Meet Author & Illustrator Leslie Helakoski
an interview by Lindy Rymill

Leslie joined SCBWI in 1997 and has served as SCBWI-Michigan Illustrator Coordinator since 2001.

Originally from south Louisiana, Leslie has a BA in advertising and graphic design from the University of Louisiana, and a degree in media illustration from Northern Michigan University. She's worked in advertising agencies in Madison, WI, Pittsburgh, PA, and Lafayette, LA.

Her latest books are Woolbur (coming soon from Harper Collins) and The Big Chickens (Dutton). The below interview was done in 2002, when her first children's book, The Smushy Bus, was released.

Your first book, The Smushy Bus (Millbrook Press), came out this year. What's it about?

It's about a bus driver who when faced with a school full of kids and an extremely small bus uses math tricks to smush them all in. He also spouts bus riding wisdom, that amazingly coincides with math rules, as he drops them all off. I guess I did find a use for all those boring math classes!

The Smushy Bus is illustrated by another artist. How did you feel about their coupling your words with another artist's work?

As an unknown author, they wanted to pair me with an established illustrator. Sal Murdocca has many books to his credit. Having another artist illustrate my words is a tough pill to swallow, but I have come to terms with it. Sal's last two books have been picked up by Discovery Toys and Scholastic so we have high hopes.

Leslie, I'm going to show some of YOUR illustrations, not yet published, throughout the rest of the interview!

Leslie, when we first met, you were living in the Upper Peninsula. What drew you there?

I fell in love with a Yooper, and my husband and I moved there to raise our three children. Not many advertising agencies in the UP so was forced into writing, in a way. I came into children's books mainly because I wanted to illustrate and ended up realizing I love the words as much as the pictures. Perfect vehicle for my own self. I enjoy writing humorous picture books. Paint in mostly acrylic, sometimes add colored pencil.

Wasn't it hard to connect with others writing and illustrating for children in the UP? Sounds kind of isolating.

Those long cold winters served me well. If I'd stayed in the city, I'm sure I never would have found the time or discipline to write and paint. Initially, my father asked me to illustrate a story he used with pre-schoolers. I knew how to layout a book but next to nothing about the children's book industry. But I was hooked. I had always loved merging creative copy with just the right design. And this was better than advertising --much more interesting copy!

How did you become involved with SCBWI?

I started going to SCBWI conferences in Wisconsin. The support and information I found there made my spirit fly. The manuscript I read at open mike got such encouraging responses that I went on to actually finish that story and get it published a couple of years later. I sold my first book in 2000. Last year I attended the Highlights Foundation Writers and Illustrators Workshop at Chautauqua, NY--an entire week of writing and illustrating! It was heaven.

In the fall of 2001, my family and I moved downstate to the Kalamazoo area. I'm working full time again (BIG adjustment) in the Mattawan Middle School Library (research!) I always carry my writers bag with me in case I have a few minutes to sketch a scene or jot down ideas. I am glad to be here and to become more involved in our great SCBWI chapter.

As the new Illustrator Coordinator, what do you hope to achieve?

Story and Image are equally powerful. My favorite books are the ones where I can't decide if I like the story more or the pictures-- the books where I just can't picture someone else having illustrated the text as perfectly. I'd like our members to become more aware of how pictures and words work together to make magic. We can't just write--we have to paint pictures with our words. And we can't just paint--we have to tell the intricacies of the story. I want to keep us all in tune with the children's writer's counterpart--the illustrator.

Which illustrators are you most drawn to and why?
There are so many wonderful illustrators, but I love rich detailed illustrations best: The beauty and design in the Dillons's work and Chris Van Allsburg. The personalities Marla Frazee creates in The Seven Silly Eaters. The fun details and expressive faces of Mark Buehner's The Escape of Marvin the Ape and It's a Spoon Not a Shovel. Going to a bookstore is like going to an art gallery for me.

I admire many looser artists as well and sometimes strive to loosen up my own art.

Thanks for taking the time to chat with me, Leslie. It's been great.

We thank Leslie for serving as SCBWI-Michigan's Illustrator Coordinator. It is volunteers like Leslie that make our organization strong--and our illustration network a growing and important part of our chapter.