Hello to all my friends! As some of you may know, I grew up in West Virginia. Growing up, I loved comic books, cats and dogs, pajama parties, and the Beatles. I wasn't very creative. I liked to play too much, and preferred playing cops and robbers on bikes, or tin can alley, or dolls, instead of doing something that showed results, like writing a story or drawing a picture. Playing is still the greatest training you can have, I think, for being a writer. It helps you love life, it helps you relax, it helps you cook up interesting stuff in your head.
Probably, instead of reading this, you should be somewhere playing. I loved animals as a child, I put a lot of animals in my books today, and I live with some wonderful animals. Martha Jane is my big white dog, and she loves pizza, chasing tennis balls, and sleeping on the couch. Leia is my little black-and-white dog, and she likes running in circles. My cat Blueberry likes only one thing: food, and lots of it. My other cat, Edward Velvetpaws, likes chipmunks, but they don't like him. I live with all these good pets, and my good son, Nate, in Oregon. Oregon is a long way from where I grew up, but it has mountains and, for me, it is new, and that is fun.
My favorite thing to do is to go to movies in the afternoon. I buy popcorn and chocolate, and for two hours I am lost and happy. I also like to go for walks with my dogs. Sometimes we have adventures -- someone will fall into a lake or someone will meet a raccoon -- but
mostly we just have lovely, quiet walks. This helps my writing. I think probably most writers need to take walks. I love being a writer for many reasons. I am free, and this means very much to me. I am free to write whenever I wish, and I may write whatever I wish. I am free to be lazy and watch old cartoons on TV, and I am free to stay up all night writing a book of poetry.
I especially love writing books that are illustrated. They are so beautiful to see, the paper is so nice and shiny, the colors so beautiful and rich. Picture books glow in your hand, and they never get boring (if they are done well). And they last all your life. I love sending my books to friends and relatives. They are all so proud and happy to receive them, excited to see what new story I've written. It's nice to have a job people are so enthusiastic about!
And I love being a writer because I want to leave something here on earth to make it better, prettier, stronger. I want to do something important in my life, and I think that adding beauty to the world with books like The Relatives Came or Waiting to Waltz or Henry and Mudge and the Forever Sea really is important. Every person is able to add beauty, whether by growing flowers, or singing, or cooking luscious meals, or raising sweet pets. Every part of life can be art. I am so grateful to be a writer. I hope every child grows up and finds something to do that will seem important and that will seem precious. Happy living and, especially, happy playing.
