Interview: Blanca Gómez

SARAH STEINBACHER: Your picture book, BOOKIE & COOKIE, is “a gentle illustration of how close friendships can require adjustments as well as give and take” (Publishers Weekly). The story shows that “conflict between friends isn’t a deal breaker, but rather an opportunity to deepen a relationship and practice flexibility…[emphasizing] that understanding and compromise are essential for resolving conflicts and strengthening friendships” (Kirkus). Given the current kidlit dialogue, how do you write a story with an important message like this without being labeled ‘didactic’?

BLANCA GÓMEZ: Interesting question! This may sound a bit weird, but I wasn't thinking about kids. The story came to me when a friend came to visit, and I realized she was always the one who visited me, while I hardly ever visited her.

I don't think kids and adults are all that different in many ways, and I always write stories (rather selfishly!) with myself at the center. Also, after writing Bird House and Dress-Up Day, I wanted to write something funnier. So I was simply following an idea that amused me, not trying to write a didactic story.

Then Rocky Pond Books, Penguin Young Readers' imprint with a strong focus on social-emotional learning and mental health, saw that the story was a good fit for its mission. I think that, together, we ended up creating a book that carries an important message without ever feeling didactic.

SARAH STEINBACHER: BOOKIE & COOKIE is “an inviting, original picture book” (Booklist) that’s “a good pick for beginning readers and an excellent read-aloud for toddler storytimes” (School Library Journal). What tips do you have for writing a kid-friendly voice?

BLANCA GÓMEZ: Again, I write for myself more than for kids. If something sounds good in my head, I go with it.

I actually think not being completely fluent in English is an advantage. Bookie & Cookie was published in both English and Spanish, but I wrote the English version first and then translated it into Spanish. Writing in a language that isn't my native one forces me to keep things simple and direct.

When I write in Spanish, I tend to overwork every sentence, and somewhere along the way the spontaneity gets lost. That doesn't happen to me in English. Maybe that's one of the reasons the voice feels so kid-friendly.

SARAH STEINBACHER: In BOOKIE & COOKIE, “there’s plenty to enjoy in the uncluttered, engaging illustrations…[that] clearly depict the characters tastes and emotional states” (Booklist). School Library Journal added that your “trademark illustrations and meta-textual narrative depict the individual personalities and apartments, as well as the connection between the two main characters.” What inspired you to create this lovable, odd-couple friendship duo?

BLANCA GÓMEZ: I was actually working on two different story ideas that shared the same core concept: two friends who are upset with each other, with the story playing out across opposite pages. For Bookie & Cookie, I had the initial story and the two characters, but I didn’t have their names yet.

The turning point came when I found their names: Bookie and Cookie, and when I shared some drafts with with my agent, Rebecca Sherman and she felt that the Bookie & Cookie concept was much stronger that the other story. She loved the  storytelling structure using the left and right pages of the book as the places where each character lives—and also as part of the story’s conflict— And we built the book from there.

SARAH STEINBACHER: BOOKIE & COOKIE has “bold illustrations with white backgrounds” (School Library Journal) “created with paper collages and digital elements” (Booklist). What was your process for creating the story’s compelling meta art style?

BLANCA GÓMEZ: I worked on very quick pencil sketches until the story took shape.

Then, I stared to work digitally on the two characters. I knew that Bookie and Cookie had to feel distinctive and authentic—almost as if they were characters from a long-running series, even if I wasn't consciously thinking about that at the time.

Once I had found their personalities, I started working on the backgrounds, which I absolutely loved creating. I enjoyed searching for decorative elements and little details that reflected each character's personality and made their world feel lived-in.

I began by creating the illustrations digitally, and then I incorporated paper collage elements to make the spaces feel more personal, and cozy. (For example, the cross stitched cushions and the Page Sweet Page were made by my mom :)

SARAH STEINBACHER: Your sequel, BOOKIE & COOKIE TURN THE PAGE, “teaches young children the importance of mindset and perspective, making it a first purchase for all collections” (School Library Journal). How did you approach returning to the world of Bookie and Cookie? What are the easiest and hardest things about writing a picture book sequel?

BLANCA GÓMEZ: The easy part was that I already had the universe of Bookie & Cookie in mind. I knew them well after spending so much time with them in the first book, and I knew I wanted to continue exploring the concept of the meta-book.

But the easy part also became the hardest one: I had to respect the personalities of the two friends without repeating myself. And I wanted to play with the pages of the book again, but in a different way from the first book.

Now that I think about it, BOOKIE & COOKIE TURN THE PAGE was actually the third story I wrote. The first one was more focused on the meta-book and the pages, but I forgot about the conflict between the two friends. The second one focused precisely on Bookie and Cookie’s personalities and their conflict, but there was no playing with the pages, nor was it a meta-book.

This third story; BOOKIE & COOKIE TURN THE PAGE, brought those two elements together. 

SARAH STEINBACHER: Your picture book, DRESS-UP DAY, is a “lovely little book [that] celebrates one child’s experience in a welcoming, diverse environment and will speak to a broad audience” (School Library Journal, starred review). It’s “genial and satisfying in its sweet, childlike simplicity” (Kirkus). Why do children need access to diverse stories?

BLANCA GÓMEZ: It’s often said, or at least, I think it is, that children need access to diverse stories because they make it easier for them to see themselves in books. The more diverse the stories we have, the more likely children are to find people and experiences they can relate to.

But I also think that the more the wider the range of stories we have access to, the wider our world becomes, and the easier it is to find our own path through it. It’s about discovering what we like, not just finding stories that represent us; discovering what matters to us and what will shape the way we see and move through the world.

SARAH STEINBACHER: In DRESS-UP DAY, “there’s an emotional change on almost every page of this picture book as Gómez presents the possibility that moments of chagrin don’t last forever, and that disasters can morph into delight” (Publishers Weekly, starred review). How do you establish your story’s pace with each page turn?

BLANCA GÓMEZ: It’s difficult to answer this. I think it’s one of the very few things that comes naturally to me. I had the story in my mind for quite some time, and when it’s time to put it on paper (very quickly and roughly) the story somehow seems to find its own pace and miraculously fits perfectly into the number of pages.

SARAH STEINBACHER: Your “charming paper collage and digital illustrations” in DRESS-UP DAY “faithfully capture the distinctive gestures and deeply felt emotions of young children” (Kirkus). School Library Journaladded, “Despite working in deceptively simple forms, Gómez effectively portrays the narrator’s emotions through body language and facial expressions, enhancing and expanding the text” (starred review). How do you show emotion through your illustrations?

BLANCA GÓMEZ: And again, this is probably my other talent—or, I would say, my real one. :D

At least, that’s what people often say about my work: that I can express emotions with just two dots and a line.

I don’t draw particularly well, so I tend to keep everything very simple. But somehow, that simplicity helps me focus on the essentials—the small things that communicate what I want to show. (It’s a bit like writing in English, which forces me to keep the story simple, too)

And that’s actually why I started illustrating in the first place: to show emotions, to express myself through my illustrations, and to connect with others.

SARAH STEINBACHER: Your picture book, BIRD HOUSE, is “a loving intergenerational relationship between a light brown-skinned narrator and their abuela is the heartening center of this tender narrative. A refreshing ending imparts a message of the significance of natural preservation and respecting animals’ agency” (Publishers Weekly, starred review). Why is it important for children’s stories to model how to respect the agency of others?

BLANCA GÓMEZ: For me, this book is about love and education, and about the web that is woven between the two. It’s about the relationship between the grandmother and the girl, and about how the girl learns to look at the world.

I’ll copy below a few lines my agent, Rebecca Sherman, wrote in the book’s presentation letter, because they describe perfectly what I mean:

“We all need someone to care for us, but we also need space to grow, and fail, and learn on our own… Just as Grandma cares for the bird, she cares for her granddaughter. … But it is at the moment when the girl asks if they can keep the bird and Grandma says, ‘No, darling, he doesn’t belong to us,’ that we learn the most. Grandma cares for her granddaughter not by giving her what she wants, but by showing her how to do the right thing, even when it is hard to do.”

SARAH STEINBACHER: In BIRD HOUSE, your “semi-autobiographical tribute to [your] own abuela is a charming window into an idyllic childhood infused with love for all living things. This gem elicits a sense of deep-seated comfort and refuge for these uncertain times” (Kirkus, starred review). Can you share more about what inspired this story?

BLANCA GÓMEZ: I love that review. The story is very much inspired by my own childhood. Both of my parents worked, and my abuela took care of me every day. I have so many memories and anecdotes, but I’ll focus on the one that inspired the book.

I call it semi-autobiographical because I don’t really know which parts are real and which parts I invented. My abuela used to have birds, and I remember seeing them flying around the living room. She also found a bird in the snow one day and took care of it. She loved her plants and her cats (I was terrified of them!). And, of course, she played a very important role in my education. I put all these memories together and let them shape the story.

And something happened while I was working on the book. After my abuela died, her house remained closed for a very long time—many years, in fact. Eventually, her children decided it was time to open the house and empty it, and I had one last chance to visit.

It was almost unreal to discover that so many of the details I had put into the pages of the book were actually there. The picture, the radio, the little decorations, everything. It felt as if I had somehow recreated the house from my memories without even realizing it.

SARAH STEINBACHER: “The warmth between the child and her grandmother is evident throughout [BIRD HOUSE]” (Booklist) and “this cherished relationship is enhanced by the new friend they make together” (Horn Book). Intergenerational stories are a picture book staple. How do you make your stories stand out in such a competitive market?

BLANCA GÓMEZ: Well, thank you. I don’t think my stories stand out. Do they?

I’ll give you a very slightly corny answer here, but it’s a true one: I don’t think I have that many truths to tell the world, or even to children. But I do think children’s books are important, and I try to do my best. I almost never succeed, but I try to get as close as I can.

When I’m working on a book, my husband says I enter “book mode”: I completely ignore him and life in general. That’s not necessarily a good thing, but it is what it is.

And my agent, Rebecca Sherman, is the person who pushed me — and still pushes me — to write my own stories. She also helps me turn my ideas into books that can find their place in a competitive market.

SARAH STEINBACHER: How does your illustration work differ from the stories that you write and illustrate?

BLANCA GÓMEZ: The difference is getting smaller and smaller.

I’d say that when I started illustrating my own stories, perhaps because my first book, Bird House, was such a personal one, I began to bring much more of my own world into my illustrations; a world that is personal, human, and imperfect, even within my obsession with geometry and simplicity.

Since then, I’ve been bringing more and more of that world into all the books I illustrate, or at least I try to. For example, I’m currently illustrating a book I can’t say much about yet, but something about the story connects very strongly with my own childhood. So, when I illustrate it, I inevitably bring it into my own territory.

Also, I tend to work with the same editors and art directors, whether I’m illustrating my own stories or someone else’s, so we know each other quite well by now. I think that also makes the boundaries between the different books less defined.

Follow Blanca through her website and Instagram.

*****Order Blanca’s newest picture book, BOOKIE & COOKIE TURN THE PAGE, available now.*****