Chris Barton's First Book Story
Day-Glo was just the beginning
“ Find community-that’s the number one piece of advice I give to anyone,” says Chris Barton during our conversation on My First Book Story (listen on Apple Podcasts or Spotify). He’s the author of over 24 books for kids from picture books to young adult, both fiction and nonfiction, he’s been featured on state reading lists and honored with national awards, visited hundreds of schools across the country and internationally (find out more here), and speaks at conferences and festivals. In short, he speaks from a place of authority.
And I agree with Chris, whether you’re trying to get published or achieve some other dream, your community can play a vital role in getting you there. Plus, it’s just more fun with friends. I’ve personally watched Chris engage in his writing community, learning and teaching and lifting up other voices, and it all comes back in the end. When you give, you get. I speak from experience. At my first book launch the room was filled with over a hundred people, many of them writers who had been rooting for me for years. And I’d been rooting right back.
The path that led to Chris Barton’s first book involved a smoke alarm, a toddler, and an obituary. It resulted in the fabulously bright and informative picture book The Day-Glo Brothers, illustrated by Tony Perisani.
![The Day-Glo Brothers: The True Story of Bob and Joe Switzer's Bright Ideas and Brand-New Colors [Book]](https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!apeS!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-media.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fpublic%2Fimages%2F24903685-bf8c-4a68-9578-66986ac09df1_600x776.jpeg "The Day-Glo Brothers: The True Story of Bob and Joe Switzer's Bright Ideas and Brand-New Colors [Book]")
In our interview, Chris talks about the process of research and what goes into generating new stories, how a conversation and then an article and then maybe a book read during research are all opportunities to generate new stories.
“ I’m open to the feedback that I received from people, and open to the ideas that I absorb by reading other people’s books. It’s all part of the work that goes into being an author. The work of writing a book, it doesn’t always mean sitting at your desk researching and writing and rewriting.”
The picture book The Dinosaurs of Waterhouse Hawkins by Barbara Kerley, with illustrations by Brian Selznick made a big impact on Chris. It took a topic that’s inherently interesting to kids, dinosaurs, and combined it with a scientist’s biography.
It is a beautifully and creatively illustrated book, and Chris was inspired to do the same for the story of how Day-Glo was invented. But when he had finished it, an editor told him it was much too long, so he had to cut 4,000 (!) words. He tells kids in school visits:
“These were 4,000 words I had researched. These were 4,000 words I had written. These were 4,000 words I had rewritten. You think it was easy to get rid of those? No, it wasn’t, but it was absolutely the right thing to do.”
Chris began to work on other stories as he went through the long process of publication. Once again, he was inspired by his toddler who was obsessed with both trains and sharks. He wrote Shark vs. Train, illustrated by Tom Lichtenheld a book my grandson and I adore.
What keeps Chris generating book after book? It’s about connection. In our interview he says, “For me, there’s never been anything more motivating to finish a story, to make it as good as I can, than knowing there’s at least one person who’s looking forward to reading it.” In fact, connection is so important that’s what his most recent picture book is about.
In We Match, illustrated by Sharon Glick, matches are made among the mutts in the dog park as they find things in common. Big picture: we can find a connection with pretty much anybody. And that’s where the joy is, whether it’s at the dog park, the writing world, or elsewhere. Side note: my husband and I have made a ton of friends at dog parks.
One of the last questions I asked was what advice Chris would give to his pre-published self. He said, “ I’m reluctant to do anything differently or go back and meddle with the timeline because I’m so happy with the way things have ended up.” I just love that answer. And I think you’ll love this interview.
You can also find Chris Barton on his website, Instagram, and Facebook.
My name is Meredith Davis, and I’m an award winning writer of middle grade books, a former indie bookseller, founder of the Austin chapter of the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators and graduate of Vermont College of Fine Arts with an MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults. Find teaching resources and author visit information on my website at www.meredithldavis.com. Mother to three, Nana to two, I live with my husband and a crazy doodle in Austin, Texas.
