A Crafty Interview with Author & llustrator Hannah Holt

Author/illustrator Hannah Holt is favoring us today with a craft and interview. She blogs about healthy kid's snacks and crafts over at her Lightbulb Books blog.

First up, the craft: DIY Oval Chalkboard

Create your own oval chalkboard for under $10.



What you'll need:

a 12” by 9” wooden board (sanded, about $4)
black acrylic or wood paint (to prime, $2)
chalkboard spray paint ($2)
a sheet of paper torn from an old over-sized book (free)
½ inch rickrack ($1)
white glue sponge brush
a plastic card a paper towel
this oval pattern (Click "download file" on bottom right.)

Step 1) Prime the wood by painting the entire surface black. Use the sponge brush to create a smooth finish. Let the paint dry.

Step 2) Spray a thin coat of chalkboard paint onto the wood. Let this coat dry and then spray at least one more coat. I recommend 3-4 thin coats. Let dry for 24 hours.

Step 3) Cut your over-sized sheet of paper to fit the board. Then download and print the oval pattern provided here and use this pattern to cut an oval out of the middle of your paper. Be sure to center the oval before you cut. Sadly the pattern is not perfectly centered within the page. My pdf writer was giving me grief today.



Step 4) Using chalk and the cut out sheet of paper, trace an oval on the center of your wooden board.

Step 5) Mix white glue with water in a 1:1 ratio. You'll need about 2 Tbl of white glue and 2 Tbl of water for this project. Paint around the outside of the circle with the diluted glue.



Step 6) Place the paper with the oval cutout over the glue and smooth with the side of the plastic card. You'll want to remove ALL the bubbles.



Step 7) Paint diluted glue over the top of the paper. Dab off excess glue with a paper towel.



Step 8) Put a stripe of undiluted glue around the interior of the oval, and press the rickrack into the glue. Let the glue dry overnight, and you're all done!

And now for the interview part of this post!



Me: Thanks Hannah! With so many kid's craft blogs out there, what made you decide to do one?

Hannah: Well, it's something I love. Also most of the crafts I post on my blog are originals. You can't find them anywhere else. Creativity provides me with a small monopoly that way.

Me: Is it true you provide all your own artwork and photography for your website?

Hannah: Yes. I think that's pretty standard stuff for artist/illustrator sites. Most creative people understand the importance of not using of someone else's material without permission.

Me: With four kids six and under, where do you find the time to make all your creations?

Hannah: We do a lot of drawing together as a family. Most days my kids and I crowd around our big kitchen table with papers and pens to compare doodlings. Just the other day my four year old asked, “Mom, would you make me a maze?” He likes it when I make activity pages because he gets to try them first.

Me: And the babies? Do they like to draw?

Hannah: No. They sit under the table and eat any papers that fall on the floor.

Me: Art scavengers?

Hannah: Exactly.

Me: When do you write your picture books?

Hannah: I haven't been as diligent about writing picture books since my twins were born last year. That's one reason I'm excited about Julie Hedlund's 12x12 challenge. The challenge is forcing me to get stories out on paper. So far the stories I've written haven't been very good. I'm hoping with enough pump priming, I'll have a few decent ideas by the end of the year.

Me: Anything else my readers should really know about you?

Hannah: I suffer from chronic foot-in-mouth disease. I have a lot of strong opinions, and I'm all too happy to share them. If I've offended anyone, please know I don't intend it as a personal attack. I love meeting new people with differing ideas. Don't worry about offending me. I have a pretty thick skull skin when it comes to taking offense.

Me: Thanks so much for answer my questions today.

Hannah: My pleasure. Thanks for having me.


Tweet

Interview With Children's Author Giles Paley-Phillips

I met Giles Paley-Phillips on Facebook. He is a 33 year old children's author and he was kind enough to let me interview him for this blog. He also sent me a copy of his book "The Fearsome Beastie," and my children loved it. You can watch their video review of it over on Children Review.



Tell us a little about yourself.
My name is Giles Paley-Phillips. I'm a children's author and work part-time in a book shop. I was born in 1977, and I live and work in East Sussex with my wife, Michelle and two sons, Elijah and Sonny. I currently write picture book stories and play in a rock band called Burnthouse. I am also Patron for FSW Family Support Work Charity and I'm represented by Annette Green Agency. I can also be found on Twitter and through my blog.

What are some of your writing accomplishments?
I have two books out: The Fearsome Beastie is a picture book and There's a Lion in My Bathroom is a book of nonsense poetry.



What type of writing do you do? What genre do you write in the most?
I'm a picture book author, but I do also writing nonsense poetry!

When did you first realize you wanted to be a writer? What was it about writing that drew you to it?
I started writing for children when my first son was born, I wanted to write something specifically for him, and I couldn't quite work it out, then I stumbled upon a book of nonsense poetry by Shel Silverstein, and it was my eureka moment.

Where do you get your ideas for your writing?
I get ideas from lots of places really, things the children do, things they are interested in, could be something in the news, or just something that I've heard people talking about.

What books/authors have influenced your writing?
Shel Silverstein's work got me first hooked in, but I've always loved children's books, especially writers such as Roald Dahl and the work of Tim Burton; things that are macabre always draw me in.

What are your current writing projects?
I'm working on another dark picture book for Maverick Books and a humerous book about dinosaurs for Gullane.

Do you ever experience writer’s block? How do you get through it?
You just have to leave your work alone and do something else, and come back to it later.

Is there anything you find particularly challenging in your writing?
I'm terrible at editing.

What do you love most about writing?
When an idea comes, it's so exciting when you start figuring it out.

Is there anything that you have learned about yourself through writing/pursuing your career as a writer?
I've learned that I'm tenacious; I think you have to be and thick skinned too!

If you could become one of your characters for a day, would you? (and who/why?):
I'm not sure I've written a character I'd like to be yet, my protagnists tend to be a bit horrid!

Do you have any advice for other writers?
If you are trying to get published, then just stick to your guns, it only takes one person to like your work to make it happen.



Giles was kind enough to send me a copy of his book The Fearsome Beastie, and my children loved it. I loved that the heroine of the story was a grandma, and I even enjoyed the fact that it had some slightly gruesome aspects to the story. My little princess Isabella was less impressed with the gruesome bits, but the rest of my children loved that aspect of the story and over-all, each of them were entertained by the story. My son Connor had me read it to him several times on the day it first arrived.



Tweet