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MEET LAURA REGAN (2/2011)
by Bonnie O'Brian

When you were a child did you ever have moments when you decided thatyou were going to be a writer when you grew up?

Laura Regan

Absolutely! I can vividly remember one specific time....in Kindergarten.  We had just come in from recess where my girlfriends and I used to like to pretend that we were the characters in the "Wizard of Oz". I was upset because they would never let me play Dorothy, so  back in class, with the crayons that I loved to use so much, I drew a self portrait .....complete with ruby slippers! This was the EXACT moment that I realized the magic of art, and it's when I told myself that I wanted to be an artist one day. I still have that self portrait hanging on my studio wall.

What audience did you have in mind for your career as a writer - adult or children?

When I am illustrating, I try to paint pictures that are appealing for children and parents to share together, even if the text is geared towards children only. 

When you went to college, were you already pursuing a writing career?(or a career in illustrating? or just art in general?)
In college I majored in graphic design. I wanted to work for an advertising agency in the worst way. When I finally landed a job with an agency in San Francisco, I realized that I'd made a mistake! Luckily there are so many avenues that you can follow as an artist, so I just took a "detour" toward illustrating!

Was your first book accepted immediately? or did you experience a number of rejections?

I approached my first illustrated book in a rather unconventional fashion. I wanted to illustrate a book about the Rainforest, so I sent a pictures of my paintings along with a letter to Jane Yolen, asking her if she would  possibly consider writing a book on this subject. She loved the idea and after proposing the project to a few publishers, we got the go-ahead from Putnam.  Everything just fell into place after that. I was extremely lucky!!

What are the topics are some of your books?

All of my books are focused on Nature. I've illustrated four books with Jane Yolen covering the Rainforests, the Arctic, the Everglades and the Arizona Sonora Desert.  With Jean Marzollo I've illustrated books about the sun, mother and baby animals and most recently Pierre, the little African Penguin at the California Academy of Sciences who was fitted with a tiny little wetsuit to help him to survive a period of his life when he lost most of his feathers.  I've also illustrated books about tigers, wolves and star nosed moles!

Have any of your books earned special recognition?

I have been very fortunate to receive awards for several of my books, including the National Best Books Awards from USA Book News, and the Oppenheim Toy Portfolio's Best Books Awards, but I was thrilled this year to received the first ever "Eureka! Gold" award from the California Reading Association.

Do you enjoy researching or do you prefer working totally from your imagination?

Since the books that I illustrate  are about Nature, they require a lot of research before I can start painting. I actually love this process! I feel like each book that I work on is like a new adventure. I've learned so many things about different areas and creatures on our planet, that I possibly would never have found out about!

Do you write every day and do you have set hours that you work?

Yes, I do try to paint every day.....and by that I mean seven days a week. I truly love being in the studio and really miss it when I can't be painting.  My husband, Peter , and I have a combined family with six children, though, so when they were still young and at home, I would have to take frequent "breaks" for carpooling, homework help and.... oh yeah.....the dreaded LAUNDRY! People used to tease us that we were the Brady Bunch.....but we really needed Alice to complete that picture!

What do you most want the students to get out of your school  visits?

 I try to make students realize what a wonderful thing  their "Imagination" is. Through art it can take them to wonderful places and help them to become anyone they want to be....which brings me back to my first answer where a goofy little school girl who loved to color decided that she could be Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz....even if it was just on paper!