Janie Berry was hooked at the young age of six. As a reserved firrst-grader, she was quietly drawing at her desk,
when her teacher stopped. This same grumpy teacher, who had made Janie sit in the back of the room at lunch
for eating too slowly, reached for the drawing, held it up and sighed. “This is very good!” she said loudly, showing
the class the picture of a dancing cow.
Throughout her young life, Janie spent her days drawing. One summer, she entered her pastel horse into the
County Fair and won a ribbon. As the youngest of six children, Janie gained a vivid imagination from their daily
adventures into the forest, swimming and fishing in the pond, and endless antics. Soon, however, she would
gravitate back to the kitchen table, to draw.
Janie recalls the strong urge to expand her knowledge. At the age of 18, she began a two-year course in writing
and illustrating children’s books. In addition, she started college for graphic design and art. However, she soon
got married, and had three children. Although Janie’s dream of writing and illustrating children’s books was
tucked away, her artistic talents were then presented in various forms: creating a 6 foot wood growth chart for her
three children with hand-painted illustrations, painting graphics and images on her children’s walls, painting
lively images on the windows at Christmas, and continuing to draw, paint and write in spare moments.
Janie Berry talks about her coloring books for children
Janie took private watercolor lessons and also attended several Writer’s Conferences and gained published
non-fiction stories about her childhood. When her children were grown, she went back to the same college and
learned updated computer graphic courses. She won a scholarship for college with her essay, “Crossing the Finish
Line,” about starting college at 18 learning art/graphics and then 30 years later, picking up the baton and crossing
the finish line, stepping back into her dreams. The final class she took, Adobe Illustrator, is now her media of
choice. Janie creates her illustrations with the computer mouse, utilizing it as her pencil.
“Writing and illustrating go together like two peddlers on a tandem bicycle,” she says. “For me, they work in sync
in my creative mind set. She further states, “God gives us each certain gifts. I believe we gravitate towards these
all the days of our life. I knew what mine were at a young age, thanks to a grumpy, yet, caring teacher. She hooked
something deep inside of me, knocking on the door of my dream.”
Janie Berry lives in Vancouver, Washington on Berry Acres where she creates stories through the tandem duet, writing and illustrating. Her children’s book series, “I’ll Tell You Why,” revolve around her time spent with her granddaughter Livia. Janie continues many projects, focusing on inspirational works of the family and relationship.
