Another Conversation with Charlene Chua

It’s been a while since I’ve related to a character in a picture book like I do with the main character in Charlene Chua’s new book, Hug?. Sure, much like the mouse in If You Give A Mouse A Cookie, I too, am endlessly needy. Like Chicken in Chicken Wants A Nap, I desperately want a nap at pretty much all times. And just like the narrator in Goodnight Moon, I always say goodnight to the mush before I go to sleep. 

But these days, there is perhaps nothing more relatable than the equal desire for both a hug and a sincere respect for one’s personal boundaries. 

Hug? expresses the balance between these two conflicting feelings in a fun, creative way that lends itself well to repeated reads. I know this, because my six-year-old son, Eli has requested Hug? for his bedtime read the past four nights. I don’t mind one bit. Eli has even started to read along and we continue to find new things to appreciate in Charlene’s artwork (the cat hacking a hairball on the carpet on the first page is a big hit every time).

Charlene Chua is the amazing illustrator of children’s books such as Amy Wu and the Perfect Bao by Kat Zhang, The Great Googlini by Sara Cassidy, The Wind Plays Tricks by Virginia Howard, and many others. Hug? is Charlene’s first book as both author and illustrator. 

Our conversation follows.

Hug? is your first time being on the writing side of picture books. After illustrating almost twenty children’s books, what prompted you to want to try your (probably tired) hand at writing?

I’d written some other picture book stories but they were either undeveloped or else didn’t sell. Hug? was kind of different though. It sort of evolved from a conversation I was having with my husband, and I thought it resonated with me and was funny. 

What came first for Hug? the writing or the illustrations? Do you have any early illustration drafts you’d like to share?

Hug? was a very spontaneous book. I had the initial idea and I think I sat down on the recliner and did one draft with very rough illustrations. Usually I write the story down first but in this case it just seemed more natural to scribble-draw something and put down some words as the sketches came.

Rough sketches for Hug? by Charlene Chua

What was the drafting process like for Hug?

Really fast. I did one rough pass, found some stuff I didn’t like or thought was not working. Did another draft and let it sit. The acquisition process for Hug? was not a normal one, but it basically was acquired on the 2nd draft.

What lessons did you learn from being on the writing side for Hug?

I write really, really brief stories? I’ve tried writing longer stories but it seems that for picture books, my words are really sparse. Perhaps one day I’ll write a longer picture book story that goes somewhere. I still don’t really consider myself a writer (especially since my husband also writes, and his novels are well over 100K).

Hug? by Charlene Chua

In what ways did first being an illustrator prepare you for writing a picture book?

As an illustrator, I tell my stories with pictures first, which, for picture books, tends to be a good thing. The pictures work with the words in order to create context and understanding about what is being said in the story – and also, perhaps what is not. 

I myself am not good with being direct, I like to allude to things and have people infer meaning. Sometimes I like to talk about things in layers, or have more than one perspective going on, or even contrary perspectives. It’s difficult and tedious in words, and kind of easier with pictures where one can discern different things. 

A few months ago, you kindly gave me some really great advice as I worked on a graphic novel script, what’s the biggest piece of advice you have for writers that work with illustrators?

It depends on the project. For picture books, because the text is usually brief (under 1k words), a lot of the heart of the story can depend on the illustrations. To that end, my advice to writers is - trust your illustrator. 

If your story is well written, the illustrator will be able to bring out its intent and more through the art. The art will likely never match what you imagined in your head (this is true even for author-illustrators), but the final result may be the best version that the story itself can be.  

For graphic novels – lately, I only work on comic stories written by my husband or myself as it’s very difficult to adjust to a new writer’s scriptwriting style. I think comics require the writer and artist to work even more closely together, and figure out how the other likes to interpret things. For example, my husband likes having multiple characters talking in one panel and it’s visually tricky for me to draw. So sometimes I just change it up into multiple panels instead. He trusts me to do what’s best visually and I trust him to do what’s best with the text. It mostly works for us (and I just complain about the bits I really don’t like until he rewrites them). 

Sketch Images from Hug? by Charlene Chua

What’s your main piece of advice for illustrators that would like to write?

Write whatever speaks to you, but also what you love to draw. Especially for comics! You’ll have to draw hundreds of panels so ask yourself if you really want to draw those intricately designed characters over and over and over…

Last question, how has the pandemic affected your work schedule? Any tips for staying sane through this time?

I've actually been very busy with work through the whole period. So even if COVID hadn't happened, I would have still been stuck at home for most of the time. However, since COVID, more people are spending time socializing online, and as a result I think I actually have more people to talk to now via various chats and social media. I'm part of some Discord servers which lately have been a great safe space for me to chat with friends and vent, occasionally (well maybe not that occasionally...)

Bonus Questions:

-Last book you loved: Duckworth the Difficult Child

-Last movie you loved: Uh… I tend to be bad with movies & TV shows

-Current favorite TV show: See above

-Go-to stress reliever: My cat

-Comic character you most want to draw: Death of the Endless

-Dream project: My comic, assuming it is  actually picked up by a publisher lol.

-Do you listen to music while you work: Usually. Depends on my mood. I have a few saved playlists on Spotify. Video game soundtracks are pretty neat.

-Most annoying question you’re frequently asked (hopefully I haven’t already asked it): Anything my husband says that starts with ‘where is’  or ‘where does’.  

Thanks, Charlene!

Charlene Chua’s new book, Hug? is available now in select stores and online wherever books are sold. You can follow Charlene Chua online here. 

Eli with his current favorite book, Hug?