By Barry Wise Smith
When Charles Ghigna and his wife Debra moved into their 100-year-old English Tudor cottage in Homewood in 1976, Charles, affectionately known as Father Goose for his prolific children’s literature career, gravitated to a cozy attic space that he turned into his writing room. “The house became our forever storybook home, and the attic quickly became my favorite writing room,” Ghigna says.
Called the “Treehouse,” Ghigna’s attic writing space and the classic cottage have always been central to his creativity. “Our little storybook house immediately felt like home to us and has brought us much peace, joy, and inspiration over the years,” he says. “When I travel out of state and out of the country, people often ask where I live. I proudly tell them, ‘I live in Homewood, Alabama.’ They sometimes look surprised and say, ‘But you’re an author who can live anywhere.’ I say, ‘I know. That’s why I live in Homewood.’”
In the past almost 50 years, Ghigna has written more than 100 books and 5,000 poems in the Treehouse, while also hosting notable names like Eric Carle, Kathryn Tucker Windham, James Baldwin, Rita Dove, R.L. Stine, Clive Cussler, John Updike, Madeleine L’Engle, P.D. James, and a host of others.
Becoming Father Goose
Ghigna was working on his PhD in English and creative writing at Florida State University when he first started writing poems. One of those poems, “The Alabama Wiregrassers,” was published in Harper’s Magazine in 1974. Other poems followed in The New Yorker and other publications, and university presses published some of his first books of poetry. “Then my beloved wife, Debra, suggested I might also enjoy writing for children,” Ghigna remembers. “And she was right! She and our newborn son (Chip, 36, an artist) became the inspiration for many of my early poems for children.”
Ghigna’s stories and poems for children have been published in Highlights for Children, Cricket, Ranger Rick and other magazines. His first four books for children, Tickle Day: Poems from Father Goose, Riddle Rhymes, Good Dogs Bad Dogs, and Good Cats Bad Cats, were published by the Walt Disney Publishing Company. He was also published by Random House, Scholastic, and Simon & Schuster.
Ghigna has worked with numerous illustrators over his career to help bring his stories and poems to life. “I’ve been lucky over the years to have many talented illustrators from all over the world bring my words to life,” he says. Over the years, Ghigna has also brought some local talent to the table to illustrate his projects. “I especially like to show my publishers the work of some of my favorite Alabama artists such as Michelle Hazelwood Hyde.” Ghigna allows illustrators the freedom to create images they think make sense with his words. “I always like to give them [illustrators] as much artistic freedom in creating the images as I had in coming up with the idea and the text,” he continues. “I tell them to take the words and let their own instincts and imaginings guide them. I’m always overwhelmed by their wonderful work!”
When Ghigna isn’t traveling to speak at schools, libraries, and book events, he can be found in the Treehouse writing all day long and late into the night. “I write early in the mornings and at night,” he says. “I often have three or four book projects going on at once and move from one to another as the muse calls. Between bursts of inspiration, I look out the window of my tree house and daydream.”
True Inspiration
After so many published works, what does Ghigna turn to for inspiration? “I’m inspired by little things, quiet moments,” he says. “Much of my initial inspiration and ideas come from nature, children, pets, animals, family, friends, and from the real and imagined visions I see along my daily walks through the hills of Homewood.” Ghigna also derives inspiration from his grandchildren, Charlotte Rose and Christopher, who are referenced on the dedication pages of many of his latest books, and his son’s art. (See samples of Chip Ghigna’s paintings at ChipGhigna.blogspot.com.)
Never one to rest on his laurels, Ghigna is getting ready to release six new books, three for children and three for adults: The Hungry Caterpillar’s First Poems with artwork by Eric Carle; Kids Love Coins: An Introduction to Coin Collecting; Sweet Dreams: Moon Poems for Bedtime, which received the 2025 International Book Award; Puns Not Guns: Humorous Light Verse; The Lost Book of Life: New & Selected Poems, ) a 50-year retrospective of 235 poems; and Southern Bred: A Memoir of Gothic Poems. He also recently hosted his second Father Goose Poetry Festival for Kids at the Homewood Public Library.
And when he’s not writing, what does Father Goose do to relax? “I always have a stack of books on my nightstand,” Ghigna says. “My wife and I like to read in bed at night. Sometimes we read aloud to each other. My favorite reading for pleasure books are poetry books for children and adults, especially books by author friends I meet at conferences and book fairs.”
Ghigna will do a reading and signing of Southern Bred: A Memoir of Gothic Poems at the Alabama Booksmith on Tuesday, July 15, at 4 p.m.
