At first, I see pictures of a story in my mind. Then creating the story comes from asking questions of myself. I guess you might call it the 'what if - what then' approach to writing and illustration.

If you don't know where you're going, stop racing to get there. -- from Just Desert by M. T. Anderson

I have lots of ideas. The problem for me has always been which one to do.

The Polar Express was the easiest of my picture book manuscripts to write... Once I realized the train was going to the North Pole, finding the story seemed less like a creative effort than an act of recollection. I felt, like the storys narrator, that I was remembering something, not making it up.

I don't think ordinary things are very interesting, so I try to imagine a world that is less ordinary.

I pore over every word on the cereal box at breakfast, often more than once. You can ask me anything about shredded wheat.

I think most people agree there is a component of skill in art making; you have to learn grammar before you learn how to write.