Welcome to the World
of Boomer and Halley!





Author, Mary Jane Mckittrick and illustrator, Bob Ostrom about the latest offering from the Boomer and Halley© project. A series of Little Lessons. Big Results.™ stories for children 4-8 and the adults who love them.

Mary Jane: Imagine a campaign with honesty on the ballot.
Zulah: Now that’s a novel idea!
Mary Jane: Wonder who writes your lines for you?
Bob: Or, draws you in all those outfits you like to wear?
Zulah: Oh, yea. That would be you two. We were talking about how you guys came up with the look for the characters.
Mary Jane: From the beginning, we envisioned this project going to animation.
Bob: Right from the start, we took vintage, iconic looking characters from the 60’s and gave them a modern twist.
Mary Jane: One look at the Sanders’ family of Harold, Edna, Boomer and Halley and you can see that.
Bob: it took about a month to get those four down.
Zulah: Wait, go back. I could wind up on Saturday morning TV?
Mary Jane: That’s the idea.
Bob: The town of Shady Pines is filled with great characters.
Mary Jane: By having more than just the four, main characters, we can introduce multiple demographics.
Zulah: How do you decide on the way a character looks and acts?
Mary Jane: They have to act in a way that is consistent with the integrity of the Boomer and Halley stories.
Bob: That means they can’t intentionally harm property – that sort of thing.
Mary Jane: Sometimes I give Bob a written description of a character.
Bob: Other times we just bat it back and forth ‘til we get a final look.
Zulah: Who has the final say?
Mary Jane: Well…
Bob: Ugh...
Zulah: I guess this is a good place to pause. We’ll pick it there next time.

Zulah Talmadge, Editor of the Shady Pines Gazette talks to:
Author, Mary Jane Mckittrick and illustrator, Bob Ostrom about the latest offering from the Boomer and Halley© project. A series of Little Lessons. Big Results.™stories for children 4-8 and the adults who love them.
Part Two:
Zulah: Mary Jane and Bob, how do you work lasting values into the Boomer and Halley storylines?
Mary Jane: From the beginning, our intent was not to preach or teach, but to serve up stories that promote conversation – not confrontation – about tough subjects.
Bob: And we do it with humor.
Mary Jane: Yep. Kindness and caring are at the core of every Boomer and Halley story.
Zulah: So you came up with the idea for a mayoral election.
Mary Jane: Politics has gotten so nasty, we wanted to present a better kind of election.
Bob: At least we can control the outcome.
Mary Jane: I had already created the character, Mayor Beauregard Fibbs – so named because he has trouble telling the truth!
Zulah: We ALL know about the Mayor. But not everyone knows his middle name.
Mary Jane: Well, you grew up with him, Zulah, so you have the advantage.
Bob: Everyone else will have to read the book!
Zulah: So how do the two of you come up with the storyline?
Bob: It’s a lot of back and forth.
Mary Jane: And a lot of laughter.
Bob: When we get stuck, I just say, “Mary Jane, that part is up to you!”
Mary Jane: So true.
Zulah: And how do come up with the look of the characters?
Mary Jane: Oh, that’s a whole ‘nother story.
Zulah: Let’s take a short break. When we come back I want to pick up the conversation there and hear more about that. Back in a moment.

Zulah Talmadge, Editor of the Shady Pines Gazette talks to: Author, Mary Jane Mckittrick and illustrator, Bob Ostrom about the latest offering from the Boomer and Halley© project. A series of Little Lessons. Big Results.™ stories for children 4-8 and the adults who love them.

Zulah: Mary Jane, how did you come up with the idea for the “Boomer and Halley - Election Day” book?
Mary Jane: During a phone conversation with Bob.
Bob: Yeah. We were talking about the craziness in politics and I said, “We’ve got to have an election in Shady Pines.”
Mary Jane: The challenge was to include lasting values, like we do in all Boomer and Halley stories, and make that work in a book about politics.
Zulah: Especially politics in a small town.
Bob: This is why I really like this project. We take topics that people are talking about and make it possible for adults to talk to kids about them in a different way.
Zulah: So true. A book about an election that includes lessons about honesty and forgiveness is a neat trick.
Let's take a short break. We'll be back in a moment.