Crow & Fox

I’m still thinking about the privileges I enjoy as a writer and after spending the weekend in Baltimore visiting illustrator Shadra Strickland, I realize how much I benefit from having so many committed artists as friends. We spent a lot of time catching up—and we ate at some fabulous restaurants—but we also had moments where Shadra went upstairs to her studio to draw and I settled on the couch to write my picture book story “Fox & Crow: A Christmas Tale.” It’s not a retelling of the classic fable but there is a trickster element and a moral, of course. It’s fascinating to see how other artists work—Shadra’s home is full of art, but her studio makes me feel like a kid in a candy store. I got to see an advance copy of her beautiful new book, Please, Louise, and paintings from her next book were pinned to a string like clothes on a line. As soon as I mentioned the fox in my story, Shadra pulled out books and cards and online illustrations that showed other artists’ interpretation of foxes in winter. My story was inspired by “Christmas in Yellowstone,” which I watch every year on PBS, and a video someone posted on Facebook of a crow who turned a plastic lid into a rooftop sled. I started writing the story before I left Brooklyn, but just a few hours with Shadra opened up a whole range of new possibilities. I’m hoping to finish the story before the new year begins; I met most of my goals for 2013 but didn’t manage to sell another picture book story. I already have 20 unpublished manuscripts so this will be #21. On Sunday afternoon we pulled out our journals and wrote new objectives for 2014; I definitely plan to self-publish another novel in the coming year, but I don’t think I could do a picture book on my own. I could try to collaborate with a student artist or I could try sending my manuscript to editors outside the U.S. I suspect 2014 is going to force me to step outside my comfort zone…

The first time I visited Shadra’s studio in Brooklyn I headed home and passed out on the subway just as I reached my stop. I think my brain was overstimulated! And we did have to be careful we didn’t talk too much this weekend. Creatives need a lot of quiet time! As I always say, writing is 70% dreaming…