Lynne
Marie: I remember with fondness, quite some time ago, meeting you in the front
row of the SCBWI Conference at LA. How has the SCBWI played a part in your
success? How long was your path to publication?
HM:
LASCBWI - that was a while ago! I learn
so much at the conferences. SCBWI is a huge part of my journey to publication.
I got serious about pursuing a career in children's books in 2010 when I
attended by first SCBWI NY Winter Conference and was such a newbie. I’d no idea
how to pursue a career in trade books. So I read and listened and learned and
sent out postcards on my return from that conference and got my first contract
to illustrate a trade non-fiction book in Fall 2010. I haven't stopped working
on children's books since and now I’m loving writing and illustrating.
LM:
Writers are always interested in finding out how to get an Agent. How did you meet your Agent, Ginger Knowlton? How
long had you been searching for an Agent before you signed with Ginger?
HM:
I had heard from a friend that Ginger liked an illustration she’d seen on a
joint mailing postcard. It took me 3 years to contact her! Boy I wish I had
done it earlier, but it's the fear syndrome, which is silly! (Be bold, people).
I’d been looking for an agent since I began illustrating books. I signed with
Ginger at Curtis Brown Ltd., in 2014. There were a lot of rejections before
then. Who knows why? I’m very happy and honored to be a part of the Curtis
Brown stable. (Also Ginger signed me when I sent her the first dummy of Toby ...
so it was meant to be!)
LM: Toby’s story is a heartwarming and sweet. What made this
story the story you needed to tell in your author/illustrator debut?
HM: My whole heart is in this story. I’ve
always rescued dogs, but Toby is special. You know when you’re writing a story
that just comes out so easily. I’d been chasing trends a lot before I wrote
Toby. Don't chase trends!
LM: Toby is somewhat of a celebrity, not only in this book, but
in the news. Please share a little bit about Toby’s special circumstances.
HM:
Right, Toby is a legend! Toby came to me as a foster dog in 2013, he quickly
turned into a foster failure when we adopted him. He had a lot of issues and we
knew he’d spend his time being sent back and forth to the shelter. Toby and eight
of his family of poodles were rescued from a puppy mill situation in Aroostook
County, Maine. They’d been kept in the dark and I don't think Toby had ever
been outside, was totally unsocialized and extremely fearful. He became
somewhat of a celebrity on social media when he was lost from a place he was
staying for the day and many, many people helped us search for him. People all
over the world were checking in to see if Toby had been found and it was
heartbreaking to think we wouldn't ever see him again. We hired dog trackers
and walked miles, but no one had seen him. The book I’d written was all ready being
considered by Candlewick Press. If we didn't find him I knew I wouldn't have
the heart to do illustrate it. But good karma was with us - Toby was found and,
although scared and shaken, in good shape. I couldn't believe our luck in having him back home!
LM: Toby’s story definitely raises awareness of how dogs, like
people, sometimes need time to adjust. How long did it take for Toby to settle
in, once you began fostering him?
HM:
He’s still settling! An abused dog never really recovers totally and we see
little improvements every day. Like the boy in the book, we’ve had to have
endless patience to win his trust. N he loves to cuddle with us, run around in
the garden and is very talkative. We have another rescue poodle, Lucy, who
loves people and helps Toby a lot. There is some sibling rivalry for sure!
LM: At what point did you realize that you needed to tell
Toby’s story? What was your goal in telling it?
HM:
I began to draw Toby as soon as he came to live with us. I was toying around
weaving a story around his journey to recovery and talked to Harold Underdown
at a retreat about the idea. He said 'Do it!', so I did! I’d thought there were
so many picture books about rescue dogs that another would be too many. But it
turns out it's all about the story, as it always is. I wanted to show how a dog
needs patient and understanding and things might not always be okay. The boy
and dad in the story help to create an emotional journey for Toby that children
can relate to. I also thing that Toby is 'every child' in the book - there are
so many things that children go through in life that equate to the struggles
Toby deals with.
LM: Which parts of the story are based on real life? Which
parts are fiction?
HM:
There’re lots of incidents … being in the pound, Toby hiding under the table
on chairs, not eating treats, not letting us touch him, howling at night and my
husband sleeping on the sofa next to him, being scared of the cat. I included
his favorite stuffy, his rabbit, in the book. Then when he gets braver, he’s looking
for us out of the window, chewing eyeglasses, and collecting shoes! Of course
the main fictionalization is the setting, the boy, the dad, the house. I had to
shorten the time it has taken Toby to rehab in the book, because it makes it
easier for a small child to follow.
LM: What was your favorite part of working on Toby? Which came
to your mind first, the concept, the words or the art?
HM: The art. Because I started to make
sketches of him and doodle around with a story before it was even a concept. I
loved working on the final art and creating the moodiness and emotional
connection in the colors and line. Here is a link to the book trailer for Toby, which highlights some of the art:
LM: Describe your creative process for this book. About how
long did it take for you to complete it? How has your process changed since you
began your journey?
HM:
It took about two years from concept to final publication date. I spent
about a year on the dummies and art when the book was with Candlewick Press, working
with my editor, Liz Bicknell, and art director, Anne Stott. We did a lot of
revisions on the dummy, maybe four or five drafts. So the concept changed in that way and the
story became much simpler. Which is good! I get too complicated! (Which is why
we need good editors and art directors).
LM: How many times you did submit Toby before being offered a
contract on it?
HM:
Once … to my agent who signed me … and once to Liz Bicknell at Candlewick Press
who bought it 4 weeks later!
LM: Who, or what has been an inspiration in your career?
HM:
I think all the great people I have met on my journey in children's books.
Especially Ashley Bryan and Melissa Sweet who both live in Maine. And Eric
Rohmann. And Harold Underdown. And Emma Dryden. In my school days a teacher in high school,
David Fulford, who was the first person to really encourage me to look at
things. People are everything. (oh and dogs!)
LM: What was your occupation prior to being a picture book
author and illustrator?
HM:
I have always worked in art and design, mostly as a graphic designer and
commercial illustrator. I also spent six years in the Royal Navy, luckily
enough working in design!
LM: You are originally from Great Britain. How would you say
the picture books there differ from the picture book here?
HM:
People talk about the 'European style' and I guess if it is anything it is
that. The art tends to be 'artier' and sometimes the concepts are more
cerebral. But I think that’s a generalization. There are a lot of commercial
books everywhere, and especially in the English speaking countries books jump
borders frequently. Mainland Europe has a different style I think. I once went
to a conference in Paris where the editors talked about different books and it
was said that British books were much cozier. Well, we are a cozy island! But
look at the books that are on the Kate Greenaway list every year. They are
diverse in every sense of the word.
LM: Name favorite picture books (one from US and one from
Britain) that you would want to share with readers.
HM:
David Weisner – Flotsam (USA) & The Snowman – Raymond Briggs (UK)
LM:
What projects are currently on your horizon? Which project are you most excited
about?
HM: I have a
new book out in the fairy series from Down East Books in Maine - 'Do Fairies Bring the Spring?' with author
Liza Gardner Walsh in Spring 2017. I am excited about a middle grade mystery
set in England I am revising and I want to get back to that!
LM: Where can readers get the latest updates on Toby?
HM:
On Twitter @meettoby and on his website page http://hazelmitchell.com/toby (where you can
find a teacher's guide, how I wrote Toby resource and lots of activity pages
and goodies!
JUST FOR FUN:
LM: If you were a dog, what breed would you be?
HM: Border Collie (or
poodle)
LM: If you were a character in Harry Potter, which one would you be?
HM: Hagrid, because he rescues animals.
LM: If you were a literary character, which one would you be?
HM: Elizabeth
Bennet
LM: Who is your favorite children’s author?
HM: Philip Pullman
LM: If there is a book you wish you wrote, which one would it be?
HM: His
Dark Materials
Thank you, Hazel for this fun visit with you!
