As part of the blog tour for Chasing the Shy Town, I am excited to share a guest blog from author Erika McGann. She shares her thoughts on working with an illustrator and the anticipation to see the final product.
Chasing the Shy Town is a fun adventure for younger readers. With an eccentric cast of characters and an almost impossible destination, this adventure will challenge and thrill each one. From Senan and his Gran to Joshua, Paperboy and a strange critter called a Kruckle, they somehow bond and find ways of working together to find and discover Shy Town.
The Fun of Working with Illustrators
By Erika McGann
Most people assume that authors and illustrators work closely together when making a book. In truth, we’re kept apart. It’s not enforced – the publisher doesn’t stand between us with an oversized fly-swatter – but they don’t put us directly in contact. There’s good reason for this. Imagine an editor painstakingly crafting an email to the illustrator that incorporates feedback from themselves, the author, the publisher, the Sales Department, the Publicity and Marketing Department, and anyone else who has a stake in the book, and then the author inadvertently derails it all with a few throwaway comments over a casual coffee: Disaster. Having one route of communication keeps everything simple (or as simple as it can be when so many opinions are involved).
While working on my new book, Chasing the Shy Town, the lovely people at Little Island had no need to stand between me and illustrator, Toni Galmés, with an oversized fly-swatter – geography took care of it. I am based in Dublin, Toni in Spain. And though it may seem a bit weird that we didn’t get to chat through our ideas together, the process was still very magical. For me at least.
Chasing the Shy Town is about Senan and his best friend, Joshua, who set out on an epic adventure in search of the Shy Town, a mysterious hilltop town that vanishes and reappears onthe horizon. Along for the ride are Senan’s no-nonsense grandmother, a boy called Paperboy (who is literally made of paper), and Pearl, a beetle-like creature with fantastical abilities.
The first round of illustrations were loosely drawn roughs, but they included fairly detailed character illustrations. Best friends Senan and Joshua won my heart, and I laughed out loud when I saw Senan’s grandmother – sarkily rambunctious in sunglasses. Paperboy was ridiculously sweet – he often travels in the shape of a paper plane, and Toni drew him pilot-like in aviator goggles and a wind-swept scarf. When you’re not privy to the process, all these details come as wonderful surprises.
My feedback was mostly technical, as always – a sunflower should be popping out of Pearl’s shell in this scene, Paperboy should be secured by string to the armrests of Gran’s wheelchair as he takes flight – so that the illustrations matched the text, but otherwise I just got to enjoy someone else’s art at work.
The next round of images was even more exciting. Scenes became fuller and more dynamic, with Toni adding more sneakylittle details that I delighted in spotting. It’s such a lovely, fluttery feeling watching someone bring your story to life.
When the final artwork came in, the book was ready to go to print. This was the point at which I finally contacted Toni for the first time. I gushed over his illustrations and thanked him for his wonderful interpretations of each character. And although it’s a bit odd that we’re only in touch when all the work is done, it’s still a lovely, celebratory moment. Because the only thing left to do is wait for first freshly-printed copies to arrive, and admire the final book.
My Shelves Are Full 