CULTIVATING CREATIVITY, Part 3: Tips & Strategies Featuring Diana Murray, London Ladd, and Jeff Mack

November 4, 2024 / / No comments

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Inspired by my bumbling attempts to teach an online writing class for Gotham Writers, I recently called upon a number of children’s book authors and illustrators with a basic question:

What do you do, if anything, to cultivate your own creativity? 

Amazingly, some of them responded.

Today we’ll look at the terrific answers I received from Diana Murray, London Ladd, and Jeff Mack. 

Previously I featured responses from Travis Jonker, Paul Acampora, and Michelle Knudsen. Stomp on this link and it will magically transport you there like a portkey in some Harry Potter book.

 

DIANA MURRAY

I enjoy actively brainstorming. I open a google doc and write any idea that pops into my head, no matter how terrible. Sometimes I’ll highlight titles with colors if I think they’re particularly promising. Other times, I’ll make notes next to them like “not relatable” or “cute but needs tension” or I’ll gray titles out if they’re particularly bad. I also add to this list when I get spontaneous ideas while doing other stuff, like walking the dog. If I don’t write an idea down, I invariably forget it, and that drives me nuts! When I want to start a new project, I refer to my list. It’s a single list which is currently 97 pages. If an idea really strikes me as interesting, I experiment with a few lines. If it goes well, then I break it out into its own document.

 

If you like stories about unicorns, witches, pizza chefs, sleepy veggies, or adventures in the city, Diana Murray is the writer for you. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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LONDON LADD

 

Probably the most essential thing for continuing my creative passions is to wake up early, between 4-5am, at least five days a week,  open my sketchbook to doodle . . .

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. . . and maybe surf the internet looking for artwork that interests and inspires me to see and think in ways I may not have considered before. My happiest place is my sketchbook because it’s my most authentic artistic expression—where I can liberate myself from the world’s cares, experiment, have fun, and discover new and exciting things.

Getting up so early often is probably not suitable for my long-term health, especially if I go to bed late, but that’s an essential factor in pushing myself out of my comfort zone because staleness is scary. Other factors like deadline crunch may cause me to skip it for some time, too, which could lead to anxiety, depression, fear, doubt, and imposture syndrome creeping into my mind, which could hinder my creativity. And so could sleep deprivation, too. It is a double-edged sword, but I can’t think of any other approach that works for me. 

 

 

London Ladd has been a rising star for so long, I half-expect to look up and see his face in the night sky. The rest of the world is catching on.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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JEFF MACK

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I store my ideas in Notes on my phone. It lets me forget stuff, then rediscover it.

I don’t tell anyone about my story before I’ve written a few drafts. If I share my story before I write it, then I won’t feel the need to write it.

I work on many stories simultaneously. For me, writing is like solving puzzles with many possible solutions. The solution to one puzzle may be waiting for me in a different story.

I often take parts of one story and add them to another. Characters are especially interchangeable.

Writing is an uncomfortable process. I’ve come to accept that there’s no way around it. I like to daydream, but eventually I have to sit down and work.

There’s rarely a better time to write than when I don’t feel like it.

The need to earn a living can be a useful motivation for creativity.

 

Jeff Mack’s most recent book — um, I think it’s his most recent — Jeff is a busy guy — has been getting Caldecott buzz. But don’t mention that to Jeff; it makes his knees itch.

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Category: Cultivating Creativity, the writing process / Tags: , , , , , , ,

This Saturday, November 2nd: The Rochester Children’s Book Festival!

October 31, 2024 / / No comments

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The obvious upside that comes with signing at book festivals is that we get to meet young readers. And that’s a beautiful thing. But more and more, I’m looking behind these kids and seeing a smiling grandparent, a mother with three other children in tow, a dad who looks more excited to be there than anybody in the room. The families that support literacy and believe in books and want that for their children. So they carve out the time, gas up the car, drive out to the festival, open their wallets, and act like the whole thing is xmas morning. I believe this is the festival’s 29th year and it couldn’t happen without a strong, generous community. Year after year, these inspiring families come out to the Rochester Children’s Book Festival. I’m so lucky to have a seat at the table. It does the heart good.
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Please say hello if you can make it.
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Category: Current Events, Happenings / Tags: ,

CULTIVATING CREATIVITY, Part 2: Tips & Strategies Featuring Travis Jonker, Paul Acampora, and Michelle Knudsen

October 30, 2024 / / One comment

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As outlined in a previous post, I called upon a variety of children’s book authors and illustrators with a basic question:

What do you do, if anything, to cultivate your own creativity? 

Today we’ll look at the answers I received from Travis Jonker, Paul Acampora, and Michelle Knudsen.

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TRAVIS JONKER

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Well, I didn’t think I would ever share this with anyone, but since you asked . . .

Whenever I begin a new notebook, I write the following in the back:

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It’s a reminder to myself that I don’t have to do a whole lot to express my creativity.

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Readers should run (don’t walk) to pick up a copy of Travis Jonker’s new picture book, illustrated by my pal, Caldecott Medalist Matthew Cordell.

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PAUL ACAMPORA

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My “creativity practice” is embarrassingly simple: I take notes. I am constantly writing down snippets of conversations, song lyrics, descriptions of found objects, occasional historical facts, and funny names of people, places, food, and dogs. My notes are not particularly noteworthy, but for some reason they catch my eye. Once a week or so I review what I’ve collected on scraps, post-its, and notes apps. I jot them onto a page in a dollar-store composition notebook for possible use at a later date.

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I’m usually disappointed to learn that my observations are painfully mundane, but then I remember Eleanor Rigby picking up rice after a wedding or a moocow coming down the road or how much depends upon a red wheelbarrow or a dog named Winn-Dixie, and I keep taking note of the simple things that might be the seeds for my next story.

 

Paul Acampora’s most recent middle-grade novel is the achingly beautiful (and funny), In Honor of Broken Things. 

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MICHELLE KNUDSEN

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Three things that help me with writing are walks, music, and Post-It Notes.

Walks are good for having ideas, for thinking through tricky plot points, for shaking up my mind after too much time at my desk.

Sometimes music and walks go together. Sometimes I make playlists that I only listen to when writing or thinking about a particular book. Sometimes one song will get associated with a book, and then I’ll just listen to that song on endless repeat.

Music usually only works for novels though. I need quiet for picture books.

Post-It Notes work for everything. I have lots of colors and sizes, and I love how low-pressure they are. I can write a word or a phrase that seems to have potential and just stick it somewhere around my desk. Sometimes those turn into something more; sometimes they end up crumpled into little paper balls to amuse my cats. Either result is acceptable.

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Michelle Knudsen’s most recent picture book features a reunion with illustrator Kevin Hawkes, the team that created the all-time classic, Library Lion. 

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PLEASE COME BACK ANOTHER TIME FOR MORE TIPS & STRATEGIES FROM SOME OF THE BEST MINDS (and creative spirits!) IN CHILDREN’S LITERATURE. 

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And while you are still here, I guess I ought to say that I first started working in children’s publishing in 1985 and never had the good sense to find alternative employment.  Here are my two new books from 2024: 

 

         

Category: Cultivating Creativity, the writing process / Tags: , , , , , , , , ,

CULTIVATING CREATIVITY: Tips & Strategies, Part 1

October 28, 2024 / / One comment
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Once upon a time, I sent a message to a variety of children’s authors and illustrators. People who are my friends. And I asked a favor. As someone who purports to “teach” writing — much more guide on the side than sage on stage — I had begun to think that being creative — thinking & living & breathing creativity — was a very important part of it. But what do the best in the business do to cultivate that creativity within themselves? I was curious to learn any tips or suggestions. 
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Unfortunately, I dropped the ball for a variety of reasons, months pushed past, leaves budded and fell, but I’m here to say that I have recovered the fumble!
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To get things rolling, here is the letter I sent . . . 
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As you may know, I sometimes teach a zoom class for adults interested in writing for children. In fact, many authors and illustrators have generously volunteered to spend time with my students over the past few years, sharing, inspiring, and supporting these aspirational writers and dreamers. 
One theme that we’ve returned to a lot this year is Cultivating Our Creativity. 

It’s not just a matter of waiting for the magic. 

Many writers will actively do things to help prepare the ground for creativity. They start each morning by free writing for five minutes. They keep lists of possible book titles or themes. They do yoga, they take walks, they create stacks of index cards, they visit bookstores, write a haiku, seek out a favorite book, whatever. 

What do you do to help keep those home fires burning?

I would love to create a series of blog posts that gather together different tips & strategies that REAL AUTHORS & ILLUSTRATORS (that’s you!) employ to help your creative process along. 

I think it would be fascinating & helpful & inspiring to read.

So I’m asking a you to submit your thoughts, 25 to 150 words or thereabouts, nothing too onerous, outlining your personal methods. Maybe it’s just one quick tip. Maybe your have deeper thoughts to share. That’s your call.

Thanks for playing along. And I totally understand if you’d rather not bother. It’s okay. 

Many thanks. 

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NOTE: I received answers and will be sharing responses from the following (generous, kind, talented) authors (in no particular order):

Lizzy Rockwell

Travis Jonker

London Ladd

Paul Acampora

Nick Bruel

Vikram Madan

Diana Murray

Matt McElligott

Jeff Mack

Eugene Yelchin

Michelle Knudsen

 

And who knows, maybe more authors & illustrators will jump aboard! 

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Category: Cultivating Creativity, the writing process / Tags: , ,

“I’ll See You Around Campus!”

October 18, 2024 / / One comment

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“I’ll see you around campus!” I call back to my wife as I head out the door. 

It’s an expression I borrowed from my brother Billy, who first started  saying it back in the day. Fifty years ago, more or less. A little joke. For there’s no campus and we’re not eager co-eds from the 1950s. Get it?

And now I’ve adopted that phrase as my own. Not that anyone ever laughs. It’s not about getting a big reaction. The expression pleases me, tickles my fancy; it connects me to my past, and my brother, who I don’t see or talk to much anymore. I know, I know. I am a failed and foolish person. But I still carry Billy around in my failed and foolish heart, echoing his words. 

I also channel Billy’s humor when I inquire of a college student, usually the child of a friend, if he’s met any “co-eds” on campus.  

I can’t explain why that amuses me, or why it has persisted across 45-50 years, but it does. Why fight it? Maybe there’s pleasure derived from their puzzled expressions, the hapless groans. We go through life doing our familiar dance steps, hitting our marks, fulfilling low expectations. The cornball dad and lame jokester, coming at you.

Or I’ll channel my mother when a redoubtable opposing baseball player comes up to the plate in a tight spot, and murmur worryingly, “Oh, he’s trouble.”

When I first heard her say that, Mom was talking about the Cardinals 3B Mike Shannon -— a “dangerous RBI man” in the parlance — and it was probably 1968. The years slide past; the names change. Now Trouble arrives with a new face. These days, baseball-wise, Trouble is named Max Muncy. But the idea remains, the voice of my mother still in my ears. And the reverse, when the New York Mets need a hit, I’ll remember her and repeat her comment, “He’s due.”

Once again I’m watching a ballgame, fretfully, as always, and my dear old Mom miraculously sits beside me, both of us working over the same anxiety. The small agonies of fandom. 

“Hell’s bells,” she’d say, exasperated. 

I love the old expressions. For the charms of a lost language, certainly, but also because they provide a lifeline to the past. And the past is the only place where some of my favorite people still reside. 

Some days I’ll remember an expression out of the blue, unbidden. “For the love of Pete!” my mother used to exclaim. 

Who’s Pete? I’d wonder. Is he a substitute for God? How did Pete get that big job?

I surmise, thinking now, that Pete must be Saint Peter, an important guy once upon a time, busy guarding the gate into heaven, I guess. I wouldn’t know. The expression has fallen from common use, like so many before it.

But oh, it feels good to hear those words coming from my own mouth. Keeping it alive. “Jesus, Mary, and Joseph!” she’d cry. My brother’s humor, the expressions of my late mother. Our glorious, battered, yellowing past. Dissolving in my memory. Still clinging to it, connecting with it, even as it fades away, like an old polaroid snapshot left out in the sun. 

Thanks for reading, folks. And in the meantime . . . 

I’ll see you around campus! 

Category: Family / Tags: , , , ,
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