Roughy two to five times a year I find myself in conversation with another person at the beginning of their creative journey, and I reference “The Gap by Ira Glass”. (Chances are, if you are reading this newsletter, you have been in this situation before - I try, and fail, to capture how incredibly motivating these words have been to me and then I just give up and send you this link).
Please go watch it now, it’s incredible, also the below will make more sense once you do. Done? Great.
So, in his book On Writing, Stephen King (who I believe is Maine’s second most profitable export after lobster) advises that writers should read constantly.
Read and read and read, in order to hone your taste of what good writing is. (See! You needed to watch that video! This is the payoff).
I do not think that I, an aspiring picture book author-illustrator, was King’s intended audience for these words, but I think it should still apply. I.e. read picture books constantly.
Reading picture books has been an important part of my creative process so I started to make lists of every book I have ever read and loved and why. In the spirit of Practice Makes I am sharing my creative process and my ever growing list of gap-shrinking motivation with you here:
Alison’s Picture Book List *
Some of these I find as inspiration for their illustration, others for the wit of the story or for the wonderful message that they share. Some are for kids, some are for adults, some are for illustrators.
No matter your creative field - piano, photography, pottery - I hope you keep on honing your taste and keep on creating. We will all close the gap one day.