Rewards

JANICE:  Writing and illustrating books is hard but joyous work and has enormous rewards. The best reward of all is hearing about a reader relating to the story and being affected by it.

There are many other rewards and we recently had two. I was inducted into the august company of writers in the Texas Institute of Letters (TIL) They have decided that children's books are literature. Hooray!

Out of 15 new members I was the only writer for children. Each of us was asked to read from one of our books, and I chose I, Vivaldi. Tom stood beside me and showed his illustrations. If only the organization was called the Texas Institute of Letters and Illustrations (TILI), Tom would be a member too.

I must say those august writers seemed to enjoy our picture book biography. It is indeed a book for all ages.

Even better was our experience at the Texas Library Association Conference in Fort Worth. Tom and I donated an original illustration from I, Vivaldi titled "First Lesson." It was raffled off at $5 per ticket to raise money for the Texas Library Disaster Relief Fund. Fortunately and unfortunately it will be used to help libraries in West, Texas, recover from the recent explosion tragedy.

Tom drew the winning ticket onstage before 4000 enthusiastic librarians. The illustration was won by Willie Braudaway, a library consultant. Congratulations and farewell "First Lesson."

First  Lesson

After the drawing we were ushered to front row seats for Neil Gaiman's speech that he titled, "What the Very Bad Swear Word Is a Children's Book?" a charming, thought-provoking performance by the winner of the Newbery Award for The Graveyard Book.

During the conference Tom and I signed copies of I, Vivaldi in our publisher's booth, Eerdmans Books for Young Readers, with the help of editor Kathleen Merz. All very rewarding!

Love Story

JANICE:  We recently received a letter from a teacher in Pocatello, Idaho, that brought back warm memories of a school visit Tom and I made a few years ago. It turned into a love story between a boy who did not like to read and a book, between an author and illustrator and a reader, and between two cultures.

 Never could I have imagined what would happen when I answered a letter from a fifth grade Shoshone boy in Pocatello named Samuel. He said our three books about Young Wolf "are the first ones I loved." Could we please write another?


Yes, we could. We called the next book Son of Spirit Horse and dedicated it to Samuel as a surprise.

Then it was our turn to be surprised. Through Samuel's teacher, Kaye Turner, we were invited to Pocatello for an author-illustrator visit to schools in the city and on Fort Hall Reservation. There we met Samuel, his parents, grandmother, and great grandmother, matriarch of the family.

As a culmination to our visit we gave a public presentation at Idaho State University. Samuel invited the tribal spiritual leader to play the drum and sing tribal songs as an opener for our program. After explaining the meaning, LeeJuan sang a song in Shoshone, paced by his drum, asking the Creator to bless the education of their young people and keep them on the "good road."

There is still hatred and prejudice between the Shoshone and whites in Idaho. Sadly, the Fort Hall Reservation had the highest suicide rate in the country. I had been told that the Shoshone never shared their language with whites. It is the only thing we have not taken from them. To ask how to say a word in Shoshone is to risk offending.

I decided to take the risk. After the drumming and songs, I began by saying "good evening" in every language I know bits of - Japanese, Italian, Greek, Spanish, French, German - as a way of introducing my theme of learning from other cultures rather than clashing with them. Then I asked if anyone knew how to say good evening in another language. LeeJuan spoke up and taught me the Shoshone words right there on the spot.

Todd (Father), Syrina (Mother), Samuel, Janice, Tom

So, here's to Samuel's future. May he stay on the good road. He did not like to read and now he does.  It is a thrill to be part of such a transformation. And it is a thrill to connect with another culture.

A Memorable Moment

JANICE:  On a school visit yesterday I had a memorable moment. After my presentation to the fourth grade classes, a teacher, Melissa, came up to me with tears in her eyes.
"I want to tell you a story if I can manage without crying."
"It doesn't matter — emotions are good," I said.
She nodded and began. "Your book, A Paradise Called Texas, changed my life forever."

I caught my breath. "How?"
"When I was in the fourth grade my mother died. Of course, I was devastated. My teacher said she wanted to read a book to me — just the two of us alone, day by day. The book was yours and from it I learned how Mina, a girl my age, dealt with grief when her mother died. I realized that my life would go on and I needed to make the best of it. And, thanks to you, I did."

We embraced and I, too, had tears in my eyes. To think that a book I wrote could have such a profound effect gave me goose bumps. What a responsibility we authors have to our readers.

Melissa went on to say that because her fourth grade teacher helped her through a traumatic experience, she decided to become a teacher herself. What a responsibility teachers have to students as well. Together teachers and writers of children's books can change the world.

Oh, Those Koreans!

JANICE:  Those Koreans know what they want. They are eager to introduce their children to the high culture of the world, including western classical music.

First a Korean publisher, Tomato House, bought foreign rights to publish our picture book biography,  I, Vivaldi, (Eerdmans, 2008) and did so beautifully.

So Tom and I were thrilled when they offered to publish our latest picture book,  I, Papa Haydn, even though it has not been published in English. We won't be able to read my words, but as Tom says, "Pictures tell the story no matter what the language."

He is busy painting the final illustrations. Here is a double page spread showing young Joseph Haydn coming into Vienna where he will sing in the boys' choir at St. Stephens Cathedral.

And here Joseph and his teacher, Master Reuter, arrive at the Cathedral.

Publishing date is December, 2013. Thank you, Tomato House. We love you. And who knows, maybe an American publisher will purchase foreign rights to publish the book in English!

Nueces River Massacre

JANICE:  The Treue der Union Monument in Comfort, Texas, may be the only Union memorial in the South. It is the burial place of thirty-four German immigrants who died in the Nueces River Massacre during the Civil War for their loyalty to the Union and their refusal to fight for slavery. They were on the right side.

In August of 1862 some sixty German Texans from Comfort and surroundings decided to flee to Mexico and from there to New Orleans where they could join the Union Army. Confederate soldiers followed and, with a full moon still in the sky, attacked their camp on the Nueces River. Thirty-four Germans were killed, including prisoners, and their bodies left to rot in the August sun. After the war was over their bones were brought back to Comfort for burial.

Tom and I recently traveled to Comfort to attend the 150th Anniversary of the Nueces River Massacre and to sign our book, Sophie's War, a historical novel based on this tragedy.

Sophie's father is a political cartoonist who expresses his Unionist views in a San Antonio newspaper. Since Texas has seceded from the Union, his life is in danger. Sophie pleads with him to keep his opinions to himself. But he refuses, saying, "That is why we left Germany – so we could be free to say what we think." Sophie must find a way to save her family.

And we must find a way to have peace on earth. As T.R. Fehrenbach said in a previous ceremony at the Treue der Union Monument, "Will we never learn that violence solves nothing."

Lunch on the Lake

JANICE:  As promised in my previous blog, here is Tom's latest painting in his Austin series, a view from the Oasis on Lake Travis. We had several lunch times on the lake before the painting was finished, and we discovered that the spinach enchiladas are the best.

Lunch on the Lake

When Tom Has No Book to Illustrate

He paints.
Tom has decided to do a series of Austin images. One of the first is "Capitol Guardians." The idea struck us one day as we drove across the Congress Avenue bridge, headed toward the Texas state capitol building. Powerful skyscrapers loomed up on either side of the graceful capitol building, seeming to guard it. Tom snapped some photos.

Back in his studio he made sketches, the final one in ink, using a light table. Notice how he distorted the perspective to make the skyscrapers seem to hover over the capitol and guard it.

Then he traced it in pencil onto watercolor paper and painted.

Tom's next painting project is a glorious view from the Oasis on Lake Travis. We recently spent an entire day there, Tom doing a small color study and a large pencil sketch. The staff has embraced us and the project. They even posted a photo on Facebook of Tom at work. (The Oasis on Lake Travis)

We will return soon so Tom can paint the final scene on location and will post it here.