Spotlight On Snowball Moon's Illustrator Tracy Nishimura Bishop

by Samantha Lai November 08, 2021

Snowball Moon is part of Jenny & Andy's limited edition Holiday Box and we loved the magical illustrations in the book so much that we had to ask the illustrator, Tracy Nishimura Bishop, about her work and inspiration!

Check out the interview below:

Please tell us about yourself!

Hello! My name is Tracy Nishimura Bishop. I am a children’s book illustrator who works in the San Francisco Bay Area. I’ve been an illustrator for about 8 years now. I feel so lucky that I get to draw pictures as my job.

Do you have kids? If so, what has your motherhood journey been like and how has it impacted your work if at all?

I have a son who is a teenager now. He helped me gather my courage to switch my careers from working as a corporate graphic designer to becoming a freelance illustrator.

When my son was born I was still working as a graphic designer. My college degree is in illustration and I always dreamed of working as an illustrator but the only art related job I could find after college was graphic/web design.

As my son grew I told him that he should follow his dreams. I realized that I was setting a bad example for him if I didn’t try to follow my own dreams of becoming a children’s book illustrator.

My switch to freelancing coincided with my son entering kindergarten. I was able to work while he was at school and have a flexible schedule for after school activities, playdates, etc.

What’s your inspiration behind your work? Do you primarily do children’s genres?

Yes, I work mainly in children’s publishing. I LOVE books. I lived in Japan from kindergarten through sixth grade so I was immersed with the artwork and storytelling of manga and anime.

The Studio Ghibli movies definitely had a huge impact on what kind of art I wanted to make. There’s always something magical in the process of taking the written word and adding images to it.

A lot of books I illustrate are read to children who don’t know how to read or are just learning how to read. I always keep that in mind when I’m illustrating the book.

How was your experience working on Snowball Moon and collaborating with Fran Slayton?

One of the biggest misconceptions that people have about picture books is how the author and illustrator work. The author and illustrator usually don’t contact each other until the book is all finished. For Snowball Moon, I worked directly with the art director. When I first read the manuscript for Snowball Moon, I could immediately picture all of the action in my head. Fran’s words were so lyrical and full of swingy action.

When I started working on the illustrations for this book, I wanted to evoke a cozy yet adventurous mood right before bedtime. It was so much fun creating the illustrations for this book. I hope the readers enjoy reading it right before bedtime.