Meet Jo-Anne Mason, Author of the Caribbean Tales Series
What inspired you to become a children's author?
I am an artist/illustrator first and have always thought if you never have children you are always a child so I write the way I think using creatures as my characters. When I moved to the Caribbean I was enchanted with the color and beauty of the islands. My first attempt at a book was combining a group of drawing I did as prints for my art gallery. The images were about the everyday life on a Caribbean island. Everyone loved the images so I thought I would combine them and add little bits of information into a little soft back book. I guess it just evolved from there.
How did you come up with the idea for your book series?
We had a terrible hurricane on my island Anguilla back in 1995. I lived through the hurricane and it was a very scary two days and hard living for months after the storm passed. I did a whole series of water color painting about palm trees that survived the storm. It was not enough to get the fear out of me so I decided to write a book about the goats that live on the island and how they survived. That was my first book. I just went on from there using creatures from other islands to illustrate the story. The more you look, the more you see and as I move from one story to the next I focus on a particular creature, how the behave and create the story from there.
How many books will be available in the series so far?
I have three books in the Caribbean Tales series, Paddy the Goat That Saved Anguilla, Trixy the Monkey That Ate Nevis and The Perfect Shell. I like to write about real islands and include images of the places that exist on the island to give the reader a good sense of what the Caribbean really looks like.
What do you think children will enjoy most about your book?
The big color illustrations. I hope they also enjoy reading about the animals and the islands that will encourage them to visit and get a better view of the world around them. In my latest books I include a few pages about the creatures in the book and the island itself. In the kindle editions I have expanded that area to give the reader more information.
What advice would you give to a new author trying to get their book published?
I published my first book, (the first edition) with a regular publisher. It took three years to finally get the finished book and they wanted it to be generic to appeal to a broader audience. I was very frustrated with the whole process and decided for my next book and the second edition of the first book to self publish. I really like the idea of writing about a place, a real place, the story does not have to be factual but since I love to travel I believe that people really notice how every place is different, that makes life interesting.
Now I write about the islands that I love, I make them very specific because I want readers to know about these places and hopefully appreciate them the way I do. The stories are fanciful but the places are real and show the true character of the islands. Write about what you know, it is the only way your story will ring true. I am also moving to ebooks and apps. I love the idea of using the digital medium to enhance and further illustrate the story. I also like giving children a new idea.
You can find out more about Jo-Anne Mason and the Caribbean Tales Series by visiting
www.jo-annemason.com.
I am an artist/illustrator first and have always thought if you never have children you are always a child so I write the way I think using creatures as my characters. When I moved to the Caribbean I was enchanted with the color and beauty of the islands. My first attempt at a book was combining a group of drawing I did as prints for my art gallery. The images were about the everyday life on a Caribbean island. Everyone loved the images so I thought I would combine them and add little bits of information into a little soft back book. I guess it just evolved from there.
How did you come up with the idea for your book series?
We had a terrible hurricane on my island Anguilla back in 1995. I lived through the hurricane and it was a very scary two days and hard living for months after the storm passed. I did a whole series of water color painting about palm trees that survived the storm. It was not enough to get the fear out of me so I decided to write a book about the goats that live on the island and how they survived. That was my first book. I just went on from there using creatures from other islands to illustrate the story. The more you look, the more you see and as I move from one story to the next I focus on a particular creature, how the behave and create the story from there.
How many books will be available in the series so far?
I have three books in the Caribbean Tales series, Paddy the Goat That Saved Anguilla, Trixy the Monkey That Ate Nevis and The Perfect Shell. I like to write about real islands and include images of the places that exist on the island to give the reader a good sense of what the Caribbean really looks like.
What do you think children will enjoy most about your book?
The big color illustrations. I hope they also enjoy reading about the animals and the islands that will encourage them to visit and get a better view of the world around them. In my latest books I include a few pages about the creatures in the book and the island itself. In the kindle editions I have expanded that area to give the reader more information.
What advice would you give to a new author trying to get their book published?
I published my first book, (the first edition) with a regular publisher. It took three years to finally get the finished book and they wanted it to be generic to appeal to a broader audience. I was very frustrated with the whole process and decided for my next book and the second edition of the first book to self publish. I really like the idea of writing about a place, a real place, the story does not have to be factual but since I love to travel I believe that people really notice how every place is different, that makes life interesting.
Now I write about the islands that I love, I make them very specific because I want readers to know about these places and hopefully appreciate them the way I do. The stories are fanciful but the places are real and show the true character of the islands. Write about what you know, it is the only way your story will ring true. I am also moving to ebooks and apps. I love the idea of using the digital medium to enhance and further illustrate the story. I also like giving children a new idea.
You can find out more about Jo-Anne Mason and the Caribbean Tales Series by visiting
www.jo-annemason.com.
Stacie Theis / beachboundbooks@yahoo.com / copyright 2012