The idea

When I was done with the drawings for my picture book Amandina , my wonderful editor Neal Porter was wondering (being wonderful) if I had any idea for the next story. I did have a few, but at a very rough stage.
In Amandina, Neal especially liked this drawing:















So he told me: why don't you think of a story about a magical suitcase? I thought about it for a couple of weeks and then I went back to him with a manuscript and some quick sketches.





















Neal liked what he saw and helped me shape it (here's o...