lynnor        bontigao

Kamusta, Hello!

 

My name is Lynnor Bontigao, and I hail from one of the over 7,600 islands of the Philippines. As a kid, I was always drawing. I stapled my first picture book pages at the age of 10. In college I joined a children’s book illustrator group. I felt I was in the right place. When I moved to America, everything felt big and unknown. I studied programming and worked at a major financial firm in NYC for 15 years. I loved the logical part of it. I loved solving problems, but it didn’t feel like it fit my purpose. 

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I focused on drawing again and as a voice from an underrepresented group, I want to share my own stories and illustrations. So kids like I was can say, “This character looks like me, or this place looks like my home, or I eat that food, too." I feel that I am walking my own path now and in this journey, I am more confident about writing in my own voice and drawing from my own heart. 

 

 

Lynnor Bontigao is represented by Caryn Wiseman at Andrea Brown Literary Agency. 

She is interested in illustrating picture books & book covers. It’s her dream to write & illustrate stories where family relationships, culture, & food are intertwined. She lives in New Jersey with her husband, 2 kids, and 1 tiny dog.