events Title events Detail <table width="700" border="0" cellspacing="1" cellpadding="1"> <tbody> <tr> <td width="205"><img width="200" height="199" src="/content_photo/image/The%20Message%20of%20The%20Birds_HK_Cov.jpg" alt="" /></td> <td width="205"><img width="200" height="196" src="/content_photo/image/img591.jpg" alt="" /></td> <td style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: large;">Interview with<br /> Kate Westerlund</span></td> </tr> <tr> <td colspan="3"><style type="text/css"> <!-- /* Font Definitions */ @font-face {font-family:"Cambria Math"; panose-1:2 4 5 3 5 4 6 3 2 4; mso-font-charset:1; mso-generic-font-family:roman; mso-font-format:other; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:0 0 0 0 0 0;} @font-face {font-family:Calibri; panose-1:2 15 5 2 2 2 4 3 2 4; mso-font-charset:0; mso-generic-font-family:auto; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:3 0 0 0 1 0;} /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-unhide:no; mso-style-qformat:yes; mso-style-parent:""; margin-top:0cm; margin-right:0cm; margin-bottom:10.0pt; margin-left:0cm; line-height:115%; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:11.0pt; font-family:Calibri; mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family:Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi; mso-ansi-language:EN-GB;} .MsoChpDefault {mso-style-type:export-only; mso-default-props:yes; font-size:11.0pt; mso-ansi-font-size:11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size:11.0pt; font-family:Calibri; mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family:Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi; mso-ansi-language:EN-GB;} .MsoPapDefault {mso-style-type:export-only; margin-bottom:10.0pt; line-height:115%;} @page WordSection1 {size:612.0pt 792.0pt; margin:72.0pt 90.0pt 72.0pt 90.0pt; mso-header-margin:36.0pt; mso-footer-margin:36.0pt; mso-paper-source:0;} div.WordSection1 {page:WordSection1;} --></style> <style type="text/css"> <!-- /* Font Definitions */ @font-face {font-family:"Cambria Math"; panose-1:2 4 5 3 5 4 6 3 2 4; mso-font-charset:0; mso-generic-font-family:auto; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:3 0 0 0 1 0;} @font-face {font-family:Calibri; panose-1:2 15 5 2 2 2 4 3 2 4; mso-font-charset:0; mso-generic-font-family:auto; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:3 0 0 0 1 0;} /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-unhide:no; mso-style-qformat:yes; mso-style-parent:""; margin-top:0cm; margin-right:0cm; margin-bottom:10.0pt; margin-left:0cm; line-height:115%; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:11.0pt; font-family:Calibri; mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family:Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi; mso-ansi-language:EN-GB;} .MsoChpDefault {mso-style-type:export-only; mso-default-props:yes; font-size:11.0pt; mso-ansi-font-size:11.0pt; mso-bidi-font-size:11.0pt; font-family:Calibri; mso-ascii-font-family:Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-fareast-font-family:Calibri; mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-hansi-font-family:Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi; mso-ansi-language:EN-GB;} .MsoPapDefault {mso-style-type:export-only; margin-bottom:10.0pt; line-height:115%;} @page WordSection1 {size:612.0pt 792.0pt; margin:72.0pt 90.0pt 72.0pt 90.0pt; mso-header-margin:36.0pt; mso-footer-margin:36.0pt; mso-paper-source:0;} div.WordSection1 {page:WordSection1;} --></style><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Verdana;">These questions are taken from two sources; an interview for the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI Germany/Austria) and from a book reading for Kindergarten and elementary school children. <br /> <br /> <strong>Kate, could you tell us a little about yourself? How did you discover your passion for writing stories? </strong><br /> <br /> <em>I was one of those kids who liked doing lots of things. I loved books and music. I liked dancing and theater. As I got older I had to start making choices, more dance lessons or more voice lessons. I always felt as one does standing in front of the ice cream shop with 57 different flavors; how is it possible to decide. I was the strongest in singing and so that took up most of my time. Writing was always a “someday dream”. Finally, I wised–up and realized that someday was already here. </em><br /> <br /> <strong><em><span style="color: rgb(0, 0, 255);"><a href="http://www.minedition.com/en/book_detail.php?id=199">The Message of the Birds</a> </span></em></strong><strong>is a Christmas story, can you tell us a little about the story and what inspired you to write it? </strong><br /> <br /> <em>An old owl tells the Christmas story to the community of birds as he has done so many times before, but when he tells of the special message from the Baby Jesus, a little bird questions why they no longer sing the message. “People no longer listen,” is the sad realization. The birds decide to share the message once more, but this time to the children of the world. And what unfolds is surely a Christmas wonder. (book blurb) <br /> <br /> I have always enjoyed the story of the flea from Karl Heinrich Waggerl and the idea that things were actually happening in the stable. That started the thought process. I also wanted to add a universal message. <br /> </em><br /> <strong>I’ve noticed that you write under a pseudonym, why did you choose a different name for your writing and how did you choose this name? </strong><br /> <br /> <em>It was for a couple of reasons. I was still busy with other types of projects that were unrelated to writing. It was a way to compartmentalize these different aspects of my life. The other reason -- after a bit of research, I found there were other Kathryn Bishops in the writing world. I didn’t want to be confused with someone else. Kate was my nickname at university and Westerlund was my grandmother’s maiden name. It seemed like a good combination. </em><br /> <br /> <strong>You have published a number of books with min<span style="color: rgb(255, 0, 0);">e</span>dition, How did that come about and what makes it so special to work with them? </strong><br /> <br /> <em>I got lucky! I had a friend that was minedition author/translator. We were in the same critique group. Once when she was in a bind, I helped her out with a translation. I was curious to see if I could do it. I liked it. Later, she convinced Michael Neugebauer to give me a chance on a last-minute project. It worked out well, and I started translating on a more regular basis. Once in a while I submitted a story myself. It took a while before one of my stories was accepted. In the meantime, I had the extraordinary good luck to learn a lot about stories, picture books, and publishing from Mr. Michael Neugebauer. I would never have had that chance in the US or anywhere else for that matter. <br /> </em><br /> <strong>I saw that some of your other books were illustrated by the fantastic Eve Tharlet. How is it for a writer to see what an artist makes of your words and story? </strong><br /> <br /> <em>It is fascinating to watch an illustrator bring the story to life. Someone with Eve’s expertise adds phenomenal depth to the story. It is also interesting to watch how her style changed for the various books, gentle and sweet in one and more playful in one of the others. The movement of the snowman in Mr. Snow, for example, was amazing. <br /> </em><br /> <strong>Can you share with us your writing routine and what you do to overcome writer’s blocks or where you turn to for inspiration? </strong><br /> <br /> <em>As I was trained as a singer, I developed “a bit” of discipline that way. The best thing for me to do is plant myself in front of my computer every day and write, just like planting myself at the piano to practice. The more consistent I am, the more creative I feel. I also think setting a daily or weekly word count/goal is helpful. <br /> <br /> I hurt my back this summer and was uncomfortable at the computer, but I had a stack of index cards by my bed. I filled them with thoughts, ideas, titles, first lines whatever came to mind, and I have been busy lately transferring them to the computer lists. If I feel blocked, I review my lists. Then I keep writing no matter how appalling the result. <br /> As to inspiration---I have a shelf full of helpful writing books, Lee Wyndham, Anne Lamott, and Sol Stein. Also, books of fairy tales and folk tales are tremendously helpful in putting my imagination in the right place. </em><br /> <br /> <strong>Why do you write?<br /> </strong><br /> <em>Mostly, because it is fun! There are so many stories in my head, places I can go, interesting people and creatures I can meet, all in my imagination. In my imagination, I can do what I want, I can go where I want, and I can stay out as long as I want. <br /> <br /> Then it is a matter of sharing. Writing things so that others can come along, meet the people and creatures and experience the things we do.<br /> </em><br /> <strong>Why do you write so many stories with animals?<br /> </strong><br /> <em>That’s a great question. I like animals and sometimes I let the animals be like people. When I was a little girl I met a real deer (there is a picture on my website), and I thought how great it would be if the deer could talk. Maybe that’s why in my first picture book there was a little deer named Clara.<br /> </em><br /> <strong>What do want to be when you grow up?<br /> </strong><br /> </span><em><span style="font-family: Verdana;">I have always liked doing lots of different things, so I have been a singer, an actress, a teacher, even a shop girl but when I started writing I found out I could do everything and anything I wanted…in my stories. So maybe I’ll just keep writing and never grow up!</span></em></span> <p style="margin-bottom:12.0pt;line-height:normal" class="MsoNormal"> </p> </td> </tr> </tbody> </table> Location Time Type News / Events