFs to check every line, speech bubble and word was right.

Photo of Emma Reynolds in 2021 working on thumbnails and research for ‘Drawn to Change The World’.
Melati and Isabel Wijsen comic biography, written by Emma Reynolds and illustrated by Ann Maulina.
Ou Hóngyì comic biography, written by Emma Reynolds and illustrated by Jade Zhang.
Dara McAnulty comic biography, written by Emma Reynolds and illustrated by Victoria Maderna and Federico Piatti.
Dara McAnulty comic biography, written by Emma Reynolds and illustrated by Victoria Maderna and Federico Piatti.
Greta Thunberg comic biography – Global Week for Future spread, written and illustrated by Emma Reynolds.
From left to right and top to bottom:
1. Photo of Emma Reynolds in 2021 working on thumbnails and research for ‘Drawn to Change The World’.
2. Melati and Isabel Wijsen comic biography, written by Emma Reynolds and illustrated by Ann Maulina.
3. Ou Hóngyì comic biography, written by Emma Reynolds and illustrated by Jade Zhang.
4. Dara McAnulty comic biography, written by Emma Reynolds and illustrated by Victoria Maderna and Federico Piatti.
5. Science front-matter from ‘Drawn to Change The World’.
6. Greta Thunberg comic biography – Global Week for Future spread, written and illustrated by Emma Reynolds.

Your debut author/illustrator picture book, AMARA AND THE BATS, which came out in 2021 is another great story about a child activist who speaks out for bats in her community. Can you tell us more about what inspired this story?

The book cover for AMARA AND THE BATS by Emma Reynolds. An illustration of three children in the evening next to trees holding up signs with images of bats and one that says "save the bats".
The book cover for ‘Amara and the Bats’
by Emma Reynolds

Yes! So I’ve always loved bats, and I drew this character Amara back in 2016, and I knew I wanted to tell her story! I thought she looked like she was looking up curiously at something, and I decided it would be a bat. And through researching more about bats throughout the book, I became even more fascinated with these amazing creatures. I joined my local bat group, and my bat group leader Steve Parker kindly fact checked my book for me, and I’ve been involved with the group and with Bat Conservation Trust and other bat charities and organisations around the world ever since. Amara and the Bats holds a special place in my heart, and I’m so, so happy I was able to make my dream come true and it wouldn’t have been possible without my agent Thao Le and my wonderful editor Julia McCarthy. Amara’s character is inspired by me and my best friend as kids, we were passionate about saving and advocating for overlooked and misunderstood animals.

Two pages of AMARA AND THE BATS by Emma Reynolds. On the left is an illustration of a little bat wrapped in a towel. On the right is Amara and her family waving to a man with a wildlife rescue truck.
Two pages from the interior of ‘Amara and the Bats’ by Emma Reynolds

On the shop-talk end of things, we’d love to hear more about your process when you create illustrations for your books. Can you tell us more about your tools and the steps you take to go from an idea to a finished book?

A pencil sketch of a child with long, dark hair, smiling, and standing with her hands behind her back. By Emma Reynolds.
A pencil sketch of Amara by Emma Reynolds

That’s a great question, I’d love to tell you more about it.

So I usually start by sketching, whether that be in an actual sketchbook (I go for non fancy covered ones as the pressure it too great! But the paper is good) or around my puzzle books while I’m relaxing and unwinding. I like sketching with polychromos colouring pencils in my sketchbook, and in my puzzle book it’s whatever I happen to be filling in the puzzle with – sometimes a ballpoint pen, sometimes a biro.

For final art, I do my outlines in Procreate on the iPad, using the 4B brush that comes with Procreate, and then I use Photoshop to colour my books as I need a large canvas and high layer count, plus muscle memory makes this a quicker process for me at this stage.

If there is one wish you could have for your work as a KidLit author/illustrator, what would it be?

Stable money (preferably universal basic income! *stares at governments who know it would cost them less than the benefits system in place now*), so I have more time to spend thinking, dreaming and creating books, rather than worrying about money all the time.

What is something you would like to share with aspiring illustrators and author/illustrators who have hopes to be published someday?

The biggest thing is not giving up, and I don’t say this lightly. Publishing is extreeeemley slow, because of the nature of the business. This was really odd to me at first as I came from a very fast-paced animation job, and this takes getting used to. And this advice of not giving up applies to all stages of the process—from submitting to agents, having your book out on sub when your agent is pitching, to waiting for feedback from your editor once you have a book deal. Patience is key—fill your time with either rest, re-filling your creative well, or cracking on with your next project. And of course, part-time work if you need to, as this industry is very hard to make a living—but it is possible. It just takes time and planting the seeds to build up. 

If you write and illustrate, I recommend getting a literary agent, rather than an illustration agent. Literary agents take around 15% instead of 30% like an illustration agent, and they are experts on the book industry and pitching your work to editors. They more than pay for their cut in their expertise, access, support and negotiation in getting you a good and fair book deal.

Most of all—create work that you enjoy! I am guilty of this sometimes, but sometimes I forget that art is supposed to be fun, and that we create our best work when we are enjoying it, and that always, always shines through to others. I wish you all the very best on your journey! It’s a marathon not a race.

Check Out All of Emma Reynolds’ Books

Emma has three published books that she’s illustrated, two of which she also wrote. Check them all out on her website and follow the links to purchase your own copies!

Book cover for 'Amara and the Bats' by Emma Reynolds. Click to view more.
Book cover for 'Drawn to Change the World" by Emma Reynolds and participating illustrators. Click to find out more.
'Rescuing Mrs. Birdley' book cover. Written by Aaron Reynolds and illustrated by Emma Reynolds. Click to find out more.
From left to right: Amara and the Bats, Drawn to Change the World, Rescuing Mrs. Birdley

See More from Emma Reynolds:

Graphic Novel Artist Panel. Book process, inspiration, fav books, and advice. Hosted by Indie Bookshop. Second Star to the Right. Click to view the YouTube video of the artist panel.

To learn more about Emma Reynolds, her books, art, and latest projects, be sure to visit her website, social media pages, and join her newsletter. Plus, more fun information below:

Learn more about Drawn to Change the World:

Emma is represented by Thao Le at Sandra Dijkstra Literary Agency.

Are you a published or soon-to-be published illustrator or author/illustrator who loves creating books about nature, animals, the environment, or mindfulness? I’d love to chat with you for a KidLit Connection interview! Send me a message.

KidLit Connection: Getting to Know Illustrator Heather Brockman Lee

An illustration of different children of all shapes, sizes, and colors holding hands. One child at the front is reading a book. Art by Heather Brockman Lee.
Illustrator Heather Brockman Lee smiling for the camera in front of a bookcase.
Heather Brockman Lee

I’m delighted to bring you another KidLit Connection interview with an illustrator I adore. This month, I chatted with Heather Brockman Lee, a picture book illustrator (and soon-to-be author/illustrator) and licensing illustrator. Heather’s work is whimsical and soft, inspired by nature and magic. She has three books she’s illustrated that are on the shelves for you to enjoy now (check them out on her website), and two more on the way this coming year! Plus, more in the works. In the interview, we chatted more about those books.

Heather has been the winner of multiple awards, including the portfolio showcase award from SCBWI in 2021. She is also a mentor through the Michelle Begley Mentorship Program as part of the Rocky Mountain chapter of SCBWI. Heather lives in Colorado with her family and when she’s not painting in her studio enjoys spending time outdoors and keeping active. Not surprisingly, she is a lover of books and animals.

I’m so happy to share this interview, as Heather had some great insights and fun behind-the-scenes peaks at her work and process. I hope you enjoy hearing from Heather as much as I did!

An Interview with Children’s Book Illustrator, Heather Brockman Lee

A fairy sits inside a plant pot and flowers grow from their head. The flowers are yellow, orange, and green. The fairy wears a red jumpsuit and has grey/brown wings. The pot is a terracotta pot shown in a cut cross-section. Art by Heather Brockman Lee.


First, we’d love to hear more about you and your work as an illustrator. Can you tell us more about yourself as an artist of books for kids?

Yes! And thank you so much for having me. Books and art have always played a huge role in my life, and I feel so lucky to be building a career making books. When I am not working on a book that is under contract, I am usually painting and sketching for projects to send to my agent that will hopefully become future books. I also love to experiment and push myself with personal work, constantly trying to improve. I am very fortunate to know a lot of other illustrators and I love sharing work with them and talking art. My favorite pieces to make are ones that hold a little magic, and I try to include that feeling in realistic scenes also. 

How did you first start creating art for children’s books? What led you to this particular career? 

I graduated college with a BA in Fine Art, and I had some really cool jobs but they mostly centered around doing art for spaces that required wealth to create. This makes sense, because it is usually expensive to have custom textiles or stained glass made. But I wanted to make work that was more meaningful and accessible. I have always loved books and story so being an illustrator is a perfect fit, but it took me a long time to get started because I really didn’t know how a person got work in publishing. Finally about 7 years ago I literally just googled “how to illustrate children’s books” and that took me to the SCBWI website, which lead to me learning so much about the industry, and meeting my critique group, who have all been formative to my career. 

A fairy peers out from behind some plants, watching a woman pouring tea from a pink polk-a-dot tea pot in a garden. The woman stands at a block iron table and chair on a blue brick patio. There is a small house in the background. The art is whimsical and colorful in greens and blues. Illustration by Heather Brockman Lee.

Shop talk! Can you tell us more about how you work as an illustrator? What are the different ways you approach your pieces and various tools you use to create them?

This might be my favorite subject to talk about! I love working with traditional materials and doing a lot of experimentation combining different techniques and media to get the exact look I am going for. When I start working on a new book project, I think a lot about the medium I want to use to best express the mood of that book. The mediums I use the most are gouache, watercolor and colored pencil on a variety of papers meant for watercolor or mixed media. My current favorite is Arches 300 lb hot press- which is pricey but so worth it (and I can paint on both sides!) I also really love using textured papers and ephemera in my images. While the bulk of the work is done traditionally, I also use procreate on my iPad for sketching, and photoshop to edit or create digital collage from my scans. 

"When You Love a Book" book cover by Heather Brockman Lee. Book text by Kaz Windness. An illustration of a child opening a book with all kinds of objects popping out, including a train, a dog house, a boat, spaghetti, a mouse with a cookie, Little Red Riding Hood, birds, and a moon.
The new cover for “When You Love a Book”

I’m so excited for your next book that’s set to come out in May of 2024, WHEN YOU LOVE A BOOK, written by Kaz Windness (who I interviewed last year) and published by Penguin Random House! This is an extra special collaboration because you and Kaz are also critique partners. Can you tell us more about this book?

Yes we are so excited about this book! Obviously most people that go into publishing do it out of a love for books so it will be no surprise that books have meant so much to both of us throughout our lives. We have had conversations about books being friends to us when we really needed them, and when Kaz wrote the manuscript she asked if I would consider illustrating it. Of course Kaz herself is a very skilled and talented illustrator, but she felt that her style might lean a little too edgy for the project, and she also wanted the experience of being on the writing side only. I loved the manuscript and agreed immediately! We like to say it is a book about friends being books made by friends who make books.  The book itself is a beautiful tribute to classic stories that shaped so many of our childhoods, and that many of us continue to pass down to our own children and grandchildren. 

Since you personally know the author of WHEN YOU LOVE A BOOK, how was your experience illustrating this book different from other books? Was there a more direct collaboration than other projects? Or did you still work primarily with the art director without author feedback?

As you mentioned, Kaz and I are in a critique group together, so we are very used to giving and receiving feedback on projects. While we were getting the book ready for submission, we treated it as we do all book dummies in the critique group. She had great feedback on the sketches, as did our other critique partners, but was very careful to respond to my ideas as opposed to telling me how she would illustrate it. As a fellow illustrator, I really admire her restraint! I think a collaboration like this really needs to have a mutual trust and respect in the other’s skillset which fortunately we have. Once the book sold, the publisher treated us as they would any author and illustrator, with separate contracts, and my interaction was mostly with the Art Director Sophie Erb (who is wonderful to work with!) 

What were your favorite parts about illustrating WHEN YOU LOVE A BOOK? In contrast, what was something you found challenging about the project?

My favorite part was collecting and using old library cards signed by children and collaged throughout the book. I found most of them on Etsy or Ebay, and just loved feeling that connection to generations of readers. I didn’t want to cut up the actual cards, so I scanned and printed them on a rice paper meant for printmaking. This allowed me to use my favorite sections more than once, and the thinner paper was easier to work with for cutting and gluing. 

The most challenging part by far was trying to live up to my own expectations for the illustrations. I think most artists can never totally satisfy ourselves. I am really proud of this book though and I hope people will enjoy reading and looking at it as much as I did painting it.

The publishing announcement for the book City of Jasmine. Text reads: Luana Kay Horry at HarperCollins has bought world rights in a three-book preempt, The City of Jasmine by debut author Nadine Presley (1.), illustrated by Heather Brockman Lee. In this picture book, a Syrian girl holds on to the beauty of her hometown infused with the sweet scent of jasmine. While the world carves ruins into her memories, she stands up: Damascus is no pile of rubble. Publication is slated for winter 2025; Allison Remcheck at Stimola Literary Studio represented the author, and Deborah Warren at East West Agency represented the illustrator.
Publishing announcement for “City of Jasmine”

You also have some other projects in the works, including another book you’re illustrating and your debut book as an author and illustrator. Can you tell us more about them?

Yes! Right now I am working on art for City of Jasmine, by Nadine Presley. She is a debut author (with more books on the way) and has written a beautiful book honoring her beloved city of Damascus. I am working closely with her and our publishing team at Harper Collins to bring her vision to life. This is another example of a less than common setup, as this is such a personal story for Nadine we all want her to be very involved in the creation of the art. It is scheduled to release in winter of 2025.

I am also working on my debut as an author/illustrator, about a little girl and her umbrella that helps her feel safe and secure, which will come out the following year, also with Harper Collins. 

What is your biggest hope for your work as a children’s book creator?

My biggest hope is for longevity and to make a positive impact on the children who read the books. I love this job so much and never get tired of painting and stories. I want the books I work on to reach children and readers who will enjoy them, and hopefully some will even love them. I think stories are the foundation of our shared humanity and can bring people together in unique ways. 

A little boy holding an umbrella walks a tiny dog on a leash, A taller man with a white beard in a yellow suit holds many leashes with a menagerie of animals behind him. The animals include a horse, a cow, a dog, a pig, a turkey, and a goat. A watercolor illustration by Heather Brockman Lee.

If you could share something with aspiring picture book illustrators, what would you tell them?

I think this advice is given a lot, because it is still true. Don’t try to be like everyone else, don’t just copy the most successful or popular trends. Really dig deep and look inward to figure out what you want to say to the world, and how to say it. Most paths to becoming a picture book illustrator are long and challenging, so it’s really important to be making work that you love and is authentic to you—because you will need to make a lot of it. 

Check Out Heather Brockman Lee’s Books

Heather has three books out NOW for you and your family to enjoy! Plus, you can pre-order When You Love a Book to get it as soon as it hits shelves in 2024.

You can also ask your local library to order the books for you and your whole community to enjoy!

A Poem Grows Inside You. Story by Katey Howes. Pictures by Heather Brockman Lee.
Hattie Hates Hugs. Words by Sarah Hovorka. Illustrated by Heather Brockman Lee.
She is Mama. Words by Mackenzie Porter. Illustrated by Heather Brockman Lee.
Heather Brockman Lee’s current books available now.

See More From Heather Brockman Lee

A fairy looks over her shoulder as she wears a fancy red and green coat of flowers. The fairy's wings are translucent yellow with peach spots. Art by Heather Brockman Lee.


To learn more about Heather Brockman Lee, see more of her work, and stay up-to-date on the latest about her projects, visit her website and social media pages:

Heather is represented for children’s books by Deborah Warren at East West Literary Agency.

Are you a published or soon-to-be published illustrator or author/illustrator who loves creating books about nature, animals, or the environment? I’d love to chat with you for a KidLit Connection interview! Send me a message.

October Art and Illustration Prompt Events in 2023

Since social media became a regular part of our lives and especially in recent years since the pandemic kept many of us at home, it has become a trend among artists that October is a time to share art prompts. Inktober, created by illustrator Jake Parker in 2009 is one of the most well-known of these art prompt events. It was designed to give fellow artists subject matter to practice their ink drawing skills with. 

But, there are many other art prompt events as well, all of which have different themes and different artistic audiences they appeal to. For the purposes of this post, I’ll be sharing ones specifically of interest to illustrators. The question is… which prompt list(s) should you do? Let’s take a look at just a few of them to get an idea of the options.

Inktober

Inktober 2023 Official Prompt List. Click to go to the Inktober website.

Website: https://inktober.com/rules
Instagram link: https://www.instagram.com/inktober/
Hashtag: #inktober2023

Inktober was started in 2009 by illustrator Jake Parker. He wanted to give himself motivation to practice working on his ink drawings and develop better drawing habits. Soon enough, others joined in and it became an annual event.

But, in 2020, some controversy arose as Jake decided to trademark the Inktober name, which caused some confusion with a lot of other artists who had been using the name on the pieces they had created. Jake himself explains his reasonings, which includes things like fighting racism and hate. In addition, there were accusations of plagiarism when he tried to publish a book about drawing with ink called Inktober All Year Long that was similar to a book by Alphonso Dunn, Pen & Ink Drawing: A Simple Guide. The publishing of Jake Parker’s book was put on hold. Between the two incidents, many people decided to stop doing Inktober and either started their own art prompt events or joined others.

Nonetheless, Inktober is still going and many people still participate. It’s something to consider doing if you’re looking to improve your inking skills and gain some visibility through a very well-known event. I have friends who have done it and quite enjoyed the prompts and community.

This year’s hashtag is #inktober2023.

Peachtober

Peachtober 2023 Prompt List. Click to go to the Peachtober website.

Website: https://www.furrylittlepeach.com/peachtober
Instagram link: https://www.instagram.com/peachtober/
Hashtag: #peachtober23

Peachtober was started by artist Sha’an d’Anthes (also known as furrylittlepeach). She wanted to create art prompts that sparked imagination but didn’t require any specific medium. Artists can choose whatever medium they like to create their pieces. Her main goal is that they have fun with it. And you’re invited to share your pieces on social media. I did this one in 2021 and it was a lot of fun! I did find it challenging to keep up with the every day prompts, being as busy as I am. But, I managed it and came out with some really cool portfolio pieces in the end. One of my favorites is Love is Love Birds from the prompt “Heart”.

This year, use the hashtag #peachtober23 to participate.

SCBWI Artober

SCBWI Artober Prompt List. Click to view the list on their website.

Website: https://www.scbwi.org/artober
Instagram link: https://www.instagram.com/scbwi/
Hashtag: #scbwiArtober2023

Many of you may know of SCBWI, the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators. This is one of the largest organizations dedicated to the creation of books for kids. SCBWI hosts a monthly illustration prompt event called SCBWI Draw This (use the hashtag #scbwidrawthis) to help illustrators come up with new pieces and share them on social media. In recent years, SCBWI also started their own October art prompt event, SCBWI Artober. They provide a list of daily prompts that are autumn-themed for every day in October that you are invited to draw and share. If you’re a children’s book illustrator, I definitely recommend this one, as it will get eyes on your pieces specific to the KidLit industry. 

This year, you can use the hashtag #scbwiArtober2023.

Undying Tales

Undying Tales Art Prompts for October 2023. Click to view website of the prompts.

Website: https://www.undyingtales.com/
Instagram link: https://www.instagram.com/undyingtales/
Hashtag: #undyingtalesproject

Undying Tales is one of my favorite prompt lists because of its focus on nature and endangered or rare species in the wild. This October art prompt event was founded by illustrator Stephanie Law, who I’ve been a fan of for many years. A nature-lover and advocate for preserving and protecting endangered wildlife and plants, Stephanie Law has a series of books containing her own art from the Undying Tales prompts. She always offers her original pieces for sale at the end of the event too. But, she invites other artists to join in too, and share their work on social media. She provides a name of a rare species to draw every-other day rather than daily. I participated last year with a couple of the prompts and really enjoyed it. My favorite piece that came out of it was the Sierra Nevada Red Fox. And I learned a lot about these rare species too!

You can share your work with the hashtag #undyingtalesproject.

Drawtober

Drawtober 2023 spooky prompt list. Sponsored by xencelabs. Click to view more.

Instagram link: https://www.instagram.com/drawtober/
Discord Server: https://discord.com/invite/qSP8hgB7RC
Hashtag: #drawtober2023

Drawtober is an October art prompt event that specifically focuses on Halloween-themed prompts. These prompts are short phrases that are spooky-themed. Instead of daily prompts, they offer a couple of prompts each week to give artists more time, for a total of eight prompts. This is primarily an Instagram-focused event where everyone in the community is invited to share their own pieces and enjoy each other’s work. You can use any medium you wish, as long as you post it within the window for that prompt. They also pick daily winners and a grand prize winner at the end if you participate on their Discord server. 

This year, use the hashtag #drawtober2023.

There are many other October drawing prompt events all over Instagram, Deviantart, and social media in general. Just do a search and I’m sure you can find a plethora. Whichever you choose, it’s a fun way to improve your drawing skills and share with your community. You don’t have to dedicate yourself to the whole month either. Do what you can. Either way, you’ll get something out of it. 

What are your favorite drawing prompt events to do? Drop a link in the comments below!

KidLit Connection: Getting to Know Author-Illustrator, Rebekah Lowell

A watercolor illustration of a variety of North American songbirds flying through a field. Art by Rebekah Lowell.
A spread from Rebekah Lowell’s debut picture book, Catching Flight

I’m thrilled to share this month’s KidLit Connection interviewee! Rebekah Lowell is an author/illustrator of children’s books from Maine whose work has a focus on nature and how our own lives connect with the natural world. She writes and illustrates both picture books and middle grade. Her debut book, The Road to After (2022, Nancy Paulsen Books) is a middle grade novel in verse about learning to survive and thrive after fleeing abuse and how nature can be a source of healing. And just this year, Rebekah’s debut picture book, Catching Flight: Soaring on the Wings of Birds (2023, Doubleday Books for Young Readers) was released! We’ll talk more about this beautifully illustrated book in the interview.

Author/illustrator, Rebekah Lowell in a field of wildflowers, looking down and holding a wide-brimmed hat.

Rebekah is an amazingly kind soul full of compassion and empathy for fellow humans and our beautiful Earth. She earned her bachelors in Fine Arts at Rhode Island School of Design in 2004 and later completed her masters in Children’s Literature and Illustration at Hollins University in Virginia. When not working on books for children, Rebekah practices and teaches nature journaling, is a Maine duck stamp artist, and a surface pattern designer. She also rescues monarch butterflies from hay fields and raises them to release. Among all that, she is a mom and homeschools two daughters.

I had the pleasure of meeting Rebekah in-person for the first time at the New England SCBWI conference this April and I attended her session about storyboarding picture books. I was so happy when she agreed to be interviewed for this blog! Thank you, Rebekah for sharing more about you, your artist story, and your insights with us.

An Interview with Author-Illustrator, Rebekah Lowell

We’d love to hear more about you as an illustrator and author. What inspires you and your art and what things do you most love about your job as a creator of books for kids?

Rebekah Lowell working on pond studies in her nature journal

I’ve been making art since I was a kid, so doing anything else never really occurred to me—unless it had something to do with plants or nature. I think I had considered horticulture at one point, but if I had done that, I would have painted every flower I grew anyways, so I don’t figure my time would have been spent much differently. I love making books for kids because I get to continue exploring the world and following my curiosity to share with others. It feels like by sharing what I am passionate about I’m bringing young readers closer to nature through words and pictures. I love the format of a book because it’s a story you can hold, it’s tangible, it’s precious, it means something. 

How did you start illustrating and writing for children’s books? What inspired you to pursue this type of work?

I started creating books for kids in 2004. I made my very first picture book dummy in a class called Picture and Word taught by Judy-Sue Goodwin-Sturges at RISD and I was hooked. And yes, my first picture book idea was about a bird. I always knew I wanted to make art forever, but it was during that class I realized I wanted a career in children’s literature.  

Your most recently published picture book, CATCHING FLIGHT is a beautifully illustrated poem about hope, highlighting different species of native birds. Could you tell us more about this book?

Book cover for Catching Flight by Rebekah Lowell. A variety of wild birds fly through a blue sky.
Catching Flight: Soaring on the Wings of Birds

Thank you! Yes, CATCHING FLIGHT, came into this world in a way that wasn’t conventional for me. I shared an illustration on Twitter of a feather with birds flying out of it and my now editor, Frances Gilbert, messaged me asking if I had a book to go along with that project. I immediately wrote her a poem and sent her a photo of the handwritten scribbles and she asked if I could type it up and send it to her. She and I had met at Hollins in 2014 and had relationship prior to her seeing my artwork, so her message wasn’t the first time she had seen my work. We both already knew each other. But it’s proof that you should keep making art and keep showing your work because you never know what will happen.  

When I wrote the words for CATCHING FLIGHT, I wanted to capture a feeling of freedom and lightness. We were in a hard time, during the pandemic, and we were all experiencing a global hardship together. I wanted to bring a message of hope to the world through a picture book. Birds felt like the natural solution to a problem. They always make me feel better. 

What was your favorite part about working on CATCHING FLIGHT? Additionally, what was one of your greatest challenges working on this project?

A stack of Catching Flight books by Rebekah Lowell on a table with a pair of bird-watching binoculars on top.
Copies of Rebekah Lowell’s debut picture book, Catching Flight

One of my favorite parts was getting to work with both Frances Gilbert and Nicole de las Heras, who I had previously met in person at Hollins. They are both amazing humans and wonderful people to work with. 

One of my biggest challenges was making sure I was drawing the feathers correctly. I watched webinars with Liz Clayton Fuller, looked at art by Jane Kim of InkDwell and refered to books by John Muir Laws and of course, Sibley Field Guides to be sure I was drawing the feathers accurately. 

Nature seems to be a huge inspiration for your stories and art. Could you tell us more about how nature inspires your work and what role it has in both your art and your life?

I am a better person inside and out if I spend enough time outside. What is enough? At least some time where I’m not talking, and I’m present, and I’m noticing what is around me outside. I like to listen to birds, look at plants growing and notice the changes that happen in my yard and seasonally in the natural world. If I don’t get to do that, I start feeling lost, overwhelmed, and unsettled. One of my favorite things to do is nature journal outside. Nature is a never-ending source of inspiration, and one idea can lead to the next. My problem is not having enough ideas, it’s having too many ideas. 

We’d love to hear about your process as a kids’ book creator and how you work as an author and artist. Could you share more about that?

Rebekah Lowell's nature journaling materials by the water. Brushes, watercolors, and a journal.
Rebekah’s nature journaling setup for watercolor painting outdoors

My process is observe, create, revise (if it’s a book project), and revise again. 

If it’s a nature journal spread, I don’t revise, but I draw and paint with intention and observation. 

I use traditional materials such as watercolor, acrylagouahce, colored pencil, pencil, graphite dust, acrylics, oils and more. Book work is mostly water based and commissions or duck stamps are often in oils. 

Going back to books, I often write first, then sketch starting with blank paper, and just get a few ideas out, but I always use thumbnails for the early ideas of a picture book, and then those get bigger as I refine my sketches. 

I use Photoshop right now to create my PDF dummies, but I am transitioning to using InDesign for picture book dummies next. 

In terms of middle grade books, it’s always many rounds of revision before we start final art. I usually do some sketches though that don’t make their way into the final book, but it’s because the sketches help me get a feel for the story and they inform the words. It’s a constant back and forth between picture and word. 

Do you have other book projects you’re working on that you can tell us more about?

I have a picture book on submission right now with several others in my back pocket. 

I’m also working on edits for another illustrated middle grade novel in verse. 

What other types of work have you done as an illustrator that relate to your work as a nature artist and kid lit illustrator?

Rebekah Lowell's monarch butterfly surface pattern drawn in a book and printed on fabric.
Rebekah Lowell’s monarch butterfly pattern design on fabric

In addition to the Nature Journaling that I mentioned, I have an online shop with notecards, stickers, pins, prints, and more. I’m also a surface pattern designer and my first fabric collection, featuring monarchs, will release this fall with PBS Fabrics. I hope to offer more with surface pattern design in the future. I would love for my work to be on journals, wallpaper, kids clothing, towels and more. 

I’m also a five-time Maine Duck Stamp artist and this year’s Maine Common Ground Fair artist. 

What is your biggest hope for your work as a children’s book creator?

The Newbery, and the Caldecott, and a movie. There I said it. 

But on another note, I hope that my work as a creator helps connect others to nature because we need to care about nature so that we care about protecting it. We absolutely need to protect nature. 

What is something you’d like to tell aspiring picture book illustrators and author/illustrators?

This is a very long game. Make the work because you love making the work. Create from your heart and others will feel it. Be willing to fail. Don’t be afraid of rejection. Be willing to succeed too. I think sometimes we can be afraid of success and not even realize it. We want it, but we are also afraid of it. In making this work, we learn more about ourselves, so no matter the outcome the journey is worthwhile. 

Learn More about Rebekah Lowell

To learn more about Rebekah Lowell and keep up with her latest art and events, check out her website and social media:

Rebekah is represented by Paige Terlip at Andrea Brown Literary Agency.

A nature sketchbook pond study in watercolors of cattails and water by Rebekah Lowell.

Are you a published or soon-to-be published illustrator or author/illustrator who loves creating books about nature, animals, or the environment? I’d love to chat with you for a KidLit Connection interview! Send me a message.

KidLit Connection: Getting to Know Illustrator, Luciana Navarro Powell

Light Speaks written by Christine Layton, illustrated by Luciana Navarro Powell/Tilbury House 2023. A whimsical illustration of a child holding two fireflies in their hands while another catches fireflies in a jar.

I’m so excited to introduce the first KidLit Connection illustrator of 2023! Luciana Navarro Powell is a multimedia artist originally from Brazil and living in the beautiful Pacific Northwest of Washington. Her illustrations vary from colorful and fun to mysterious and moody. Luciana’s versatility in mediums and style has resulted in more than a dozen books and many magazine illustrations as well. Her love of the outdoors and observations from nature and the places she’s lived inspire her engaging compositions and color palette. Her illustrations bring to life so many great stories for kids.

Illustrator, Luciana Navarro Powell, smiling with her books in the background.

Luciana has a background in product design and graphic design, but began her full-time venture into illustration in 2001. Her most recently published book, Happy Birthday, Belly Button (written by Kalli Dakos) just released this week! So, happy book birthday to her! And she has another amazing book, Light Speaks (written by Christine Layton) releasing in April this year as well, available for pre-order. Plus, Two Measly Spots (written by Elaine Gast Fawcett and Sue Schwartzman) was also released earlier this year by independent publisher UpSpot Publishing! Luciana has been very busy with so many book projects. To learn more about all of Luciana’s books and upcoming releases, visit her website at www.lucianaillustration.com.

Be sure to read to the end to find out how you can get a signed art print from Luciana!

An Interview with Luciana Navarro Powell, Picture Book Illustrator

We’d love to know more about you as an illustrator. What inspires you and your art and what do you love about your job creating books for kids?

Thank you so much for having me in your blog! I loved drawing as a kid, and when I was 10 my parents enrolled me in a painting class with a local famous painter in the city I grew up in Brazil. I always enjoyed looking at art, loved Art History classes, but never thought about it as a career. A lot of things inspire me, I look at the world through my pair of illustrator glasses. What color would I use to paint the leaves on that tree, How would I illustrate the sun rays filtering through the tree branches, what shade of blue would I use to paint that tree shadow—that is my brain when I’m outside going for a walk. Absolutely everything is an illustration subject to me.

How did you start making art for picture books? What inspired you to pursue this type of work?

I started taking freelance jobs in illustration when I still lived in Brazil. When I was still in college—I majored in Industrial Design—I connected with an editor that worked with master and doctorate students at the University I studied. She edited their thesis, usually from Humanities majors, and made them into books. I designed the covers and sometimes illustrated interior pages. That led me to illustrate a series of educational materials she edited for a governmental institution that supported agricultural communities, and I really enjoyed doing illustrations for children. From then on illustration for kids publications became my focus.

Book cover art for Happy Birthday, Belly Button and Light Speaks, illustrations by Luciana Navarro Powell. Text reads, "Pre-Order Available"!

Happy book birthday this month to HAPPY BIRTHDAY, BELLY BUTTON! Your newest book, written by Kalli Dakos, and published by Amicus Ink, is now available and I’m so excited! Can you tell us more about this book?

Thank you! Kalli Dakos is the author and she is a veteran poet for children with many books published, and reading specialist. The book is about a joyful child who celebrates being one year older, calling out body parts from head to toe that have grown since their last birthday. It’s fun and exuberant and a great read aloud with toddlers and preschoolers, to celebrate a birthday of just the wonderment of growing up!

For this book I used soft pastels, mostly white backgrounds and a bright palette to convey the energy and joyful moments for that kid’s special day.

"Happy Birthday, Belly Button" written by Kalli Dakos, illustrated by Luciana Navarro Powell/Amicus Ink 2023. A small child runs through a hallway with a comb stuck in their hair, as a cat hides behind a plant.

You also have another book coming out later this spring, LIGHT SPEAKS, written by Christine Layton, and published by Tilbury House. I’m so excited about the art for this—it looks gorgeous! Would you tell us more about it?

Thank you! For Light Speaks I went almost the opposite direction, visually. Because the book is about light, a lot of the pages are dark—either night time or in the darkness of the universe with contrasting bright galaxies. The text by Christine Layton is beautiful—even though it’s nonfiction, it’s sparse and lyrical, and I approached it with a slightly less finished look and bolder composition to try to convey the different aspects of light through the book.

"Light Speaks" written by Christine Layton, illustrated by Luciana Navarro Powell/Tilbury House 2023. A colorful and whimsical illustration of the Big Bang explosion, with stars and galaxies flying off into space.

What was your favorite part about illustrating these two books? Additionally, what was one of your greatest challenges working on them?

I love how completely different they are! Happy Birthday, Belly Button is playful and festive, a romp, with a delicious silliness to it. Light Speaks has a touch of mystery, almost—how light manifests in different ways, from the grandiosity of the Big Bang to the small tragedy of the baby turtles being led the wrong way by artificial light. The challenge for Happy Birthday was how to make the story about different body parts into something cohesive—so I created the second layer narrative of the child getting ready for the guests that show up at the party. That is the beauty of the Picture Book, the alchemy of text and pictures. 

A similar challenge was tackled in Light Speaks—I weaved a second narrative of the children in the seaside town. They walk at night, catching fire flies with their family and head to the bonfire party at the beach in the end.

Process images, including sketches and partially finished pieces from Happy Birthday, Belly Button. Art by Luciana Navarro Powell.
A peek at the process of creating Happy Birthday, Belly Button

We’d love to hear about your process for creating picture book art. Could you share more about your mediums and how you work?

For each book I use a slightly different approach. I always start sketching on paper. I create some parts of the art using analog methods, and everything gets scanned and comes together digitally in Photoshop. For Happy Birthday, Belly Button I wanted to convey a lightness and energy to that rambunctious child. I used pan pastels, color pencils and watercolors, as well as some acrylic for heavier brush strokes. 

For Light Speaks I used stencils and acrylic paints, creating some swatches of color and textured that I scanned and later composed on Photoshop. I also used some real light to illustrate! The stars were created by perforating a paper bag and photographing tiny spots of real sunlight inside—check the photo! The Big Bang light explosion is a real light reflection on walls, using some crystal pieces. It was super fun to play with real light to create art for this book about Light.

Process images of creating Light Speaks, including sketches, photographs, and partially finished illustrations. Art by Luciana Navarro Powell.
A peek at the process of creating Light Speaks

Could you tell us more about how nature inspires your work and what role it has in your art?

As I mentioned, I walk in the world wearing my Illustrator Glasses—I see everything as if I was going to illustrate it for a book: colors, shapes, peoples faces. I also LOVE plein air painting. My favorite thing to do with my family is adventuring outdoors. I often bring my watercolors and paint where we are! I have painted in a few National Parks, you can see some of my paintings in the Personal Work link on my website!

"Two Measly Spots" written by Elaine Gast Fawcett and Sue Schartzman/illustrated by Luciana Navarro Powell/UpSpot Publishing 2023. A whimsically illustrated ladybug flies into a colorful landscape of mountains, trees, a river, and waterfall.

You also have other book projects you’ve been working on. Can you tell us more about them?

I am currently working on illustration for textbooks, and also a series of 4 board books that I’m preparing for my agent to start pitching to editors. Keep your fingers crossed for me!

What is your greatest hope for your work as a kids’ book illustrator?

My hope is that my illustrations help kids to get lost in the books they are reading—feeding their imaginations as they read, and after. When that happens, there is a good chance that this kid will become a lifelong inquisitive, curious, critical thinker reader—and consequently a better citizen and steward of this planet.

"Happy Birthday, Belly Button" written by Kalli Dakos, illustrated by Luciana Navarro Powell/Amicus Ink 2023. A whimsical illustration of a child moving about and playing a drum excitedly.

Learn More About Luciana

To learn and see more from Luciana Navarro Powell, visit her on her website and social media.

Review Luciana’s Books and Get an Art Print!

Luciana is offering a special promotion to anyone (US residents only) who purchases and reviews online any of her books. Follow her on social media (Twitter or Instagram) and DM her proof of purchase and screen shot of review (either Amazon, GoodReads, Indiebound, or all) and she will mail you 1 signed, 6×8″ fine-art paper print of any page you choose from the book you purchased/reviewed. 

Luciana is represented by Deborah Warren at East West Literary Agency.

Are you a published or soon-to-be published illustrator or author/illustrator who loves creating books about nature, animals, or the environment? I’d love to chat with you for a KidLit Connection interview! Send me a message.

Donate & Win Art!—Victoria’s 2023 Birthday Fundraiser for Mass Audubon

Artist Victoria K. Chapman holds up her art print and smiles. The text reads: Donate & Win Art! Through 3/20. Victoria's Birthday Celebrate. Benefits Mass Audubon. www.weyakindesigns.com

It’s that time of year again, where I’ve made another trip around the sun and turn another year older. My birthday is in early March and this year I’m celebrating by raising money for Mass Audubon (https://www.massaudubon.org). This wonderful conservation organization does great work preserving wild places in Massachusetts for all to enjoy and educating the people of Massachusetts about wildlife, nature, and conservation. I’m asking YOU to help me celebrate by donating! And in return, I’ll enter you in a raffle to win your choice of some art prints featuring my illustrations.

How Does The Fundraiser and Raffle Work?

  • Donate to the Facebook fundraiser for Mass Audubon.
  • Your name will be included in the raffle.
  • The fundraiser runs from now through March 20th, 2023.
  • I will pick winners on March 21st, 2023 and post it on the fundraiser or email you.
  • If you win, I’ll need you to contact me with your art print choice and mailing address so I know where to send your print.
Donate on Facebook

IMPORTANT: You cannot be entered if you donate privately. I need to be able to see your name to enter you in the raffle. Please make your donation publicly if you wish to be entered into the art raffle!

Can I Donate Outside of Facebook?

Yes! If you’d like to enter but don’t want to use Facebook, you can donate directly to Mass Audubon here: https://www.massaudubon.org

  • In order to be entered in the raffle, you MUST email me a screen shot of your donation receipt.
  • Please email me with the screen shot and your name at weyakin@weyakindesigns.com.
  • Please title your email: BIRTHDAY FUNDRAISER DONATION
Donate Directly to Mass Audubon

Don’t forget to email me your receipt so I can enter you in the raffle!

Which Art Can I Win?

I’ll pick TWO (2) winners for this birthday raffle! If you win, you can pick ONE (1) of your choice of the following art prints:

I can’t wait to see how much we can raise together for Mass Audubon! Thank you for sharing in the joy and spirit of nature with me for my birthday!

KidLit Connection: Getting to Know Illustrator, Marie Hermansson

An older man and child work together to plant a seedling in a garden bed in an urban community garden. In the background, another group of people water some kale plants. Illustrated by Marie Hermansson.

I’m so excited for the fifth interview in the KidLit Connection series, where I interview illustrators and author/illustrators who create amazing art for kids. This series has a focus on illustrators who share the magic of the imagination and spirit of nature with children and their grownups.

A portrait of illustrator, Marie Hermansson.
Marie Hermansson,
Children’s Book Illustrator

This month, I had the great pleasure of hearing from children’s book illustrator Marie Hermansson. Marie is a multi-talented artist with an eye for design and color. With a background in garden design and landscape architecture, Marie’s illustrations for kids bring out the magic of nature and the outside world. This is especially evident in her latest book, Listen to the Language of the Trees (written by Tera Kelley, published by Sourcebooks Kids, 2022). We’ll hear more from Marie about the process of creating this amazing STEM themed nature book in the interview, plus more about her upcoming books and other art projects.

Marie lives with her family in North Carolina, including her two children (ages 9 and 7) who lovingly help her out with critiques. When she’s not working on books for kids or other art, she finds curiosity and inspiration in the natural world by going for hikes and gardening. I really loved hearing from Marie about what inspires her, about her projects and process, and more. I hope you do too!

An Interview with Marie Hermansson, Children’s Book Illustrator

We’d love to know more about you as an illustrator. What inspires you and your art and what do you love about your job as a KidLit illustrator?

A man, a child, and a dog walk through the woods near a pond with mountains in the background. Birds, squirrels, and deer look at them from behind the trees and bushes. A whimsical illustration by Marie Hermansson.

Thanks so much for having me here Victoria. Nature is my big inspiration, that’s pretty broad I know! Specifically, I love diverse environments, habitats, landscapes, oceanscapes and the flora and fauna found in those places. Children with their innate curiosity and love of nature are always an inspiration. I love how lighting and color set moods in an illustration. I am drawn to abstract fine art landscape painting and I think that I tend to create a bit of a fine art look for my landscape work in my KidLit illustration. In fact, I am always looking for ways to loosen up my art. With landscapes I can do that with more confidence but I am still trying to loosen up in how I draw my characters and creatures. It’s ever evolving!

Being a KidLit illustrator was (and still is!) my dream job. It wasn’t something that I set out to do, I found my way to it organically. Illustrating really lights me up and I feel like I am drawing and smiling at my computer the whole time like a crazy person. When I am drawing I think about the readers, the children who will be looking at the illustrations and hoping that they will bring them some joy. Maybe something in the drawing will be a talking point for them and their parent, caretaker or teacher. Maybe it will inspire them in some way. I know how much my own children love looking at and reading picture books so I hope that my books will bring that kind of happiness to other kids too.

How did you start making art for kids’ books? What inspired you to pursue this type of work?

As I mentioned above, my KidLit career developed naturally over time and wasn’t really planned. About 6 years ago I began illustrating on a daily basis. At the time I was having fun making greeting cards for my Etsy shop without any serious thought of making a career out of it. After a couple of months on Etsy I was contacted by the company that publishes all of the greeting cards for Trader Joe’s. They wanted to license artwork from me for a greeting card. This was a pivotal point for my illustration work for two reasons. First, I didn’t even know about art licensing and second, someone actually liked my art enough to pay me money to use it! It was such a confidence boost and I began to take my illustration work more seriously.

I started to get more clients for surface design but I realized as my style developed that I was illustrating in a way that lended itself to picture books. Telling a story visually was something that I was drawn to. I signed up for a picture book course, Skillshare, bought some books and began to learn more about picture book illustration and publishing. After about 6 months I had gained enough confidence to start looking for an agent. Soon thereafter I was approached by my first agency and started making my first picture book. I now am with a new agency and continuing to develop my career and making more picture books.

Your most recently published book LISTEN TO THE LANGUAGE OF THE TREES: A STORY OF HOW FORESTS COMMUNICATE UNDERGROUND (written by Tera Kelley, published by Sourcebooks Kids) is a beautiful STEM book with scientific facts about trees. Can you tell us more about this book?

Listen to the Language of the Trees was such a joy to work on and I am grateful that I was chosen to illustrate it. It was my first book project so I learned a lot about the process of making a picture book as well as working with a team at a publishing house. I did a ton of research on the topic and learned a great deal in the process.

The forest in the story is an old growth Douglas fir forest. These forests stretch from Oregon all the way into Canada. There are certain types of animals that live there, some of which you see in the book. The story is actually fiction but is teaching a nonfiction topic. It talks about how trees communicate with one another underground through a network, “the wood wide web” of fungi—helping and supporting each other as a community much like people do. It is an amazing story and I hope that people who read this book will think about forests and trees in different way, to respect them, to want to protect them and understand their importance. It’s not just the trees that make up the forest community but, all of the plants and animals that live there as well.

An early sketch idea for the cover of Listen to the Language of the Trees. Trees curve and flank the title. Illustrated by Marie Hermansson.
An early sketch idea for the cover of Listen to the Language of the Trees. An aerial view of trees in a circle around the title. Illustrated by Marie Hermansson.
An early sketch idea for the cover of Listen to the Language of the Trees. Tree roots growing underground, surrounding the title. Illustrated by Marie Hermansson.
The final color cover for Listen to the Language of the Trees. Colorful tree roots grown underground and surround the title. Illustrated by Marie Hermansson.
The three sketch ideas presented for the cover of Listen to the Language of the Trees, and the final cover art.

What was your favorite part about illustrating LISTEN TO THE LANGUAGE OF THE TREES? Additionally, what was one of your greatest challenges working on this book?

I realized how much I enjoy drawing forests and natural environments in general when I illustrated this book. There was an ah-ha moment when I thought to myself…this might be my thing! Drawing the animals was the challenge. I hadn’t drawn tons of animals previously, so it was just a matter of deciding how I wanted to draw them, how I wanted to stylized them, how much I wanted to stylize them. So they took longer to figure out. I understood that with more experience drawing animals, it would become less of a challenge over time, so I leaned in.

A double page spread of dummy book sketches from the book, Listen to the Language of the Trees. Lightening strikes across the sky and hits a tree. On the lower panel, animals scatter across the forest floor. Illustrated by Marie Hermansson.
A dummy sketch from the book, Listen to the Language of the Trees

Could you tell us more about how nature inspires your work and what role it has in your art?

An illustration of sharks underwater, seagulls overhead, and a fishing boat on the water. Illustrated by Marie Hermansson.

Just a simple thing as a walk in the woods has always been such a visceral experience for me. I have always noticed everything and been curious about it all, even as an adult. The dichotomy of the natural world is intriguing. On the surface it appears to be so simple, but in reality it’s infinitely complex and everything is connected. I think that the reason there are so many environmental problems today is that people have neglected to see and understand that complexity.

When I create illustrations for nature-oriented kids books I research quite a lot about that particular place or habitat or species. It’s a continuous education. There’s so much to learn and be inspired by. In a way, illustrating is my way of better understanding the world around me. I hope that the children looking at my illustrations can be inspired and learn from it as well.

We’d love to hear about your process as a picture book illustrator and how you work as an artist. Could you share more about that?

Process for me is ever-evolving. Different books require different processes.

Generally though, my process begins by reading and understanding the manuscript.  What is the author saying and is there anything to read between the lines? If so, how might I show that visually? Next, reviewing the art direction, and making sure that I’m clear on what it is that they are looking for. I’ll start sketching thumbnails, really small and mainly lines of movement and shapes thinking about how the readers eyes will flow across the page. I am always looking for ways to create interesting layouts and perspectives.

During all of this I am also conducting my research. I feel like I’m doing that the entire time through the process. I’ll sketch out characters until I arrive at something I like. Then, I’ll do a more refined sketch on paper and scan that into the computer to begin to put together the sketch files I will send to the art director and team. 

I love moving to color, which is a whole other bag of worms. 🙂 Deciding on color is its own process. Then, there’s deciding on which brushes I want to use to create textures. I have favorites, but Kyle makes it hard on me because he’s always creating new brush packs that I can’t resist! I love discovering new brushes and playing with the textures they can create. The possibilities are endless, but the time in my schedule is not so I have to show some self restraint.

You also have four book projects all coming out in 2024 (WOW)! Can you tell us more about those projects?

Yes! I would love to tell you about them! First, another picture book with Sourcebook Kids (I love them). It’s titled The Reindeer Remainders by Katey Howes. The book teaches math concepts, emotional navigation, and forest life all in a school day. It’s really a fun story and I am having a good time illustrating it. I’m working on the color finals as we speak!

The next book is I Am A Thundercloud by Leah Moser, published by Running Press Kids.  This is a book that aims to teach children about how to self-regulate a storm of big feelings. I’m thrilled to be working on this book because my son and I read a lot of books on this topic. It’s a new topic for me to illustrate, emotional landscapes, but I have enjoyed the challenge. Can’t wait for you all to read it!

The other two books are part of the Lucy Calkins nonfiction reader series for Heinemann a division of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. Both of these book are about the ocean. The first one is following the life journey of green sea turtle and discusses the habitat of the Great Barrier Reef. These books are really great because they also address the issues that these animals and their habitats face due to climate change. I love that these topics are being discussed in a reader series and I am really proud to be a part of this particular book project.

What other work have you done as an illustrator that relates to your work as a nature artist?

An illustration of 8 different children playing on and around a treehouse, tire swing, and rope swing. A playful dog tugs on the rope swing. Illustrated by Marie Hermansson.

A lot of the greeting card work I did before starting to work in children’s publishing had nature themes. Although, I have previously done some larger canvas paintings before for personal projects. I studied garden design/landscape architecture in college, so I was designing planting plans like butterfly gardens, rain gardens, pollinator gardens and native plants that would attract and provide a habitat for local wildlife. It involved a lot of sketching and working in the digital programs that I use now to create my illustration work.

What is your biggest dream for your work as a kids’ book illustrator?

It’s such a dream come true to already be making children’s books, and I am so grateful to be doing it. I really want to continue to work on well-written, beautiful and inspiring books for children, to have projects coming in on a regular, consistent basis. I would love to work with a well known author and I have a bucket list of all the publishers I want to work with.

What is something you’d like to tell aspiring picture book illustrators?

There are so many things! Unfortunately, there is no magic formula. What works for one person won’t necessarily work for another. Developing your career is a process much like the one you use to create your art. It takes research, planning, effort and time. Research is really key. Read about the publishing industry, learn who all the publishers are, read interviews with agents, art directors and editors about what they are looking for in an illustrator, what type of illustrations are they interested in seeing? 

Being an illustrator is different from being an artist. With illustration you are hired to illustrate what the publisher is wanting. If you are interested in illustrating a certain topic, look at as many picture books as you can that are about that topic. It’s good to be aware of what is already existing and learn from it. Learn from people who are doing what you want to do. Take courses, look up instructional YouTube videos to get a handle on the art fundamentals, read illustration blogs and join the social media community of illustrators and watch process videos. There are so many helpers out there! People who have so much experience and are sharing what they know for you to learn from. Keep at it!!

A red squirrel holds a blue paintbrush by a piece of painted paper, which reads: "Rep'd by Caryn Wiseman. Andrea Brown Literary Agency". Illustrated by Marie Hermansson.

See More from Marie Hermansson

To learn and see more from Marie Hermansson, visit her website and social media pages:

Marie is represented by Caryn Wiseman at Andrea Brown Literary.

Are you a published or soon-to-be published illustrator or author/illustrator who loves creating books about nature, animals, or the environment? I’d love to chat with you for a KidLit Connection interview! Send me a message.

KidLit Connection: Getting to Know Author-Illustrator, Kari Percival

An illustrated page spread of Kari Percival's book, HOW TO SAY HELLO TO A WORM. Four children dig in the dirt and pour water in a community garden bed.
A spread from Kari Percival’s picture book HOW TO SAY HELLO TO A WORK: A FIRST GUIDE TO OUTSIDE

In the second of the KidLit Connection blog series, I interviewed illustrator, writer, and environmental educator, Kari Percival. Kari has studied art, environmental science, and teaching. Her education combined with her work as a science teacher, running a local preschool gardening program, and experience as a parent has helped shape her unique perspective when creating books for children. 

Author/Illustrator and environmental educator Kari Percival works with young children in the community gardens during her Early Birds Garden Club program.

Kari creates colorful woodcut prints that show dynamic relationships between kids and nature. Her storytelling inspires small children and their grownups to make a positive difference in the world through connecting with nature. Her picture book HOW TO SAY HELLO TO A WORM: A FIRST GUIDE TO OUTSIDE (published by Rise x Penguin Workshop) is a perfect guide for preschoolers who love to get their hands dirty, play in nature, and learn all about how plants grow. 

In this post, Kari tells us about the experiences that have shaped her work as an illustrator and storyteller and what inspires her to create books for children. I really loved hearing about all the interesting pieces of Kari’s life that have made her the book creator she is today.

Kari’s Interview

First, let’s talk a bit about you as an author and illustrator. Could you tell us more about what inspires you and what you love about being a creator of books for kids? 

As my extended family is cleaning out old storage boxes, they send me these little picture books I wrote when I was a child, that they’d tucked away, that I hadn’t seen for 40 years. Little stories about nature, local wildlife, or my pets. When I was in grade school, I guess our teachers had us make books a lot, bound and covered in wallpaper samples. I could write and draw whatever I wanted in them, and I gave them as gifts to family members a lot. I guess when I write and illustrate picture books, its like I am still making and giving gifts out, except now its to the children of the world. 

As an environmental educator AND picture book author/illustrator, how does each type of work relate to and inform the other?

Children and parents working in the community gardens at the Early Bird Garden Club run by Kari Percival.
Children and parents working in the community gardens at the Early Bird Garden Club run by Kari Percival.

Teaching informs my writing, but also, my writing is motivated by my love of learning and my love of ecology, of a deep wonder and love for all the beautiful, vulnerable, magical and amazing life on Earth. I am an artist, but I went to graduate school to learn to be a science teacher. Although I love art, and it comes easily to me, I don’t think everyone should be forced to make art if they would rather play basketball or whatever thay love to do. But I do think its imperative that every young person learns about ecology, and biology, and environmental science, because every young person will grow up to be a voter and decision maker, and they need to know how we are all members of the web of life, and how our decisions affect all life on Earth. I worked as a science teacher in public schools for 10 years, and I hope to maybe go back someday, but I took a break when I had children, and that is when I started thinking of books I wanted to write.

How did you first get into creating children’s books? What made you want to pursue this type of art? 

When I had my own children, I really enjoyed re-entering the world of children’s picture books as a parent. There are so many wonderful books, classics and new. There were also gaps: so many books I thought were missing from the shelf. I thought maybe I could apply my art and storytelling skills to making books to fill where I thought some gaps were. It seemed like a long shot, but maybe worth a try. 

Let’s talk about the most recently published book you wrote and illustrated, HOW TO SAY HELLO TO A WORM: A FIRST GUIDE TO OUTSIDE. Can you tell us a little more about the book and what inspired you to write it? 

I’m an environmental educator and so inviting kids outdoors and learning to grow food – even just to learn where food comes from – and see how we are made of food that is made of sunshine and how we share the world with other living beings, inviting and empowering very young children to become immersed in hands-on outdoor learning, edible education – that is my goal with this book.

When my kids were small, I started Early Birds Garden Club, a meet-up for toddler and parents that wanted to learn to grow food at our local community garden. Though leading the group, I learned what questions toddlers had about learning to garden, what questions they had about nature, and what gardening activities they enjoyed doing. My cracker jack agent, Teresa Kietlinski of Bookmark Literary, suggested I should write a book on how to garden for toddlers.  She knew that I would know just where to start, because I knew just what types of questions curious kids that age had. So then I wrote HOW TO SAY HELLO TO A WORM. They say “write what you know” and that was true for me with this book.

A spread from Kari Percival's Book, HOW TO SAY HELLO TO A WORM. Children dig in a garden and pick up worms. The text reads, "How do you say hello to a worm? Gently, very gently. Hello, Worm!"
A spread from Kari Percival’s book HOW TO SAY HELLO TO A WORM: A FIRST GUIDE TO OUTSIDE
Kari’s sketch of the above spread prior to creating the final artwork.

What was your favorite part about creating HOW TO SAY HELLO TO A WORM? And what was a challenge you had to overcome while working on it, if any? 

Botanicals: I loved drawing portraits of plants! And I loved the “casting call” – creating and getting to know all the characters of the little children who garden in the book. I also loved thinking of writing the book from the perspective of what questions the youngest garden explorers would wonder about. A challenge was cutting images that I wanted to include. Cutting is the hardest! Originally, I wanted more of the pictures to contain lots of kids doing lots of gardening activities, but the design team focused each composition on a certain interaction with fewer children and more space for the words. And that was actually probably good anyway when it came time to produce the final art on a tight timeline!

You also have a new book coming out soon called SAFE CROSSING, which will be published by Chronicle Books. What is that book about and what can kids and their grown-ups learn from it? 

SAFE CROSSING is an informational fiction story about a family of community scientists who volunteer with an amphibian migration team in springtime.  They help salamanders and frogs cross the street to avoid getting crushed by cars. When they realize that more needs to be done to protect these small creatures, they rally their community to build a wildlife tunnel so even more amphibians can cross safely. The story models grown-ups listening to kids ideas around protecting animals from harm.

What is your greatest hope for your work as a creator of books for kids? 

As a parent and a teacher, I know how – after a long challenging day when you have given your all, are running on fumes and you have no more ideas of what to say to your child or your students, – what a relief it can be to hunker down and read a picture book togther. I am so thankful to all the picture book creators who help caregivers and teachers explore interesting, wonderful or difficult topics with their children, with beauty and sensitivity and humor and honesty. My hope is for my work to give caregivers and children more ways to find joy and meaning together, and to honor their impulses to share wonder and love of our beautiful world and life on earth.

What is something you’d like to tell aspiring picture book authors/illustrators? 

Work or volunteer regularly with children in the age range of your target audience, doing something you love. Read books currently being published in the genre (within the last 5 years.) Find a community of writers or illutrators in the genre you aspire to publish in. Connect with them and ask them questions. Join critique groups in organizations like SCBWI, 12×12 or take classes where you can share work in a supportive environments where you can exchange feedback with others.  Use your best manners, experiment a lot, share your experiments, note what work you do that people respond most to, and do more of that.  Read you book outloud to yourself in the mirror and to young test audiences, notice where eyes glaze over and then edit those spots. Enter contests, be humble, and learn, learn, learn. Develop effective time habits, and organizational habits so that when opportunity knocks, you are ready with bells on. Ask someone knowledgable to look at a contract for red flags before you sign it.

A page from Kari Percival's book HOW TO SAY HELLO TO A WORM. Two children play under a play hut made from pea plants and have a tea party. The text reads: "But when will there be peas? See how the play hut is shady? See the flowers? See the bees? You'll see pea pods next."
This page from HOW TO SAY HELLO TO A WORM explains to young children when peas will start growing in the vegetable garden.

See More from Kari Percival

You can learn more about Kari and see more of her work online. Check out the links and be sure to follow her on social media!

Are you a published or soon-to-be published children’s illustrator or author/illustrator who’s interested in being interviewed as part of the KidLit Connection series? If your work has a focus on nature, the environment, animals, or mindfulness, I’d love to chat with you! You can get in touch with me using the contact form on my site.

Primavera Mother—Time-Lapse Painting Demo Video

A watercolor mixed-media illustration of a young mother gazing lovingly at her newborn baby. Her hair is filled with flowers and butterflies and a bumblebee hover around them. Art by Victoria K. Chapman.
Primavera Mother by Victoria K. Chapman

I was recently inspired by Mother’s Day, which just passed, and my experience as a mother myself to create a new painting. I was also inspired by the beautiful flowers that are now emerging in the spring. One morning, I visited our local New England Botanic Gardens at Tower Hill in Boylston, MA. I found so much joy in all of the amazing flowers and pollinators sipping up their nectar. I created a sketch from these two sources of inspirations while I was there. The next two days after, I created this new hand-painted illustration, “Primavera Mother” and then made this time-lapse painting demo video to share.

I set up a camera to run while I worked in order to create a time-lapsed video of the illustration process. I always find it so interesting to watch other artists and illustrators paint, draw, and work their craft. I know others enjoy this too. I hope you also enjoy this new video of the process to create “Primavera Mother”.

“Primavera Mother” was created using watercolors, gouache, gel pen, and colored pencils. It took approximately 15 hours to create from drawing sketches to finished painting. There were several hours of video footage to edit down and compress into 4 minutes, which was quite the challenge!

The music in the video is a song I wrote called “Love at First Sight”, which was originally written as a lullaby for my son when he was one year old. The lyrics are about how one loves their newborn baby so deeply and quickly even though they just met. It is the true “love at first sight”. You can hear more of my music at aquaence.com and aquaence.bandcamp.com/music.

If you’re interested in purchasing prints of “Primavera Mother”, you can find both 9×12″ matted prints and 5×7″ matted prints in my online art shop. If you’re interested in purchasing the original, please contact me.

Thanks for watching!