Let's Talk Illustrators #401: Brian Won

I am so excited to share an interview today with author, illustrator, and creator extraordinaire Brian Won! I've admired Brian's work for an exceptionally long time, and now it feels like I've been waiting all this time just so I could talk to him about Horizontal Crocodile, written by Scott Rothman, because I think it's his best work yet! Enjoy our chat!

About the book:

In a nice, loooooooong swamp, lives a nice, loooooooong Horizontal Crocodile whose loooooooong lost best friend is coming over…but Horizontal Crocodile’s nice, loooooooong house is one HUGE mess!

Can he get it cleaned up in time for his best buddy’s visit?

Check out the endpapers:

Let's talk Brian Won!

LTPB: How did you become the illustrator of Horizontal Crocodile? What were the first images that popped into your mind when you saw Scott Rothman’s text?

BW: Scott and I had just finished a book together called Warm and Fuzzy, and we both wanted to keep working together. He asked if I had any ideas kicking around, and I had this drawing of a crocodile that I really liked. I just couldn’t figure out the story for him yet.

Originally, I thought it might be a different story about losing a tooth. Scott played with the idea for awhile, but then came back with something totally different. He noticed how loooong the crocodile was and started building a story around that. I loved the weird places Scott took the story. As soon as I read his manuscript, I could imagine the illustrations.

LTPB: What is the first thing you do when you receive a new project? Did you have a clear vision for the illustrations when you saw the text?

BW: As I’m reading a manuscript, my brain always starts to “paint the scene.” I start imagining what the book might look and feel like. This usually informs which direction the book will go artistically.

I’ve been fortunate in my career that publishers have been open to me trying different techniques. My earlier books were heavily vector based with scanned textures like ink washes, and over time I’ve moved toward a colored pencil feel, which you can see in Warm and Fuzzy and Horizontal Crocodile.

When I first saw Scott’s text, my immediate thought was, this crocodile needs to be looooong! Figuring out his anatomy was probably my biggest concern. The big unlock was when I stopped stressing about the anatomy and started treating his body like a ribbon. Crocodile would jump from rigid to flowing based on the situation.

LTPB: What did you find most difficult in creating this book? What did you find most rewarding?

BW: The most difficult part was making sure Crocodile always felt impossibly long across the spreads. There were a few tricks I used, like folding his body back and forth like a ribbon. In other places, I let his tail slip outside the illustration and into the text area, almost like he was too long to stay contained on the page.

The most rewarding part was definitely seeing the gatefold come together. We spent so many spreads setting up this very horizontal crocodile living in his very horizontal world, so finally getting to that big reveal felt super satisfying.

I also hid a little worm throughout the book. You can spot him in almost every spread, so its fun to go back through and try to find the little dude.

LTPB: What did you use to create the illustrations in this book? How does your process change from book to book?

BW: I made the illustrations in Procreate and photoshop using mostly pencil brushes. I’m too chicken not to have an undo button. I also really love the mobility of working on an iPad. I have about a three-hour roundtrip train commute to work, and thats honestly how I am able to get a lot of my illustrations done. Bumpy tracks and all.

My process changes from book to book, but right now I really enjoy working with the colored pencil brushes. It gives me the texture and looseness I want plus the safety of the undo button.

LTPB: What are you working on now? Anything you can show us?

BW: I've been working on a series of Instagram comics that you can find @bwon1. Its been surprisingly cathartic sharing embarrassing memories and general life stuff. I've included one of the comics for you to checkout.

LTPB: If you got the chance to write your own picture book autobiography, who (dead or alive!) would you want to illustrate it, and why?

BW: I've always loved Quentin Blake’s illustrations. His pen work is fantastic and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory was one of my favorite books growing up. His drawings feel so loose and effortless. I’d be curious how he would handle all the boring parts of my life.
 

A horizontal, vertical, and diagonal thanks to Brian for taking time to talk about his process! Horizontal Crocodile publishes TODAY  from Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers!

Special thanks to Brian and S&S for use of these images!

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