'Framing life's experiences'

 

“Notebooks allow for all kinds of record-keeping, and I kept one myself as a kid. I was attracted to mixing up words and pictures freely, since that's how I think.” – Marissa Moss

Born in Pennsylvania on Sept. 29, 1959 Moss had her first picture book published at age 29.  Her mid-1990s book, Ameilia’s Notebook, broke the boundaries of what a “kid’s book” should look like and laid the foundation for many other authors who have since had similarly styled books.   Amelia's Notebook came out in the format of a journal or diary penned in a black and white composition notebook. 

 

Moss (who resides outside San Francisco) says that she loves this format because it allows her to explore the world through a child's eyes.  “I'd sent it to traditional publishers I'd been working with, but nobody knew what to do with it,” she said.  “Tricycle was this small publisher who didn't know any better and they took a chance.”  It not only earned Moss numerous awards but also legions of dedicated readers and a more than 30-book series based on Amelia’s “notebooks.”   

 

While she now has authored more than 70 books, including the wildly popular “Mira’s Diary” series about a girl who time-travels to share tales from historical settings, she said it was Amelia that made it all a possibility. 

 

 “Amelia shows that it's not what happens in life that counts, but rather how you frame it.   (It’s) how you talk about it.”