The reason I'm a children's book author/illustrator today is that I
have a lot of determination. I practiced drawing and revised my
stories over and over because I wanted nothing more than to do what
I'm doing now--writing and illustrating children's books.I always
knew I'd become an artist and studied art in college in Texas.
After graduating from college, I became an Art Director at a
graphic design firm. I moved from Texas to New York to work in
children's publishing. I got a job as Associate Art Director in
children's books at Scholastic, where I designed books and enjoyed
working with editors and illustrators. This was excellent
experience.I illustrated my first children's book in 1992 and soon
began illustrating full time. I had always written stories, but I
began completing manuscripts and mailing them out to publishers in
the early 1990's. In 1996, I sold my first two manuscripts -- Boo
Who? (Scholastic) and Pen Pals (Grosset & Dunlap) -- both published
in 1997.Now I write and illustrate full time. It is a great job.
When I think of a idea, I write it down so that whenever I finish
one story I'll have a bunch of ideas waiting that I can begin
working on next. I especially love reading and writing funny
stories, weird stories, and animal stories.Books I've written and
illustrated include-Cinderdog and the Wicked Stepcat Albert
Whitman, 2001 (ages 4-8, picture book)
Abby Cadabra, Super Speller, Grosset & Dunlap, 2000 (ages 6-8, easy
reader)
How to Find Lost Treasure in All Fifty States and Canada, Too
Aladdin, 2000 (ages 8-12, NF)
The Haunted States of America Aladdin, 2001 (ages 8-12, NF)
Vincent Van Gogh- Sunflowers and Swirly Stars, 2001 Grosset &
Dunlap (ages 6-9, NF)
Happy Monster Day! Scholastic,1999
Pen Pals Grosset & Dunlap, 1997 (ages 6-8, easy reader)
Ivy Green, Cootie Queen Troll, 1998 (ages 7-9)
Red, Yellow, Green What Do Signs Mean? Scholastic, 1998 (ages
4-8)
Boo Who? A Spooky Lift-the-Flap Book Scholastic, 1997 (ages
1-6)
Eek-A-Boo! A Spooky Lift-the-Flap Book Scholastic, 2000 (ages
1-6)Books I've written include-I Have A Weird Brother Who Digested
A Fly, Albert Whitman, 1999 (picture book)
Light the Candles, A Hanukkah Lift the Flap Book, Puffin, 2000
The Garden That We Grew Viking/Puffin, 2001(ages 4-7, easy
reader)
The Pizza That We Made Viking/Puffin, 2001(ages 4-7, easy
reader)
Scat Cats! Viking/Puffin, 2001(ages 4-7, easy reader)
Backwards Day, Scholastic, 2000
Why Do Dogs Bark? Puffin, 2001(ages 6-8, easy reader)
Why Do Cats Meow? Puffin, 2001(ages 6-8, easy reader)
The Spooky Sleepover, Grosset & Dunlap, 1999 (ages 6-8, easy
reader)
Pajama Party Grosset & Dunlap, 1998 (ages 4-7, easy reader)
Space Dogs on Planet K-9 Troll, 1998 (ages 7-10)Books I've
illustrated include-Breakout at the Bug Lab Dial, 2001(ages 6-8,
easy reader)
Hector's Hiccups Random House, 1999
Shadows Everywhere Scholastic, 1999
Hot Cha-Cha! Winslow Press
No Fair! Scholastic, Hello Math
The 100th Day of School Scholastic
Ten Little Ballerinas Grosset & Dunlap
I Love You Mom Troll
I Love You Dad Troll
My First Book of Sign Language TrollAnswers to questions people
sometimes ask me-1. Where do you get your ideas?I get ideas many
different ways. Sometimes, ideas just pop into my head. I also
listen to and watch the people around me for ideas. I read to get
ideas. I daydream to get ideas. When I get an idea, I write it down
in an idea notebook, so I won't forget it. I think ideas are the
easy part of writing. I get lots of ideas for books all the time.
Developing them into a book with a beginning, middle and end is the
difficult, time-consuming part. The idea is important, but an
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