{"id":264,"date":"2018-12-31T11:29:21","date_gmt":"2018-12-31T11:29:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wordpress.etypegoogle10.com\/?p=264"},"modified":"2018-12-31T11:29:21","modified_gmt":"2018-12-31T11:29:21","slug":"jennifer-hamburg-083015","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wordpress.etypegoogle10.com\/?p=264","title":{"rendered":"Jennifer Hamburg 083015"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Jennifer Hamburg<\/span> is an Emmy Award-winning children’s television writer and story editor whose work can be seen on Doc McStuffins, Henry Hugglemonster, Daniel Tiger\u2019s Neighborhood, Super Why!, Little Einsteins, Blue\u2019s Clues, Creative Galaxy, Jack\u2019s Big Music Show, <\/span>and Between the Lines.<\/span> She is the author of two children\u2019s books A Moose That Says Moo<\/span> (FSG, 2013) and Monkey and Duck Quack Up<\/span> (Scholastic Press, 2015). Hamburg lives in Austin with her husband and two children.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

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Praise for Jennifer Hamburg’s work<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThis one is as much fun as it sounds, and it will find a regular spot in the storytime rotation.\u201d \u2014Booklist<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIn this debut picture book, a little girl imagines a zoo with no cages and an assortment of uniquely talented animals.\u201d \u2014School Library Journal<\/span><\/p>\n

Infectious good fun.\u201d \u2014Kirkus Reviews<\/span>, starred review<\/p>\n

\u201cAmusing illustrations perfectly reflect the spirit of the story.\u201d \u2014starred review \/ Kirkus Reviews<\/span> (on CHICKEN SAID, “CLUCK!”<\/span> by Judyann Ackerman Grant)<\/p>\n

\u201cPerfectly silly.\u201d \u2014Kirkus Reviews<\/span> (on THIS IS A HOSPITAL, NOT A ZOO<\/span> by Roberta Karim)<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n

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<\/span><\/span>8.30.2015\u00a0
Hammin’ it up for kids with Austin author and TV script writer Jennifer Hamburg<\/h1>\n

If you have children, the likelihood is they\u2019ve watched<\/span> one of the TV shows that Jennifer Hamburg<\/span> has written for \u2014Doc McStuffins, Daniel Tiger\u2019s Neighborhood, Super Why!, Little Einsteins, Blue\u2019s Clues,<\/span> and more \u2014 an impressive body of work. But what\u2019s even more amazing is that Hamburg is a mom and wife and has juggled her TV writing as well as children\u2019s books from her home in Austin. She took time from her obviously hectic schedule to tell us how she does it in Lone Star Listens.<\/p>\n

LONE STAR LITERARY LIFE: <\/span>Your career as a children\u2019s television writer has led you to two Emmy Awards and work with Disney Junior, Nick Jr, PBS, and Amazon. How did you first get started in this field?<\/p>\n

JENNIFER HAMBURG:<\/span> In grad school, I studied educational psychology with a focus on children’s media. After an internship at Sesame Street, I knew I wanted to work in kids’ TV (I actually wanted to live on Sesame Street<\/span> but that wasn’t an option). My first job after graduation was as a research analyst for a spinoff of Blue’s Clues,<\/span> a job I absolutely loved. As I got to know the writing process on that show a bit more, I expressed an interest in writing myself, and when the timing was right they gave me a shot. I had my first writing credit! From there, I started writing for other children’s shows, then eventually moved into story editing and head writing.<\/p>\n

In your role as a children\u2019s book writer, what differences have you found writing for TV and writing books? How did you make the transition?<\/p>\n

As far as I was concerned, it was like transitioning from TV writer to farmer. Even though I had a lot of TV credits by then, I knew nothing about the publishing world. The biggest difference I found between books and TV is the pacing. TV is fast \u2014 one script a week, rewrites a week later. Done! With my books, I generally need to write the entire manuscript before I send it out, so it\u2019s more of a self-imposed deadline. I’m not sure which is harder, actually!<\/p>\n

How do you balance raising small children, writing for children\u2019s television shows, and being a children\u2019s literature author?<\/p>\n

Wait, I do all that? I sound very impressive! Really, I just take it one day at a time. My kids are school-age now, so I have plenty of quiet during the day. Sometimes at night I have to finish writing a script, or send in some edits, but I do try to stop working by a certain hour. My husband is a great help, too!<\/p>\n

How has children\u2019s literature changed since you were a child? Are children more sophisticated? Are their attention spans shorter? Are topics more adult now?<\/p>\n

I don’t know that children are more sophisticated, but I do think there\u2019s a bit more of an awareness for authors in terms of what young kids can handle. It isn\u2019t assumed that there should be a certain kind of content, or a specific way of telling a story. Authors can be more experimental and playful, which helps kids stretch their creative muscles, too. Attention spans might be shorter, but a good story should keep them engaged! At least, that\u2019s the goal.<\/p>\n

How did you find your illustrator(s)? What is the creative process like, in a children\u2019s book, between the author and the illustrator?<\/p>\n

For all three of my picture books, my editors chose the illustrators they felt would best bring the stories to life. During the illustrating process, sometimes there was a lot of back and forth between the editor, the illustrator, and myself, and sometimes very little. It was amazing to see how they interpreted my words, how they choose one particular image to convey an entire page of story. I\u2019m totally in awe of illustrators, and if you saw me attempt to draw anything, you’d understand why.<\/p>\n

What Texas children\u2019s books do you enjoy sharing with your children?<\/p>\n

Good Night, Austin<\/span> is a book we\u2019ve ready over and over. Armadillo Rodeo<\/span> is hilarious. Beyond that, there are a few Austin authors who have middle grade books out, and I’m just waiting until my kids are old enough to read them!<\/p>\n

In 2015 you wrote a pilot of a children\u2019s show for Amazon, Buddy: Tech Detective. You seem to embrace every medium for telling stories to children. What\u2019s on the horizon in children\u2019s storytelling that excites you?<\/span><\/p>\n

Amazon and Netflix have really set the stage for creators like me to reach our audience in new, innovative ways. Buddy was a terrific experience because, among other things, we saw feedback in real time as viewers posted their thoughts and comments after they watched the pilot. There’s no better connection to your audience than that! More outlets for content also means more opportunities to find a great fit for your show. Before, if it didn’t fit the brand of one of the bigger networks, there weren’t many other places to go. Now there are homes for every type of property.<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve heard that Austin is very fertile ground for children\u2019s literature authors. Have you found a coterie of children\u2019s writers there?<\/span><\/p>\n

I went to a Scholastic event in Austin last year for my new book, and I met so many authors I didn\u2019t know were based there! Austin has a very active SCBWI chapter, and a big conference each year. I\u2019ve become friendly with a few fellow authors, and each one is cooler than the next.<\/p>\n

Do you do a lot of research with children for your work?<\/span><\/p>\n

My five- and seven-year-olds are my current research. I test jokes on my kids. There\u2019s a lot of \u201cWhat do you think of this joke?\u201d or \u201cLet me read you this part.\u201d We had an entire dinnertime conversation a few months ago where my seven-year-old explained why my story wasn\u2019t working. And he was right, by the way! One thing I do love is to listen to kids talk. When my daughter was in preschool, I\u2019d hang around her classroom and just listen to the way they interacted and played. It\u2019s essential if you’re going to write for that age.<\/p>\n

Are you working on a new book or project that you can tell us about?<\/p>\n

I have one project that I can tell you about, a picture book called \u201cBilly Boo Is Stuck in Goo,\u201d coming out next year. I have another project that I wish I could tell you about \u2014 but not yet!<\/p>\n

* * * * *<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Jennifer Hamburg is an Emmy Award-winning children’s television writer and story editor whose work can be seen on Doc McStuffins, Henry Hugglemonster, Daniel Tiger\u2019s Neighborhood, Super Why!, Little Einsteins, Blue\u2019s Clues, Creative Galaxy, Jack\u2019s Big Music Show, and Between the Lines. She is the author of two children\u2019s books A Moose That Says Moo (FSG, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-264","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.etypegoogle10.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/264","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.etypegoogle10.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.etypegoogle10.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.etypegoogle10.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.etypegoogle10.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=264"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.etypegoogle10.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/264\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.etypegoogle10.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=264"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.etypegoogle10.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=264"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wordpress.etypegoogle10.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=264"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}