We recently connected with Chloe Ward and have shared our conversation below.
Alright, Chloe thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Can you talk to us about how you learned to do what you do?
I was an elementary school teacher for over ten years, so I first learned about writing picture books by reading them to my students. Later, I took classes from SCBWI, the Writing Barn, the Highlights Foundation, the PBretreat, and the Kidlit Hive. Looking back, I wish I had taken more writing courses in college.
I don’t know if there is a way to speed up the learning process for writing. So much of learning to write is taking the time to sit, brainstorm, draft, revise, edit, step back, take a class, write something new, critique a friend’s work, edit an old story, revise, and repeat.
One of the most essential skills for writing picture books is knowing children, their interests, what makes them laugh, how to keep their attention, etc. With picture books, you have the unique challenge of telling an entire story with very few words, sometimes less than five hundred, but also sharing the space and story with an illustrator. It’s a bit of a choreographed dance.
My biggest learning obstacle has been time. Finding time to write is hard. I’m an author but also a stay-at-home mom, which means writing before everyone wakes up or in my head on the way to the grocery store.
As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?
I’m a Japanese American children’s author and teacher. As a kid, I loved reading and you’d be hard pressed to wrestle a book out of my hands. I sometimes got in trouble for staying up late reading or reading instead of doing my homework. I started taking my own writing more seriously during 2020 and I dove into writing headfirst, taking as many classes as I could.
I’m most proud of my upcoming books. My debut picture book LOVE GROWS HERE illustrated by Violet Kim arrives this April. My second picture book MADE FOR MORE illustrated by Gael Abary is coming out WINTER 2025 with HarperCollins. And my third picture book, CHOPSTICKS ARE illustrated by Lynn Scurfield, arrives SPRING 2026 with Chronicle Books. I also have a few unannounced surprises up my sleeve! I’m represented by the wonderful Heather Cashman at Storm Literary and you can find me on Instagram or Twitter (X) at Chloeitoward.
Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?
My writing journey is one giant pivot. After teaching for over ten years, the last year during a pandemic, I was burnt out. Being pregnant and then a new mom, I wanted to pursue something different. I had terrible postpartum anxiety, and I needed a space to place my thoughts. Instead of only focusing on what I couldn’t control I started to lean into creativity. I’ve always been a dreamer, but I like to take the safe, predictable path so I tend to hold myself back. I knew that becoming a published author was practically impossible–the statistics of getting an agent and then selling a book are so incredibly low. But I figured, I already pursued the practical occupation, why not try for the dream job? During my maternity leave, I spent my time reading, taking classes, and writing. I connected with my agent Heather during a pitch event on Twitter (X) in 2021 and we’ve been selling books together ever since. After selling several books I decided this year that I won’t be returning to the classroom. I will substitute from time to time, but my focus is on writing.
Is there a particular goal or mission driving your creative journey?
At this point in my writing journey, I’ve done the “impossible”, landed a literary agent and sold several books. It’s a dream I never thought would come true. So now I have a new impossible dream, winning a Newbery, an award given to “the most distinguished contribution to American literature for children.” It’s rare for a picture book to win a Newbery BUT that doesn’t mean I can’t dream. For so long I’ve kept my dreams buried, not letting myself get hopeful, not saying them out loud. But I’m not doing that any longer. So here I am, putting it in writing. Whether I’m 39 or 89, I’ll be hoping and dreaming of a Newbery.
Contact Info:
- Website: chloeitoward.com
- Instagram: chloeitoward
- Twitter: chloeitoward
Image Credits
the headshots of me at the beach, the credit goes to Jen Henderson