This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2015, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
A fabulous new picture book is always a cause for celebration, which is why children and their parents eagerly embraced "Snowmen at Night" — written by Caralyn Buehner and illustrated by Mark Buehner — when it was published in 2002. Since then, the Buehners, who live in Utah, have continued to delight their many fans with marvelous illustrated stories, including the newly released, "Merry Christmas, Mr. Mouse," which follows the adventures of a mouse family experiencing Christmas for the very first time. The Buehners talked with The Salt Lake Tribune via email about their new book, as well as the experience of working together as a wife-and-husband team.
What was the inspiration for 'Merry Christmas, Mr. Mouse'?
Caralyn: The story itself was an evolution; I knew I wanted to do a Christmas book but was casting around for ideas in the beginning. The first draft that I have on my computer dates back into 2012, and I have several revisions that it went through until the complete story was formulated. From the beginning I wanted to show what Christmas might look like through the eyes of a mouse, and what meaning the mouse might find, and it developed from there.
Mark, can you tell us about the illustration process? You drew from a model for this book, didn't you?
Mark: Yes. I don't generally work from any kind of model — I prefer to draw out of my head. But I decided pretty early on when I was still doing rough sketches that it might be easier in the long run and speed me up if I stopped and actually built the mouse nook so that I could keep the room consistent; so much of what happens in the book happens in the mouse nook. I built a box with sides that could be dropped and placed it in the studio on a lazy Susan so that I could turn it to capture each angle that I had previously sketched out.
Your books always feature hidden objects in the illustrations. This book has a cat, a rabbit and a T. rex embedded in each picture. Why is this an element in your work?
Mark: Our own children [the Buehners have nine children and two grandchildren] have always loved spotting things in the artwork. My first book, "The Adventures of Taxi Dog," was about a dog, and as I was painting, I decided to put a cat on every page for children to find. The next book had a cat, and then eight hidden cats, and it went on from there. It went on from there in each book, but for the past 15 years or so there have almost always been a cat, rabbit and T. rex. It's just a little extra whimsical fun — a reason to go back into the book and enjoy it on another level.
What comes first, words or illustrations?
Caralyn: The text comes first — sometimes years before the artwork — and is always under contract before Mark begins any sketching. But that being said, there's usually some dialogue going on before either one of us begins, or we both have input into each other's work.
What is the upside of working together as a couple? The downside?
Both: A huge upside is that we can spend time together in work-related projects and events. When we are visiting schools or participating in book fairs, it doesn't take much to turn it into a date (shows how easy we are to please). It gives us a lot of common things to discuss and work on together and has helped us get to know and respect each other's abilities on a deeper level. We have both always been grateful to have been able to work at home and to have that convenience.
Over time, we have found a good groove in what each of us takes on and handles regarding the business, whether it be finances, contract negotiations or scheduling.
A downside, of course, is that we don't always agree on what we're working on and sometimes differ on what we'd like to see in both the text and art. But time and experience have led to a great deal of trust between us; we might have preferences, but we both know that the other person will bring a consistent level of quality to the work that can be relied on. Rather than be an experiment, as it was in the beginning, we now both feel it a privilege to be working together.
Can you comment on any future projects?
Both: We are working on another book in the "Snowmen at Night" series, another holiday book that we hope will work out and about which we are very excited.
Not including your own, what are your favorite holiday picture books and why?
Caralyn: Mark and I both had the same, big, oversized paper copy of "The Night Before Christmas" as children, and it has a place of honor with our other versions on the shelf. Other family favorites include David Shannon's "The Amazing Christmas Extravaganza" (like so many of his books, he captures perfectly the delight and tension of Christmas excess); "The Christmas Miracle of Jonathan Toomey" (I love the subtleties in the text and P.J. Lynch's wonderful art); "Mr. Willoughby's Christmas Tree" (such a delightful sequential book, I love how everyone not only is happy with what they get, but how what they discard becomes a treasure for others). Our children absolutely love two quirky older books, Rosemary Wells' "Morris's Disappearing Bag" (which speaks to the inevitable rivalry between siblings) and "Merry Christmas, Henrietta," an old Syd Hoff book about a chicken that wants to give her farmer a gift. Like other Syd Hoff books, it takes something surreal and makes it seem totally normal. And, of course, if you have seen Mark's illustrated version of Pearl Buck's "Christmas Day in the Morning," you might have read in the front why that book will always be precious to us. —
'Merry Christmas, Mr. Mouse'
Written by Caralyn Buehner and illustrated by Mark Buehner
Dial Books
Pages • 40
Cost • $17.99
Info • For more information about the Buehners, visit them online at http://buehnerbooks.com