I'm Mostly Influenced By Life,

I've Been Influenced By Poets As Diverse As Dylan Thomas, Lewis Carroll, And Edgar Allan Poe.

After I'd Produced About Two Dozen Pen And Ink Drawings, One Evening I Decided That They Needed Poems To Accompany Them. I Still Have No Idea Where That Notion Came From, But It Took Me About Two Hours To Produce Verses For These Creatures.

When I Began Writing, I Didn't Read Any Other Children's Poets... I Didn't Want To Be Influenced Until I'd Found My Own Voice. Now I Read Them All.

There's Not Too Much Difference Between Writing A Picture Book And Writing A Collection Of A Hundred Poems Or So, Except That The Bigger Books Take A Lot Longer To Do.

Children Seem Naturally Drawn To Poetry - It's Some Combination Of The Rhyme, Rhythm, And The Words Themselves.