So, this happened about a month ago, but I’m still reeling about it. Our class had a special guest, and that guest was David Hyde Costello who’s best known for his Little Pig stories!
As class began, he was taping up original artwork from his portfolio to the whiteboard and placing print variations on unoccupied desks near the front. And then we waited for our teacher to introduce him.
What a magical experience this was! I’d always wondered about the production of picture books and how they came to be ideas to actual print books. And Costello certainly had some insights that truly made me understand his process.
He spoke about how his art progressed, what he would do differently, and even showed us how he uses his watercolors! He showed us his “menu” of character designs, and discussed his process of designing characters that would appeal not only to children, but to publishers as well. Here are a few of my favorite things that he said:
Q: How do you know when your work is done?
A: I don’t know if I ever do.
Q: What’s the best compliment you’ve ever received from a child?
A: I’d have to say it was when I was in a classroom, doing a game where I drew for the kids, and one kid asked me to draw a polar bear. So I began drawing, and one child said, “That looks like a dog.” And another child piped up and said, “It’s okay, he’s just trying his best.” [Laughs] But really, there was this other time when I was doing an event at a library, and a six-year-old came in and his copy of one of my books was just totally worn out, he loved it that much. That really meant a lot to me.
Something else he said really stuck out to me–“You can’t have satire for kids and not perpetuate what you’re satirizing.”
So much of what he said was so poignant and resounded with me in a way I didn’t expect. If you ever have a chance to read his books (reviewed here on my blog!), please do–you definitely will not be disappointed. He’s a wonderful author, illustrator, and above all else, human being.
little lady librarian 