The ideas for my picture books came to me over the years when I least expected them. These stories will hopefully become picture books one day. Some are still works in progress.
In 2020, I picked up the newspaper and read about Keith Greenlee of Lake Charles, Louisiana. He was forced to evacuate his home ahead of Hurricane Laura. After packing up five cats and a rabbit into his pickup, he realized he had to leave his 150-lb. tortoise Daisy behind. After reading about the 20-year-old reptile, I saw the story immediately as a fictional account of Daisy’s attempt to reunite with her family. I renamed her Sophie!
One day, while pet-sitting my son Matthew’s dog Sunny, I discovered she had stolen and devoured a half pound of bacon that was sitting on my stove-top. After finding the culprit enjoying her chew toy, I confronted her with the words,
I felt this had the makings of a picture book. Could dogs express contrition for their actions? I think so, but you’ll have to wait and see.
This feline wants to grow up fast. He is tired of the antics of the kittens in the neighborhood and sets about trying to prove himself to the stuck-up cats in the neighborhood. What could possibly go wrong? Will Mr. Paws see the light and realize what’s really important? Stay tuned.
Alesia introduced me to Motanka dolls which are native to Ukraine and made by hand.
Maddie has tea parties every day after school. She has never invited friends since most of her classmates never talk about dolls and she feels embarrassed. Until one day when a Ukrainian girl joins their class and brings her doll Olenka to Show and Tell. Maddie finds the courage to invite a stranger over after school and her tea parties will never be the same.
NO GRANDMAS ALLOWED
The idea for this story was born a few years ago and ever since, it has evolved into something new. But one thing keeps happening. My grandchildren keep asking for it. That is why I finally decided to get serious about it.
Max's grandmother loves him very much. But she shows up everywhere: as the school bus bus driver, a substitute teacher and then as an assistant soccer coach. He really needs some space, but how to do that without hurting her feelings? Then one day at a soccer game she goes too far. Max now will have to come up with a strategy that will solve the problem. It won't be easy, but in the end he does, or does he?
A Captain and the Mighty River
John Lipscomb was 8 years old when he learned to sail on the Hudson River. Walking into his biology class years later, he discovered the natural world. School was a challenge for John and he often found himself looking out the school window. There he could see the magnificent Hudson River and it called to him. During his high school days he took navigation classes with the Merchant Marines which would help him in his later career navigating big ships. Traveling the globe with his filmmaker father James, he learned about the wildlife in Africa and northern Canada and caring about something bigger than himself. When the opportunity arose to patrol the Hudson River for Riverkeeper, an environmental program founded to protect the Hudson River, he immediately knew it was an opportunity to make a difference. He had to say yes.