Patti Brassard was born in
upstate NY in 1962 but moved with her military family to Virginia when she was
11 years old. She always loved art in school but never gave a thought to making
it a career until she started college in 1980. With no idea where a Fine Arts degree
would take her, she instead studied Media Arts Advertising and after
graduation, started her own graphic design company so that she could continue
to be a work-at-home mother to her daughter Nikki.
It was while Nikki was
learning to read that Patti mocked up her first book aimed at teaching
pre-readers the alphabet. She only shared it with her daughter and her
kindergarten class. It was very well received but Patti never pursued the
project any further.
Over the following years Patti
opened a paint-it-yourself pottery studio and got back to being involved in
more artistic endeavors. In 2010, she
remarried and added Jefferson to her name: Patti Brassard Jefferson. They moved to the Florida Keys with their two
rescued dogs, Marley & Mollie, and she opened an art gallery.
While in Florida, she decided
to dust off unfinished children's book project that she had put on the shelf.
It had started as a Valentines card years before and had morphed into the
beginning of a book. Over the next 2 years, Patti worked on the illustrations
and adding more pages. It was finished in October 2012 but she had no idea what
the next step was. A friend and fellow author had just self-published a novel
so Patti did some research. She decided
to start a Kick Starter campaign to raise
the funds necessary to self-publish her book. The campaign launched in April of
2013 and funded 30 days later. She signed with Halo Publishing International
and the book was released in June!
VS: I want to thank you for being my guest here today Patti. What do you do to help balance
your writing life with your family life?
Patti: My
husband I both work from home which is great because we each have flexible
schedules and that certainly makes planning fun things a bit easier. On the
other hand, we realized that we each needed our own space as well. I converted
the dining room into my writing & drawing space. Now at the end of a work
day, we can meet in the living room and say, "How was YOUR day?"
VS: How long have you been writing?
Patti: The
first story I remember writing was actually an adventure about 5 kids in the
neighbourhood who had a tree house/club house. I was 8 years old and it was
written on pink paper. Throughout the years, I have written for small local
publications and newsletters but it was definitely just a hobby. When my
daughter was born, I started writing & illustrating stories for her to help
with her reading. How Long Will You Love Me? is the first book that I have had
published.
VS: What inspired you to write your
book (if this is a personal story about you, please share about the decision to
open up about your life)?
Patti: I heard someone say "I
promise I will love you until your freckles fall off." I thought that was
a sweet sentiment and I created a short rhyme & an illustration for a
Valentine's Day card from it. Over time, I would think of other funny improbabilities
like that and write them down until the illustration also popped in my head.
Unconditional, endless love is something that everyone - regardless of age,
gender, religion, or nationality - wants. It's a global topic and where better
to start than with the connection between a child and a parent?
VS: What is a typical writing day
like for you?
Patti: I wish I was a bit more
structured in my writing routine but I think writing 28 pages of a children's book vs a 250+ page novel leaves
me with a more flexible writing schedule. I don't have a set routine per se but
because of that, I do set self-imposed deadlines. Being both the author and the
illustrator means that I have to say - "OK, I need to have x number of
illustrations sketched out by this date" and then I need to hold myself
accountable. I talk to a lot of people who are trying to get the book in their
head completed and thats the advice I give them. Set a small deadlines and then
figure out how to make that happen.
VS: Is your family supportive of your
writing?
Patti: I am super fortunate to have a
great circle of cheerleaders which include my husband, my parents, best friends
and, of course, my daughter. They all were instrumental in pushing me to get
the book out there and continue to help me promote it. I think its made a big
difference for me. If you are a writer, however, and you don't have a support
system within your inner circle, go find one elsewhere. Join a writing group or
seek out other writers through social media. Whatever it takes. Don't let the
lack of family support stop you from getting your book done. I said it helps. I
didn't say it was impossible without it.
VS: Can you share with us a little
about your current book(s)?
Patti: How
Long Will You Love Me?
was released on Halo Publishing at the end of June 2013. It starts out with the
question and is a collection of rhyming, reassuring pages of how long endless
love really might be. The illustrations are bright and funny and you get to see
characters doing things that could never happen. The sight of a whale and a
dolphin laying in the sun tanning is something so silly that small children
& adults alike are liable to giggle. There is a running challenge of
finding the heart hidden in each illustration and a bit of grown up humour for
the adults. The sign above the bunny blues band that says "Karrot-oke
every Sunday" still makes me laugh every time.
VS: What did you find to be the most
challenging part of writing your book(s)?
Patti: As the illustrator & author,
the biggest challenge is to synch the two pieces. If I was only writing the
story, I doubt that I would worry about adding a visually complex element. I
would just write and let the illustrator figure it out. Being the illustrator
at the same time, means that maybe I adjust the story to fit my illustration
style and that might not be good for the story. The personal challenge is in
writing the best story that I can and then pushing myself as the illustrator to
make the story work as written.
VS: What part of your book do you
feel really stands out to you personally?
Patti: Love is a pretty strong and yet
extremely fragile emotion. I think that we all have been in a relationship of
some sort where we either answered or asked the question. The overall message of reassuring someone that truly impossible
things would have to become completely possible before love would cease is what
the book is all about. I have people who send me pictures of their kids reading
this book - maybe while sitting in their mother's lap - and it gives me goose
bumps to see their faces. Helping in anyway to solidify that bond is humbling.
VS: Do you have any other works in
progress? Can you share a little about them?
Patti: I have 2 books scheduled to be
released by Halo Publishing International in 2014. The first is called Stu's Big Party and is the story of a
hippo who finds out that it really doesn't matter what your friends look like
on the outside, they are all the same on the inside. Its a really cute book
that came to me just as I was drifting
to sleep around midnight one night. I ended up getting up and writing the whole
first draft of the story complete with rough sketches until about 4:30 am. I am
in the process of reworking the illustrations and editing the text with a
release date of March.
The second book is Forever and a Day, will be a sequel of How Long Will You Love Me? and will be
released in August 2014.
VS: What tips can you give writing
parents with children at home to help them see publication?
Patti: Involving your kids in the
process of writing and publishing is a great opportunity to teach them some
real core principles in life. Our society is so scattered this days and it
seems that it is impossible to focus. Maybe in the time that you have set aside
for un-interupted writing/creating, you can offer your children the same thing.
Make it a creative work time or focused time for them as well.
Of course, if you are writing
childrens' books and you have a built in audience to test the flow of your
story, thats bonus! Test it out, see what holds their attention and what makes
them laugh.
The bottom line of course is to adjust
your schedule when you need to but you owe it to your kids, yourself and the
universe to get the book out of your head. Teach your kids to set goals and
work towards them.
VS: What do you think are the basic
ingredients of a good book?
Patti: Personally, I like to write
things to make children (and adults) laugh so the "silliness factor"
is a key element for me.
Another important ingredient -
even in children's books - is to create a relatable challenge or conflict and
then tell the story to resolution. I once wrote some alphabet stories and one
featured an octopus that couldn't quite get the hang of tying his shoes since
he had so many of them! It was a relatable conflict for a child with funny
challenges and a great resolution at the end.
VS: What is required for a character
to be believable? How do you create yours? (answer only if your book is
fiction)
Patti: I think for children what makes a
character believable is some sort of commonality. The character can be a an
octopus or a frog or hippo but they have to have some sort of characteristic
that a children can see themselves sharing.
VS: What do you feel as parents we
need to do to help our children see success?
Patti: Kids are sponges. They do what
they see us do, not what they hear us tell them to do. In order to show our children
success, we have to define what success is and then take our kids along on that
journey. For me success isn't material possessions or wealth but in failing and
moving forward anyway. My daughter is 27 years old now and I'd like to think
that she is still watching me move forward and achieving my goals. She has been
very successful in many areas of her life and I am proud to have been part of
that.
VS: Have you received any awards for
your writing?
Patti: How Long Will You Love Me? came
out at the end of June this year so it hasn't won any awards yet but it has
received a lot of 5 star reviews including one from Reader's Favorite.
VS: Where can the readers of The
Writing Mama find out more about and your writing?
Book website:
www.howlongwillyouloveme.com
Facebook:
www.facebook.com/howloongwillyouloveme
VS: Is there anything else you would
like to share with us about being a “Writing Mama or Dad”?
Patti: I really started thinking about
being a children's book author when my daughter was born. That was 27 years
ago. I faced a lot of obstacles but my biggest was myself. Don't be that
person. Don't be the person who puts your life on hold because you are afraid
of failing or afraid of succeeding. Be fearless for your children. Write.
Paint. Sing. Dance. Above all, realize that its never too late. Even if it
takes 27 years to find your voice... it's never too late to become fearless.
Title of Book(s): How
Long Will You Love Me?
Author & Illustrator: Patti Brassard Jefferson
Publisher: Halo
Publishing, Int.
Genre: Children's
book
ISBN Number: ISBN: 9781612441658
Publication Date: June
2013
BONUS: Each page also has a heart drawn in it
somewhere. While they are not very difficult to find, the search will also take
the reader through some of the other subtle jokes such as a banner behind the
bunny band that promotes Carrot-oke or a whale who's reading Moby Dick on the
beach.
Places where available for sale:
www.bn.com