Myrna: Thank you for joining us, Marla! What is your background?

Marla: I’m a Registered Nurse, a mother to two, and a military spouse. 

Myrna: That’s awesome! What made you want to start writing and illustrating picture books?

Marla: I was reading a lot with my kids and had a lot more free time than I was used to. We’d just moved, I’d finished my Masters in Nursing, and I was unemployed. One day I finished reading a picture book and thought—hey I could do this. I’ve always enjoyed writing and drawing, so I started doing both right away.

Myrna: How long have you been writing? 

Marla: I started writing and illustrating picture books in 2014. I had been writing songs for about a year or so before that. And I used to write poetry back in high school!

Myrna: I wrote poetry in high school too! Have there been any writing or illustrating communities who’ve helped you along your path?

Marla: SCBWI has been my main community, along with groups like Storyteller Academy, KidLit411, and Sub It Club. And I can’t forget to mention communities that develop during online events like Susanna Hill’s contests, RhyPiBoMo*, Nerdy Chicks Write Summer School*, the former 52 Week Illustration Challenge community, and courses from the Society of Visual Storytelling and Mark Mitchell, which both provide a community. Of course, my critique partners/groups deserve special recognition too!

In summary – find your community & make connections! It will help you learn and grow as a writer &/ illustrator.

*No longer offered but Angie Karcher still offers rhyming classes.

Myrna: Have you ever felt frustrated by trying to get a picture book right?

Marla: Not for long—sometimes I might get a bit frustrated after getting a critique that suggests I revise again. But if it makes sense, I dig back into revisions as soon as I’m ready. I’m very stubborn. 

Myrna: When and why did you take Arree Chung’s Making Picture Book Stories and Dummies? (This class has since been split into two classes: Crafting Picture Book Stories and Making Picture Book Dummies.)

Marla: I took Arree’s course back in 2017 after NOT being selected for Writing with the Stars. I’d decided that a mentorship with the right person could really help me level up my writing. I heard about Arree’s course and was already familiar with his work. I decided that if I signed up for the course and a critique group led by Arree, it would be a mentorship of sorts. I really liked that Arree is an author/illustrator like me.

Myrna: How did taking Arree’s class change the way you write picture books?

Marla: Before Arree’s course, it took me forever to complete a dummy. It was painful. During the course I changed my approach to making dummies in that I started using doodles and dummies to help sort out my stories. Arree gave us permission to start very rough & small. That was a game changer for me. I’ve always loved working small—I’m very comfortable there! Now I make multiple dummies as a revision and writing tool, rather than just for submission.

Myrna: Could you tell us about your recent book deal?

Marla: A postcard I’d sent out caught the eye of my publisher, Terrilee Bulger at Acorn Press. When she went online to check out my portfolio, she spotted Pirate and two Pirate stories on my website. I hadn’t thought about submitting this particular story because I’d written it for Susanna Hill’s contest. Terrilee contacted me about illustrating a story and expressed interest in the pirate stories. The original offer had been postponed, and she asked if I’d like to publish Pirate instead. We decided to put both stories in one book, along with two others that I hadn’t written yet. I had no dummy but several sample spot illustrations for each story.