Hi, here's some scoop about me:

I graduated from college in Texas with a fine arts degree, and then freelanced as an art director at a graphic design firm for eight years. I dreamed of working in children's books, so I moved to New York City and became associate art director in Scholastic trade books, where I designed books for children and worked with editors and illustrators. It was a great job.

I illustrated my first published children's book in 1992 and soon began illustrating full time. I began completing manuscripts and mailing them out to publishers in the early 1990s. In 1996, I sold my first two manuscripts -- Boo Who? A Spooky Lift-the-Flap Book (Scholastic) and Pen Pals (Grosset & Dunlap). Yippee!

Now I write full time and have written and/or illustrated over 130 children's books. Creating books that entertain, inform, and interest children (and me) is a fabulous job that I truly love.

Answers to questions people sometimes ask me:

1. Where do you get your ideas?

I get my ideas in the same way you do. I listen to friends and random strangers and I watch people around me. I read, brainstorm, travel, and daydream to get ideas. Ideas are the easy part of writing. Developing an idea into a book with a beginning, a middle, and a satisfying end can be hard. You just never know if an idea will make a good book until you try it. Sometimes I get frustrated when I can't make an idea work. But if I have an idea I really like, I usually don't give up on it. I keep on and on and on until I've turned it into a story.

2. When and why did you decide to become an author and artist?

We didn't have many books at home when I was young, but my mom took my brother, sister, and me to the library. I began writing because I had story ideas that I thought would make good books. In 1991, I began regularly submitting manuscripts to publishers. They began regularly rejecting me. Back then, I called manuscripts I sent out 'boomerangs' because I'd mail them out, then they'd come right back, rejected. Eventually a wonderful editor named Jane O'Connor said yes.

3. Why don't you illustrate all of the books you write?

I started out as an illustrator. Then I began writing, and it turns out that I love that so much that I decided not to illustrate any more. I just don't have time to do both. I've been very happy with the work of the artists who have illustrated my books: Kathy Couri, Lynne Avril, Jannie Ho, Kristin Sorra, Michael Slack, Debbie Palen, Regan Dunnick, Anna DiVito, Paul Meisel, Theresa Smythe, Will Terry, Tom Lichtenheld, and lots of others. I think this is a golden age of illustration. There are so many wonderful artists out there in the publishing world right now!

4. Did you like school when you were a kid?

Pretty much. I got bored during the summer, so I was glad when school started. I loved getting a new lunchbox and choosing what I would wear the first day. I like to read and I made good grades, so school was mostly fun for me.

5. How do you develop your characters and plot?

I've usually already decided on most of the characters, the ending, and some of the plot before I start writing a book. I work out the rest as I go along. For chapter books, I write a 1 to 2 page description of what will happen before I start writing the book. I learn the rhythm and structure of stories by reading books and thinking about how they are structured.

6. How hard was it to get published?

It took a long time to sell the first manuscript. Then in 1996, I suddenly sold three manuscripts in three months to Grosset & Dunlap and Scholastic. Not every book I write gets published. I have a file drawer stuffed full of rejected manuscripts. But I have a long, ongoing list of book ideas I'm excited about, and I am usually writing more than one book at a time.

7. What are your favorite books besides the ones you have written?

A Friend for Dragon; Chrysanthemum; Ruby the Copycat; Marvin Redpost; Holes; Judy Moody series; Junie B Jones; Feed; Officer Buckle and Gloria; Stargirl; Eloise; Fancy Nancy, Horace and Morris; The Hunger Games; Matched; the Wimpy Kid series; Amelia's Notebook; and many, many, many more!

8. What do you look for in a good book?

Humor or emotions I strongly identify with. An unusual plot idea and characters I care about. I own thousands of books, and my office walls are lined with bookshelves. If you want to be a writer, I think the number one most important thing you should do is read.

9. Do you have a family, kids, pets, or hobbies?

I have a brother and a sister and two cats named Scout and Boo, which we named after To Kill A Mockingbird characters. I like to hike, bikeride, read, go to the gym, make quilts, watch movies, read, shop, hang out, travel, go to museums, read, and eat cookies. And did I mention I like to read?

10. Can I write to you?

You can email me at joanholub at aol dot com or comment on my blog at http://joanholub.blogspot.com. You can also write to me in care of my publishers. You can find each publisher's address online or in this library book: The Children's Writers Market.
The address for Goddess Girls is:
Joan Holub c/o A. Heller / Aladdin, SImon & Schuster - Goddess Girls / 1230 Ave of the Americas / New York, NY 10020.

Thank you for visiting my website today!