If you’ve ever dreamed of visiting Hawaii, then today’s picture book is for you. Both the author and the illustrator of this story live in Hawaii, and they manage to capture exactly what it’s like to live there.

Chloe Ito Ward is a children’s author. A former curriculum director, she has a Master of Education in Curriculum and Instruction. She spent the last decade teaching kindergarten, where she discovered her passion for picture books. When Chloe isn’t perfecting her ramen recipe, you can find her rock climbing or racing her husband, son, and their imaginary dog Miso across Kalapaki beach. You can learn more about her at her website or follow her on Instagram or on BlueSky.

MADE FOR MORE is very much Chloe’s story. She is descended from Japanese immigrants and grew up with an Asian beauty culture that praises pale skin. She was often criticized for not having perfectly porcelain skin growing up and had to learn to love herself. This is a story I imagine she would’ve written to her younger self. The words of comfort she weaves for the young female narrator are as warm as sunshine glazing your skin. This young girl loves and admires her grandparents with their skin as white as the moon, but she has freckles from playing in the sun. Her skin is rough from exploring tide pools or splotched with the red Hawaiian mud due to hiking. Yet she knows that she is not meant for the shade. The poetic text is sparse and lovely, but the accompanying illustrations are just as magnificent. They showcase Hawaiian life and scenery in the most glorious of ways (I swear I recognized locations!). The marriage of text and illustration here works in perfect harmony to create a story that is as joyful and unique, as it is comforting. This book simply glows.

Welcome Chloe!

Me: Can you tell us a little bit about your writing journey?  How has that brought you to writing this picture book?

Chloe: I’ve always loved reading. As a kid I would sometimes get in trouble for sneaking a flashlight under the covers after bedtime, or for reading when I was supposed to be doing homework. But I never really envisioned myself as an author. I love kids and learning, so I became a teacher. While teaching kindergarten, I read a minimum of five picture books a day. Even though I didn’t know it at the time, I spent over ten years “studying” picture books. During pregnancy my anxiety skyrocketed and I turned to writing picture books as a way to give my thoughts a safe space.

Me: I love this story! I don’t think I’ve seen a picture book talk about skin colorism told quite like this and set in Hawaii too! The manuscript just sings! What gave you the idea?

Chloe: I have a running list of picture book ideas, and one of them was to tackle a story about colorism in the Asian community. But I didn’t know how to go about it. I started and stopped a few times, but it wasn’t working. One day as I was scrolling instagram, I saw an ad for skin whitening cream targeted at Asian women. I was upset, so naturally I messaged a friend, Ebony Lynn Mudd, to complain. I made an offhand comment about  “Skin like the moon” and Ebony jumped in, “That’s your book.” And she was right. Two days later my husband took our son on a hike and I wrote the first draft. I am so thankful for writing friends!

Me: This is perhaps one of the most beautiful manuscripts I’ve seen in quite some time.  It’s so lyrical and poetic.  Was it always this tight?  Were there a lot of revisions of the manuscript to get it to this incredible state?

Chloe: Thank you so much, that is so kind of you to say! MADE FOR MORE is actually the manuscript I’ve edited the least out of all the picture books I’ve written. I have a tendency to write and revise, tinkering with each line and word, endlessly. I can spend hours working on one sentence trying to make it sing. But MADE FOR MORE is almost identical to the first draft. My editor Anne Hoppe did have me tweak a few things for clarity, but overall it is very similar to what I started with. I think because MADE FOR MORE poured from my soul to paper, almost like a love song, from myself to myself, it was easier to write. I haven’t always liked the way I look, my face, my eyes, my skin, so it’s a story I’ve been writing all my life. The one big change was the title. It was previously “SKIN LIKE THE MOON.” But Anne suggested MADE FOR MORE, the very last line of the story, because she thought it was a powerful sentiment. I couldn’t agree more, so a huge thank you to Anne.

Me:  I love the title! And the illustrations by Gael Abary are absolutely perfect!  I love how she interpreted some of the lines in your text.  Did you have any art notes for her to work with?  Or did she create those images (surfing and tide pools, for instance) all on her own?  Were there any illustration surprises for you?  Any favorites?

Chloe: I did include art notes. I try to use them sparingly because I know an illustrator will bring their own vision to the story. But I think they can be helpful, especially for an editor, when the text doesn’t really convey what’s happening in the spread. So yes, both the tide pool and surfing scenes had art notes. But simple ones, no frills, like [tidepools].

The second spread surprised me in the best way. The MC is running with slippas (aka flip flops) on her hands, which is SUCH a fantastic/authentic detail.  It’s something I haven’t done for over 25 years… so I forgot that I used to do that as a kid. I love that spread. As you read the book, you’ll notice lots of little details Gael has added. Her art really made the book, her illustrations are beautiful.

My favorite spread is definitely the surfing one. I can feel the heat from the sun and cool mist from the salty ocean air radiating off the page. I want a framed poster of that illustration to hang in my house.

Me: I agree! I love that illustration. I’m always fascinated when I see an author who is also a teacher (like myself). How did you find time for writing around the job of teaching? What routines do you have in place that allow you to create regularly and successfully?

Chloe: When I first started writing I wasn’t a parent, and it was much easier then to find time after school to write. After giving birth, I took time to rest. I took a break from teaching to be a stay at home mom and wrote when my son napped. Finding little breaks of time, sometimes fifteen minutes, thirty, or any hour here and there. It wasn’t consistent but it’s what I had to work with.

I’m not currently teaching, but I am juggling being a stay at home mom while trying to write/revise/market my books etc. I write when everyone else is asleep. I need silence or quiet instrumental music that matches the theme of the manuscript and no distractions/disturbances so I can get in the zone. This means I’m often writing either very early in the morning or late at night, when everyone else in my house is asleep.

Me: What is one thing that surprised you in writing this story?

Chloe: One thing that surprised me with this story is how quickly it came together. Things in publishing typically move very slowly, but from the first draft until it sold at auction was about five months, which is a record for me.

Me: Any advice for new picture book writers?

Chloe: I think the key to writing great picture books is lots and lots of patience. Everything takes practice and time. I’ve written over fifty manuscripts at this point, but only two dozen or so are good enough to share with my agent or an editor. Give yourself the grace and time to learn and refine your voice. Plus, the process of writing and submitting can take a toll, it can feel like endless waiting and rejection. If you need to, take a break. Write because you want to and protect your peace. I write because it brings me joy, and I hope it does the same for kids.

That is excellent advice Chloe. Thank you for stopping by my blog today.

But wait, dear readers, there’s more! I also interviewed Gael!

Gael Abary is a Filipino American illustrator living in O‘ahu, Hawaii with her partner, their daughter, a cat called Stella, and a retired racing greyhound called Storm. She is also the illustrator of Crow Spirit, written by Debra Bartsch and If You Want to Ride a Horse, by Amy Novesky. You can learn more about her at her website or follow her on Instagram.

Welcome Gael!

Me: Can you share about your artistic journey? When did you start creating art?  How did that bring you to where you are now as an author and illustrator of this book? 

Gael: It’s definitely been a long journey. Most kids start out making art and then they stop at a certain age… I kept going. But as I got older, I was discouraged from pursuing a career in art. I knew I wanted to be in the creative world in some capacity so when I was accepted into Parsons School of Design, I attended as a design marketing/business major. Oddly enough I was working as an illustrator for an apparel company to support my way through college. Two years in, I decided to switch my major to product design with a concentration in metalsmithing, but I continued illustrating for a few years after college. I also did a little bit of freelance graphic design work. I eventually ended up working as a production director for jewelry company for several years until I left New York City and gave birth to my daughter. It was through her that I fell in love with picture books.

We moved to Philadelphia just steps away from the Free Library, home to an extensive Children’s Literature Research Collection. There would be displays in cases throughout the children’s department with pieces from the archives. I did a lot of R&D there (while also teaching my daughter how to read). I decided to join SCBWI and take some online courses to learn more about illustrating children’s books, and I joined a critique group that met after hours at the library. I was asked to illustrate a picture book for a small independent publisher and working on it reaffirmed that this is what I want to be doing. We moved to Hawaiʻi when the book was published and I continued to do more online classes and became the Illustrator Coordinator for the SCBWI Hawaiʻi . Within a couple years I got my next book deal for IF YOU WANT TO RIDE A HORSE, which led to meeting my wonderful agent who also happens to live on this tiny island in the middle of the Pacific. It was through her that I was offered to illustrate MADE FOR MORE.

Me: I’m not at all surprised that you captured the essence of Hawaii in your illustrations since you also currently live there.  And yet, your illustrations are stunning on every page in their capacity to do just that.  Was it intimidating to illustrate what you already know?  Or was it a relief and came with ease?

Gael: Thank you! I felt very fortunate to have references all around me, and not just the visual scenery but the cultural experiences too, which really helped inform the illustrations.

Me: You and Chloe both live in Hawaii.  Did you know each other before working on this book?  Have you had a chance to meet in person yet?

Gael: We have not met yet! Chloe lived on the island of Kaua’i and I live on O’ahu. We’ll get to meet when she visits for our book signing at the Barnes & Noble in Ala Moana Center March 15th. I’m looking forward to it!

Me: You have illustrated a couple of books now.  What media do you typically use to illustrate?  Are you a traditional or a digital artist?  Or do you use a blend of both?  What did you use for this book?

Gael: I’ve used a combination of traditional and digital methods in the past, but MADE FOR MORE was done entirely digital. I think I’d like to go back to more traditional methods for my next project. The versatility of working digital is vast and convenient, but it can’t replace the feeling or quality of working with traditional materials and I miss that.

Me:  Your interpretation of the text in several scenes (tide pools, surfing, etc.) just perfectly captured the moment.  Did you have any art notes?  Or did you create the visual story to go along with text all on your own? 

Gael: There were a few art notes here and there, mostly for cultural references, but the text was also very visual while still leaving a lot space for me to be creative.

Me: What is one thing that surprised you in illustrating this story?

Gael: I don’t think anything in particular surprised me, but did I learn more about Hawai’i and how it became so multi-cultural from the immigrants that came to work on the sugar plantations. One of the things I love about working on picture books is delving into the research.

Me: I love that too. Any advice for aspiring picture book illustrators?

Gael: Have fun and play and experiment. Draw the things that you like drawing and put it out there. 

That is great advice Gael. Thank you for stopping by my blog today too.

Dear readers, this book is published next Tuesday. It’s a story that will give young readers the confidence to be who they truly are and enjoy life to the fullest. It is the perfect combination of artistry with a lyrical text and beautiful imagery that will remain in your memory forever. Trust me when I say that you won’t want to miss it.