Rainy City

Finding a Mood for a Picture Book

The process of making a picture book is non-linear. Sometimes I begin with the words, other times with the pictures. Often I will create both at once. I’ll try one art style, then another. Dissatisfied with both, I’ll try yet another art style, only to revert to the first one.

I’ve shared quite a bit about the process of making my new picture book NOTHING EVER HAPPENS ON A GRAY DAY, which is out now from Chronicle Books.

This short piece was another detour in the creation of GRAY DAY, but an enjoyable one. I wandered downtown Wichita with a sketchbook one rainy spring morning. Then I returned to my drawing table, blasted some Morrissey tunes, and took out my scissors. I made it from scraps of paper stolen from my kids—remember those handwriting sheets?

Was this creative exercise essential to the book? Not at all. But it was a fun way to inhabit the character and mood of what eventually became a published children’s book. And I got to use the cyan/yellow/magenta and gray color scheme that’s so satisfying to my eye.

I hope to read NOTHING EVER HAPPENS ON A GRAY DAY at a bookstore or school visit near you.