Words are a Treasure

Interview with Rebecca Gugger and Simon Röthlisberger, creators of A Chest Full of Words

Language is a powerful instrument which we can use to change the world around us. In their new picture book A Chest Full of Words the author and illustrator duo Rebecca Gugger and Simon Röthlisberger combine text and illustrations to visualize the experience of learning and experimenting with new words. In this interview, conducted in German and translated into English by David Henry Wilson, they share how the project was developed and the impact of language on how we experience the world around us.

What sparked the idea for this book?

It all started with a friend of ours who’s a primary school teacher. She teaches German as a second language and is continually faced with children who have no words for certain everyday objects. They often don’t even realize how a wider vocabulary would enrich their lives. We loved this idea of enrichment through vocabulary. Language is such a basic feature of everyday life. We use it to express ourselves, get to know other people and reach an understanding with them. It’s through language that we share our lives with others. The idea of words found in a treasure chest inspired us to develop a story in which the pictures turns into words, and vice versa. And we wanted to do this in a humorous, light-hearted, playful way. Not didactic. Not dry as dust. The pictures build bridges to the words, so that these become more tangible, while leaving plenty of room for the imagination to get to work. The story had to encourage children to play with language, to be inventive and also inquisitive. The image of the treasure chest makes words into something precious.

It’s through language that we share our lives with others.

Once you had the idea, what were the next steps?

We talked a lot about it, worked out a storyline and devised a character who would act as a link between the sections. Right from the start, we’d worked out the size of the book in terms of the number of pages, so that we could divide the story into equal parts. Next came the storyboard and the first sketches, with text and pictures developing together. It’s a very personal form of collaboration, with text and design each influencing the other, so that our stories evolve very organically–growing in different directions, branching off here and there rather than always moving in a clear straight line. Even as the drawing proceeds, we can intervene, reject some things, or bring in new ideas. We may adapt the text to the picture, or the picture to the text. It’s an exciting modus operandi, which both of us thoroughly enjoy.

An image of a page showing various sketches, in pencil and in watercolor, of a boy doing various actions.
Sketches of Oscar, the main character

What was the biggest challenge for you in creating this treasure of a book? 

Consciously having to abandon a logical way of thinking in order to create an imaginative approach to language. To put words into a playful context without making the story didactic. You might say it was to activate the gut rather than the brain! We had to immerse ourselves in a fresh, childlike, unspoiled way of thinking that lies dormant somewhere deep inside all of us. It may take a while to get rid of the everyday, grown-up patterns of thought in order to get back into these topsy-turvy worlds of fantasy.  

Defining words was also a big challenge, and it often led to long discussions. There are countless ways of combining words and pictures. The question for us was which words could be transformed into pictures and still be “readable” and comprehensible. And which words would be the most expressive and would fit best into the story. It was important for us to have a mixture of funny, fantastical and everyday words. Finding the right words is the equivalent of finding the right colors for a painting. It’s a way of enriching expression.

Which do you personally find easier: writing or illustrating?

Drawing. Generally it’s more intuitive, more spontaneous.

What do you find particularly fascinating about words?

Words have a powerful effect, which can be positive or negative. Absence of words can be just as meaningful as a torrent of them. If words are used thoughtfully and with good intentions, they can work wonders. They can surprise you, move you, encourage you, embrace you, question you, analyse you, strengthen you. And they can also create yearnings, bring back memories, and touch our emotions.

Words give us a means of describing the world inside us and outside us, and to share it with others. They can connect us, build bridges, give form to our experiences and emotions. And if we’re able to play with words, we can combine them in ways that will give them new meanings and lead us to fresh, creative discoveries. The sound of words is also something that fascinates us. The sounds often go hand in hand with the meanings. Are they mellow, soft and gentle? Or hard, pointed, succinct? You can paint sounds, in the sense that they evoke images that will imitate them. It’s all a wonderful stimulus for the imagination.

As we said before, finding the right words is like finding the right colors–an enrichment of expression.

Finding the right words is like finding the right colors–an enrichment of expression.

Which came first, the illustrations or the text?

As both of us think very pictorially, the pictures play a very important role in the development of the text. And so even when we’re writing the text, we try to match it to the images in our heads, or we come up with some rough sketches. Basically, though, we start with a textual framework which gives a general, vague direction for the way the illustrations will develop.

Working together on a book entails a constant exchange of ideas relating both to the text and to the illustrations. Right from the start of the project, we discussed our inner images and imaginings, compositions and colors. If one of us describes a scene, the other will often ask questions in order to bring out what’s going on underneath. As everyone knows, meanings, appearances and the effects of words can vary considerably according to who is sending or receiving the message. That’s why we try to develop our ideas about text and pictures early on in the process.

In what ways do you complement each other, working as a team?

The idea-torrential, color-delighting, detail-adoring, tiptoe-dancing, fresh-air-fanatical, dainty-daydreamer meets the will-it-work, down-to-earth, focus-fixing, fun-fabricating, deeply-thinking, moment-seizing, let’s-get-on-with-it person. Apologies for the over-the-topping. The fact is, though, that we really do match each other in our strengths, and compensate each other for our weaknesses. It sometimes happens, for instance, that a word will suddenly take precedence over a picture, and that is when the words begin to draw the pictures.

Simon Röthlisberger (left) and Rebecca Gugger

What everyday things give you inspiration?

We go for a walk in the country every day, and it’s often the shapes and colors of nature that give us ideas. They’re our models for the natural scenery and shades of color we use in our illustrations.  The ever changing fauna and flora are one source of inspiration. And of course, meeting other people is another great source. And scenes that we observe or just happen to overhear, as witnesses to the lovely comedy of everyday life. The funny situations that arise at the checkout, in the station or the restaurant. People’s interactions with others always provide wonderful material for new ideas. And then, by contrast, there are always those moments when you’re all alone, listening to the silence.

If you wanted to tell your 10-year-old selves one thing today, what would it be?

Always remain curious. Hold onto your joy, your personal visions, ways of thinking, and light-heartedness. Welcome life’s new adventures, and enjoy every step you take–fast or slow, big or little, stumbling or striding, light or heavy, walking or dancing–they’re all part of life’s endless variety and of your own unique and wonderful role in it.

One final word?

Every so often, create a new word. Because with words we can make the world bloom like a flower.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *