In and Out of My Studio

Poetry Friday: Saving Pennies

Iza Trapani — Fri, 24 May 2013 19:27:24 +0000

It has been ages since I have participated in a Poetry Friday. A bit of writer’s block, spring chores and a multitude of other demands have kept me away. But I have been enjoying everyone’s entries and thought I’d return today with a very short poem I wrote a few years ago. I whipped out this little picture to go with it. Be sure to check out all the other poems in the Poetry Friday Round up, hosted today by the wonderful and immensely creative, Jama Rattigan: Jama’s Alphabet Soup.

Saving Pennies

Although she tries to save them all,

There’s not much she can do,

For all the pennies run away

From penny-pinching Sue.

Baa! A Sheep Jingle

Iza Trapani — Tue, 07 May 2013 18:56:10 +0000

There’s a jingle contest going on at the wonderful Susanna Leonard Hill’s blog, in honor of her picture book, Can’t Sleep Without Sheep coming out as an e-book this week. You can check the book out here if you are not familiar with it. It’s a great story about a little girl, Ava, who counts sheep at bedtime, but she takes so long to fall asleep that they sheep grow exhausted from jumping over the fence and they quit. Other animals- cows, chickens, pigs, flamingos, horses, penguins…- stand in for the sheep, but chaos ensues. It’s a terrific story with adorable illustrations by Mike Wohnoutka.

Here is my little audio jingle, sung to the tune of the Beverly Hillbillies theme song. I had a video, but the file was too large to upload. I need to look into that. In the meantime here is the audio:

Can’t Sleep Without Sheep Jingle

And be sure to hop on over to Susanna’s blog to check out the other entries. There are some great ones!

Baa!

Waiting and Doubting

Iza Trapani — Wed, 24 Apr 2013 14:17:19 +0000

Waiting and doubting. That, too, is part of an artist’s life.

“Rufus Study” by Iza Trapani 2006

In the last two decades and especially in the past three years I have been a creative whirlwind- writing and illustrating children’s books, writing poems and stories, completing a memoir, and painting commissioned art. In addition to that, I have been studying voice and singing a cappella harmonies with my friend, Sarah. We are starting to get gigs.

But now, I feel creatively spent, stuck in the doldrums. I haven’t even been able to write a blog post for over a month, because I don’t think I have anything useful to offer.

I am in the waiting and doubting phase.

While I wait for my agent to read the memoir and negotiate a new picture book contract, I am second guessing myself as an artist. Don’t agents and editors realize what it’s like to be on the other end- to wait for that phone call or e-mail, to vacillate between worry and anticipation?

On the bright side, I haven’t stopped being productive. I have cleaned up and rototilled the gardens, updated and organized my address book, cleaned, repainted and redecorated my studio, put my files in order, repainted our bedroom, washed windows, organized every drawer, and joined a gym.

I just haven’t been able to write, draw or sing.

National Poetry Month is coming to a close and I haven’t contributed a couplet- though I have been enjoying and sharing some astounding poems by others.

Which makes it even worse.

This, too, will pass. I know because I’ve been here before. It will pass and I will be a painting, writing, singing, rhyming fool all over again. Because I love to and need to do these things. They are my passion and my livelihood.

I just get stuck now and then.

In the meantime, I can enjoy my clean windows and tidy closets. And burn some angst and calories on the elliptical.

Here’s a great, very funny post on this same scenario by Sarah Callender: Getting Comfy with the Discomfort. I think you’ll enjoy it.

What do you do when you are in the waiting and doubting phase?

Interview with Judy Schachner, creator of Skippyjon Jones!

Iza Trapani — Mon, 25 Mar 2013 11:40:17 +0000

Today I am happy to treat you to an interview with the mucho talented Judy Schachner of Skippyjon Jones fame!

I first met Judy in the fall of 1999 at a NJAEYC conference (New Jersey Association for the Education of Young Children.) We instantly hit it off. Exchanging stories of our lives, we found many parallels. We are both author/illustrators, blond and close in age, who started our careers around 1992. We both lost our mothers when we were young. We are both shy by nature- though we had to overcome that in our professional lives. There were so many similarities that at one point Judy’s eyes lit up and she said, “I bet you love cats too!”

I told her we had a cat, but that I am more of a dog person.

“That’s only because you’ve never had a Siamese cat,” she said.

Judy is “crazy loco” over cats.

Her Skippyjon Jones books feature a spirited Siamese cat who thinks he is a chihuahua and has a wild imagination that leads him into all kinds of predicaments. The first book in the series, Skippyjon Jones won the E.B. White Read Aloud Award. Now, this is a book that truly deserves it. The writing is spectacular with tons of word play, wonderful sounds and hilarity. And the illustrations are vibrant and expressive.

There are seven (soon to be eight) books in the Skippyjon Jones series and each is as great as the first. “Holy guacamole!” Judy has been busy in the past ten years!

Welcome Judy!

Iza, it seems like 9 lives ago that we both met at the NJAEYC conference doesn’t it? I knew after spending just two minutes with you that I wanted to be your next door neighbor, best friend, sister and/or Pet. Thank goodness for Facebook.

Ha ha! My husband say’s he wants to come back as one of my dogs! You would be well pampurred

I understand that your Siamese cat is responsible for the Skippyjon Jones series. Will you tell us a bit about the little kitty and how he inspired your “El Skippito, the great swordfighter?”

Yes, my sweet Siamese cat, Skippyjon Jones was the inspiration for all seven of these books. One day, while Skippy was doing some thinking inside the box, a large bee flew into our basement and stung him several times right between his two very large ears. When these bites began to rise to the occasion, I picked up the little crumbcake to comfort him and that’s when the “ milagro” happened. Skippy began to speak to me in a voice that sounded very much like Antonio Banderas. The rest is history.

Too funny!

I am a huge fan of E.B. White. How did it feel to win the coveted award. Do you remember what you were doing when you received the phone call?

Winning the E.B. White award was a complete and utter surprise…and what made it even more special was that I was the very first person to ever receive it. The phone call came one afternoon while I was working in my studio and since I had never heard of the award before, it didn’t really register on my Richter scale. I only hope that the great E.B. White has stopped spinning in his grave.

Are you kidding? He’d love your books.

And WOW- I didn’t know you were the first to win the award. Olé, mi amiga!

You state on your website that your editor at Dutton, Lucia, took you by the hand and encouraged you and has been with you since the publication of your first book. It’s wonderful to have such an enduring relationship with one editor. Does she inspire you with suggestions? Do you brainstorm on ideas together?

Lucia Monfried has been my editor for twenty years. I met her when she hired me to do the illustrations for Donna Jo Napoli’s book THE PRINCE OF THE POND. In this day and age it’s rare for an editor and an author to have such a long relationship. She has been a constant source of encouragement. She is teacher, psychologist, cheerleader, agent, white knight, friend and did I mention Editor?

We often brainstorm ideas and she is superb at seeing the forest for the trees…She is simply the best.

How do you get one fantastico idea after another? Do you work long and hard concocting plots or do they just come to you?

My pets are very clever, Iza. Almost everyday they do something that makes me think, “that could be a book.”

My children have been generous too. YO VIKINGS!, which happens to be one of my favorite stories, about my two daughters and their procurement of a 29ft long Viking ship, is a “life is stranger than fiction” kind of story.

I’ve written about my Great grandmother who was a cook for Ralph Waldo Emerson. While my great-aunt May and her bird Willy were the inspiration for my very first picture book. I think families are fertile ground for stories. It’s not always the momentous things that speak to us …sometimes it’s the quiet things that shout, “write about me! “

Then there are my journals, “the savings bank of the mind” as Emerson would say. These books are crammed full of ideas waiting to be turned into stories.

I believe I have a real talent for finding stories, it’s the writing and illustrating that I’m not as good at.

“Stop eet- you are keeling me.”

As both writer and illustrator, do you think of the pictures as you are writing the story? And do you create a storyboard as you write or does that come later?

When an idea for a book has been germinating in my head for a while, there comes a moment when I need to get some of it down in writing. However it’s only a matter of time before my A.D.D. kicks in and then I have no choice but to draw. In general, I write and illustrate side by side, so when I get stuck with the one, I can move forward with the other. My editor says that I am a very “organic” kind of a bookmaker. I know that I am not a linear thinker. Does any of this make sense?

Absolutely. I work that way too.

Over the years, I’ve learned not to expend too much energy on the roughs. I like to leave some room for spontaneity in the final art.

You’re so good at keeping the looseness and liveliness of the rough sketches in your final art. Many illustrators tend to tighten up at that stage. Leaving some room for spontaneity is a good thing. And you are lucky to have an editor/art director who gives you that kind of freedom. But then, you do have a great track record.

What is the most challenging part of your work?

The most challenging part of this job is handling all the other aspects of the book business. Answering copious amounts of mail, traveling, speaking engagements, publisher requests, sending out donations, school visits and of course all the self doubt and second guessing that goes along with the work. Otherwise it’s a piece of cake!…and I do like my cake.

We like it too!

Will you describe a typical work day?

I don’t adhere to any rigid daily routine. I am a person who mightily resists the idea of making a shopping list. So the idea of any set schedule is anathema to me. I work all hours of the day and night surrounded by my animals and when I’m not listening to NPR, I’m blasting my daughter Sarah’s music. I have a lovely new studio on the second floor of my home, it is a place I am happy never to have to leave.

What do you do for fun when you are out of your beautiful studio?

When I’m not in my studio working, you might find me: Playing with my cats (we lost our darling pitbull Buster, last year), reading, re-arranging furniture, painting on my walls, making jewelry, antiquing, playing tennis, doing pro-bono work, painting, enjoying my garden and visiting my daughters, Sarah, (the composer) in Los Angeles and Emma, (an Evo/Devo biologist) in Utah. Oh! And I can’t forget the man who keeps this whole operation running, Bob Schachner!! I love spending time with him too

It’s clearly a full and gratifying life. So nice to have a peek into it.

Would you care to tell us what you’re working on now?

As to current projects, I have begun creating “thinking caps” as research for a new book I’m developing called A PENNY FOR YOUR THOUGHTS.

Then there are the two characters I’ve been spending time with called Buttons ( an obsessive compulsive raccoon with a talent for recycling trash ) and Bo ( a foundling cat ) who partner up. I see these guys living in a series as well as a tree.

I’m also pleased to announce that my book, BITS AND PIECES (a sequel to THE GRANNYMAN ) will be published fall 2013…And of course there is the 8th Skippyjon Jones book in the works.

Oh, just that?

I’d better not take up any more of your time. You need to get back to the drawing board!

Muchas gracias, Judy!

Please check out Judy’s site: www.skippyjonjones and also her skippyjon Jones facebook page.

*All words with quotation marks are from Judy’s books.

Photos by Bob Schachner.

Critiquing a Picture Book

Iza Trapani — Tue, 19 Mar 2013 20:37:22 +0000

I just read an excellent post by children’s book writer, Laura Sassi: Here’s What I “Tinkle”: Thoughts on Critiquing Stories.

And it got me “tinkling” too.

Now and then I am asked to critique a picture book manuscript. The one I worked on last week was surprisingly good. This aspiring author had done his homework. The story had lovely imagery, remarkably good meter and flowing rhymes. And it was told with heart and humor.

I was enthralled by the imagery and the mood in the story, but in the end, I didn’t know what the story was about. It was beautiful but not coherent. The writer had used multiple points of view and the plot was unclear. I was baffled.

In my comments I suggested that he stick with one point of view, that he eliminate a couplet or two because they did not move the story forward, that he build the story a bit more and that he clarify it.

I also told him his story was beautiful and that, once polished, was worthy of submitting and that I would put in a good word for him to my agency, should he decide to go that route.

Needless, to say, he was very pleased.

When he returned the manuscript with his revisions, it was not what I had expected. Yes, he eliminated the verses that were superfluous and corrected the few uneven rhymes, but the story still had multiple points of view and remained confusing.

“But I can just see the pictures in my head,” he told me.

But I couldn’t. And I am usually good at that Well, I could see pictures for, as I said, the imagery was beautiful, but the pictures were vague- a scene here, a scene there, but what the heck was really going on?

Words and pictures do work together in children’s books- but a story must still be strong enough to stand on its own. Pictures serve to enhance and clarify parts of the text, but stories still have to make sense. And they are meant to be read aloud and sometimes without seeing the pictures.

He was very discouraged by my last set of comments. Perhaps I’d been too exuberant with my praise early on. Perhaps he was unprepared for the hard work of revising. He said he would take a break from it for a while.

It is never my intent to shatter dreams- and especially not the dreams of someone who has talent and has done the homework. Writing for children is hard- so many constraints: word count, vocabulary, subject matter…Rhyming texts are especially restrictive. With only 27-29 pages in which to tell a story, picture book writers must move the plot forward efficiently and keep it concise and precise, with, of course, a bit of conflict and drama and a nicely rounded ending. Oh, just that?

I have every hope that this writer will come back to his story with a fresh eye, bright spirits and dogged determination. And it may be hard to revamp parts to make the story cohesive. I never said it would be easy. But he has the makings of a wonderful story, and I, for one, would love to see it in print.

A Little Something for a Brave Warrior

Iza Trapani — Mon, 11 Mar 2013 11:43:44 +0000

This post is for a sweet, five-year-old boy, who is struggling with epilepsy. Thank you to Susanna Leonard Hill for conceiving and organizing this blog link-up, each of which has something special to help Renn along and brighten his hospital stay. Please hop on over to Susanna’s blog here.

This is for you, Renn. You are a brave warrior!

And here is the coloring page to print out:

star wars coloring page

I hope you feel better soon, Renn!

Warm wishes to you and your family!

Happy Birthday, Itsy Bitsy Spider!

Iza Trapani — Fri, 01 Mar 2013 12:24:23 +0000

And the winners of the giveaway are: Robyn Campbell, Susanna Hill and Nancy Furstinger!

It’s the Itsy Bitsy Spider’s birthday!

Let the celebrations begin!

It seems a giveaway is in order.

I am giving away 3 signed (and personalized) hardcover copies. For a chance to win a copy, leave me a short verse about the itsy bitsy spider. It can follow the original meter, or choose your own form- from haiku to free verse. Let’s continue the adventures beyond the waterspout!

Contest will end on Saturday, March 23rd at 9 PM EST.
3 winners will be randomly chosen.

And here are some coloring pages for your kids. This is a sample. The printable PDFs are below.

Itsy (cat-yarn) coloring page
Itsy coloring page frogs
Itsy coloring page rabbit

Teachers and librarians- my publisher, Charlesbridge, is offering a 10% discount on orders of 5 or more copies of Itsy Bitsy and all my titles through December 2013! Here is the PDF with details:

Itsy Bitsy CB flyer

I can’t wait to read your verses! And good luck!

Will You Be My Valentine? (a love poem)

Iza Trapani — Thu, 14 Feb 2013 11:31:54 +0000

Will You Be My Valentine?

“Will you be my valentine?”
Said the smitten porcupine?

“What? You say I’m prickly?
Don’t point that out, my dear.
None of us is without flaw,
Not even you, I fear.

Will you be my Valentine?”
Said the smitten porcupine.

“What? I am not huggable?
But that’s a mere objection.
There are countless other ways
Of showing our affection.

Will you be my Valentine?”
Said the smitten porcupine.

“What? You say I’ve won your heart?
You’ll love me evermore?
Beyond my quills you see I am
A softie at my core?

You will be my Valentine?”
Said the smitten porcupine.

“What? You’ll even marry me?
I’ll be your joyful groom?
Darling skunk, I’ve one request-
Back off on your perfume.”

I hope you had a happy Valentine’s Day!

And be sure to check out the complete Poetry Friday roundup, hosted by the lovely Linda at teacherdance.

Picture Book Poses

Iza Trapani — Sun, 10 Feb 2013 21:40:07 +0000

My thoughts and good wishes go out to all who have been negatively affected by the latest storm.

We got 8 to 10 inches here in my area of the Hudson Valley, NY- nothing major- just enough to play in.

A week ago I delivered the final art for my upcoming book, Little Miss Muffet (September 2013). I didn’t have a little girl model for this book, so my husband had taken pictures of me in various poses. In this book, Miss Muffet is scared of more than spiders. Just like me And here are some of the poses:

Here I am on a couple of flakes of hay- my makeshift tuffet (a footstool). I have just seen the spider.

Here I am emerging from under a makeshift daybed (it was hay season, btw)

Here I am frightened by something (I don’t want to give away any surprises

When I need a pose and my husband isn’t around, I have a full length mirror on my studio closet door and I take a picture of myself.

Running away from something again.

Hiding from something out in the garden

In these next two pics I have “bathed and am getting ready for bed.”

And here is the painting showing the last two poses. (Keep in mind it’s not a great scan.)

And now, I get to play in the snow.

Birthday Celebration and Book Activities

Iza Trapani — Tue, 15 Jan 2013 13:26:47 +0000

I had the most wonderful birthday weekend!

It started off on Saturday morning with a celebratory post on Eric VanRaepenbusch’s amazing blog: Happy Birthday Author. He featured me and created nine amazing activities using my books! He is extraordinary and so are the activities- and they are downloadable! Please head over and look at the wonderful pictures he has of him and his kids doing these activities, and download the PDF. Eric took a lot of time and care into putting these together and they are amazing, and he is so kind to share them! I am honored and grateful.

Later that day, my friend, Sarah, whose birthday is three days before mine and with whom I sing a cappella harmonies, put on a house concert at my home. About seventy people came! We sang traditional songs from around the world (in 11 languages). Sarah is from Switzerland and I am from Poland, so pronunciation comes easily for us- though we don’t always know what we are singing about! The concert and the party afterward were a great success and I am still glowing from it. Here are a few pictures:

(what do you think? Are we happy?)

Here I am with my childhood friends.Kiki on left and Ania on right.
I grew up with them when I came to America.

This is us how we looked way back then. I am on left, Kiki in middle, Ania on right. I was the shy newcomer so not as much attitude, but all that changed! :

Now head on over to Happy Birthday Author! You will love it!