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MEET KAREN WINNICK
By Ann Stalcup

What inspired you to write MR. LINCOLN'S WHISKERS ?

Karen Winnick

A letter that Abraham Lincoln wrote to an eleven-year-old girl named Grace Bedell came up for auction. My husband, who as a collector of autographs, mentioned this to me. Who was Grace Bedell? Lincoln's letter was written in response to Grace's appeal for him to grow a beard. In her own letter, Grace had written that if Abraham Lincoln took her advice, then she would have a better chance of convincing all her brothers to vote for him for president. The letter that Lincoln wrote back to her sold for over a million dollars. Someone who chose to remain anonymous purchased it. In his letter, Lincoln thanked Grace for her advice. Since Abraham Lincoln's face is one of the most famous in American history, I was intrigued that his decision to grow a beard was sparked by a young girls' suggestion. I decided to learn more about Grace.

What sort of research was involved ?

I have always been a great fan of Abraham Lincoln because of the values he upheld. His honesty, humor, wisdom, and determination are only a few of his many traits that I admire. So when I decided to learn more about Grace, I also chose to read many more books about Lincoln. In some there were small snippets about Grace Bedell and her letter. But mostly from these books I came to understand that though Lincoln was about to become the president of the United States, he still possessed the humility to take the advice of a young girl.

Finding out about Grace was like detective work, which makes historical research an intriguing and fun process. Through the scant information about Grace in the Lincoln books, I learned that she lived in Westfield, a small town in upstate New York. Then I contacted Billie Dibble, a librarian and the town historian, who sent me copies of news clippings and other materials. She also told me about a book on Grace's life called LINCOLN'S LITTLE GIRL by Fred Trump. Though at the time the book was out of print (it has since been reissued by Boyd Mills Press), Mrs. Dibble kindly lent it to me, sending it 3,000 miles across the country to Los Angeles.

Additional material was sent to me by Michelle Henry, Museum Director of the Chautauqua County Historical Society. (Westfield is in Chautauqua County). Reader's Digest forwarded an article about Grace from their February 1968 issue. I obtained a copy of Grace's letter from the Burton Historical Collection of the Detroit Public Library and a copy of Lincoln's letter through the Gallery of History, dealers in historical documents. The Forbes Collection in New York City sent me a copy of a letter that Grace Bedell wrote many years later recounting her experience.

From all these materials, I discovered a fact that made me want to make the story of Grace Bedell and Abraham Lincoln into a picture book. Though Lincoln had thanked Grace for her advice, he never mentioned in his letter that he would take it. But through the news clippings, I read accounts about how Lincoln took the train from his hometown in Springfield, Illinois, to his inauguration in Washington D. C. On the route his train stopped in Westfield and at the train Station Lincoln showed Grace Bedell that he had, in fact, taken her advice.

I worked hard on writing the story before I began to make a book dummy. When I drew the picture, the words sometimes changed or were eliminated because of what the pictures showed. So by the time I submitted a mock-up of MR. LINCOLN'S WHISKERS, a great deal had been cut out. There were some word changes and a picture was eliminated because I had drawn too many.

What illustration technique and medium did you use and why ?

I chose to do the illustrations in a style that would evoke nineteenth-century America, when the story takes place. I work in oil paints, a medium I enjoy because of the luminosity of the colors. I chose a coarse canvas to give the paintings a homespun quality and then painted them in a deep brown, a sepia-toned paint. When paint is applied on top, some of the deep brown hue comes through, adding further to the old-fashioned quality of the paintings. My studio was filled with books, photos, and antique magazines that I poured over to get a feel for the clothes, furniture, and styles of America in the pre-Civil War era. Then, with a soft pencil I did many sketches. Afterwards, I transferred the sketches to the canvases that were slightly larger than the pages of the book. Because of the style in which I worked and the colors I chose, I think the paints have a naïve quality that evokes the time.

Could you give a brief idea of you daily writing/illustrating routine ?

My household is noisy, active one with a husband, three sons, two dogs, and an assortment of fish. One son goes to college in Boston, but the other two attend high school close by. Every morning when my husband leaves for work and my sons go off to school, I feed the dogs and the fish and then come right up to the wonderful room where I work. My studio is spilling over with books and pictures and light. On one side of the room is a computer where I write, and on the other side is a drafting table and an easel. Many times I am so engrossed in trying to work out a story that I never leave my computer. Then, there are those days when I draw or paint until late afternoon. Most times I am so immersed in working on stories and pictures that I wonder where all the hours went.