March 2014 From the Desk of Philip Stead (with Erin sitting close by): Bookmaking can be a lonely endeavor. There just aren’t that many people out there that attempt it as a profession. The work is done over long stretches of time, mostly in solitude. A few of us are lucky enough to have another bookmaker living under the same roof. Even so when we see other authors and illustrators out in public there tends to follow a gleeful and immediate: […]

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Conversation started 24 March 2014, 10:46 a.m. PHIL: Well here we are, Season 1, Episode 1 of this little experiment. First off, thanks Eric for being willing to act as Guinea pig here. Word has it that you’re under deadline and feeling the pinch in the studio. I’ve always found procrastination to be the best medicine in these situations, so hopefully this little sidetrack does you some good. This week to help celebrate the first anniversary of one of our […]

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Conversation started 5 May 2014, 5:33 p.m. PHIL: Hi Cece! I’m really glad you’re able to join us for this little project. You’re one of the people in this series that Erin and I know the least about. We’ve only met in person once, at ALA (Chicago?) in one of those awkward in-between-signings moments. ALA is full of awkward interactions—each one it’s own unique snowflake as I like to say. I once embarrassed myself to Lemony Snicket in a 15 […]

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Conversation started 2 April 2014, 3:03 p.m. PHIL: Hi Rebecca, I have to say, I’m a little intimidated by this conversation. I’ve spent a lot of years learning how to talk about art. But writing has always been a more mysterious exercise. For me, writing is sort of a by-product of art. I write so that I can draw. There’s something uniquely terrifying, and potentially lonely about writing as a singular pursuit. Even for introverts, art making has an inherent […]

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Conversation started 9 June 2014, 3:25 p.m. PHIL: Well, hello there Jules. Here we go! It occurs to me as I’m sitting here wondering how to kick off this conversation that due to the work you due at your blog you’re probably in constant conversation with bookmakers. I suspect this is going to be weird for you though because typically you’re acting as host, not guest. There are a lot of things I want to talk about blogwise and bookwise, but […]

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Conversation started 9 June 2014, 3:45 p.m. PHIL: Hi Sergio, thanks so much for joining us. So, I hate to start a conversation here with some sad news, but I think by doing so we can actually make something positive out of it. I learned from you this afternoon that your first editor, Frances Foster, has just passed away. Frances was a true legend in the world of children’s literature. Before we really get going I’d love to hear about […]

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Conversation started 17 April 2014, 12:05 p.m. PHIL: Hey Mac, glad to have you aboard the Bus—no doubt hurtling toward the edge of a cliff. First, some awkward and forced exposition for the audience. Last week we were all in San Antonio together for TLA (Texas Library Association Annual Conference). The three of us along with Chris Van Dusen were on a panel together. I think it’s pretty safe to say that all four of us were pretty unprepared. With […]

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EDITOR’S NOTE: Hello everyone. This conversation with KT began way back in April. Unfortunately the episode is not yet complete. Each one of these conversations has moved along at its own pace, and that’s okay. But there’s some really good content here, and we didn’t want to delay publication any further. So we’re publishing everything we’ve got so far, and as more correspondence comes we’ll add it in. Thanks, and enjoy! Conversation started 17 April 2014, 11:43 a.m. PHIL: Hi KT. Thanks […]

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A NOTE FROM PHIL BEFORE WE BEGIN: Matt and I actually converse quite often over email. Because of that I’d been wondering for a while how to start an official on-the-record conversation without it feeling awkward or forced. Then I realized we might as well just start in the middle of a real back-and-forth. So that’s what we’ll do. We begin now halfway into an actual conversation between Matt and I—a conversation not originally intended for publication. Enjoy! Conversation started 15 August 2014, […]

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  Conversation started 29 September 2014, 3:55 p.m. PHIL: Well, here we go. Last episode. It’s kinda weird sending you an email since you’re sitting 4 feet away. But here goes… How do you think this went? Any favorite moments? The whole thing turned out to be way more exhausting and emotionally taxing than I’d expected. But in the end I think we were able to mine some pretty good, original content. That said, we might have to call in […]

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Conversation started 10 September 2015, 10:14 p.m. ERIN: Hello! Here we are, sometime later, at the beginning of season two of Number Five Bus Presents. It is our task to write an introduction. Whenever I have to write an introduction, I always hear the word “introduction” with a French accent. It’s a symptom of having taken many, many ballet classes and ballet exams. Right before the music would begin, the narrator would come on over the speaker and say something like […]

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