For instance, when I worked on the WondLa trilogy, I wondered whether we were becoming so reliant on technology that perhaps we were starting to disconnect from the natural world around us. I'm still learning, I'm still a work in progress, like I think most humans are. I never try to tell any kind of lesson because I'm not in any position to be teaching any lessons, to be honest with you. Photo courtesy of Tony DiTerlizzi Do you try to impart any lessons in your stories? Illustrator Tony DiTerlizzi and his daughter Sophia. So I feel very, very fortunate that my stories have had an impact with my readers. The thing that's always floored me is that I'll be at a book signing - whether by myself or with Holly - and we'll have a family come up and go, "You know, we were going through a divorce, and this book came out, and you have no idea how this impacted us as a family." And you don't think about that (when you're creating), you're just like, "I would've loved this as a kid, 10-year-old Tony would've loved this!" So I think you're conscious of it, but you don't know the long-term impact it has. Illustration by Tony DiTerlizzi Your work has had a huge impact worldwide do you think about the influence that something might have when you're working on it? Illustration by Tony DiTerlizziĪn "Owlbear" creature created for the "Dungeons and Dragons" role-playing game. "Verdant Force," a creature drawn for the "Magic: The Gathering" card game. So this has had a deep impact on the types of stories I want to create. And when I came back, perhaps there was something in the back of my brain that I had gained a little kernel of wisdom, a little shred of truth that was now applicable in the real world. Tolkien would have been another one, playing "Dungeons and Dragons" was another … but the stuff that resonated was the stuff where I could leave the doldrums or the pressure or the anxiety of my real world at that time, and disappear into a place where I felt a little safer. There were a lot of escape hatches for me growing up: "Star Wars" was one, reading J.R.R. What are the roots of that world-building and your approach to storytelling? In your work, you're a creator of worlds, worlds that have inspired others. The interview has been edited for length and clarity. The Caldecott Medal-winner has created images for fantasy mainstays such as "Dungeons and Dragons" and the "Magic: The Gathering" card game - as well for as his own creations, such as the bestselling "Spiderwick Chronicles," the fantasy book series he made with author Holly Black.Īnthony Dunne of WGBY's "Connecting Point" spoke with DiTerlizzi about how nature influences his work, how he builds worlds through his art and why his stories aren't meant to impart lessons. ![]() The Amherst, Massachusetts-based artist believes in stories that create "escape hatches" from reality, "and disappear into a place where I felt a little safer." A unicorn drawing for the "Spiderwick Chronicles" series. "Never abandon imagination" is children's author and illustrator Tony DiTerlizzi's mission statement.
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