Dynamic Duos, vibrantly hosted by Deb Abela, was a conversational panel about the importance of collaboration in creating a children’s book.
Author Lesley Gibbes and publisher, Ana Vivas (Scholastic) were first-up, chatting about the highly successful picture book, ‘Little Bear’s First Sleep’. This is a gentle bedtime story about a bear cub embarking on his first long winter sleep.
Early on in the acquisition process Lesley and Ana agreed that the warm and soft drawings of illustrator Lisa Stewart would be the perfect complement for Little Bears story.
The collaboration on this book took an interesting turn when Ana recognised that the gloominess of the cave setting left little scope for Lisa’s illustrations.
In response to Ana’s concerns Lesley rewrote the text to include moonlight and snow allowing Lisa to use more white in her illustrations. The designer also worked to maximise the contrast of lighter areas while still keeping the soft feel of the book by setting light vignettes against dark pages.
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This panel gave us an insight into the passion, dedication and meticulous care that goes into making a beautiful book. From the author to the publisher and illustrator to the designer – all are invested in making the book the best it can be.