This is the third in a series of interviews with the children's book authors who are coming to town next week as part of the annual Authors in April community event, which is sponsored by the Rochester Community Schools PTA Council.

Illustrator and author Loren Long, winner of the Parent Choice Gold Award and the Golden Kite Honor, advises students to study the field of art to help shape their artistic style.

Long became a seasoned picture-maker and found his own voice through many years working first as a greeting card illustrator, then as a freelance illustrator for magazines and advertising projects before discovering the world of children's publishing.

He tells young writers to read as much as they can, about both past and present, to help them formulate who they are, what they like and don't like. 

Long is the chosen Author in April for kindergarten and first-graders in Rochester Community Schools.

He lives with his wife, two teenage boys and two weimaraners he calls "a handful" near Cincinnati.  

Long was raised in Lexington, KY, and graduated from the University of Kentucky before studying at the American Academy of Art in Chicago.

He says it takes discipline to work for yourself from home. Long tries to have a normal work day, but it can be difficult to separate the personal part of the day from the professional.

"I try my best to be a conventional dad," Long said.

Long works primarily in acrylics, layering the color to achieve a strong, full effect for picture books. He varied from this style though in his book Otis, done in a monochromatic gouache technique.  

"I just had a feeling that this story had a timeless feel," said Long of the limited color in the book.  

A second Otis book, Otis and the Tornado, is due out in September and Long says he has plans for a third.  

"I realized I had some ideas of my own," said Long of taking the leap into writing.

He based Otis loosely on a story his sons had developed with their mother while they were still in preschool  Long had the boys tell him what they recalled of the story and he pared down the details to focus on the friendship between a calf and a tractor.

Long has illustrated many books over the years, most notably: Of Thee I Sing, by President Obama and Mr. Peabody's Apples by Madonna. In both cases, he did have the opportunity to meet the authors and said "it was everything you can imagine."

"It's a big honor," said Long of being chosen to illustrate the President's book. "He was so gracious and warm to me along with my sons."

To read an interview with Author in April Gennifer Choldenko, click here. For a look at author Matt McElligott, click here. An upcoming interview will feature author Sara Holbrook.

The Authors in April program is intended to encourage reading, creative writing and appreciation of literature. The authors visit students in the elementary and middle schools next week; there is a community celebration and autograph session planned at the Rochester Hills Public Library from 4-6 p.m. May 4. For more about the program, visit authorsinapril.org.