Imagine a Time
by Penny Harrison & Jennifer Goldsmith
“Imagine a time when all the world STOPS,
when all of the clocks no longer TICK-TOCK.
And all of the maps are starting to fade,
as the need to be somewhere drifts far away.”
(Imagine a Time)
(Imagine a Time is published by New Frontier Publishing)
Interview with Imagine a Time picture book creators Penny Harrison and Jennifer Goldsmith
Thank you for speaking with PaperbarkWords, Penny and Jennifer.
Where are each of you based and what is your background in children’s books or related fields?
Penny I live in the Yarra Valley, just outside Melbourne. I am a journalist by trade and started writing for children about 10 years ago.
Jennifer We live in ‘The Colour City’ – Orange in the central west of NSW. Our home is on a hill with a broad view to the horizon with a backyard bubbling along to the soundtrack muttering urban hens swapping knitting patterns while they hunt out snails among the strawberries and a pair of beautiful bounding border collie girls making sure we never have any grass. I wouldn’t live anywhere else.
I have always truly loved picture books, but I came to illustration in a roundabout way. I had a kitchen table design pursuit while our children were at school, cobbling together toys and sharing them as sewing patterns so others could enjoy them too, but I was beginning to get a bit carried away. They were becoming very detailed which made them tricky for some people to make. I was layering character, adding back stories, and rarely letting any out to roam without a full wardrobe, backpack of felty baked goods in brown paper bags and a nifty companion or two tucked under their arm…usually a fluffy chicken (I’ve never been terribly fond of being on my own and am convinced toys would share my feelings). In hindsight, I was storytelling in a different way.
Then, in 2019 the amazing Margrete Lamond of Dirt Lane Press chatted with me about being a part of a picture book project and despite my first instinct being to shy away I surprised myself by saying ‘yes’ and I’ve been scribbling away since…with the odd toy or two thrown in here and there for inspiration.
Imagine a Time is such a beautiful, evocative book title. What does it mean to you?
Penny During COVID, we were all forced to slow down through lockdowns. This conjures a similar time, but without the fear and urgency. Instead it allows us to imagine what the world could be like if we actually let nature take its course.
Jennifer Working through the making of Imagine a Time and helping to create a book that meets the high standard readers deserve was a chance for me to stretch myself in new ways. It was different and very rewarding to problem solve telling a story as ‘moments in time’ rather than threading and weaving a visual narrative through the pages building relationships using repeating characters. It was also the first time I’d needed to use this many colours in a book. I find it easier to make colour decisions using a limited palette which meant the early stages of painting felt like sifting for puzzle pieces to fit but hopefully it all came together coherently. By the time I packaged the pages ready for the courier I felt like I’d achieved something I was proud of.
What is your vision for this picture book and who are its intended readers?
Penny I wrote this for a range of readers. For those old enough to remember, I wanted it to be a reminder of that time, when we allowed ourselves to be still and connect more deeply with nature and loved ones. And for those who did not experience that time, I wanted it to be a possibility, a wondrous ‘what if?’.
Jennifer I wanted the story to find a home on low shelves in family homes where little hands could reach for it over and over again. I’d love for it to spark conversations about Grandma’s whale sightings, how dragonflies dart and flit as they fly, why flamingos are pink and why it’s important to see beyond ourselves and make space and sanctuary for all things on our planet. I hope small details can be happily discovered on the first read, anticipated, and lingered over with each page turn next time. It would be wonderful if it became a story that’s returned to and enjoyed for years to come.
The concept is profound yet you have expressed it simply enough for young children. A difficult question but could you explain a little how you have done this.
Penny I think weighty concepts can be presented to children through tiny, everyday details that they relate to. The strong presence of nature and animals definitely helps! Inviting children into your idea can be done through language. Here, the word ‘imagine’ provides an invitation and the use of rhyme makes it more accessible.
Penny, rhyme can be notoriously difficult to use in a picture book. You’ve done a wonderful job. Which couplet are you particularly pleased with, and why?
Penny Thank you! I have always loved writing in rhyme, even when I was a child. I’ve kept the rhyme fairly loose in this book but one of my favourite couplets would have to be:
And the once-timid seals return to the shore
Where the once-crowded beaches are crowded no more.
Sometimes couplets flow easily and that is often reflected in how smoothly they roll off the tongue when read aloud. I love the repetition and simplicity of this couplet.
How important is nature in the story?
Penny Nature is really the main character of the story. It plays such a crucial role in our wellbeing. Slowing down and immersing ourselves in nature allows us to feel more at peace and more connected to each other and the earth. This, in turn, allows nature to strengthen and heal, and that is an important part of the story.
Jennifer, your design and craft in this book is excellent. What illustrative media and process have you used to create the illustrations? Have you used collage? If so, how?
Jennifer Imagine a Time’s illustrations are created traditionally. They’re pencil drawn linework on heavy paper, painted in watercolour with pencil layered over the top to build definition and add detail. I think my process is quite clunky and takes up a lot of room in our home, but it works. With each book I’m becoming more organised and methodical. I didn’t use collage for this project but in the past, while working on ‘Little Treasure’ I have. It can be more time consuming at the planning stages but later has the benefit of being flexible as the work grows and progresses. I felt I needed to be more definite with this story to meet the creative brief and deadlines.
Jennifer, I love how your illustrations become panels a little way into the book. Why have you done this? Please explain how you’ve used frame-breaking.
Jennifer The framed borders were a useful way of adding visual variety to the layouts and to slow down page turns while the reader engages with each frame individually. I also enjoyed breaking the edges of the borders by letting birds and water fly and flow beyond them. Nature doesn’t have to conform to manmade spaces and ideas, and we shouldn’t want it to.
Whose idea was it to turn the book vertically for one double-page? Why?
Jennifer The flip happened early on. I’d drawn an idea from a worm’s eye view but the landscape orientation didn’t work with the idea. When roughs came back the page had been flipped by the designer, so flipped it stayed!
I love it that this page means the book will now find itself being passed through reader and listeners hands alike as it’s juggled into the different orientation. My favourite parts of this page happen at the long edges. On the left a plant-less balcony has flowers drawn onto the wall in chalk while up towards the top of the building’s edge on the right a ghostly cat perches. I hadn’t intended to draw the cat but as I started painting, I could see one forming in the lines, so I scribbled it into life.
Penny, which illustration captures the essence of the book for you? Why?
They are all so glorious! I love the way Jennifer has used greys and muted colours to portray the dullness of our busy lives, alongside a rich and vibrant colour palette to reflect the magic of nature. I think the final illustration really captures that sense of awe and connection. It has a cyclical and magical element, with nature as the dominant feature – and we are just a tiny part of that.
I love Imagine a Time. It gives such a sense of peace, hope and healing. How have you achieved this?
Penny That’s so lovely to hear. When you’re imagining an ideal world, this is definitely what you want to achieve. I find the illustrations, design and words play so beautifully together to exude this sense of calm and reassurance.
Jennifer As far as the illustrations are concerned, I think that taking people out of sharp-edged, built-up spaces and letting them wander over uneven ground, climb trees, glide underwater and ramble along paths helps the reader imagine the direction their own wanderings might take them if they were to do the same. The experience of getting out into the fresh air and taking notice of the world around us can be so healing and something easily achieved by most of us. Hopefully something in these pages sparks a thought to appreciate the little things along the way when we do. Things that are fleeting and fragile but can make memories to share. Pick up the feather, roll the stones together on your palm and appreciate the bird’s song. Learn to walk gently through life and appreciate the present.
What are you writing, illustrating or working on now or next?
Penny I am working on a junior fiction series at the moment, and I’m always mulling over some new ideas for picture books.
Jennifer I never know how much you can share of unreleased work, but my current project sits so close to my heart that it feels like it was written for me. I didn’t reach the end of the text before I sent my response of ‘When do we start?!’
It’s also the first time that I’ve worked with an author and publisher together for a second time which is lovely. I sometimes feel like I’m just starting out in friendships and then I need to move on. This book feels so much like coming home that I can see it when I close my eyes.
Meanwhile, like a lot of illustrators I have my own stories ticking away in my hindbrain. It’s a humbling offer and an interesting dynamic to be a part of bringing someone else’s stories to life but ultimately, I’d love an opportunity to write and illustrate one of my own. Just to see if I can!
What have you been reading that you would like to recommend?
Penny There are so many exquisite books being released every month. Some recent favourites that I will treasure have been A Small Collection of Happinesses, by Zana Fraillon, How To Measure the Ocean, by Inda Ahmad Zahri, and Millie Mak the Maker, by Alice Pung.
Jennifer I’ve always gravitated towards Australian authors and illustrators. Right now, the picture book pile next to me includes creatives like Bruce Whatley, Margeaux Davis, Emma Quay, Stephen Michael King, Danny Snell, Mateja Jager while a bit further afield I collect anything I can by Briony May Smith. I’m always drawn to gentle stories.
How can your readers contact you?
Penny I can be reached through my website at www.pennyharrison.com.au or via email at harrison.pen@gmail.com
Jennifer Because I came to illustration by a roundabout way, I haven’t gotten all my ducks in a row and lack the basics like a portfolio and a website but I check in on Instagram regularly where I have an account called Jennifer Goldsmith Storyteller so you can message me there or there’s always the option of an email to jenny@frazzydazzles.com.
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