Laura Murray is the author of two books for children, The Gingerbread Man Loose in the School and The Gingerbread Man Loose on the Fire Truck. A former teacher, she lives in the Washington, D.C., area.
Q:
How did you come up with the idea for your Gingerbread Man books?
A:
I was a teacher before becoming a writer, and The Gingerbread Man Loose in the
School was inspired by a Kindergarten Gingerbread Man unit I taught at the
beginning of each school year.
At
the end of the unit, our freshly baked Gingerbread Man always managed to escape
from the classroom. We hung missing posters and searched the halls, discovering
crumbs and dropped candies, as we asked school staff where he might be. But he
always found his way back to our classroom on his own - one smart cookie!
My
students absolutely loved this unit and would come back years later asking if
the Gingerbread Man had escaped yet. Even though we read many versions of the
Gingerbread Man story during the unit, there was not one that mirrored the fun
of our school Gingerbread Man chase. So I decided to try and write a new
version.
The
Gingerbread Man Loose on the Fire Truck is the “fired-up” follow up story where
the same little determined Gingerbread Man falls out of a classmate’s backpack
on a field trip to the fire station, and is discovered by a hungry,
crumb-snatching Dalmatian! An adventure ensues…
This
book idea grew from our annual school Fire Station visit for October Fire
Safety week. The students were always in awe, and the fire fighters were so
friendly and genuine, letting the children try on their gear, explore the fire
engine, and spray the hose. They also did an incredible job teaching the
students about fire safety.
I
started to envision how much fun it would be to put the Gingerbread Man and his
class in that setting and see what adventures might happen.
Q:
Did you know when you wrote the first one that you would write about him again?
A:
Not really, but one can always hope J.
Since the first story is from the Gingerbread Man’s point of view and is full
of action and humor (and because he doesn’t get eaten in the end), it lends
itself to further adventures.
It
is fun to ask this question when I do school visits – “Where do you think the
Gingerbread Man will go next?” The students are full of incredible, creative,
and funny ideas for his next adventures and misadventures.
Q:
How else does your experience as a teacher affect your writing?
A:
I draw a great deal from my teaching experience when I am writing. When you read and share books with children,
you can immediately see what they like, what they think is funny, when they are
bored, when they want to chime in, what subjects they are interested in, and
where the holes are in children’s literature that might be filled with a new
story idea.
Q:
Did you have an idea in mind when you started writing about what the
gingerbread man should look like, and what is your working relationship with
Mike Lowery, your illustrator?
A:
Once G.P. Putnam’s Sons acquired my story, they searched for an illustrator whose
style matched the text. I remember when they first showed me Mike Lowery's
work.
I
loved it, but it was different than what I had imagined and from other
Gingerbread Man illustrations I'd seen. I quickly realized, though, that this
difference is exactly what makes his work so wonderful -- it complements the
story with a fresh, hip, child-friendly style that is absolutely perfect! I
loved the comic-panel format as well.
It
is like Christmas when you get to see the first sketches! You know your
characters well, but it is a bit of magic when an illustrator brings them to
life!
Mike
and I actually did not get in touch with one another until after the first book
came out. I think publishers like to give each artist his/her space to create a
unique interpretation of the work.
We
are in touch now via e-mail and Facebook to share exciting news about the
Gingerbread Man books or children’s lit news. When we are working on a new
Gingerbread Man book, we continue to allow room for each other’s creative
process, and if we have questions or concerns, we address those through our
editor and art director.
Q:
What are you working on now?
A:
I have two more Gingerbread Man adventures in the series coming out in 2015 and
2016. The working title of adventure # 3 is The Gingerbread Man Loose at
Christmas. It’s scheduled to come out in fall 2015 – YAY!
The
fourth Gingerbread Man story is being written right now J. I have another picture book in the works
as well, and am in the middle of a middle-grade adventure novel.
Q:
Anything else we should know?
A:
Being a former teacher, I wanted to make sure my website included lots of added
value for teachers, librarians, and kids. It includes extensive teachers' guides
with fun activities for both books, as well as Gingerbread Man hunt clues, and
load of printable activities for kids on these two pages. Feel free to check
them out.
I
also just found out that The Gingerbread Man Loose in the School will be
featured with a special book promotion on the Little Debbie Gingerbread Men
snack cakes this year. Here’s the cool box cover -- I am so excited to see the dapper little guy
in the grocery stores!
You
can reach me at www.LauraMurrayBooks.com or on twitter at
@LauraMurrayBook. Happy Writing!
--Interview with Deborah Kalb
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