The Little Engine That Could was one of my favorites, as was The Poky Little Puppy, The Story of Ferdinand and Virginia Lee Burton's books like Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel and Katy the Snow Plow, to name a few. When I began illustrating and writing my own books, I looked back on many of these books, and it has really inspired me to try to create illustrated stories that might also become a child’s favorite. This line of thought led to Otis.

Getting ideas can sometimes be hard but mostly they come from things I’m interested in or an experience I’ve had in my life. I often do many sketches to plan out a single picture. I do many variations of a character until it begins to look and feel right. Many times I have to try more than once to get to the heart of the character. Sometimes I come up with a picture I am very happy with, but I choose not to use it because it doesn’t help tell the story as well as it needs to. If I like the picture, it’s hard to reject it for this reason, but it’s better for the book.

I love doing both! I often imagine that I’m making a movie. The words are like the movie script, and the illustrations are the scenes I pick to tell the story visually. Both the words and the pictures have a job to do. They have to work together. When I illustrate someone else’s story, I have to love the story and want to be a part of it with my pictures. I’ve been very fortunate to work with some wonderful writers.

Everyone who plans to work in the children's book industry should get a copy of Children's Writer's and Illustrator's Market by Chuck Sambuchino. This will tell you about all of the different publishers, what kind of books they publish, what kinds of books they are looking for, details on how to submit a book to them, and their contact information. Many famous books were rejected first by several publishers, so be persistent and keep trying if the first publisher you find is not interested.

Also, join the SCBWI — Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators (http://www.scbwi.org/). The organization provides many resources for writers and artists working in (or hoping to work in) the children's book industry. They also host local workshops and conferences — you can find a wealth of educational material on how to prepare your artwork or manuscript and how to submit it, and can ask questions and join in online discussions.

If you are a writer, submit your story alone to publishers without artwork. Editors like to read and judge a story on its own merit. And if they wish to publish it, they want to be able to find the perfect illustrator out there that they feel will help your story come to life. Actually, the wrong illustrations for your story could hurt its chances of getting a serious look from an editor. This is just my two cents worth. But if you have a dream to work in the children’s literature field, consider the tips above, plug in and find your own answers. Every published author and illustrator I know in the field has taken a different path to get where they are.

Also, click here to read a helpful step by step piece on how to write a picture book by Mac Barnett and editor, Taylor Norman.

Thank you for thinking of me for your story. I’m truly flattered. But unfortunately due to my publishing schedule, I’m not able to consider and look at new projects. Please don’t send me your story. But please do send it to publishers. See the question above for general tips.

Thanks so much for thinking of me. As much as I’d love to, I am unable to read your story. Please do not send it to me. Please see the answers above for ideas on getting your story into the right hands.

Yes, I’m happy to sign as many books as you want to send. Please include return postage and a note with names if you want them personalized or indicate if you just want an autograph. It is a good idea to remove the dust jacket so that it does not get damaged. Send your book(s) to this address:

Loren Long
P.O. Box 43038
Cincinnati, Ohio 45243

I also might be doing a book signing in your area. Check out my events page, follow me on Twitter or friend me on Facebook.

Yes, I’m a dog lover and friend to all animals! We have two dogs, Ellewoods (Ellie) and Moon. They are Weimaraners. That is a picture of Moon when she was a puppy at the top of this page. The Weimaraner on some of my website pages is my beloved Stella. She is no longer with us. If you look carefully, you can find her in many of my earlier books.

We also have a handful of deer that we’ve become friends with. They walk out of the woods and stare in the front window waiting for us to feed them corn.

My favorite color of all time would have to be red. I also love purple. And lately I’ve gotten into orange. We painted the door of my new studio orange. Maybe I’ll change the color every few months depending on the mood. It doesn’t take too long to paint a door.