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MEET PATRICIA REEDER EUBANK (7/2011)
by Bonnie O'Brian

What did you most love to do as a child?

Patricia Reeder Eubank

I loved to draw—really all the time; I loved to read, especially fairytales, and since the library was only 1 block down the street from our house, every week I walked home with a fresh armload of books; I adored animals-cats and dogs (living in the city that’s all we had) and I loved drawing them—I was forever trying to make my pictures of animals and princesses better and more beautiful; and I really loved spending all my free time with my grandmother who lived 1 house away, was beautiful inside and out, loved all the same things I did, and was always writing me stories- even when she was away traveling, sending  me installments of her stories in her letters to me.

What books influenced you when you were growing up?

I really did love fairytales and yes Disney picture books. Snow White and Sleeping Beauty were two of my favorites because they each lived in charming cottages in the woods and had animal friends.  You can never have too many trees, flowers, or animals. Now that I live in the country there’s more than just cats and dogs- we have horses, mules, cows, and when our kids were little, sheep, birds, snakes, lizards, and turtles. Still hoping for chickens.

Did you know when you were growing up that you wanted to illustrate?

Yes!  I always wanted to illustrate books as long as I can remember. Even when I was little I had strong feelings about books’ pictures. For example I was bothered by the picture in my Sleeping Beauty book where the fairy ultimately turned her dress blue (since I always preferred pink). So one day I took colored pencils and fixed the dress permanently pink, even though I knew I wasn’t supposed to write in books.  At that point the right color was necessary and important. A really favorite illustrator of my childhood was Adrienne Segur.  I literally spent hours looking at her beautiful details.

Do you think of yourself as an author or an illustrator?

I really think of myself as an artist.  I write very simple stories so I can paint the pictures I have in my head. I love creating imaginary worlds –I sort of slip into them I think. Having had 4 children and reading to them every night, bedtime was the best part of the day.  Even when the older ones went to college when they came home they would still listen to me reading to the younger ones. Because of all the books we read, pretty soon I couldn’t help getting my own ideas.   Plus as I tucked them in,  I always made up stories for them just as my grandmother had done for me. But part of me is a little bit of an author, too. I love words and when I write ideas come very fast.  My file cabinet and tables in my art studio are over-flowing with manuscripts and dummy books (manuscripts with rough pictures I’ve laid out in book format). I love research, too.  I try to put a little info in every book.  I would LOVE to do more historical picture books like Seaman’s Journal.

How quickly were you published?

I experienced a VERY slow process. At first I had some very nice agents who encouraged me and kept me writing, painting and trying, but it did not result in anything published. However when I finally sent out my artist’s portfolio to various publishers, that resulted in 1 small company liking my work and hiring me. The amazing thing was the editor thought one of my pictures looked like a Newfoundland dog (she had one) and that opened a door.  She remains one of my best friends today.

What is special or unique in your stories and pictures?

My Newfies are such a huge part of my life.  They are so gentle, so sweet, so cuddly and huggable, so easy to live with.  One stays right by my feet as I do my art.  We’ve had several and each has been so wonderful.  So I put one in each of my books.

Do you illustrate other peoples’ stories?

Recently the only other author’s story I’ve done is my daughter’s first book. She’s very creative and artistic so doing pictures for her story was so easy and fun, and we definitely hope to do more books together.  She’s a librarian and mother of 3 very small children.

What would you most want students to get out of your school visit?
 
At school assemblies and book signings that I’ve done what I like to tell each and every student I’ve met is: if I can do it, so can he or she! I mean this sincerely—everybody has at least one story in them. Everybody has talent, too—in humor, in imagination, in cleverness, or even mystery. And there are so many wonderful types of illustration; kids CAN do their own pictures.  Just try—it is time well spent. And then never give up.

What dreams do you have that you might put in a book?

One of my future dreams is to go to see the pandas in China.  After I finish the current book I’m working on, maybe I’ll start by going to see them in San Diego and then someday the DC zoo. I most definitely want to do a book with a panda in it.  Then my enormous dream is about mammoths. If scientists ever clone mammoths, I’d love to foster-raise one.  I’d really volunteer for this. I love elephants—their intelligence, their slow, deliberate movements which have a gracefulness to me, and then the wise look in their eyes. Can you imagine a gigantic FLUFFY elephant? Like 10 Newfies rolled into one—what could be more wonderful? I most definitely want to do a book on mammoths, too!

What was your favorite story to illustrate?

I have three: SEAMAN’S JOURNAL because it is about the Newfie who went with Lewis and Clark on their amazing expedition. Like my youngest very artistic, very outdoorsy son who loves Indian culture (my husband has Cherokee ancestors), I enjoyed researching and illustrating a lot of Native American items which I found so beautiful.   PRINCESS AND THE SNARLS which I made up as I brushed my daughter’s long hairs’ horrendous snarls every night when she was young.  My editor let me also do a connected paper doll bookmark, punch-out clothes, an armoire to keep the clothes in, a mirror, and a punch-out tiara for this book.  I adored doing these extras! And then my recently finished book- HALLOWEEN 123’S (due out fall 2011), because I love Halloween.

What other illustration projects have you enjoyed?

For the last four years my oldest son, a very artistic cinematographer, worked on the sci-fi feature movie Love he directed for the rock group Angels and Airwaves, building a huge space station and mine sets for a Civil War scene at our home.  I got to do the storyboards for the explosion scenes, help make cannons, and best of all, do drawings of some of the Civil War characters that were morphed by the editor into the film footage. My biggest illustrations ever published—on a screen! The film did well at the Santa Barbara and Seattle Film Festivals, and now this son and my middle son (a very talented writer) are doing the screenplay for the next film.  It is my hope to help do the storyboards and any set artwork for this project.  Storyboards are like doing a comic book and truly fun to do!