Wohnoutka shares process of illustrating books with Reinertsen students
May 1, 2017
Minnesota illustrator/author Mike Wohnoutka said one of the hardest parts of his job is to make changes to his work.
“I’ve never done a project where I didn’t have to make some changes to my work,” he told first- and second-grade students at S.G. Reinertsen Elementary School on April 10. “Whenever I make changes it always turns out better.”
Wohnoutka is the illustrator of more than 20 books, including the award-winning “Moo!” written by David LaRochelle. Additionally, Wohnoutka has authored and illustrated two books: “Little Puppy and the Big Green Monster” and “Dad’s First Day.”
Wohnoutka explained to Reinertsen students that an illustrator uses pictures to tell stories, and he shared the titles of some books he loved as a child. He was inspired to become an illustrator after hearing David Shannon, who writes the “No, David” books, speak about illustrating his first book.
Wohnoutka shared the process for illustrating “This Is NOT a Cat!” — which like “Moo!” was written by LaRochelle. An author provides the illustrator with information on what is happening in the scene, but then the illustrator needs to figure out what the characters are going to look like, Wohnoutka said.
“I sketched a lot of mice,” he told the students.
“This is NOT a Cat!” was published in August 2016 and is a 2017 Minnesota Book Award Finalist.
Photo caption: Illustrator/author Mike Wohnoutka begins his presentation by drawing for first- and second-grade students at S.G. Reinertsen Elementary School on April 10.
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