Arree Chung presents his kid’s book "Ninja!" on April 25 at the Arkansas Literary Festival.

Not unlike Maxwell, the main character of his first work “Ninja!,” author/illustrator Arree Chung always had a secret alter ego. Raised by Chinese immigrant parents in the Bay Area of California, he initially followed their expectations to pursue a stable, bankable course of study and profession. All the while, however, his childlike artistic spirit was raising a ruckus inside of him.

In 2003 he left Pixar Studios to enter art school; there, he took a class on children’s book illustration and knew immediately this was where he wanted to express his art. Published last June, “Ninja!” is the first of a three-book deal with publisher Henry Holt & Co. Chung will visit Little Rock as one of the featured authors during the Arkansas Literary Festival. Before you meet him at the free kids event on April 25, learn more about the author and his inspirations.

Little Rock Family: It’s not easy to create a story that holds a child’s attention and yet has something to say!

Arree Chung: I think a lot of people think that writing stories for kids is easy. Certainly making up a story is fun and it can be easy, but making a really refined, good story is actually very, very difficult—especially to make the ones that resonate with people.

For “Ninja!” the real emotional truth of it is being lost in a fantasy. What rings true, I think, for a lot of boys and girls that play at home is they play in this mundane space. So crafting the story for “Ninja!” was about finding that emotional truth of being so lost in your world and crafting your own world in your head.

How do you make sure you’re hitting that authentic chord with kids?

A lot of our friend and family get-togethers now are around kids’ birthday parties and whatnot. Whenever we go to these parties I end up playing with the kids. I get a lot of my ideas from hanging out with them and just being youthful.

I think when you get older, you don’t want to be immature, but you want to maintain that curiosity. So I try to do that and that’s why making books for children is so fun—that curiosity and excitement about life just comes out naturally.

Was it a conscious choice to make “Ninja” a series of adventures?

It wasn’t really a conscious choice. But when you work on something for so long, all these new stories come up into your head and you write them down and hope the first book does well so you can make more.

LRF: Are you an artist who writes or are you a writer who draws?

I think of myself more as a storyteller in general. I was very drawn to making art to tell stories. Usually I end up doodling on a lot of copy paper and I write and I draw at the same time, which works perfectly for picture books because it’s about the relationship between the words and pictures.

Have your parents come around to this career?

Unfortunately my dad passed away a few years before I had my opportunity to break through as a picture book artist, although he did see me become successful as an art director. I think his biggest concern was, just as all parents, “can my kid make a living and will they be self-sufficient?” It was really good for him to see that I could make a living doing art.

My mom is so proud; she tells everyone and she buys people books and her friends have me autograph books all the time. She has always been very, very supportive.

Do you find it ironic that as a children’s book author you teach children to follow their dreams, yet that is the very thing you didn’t do yourself for many years?

I’m thankful that, even though I did it a little bit later, that I did it. You know that 10,000 rule: It takes 10,000 hours or about 10 years to be really good at something. If it’s 10 years, even if you start when you’re 40, you’ve become really good at something by the time you’re 50, and you’re making great work when you’re 60. It’s never too late.

Selections from Arree Chung's "Ninja!".

Literature for Little Ones

A wide spectrum of authors and subject matter comprise this year’s Arkansas Literary Festival, slated for April 23-26. Many of the events are free and highlights among the nearly 80 authors and presenters include John Waters’ one-man show, “Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood”-author Rebecca Wells and many more. A few of this year’s family events include:

  • Arree Chung will read from “Ninja!” and demonstrate how to draw his character Maxwell. Activities with Unity Martial Arts will follow. 10 a.m. April 25, CALS Children’s Library & Learning Center.
  • Bryan Collier, winner of multiple Coretta Scott King Awards and Caldecott honors, discusses his works “Uptown” and ‘Trombone Shorty.” 1 p.m. April 25, CALS Children’s Library and Learning Center.
  • E. Lockhart, author of the top-reviewed 2014 book for young adults, chats about “We Were Liars.” 11 a.m. April 25, CALS Main Library, Teen Center.
  • Scott Sampson, beloved host of the hit PBS KIDS television series Dinosaur Train, visits with kids. Expect a special appearance by a costumed character from the show! 11:30 a.m. April 25, CALS Ron Robinson Theater.

For more information on tickets, venues and other attractions, visit ArkansasLiteraryFestival.org. Little Rock Family is a proud media sponsor of the Arkansas Literary Festival, and the sponsor of Arree Chung as a featured author/illustrator at this year’s event.