We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Nancy So Miller. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Nancy So below.

Nancy So , thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Can you talk to us about how you learned to do what you do?

I developed my skills as a children’s book author and illustrator while studying at the Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD) for my MFA. After my first year, I knew I wanted to focus on children’s book illustration. I took a course taught by Professor Brian Bowes on Book Illustration. I learned a lot in the course and developed a book dummy and five finished illustrations based on the story by my friend Heather Tietz. Professor Bowes encouraged me to write my own stories and illustrate them. That was a big revelation for me I could be a writer.

I interned with R. Gregory Christie, an award-winning children’s book illustrator, and author, for 24 weeks. I learned to improve my visual storytelling skills under his mentorship. From that experience, I knew I wanted the visual component of my thesis to be based on the experience of teaching my son how to make Korean gimbap when he was in first grade. I titled it Gimbap Kitchen, and it has gone through numerous revisions with the help of my fantastic critique group.

I took online courses from the School of Visual Storytelling (SVS Learn) and Storyteller Academy. I used the course at SVS Learn to help me develop the visual component for my thesis. Author/illustrator Kim-Hoa Ung recommended the Storyteller Academy to improve my writing. I started their program during the last quarter at SCAD. Their courses taught me how to write, revise, and understand the structure of a good children’s book story. The Storyteller Academy also connected me to the wonderful authors in my critique group. I highly recommend finding a critique group if you are an aspiring author.

Drawing, writing and having strong visual storytelling are the obvious skills needed for the job. Those skills will always improve with consistent effort. I think you need a certain mindset even more. The business of publishing is not a sprint but a marathon. Over the past year and a half, I’ve done numerous revisions on my Gimbap Kitchen manuscript and book dummy. Even if the manuscript is acquired, there will be further revisions. It’s a collaborative business, and you want to create the best book possible for the parents and children. You need to be persistent in improving your craft and sharing your work. I send samples of my work to publishers. It’s like scattering seeds and hoping one of them will sprout.

I think I could have sped up my development as a children’s book author and illustrator if I had the confidence to write sooner. I immigrated to the U.S. before BTS and Korean culture’s popularity. I never saw books that had characters that looked like me. I was disappointed that this had not changed much once I became a parent. I wondered if my stories had a place in publishing. I joined the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators. I started meeting and getting to know authors and illustrators, sharing their cultural identities in their stories. It was encouraging and inspiring!

Nancy So , before we move on to more of these sorts of questions, can you take some time to bring our readers up to speed on you and what you do?

I’m a children’s book author and illustrator, and art teacher. I’ll start with the story of how I became an art teacher. I’d spent a decade as an in-house designer, and after the birth of my son, I realized I wanted to have a career that had a bigger impact on the community. I loved to share and make art and decided to teach it. I worked full-time as an advertising designer at Scuba Diving Magazine while getting my art education certificate. It was one of the best career decisions I ever made. I loved teaching art, and I’m in my 12th year of teaching. Being an art teacher has been an honor because I’ve taught over 1,000 students. Their ages range from pre-kindergarten to adulthood. During my art teaching, I decided I wanted to get an advanced degree, and got my MFA program at the Savannah College of Art and Design and focused on children’s book illustration. That time during my MFA allowed me to dive deep into my love of children’s books and discover a technique I love.

I think my illustration technique goes back to my childhood creating paper dolls and miniatures out of paper. I delight in creating pieces that have been hand-painted and cut out of paper. I enjoy turning them into dioramas and taking high-resolution digital photographs for my clients. My illustrations are unique and immersive because I play with depth of field using photography. Viewers of my work comment on how my illustrations look real. I feel a sense of accomplishment when I hear this. The viewer feels like they were shrunk in size and transported into the world I created. Children relate to my work because of the play and toy-like quality. Everything is tangible and could fit in a doll house. I use this technique to tell the visual narratives I’m hired for. My clients get something special and crafted.

I was encouraged by TeMika Grooms, children’s book author and illustrator, to share my work on Twitter. I posted a digital postcard on Twitter, and several illustrators were kind enough to retweet it. My agent, Tara Gonzalez of Erin Murphy Literary Agency saw it and took me on. I’m a member of the Society for Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators and volunteer as the Southern Breeze local liaison for the Savannah region.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

There have been so many rewarding aspects of being an artist and teacher. In the past, I’ve enjoyed the reward of seeing my craft improve and my art in print. It’s been fantastic connecting with other creatives. I find everyone has a story, and the artists I’ve met have fascinating reasons for why they create. It led me to start the My Creative Life Podcast, and I interviewed over 100 creatives. Creatives are some of the nicest people! Through the interview process, I learn from their experiences, and the audience can learn too. I want everyone to make it and be successful in their creative careers. It brings me joy knowing that one of my interviews provided someone with inspiration or advice that helps them keep making their art.

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

I am persistent. It took me three years before I got my first children’s book contract to illustrate someone else’s story. The art director/editor had seen my work because I’d placed in the top three for an illustration contest for the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators. They put the top three winners on the SCBWI homepage. It’s one of those things it takes time for people to know you are a real person creating the art. Getting that first contract for being the author and illustrator will take time. I feel prepared because I’ve tried to learn as much as I can. I’ve gotten a lot of encouragement from the wonderful people in children’s book publishing to keep going.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.nmillerillustration.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nmillerillustration/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/nmillerillustration/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/nmillerillo
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/c/NancyMillerIllustration
• Other: My Creative Life Podcast: https://anchor.fm/nmillerillustration