Spotlight on James E. Ransome

James E. Ransome’s highly acclaimed illustrations for Before She Was Harriet received the 2018 Coretta Scott King Illustrator Honor. His other award-winning titles include the Coretta Scott King winner The Creation; Coretta Scott King Honor Book Uncle Jed’s Barbershop; Sweet Clara and the Freedom Quilt; and Let My People Go, winner of the NAACP Image Award. James is also a recipient of the ALA Children’s Literature Legacy Award. He frequently collaborates with his wife, author Lesa Cline-Ransome. One of their recent titles is Game Changers: The Story of Venus and Serena Williams, which received four starred reviews and was an ALA Notable Children’s Book. James is a professor and coordinator of the MFA Illustration Graduate Program at Syracuse University. He lives in New York’s Hudson River Valley region with his family. 

Q: You’ve both spoken about how teachers and librarians have specifically impacted you. Can you tell us a bit more about how they’ve influenced your writing and illustrations?

Lesa: The library was a haven for me, a place I visited each week with my mother and it was there where I discovered books and the power of story. I’ve been blessed with teachers who from very early on inspired my love of writing and supported my dream of becoming a writer. In particular, my high school English teacher Marguerite Gonsalves who encouraged me to explore the poetry of language, read women writers and trust my voice. On a recent visit to my hometown, I had the opportunity to meet with her and thank her for helping me to become a writer and creating a supportive, nurturing classroom for all of her students. My newest book, The Power of Her Pen: The Story of the Groundbreaking Journalist Ethel L. Payne, is dedicated to her.

‍James: It was my high school filmmaking teacher Charlie Bogasat who taught me discipline and being aware of the fundamentals in art. He was the first person to recognize I had drawing skills and he encouraged me to attend art school. Because of him, I went onto major in Illustration at Pratt Institute. Pratt Institute is also the place where Lesa and I met and began dating. The rest, as they say, is history.

Q: What authors, illustrators, or books have inspired you throughout your respective careers?

Lesa: So many inspirations, so little time! I’d have to begin with my all-time favorite author, the incomparable Toni Morrison, whose hauntingly, beautiful language and uniquely authentic characters is who I think of every time I begin a project. Kind of like WWTD, What Would Toni Do? I also love the authors Kent Haruf, Kathleen Krull, Renee Watson, Tonya Bolden, James McBride, Julius Lester and Sharon Creech.

‍James: When it comes to writing, I am in full agreement, Toni Morrison is my absolute favorite. As far as illustration is concerned, anything that Jerry Pinkney has illustrated in inspirational. I am also a big fan of David Shannon, Chris Raschka, Ezra Jack Keats, Don Brown, and one of my all-time favorite author-illustrators, Chris Van Allsburg. With Van Allsburg, his storytelling always leaves you in suspense.

Q: Can you give us a preview of your 2020 titles, and what you’re most excited about sharing with readers?

Lesa: 2020 is a busy year following a very busy 2019 for the two of us. First up is the picture book Overground Railroad (illustrated by James) and Leaving Lymon, the middle grade companion to my debut novel, Finding Langston. In the lead up to the 2020 Olympics, I have a collective biography, Not Playing by the Rules: 21 Female Athletes Who Changed Sports.

‍The Power of Her Pen: The Story of the Groundbreaking Journalist Ethel L. Payne released in January and illustrator John Parra did an incredible job with the artwork. My amazing editor Sylvie Frank contacted me with the idea of writing this story about one of the very first African-American White House Correspondents. Ethel Payne posed questions to presidents from Eisenhower to Carter in the White House briefing room during very tumultuous times in history and through the articles she wrote in the black press, allowed blacks to feel heard and know that someone in Washington was addressing concerns that directly impacted their community.

James: I am very excited about Freedom Bird, written by Jerdine Nelson and is the beautifully written story inspired by African American folktales of a brother and sister escaping slavery with the aid of of a mythological bird who guides their journey to freedom. As an avid football fan, the project I am most looking forward to is Gridiron: The History of the NFL which releases this fall. It is a comprehensive look at the NFL from its early beginnings in 1920 to contemporary times, and of course features my favorite team, and the only team in history that went undefeated from the regular season through the Superbowl, the ’72 Miami Dolphins.