New Release: Quiet as a Mouse

Coinciding with the release of Quiet as a Mouse, I thought it would be fun to interview Annie Brazis, the wonderful illustrator of this picture book!

It was a real blessing to cross paths with Annie. Her aunt began coming to the writers' group I attend and mentioned that her niece was interested in getting into illustrating children's books. After looking at Annie's website, I quickly set up a time to meet. And here we are, with one book completed together . . . and hopefully more to come!

AM: When did you first realize that you loved to draw? 

AB: Um, possibly I was drawing in the womb? I began considering illustration as a Junior in high school in spite of a solid starving artist philosophy. My mom has been my biggest encouragement as well as my harshest critic.

AM: What motivates you to create art?

AB: I love beauty.

I love stories.

There is a certain way I want to see things portrayed. I tried photography before settling on illustration. An artist can create things with only their imagination and some practice that a photographer could only find on maybe a really expensive movie set. When you get a creative idea, I suppose it is almost like being pregnant; (hee hee) you just have to bring it to completion.

AM: Have you taken formal art lessons? Your perspective is amazing. For example, the way the moonlight falls on the boy in his bed. And the cut-away wall on page 36.

AB: No, none. Mom got a lot of art books for me as a kid. Since she homeschooled me, any art counted as school. Some was required; most was independent study. Then there were times when I would go to draw- say a tower- and I would go, "Oh I don't know how to draw a spiral staircase." Then I would go on a quest to find out how to draw a spiral staircase. No Google; our home was full of books. 

AM: The second storyline that you created for the mouse family in Quiet as a Mouse really added a lot to the story. Describe how you came up with that idea.

AB: Everything that has a title or a label should be titled and labeled correctly, don't you think? With a title like, "Quiet as a Mouse," the book should have a pretty solid mouse theme. The usual mouse story at my house starts with one mouse finding our unintentional hospitality, then moving in for good, with all of its kin. So that's the story I told. As kids, we had this book called, "The Goose and the Mountain Lion," by the stellar author and illustrator team, Marian and Jim Harris. It's a story about a goose who keeps having her eggs go missing. All through the story there is this little pack rat busily doing his own thing. He seems merely amusing but he turns out to be really important. It was one of my favorite picture books.

AM: Your illustrations really reflect love/closeness of family. How has your own family inspired you?

AB: I have been blessed with the best family. My parents stayed married, and they taught us siblings to be kind to each other. The key is that everyone in my family has a relationship with Christ. That relationship starts with turning from sin towards Christ, but it doesn't stop there. We believers are really called to build one another up, and encourage each other to do good.

AM: One of the things I love about the illustrations in this book is that each time I read it I find details I hadn't noticed before. How do you work: do you jot down ideas ahead of time, or do the scenes come alive to you as you paint?

AB: Well, you would probably be quite bored if you watched me. Charles Schultz once mentioned how much time he spent just sitting and thinking. That's what I do a lot. On a story board with the text, I begin to draw thumbnails. I might sit or pace for hours working it out in my mind before I put pencil to paper, and by that time, the ideas are pretty clear. I then will show it to family members and see if it makes sense. 

AM: As an author, I've attended sessions at writers' conferences titled "Leave Room for Art." Never did I imagine all the ways you as the artist would add on to and improve the story! An example: when the brother accidentally breaks his sister's teapot on page 6, then brings her a new teapot on pages 30-31. 

AB: In a picture book, the text and pictures are partners- each indispensable. You shouldn't be able to cover the text and still understand all that the story is about. In the same way, you should be able to cover the illustrations, and firmly believe they said things that were only told in the pictures.

AM: Do you have a favorite illustration in this book?

AB: I really like the one for "Quick as a bunny." But it's tough not to mention "Sing like a lark." The colors and forms really balanced so well, and the personalities of the characters show.

AM: That is so funny because my favorites are “swim like a fish” (because of the splashing water), the night scene where the mouse is sawing a hole in the wall (because he’s so cute with his safety glasses!), and “hungry as a bear” (because the mess on the counter is so detailed!). I imagine every reader will have his own favorites.

AM: What were some of the challenges with bringing the story to life?

AB: Well, the text has a flow of its own, making you want to turn the page. It was quite a stretching exercise to make each illustration flow into the next, conform to the text, and tell a story- particularly when each page involves a different animal. The biggest design choice, I think, that brings the story to life is having the children interacting with the living, full sized animals. I think it's quite natural, "as if paradise was never lost," in the words of C. S. Lewis. 

AM: Tell about some of the other art you've created outside of this book.

AB: As a preteen girl, I had that horse craze phase, and refused to draw anything else for years. I always say horses made me the artist that I am, though I have never had one. Then there was the fan art phase. Artists are a notorious lot for only creating when "in the mood," and then only subjects with which they are fully comfortable. A professional doesn't have that luxury, and that is why artists don't often go professional. It was when I grew more serious about my relationship with God that I became willing to put aside my own ways, and create to please others. 

AM: What are some of your artistic goals for the future?

AB: With the A.I. Artmaggedon, folks are looking for handmade art. I am learning

Impasto florals

impasto oil painting, and hope to sell some durable palette knife florals at a studio in Smithville. They are curing as I write this. 

I am also applying to paint a mural in downtown Wooster. Either way, they hope to have some volunteers help the artists. If I don't get to design it, I still hope to help. Collaborative art projects have a lot of potential.

And of course, I hope to continue illustrating! The artist/client relationship must come with its share of puzzles, but with patience, and some hikes, you can almost always find the right pieces. I feel that you and I, Andi, have such a similar background; we are pleased by the same kinds of content. 

AM: What advice would you give someone who wants to get started in illustrating books?

AB: You should consider cultivating your creative writing since publishers love a 2-for-the-price-of-1 author/illustrator. I think this practice has greatly cheapened children's books, while agreeing that there are some illustrators who are authentic storytellers.

Get off the screens!! They are smothering your creativity.

Don't become obsessed with your own personality! A person should not consider their choices according to a self-made persona, but according to what is right and fitting. The true depth of your personality will show anyway in those very choices.

AM: Thank you, Annie! I look forward to our next collaboration!