Snacks: You have a great moniker on your website:  Books for laughing, learning and living.  Tell us about that and your philosophy as a writer.

Leslie:  What could be more ideal than a book that makes kids laugh, helps teachers and parents teach and applies to everyday life? I want my books to do just that. If you are entertaining kids, they will learn whether they realize it or not--about words but also about life. 

Underneath the humor, the best books have something to say. I never start out with wanting to teach a point though, that develops after I have a fun idea. And then there is good old alliteration--laughing, learning and living--I love to play with words.

Snacks: Your illustrations for Fair Cow are amazing.  How did you make the transition from graphics to written work in your career?

Leslie: When I worked in advertising, writing and graphics were both parts of my job. I got involved in children’s books because I wanted to illustrate. But illustrating books wasn't the simple segue that I thought it would be. I joined SCBWI about 11 years ago thinking that because I had an art background, it would be easy as pie. I ended up selling several books over the years but all without my illustrations. 

In the last few years I began (finally) getting positive comments from editors/art directors about the illustrations I sent along with my writing submissions. I think a lot of it had to do with character development. But still, no one seemed to want both.

When I wrote Fair Cow, my editor at Harper was interested but was adamant that someone else illustrate it. I couldn't change her mind and hard as it was to pass up a sale, I just couldn't let go of those images in my head. I felt that I was ready and armed with several positive art director comments, I asked my agent to submit to someone else. We sold the book with my illustrations to Marshall Cavendish. It was great fun to get back into that much artwork and laying out a book. All the years of absorbing illustrator's advice came to my aid. 

It was a blast.

Snacks: What advice do you have for author/illustrators when submitting their work?

Leslie: Make sure that both the manuscript and the written work are in top shape.  If one is weak, it will hurt the other. Revise, revise, let rest and revise.

Get feedback on both the writing and the art. Be sure the words evoke interesting illustrations. And be sure the illustrations go beyond a pleasing design. See if your artwork is indicating more than a single scene. It should not be merely decorative but must tell part of a story. What would we assume about the characters in it? Can we see attitude or opinion on their faces or in their stance? Is there anything about the story you can convey in the background or placement of characters?

Snacks:  I love the great themes and characters in your books.  What were your inspirations for Woolbur and the Big Chickens series and how did you get around the "no anthropomorphic animals" complaint that we hear from editors yet kids LOVE?

Leslie: Since many beginners start out with talking animals, I think editors are responding more to undeveloped stories than the actual animals talking. Also, I think there has to be a reason to use a particular animal in a book. I don't think it works if any old animal will fit into the story. If you can arbitrarily say, 'Maybe I should turn this animal into a pig, no maybe a chicken or a rhino," that is not a good sign. The story has to call for a pig or a rhino or whatever. You wouldn't cast a bird to be the lead in a story about wool... But then again...Hold on, I just got an idea...  Maybe the most important thing to remember is, there are no rules. Except to do what you want but do it well.

Inspiration for characters usually come from more than one place for me. Several things have to click. The chicken books, for example, are autobiographical. I was a big chicken when I was young. (I still have relapses.) So fear was an easy topic for me. My son was laughing about chicken chickens one day and those words sounded like a gong in my head bringing together things I was afraid of long ago. In Woolbur, the original character idea came from a second grader's drawing of a sheep with colorful wool. The story-line came more from the kids I did not want to work with at my parent's preschool. They taught me to look more at how those kids were thinking and stop reacting to what looks like misbehavior.

Snacks: How does your background in advertising help you promote your books?

Leslie: I think every single thing we do brings us to where we are. Perhaps having worked in advertising makes me more aware of how important it is but I drag my feet on this one. I just want to write and have people find the books on their own. I know, I know, how lame is that? 

But I'm just wishing. Promoting is kinda like homework, you just gotta do it. I propose ideas to my editor and sometimes she acts on them. I have a website and I actually add to it once in awhile. I write songs and lessons to go with my books and I visit a lot of schools. School visits are mostly fun and teachers are great about sharing how they use books in the classroom.

Snacks: What are you working on now?

Leslie: Last year, I was visiting in Louisiana (my home state) and went for a boat ride in the marsh. I got an image in my head about alligators that lead to a fun story about how they build homes. Art directors have loved the artwork and now I'm working on getting an editor to love the words. I'm also working on a story about a dog fitting into a family that I think will be great. It's all in verse, which is different for me. (Another one of those things editors supposedly don't like but, hey, no rules, remember?)

Snacks: What advice do you give to those great writers out there who are struggling to get published?

Leslie: Believe in yourself and the possibility. Keep reading and writing and listening. If I could package the high I get from attending conferences and talking to editors and other writers, I'd make a killing on the street. Bottle that stuff up and take a swig when you need one.

Snacks: What are YOUR favorite writing snacks?

Write first. Never check e-mail or start other chores until after you've written, at least for a little while.

Wait, do you mean actual food? Chocolate, imported please.