Illustrator. Here is our little interview with Leeza. How many books have you done? Approximately nine picture books, two of which I also wrote, plus an illustrated chapter book series . There are seven books in the series so far, with three already done and the other four at different stages of completion. It’s been a busy few years! What age did you know you wanted to be an author/illustrator? There wasn’t one defining moment where I felt destined to do this from a young age actually, though I knew I’d always be making art. The first time happened when I was about 12 years old, but the dream was short-lived. After a summer of doodling my ideas for books I quickly moved on to something else and eventually took a different career path into graphic design. Fast forward into the early 2000s—after a number of years illustrating for editorial publications on the side—I stumbled across the Illustration Friday blog that led me to the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI). Flashback! I couldn’t shake all those thoughts of ‘I wonder,’ ‘what if,’ and ‘is it worth me trying?’ so gave it a shot and here we are. Do you have a pet? We have a 3-year-old grey tabby called Jaspurr-purr. He’s a beast (but he’s cute)! Where do you live? I’m from the south of England, but currently live in the USA, just outside New York City. Where do you like to go for holidays? Anywhere, really. Travel is another passion of mine. If it’s a hot climate, even better! My favourite places to visit usually involve speaking a foreign language. We go to Spain regularly and that’s always a great time, though I love Hawaii, too. At some point, I hope to explore Japan, Australia and Indonesia. What music do you like? It’s a mixed bag, depending on my mood or workload. If I’m relaxing, then lounge and deep house music is a go-to as well as classical, the blues or old jazz. When I’m on a crazy deadline I need a hard ’n’ fast tempo, so will listen to dance or rock music—from Ministry of Sound (I’m so old school) to ACDC! [Yikes, I probably just dated myself, right?!] If you could do anything, what would you do? Gosh, that’s a loaded question. If it’s based on my present life situation, I’m not sure it’d be that different to what I’m currently doing which might sound a bit boring. I love making art and traveling, so maybe I’d do more of that full time with my family. If I were younger with better eyesight, being an astronaut or pilot would be cool (I’ve always been fascinated by space and air travel). And because I love languages, I’d also travel around the world and learn as many as I could—whilst still making art of course. What did you want to be when you were a kid? In my younger years I wanted to be an air stewardess. Then, when I started learning languages in school, I switched my goals and wanted to be an interpreter. I was always making art, but didn’t truly consider it as a career until my early teens. What inspires you to draw? Everyday stuff—from the cat and my family, to just being out and about observing the world. Colours in a rusty old dump truck, patterns on the side of a building, or textures in a restaurant will stop me in my tracks and I’ll think “wow, that’s so cool.” Then I’ll capture what I see with a sketch or quick photo and save it for a future illustration. Do you have a favourite thing to draw? Mostly animals and abstract shapes. Lately, I’ve been drawing a lot of cats, crabs and alpacas. What is your most recent book called? I just finished illustrating a picture book with Charlesbridge Publishing called “Did You Burp? How to Ask Questions (Or Not)” written by April Pulley Sayre, and “Mia Mayhem and the Super Bully” which is book three of the Mia Mayhem chapter book series with Little Simon /S&S. Did it take you long to do? “Did You Burp?” took about 12-15 months start to finish—from character samples, to sketches, revisions and final art. The chapter book artwork happens in a much shorter timeframe. One book (soup-to-nuts) is usually done within about three months. The deadlines are crazy on those, and even though there are way more illustrations to paint, the artwork is greyscale and smaller so it's more manageable (usually!). When do the books come out? “Mia Mayhem and the Super Bully” comes out in May and “Did You Burp?” releases in August. I'm super exctied! Thanks Leeza for taking the time to answer some questions for us. I would love to visit Spain and Hawaii, I have heard lots of good things about those places. There is nothing wrong with old school music, we are Ministry of Sounds fans in this house too :) More Information on Leeza. www.leezaworks.com Instagram @leezaworks Twitter @leezaworks You can find books at: www.booktopia.com.au www.bookdepository.com www.amazon.co.uk www.amazon.com.au
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