Milking the Pro's - Part 2

JF: How do I get to be a children's book author?

MW: Be patient, work hard, learn the medium. Many things about kid's book illustration and animation are the same; the need for strong poses, good silhouettes, engaging character design. But books involve understanding the page turn and an appreciation of who will be reading your work and to whom they will read it. Unfortunately, everyone (from celebrities to moms) seems to want to do kids' books. "They look so easy, they're for kids; anyone can do it!" Be warned; it's a bunny-eat-bunny world out there, and crafting a decent book is long, hard work. I came to the hunt with the distinct advantage of several Emmys and a few TV series under my belt and it took me well over 2 years to find a publisher. From finding an agent to my first book on the shelf: 5 years. To be more discouraging, the vast majority of published books do not earn enough for the artist to live on (as an animator, you can relate) and if you're teamed with a writer your earnings are half of not enough to live on.

Now, for some encouragement: once you break in (and your work is good) editors tend to take you under their wing. Unlike TV, they're interested in artists' whole careers, not just one project. That gives you time to grow and experiment, you don't have to pretend to be a hit-making 25 year-old all the time. And since there's nowhere near as much money at stake in books (as opposed to a cartoon series), publishers can be more willing to take risks. As an animator, you'll have the distinct advantage of knowing how to work on schedule and on budget (unlike some illustrators), and your posing should be better. I've also found that established authors and illustrators (with one exception) are great guys who are happy to welcome new talent. A good resource for getting your bearings as you start out is the Children's Book Council , an advocacy group comprised of publishers and their ilk. Beyond all that practical stuff, it is essential that you like children; they are your audience, you work for them, you need to understand their world. If you're doing books for yourself, you will not succeed.