They shared their superhero costumes (2012).
They read aloud bad reviews...of their own books (2014).
They saw their characters collide in (phony) merged sequels (2014).
Now authors and illustrators of books for young people have come together for yet another non-paying gig, this time to bare their souls via 10 short, powerful questions. Same 10 for all, plus an optional 11th wild card of their choosing.
You haven’t read kidlit interviews like these before. But you have read interviews like these before, if you’ve read Vanity Fair—specifically the last page, The Proust Questionnaire.
Author Q&As often veer into heavily trodden territory (where do you get ideas, what is your writing process, who is your favorite author, etc.). And they often focus only our latest work, not our broader outlook (or our quirks). I find the Proust questionnaire to be refreshingly different, not to mention humanizing. Bonus: very quick to read.
The 50 creators:
What is the trait you most admire in others?
Silence.
What is your greatest strength?
Not being around much.
What would your friends say is your greatest strength?
My whimsy.
How have you experienced bravery you didn’t know you had?
When I stayed a night in a hospital with a family member.
What is your greatest extravagance?
An 1845 copy of A Christmas Carol.
What is your most treasured possession?
My daughters.
What was your big break?
Meeting Patricia Reilly Giff and learning to write from her.
What do you consider your greatest achievement?
My tragically flawed book about race.
Setting aside the reality of whether or not you can sing, with whom would you like to perform a duet?
Emmylou Harris.
What is your motto?
“Just do the thing and then not be around much.”
Tom Angleberger
What is the trait you most admire in others?
Clear-headedness. Or maybe even better: foresight. I never seem to be able to look ahead at all and see what the reaction is going to be to my actions. Whether it’s a chess move or throwing a pillow at someone who’s not looking.
What is your greatest strength?
Throwing pillows at people who are not looking.
What would your friends say is your greatest strength?
My friends would turn this into a chance to mock me by going “HMMMMM” really loudly then pretending to scratch their heads.
What is your greatest extravagance?
Tiny toys.
What is your most treasured possession?
Our house is like a big Cece Bell creation that you can walk around in. She has done something amazing to just about all of it.
What was your big break?
Getting noticed by Caryn Wiseman, who has been my agent for 10 years! Without her I was ready to quit.
What do you consider your greatest achievement?
Getting noticed by Cece Bell.
Setting aside the reality of whether or not you can sing, with whom would you like to perform a duet?
Jerry Reed. “East Bound and Down”!
What is your motto?
“This is already so screwed up it won’t matter if I break it.”
WILD CARD: What is your moment of perfect happiness?
There’s that moment when the problems with your book are solved by some new idea and there’s this huge relief that the book isn’t going to be a big failure. You’ve done it! You’ve still got tons of work to do, but you’ve done it. There’s a similar moment that comes when working on Rubik’s Cube variants.
Jonathan Auxier
What is the trait you most admire in others?
At first I wanted to say intelligence, but then I thought of all the intelligent people who I don’t admire. So it’s really some kind of mixture of intelligence and humility…which I might call “self-awareness.”
What is your greatest strength?
I am pretty principled insofar as I am very willing to do difficult or uncomfortable things because of what I believe. (Note: this does not make me fun to live with!)
What would your friends say is your greatest strength?
When people introduce me to others, they often observe that I’m one of the more “creative” people they know. Also, I have some pretty solid yo-yo skills!
How have you experienced bravery you didn’t know you had?
Going back to the “principled” thing, I have surprised myself many times by walking away from opportunities and situations that others would think are no-brainers.
What is your greatest extravagance?
When we moved into our house, there was a big back room that we converted into a library with floor-to-ceiling bookshelves. I made the shelves, which took months and was a huge pain in the neck, but the results are pretty wonderful. That room, and the books in it, give me a ridiculous amount of joy.
What is your most treasured possession?
If you’re talking about physical objects, it would probably have to be my journals.
What do you consider your greatest achievement?
I don’t know if it counts as an “achievement,” but I think convincing my wife to marry me is one of smartest moves of my life. She’s awesome. (See next question.)
Setting aside the reality of whether or not you can sing, with whom would you like to perform a duet?
I asked my wife this question, and she said Kermit the Frog, which is a brilliant answer. I’m stealing it for the purposes of this questionnaire.
What is your motto?
It’s less a motto than a single word, but I’m a big proponent of anagnorisis.
Avi
What is the trait you most admire in others?
Kindness.
What is your greatest strength?
Imagination.
What would your friends say is your greatest strength?
Work.
How have you experienced bravery you didn’t know you had?
Becoming a parent.
What is your greatest extravagance?
Books.
What is your most treasured possession?
My wife’s love.
What was your big break?
Winning back-to-back Newbery Honors.
What do you consider your greatest achievement?
Writing books that are enjoyed by young people.
Setting aside the reality of whether or not you can sing, with whom would you like to perform a duet?
John Lennon.
What is your motto?
“A life unlived is like a book without words.”
WILD CARD: Who is your favorite character in fiction?
Sam Spade.
Cece Bell
What is the trait you most admire in others?
Kindness.
What is your greatest strength?
Relentless optimism.
What would your friends say is your greatest strength?
Hopefully that I make them laugh.
How have you experienced bravery you didn’t know you had?
Finally sharing my story.
What is your greatest extravagance?
Good cheese.
What is your most treasured possession?
My Sock Monkey (the star of my early Sock Monkey series), who would be so insulted if he knew he might in any way be considered a “possession.” He is his own monkey.
What was your big break?
In the book world, it was when my book dummy for Sock Monkey Goes to Hollywood landed on Jamie Michalak’s desk at Candlewick Press. But before that, it was in college, when I switched from being an English major to being an art major, thanks to some big encouragement from my pal Tom Angleberger.
What do you consider your greatest achievement?
Any time I help someone.
Setting aside the reality of whether or not you can sing, with whom would you like to perform a duet?
For some reason, Mo Willems was the first name that came to mind, so I’ll stick with that. He and I could do a mean version of “Delta Dawn,” I bet.
What is your motto?
It’s from Anne of Green Gables by Lucy Maud Montgomery, and I say it just about every night to myself: “Tomorrow is a new day, with no mistakes in it—yet.”
They read aloud bad reviews...of their own books (2014).
They saw their characters collide in (phony) merged sequels (2014).
Now authors and illustrators of books for young people have come together for yet another non-paying gig, this time to bare their souls via 10 short, powerful questions. Same 10 for all, plus an optional 11th wild card of their choosing.
You haven’t read kidlit interviews like these before. But you have read interviews like these before, if you’ve read Vanity Fair—specifically the last page, The Proust Questionnaire.
The 50 creators:
Tony Abbott
|
|
Tom Angleberger
|
|
Jonathan Auxier *
|
|
Avi *
|
|
Cece Bell
|
|
* = new to my madness (i.e. did not appear in any of the earlier experiments)
The first five:
Tony Abbott
The first five:
Tony Abbott
What is the trait you most admire in others?
Silence.
What is your greatest strength?
Not being around much.
What would your friends say is your greatest strength?
My whimsy.
How have you experienced bravery you didn’t know you had?
When I stayed a night in a hospital with a family member.
What is your greatest extravagance?
An 1845 copy of A Christmas Carol.
What is your most treasured possession?
My daughters.
What was your big break?
Meeting Patricia Reilly Giff and learning to write from her.
What do you consider your greatest achievement?
My tragically flawed book about race.
Setting aside the reality of whether or not you can sing, with whom would you like to perform a duet?
Emmylou Harris.
What is your motto?
“Just do the thing and then not be around much.”
Tom Angleberger
Clear-headedness. Or maybe even better: foresight. I never seem to be able to look ahead at all and see what the reaction is going to be to my actions. Whether it’s a chess move or throwing a pillow at someone who’s not looking.
What is your greatest strength?
Throwing pillows at people who are not looking.
What would your friends say is your greatest strength?
My friends would turn this into a chance to mock me by going “HMMMMM” really loudly then pretending to scratch their heads.
What is your greatest extravagance?
Tiny toys.
What is your most treasured possession?
Our house is like a big Cece Bell creation that you can walk around in. She has done something amazing to just about all of it.
What was your big break?
Getting noticed by Caryn Wiseman, who has been my agent for 10 years! Without her I was ready to quit.
What do you consider your greatest achievement?
Getting noticed by Cece Bell.
Setting aside the reality of whether or not you can sing, with whom would you like to perform a duet?
Jerry Reed. “East Bound and Down”!
What is your motto?
“This is already so screwed up it won’t matter if I break it.”
WILD CARD: What is your moment of perfect happiness?
There’s that moment when the problems with your book are solved by some new idea and there’s this huge relief that the book isn’t going to be a big failure. You’ve done it! You’ve still got tons of work to do, but you’ve done it. There’s a similar moment that comes when working on Rubik’s Cube variants.
Jonathan Auxier
At first I wanted to say intelligence, but then I thought of all the intelligent people who I don’t admire. So it’s really some kind of mixture of intelligence and humility…which I might call “self-awareness.”
What is your greatest strength?
I am pretty principled insofar as I am very willing to do difficult or uncomfortable things because of what I believe. (Note: this does not make me fun to live with!)
What would your friends say is your greatest strength?
When people introduce me to others, they often observe that I’m one of the more “creative” people they know. Also, I have some pretty solid yo-yo skills!
How have you experienced bravery you didn’t know you had?
Going back to the “principled” thing, I have surprised myself many times by walking away from opportunities and situations that others would think are no-brainers.
What is your greatest extravagance?
When we moved into our house, there was a big back room that we converted into a library with floor-to-ceiling bookshelves. I made the shelves, which took months and was a huge pain in the neck, but the results are pretty wonderful. That room, and the books in it, give me a ridiculous amount of joy.
What is your most treasured possession?
If you’re talking about physical objects, it would probably have to be my journals.
What do you consider your greatest achievement?
I don’t know if it counts as an “achievement,” but I think convincing my wife to marry me is one of smartest moves of my life. She’s awesome. (See next question.)
Setting aside the reality of whether or not you can sing, with whom would you like to perform a duet?
I asked my wife this question, and she said Kermit the Frog, which is a brilliant answer. I’m stealing it for the purposes of this questionnaire.
What is your motto?
It’s less a motto than a single word, but I’m a big proponent of anagnorisis.
Avi
Kindness.
What is your greatest strength?
Imagination.
What would your friends say is your greatest strength?
Work.
How have you experienced bravery you didn’t know you had?
Becoming a parent.
What is your greatest extravagance?
Books.
What is your most treasured possession?
My wife’s love.
What was your big break?
Winning back-to-back Newbery Honors.
What do you consider your greatest achievement?
Writing books that are enjoyed by young people.
Setting aside the reality of whether or not you can sing, with whom would you like to perform a duet?
John Lennon.
What is your motto?
“A life unlived is like a book without words.”
WILD CARD: Who is your favorite character in fiction?
Sam Spade.
Cece Bell
Kindness.
What is your greatest strength?
Relentless optimism.
What would your friends say is your greatest strength?
Hopefully that I make them laugh.
How have you experienced bravery you didn’t know you had?
Finally sharing my story.
What is your greatest extravagance?
Good cheese.
What is your most treasured possession?
My Sock Monkey (the star of my early Sock Monkey series), who would be so insulted if he knew he might in any way be considered a “possession.” He is his own monkey.
What was your big break?
In the book world, it was when my book dummy for Sock Monkey Goes to Hollywood landed on Jamie Michalak’s desk at Candlewick Press. But before that, it was in college, when I switched from being an English major to being an art major, thanks to some big encouragement from my pal Tom Angleberger.
What do you consider your greatest achievement?
Any time I help someone.
Setting aside the reality of whether or not you can sing, with whom would you like to perform a duet?
For some reason, Mo Willems was the first name that came to mind, so I’ll stick with that. He and I could do a mean version of “Delta Dawn,” I bet.
What is your motto?
It’s from Anne of Green Gables by Lucy Maud Montgomery, and I say it just about every night to myself: “Tomorrow is a new day, with no mistakes in it—yet.”
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