Nathan Bransford | Writing, Book Editing, Publishing

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#ThankAWriter Letter 2: Bill Watterson

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Maggie Mason and I are writing thank you notes to our five favorite authors in the #ThankAWriter project. This is letter #2. Please join us! See this post to find out how to create a Go Mighty profile and see all the other inspiring letters.


I don’t know if there’s anyone who inspired me to write children’s books more than Calvin & Hobbes author Bill Watterson. I’m hardly alone in my admiration for him, but what’s especially amazing to me  is the extent to which I enjoy Calvin & Hobbes comics just as much now as I did when I was a kid.

Here’s my thank you note:

Dear Mr. Watterson,

You, perhaps more than any other person, inspired me to write books for children. And most importantly, you taught me that it is important to trust in the intelligence of children. You never dumbed anything down, you always trusted the reader, and the result is that I enjoy “Calvin & Hobbes” just as much at age 32 as I did at age 12.

Your work is a tremendous inspiration and I can’t count the number of times I’ve read the complete series. You also knew how to make an exit so I’ll leave this here: THANK YOU.

Nathan Bransford

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Comments

  2. Anonymous says

    If I could figure out Thomas Pynchon's whereabouts and whether he still lives, I'd write him a note.

  4. Lori Ann Stephens says

    Yes! But where did you mail it?
    My 9-year-old has read all the Calvin & Hobbes collections, and quizzes us at dinner on the details of the comic frames/panels. He wrote a thank you letter to Bill Watterson last year, and I mailed it. But we have no idea if it ever made it to him. Much love to one of the greatest writers of the century!

  9. 120Pages says

    I love what you said about the importance of trusting the intelligence of children. I think kids can understand a lot more than they are often given credit for. And after reading your first two Wonderbar books (I'm waiting to read the third with my sister) I don't think I can recall a moment that I felt the books ever "talked down" to kids 🙂 One of the many things I enjoyed about your books!