KidsLIVE! Interview with Jerry Craft
Jerry Craft, author and illustrator of The Offenders: Saving the World While Serving Detention as well as the illustrator of Patrik Henry Bass's The Zero Degree Zombie Zone is coming to KidsLIVE! October 22nd at the Riverdale Library. We were lucky enough to ask him a few questions from topics such as his favorite book to surviving zombie apocalypses!
What were your favorite books when you were younger?
I actually was not a reader when I was a kid. In fact, I was an adult when I started to read books for enjoyment. When I was younger, I loved Marvel Comics, but that was about it. Unfortunately, most of my teachers thought that comics would rot our brains, so they would take them from us every chance they got. I also never had a book that I really bonded with until I read Great Expectationsin high school (Fieldston, in Riverdale). Up until then, the books I had to read in school always seemed like work. And I NEVER identified with any of the stories or characters.
Do you have any authors and/or cartoonists who have inspired you?
Well because of my first answer, I'll bet you can guess that there are way more cartoonists than authors. I've had the pleasure of meeting many of my inspirations, Charles Schulz (Peanuts), Lynn Johnston (For Better or for Worse), Bud Blake (Tiger), Morrie Turner (Wee Pals) and Jim Keefe (Flash Gordon).
Where do you get your ideas?
I've always gotten my ideas by just doing things. I would never be one of those people who locks themselves in a cabin in the woods. I like to see people. Especially kids, who ALWAYS inspire me. That's why I love doing school and library visits.
Were you ever bullied when you were in elementary school?
No, I was fortunate. Especially since I was only about two-feet tall up until the time I was a senior in high school. Then I grew about six inches in college. But I hear so many teachers talk about it when I do school visits. That's why I decided to write, The Offenders: Saving the World While Serving Detention! It's about five middle-grade bullies who get super powers, but instead of looking "heroic" they end up looking like the kids that they pick on. I really wanted to turn the tables and show kids what it's like to be picked on.
If aliens were actually attacking, which super power would you want to have?
Oooh, good question. I think I'd want to fly, but I also think I'd get sick. So unless part of my power was throwing up, I might have to pass on that. Super speed like The Flash would be cool. Or some type of invisibility. That would probably cut down on the whole throwing up thing. But whatever I did, I'd love to be able to shoot some type of laser from my eyes. That would be cool!
You illustrated the book The Zero Degree Zombie Zone for Scholastic, so, do you think you could survive a zombie apocalypse?
I could definitely survive the slow-walking zombie apocalypse, like on The Walking Dead. But I'm not so sure about the World War Z and I Am Legend zombies. Those things are really fast. I think I could still do it, but I'd just have to make sure that I hung out with a group of people who couldn't run as fast as me.
Do you prefer drawing or writing?
Wow, that's tough! I have always LOVED to draw!!! I still can't sit still for long periods without picking up a pencil or marker, which is ALWAYS in my pocket. But I had a LOT of fun writing The Offenders. Especially since my two sons helped. But I also drew a lot for the book, too. It even has a flipbook at the bottom. So if I HAD to choose, maybe I'd give a slight edge to drawing since I've done it longer.
What is the last good book you read? Is there anything you are looking forward to checking out?
Well, I'm working on a graphic novel now, so I've been reading a ton of them lately. Smile, Drama, American Born Chinese, Stitches, El Deafo…So you'll probably catch me in that section.
What are you working on next?
I am in the drawing stages of a 220-page graphic novel that is loosely based on my experience at Fieldston as well as my two sons' experiences at their schools. The story is written, and all the pages are sketched out. So now I'm about to start doing the finished art. My deadline is April 2016, and it is slated to be published by Andrews McMeel in early 2017!