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Jon Scieszka
Biography
Jon Scieszka, appointed the first National Ambassador for Young People's Literature by the Library of Congress, held a number of teaching positions in the first through eighth grades before taking a year off to develop ideas for children’s books. He is the author of some of the best known and funniest books written for children, including The True Story of the Three Little Pigs, the Time Warp Trio chapter book series, the Caldecott Honor Book The Stinky Cheese Man and Other Fairly Stupid Fairy Tales and the newest Trucktown series (Simon & Schuster, 2008). He is the founder of Guys Read, a nonprofit literacy organization, and he lives in Brooklyn, New York.
The Scoop
What sparked your imagination for your new Trucktown series?
I’ve always been interested in motivating kids to be readers by writing stories that they want to read. So I decided to write for the youngest readers. And I decided to write about characters sure to excite first time readers – trucks. All of the characters in Trucktown are trucks . . . who act like 4 year olds.
You have collaborated with several different illustrators. Can you tell us about that process?
The process for Trucktown was unlike any other books I’ve ever worked on. The idea was to create a whole world that could exist everywhere – print, animation, online, toys, underwear . . . So we used the technique of movie studios, and had 3 great artists (Dave Shannon, Loren Long, and Dave Gordon) work together to create the original characters and backgrounds that other artists use as models. That way everything (all 52 books over the next 3 years, and the website, and the animation) looks great.
What challenges do you face in your writing process? How do you overcome them?
Writing is always a challenge. It’s like ditch digging. You just have to keep at it every day. So that’s what I do. I try to dig a little more of my ditches every day.
What tips or advice can you share with young students who hope to start writing?
Read everything you can. I started writing by imitating my favorite writers. Then comes the hard part – you have to actually sit down and write. And then write some more. Then change it. Edit it. Make it better. Write some more. Then take a nap.
Can you suggest a fun writing topic to get them started?
Write about your family. That’s what I just did. I wrote stories remembering funny things that happened when I was growing up with my five brothers. It’s called Knucklehead. And I illustrated it with old family photos and my drawings from kindergarten and stuff from my scrapbook.
What is your list of favorite children or teen books?
I have a bazillion favorites. But here are some recent finds:
- The Adventures of Polo by Regis Faller – a fun wordless picture book.
- Paleo Bugs by Timothy J. Bradley – Oh yeah. Prehistoric bugs.
- The Elephant and Piggie books by Mo Willems – great, funny beginning readers. And there are a bunch of them.
- The Fog Mound Trilogy by Susan Schade and Jon Buller – an illustrated novel about Thelonious Chipmunk and pals. Heroic.
- Old Blood and Guts (and the rest of the fantastic Sterling Point Book series of biographies and histories) by Alden Hatch – the life of General Patton.
- Pretty Monsters by Kelly Link – wonderfully weird short stories, with spot illustrations by Shaun Tan (whose The Arrival is a must read too.)
- ALL of the CALDECOTT and NEWBERY Award winners from 2007. A spectacular bunch.
The Library of Congress recently appointed you as the National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature. Can you tell us what that involves?
Most of it is very top-secret, and involves me flying around in my official Apache Attack Helicopter (with my Ambassador Seal painted on the side door). But I can tell you that my basic job is to tell people about all of the great children’s books out there, and to get kids reading by helping them find the book that they will enjoy the most. I’m appointed for two years. And I am the host of Children’s Book Week in the spring in NY. And I’m in charge of the whole National Book Festival . . . well, maybe the whole Children’s Book area . . . my tent? . . . my signing?
What is your advice to parents for passing the joys of reading on to their children?
Read with your children, and have a fun time doing it. It isn’t medicine. It’s discovering worlds of prehistoric bugs, little puppies with flying boats, Dancing Elephants, and Flying Piggies . . . and discovering these worlds together with your children.
Book Covers
Melvin Might? |
Alice in Wonderland |
Pete's Party |
Zoom! Boom! Bully |
Knucklehead |
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Last Updated: 10/02/2008