Steve Light grew up in an enchanted place called New Jersey. He always loved to draw as a child and to this day always has a sketchbook with him. When asked what he wanted to be when he grew up, he would say “Santa Claus.” Now that he’s grown, he feels drawing, making things, and telling stories is the next best thing.
Steve always wanted to live in New York ever since he was seven years old and his family came to the city. They came to see Pete’s Dragon and they walked through Rockefeller Center and he saw the beautiful Art Deco artwork. He then decided when he grew up that he would live in this great city surrounded by beautiful artwork. He now lives in New York with his wife and cat. They all love Manhattan and art. When he is not drawing and working on books, he is telling stories and teaching four- and five- year-olds at Temple Shaaray Tefila Nursery School.
Steve usually starts a book with something he likes to draw. All of his books are planned out with pictures first. Then the words to the story are written. He gets a lot of help with the words from his editor, Joan. Steve fills up sketchbooks and sketchbooks with drawings and even makes models of things that might help the story. Once the story is worked out in pictures and the words are written, he can start on the final art. Steve takes his pencil sketches and puts them on a light box. Then he inks them with a fountain pen, (Steve loves fountain pens.) After the drawing is inked, it is colored with chalk pastels and sometimes colored pencils. Coming up with ideas and drawing in his sketchbook are Steve’s favorite part, but he also likes seeing the characters come alive in the finished art.
Three Things You Might Not Know about Steve:
1. Steve loves fountain pens. Fountain pens are pens that have a metal nib or point and hold ink in the barrel. Steve has a large collection of forty pens! Each one draws differently, and he likes to pick out the right pen for each project he’s working on.
2. Steve does not watch television but has one and does rent movies sometimes (and TV shows.) He gets a lot more drawing done without TV.
3. Steve loves to make things out of wood. Steve usually carves Storyboxes. These are wood dolls and props that fit in a box that he uses to tell a story.
