What is more fitting for Friday the 13th than a ghost story?

Becky Paige is an illustrator living in Orlando, Florida. She loves creating images that are sweet, colorful, and playful. After 20 years as a classroom teacher, she had the opportunity to go back to school to study graphic design and follow her lifelong dream of being an illustrator. In her spare time, she enjoys watching movies, going on walks, drawing, and spending time with her family.  You can learn more about her at her website, her agency’s website, or follow her on Instagram.

BOO THE LIBRARY GHOST is a story about a little ghost haunting a library.  However cute Boo may look, he terrorizes the library.  He destroys books, turns off the lights, and scares all the children off.  Until he meets a little girl named Poppy.  She’s far too interested in her books to pay him any mind.  (That’s my kind of gal, right there!)  She is also the first to realize why Boo is terrorizing the library.  The art work is round and softly appealing.  There is no way this ghost is scaring of young readers.  Instead, they will most likely want to read this story over and over again (possibly just to prove how brave they are).

Welcome Becky!

Me: Can you share about your journey? When did you start creating art and/or writing?  How did that bring you to where you are now as an author-illustrator?

Becky: I’ve always loved writing and illustrating, even when I was very young. 

In college, I studied elementary education with a specialization in children’s literature. I remember I would create little picture books to go with the lessons I was teaching during my internship. 

As a classroom teacher, I loved taking my students to the media center library so they could pick out books. I enjoyed browsing the new picture books and making chapter book recommendations to my students. It was really special to be able to share a love of reading both at the library and in my classroom.

I continued drawing as a hobby and never gave up on my dream of writing and illustrating books. I went back to school to study graphic design and learned so many valuable skills that made it possible to become an illustrator.

Me: I love that!  As a teacher and an illustrator, you inspire me.  I also love the concept of a library ghost who is causing chaos because he doesn’t know how to read. What gave you the idea for this story?

Becky: The initial idea for Boo the Library Ghost came during a chat with my agent. She knew I was interested in writing, and pointed out an illustration I had done with a ghost and some books. Once I had a character, I decided to make the ghost be naughty… I had so much fun with it and Boo just came to life! I wanted him to be awful in the beginning, but of course for him to have  a happy ending. Since he lives in the library, he just HAD to love reading and books in the end. I had a lot of support from my agency in developing the story, creating the characters, and designing the cover/sample illustrations.  

Me: What did your illustration process for this book look like?  Are you a traditional or a digital artist?  Or do you use a blend of both?

Becky: To make Boo come to life, I drew the initial sketches on paper and then moved to digital for color and the finishing touches. Aside from sketching, I do all my illustrations on my iPad with Procreate and then edit in Photoshop. Learning to work digitally really made a big difference for me as an illustrator.  I admire people that create illustrations traditionally, but I get so stressed out for them since there is no undo button.

Me: Can you talk about the marketing of your book?  How did you hear about Silver Dolphin Books?  How did they come to acquire your book?

Becky: My agency supported me through the process of getting the book ready for Bologna Children’s Book Fair, which was such a dream come true! Silver Dolphin Books was one of the publishers that reached out expressing interest in the book after Bologna. I met with the Silver Dolphin team and loved their enthusiasm and how much they believed in my story. It felt like such a perfect fit! They worked closely with me to help refine the text and art. It was a really smooth process!

Me: Which was harder: writing or illustrating this story?

Becky: Writing definitely ended up being easier for me. Once I had the idea of a ghost that haunts a library, I played around with making it rhyme, and that decision really helped me in the writing process.  It was so satisfying to create the rhythm and rhymes. I had about 10 lines completed when I shared it with my agency and they guided me in further developing the storyline.

While I was writing, I was completely focused on the story and didn’t at all think about the illustrations. Once it came time to actually get started on the art, I was a little bit nervous at first. This was my first full picture book- before Boo I had only illustrated board books for a younger audience.

One of my favorite parts of illustrating is adding in the small details– I had so much fun imagining what the messy library could be, adding elements like the spiderwebs & little hidden spider, the thorny plants, and the books thrown all over the place with ripped pages.  

Me: Any advice for other new picture book writers and/or illustrators?

Becky: My advice would be to keep learning. There are so many amazing courses available for illustrators online and in person. You can learn new techniques, get ideas, and get motivated and inspired.  

Me: Any other projects we can look forward to seeing from you in the future?

Becky: I have some fun writing and illustration projects in the works! Very excited and grateful!

Thank you for stopping by my blog today Becky!

Dear readers, this book released in July.  If you haven’t had a chance yet to track it down, and you enjoy ghost stories, this is the season for it!  With an appealing look and a rhyming text, this is a ghost that will especially appeal to young readers.  You won’t want to miss it!