I was interviewed by Jerry Law during the Princess Book Club Tour held at Carol's Books on March 15, 2020. You can watch the video below.
This interview by Maureen Sudlow, a published poet and children's book author, was posted at Purple Cotton Candy Arts Book Party Facebook on July 28-29, 2017.
MAUREEN: The first of your books that I read was your collection of Japanese short-form poetry. ‘The Bluebird’s Cry’ beautifully documented a journey through grief. How hard did you find this to write?
CHRISTINE: It was difficult to write from raw emotion such as grief, but writing the book turned out to be a form of healing therapy for me. I wrote Japanese short-form poetry when I needed to pour out my feelings and its limited structure allowed me to express in a few words what I couldn’t speak out loud.
MAUREEN: You have written both poetry and picture books for children. Which genre did you start out in?
CHRISTINE: I’ve been writing poetry since I was in high school, but I only discovered haiku and tanka in 2010. I started writing for children in 2008.
MAUREEN: In your children’s books I like the way that the illustrations and text are of equal value in the story. How easy was the collaboration between you and your illustrator, and how many of the illustrations were from your original concepts?
CHRISTINE: I worked very closely with each illustrator of my books. We always started from the main character, how I pictured her/him in my head. Then we move on to the other characters. I made sure that the illustrator knew in exact details how I imagined each page to be illustrated. Both my illustrators are easy to work with. We never stopped revising until we get it right. I also allowed them to give a few suggestions by surprising me with their own artistic input.
MAUREEN: Each of your children’s books has a coloring section. How have children responded to this?
CHRISTINE: Actually, two of my children’s books don’t have a coloring page—Mud Spots & Candy Sprinkles and The Eskalets (all photographs). My goddaughter loved the drawing and coloring pages of Zoobooloo so I knew it will be a hit to other kids, too. Parents and grandparents who buy the books have expressed delight about this added feature. I’ve also seen kids who get excited knowing they have pages to color.
MAUREEN: Every book carries a life message about self-acceptance, kindness, bullying etc. Was this your intention when you began writing stories for children, or did it simply develop as the story unfolded?
CHRISTINE: When I wrote The Eskalets, I didn’t know that its theme would be about love for family, kindness, bullying, etc. I later discovered that most of my made-up stories came out not only from imagination, but also from my childhood experiences.
MAUREEN: Were these books written for a particular age group, or with a particular child or children in mind?
CHRISTINE: Yes, I thought of a particular age group in mind in order to make sure that the vocabulary, sentence structure, length of story, and theme are age appropriate. I thought about my nieces and nephew, how they would react to reading my books.
MAUREEN: One of your books ‘The Eskalets’ was a departure into photography. Is photography one of your hobbies? Was there a reason for changing to this type of illustration?
CHRISTINE: It is actually because of my love for photography that I started to write for children. Homebound due to an existing wildfire and an asthma condition in 2007, I decided to take pictures of a robin that was hatching her eggs by my bedroom window. I took hundreds of pictures of the nestlings from the time of their birth up to their first flight. I didn’t know that while sorting out the pictures after a year, a beautiful story would form in my head. That’s when I discovered that I wanted to write children’s books.
MAUREEN: Do you have a favorite among the books you have written?
CHRISTINE: All of them are my favorites. They are like children that I have given birth to. If I have to choose just one, it would be The Eskalets because the American robins by my window was a blessing. It carried me a message that one of my purpose here on earth is to write and to bring a smile to children’s faces.
MAUREEN: Have you had formal training in writing? How important do you think it is to gain qualifications to further your craft?
CHRISTINE: To equip me with the knowledge and skills in writing for children and publishing my own books, I took this course and classes—Writing for Children and Teenager at the Institute of Children’s Literature (Redding, Connecticut), Publishing Your Book class at Learning Exchange (Sacramento, CA), and Writing Children’s Picture Book class at Learning Exchange (Sacramento, CA). I think it is important to continually find ways to improve my craft. The learning doesn’t stop even if I have already published several books. In fact, I am planning on joining a writing group called Northern California Publishers & Authors. This is essential to gain support and encouragement from fellow authors.
MAUREEN: Do you set aside a specific time each day for writing, and if so how easy do you find it to stick to this?
CHRISTINE: I don’t have a specific time for writing though they say you should make time for it each day. Writing is a discipline you should practice to gain more skills. All my books were written from one incredible surge of inspiration. They kept pouring in at one point in my life, but if I didn’t exert an effort to act upon it, I would have no books today. Writing is not just pure imagination. It also entails a lot of work. Write. Write. Write. Revise. Revise. Revise.
MAUREEN: What is the most difficult aspect for you of writing, publishing and marketing your books? What advice would you give to a new writer?
CHRISTINE: I think marketing is the hardest. This is the litmus test. This is when I find out if my book is going to be enjoyable and marketable. After toiling over the writing and publishing aspects of my book, my hard work just sits there on the shelf if I don’t find creative ways to move it. I have tried Amazon, CreateSpace, word of mouth advertising, social media, craft fairs, book fairs, etc. I am still not getting enough exposure to reach my goals. I’m not giving up, though. I know I have planted my seeds and I will harvest them at the right time. 😊
My advice to new writers is to never be a afraid to pursue their dreams. It is never too late. It’s always overwhelming in the beginning and I can’t promise them that it will be easy after that. Every dream fulfilled has to be earned. If writing something that they are passionate about, start with small baby steps. Enrol in a writing course or class and join a writing group. Find out what you want to write and to whom you are writing for. Keep on learning. Do all your research. Remember, nothing in your writing life starts coming true if you don’t write NOW.
MAUREEN: The first of your books that I read was your collection of Japanese short-form poetry. ‘The Bluebird’s Cry’ beautifully documented a journey through grief. How hard did you find this to write?
CHRISTINE: It was difficult to write from raw emotion such as grief, but writing the book turned out to be a form of healing therapy for me. I wrote Japanese short-form poetry when I needed to pour out my feelings and its limited structure allowed me to express in a few words what I couldn’t speak out loud.
MAUREEN: You have written both poetry and picture books for children. Which genre did you start out in?
CHRISTINE: I’ve been writing poetry since I was in high school, but I only discovered haiku and tanka in 2010. I started writing for children in 2008.
MAUREEN: In your children’s books I like the way that the illustrations and text are of equal value in the story. How easy was the collaboration between you and your illustrator, and how many of the illustrations were from your original concepts?
CHRISTINE: I worked very closely with each illustrator of my books. We always started from the main character, how I pictured her/him in my head. Then we move on to the other characters. I made sure that the illustrator knew in exact details how I imagined each page to be illustrated. Both my illustrators are easy to work with. We never stopped revising until we get it right. I also allowed them to give a few suggestions by surprising me with their own artistic input.
MAUREEN: Each of your children’s books has a coloring section. How have children responded to this?
CHRISTINE: Actually, two of my children’s books don’t have a coloring page—Mud Spots & Candy Sprinkles and The Eskalets (all photographs). My goddaughter loved the drawing and coloring pages of Zoobooloo so I knew it will be a hit to other kids, too. Parents and grandparents who buy the books have expressed delight about this added feature. I’ve also seen kids who get excited knowing they have pages to color.
MAUREEN: Every book carries a life message about self-acceptance, kindness, bullying etc. Was this your intention when you began writing stories for children, or did it simply develop as the story unfolded?
CHRISTINE: When I wrote The Eskalets, I didn’t know that its theme would be about love for family, kindness, bullying, etc. I later discovered that most of my made-up stories came out not only from imagination, but also from my childhood experiences.
MAUREEN: Were these books written for a particular age group, or with a particular child or children in mind?
CHRISTINE: Yes, I thought of a particular age group in mind in order to make sure that the vocabulary, sentence structure, length of story, and theme are age appropriate. I thought about my nieces and nephew, how they would react to reading my books.
MAUREEN: One of your books ‘The Eskalets’ was a departure into photography. Is photography one of your hobbies? Was there a reason for changing to this type of illustration?
CHRISTINE: It is actually because of my love for photography that I started to write for children. Homebound due to an existing wildfire and an asthma condition in 2007, I decided to take pictures of a robin that was hatching her eggs by my bedroom window. I took hundreds of pictures of the nestlings from the time of their birth up to their first flight. I didn’t know that while sorting out the pictures after a year, a beautiful story would form in my head. That’s when I discovered that I wanted to write children’s books.
MAUREEN: Do you have a favorite among the books you have written?
CHRISTINE: All of them are my favorites. They are like children that I have given birth to. If I have to choose just one, it would be The Eskalets because the American robins by my window was a blessing. It carried me a message that one of my purpose here on earth is to write and to bring a smile to children’s faces.
MAUREEN: Have you had formal training in writing? How important do you think it is to gain qualifications to further your craft?
CHRISTINE: To equip me with the knowledge and skills in writing for children and publishing my own books, I took this course and classes—Writing for Children and Teenager at the Institute of Children’s Literature (Redding, Connecticut), Publishing Your Book class at Learning Exchange (Sacramento, CA), and Writing Children’s Picture Book class at Learning Exchange (Sacramento, CA). I think it is important to continually find ways to improve my craft. The learning doesn’t stop even if I have already published several books. In fact, I am planning on joining a writing group called Northern California Publishers & Authors. This is essential to gain support and encouragement from fellow authors.
MAUREEN: Do you set aside a specific time each day for writing, and if so how easy do you find it to stick to this?
CHRISTINE: I don’t have a specific time for writing though they say you should make time for it each day. Writing is a discipline you should practice to gain more skills. All my books were written from one incredible surge of inspiration. They kept pouring in at one point in my life, but if I didn’t exert an effort to act upon it, I would have no books today. Writing is not just pure imagination. It also entails a lot of work. Write. Write. Write. Revise. Revise. Revise.
MAUREEN: What is the most difficult aspect for you of writing, publishing and marketing your books? What advice would you give to a new writer?
CHRISTINE: I think marketing is the hardest. This is the litmus test. This is when I find out if my book is going to be enjoyable and marketable. After toiling over the writing and publishing aspects of my book, my hard work just sits there on the shelf if I don’t find creative ways to move it. I have tried Amazon, CreateSpace, word of mouth advertising, social media, craft fairs, book fairs, etc. I am still not getting enough exposure to reach my goals. I’m not giving up, though. I know I have planted my seeds and I will harvest them at the right time. 😊
My advice to new writers is to never be a afraid to pursue their dreams. It is never too late. It’s always overwhelming in the beginning and I can’t promise them that it will be easy after that. Every dream fulfilled has to be earned. If writing something that they are passionate about, start with small baby steps. Enrol in a writing course or class and join a writing group. Find out what you want to write and to whom you are writing for. Keep on learning. Do all your research. Remember, nothing in your writing life starts coming true if you don’t write NOW.
Maureen Sudlow is a member of The New Zealand Society of Authors and the New Zealand Poetry Society. Acquiring a diploma in Creative Writing, she writes poetry and children’s picture books. Her poetry and photographs have been featured in various online and print journals. Her published books include “Fearless Fred and the Dragon,” which was shortlisted for the Scholastic Joy Cowley Award 2012, and “Antipodes” which is a poetry collection. Her website is www.kiwis.soar.com
My interview of Michael H. Lester, the author of Cassandra and the Strange Tale of the Blue-Footed Boobies. This book was was published by Purple Cotton Candy Arts in 2019.
This article/interview was written by Malou Liwanag-Bledsoe, editor of The Asian Journal SF Magazine, in September 25, 2015.
We are all born different--in size, shape, color, culture--and yet many of us tend to criticize others just because they meet society's unrealistic standards of today. If us, adults are bad on nitpicking a personal flaw, at least at times we tend to hold back mean words because we don't want to be accused of behaving badly.
Children, however, are the worse critics. They are fearless, honest, perceptive and have yet to grasp the real concept of "beauty within." In Christine L. Villa's book Mud Spots and Candy Sprinkles, young readers (as well as older) are taught about self-esteem, beauty and self-image. Also, in this era where bullying from your peers is as easy as a click of a computer mouse, the book ventures on the importance of kindness.
Christine's inspiration for Mud Spots is partly a reflection of her own childhood and teenage life. "I lacked the self-esteem because I was bullied and teased for being short and ugly. Even family members had openly confessed that they didn't think I was pretty enough," she said in an interview with the Asian Journal. "On some occasions, I still battle with lack of self-love and self-acceptance so I wrote this book for readers of all ages and for myself as a reminder that we don't need the approval of others to define who we are."
In the story, the main character--Molly--is an adorable redhead, freckles and all. Upset at her freckles or "mud spots," she tried to get rid of them by going through all kinds of "beauty" method. Although the pressures of teasing from her classmates made her wish that the "mud spots" would disappear from her face, Molly's parents were always there to remind her that she is beautiful and that she is loved just how she is.
"I believe that is it essential that young children are taught as early as possible the value of loving and accepting ourselves unconditionally," shared Christine. "In this day and age with the pressure of peers, media, and society, a child needs guidance and guidelines to what the true meaning of beauty is. Parents can start doing so by showing the child that he/she is beautiful inside and out."
Having published books (The Magic Paintbrush, 2014 and The Eskalets, 2015 both through CreateSpace), Christine said that she had her fair share of challenges in publishing Mud Spots.
"The biggest challenge is writing this easy reader book is revising it. Like any other chlidren's book, it has to be written with a set of guidelines in mind such as the following: Are the dialogues age-appropriate? Do they sound natural? Does the story read well out loud? Have I made use of dramaticized scenes to show--rather than tell--the story," she said.
Another hurdle she had to deal with was coming up with enough funds as self-publishing a picture book is expensive due to the illustrations needed for each page.
"Fortunately, I found Kathleen Sue Mallari on ODesk (now owned by Upwork), a Filipino residing in the Philippines who is much affordable than illustrators who live and work here in the US," she explained. "I picked her out also because I wanted to promote how talented Filipinos are and I never regretted hiring her because she did an excellent job illustrating Mud Spots and Candy Sprinkles."
Christine is also an award-winning poet. Her haiku and tanka have been published in various international journal and e-books. She is the founder and editor of Frameless Sky (framelesssky.weebly.com), a bi-annual video journal showcasing haiku and tanka poets, visual artists, and musicians. Aside from being a writer, she is a camera bug and a jewelry maker.
Sharing that when she was younger she never pursued her love for writing, Christine believes that people should dare to take the first step in making their dreams happen. "Writing took a backseat most of my life until one day an encounter with nature rekindled my passion," she said. Life has pleasant surprises and it's up to us whether to seize the moment and dare to reach for our dreams no matter what age we are. At 51, I became a published children's book author. I knew I wanted to write, but I never expected to be writing for chidlren."
If you want to purchase a signed copy of Mud Spots and Candy Sprinkles and/or Christine's other books, you can visit her at www.christinevilla.com. They are also available at CreateSpace and Amazon.
We are all born different--in size, shape, color, culture--and yet many of us tend to criticize others just because they meet society's unrealistic standards of today. If us, adults are bad on nitpicking a personal flaw, at least at times we tend to hold back mean words because we don't want to be accused of behaving badly.
Children, however, are the worse critics. They are fearless, honest, perceptive and have yet to grasp the real concept of "beauty within." In Christine L. Villa's book Mud Spots and Candy Sprinkles, young readers (as well as older) are taught about self-esteem, beauty and self-image. Also, in this era where bullying from your peers is as easy as a click of a computer mouse, the book ventures on the importance of kindness.
Christine's inspiration for Mud Spots is partly a reflection of her own childhood and teenage life. "I lacked the self-esteem because I was bullied and teased for being short and ugly. Even family members had openly confessed that they didn't think I was pretty enough," she said in an interview with the Asian Journal. "On some occasions, I still battle with lack of self-love and self-acceptance so I wrote this book for readers of all ages and for myself as a reminder that we don't need the approval of others to define who we are."
In the story, the main character--Molly--is an adorable redhead, freckles and all. Upset at her freckles or "mud spots," she tried to get rid of them by going through all kinds of "beauty" method. Although the pressures of teasing from her classmates made her wish that the "mud spots" would disappear from her face, Molly's parents were always there to remind her that she is beautiful and that she is loved just how she is.
"I believe that is it essential that young children are taught as early as possible the value of loving and accepting ourselves unconditionally," shared Christine. "In this day and age with the pressure of peers, media, and society, a child needs guidance and guidelines to what the true meaning of beauty is. Parents can start doing so by showing the child that he/she is beautiful inside and out."
Having published books (The Magic Paintbrush, 2014 and The Eskalets, 2015 both through CreateSpace), Christine said that she had her fair share of challenges in publishing Mud Spots.
"The biggest challenge is writing this easy reader book is revising it. Like any other chlidren's book, it has to be written with a set of guidelines in mind such as the following: Are the dialogues age-appropriate? Do they sound natural? Does the story read well out loud? Have I made use of dramaticized scenes to show--rather than tell--the story," she said.
Another hurdle she had to deal with was coming up with enough funds as self-publishing a picture book is expensive due to the illustrations needed for each page.
"Fortunately, I found Kathleen Sue Mallari on ODesk (now owned by Upwork), a Filipino residing in the Philippines who is much affordable than illustrators who live and work here in the US," she explained. "I picked her out also because I wanted to promote how talented Filipinos are and I never regretted hiring her because she did an excellent job illustrating Mud Spots and Candy Sprinkles."
Christine is also an award-winning poet. Her haiku and tanka have been published in various international journal and e-books. She is the founder and editor of Frameless Sky (framelesssky.weebly.com), a bi-annual video journal showcasing haiku and tanka poets, visual artists, and musicians. Aside from being a writer, she is a camera bug and a jewelry maker.
Sharing that when she was younger she never pursued her love for writing, Christine believes that people should dare to take the first step in making their dreams happen. "Writing took a backseat most of my life until one day an encounter with nature rekindled my passion," she said. Life has pleasant surprises and it's up to us whether to seize the moment and dare to reach for our dreams no matter what age we are. At 51, I became a published children's book author. I knew I wanted to write, but I never expected to be writing for chidlren."
If you want to purchase a signed copy of Mud Spots and Candy Sprinkles and/or Christine's other books, you can visit her at www.christinevilla.com. They are also available at CreateSpace and Amazon.
Let's keep in touch! Contact me at chrissivilla@gmail.com.