Amy Rhodes, Library Media Specialist at Briggs Elementary School in Florence, SC, invited me to share with the first, second, and third grade classes on November 15, 2011. This was my first opportunity to do an author/illustrator visit in a school, and it was so much fun!
I was asked to talk about the illustrations in my book since they are so unique. I shared how I struggled from saying “I need to find someone else to do the quilt blocks pictures” to “maybe I can do them” and finally making it happen. I also shared my first attempts at making the illustrations and the changes I made as I re-worked them to make them better, and I compared that to the author’s process of writing and re-writing to make a story the best it can be.
I shared how even though I’m not very good at drawing people with a pencil (I have to erase most of the lines and keep only a few), I can find other ways to come up with the shapes and the pictures I need so I can still design and sew my quilt blocks. I also demonstrated how I pick out the right piece of fabric for part of the picture, and how I cut it out and sew it onto the background fabric.
I autographed several books for the students.
by Janice D. Green, author of The Creation and The First Christmas.
It was all so much fun. I miss having students come to my library now that I’ve retired. I hope many more schools will invite me to visit and talk about my book with their students.
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