Seeing as it’s Cyber Launch day, Matt Hudson has decided to put in an appearance. He doesn’t want to be in the spotlight, but he said he has a few questions for me, and he doesn’t mind if I share his questions and my answers with you. Matt wanted to talk about how Leonardo da Vinci’s paintings have been used in Letters to Leonardo.
MATT: Why did you think that Leonardo da Vinci would be a good person to help me tell my story?
DEE: Even though you two lived over 500 years apart, Leonardo was a lot like you, Matt.
MATT: How?
DEE: You both got taken away from your Mum’s at a young age, you both seek truth, you’re both sensitive – and you’re both perfectionists.
MATT: I guess you’re right. Anything else?
DEE: Your art – it was a strong connection between the two of you – and it linked you to your mother as well.
MATT: You used Leonardo’s paintings a lot throughout the book. Why do you think people will want to know about them? Not everyone is an LDV fan like us?
DEE: The paintings were a great way to symbolise people and events in the story. Take the Mona Lisa for example – she was an enigma, just like your mum.
MATT: And that painting of St Jerome – you used that to show how I was feeling?
DEE: That’s right – sometimes the emotion of the painting was a good way to show what was going on with you – without have to say “Matt’s upset” or “Matt feels bad”.
MATT: Why did you have to tell everyone how much I loved LDV’s stuff? Why do you think it was their business anyway?
DEE: Readers needed to understand the sort of person that you were – so they could empathise with you. Like when you talked about the Drapery Study and you said, “We all wear an outer layer to hide who we really are,” that was to help people realise how vulnerable you were.
MATT: How does LDV connect us – you and me, I mean?
DEE: He’s our shared obsession:-)
DeeScribewriting Blog 
Thanks Mabel,
So glad you could come and help us celebrate.
Dee and Matt:-)