You know it’s the wonderful thing about writing for children is really do have a license to do many different types or forms of writing. I’ve never felt with any of my publishing companies that I had to write a certain kind of book. So I’ve loved the freedom to explore different forms.
You’ve asked about the writing process, I try to do a little creative writing sometimes more, sometimes less every day. And I usually write longhand and then make changes and type it into the computer. But I find that writing long hand seems to slow me down and also put me
keep me better connected with the natural rhythms of the human body, natural rhythms of speech. And I know every writer has a different process but I just found that that seems to work best for me.
And let’s see, with different types of writing, you know it’s so interesting, with a poem or a picture book I feel like I can keep it in mind and as I go about my errands during the day I think about it and in my head I’m kind of revising it. For me, a novel is a much more laborious process in that I need vast amounts of time to sit at a desk. I find it much more difficult to revise in my head.
So when I’m working on a novel I really try to make sure that I have enough space to give it the attention that it really does need.
I think I just get hit with an idea, people say you know you sort of fall in love with a character, you’re very curious about a character. Or with a poem, you fall in love with a certain rhythm or a certain phrase and you want to explore it a little more.
So all of my ideas sort of hit in a way that it’s just a glimmer and I’m curious and I want to follow where it leads. And sometimes it actually leads into something that moves on into a book. And sometimes it turns out just to be an exercise. So I never know but I try to be open to that process of discovery and just awake to that, that feeling of curiosity.
