Ingredients of a Successful Picture Book Panel: Susan Rich and John Parra

John Parra is asked what he thinks makes a good picture book:

"When I feel like I get to a magical sweet spot in the [sketch] work that I can translate into the [final art] work... when I can feel like something magical is happening... that's what I'm looking for personally and professionally, even before an audience sees it.

Not everything you do will work or be interpreted by an audience they way you wished it would, but when you do get positive responses, you know it's good."

Susan Rich is asked the same question, and she says she asks herself three questions (which she says are stolen from The Horn Book) when reading the picture book:

"The picture book presents a what if..."

A then what that follows well from that what if...

And then you can step back and say so what."

"We expect picture books to be read a gazillion times, it has to stand up to weary parents and antsy toddlers over and over..."

Susan also addresses what makes a commercially successful book to her:

"... I hope they are paving the way for me to publish more books by those creators, I'm looking for sales and critical acclaim, that it connects with some demographic in an important way and that we can build on that with more books from those creators.

Curricular or seasonal hooks can make your books easier to get BUT I would never recommend starting from there. You can think about that at the query or later at the marketing level."

John says to follow your own voice, and don't worry about commercial vs. personal work, make it personal. Make it unique to your voice, and that's what's going to define you in your career. Be the first-rate you and not a third-rate Jon Klassen.

Susan says the best picture book texts have room for an illustrator to bring it to life, but also are manuscripts meaty enough to provide pacing and carry through with a full, narrative story, which is why poetry is not always a natural fit for picture books even if it's a completely beautiful and lyrical poem.

Laurent asks them about books they loved as kids:

John mentions Virginia Lee Burton's LIFE STORY.

Susan Rich loved C D B! by William Steig (link only goes to the colorized version :( )

The Picture Book Panel Begins!

Moderated by Laurent Linn (standing), the panelists, left to right, are: author/illustrator Jessixa Bagley, illustrator John Parra, editor Susan Rich, author/illustrator Barney Saltzberg, and author/illustrator Don Tate.

Books For and About Diverse Kids: John Parra, Don Tate, Lisa Yee, Stacey Barney, and Pat Cummings

Right to Left: Pat Cummings, Stacey Barney, John Parra, Don Tate, and Lisa Yee

In this discussion-based breakout session, we have multiple perspectives from different parts of the children's literature community:

Pat Cummings, author/illustrator of over thirty-five books for young readers (and Board member of SCBWI, the Authors Guild, and the Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art, among others.)

Stacey Barney, Senior Editor at Penguin/Putnam Books for Young Readers

John Parra, Golden-Kite winning illustrator.

Don Tate, author and illustrator, winner of the Ezra Jack Keats Award.

Lisa Yee, author of 16 books and winner of the very first Sid Fleischman Humor Award.


Some highlights:

Stacey Barney:
"Write organic stories." Sometimes she finds that it's almost as if writers are checking off boxes for diversity with their diverse cast of characters, but "character shouldn't feel like categories."

John Parra:
"Be respectful. Show it to others who are part of those communities. Make sure authentic is how it's portrayed."

Don Tate:
"Study. Research. Vet. ...Make sure you're not exploiting the topic."

Lisa Yee:
You can write outside your experience "but you have to get it right."

The panel are telling us fascinating stories, like Lisa sharing how her Millicent Min (in 2003) was the first middle grade book with a photo of an Asian American kid on the cover.

Don shares about doing a school visit when he was asked by a 5th grade class if he only illustrates Black people, and how he asked the two African American boys in the class if they felt like they've read books that represented them - and they said no. So he turned to the rest of the class and explained that he's made it his mission, he's built his whole career, to create positive portrayals of people that look like those two boys… and the whole class clapped.

Stacey tells us about teaching (elementary and preschool and high school), and reading picture books to the kids, and how she made an effort to choose picture books that reflected their experience. "Kids are kids."

Pat speaks of her school visits, and how kids pick up books out of curiosity. She shares how she was asked once by a British author why she only does books with Black characters. Pat countered, asking the British author why they only created books with British characters…

John speaks of how he sees diverse books being published, but the awards and reviews and the best lists of the year aren't that diverse. After they've published, how do they get recognized and supported?

They cover editorial staffing (and the importance of diversity in staffing across departments, including marketing, publicity and sales), being vetted by additional experts, and much, much more.

John Parra- El Camino de Suenos/The Path of Dreams

John Parra, Golden Kite winner and illustrator of Gracias, Thanks, as well as Gabriella and P is For Pinata, is taking us through his path to becoming an illustrator with a beautiful slide show. Parra starts the slide show with some vivid photos of himself as a child and his family in his hometown of Santa Barbara. He talks about the strong influence of the hispanic side of his family on his use of imagery in his artwork. His early influences include not only his own family and their gatherings, but also the Santa Barbara Museum of Art, the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History, the Santa Barbara Mission, and the annual Santa Barbara Fiesta and I Madonnari Festivals.

Although Parra says he knew becoming an artist would probably mean some financial struggle in his life, he knew he couldn't be happy doing anything else. After taking the leap and deciding to attend art school, the Art Center of Pasadena, receiving an award from the Society of Illustrators got Parra the well-deserved attention that helped him get started as a professional artist. Parra shows us some early work, including a piece aptly named "Todo Cambia," which was an turning point in his personal style.

"Todo Cambia"

He explains his process, which includes thumbnails, sketches, color studies, and finally painting. The painting process involves layering paint and sanding the illustration board, to get the aged-looking texture that is a distinctive characteristic of his style.

Parra finds research to be a really fun part of the process, and utilizes a vast array of visual references when creating art. He also uses a lot of symbolism and iconography in his art, which, like the sanded texture, is a characteristic that sets his art apart. There is always a little bee or bird or insect for a child to find in Parra's illustrations.

Parra suggests that illustrators make sure they always have a studio all set up (be it a separate place or a room or an area of your home) not only so that you have a place to work, but also so that your family and loved ones know that making art is an important part of your life.

Parra also makes this great suggestion:
Don't let your happiness depend on your success. Be happy now, and keep working at your art.

Golden Kite Awards: John Parra, Illustration

A few quotes from John's speech:

Thank you very much, I'm not as well spoken as the wonderful writers here today, that's why I chose art.

GRACIAS-THANKS by Pat Mora is a story about a boy raised in a multicultural family who goes through his day noticing the small (and sometimes not so small) things he is thankful for.

I would also like to say thank you.
Thank you to my parents, who always encouraged and supported me to become an artist.
It was the early memories of my dad drawing for me and my brother that inspired me to also be an artist.
My mom, a school teacher, read to us every day.
Thank you to my wife, Maria, for her love and support... for sharing her amazing insight and ideas as my personal art director and manager.
Thank you to Lee & Low, especially Louise May, my editor.
Thank you to all my art teachers and mentors. They showed me my dreams and provided me with tools on the path to becoming a real artist.
Thank you to my peers and all the great people at SCBWI.

With dreams and ambitions, the path of an artist is rarely easy. I'm infinitely grateful for all that I've received, thank you very much.