How do you pick the illustrator for your picture books?
I don’t pick the illustrator for my books. The publisher does. They may ask for my opinion about the work of illustrators they’re considering, but the decision is ultimately up to them.
What if you don’t like the pictures?
I’ve been lucky to have illustrators who have brought wonderful visual ideas to the books, ideas that I would never have thought of.
I’ve also had the chance to see rough illustrations and have sometimes suggested changes that the illustrator was usually only too happy to make. Not all publishers give a writer this opportunity.
Kathy Stinson is the author of the classic Red Is Best and the award-winning The Man with the Violin. Her wide range of titles includes picture books, non-fiction, young adult fiction, historical fiction, horror, biography, series books, and short stories. She has met with her readers in every province and territory of Canada, in the United States, Britain, Liberia, and Korea. She lives in a small town in Ontario.
