Peter Brown, a NYT bestselling author and illustrator known for 'The Wild Robot,' shares his journey from drawing whimsical characters to writing engaging children's books. He discusses the unique blend of text and illustrations that captivates young readers. The conversation dives into the challenges of adapting literature into film, focusing on his own experiences and the important themes in children's literature. Brown also emphasizes the candid and unfiltered responses from kids, revealing how they perceive stories differently than adults.
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Peter Brown's Story Origin
Peter Brown started storytelling through art as a child, focusing on quirky characters and scenes.
He gradually combined his love of words and pictures into picture books and later novels.
volunteer_activism ADVICE
Use Story Mapping to Write
Peter uses story mapping to plot his novels and picture books meticulously before writing.
He outlines goals for each chapter but allows creativity in how to reach them.
question_answer ANECDOTE
Creative Process in Picture Books
Peter's picture books sometimes start from sketches inspired by real-life observations or sentences.
He enjoys bouncing between writing and illustrating, giving creative freedom.
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This novel follows the life of Billy Pilgrim, a chaplain's assistant in the U.S. Army during World War II. Billy becomes 'unstuck in time' and experiences his life out of order, including his time as a prisoner of war in Dresden during the Allied firebombing. The book is a powerful anti-war statement, blending Vonnegut's own experiences with science fiction elements, such as Billy's abduction by aliens from Tralfamadore. It explores themes of post-traumatic stress, the absurdity of war, and the human condition, using Vonnegut's characteristic black humor and fatalistic tone.
Join hosts J.D. Barker, Christine Daigle, Jena Brown, and Kevin Tumlinson as they discuss the week's entertainment news, including stories about printing cost changes, the vicious cycle of book publishing, and BookCon's return. Then, stick around for a chat with Peter Brown!
Peter Brown has always loved telling stories. Growing up in New Jersey, he told stories by drawing whimsical characters and scenes from his imagination. As a teenager, he fell in love with writing and began telling his tales with words. While studying illustration at Art Center College of Design, Peter’s love of both words and pictures led him to take several courses on children’s books, and before long he knew he’d found his calling. After graduating from Art Center Peter moved to New York City to be closer to the publishing industry. He was working on animated TV shows when he signed a book deal to write and illustrate his first picture book, Flight of the Dodo. Peter quickly signed up his second and third books, and his career as an author and illustrator of children’s books was under way. Since then Peter has written and illustrated many books for children and earned numerous honors, including a Caldecott Honor, a Horn Book Award, two E.B. White Awards, two E.B. White Honors, a Children’s Choice Award for Illustrator of the Year, two Irma Black Honors, a Golden Kite Award, a New York Times Best Illustrated Book Award and multiple New York Times bestsellers. Peter lives in Maine with his wife, Susan, and their dog, Pam.
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