Interview…with children's author Gail Langer Karwoski

"Kids are impatient, demanding, energetic readers. You cannot indulge yourself with piles and miles of lovely words."

Gail Karwoski knows because in addition to her nine children's books published since 1999, she also taught for 13 years in the public schools and contributed to two textbooks.

Her latest, a picture book entitled: River Beds; Sleeping in the World's Rivers, is a bedtime story for young children. Released this month from Sylvan Dell Publishing, the book is the sequel to the acclaimed Water Beds; Sleeping in the Ocean. She research Water Beds for six years off and on before filtering her research down to 460 words.

"Writing for kids is lean writing, muscled writing…no flab, no junk," she says, equating editing with learning how to wield the "giant scissors."

Does children's fiction require a different research plan?

"Part of the reason that I love to write is because I love to learn," Karwoski says. The first thing she does once she has a topic is to picture the child who will read or hear her story. Once she decides on that child, she never changes her mind. She writes everything from picture books to YA nonfiction, but her research habits never vary. The first step is typing her topic into Google, then she sorts through Internet sites and scours libraries.

"I do whatever it takes," she says, "When possible, I travel to the place where the story occurred…I watch documentaries. I call or email experts and ask questions."

How she applies that research does vary with the book and the potential reader. Although she is dealing with historical and/or scientific facts, she culls information that 1) would distract the reader from her story or 2) would upset the theme or tone of her story. For instance, in the bedtime story River Beds, on one page she talks about a water vole, a cute, mouse-like animal. The next page she introduces a mink and writes: "Perhaps the mink will find a cozy den that once belonged to a water vole for tomorrow's snooze."

"I selected certain information for my audience - the bedtime-storybook set - and omitted the jarring fact that a mink will often kill and eat the water vole before sleeping in the vole's den," she explains. The last thing she wants is something that will take her reader out of the book and the moment it creates.

How does the author-illustrator relationship work?

"I LOVE to see the illustrations! It's like watching my words spring to life."

The author-illustrator relationship is almost nonexistent. The author may be consulted about potential illustrators, but the publishing house makes the final decision. Once an artist is chosen the author has no direct contact with him or her until the book is finished. Everything that passes between the author and illustrator goes through the editor, but that doesn't mean that Karwoski never has input.

"Usually, I get to see the sketches that are sent…to the editor for approval," she says, adding, "If the book is historical or scientific, I'm encouraged to give feedback on the…accuracy. I'm NOT encouraged to give feedback on artistic merit."

She has had to talk with her editor on occasion about inaccuracies in the illustrations and a few such illustrations did make it into the first printing editions due to time constraints. However, they were corrected before subsequent printings. In the end Karwoski makes a practice of calling or writing the illustrators to thank them for their good work.

What draws Karwoski to children's books?

Initially it began as a challenge from a new friend who had opened a children's book literary agency. Karwoski had young daughters, ages 4 and 9 at that time, and had spent a lot of time in the children's section of the library, not to mention the years teaching.

"Truthfully, this wasn't entirely a serendipitous decision," she admits. "I really write for who I am…although I am a grownup on the surface, I still think of myself as a child."

Her mother died when she was 11 and she feels her self-image, attitudes and emotional development formed at that age. So she writes middle reader books like Quake! Disaster in San Francisco, 1906, and Surviving Jamestown: the Adventures of Young Sam Collier, for kids like her inner self, and picture books for younger kids.

She has written two nonfiction narratives the Young Adult crowd, ages 13 and older, but Karwoski hasn't wanted to tackle a YA novel yet.

"There are a few elements…that I haven’t been interested in exploring – the focus on sexuality, the obsession with self-examination, and the importance of current trends in clothing, electronics, etc."

She might try an adult novel one day, she teases: "Perhaps when I grow up."


You can read more about Gail Karwoski and her books at her website. All of her titles have coordinating materials for classroom activities and lessons.