Natasha Wing
Natasha Wing is best known for her popular paperback series based on the beloved story, The Night Before Christmas. Her stories are about families celebrating holidays and other big events in kids’ lives such as the first day of school and losing a tooth. Titles include The Night Before Easter, the original book in the series which was published in 1999, and The Night Before Kindergarten, which has regularly been on bestseller lists.
Wing’s multicultural book, Jalapeño Bagels, is based on a real bakery in Arcata, California where she used to buy sesame seed bagels and “slugs.” The book includes recipes from the bakery. An Eye for Color: The Story of Josef Albers is about a neighbor of hers when she was growing up in Connecticut. The artist of the “Homage to the Square” paintings studied color for 25 years and changed how teachers taught color.
Natasha lives in Colorado and shares her writing space with her cat, Purrsia. She loves to hike and ski, and watch fashion and singing competition reality shows. She thinks the word cumquat is funny, and is on a quest to find the most mouth-watering dark chocolate on the planet.
When and why did you begin writing and/or illustrating children's books?
It goes back to a magical moment I experience with a children’s book. I had gone to a Christmas fair and saw the book, Polar Express, at a booth. The cover art was so intriguing that I picked up the book. At that moment, the people around me disappeared and a white light with sparkles in it beamed down on me. I remember thinking as I turned the pages that I wanted to create this magic for kids. I wasn’t an illustrator, but I could write, so I decided I wanted to write kids’ books.
What inspires or informs your writing and/or art?
I want to share what I find interesting in the world, or what goes on in my mind to see if others are interested as well.
What do you want young readers to learn or take away from your work?
That being a kid has its worries, but that for the most part it’s all about happy times and things will work out in the end.
Is there an artist or writer you would consider and mentor and why?
I don’t like to choose one person because it depends upon what I’m working on. If I’m working on narrative biographies, then I look to Barbara Kerley for inspiration on how to write that genre better. I just read a bunch of different authors and hope that something about each one’s voice or writing style sticks with me in some way.
Did you have any formal writing or art education, if so, where?
I graduated from Arizona State University with a B.S. degree in Marketing. I worked for a newspaper and an advertising agency and did some copywriting before striking out on my own and trying public relations which then led to taking a leap and writing children’s stories. So I didn’t know I wanted to write children’s books until about ten years after going to college.
Do you have a favorite published book? If so, what makes it special?
Again, I hate to choose one! My favorite Night Before is the Easter one because I love bunnies and that was the first in the series that started it all. I also love the energy and playfulness of Go to Bed, Monster! And as far as a book with a sweet message, I like Jalapeno Bagels. The family is loving and it’s a celebration of our nation’s melting pot.
What do you want readers to know about you and your work?
Cleverness. A sense of family. Intrigue which I hope leads to the reader being inspired by my nonfictions to research more.
