I believe very strongly that we need stories about all kinds of people written by writers of all different kinds. And I have often written characters who are a little different from me and also share some of my heart. I have not always done this wonderfully and sometimes I’ve done it well.
But I keep trying because one of the great things about being a writer is empathetic — empathetically connecting to the rest of the world.
And what it means in my own practice as a writer today is that I am excited especially to work with illustrators who can represent the Brooklyn world that I live in, which is very mixed or represent my story in the world that they, the illustrators, live in.
I often ask for illustrators of different backgrounds than my own, people whose work I have long admired because that allows me to get in a conversation with creators who have a different perspective than my own, and it allows me to have my stories reach kids who might not have been reached otherwise by my particular perspective.
So, to me the most important thing is to have dialogues with other picture book creators who have different ideas and to ask each other how we can make books for as many kids as possible and to touch kids from all different backgrounds and families too, but it’s an ongoing process that I’m learning from.
