Gustaf Tenggren was one of the masters of the early days of picture books. He set a standard we still work by today. He was also one heck of a marketer. He started out with Disney but quickly realized it did him no good to sign his work 'Disney.' Hence, the Tenggren books and the golden days of the Golden Books. Did you have a "Tenggren Tell-It-Again Book" when you were a kid? Do you recognize the style? Go to AnimationArchive.org for a fantastic summation of Tenggren's work at Gustaf Tenggren and the Genesis of the Golden Book Style.
• Facebook claims that 50% of active users log into the site each day. This would mean at least 175m users every 24 hours… A considerable increase from the previous 120m.
• Twitter now has 75m user accounts, but only around 15m are active users on a regular basis. It’s still a fair increase from the estimated 6-10m global users from a few months ago.
• LinkedIn has over 50m members worldwide. This means an increase of around 1m members month-on-month since July/August last year.
• Facebook currently has in excess of 350 million active users on global basis. Six months ago, this was 250m… meaning around a 40% increase of users in less than half a year.
Need photos you can use for reference, or your blog, or whatever, without worrying about stepping on somebody's copyright? Go to Wikimedia Commons and have no fear! It is a "database of 5,805,961 freely usable media files to which anyone can contribute." Groovy!
For those of you who can't shell out the big bucks for Photoshop - have you heard about Gimp? It's a "freely distributed piece of software for such tasks as photo retouching, image composition and image authoring." And it may make your life a whole lot easier...
Have you discovered Illustration Island yet? The latest group of posts covers some great advice for illustrators about Art Reps: Art Rep 101 - Tips for Creative Professionals. I personally don't have an Art Rep, mostly because I'm an author too which makes me a bit of an odd bird. But that's not the right option for everybody. On the fence? See if these posts help you figure out what's right for you.
I was recently approached by a wonderful organization - Operation Write Home. They bring together card makers and soldiers in a special way. Card makers create cards which are then shipped to the soldiers overseas. The soldiers can choose a card, personalize it and mail it to their loved ones. It gives card makers a wonderful venue to share their work (and a good reason to create more!), and soldiers a special way to connect with family. So why did they get in touch with me? Turns out my coloring pages work just like "digi-stamps." Card makers and scrap bookers discovered them a while back and have been using them like crazy. I get lots of emails with pictures of their wonderful creations - it's so fun! (It's also why some of my images are now available as stamps - because some card makers still prefer those.) All this came about when Linda L., a card maker, discovered my site and forwarded my information to Operation Write Home. (Thank you Linda!) Yesterday, they featured my work on their blog inviting card makers to get creative with my images in "Tutorial: Digital Stamping" - yay! I am thrilled to have my images used in this way - can you imagine all the warm fuzzies? I do ask that creators mind my Angel Policy (copyright), and hope they'll have a look at my books (which is why I started creating my coloring pages to begin with). Other than that, I hope they email me their creations. There's some serious time and amazing talent being used to create these beautiful cards and it just tickles me to no end to see them and know they are spreading smiles!
So you know about my iPhone app Lula's Brew, right? (In the app store, search "Lula.") Here's why I felt the push to produce it - click the squares to read some impressive facts about the proliferation of iPhone apps... By the way, my article "My 1st iPhone Picture Book App" should appear in an upcoming issue of the SCBWI Bulletin. In it I describe how I created my app. Be looking for it!
I'm off on an interesting venture and for the first time I'm going to share my process a bit on my blog. I'm writing a new young adult novel. It's rainy and heavy outside - winter in Georgia - the perfect time to hunker down and concentrate my creativity on this process. Which is not an easy one, I must admit. I circle like a dog for ages trying to get my brain into the story, and once there, I don't want to leave even though it's all consuming to my being - a fun but sometimes uncomfortable place to be. One of the things I like most about writing is pulling from my own experiences and seeing how I can connect dots to things previously unconnected. In that vein, one of my all-time favorite musicians, Michael Hedges, and his playing style ("slap harmonics" and "tapping") will figure prominently in my story. That won't be his name in the book, but anybody who knows music will recognize him. Why do I love his music? Have a gander at this - one of my all-time favorite songs - Michael's music set to "I Carry Your Heart" by E.E. Cummings (turn your sound up):
But while "I Carry Your Heart" is wonderful, it doesn't begin to show off what Michael could really do with a guitar. For that, have a peek at "Ritual Dance" (yes, that is ONE man on ONE guitar):
You may recognize the song as it was used in the movie "August Rush" played by Kaki Kings. Get some previews here. And check out "Bari Improv" which is completely inspired by Michael's style (I'm guessing "Rickover's Dream" or "The Rootwitch"). Here's the clip from the movie:
Unfortunately, as it so often happens with the truly talented, Michael is no longer with us. He died in a car crash in 1997. But I got to see him in concert, completely inspired, several times before he died (boxing shorts and all). Rarely have I ever felt so exposed to completely raw, pure, genius as when watching him play. Every now and then as I write, I stop and listen to Michael do his thing. It sends chills through me, which I hope I then apply to the page with my words. These are the things that inspire me.
Author Book Tour Turns Endangered Species - it's a long article by John Douglas Marshall of The Indie Reader Magazine, but an incredibly thorough read on the birth, height and decline of the book tour - the why and the loss the decline is to our communities. If you're interested in the marketing side of books (and if you're an author, you should be), this is a must-read. Some quotes from the article:
(Stuart) Applebaum says that Random House remains committed to book tours as its "primary instrument for book promotion," but he also states, "The lousy economy is not inhibiting our book-tour decision making as much as the decline in available appropriate local media outlets. If we can set up a respectable number of worthwhile interviews and appearances for our authors, ones that have some potential to move the sales of their book, we most likely will encourage their visit to that city."
Author events have greatly increased the visibility of local bookstores, played a significant role in their being transformed into informal community centers. . . Crowded monthly author calendars enhance a bookstore's reputation in the city, ensure some foot traffic, too.
Can you believe our stats here at dulemba.com!? We had over 6,000 hits on a recent Tuesday and we've been floating close to that number ever since! Many, much, big-o thanks to all my loyal followers!! It seems only a few months ago I was wondering when my stats would grow to over 2,000 hits a day. But I'm learning that stats don't move by slow increments - they exponentially jump. In other words, rather than struggling around 2,000, the stats quickly doubled and then tripled. Wow. Another fun thing to do is look up the ranking on ://urlfan - dulemba.com ranks #119,109 out of 3,783,534 websites! I'd say that's pretty darned good, yah? So THANK YOU for sharing my books and my coloring pages with your friends and family!!! Ho, ho, ho indeed!
The standard in book reviews, Kirkus, is closing. (Nielsen is also shutting down 'Editor & Publisher.') Okay, they had a reputation as the snarky reviewers. And they even let publishers pay them for reviews. Hm. But it was probably inevitable that Kirkus would close since so many newspapers have closed their book review sections and blog reviewers have become so prolific. But I'm bummed. It's the death of a standard, an institution. When I got into this business, I set bars in place by which I would grade my success. Getting a starred review from Kirkus was one of those bars. And now I'll never have the chance to jump it. But truly, bloggers have replaced the need. And blog reviewers are most often unpaid, passionate readers writing about what they love. You can't get a more honest opinion than that. Want to follow some great online children's book reviewers? Anastasia Suen has a great list at Blog Central: Children's Book Reviewers.
I ADORE this post by Kim Norman at Author Visits by State: Why do authors charge fees for school presentations? If you're a media specialist, librarian, teacher, or interested parent - please read this article!!! I spend so much time responding to requests for speaking engagements that start out sounding sincere but don't pan out because the inquirer actually wants my services for free (or ridiculously low pay). It's HOURS away from my work (why they are interested in me in the first place), and it can be hurtful - why would anybody assume my time has no value? Especially when I really do love doing school visits. I love the energy created from sharing my passion with kids – seeing their eyes light up when they are inspired and fascniated - there's nothing like it. Now I know there are some schools who truly who cannot afford my visits (or anybody else's) and I am working on finding ways around that. (Hope to share soon.) Because a visit with an author or illustrator can truly change lives. When a real person shares how they successfully accomplished their (seemingly impossible) dreams, children's dreams move from far-fetched ideas to actual possibilities for their future. It can mean everything to them. You can learn more about my school visits (and even see me in action) on my VISITS PAGE.
Looking for an agent? I have two new tools for you today... Per Publishers Weekly, WEbook Launches AgentInBox to Connect Authors and Agents Online. WeBook, an online writer's community, is offering a new service for writers to narrow down their search for an appropriate agent - AgentInBox. Agents sign up (free) to have their criteria posted and have qualified submissions forwarded to them (there are eight agencies so far - I'm betting mostly for the adult market). Writers can submit their queries and after being vetted as a qualified submission (properly formatted, query matches submission, etc.) their submissions will be forwarded to the appropriate agent. What a fabulous idea! I hope we see more of this - especially for the children's book market. Not sure it's a good tool for our genre just yet, but I'll keep you posted as I learn more.
AuthorAdvance is in beta but looks like it could also be a good tool. I'm not sure it's so much search engine as it is information on agents you're researching, but it looks interesting. My agent is in there too!
I love changing out my background patterns with the seasons but I can't decide which color I like best this time - will you help? To see how they work with the main content of my blog (lots of orange) you can see the blue option on my blog, the green option on my home page, and the yellow option on the latest Coloring Page Tuesdays Alert. (You can sign up to receive the Alert to your in-box every week - click here.) Which do you like best? (Take the poll.) Thanks!
UPDATE! And the winner is ... BLUE!!! I'll be going through the site and updating the backgrounds. Thanks for all your votes! :) e
Wow. Have you seen inkpop? It's a new forum created by HarperCollins to let their teen community choose which books they consider for publication - and it's a completely radical idea. Submitters post their books (finished or not) and readers comment. The most popular books move up in the rankings and once a month the top five choices are reviewed by the publisher. Talk about a new way to do things. And such different interaction with readers! They're reading and they're actually having a say on what will become a physical book. Trippy. Very, very trippy. Could this be the future of publishing?
Seth Godin, "10 Bestsellers: Using New Media, New Marketing, and New Thinking to Create 10 Bestsellers" at the 2009 O'Reilly Tools of Change Conference for Publishing. Y'know, I've thought of this speech so many times since I first heard it. I've quoted it, I've told friends about it. And it's pretty much changed how I think of books. So I figured it was time to share it here. And between this and a conversation I had with friends the other day - I don't think there's any technology out there that is going to replace the book. I do, however, think that how we think of books will change. Of course, in the end it all comes down to content - and for writers, that should lend some sense of empowerment and security. Now if we can just figure out how to make a living at doing what we love!
I recently received an email from Cathy F. asking about my current equipment set-up and method. It's been a while since I talked about it, and I recently upgraded, so I thought I'd reply publicly.... For those who have any idea what this means... I currently work on a Mac Pro Tower OSX Version 10.5.8, 2 x 2.26 GHz Quad-Core Intel Xeon Processor, 10 GB 1066 MHz DDR3 Memory (the tower is beyond the end of my desk - somewhat hidden) with a 9x12" Intuos 3 Wacom Tablet and dual monitors (one is an Apple Cinema Display). I often lean my Wacom tablet against the edge of my desk like I would a drawing pad - I like that it keeps my head up rather than leaning over a drawing table. My foot rest was made by my Grandmother - I love it. I use Adobe Photoshop CS4 and while I still have Painter IX, I've been staying in Photoshop lately - playing with all their cool new brushes. My scanner/printer is behind my chair on top of one of my filing cabinets, and our music server is behind me. Along with my bulletin boards which play backdrops in my YouTube videos, and "Winnie" - my favorite teddy-bear growing up (I crocheted him that sweater). Oh, and I used iMovie and Photoshop to create my book trailer for SOAP, SOAP, SOAP. As for method - I still often sketch by hand - with separate elements all wonky over a page. I scan and arrange my compositions in Photoshop. Although more and more I'm drawing directly into my computer (in Photoshop). I work at 100%, 300ppi, usually in RGB and switch to CMYK later (this is a carry over from working with Painter which in my version doesn't support CMYK). I send my art files to my Art Directors either on DVD, via FTP or through YouSendIt.com. This is an example of the manuscript, thumbnail sketches and those wonky all-over-the place sketches from my latest picture book Soap, soap, soap. Once finished, I hold them together with a bulldog clip and keep them in a bureau drawer in my office closet. As far as my website - I designed it myself in Photoshop and upload everything through Dreamweaver. I lean on that program VERY heavily. I still host through directnic.com although I may be asking too much of them lately. I send out my weekly "COLORING PAGE TUESDAY ALERTS" and my every-now-and-then "e's news" using YourMailingListProvider.com. So, that's it - this is my cave and where I play. I love my space, and my toys and sharing them with you!
At this summer's SCBWI National conference in LA, several of us had the opportunity to shoot video to be posted in the new SCBWI Speaker's Bureau. Mine just went live! Have a looksie... (hubbie says I'm a goof). Click here to learn more about my speaking engagements! :)
Have you heard of filedby? They're trying to build a database of all authors and I signed up for my "free" page (you get more features if you pay). Well, the guys at filedby have been showing me some serious love and I'm so flattered. My page on their site was featured in their latest email newsletter and my book trailer for SOAP, SOAP, SOAP is the featured trailer on their home page right now! So, have you checked out filedby? What do you think????
Have you heard of Cory Doctorow, author of the smash YA, LITTLE BROTHER (2008), and creator of BoingBoing? Well, he's been turning publishing on its head for some time now. And he has a new book coming out, WITH A LITTLE HELP. Once again his marketing approach is ... unconventional to say the least. Of course, that's the point. Read about his marketing strategy for WITH A LITTLE HELP at E-Reads: What Can Publishers Learn from Cory Doctorow? And follow up with the sales progress at none other than Publishers Weekly: Doctorow's Project: With a Little Help. Whether you agree with his methods or not, you have to pay attention. He's paving new ground.
Great article in SLJ, This Blog's for You: Ten of the best blogs for folks who take kids' lit seriously (but not too seriously), written by the infamous Elizabeth (Betsy) Bird, Children's Book Librarian. I've been following Betsy's blog Fuse #8 for YEARS now and she's turned blogging and children's book reviews on their head in that time. In this article she talks about the beginning of her blog, her favorite blogs to follow now, and the impact of blogging on the children's lit world in general. Good read.
My Marketing Strategy: The Snowball Effect at Cynsations!
Friday I had the honor of being a guest blogger at Cynthia Leitich Smith's Cynsations! She asked me to share my marketing strategy. And since I get a lot of questions from you guys about exactly that - I hope you'll go have a read: Guest Post Elizabeth O. Dulemba on Marketing - The Snowball Effect. But that's not all! Cynthia is also giving away a signed copy of SOAP, SOAP, SOAP (all-English or Bilingual)! Click Here to enter the drawing! (Told ya there would be more giveaways!) Cynthia Leitich Smith is the author of the FABULOSO novels TANTALIZE and ETERNAL. (Click the titles to view some very cool book trailers.) As well as RAIN IS NOT MY INDIAN NAME and many others. Cynthia and I met at the SCBWI LA conference a few years back and I have so appreciated her support of my career. She's also one of the most popular bloggers on children's lit today. So look around and learn more about her!
Click the cover to learn about my newest picture book, Soap, soap, soap and Soap, soap, soap ~ Jabón, jabón, jabón.
...was this past Saturday and it was a HIT! We had two speakers, Donna German of Sylvan Dell Publishing as our Publisher/Art Director and Mark Braught as our Pro-Illustrator. Mark assigned a homework project to those who signed up early and they dove in and took it very seriously. Mark was so generous with his time, I received rave comments on how much people learned from him. Donna gave an impressive power point presentation on how Sylvan Dell works, what she looks for, and her relationship with illustrators. Sylvan Dell is one of the more forward thinking publishing houses when it comes to technology. They are almost entirely paperless, accept submissions electronically, and their new eBooks are becoming enormously popular in schools. (Here I am showing off one of their eBooks.) We held the event at the Decatur library and it was absolutely perfect. Joe Davich of the Georgia Center for the Book stuck around to be tech guru during the presentation - thank you Joe!!! Donna Bowman worked her magic and made the otherwise bare room come alive. (she's the one who makes Southern Breeze look GOOD!) So, between our two speakers and all the background support we had quite the line-up! Each speaker gave informative talks and then homework assignments were shown. Donna G. did a quick overview of the artwork and portfolios on hand. (We do this quickly on purpose to give an idea of how little time illustrators have to make an impression.) Many of the illustrators balked at adding their work to the tables when they saw some of the more professional portfolios but we all said "That's why you're here!" (Including Donna G. who was extremely supportive.) We didn't have anything like this when I was starting out. I had to go make my mistakes in person during interviews - gads. So it is a pleasure to make this opportunity available to others through Southern Breeze! The illustrators left with a better idea of how to prepare and present their portfolios, how to advertise themselves, and how to fine tune their own work for their desired market. In other words, they left smarter than they came in. The feedback has been outstanding and heartfelt and I couldn't be more pleased.
James Gurney, author/illustrator of the Dinotopia series, is brilliant. I've been following his blog for some time and it's been like a fine arts course online. With this, James proves he can be a complete nut too. See the Unicycle Painter here. Follow James' blog (highly recommended), Gurney Journey, here.
Free Web Series on Social Media and the Book Industry
Yesterday I 'attended' the first of a series of webcasts by Greg Pincus of Gotta Book and Mark Blevis of Just One More Book about Social Media and the Book Industry, and I learned a ton. Both are experts in the field and the lineup still has lots to offer in the coming weeks:
September 10: (sorry I didn't tell you before!) Finding the Conversation: Who's talking about you and what they're saying.
September 17: Twitter: More than "What are you doing?"
September 24: Bloggers/Podcasters are People, too: Engaging with the social media community
October 1: Remarkable Uses of the Internet to Promote Books (and the People Behind Them).
There's a fantastic post at Heather Vogel Frederick's blog "Set Sail for Adventure" called First Draft Blues. Several authors gave their quick summation. For instance:
“Writing a first daft is like driving through a howling snowstorm. Your headlights pick out only a few feet of the snowy tunnel ahead of you. If you go slow, don’t stop, and keep just a bit of the edge of the road in sight, you might make it without slipping off into a ditch or crashing into something large right in front of you.” — Shutta Crum
There are tons more and they're all golden so go to the blog to read more.
Authors are always asked, "Where do you get your ideas?" Well, did you listen to my last post, "Crazy Idea #3?" That's it. That's where ideas come from - that's how they're formed. (And of course, they don't all come from my ink-eating printer, but you get the idea.) Because you know what? I haven't been able to get that little Octopus out of my head. Nope. Today while walking with my dog, that little Octopus informed me his name is "Ohi." And yup - he's afraid of everything - pointy coral reefs, slippery schools of fish, but most especially, he's afraid of the dark. Which is inconvenient considering he creates the very thing he fears the most whenever he squirts ink! And maybe Ohi has a friend... What would be the most unlikely type of sidekick - horrible and wonderful all at the same time? How about an Angler fish? They are very, very scary... but they create light. So what if this very, very scary angler fish was named Annabelle? And what if she was also afraid of the very thing she created - light? So, we have two characters. They are as different as can be, but with a lot in common on a deep, philosophical level. Somehow, they will have an adventure and help each other out. But how, what's their story? This is my job. I must figure it out. Can I do it? I hope so, because Ohi and Annabelle have something to say...
Yet another fabulous article by Harold Underdown on the inner workings of the publishing world. Click to read "The Acquisition Process". The article originally appeared in the 2010 Children's Writer's and Illustrator's Market which is chocked full of good information like this. Every writer should have a copy.
I've finally done it - I've created a book trailer for my first picture book as both illustrator AND author, SOAP, SOAP, SOAP ~ JABON, JABON, JABON! This is my first attempt so I'd love some feedback. Does the music work for you? How is the color? Does it make you want to rush out and buy the book!? Speaking of which - SOAP will be officially released on September 25th and I am busy putting together promotions to get the word out! I'll have a Blog Book Tour, and am reaching out to librarians, reviewers, and bookstores. (Something new: I can send reviewers and book buyers an e-galley if you like!) I'm also thinking of other media like radio, tv, etc. Do you have any contacts you wouldn't mind sharing? Oh - and feel free to forward this link, link to the book trailer, and/or embed it in your own sites if you like. Thank you in advance for any help you can offer in getting the word out about my first picture book as both author and illustrator! Woohoo!
As a book creator and volunteer in my local chapter of the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators, I try my best to support my local independent children's book store, Little Shop of Stories. But some of the inner workings of a book store are a mystery to me, especially book returns, which can make it difficult to understand how to best to help my friends when dealing with festivals, school visits, etc.
Well, Josie Leavitt of The Flying Pig Bookstore wrote a great article on her syndicated PW blog called To Return, or Not to Return, in which she breaks down the process and the cost of returns. It's considerable and I'm so glad to know about this essential part of running a bookstore!
Book Trailers and author interviews have become all the rage in the children's book marketing world. I've signed up to have one made while I'm in LA (a Pro-Track author bonus). So, my mind is on how to be an entertaining subject - ha!
Sara Zarr recently went through this and filmed some of the behind the camera glamour. Have a looksie:
Sara's video isn't live yet, but you can see others like it at LB-Teens.
Today I leave for the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI) Summer Conference. Ever wonder what a national writing conference is like? You can follow along on twitter at http://twitter.com/dulemba or follow the hashtag #scbwi09.
Of course, I'll do a big wrap-up on my blog upon my return too. And in the mean time, I have some fun posts set to go live while I'm gone. So stay tuned!
Lovely interview with Jerry Pinkney at Publishers Weekly. I can't wait to see his latest book, THE LION AND THE MOUSE.
On another note - hubbie has been getting my new computer all set up for me over the last few days. When he's finished I'll be running faster and better than ever. For the geeks among us, he got me an 8 core Nehalem tower (Mac) with a 1 TB second hard drive and the CS4 Design Premium package, which means the latest Photoshop, InDesign, Dreamweaver, Acrobat, etc. I'm going to explore the new brushes available in Photoshop before we upgrade my Painter program. Very exciting! :)
Well, I completed the sketches for The Twelve Days of Christmas in Georgia (Sterling, 2010) yesterday - woohoo!! Of course, I'm sure there will be some changes, but while I wait for feedback hubbie is hooking up my brand new computer!!! Woohoo again!!
I was running on a dinosaur believe it or not, so this is going to make a huge difference for me. Although I won't have as good access to my email and such for a few days. So, if you need to get in touch with me - please give me a bit longer than usual to get back to you. And I'm hoping no mail falls through the cracks as I switch between the old computer, the new one, the iPhone and the laptop. So much of my life is online anymore though - how bizarre!
Anyhow - it's all feeling like a mini-victory and my shoulders are more relaxed. We have to celebrate these mini-hurdles in this business as they can sometimes be hard to spot in and amongst all the drawn out deadlines and waiting. So, give us a mini *clink* or a cyber-cupcake. Woohoo!
It's no longer should I have a website? It's what should be on your website. Why? Because more and more readers are connecting with authors via their websites. Authors are building relationships with their readers. Don't believe it? Check out "If You Build It, They Won't Come: A Guide to Author Websites" at Publishing Trends. In this article they are quoting real numbers of readers who go looking for their favorite authors online. And the number is growing!
THE most frustrating thing I learned when I dove into this business of children’s books is how little control you have. (This coming from a control freak.) No matter what you do, you cannot make somebody respond quickly, love or buy your work. Period. The cogs of this machine will not bend to your will no matter how many emails you send or phone calls you make. Your best shot is to write the best thing in existence, or illustrate a masterpiece. But even then, it’s all relative to the taste of the reader/viewer and there are no guarantees. For most authors and illustrators, its a long, slogging journey to success (whatever that means). So how do you get through all the infernal WAITING!?
Here are my 7 Things To Do While You Wait:
1) Get yourself a vent buddy. When you’re about to hit ‘send’ on that email you shouldn’t or call that person directly - contact your vent buddy instead. Let them talk you down. This leads to...
2) Step away from the email. Or the phone. As my hubbie says, “When in doubt - wait.” Yes, that means pay attention to the little voice in the back of your head, the one you so often ignore.
3) Take a walk. Seriously. Even my piddly two miles a day gets my body and head in such a better place, I return calmer with a more realistic view of the world and this business for the rest of the day.
4) Take a shower. You’d be amazed how much clearer (and cleaner) a good shower can make things. It’s also a good place for ideas. I heard of one writer who kept a grease pencil in her shower so she could jot down ideas on the tiles!
5) Work. Yup. The only way to that best manuscript or masterpiece is to actually create it - and that takes the butt in chair method. Just knuckle down and do it.
6) Work on something else. One hit wonders rarely make it in this business. People are looking for long term career writers/illustrators. Surely you have more than one idea in you?
7) Finally, be kind to yourself. This business full of rejections can be awfully hard on an ego. Let yourself experience the downs for a reasonable amount of time (a few hours, a day) and then move on. There are more doors to knock on and better things to create.
This business is not easy and so much is out of your control to change. I hope this list helps you out of some rough spots. Of course, if all else fails, you can always make a list like this... ;-)
It freaks me out when my art does this. One of my first ever book dummies was named "Teacup." You may have seen some of the pen and ink drawings from it hanging around my website. Well, there are some good reasons you'll never see the book in print. I was just starting out and fell into all those classic beginner storytelling traps. You know them: telling not showing; a wise old crow saves the day (literally in this story); etc. But I still love the art I did for this story and the color palette rocked. So imagine my skipping heart when I came across this image the other day from Cute Overload. All I can say is Oh My God. All you illustrators out there - you ever do this? You draw a place or thing and then come across it a few years later? Or do you ever draw a character only to see somebody who looks exactly like your drawing? It's happened to me my whole life and it still freaks me out.
In the spirit of Shelli Johannes Wells' "Monday's Marvelous Marketers" I have a marketing link for you today. Unfortunately, it's true that getting published is only the first half of the incredible challenge of becoming a writer/illustrator. The second half is getting your book noticed. Yes, publishing houses have publicity departments and publicists, but more and more if you want your book to do well, you have to don a marketing hat as well. I'll write more about this soon, but today I share a great article on marketing from debut author, Leigh Brescia over at AuthorsNow!.
I don't think this video is new - but it's new to me. I also work with Photoshop and Painter. (Although I can't imagine sitting up like that to use a Cintique - I have a Wacom tablet I lean against the edge of my desk as I sit back in my chair and watch my screens.) But Mr. Low is truly a master with classical training - I learned tons watching all three of these videos (give yourself a window - you'll want to watch all the way through). Hope you enjoy.
A top literary agent answers some common questions about publishing in "Basic, basic, basic Questions". Pretty spot on. Thanks to Anastasia Suen for the link.
I recently signed up to receive updates from a funky little clothier called ModCloth. I love their retro-vintage fashions and really enjoy browsing the quirky things they offer. I also like the way they market - they’ve created a fun community with contests to name their clothing, post themed pictures wearing their clothes, and this latest one - to write about a Terrific Transformation. Well, I’ve been through a few in my life and one is actually on topic - my transformation to becoming a children’s book author and illustrator. I often mention how I always wanted to create picture books - if only the journey had been as easy as the dream. In college I studied Graphic Design. Upon graduation, freelancing wasn’t a realistic option for a single girl out there on her own (and who wanted to keep a roof over her head). So for twelve years I was a corporate in-house illustrator and graphic designer. But I stayed somewhat on course - most of the companies I worked for were child-oriented. I drew Snoopy for Buster Brown apparel, created characters for candy wrappers for Brach’s candy - I even created animations for the Stone Mountain laser light show. But all the while I dreamed of one day creating children’s books. During my last corporate position I actually started taking my dream seriously and started creating very rough (very bad) picture book dummies on the side. And then I met my wonderful husband who saw what the dream meant to me and told me to go for it. Long story short - I quit my day job (I’d been working since I was fourteen, this was no small decision), and continued to freelance while I researched the heck out of my newly claimed industry. I also had to figure out what my illustration medium/style was (I was great at creating other people’s looks but had no idea what my own was). I worked, I experimented, I sent out mailers. I tried to figure out everything I could to break into what turned out to be a very difficult field to break into. (Who knew?) THREE YEARS into my efforts (and after dozens of rejection letters and late night gut-checks - what the heck was I doing!?) I received a call to illustrate my first trade picture book from Shen’s Books. It was a Cinderella story written by Renee Ting - The Prince’s Diary.Wow! Since then things have gone pretty well. Not easy, mind you (not easy at all!) - but well. I’ve illustrated several more books. And after SEVEN YEARS of rejections, my first picture book as both author AND illustrator comes out this Fall from Raven Tree Press! Woohoo! It’s an adaptation of the classic Appalachian Jack Tale SOAP, SOAP, SOAP! and comes in both English and bilingual versions. The dream is finally reality. I am finally what I was was always meant to be - a children’s book author and illustrator. This has definitely been “career/life number two” for me - but the one I wanted all along. And it has required every ounce of my dedication, resolution and stubbornness (yes, there can be a good side to that trait). So, yes ModCloth and the world - I was transformed - from the life I had to the life I dreamed. And I continue to work very hard to make it as sweet as possible. Thanks to ModCloth for getting me to talk about it!
ModCloth went through their own transformation. It’s a sweet story too and you can read about it here. (The flower graphics are from their website.)
Fantastic guest blog post on Nathan Bransford's blog the other day about a side of the biz we seldom hear about: Book Sales Demystified. We create the stories and it's hard enough to get a publisher to love them. It's sobering to think they then have to face the challenge of sales teams and bookstores. Anyhow - this is a highly informative post and a good read. Thanks to Anastasia Suen for the heads up!
Lovely article on the man I attribute with turning me into a children's book illustrator - Garth Williams. You probably know his work. He illustrated Charlotte's Web, Stuart Little and The Little House on the Pairie series. But I remember him for The Golden Book of Elves and Fairies. I grew up reading my mother's copy and it is now threadbare from all the time it spent in my hands. And maybe I shouldn't say I read it - I devoured the illustrations. I would sit for hours trying to figure out how to climb into the magical worlds he created. All my illustrative efforts since then have been to recreate that wonder for me or somebody else. All of them. So, if ever I had a hero - Mr. Williams would be top of the list. Thanks to Jenny Schwartzberg of the Newberry Library in Chicago for the heads up!
I promised more posts on method, and there have been some wonderful recent posts by other authors on their journeys into this tough industry. Remember the heartfelt post I told you about from Shelli Johannes Wells?
What strikes me most deeply about both of these stories is the incredible dedication it takes most people to break into this industry. It's a hard road, but it can be done!
Thanks to Wanda Johnson of the SCBWI Mid-South Board for the heads up!
There's also a Quick History of Golden Books you may find fascinating. It's celebrating a new gallery show currently on tour featuring art from these classics. The closest it will get to me is South Carolina, but I may have to make the trip. Update: You can see some of the images HERE.
This one is a radio broadcast from "To The Best of Our Knowledge" hosted by Wisconsin Public Radio. The program is called "The Fairy Tale Hour" and is a great listen.
Remember when I turned you all onto building a website using a blog? Well, this may be the next wave: Wix.com. I have no idea how well it works - but it looks promising. I will say, even the demo video ran very slowly on my ancient computer, which may be a bad sign - but if most of your users will be on newer machines, this might be an option. And I love the gallery set-up. That could be especially useful for illustrators. So, if you try it, will you report back and share your link? I'd love to see one of these applied to our world of children's books!
Update! We got a taker. Anaiis Salles built a new website using Wix. As she says, " went right there, dug down deep and between Friday and Sunday had the basic web site up and running. Still tweaking, of course -- always!" Click here to see what she came up with!
More research for the picture book I'm illustrating, "The 12 Days of Christmas in Georgia." Did you know that Springer Mountain is the beginning of the Appalachian Trail? Well, it's in Georgia and makes for a lovely bimble. This past weekend, we headed up to North Georgia and stopped at R&A Orchards for lunch and peaches! And then we headed for the mountain. About 20 minutes in on a National Forest road and we were there! Well, sort of. We parked the car and then hiked a mile uphill. THEN we were there! And boy was it worth the trip - it was gorgeous. There are two plaques when you get to the official start of the AT - you can see one of them in front of Stan (the hubsmeister) embedded in the rock and the other in this second shot. There's also a mailbox of sorts built into the back of the rock to hold notebooks for geocachers and notes/postcards people want to leave for whoever is there next. Pretty cool. We also checked out the camping set-ups nearby, and dang. It's like five-star camping up there! And if it wasn't for the bears (which have been problematic of late according to a posted sign) I'd be all over it. It's going to be tricky to illustrate this one. If any of you are hikers, you know that the view surrounding you most of the time is pretty limited in scope (rocks, trees, the uphill climb). Every now and then you come to an open vista like the pic above, however, it can be hard to relate that information to surrounding context. So, it will be challenging to draw. But now that I've been there, I have a much better idea of how to tackle it!
He's done it again. Harold Underdown has once again proven why so many people turn to him for sound advice and a true gauge on the state of the industry. He's written a thorough article he's sharing for free on his website, which I highly recommend you read: "Working in Children's Books and the Recession of 2008-09".
I'm starting something new on dulemba.com. I finally found a program that allows me to record an mp3 which I can then embed on my blog. It's called Audioboo and it's a cool new app for your iPhone.
So here's the reason why I wanted it - to share the wacky ideas I get sometimes that just don't fit into anything else and may have no purpose at all other than being wacky ideas.
It's techno-geek-out Sunday at dulemba.com. I'm messin' around, trying new things. Here's a new app for iphone that should let me upload audio to my blog. Let's see if this works:
Did you even know about this? In honor of all the fabulous music and musicians that have come out of Georgia (it's an impressive list), the Georgia Music Hall of Fame was created in Macon, Georgia. And while it may seem like an odd idea going in, I challenge you to leave without a tear in your eye or a new sense of pride in the state of Georgia. We dropped by on our way back from Tybee Island - again for research. My main characters in "The Twelve Days of Christmas in Georgia" visit the kids section of the museum and I could find nothing online to help me figure out what it really looked like. It was a quiet Sunady and Hubbie and I walk in a little wary of what to expect. The main display is filled with era-replicas of cafes, diners, churches and other typical music hang-outs. In each are displays of guitars donated by their famous owners: Actual outfits they wore onstage... (my fave was the B-52s - dang she pulled off something I never could!) And old band posters. Stan even found one from his fave band in college - Dreams So Real! But what we really went to see was the Music Factory! This is where the kids can go wild and really experience music. There are booths where you can make and record your own music, become your own percussion/rhythm section, and play piano with your feet. There's a stage where kids can grab all kinds of instruments and become rock-stars (apparently adults like this too...) Stan really enjoyed the "Slap Organ" - an instrument made from PVC pipes and operated with flip-flops! It was AWESOME!! Best of all was the video the museum put together on the incredible music scene in Georgia over the last hundred years. I was blown away by its scope, and the pride of the musicians over being Georgians and Southern and being connected to all those ghosts and spirits that seem to weep their way into the music. But what really got me was listening to people passionate about what they do. It doesn't matter if it's hang-gliding, motorcycle riding, or creating picture books. A life given over to a passion is an awe-inspiring and incredible thing to see and/or experience. I think the hardest part for most people is figuring out what their passion is. But once that's down - the adventure is ON. They say success comes from one part talent plus ten thousand hours of practice (Stan worked that out to be about ten years) and the passion to stick with it for that long (I'm at year 8 with kids books). And there we were surrounded by the sights and sounds of people who were living proof of that theory being true. The chill bumps stuck with me throughout the museum - we were completely sucked in by its energy and ended up staying MUCH longer than we intended. If you can make the trip - even if you're not a crazy music junkie - I highly recommend it!
No really. We went for research. It had nothing to do with the view (click to see it bigger): Or the sunset: Or having dinner with fellow illustrator/SCBWIer Daniel Powers and his wife Silke at A.J.s where Stan and I saw an enormous Manta Ray jump out of the water several times. (All you have to do at the coast is say, "Look!" and point and everybody within a 100 yard radius will stop and watch with you.) And it had nothing to do with the pretty little light house at the north end of the island, or the shrimp salad and raw oysters at The Crab Shack:
No. I was there for research... for that new picture book I'm illustrating for Sterling Children's Books - "The Twelve Days of Christmas in Georgia" (Christmas 2010) written by my friend, Susan Rosson Spain. (Sterling is doing one of these for each state and I'm honored to be the illustrator for Georgia!) I'm supposed to draw my main characters standing on the pier looking at ... something in the water and I really needed to get a feel for the place, y'know? It was a bit hard to do at first because they're filming a new Miley Cirus (Hannah Montana fame) movie right now. Can you believe they set up an entire carnival on the beach just for the movie? It was cool to see, but a little sad that they wouldn't let anybody in to enjoy the rides (and boy was there a crowd!) Miley is back there somewhere:
Yeah, this is what we drove all that way to see - the pier which was a really stunning architectural feat, must say. The pavilion had these gorgeous arched supports - how did they do that!? Y'know, all jokes aside, there is something about experiencing a place, the temperature, the light, the reflections and shadows, that you just can't get from simply viewing photos online. Did I have to do this to create this illustration? Maybe not, but boy am I glad I did. I now have a context against which to place my mind's eye as I draw and I'm certain my illustration will be stronger because of it. On the way back from Tybee we hit yet another destination for the book which I will write about tomorrow! (No hints...)
Okay, Penguin is brilliant. Have you seen their new From the Publisher's Office? They have a "Screening Room," a "Radio Room," and a "Reading Room." You know we're all talking about technology and reading and where it's all going. I can't quite put it into words, but there is something about this site that feels so... RIGHT. Like this is where publishing is going - or this is what our stories could be. I keep looking at it and chewing on it and trying to come up with what a site like this can mean for me as an author/illustrator. How else could I be branching out and still be a story creator? Go visit and tell me this doesn't just get your wheels turning like all get-out. What do YOU think??? (Thanks to Publishers Weekly for the link.)
I told you I am now available for Virtual School Visits, right? (Read about my first one here.) All you need is two laptops with internet access (one with a video camera), projectors, screens, and a Skype account. Sounds easy enough, right? But what if you don't have the tech gear? Per School Library Journal, there's a new non-profit group trying to help. They're giving grants to get the technology into your schools. So visit Digital Wish to learn more. To read more about my Virtual Visits, click here.
Hubbie and I have begun a new adventure - exploring our own state of Georgia. Why? I'm illustrating a new picture book for Sterling Children's Books - "The Twelve Days of Christmas in Georgia" (Christmas 2010) written by my friend, Susan Rosson Spain. Sterling is doing one of these for each state and I'm honored to be the illustrator for Georgia! Despite living here most of my life, I'm learning tons because I need to visit several of the sites to be able to accurately illustrate them. For instance, Saturday we visited the Habitat for Humanity Global Village in Americus, Georgia to see examples of the houses they build all over the world as well as the bricks that make them possible. The first part of the tour is an example of the typical shanty towns found throughout the world. And although it's not supposed to be specific to any one region, it looked exactly like what Stan and I saw in Nairobi, Kenya during our honeymoon. The example is quiet and clean, but it's not hard to imagine the noise , smells, and lack of water and privacy people have to deal with. What struck me strongest was the school: Can you imagine the dedication it would take to try to learn in this environment? A friend of mine who works with CARE (with offices here in Atlanta) mentioned another concern students hit - there will often be a bathroom nearby for the male students, but not the females which keeps many of them away for obvious reasons. Also humbling was how it doesn't take much to elevate the conditions for people. Most of the houses we saw had no electricity or running water. The connection to the outdoors was much more tangible. For instance, here is a typical school in Africa: The homes Habitat for Humanity creates in other countries are not luxurious by American standards, but they can be life-changing for the people who receive them. Hand-made bricks are a big part of that. This is what I needed to see: They pack a slurry of ground and water and pack it down into the cavity then use an arm (not showing) to press it down into a brick . . . one at a time. It's hard work and can take two people several weeks to create enough bricks for one home. But the bricks have an interlocking design that makes them much easier for novices to use. In other words, they work. Want to help? You can buy a personalized brick at the Global Village for a donation of $100. All said, it was a wonderful Saturday bimble. Americus is charming. We ate at a new restaurant (Sue Baby's?), bought fresh veggies at their farmer's market and enjoyed the scenery all the way down and back. Mostly, we returned home with a humble feeling of how incredibly lucky we are to live where we do.
Fabulous painting demo by the illustrator of Louis Sockalexis: Native American Baseball Pioneer - one of the first Native American baseball players. (Click the image.) (Thanks to Anastasia Suen's Children's Book Biz News for the link!)
Wow. Go visit the blog But Who Will Bell the Cats and prepare to have your mind blown. The author and . . . visual creator is Cynthia von Buhler and she creates models, 2 and 3-d settings, buildings, texture, lighting. I just don't even know how to describe everything she does. But the end result is truly stunning - something you can't stop staring at. Take the time to scroll all the way through - it just gets more amazing. The book will be out this Fall and announced at the forthcoming official website: www.butwhowillbellthecats.com. Lucky us, she created a blog to show her behind the scenes methods. Wow. Thanks to illustrator Philomena O'Neill for the link.
I get a lot of emails from people who want to break into the children's book biz - heartfelt emails by true beginners. It's why I wrote my article, "How Do I Get Published." Unfortunately, I send them there knowing that my article paints a grim, albeit accurate, picture of the industry. Which is why, I must give a HUGE shout-out to some friends who have busted through the gates recently:
Shelli Johannes Wells just got an agent, and she wrote a gripping round up of her path into this industry so far: The Inside Scoop!. If you want to know what getting into children's books takes - read her post. THIS IS the journey. (And yup, I did it too.)
My right arm in so many ways, Liz Conrad, also signed with an agent this past week. Like Shelli, she had her pick and went with her gut in the end.
And another of my posse, Vicky Alvear Shecter, recently signed on with my agent - we're agent sisters!
So, it's not impossible to break into this business. I have some highly talented and determined friends who prove it. I'm just thrilled to be able to share this wild ride with them!
Ever wonder about the process animation studios go through to make a movie? Here are some wonderful studies, models, and videos posted by one of the guys working on UP, Lou Romano: Art of UP. The third video is especially nice as it includes some of the soundtrack too - quite soothing. Thanks to Wendy Edelson for the link!
Have you seen the cover of the New Yorker? Everybody's talking about it because the illustrator, Jorge Colombo, created it on his iPhone using an application called Brushes. And here's a cool video of his process:
So, I downloaded the program and gave it a go... I obviously need practice!!
If you haven't heard about the release of the last book in the Percy Jackson series, THE LAST OLYMPIAN, than you obviously don't have a tweener in the house. The author, Rick Riordan, has been on a cross country tour for two weeks promoting it. Monday was his next to last stop in Decatur, Georgia hosted by Little Shop of Stories. Obviously the store couldn't hold the crowds, so the event was held at the local rec center. This photo doesn't even begin to do the crowd justice. It wrapped up the bleachers on both sides and was the most crowded book event I have ever seen for one author. Amazingly, Rick signed every book the kids brought - I'm talking hundreds of kids who had every book in the series. The man is surely returning home with a serious case of carpel tunnel syndrome. I went with my friend Vicky Alvear Shecter and we couldn't help but wonder if we'd ever get crowds like that. "Not likely," we decided, but it brought up the question of why? The answer was simple enough. We don't write those kinds of books. The kinds of books that hit that particular age where kids are soaking up knowledge like a sponge, collecting facts and trying to know as much as they can about a given subject. That age when they adore action-packed series and are not too self-conscious yet to worry about being publicly fired up about something they love. Remember being that age? I do. Back then, I was horse crazy and my best friend and I had collected the stats on every thoroughbred on the racing circuit. We knew them backwards and forward and correctly predicted the winning line-up of all the big horse races that year. We knew our stuff. So do the fans of Percy Jackson. They know their Greek Mythology, even though it's not traditionally taught in public schools, they know it inside out. And they crave more. Hence, the crowds. So, it brings up the question - who is your market? Who are you writing for? Is it a stand-alone novel, a series, or an information junkies dream? All these things will affect your following. I'm not saying there's anything wrong with not writing to this demographic, it's just an interesting exercise to be aware of it. And it's a whole lot of fun to watch 4th graders and up when they are really passionate about a subject. So who are you writing for?
If you've ever attended one of my Beginning Drawing Classes, you know how hyped up I get about line quality. It's often the difference between amateur and professional looking drawings. Why? Because just like shadowing can imply volume and light, so can line. The first thing I have students do in my classes is draw eggs – with line. The line is thinner where the light hits and thicker where shadow will fall. The master of good line quality was Charles Shulz - yup, of Peanuts fame. I spent over six years drawing Charlie Brown and Snoopy for a children's clothing company. To mimic his line quality, we'd draw two shaky lines side by side and fill them in. It wasn't easy to do. And when you look at his work closely, you'll see what I mean. It's something I try to stress when I create my coloring pages - variation of line. It's important and it creates . . . a sense of quality to a drawing. No way around it. Just as I stress getting the color and light correct in your work (read my article, "Illuminating Color"), line is important too. So, Loreen Leedy from my Picture Book Artists board turned me onto this fantastic TUTORIAL (click the image) by Bob Ostrom of how he achieves his line quality. I highly suggest reading it if this is something you struggle with. And while I don't use the blue or red pencils for sketching, or use Illustrator like he does, his method is very similar to how I create the coloring pages for y'all every week. 1. Pencil sketch by hand, usually while watching TV with hubbie in the evening. 2. Scan it into my computer the next day. 3. Recreate the drawing on a separate layer (sometimes many layers) using my Wacom tablet in Photoshop - so I can get that yummy variation of line. (Here's a before and after example.) And Voila! Groovy, eh?
We're writers and illustrators. We hide in our offices and studios, butt in chair, rarely coming out to play. Well, if you're working to be published, you're in for a surprising realization. Part of this biz is public speaking - a very large part. For some people, public speaking comes easily, for others it's a bit more work. So where can you learn how to become an effective public speaker? Chris Brogan is a techno-marketing whiz I like to follow because of his sound and useful advice. Recently he talked about Speaking and Presenting - Your Next Actions. He also links to some of his other articles on the subject which are also worth a look. I have a few bits on public speaking myself. Check out What I've learned about speaking engagements. And if you haven't seen it - check out my new video montage of a recent school visit on my Visits page. (And yeah, I gotta get my hair outta my face - my mother's been saying it since I was five.) The main thing to understand is that it will get easier. Knowing your material inside and out can create a comfort zone even in front of a crowd. It's natural to be nervous when you first begin public speaking, but the shaking will eventually go away and you will get better at it. Eventually, you may even come to love it. It can be a lot of fun to hold an audience in your hand while you share the things you are most passionate about.
Great article recently from PW Children's Bookshelf (are you subscribed?) ... "Surprises About Men: Unexpected Lessons from the Other Side." Author of After the Moment, Garret Freymann-Weyr, talked to men about their thoughts about love and se... when it first came into their lives. The result? Some great insights into how the male teen mind works. If you're writing a story with a young male protagonist, I highly suggest you go read the article!
So the San Francisco Center for the Book has put together a gallery exhibit called "Once Upon a Book" - as they say:
...this is the second in a series of children's book exhibitions. This show explores the creative process in the work of six critically acclaimed illustrators: Elisa Kleven, Remy Charlip, Maira Kalman, David Macaulay, Chris Raschka and Brian Selznick.
It runs May 4th - August 7th at The San Francisco Center for the Book. However, if you can't physically make it to the show, they have a GREAT series of videos of the illustrators talking about their process online! Very cool!
I used our new Flip Video Camera at my last school visit in Clanton, Alabama to see if I could finally join the world of YouTubers and the like. Mostly, I wanted a video to share about my school visits and public speaking engagements. I put together the various clips in iMovie - no small task. But considering I'm a complete novice, I'm pretty pleased with the results. What do you think? (It's about 4.5 minutes long.)
WOWSA!!! Get a LOAD of the new website design for Share a Story - Shape a Future! I knew this would be a special event to participate in - but I had no idea the scope our planner, Terry Doherty of The Reading Tub, had in mind! It has become something SPECTACULAR! Y'all have GOT to check it out!
Ever since my Day 5 "Share a Story - Shape a Future" post of "Technology and Reading - What the Future Holds," the topic has seriously been on my radar. I've got an article off to SCBWI for the Bulletin (keep yer fingers crossed). And I just finished reading this fantastic, in-depth article about how our stories are changing at Publishers Weekly: The New Storytelling: Multimedia Children's Publishing. Worth the read!
So here's a cool new thing. Remember I told you about my first Virtual School Visit a while back? Well, I'm not the only one getting into these. If you scroll down in that post, you'll see I'm starting to list author friends who are doing this too. Well Library Media Specialist, Sarah Chauncey, and Author, Mona Kerby, took it one step further. They've started a gathering spot for authors who are available for Virtual School Visits using Skype. It's called the Skype an Author Network and you can see my listing here. How brilliant is this!? I must admit, I really love doing Virtual Visits. It's a cool new way to connect with kids (even the older ones who enjoy the techie aspect of the presentation), and I can charge a lot less since I can realistically do just one session without traveling - in other words, not much down time from writing and illustrating. The only thing I miss is the hugs. Hm.
A good friend has her first book coming out next month (a memoir which I will scream and shout about) and she asked me "what happens on the release date"? I was rather pleased with my response:
On the release date, the hordes of masses that have been anxiously awaiting the release of your book rush to their local indies, causing great mayhem and anxiety, and purchase multiple copies of said book for friends, family, coworkers and random strangers, forcing the stores to reorder and the initial print run to run out, forcing the publisher to realize they have a mega-hit on their hands and they'd best order a six digit print run pronto as the New York Times is beating down their door to make it front page news......
So's a girl can dream....
This probably won't happen...unless you're Laurie Halse Anderson. (Have you seen the hype for Wintergirls!? Woosie - that's how it's DONE!) It's a funny business. We set all these hurdles for ourselves thinking "when this happens" or "when that happens I will have made it and it will be time to celebrate!" The reality is, the successes are more like jumping speed bumps...lots of them, to the point that you don't really notice when the big things have happened. They come quietly as you work alone in your office day in and day out. And as my writer friends and I often say, we're always moving the bar, so we never truly feel like we've jumped it. I wonder if we ever will. At least, that's been my experience. What do you think?
My article "Illuminating Color" has finally been published in the latest SCBWI Bulletin (Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators - scbwi.org). I sold it to them almost a year ago, so I've been anxious to see it in print. Of course, as with most periodicals, there was a space limitation which cut into what I was able to share about the topic. So, now that it's out, I'm free to post the article in full on my website, including visual examples of the ideas to which I refer, at links & articles - click on the title "Illuminating Color." In the article I discuss the elusive skills that can make the difference between amateur and professional looking illustration - the proper use of light and color. If you give it a gander - please let me know if you found it helpful!
Well, I told myself I was going to stop embedding so many videos as they tend to slow older machines down (mine for instance), but I also keep stumbling across these amazing videos (thanks to Deborah Wiles)! So, what to do? Share of course. This is Elizabeth Gilbert, author of "Eat, Pray, Love," at a recent TED conference talking about how creative people can deal with the creativity that seems to use us up. Adapting her thoughts on the matter may keep you sane (in your head anyhow), it might even add years to your life! I know I'll be thinking this way. I kind of already do. I often tell my husband, "I have a story coming in" or "A story came in last night - I have to write it down." I'm also feeling pressure to complete this dummy I'm working on, because I feel the idea is on loan. If I don't work through it fast enough, the muse may share it with somebody else. (A possible reason so many vampire novels came out at the same time.) I need to get on it. Do you feel that way too? Are you the creator, or does the creativity work through you? Watch the video and leave a comment - I'd love to hear how it works for you!
OMG, I heard this was debuted at the national SCBWI conference in NY last weekend. (Which overlapped with Kindling Words this year - pooey.) It is so danged funny! You gotta watch. Alice Pope blogged during the conference, so if you weren't able to attend (like me) you get a good feel for the happenings at The Official SCBWI 10th Annual New York Conference Blog.
Ever wonder if your writing habits are similar to those of famous writers? Daily Routines is a new blog which lists the writing habits (when they could be found) of several writing greats. And it's a surprisingly fascinating read. What I found most interesting is that most writers seem to only be able to write a few hours a day - they must be taken by the muse and that can only be allowed for so long as it's a somewhat uncomfortable state. (And I must admit to feeling the same way.) What's your writing schedule?
So what are your writing/illustrating goals for 2009? Add 'em below in comments or join the discussion on my facebook pro-page. I wish you all a Happy and Prosperous New Year!!
Tuesday I experienced my very first Virtual Visit with Austin Middle School in Dawsonville, Georgia. And can I just say - Technology ROCKS!! It’s a known fact that students are inspired when they can meet a working author or illustrator. They get to talk to a real person who has struggled to achieve a goal and succeeded - proving that they too can reach their own dreams if they are willing to work hard and focus. You can’t get that kind of real-world inspiration from a text book. But times are tough and many schools don’t have the budget to hire an author or illustrator to visit their school. And sometimes it's just not possible to easily fly somebody to a more rural location. So, what can those schools do for their students? Well, in this digital age we can take advantage of technology in new ways that can truly benefit our kids and maybe change their lives. I know there's been a lot of talk about Virtual Visits, but I haven't heard much from anybody who's actually done them - so here's the round-up of our experience! How it worked... I advertised the option for a Virtual School Visit on my website and my newsletter and offered my first one free to a school willing to experiment with me. Meredith Lowe, Art Education Teacher at Austin Middle School, contacted me and we went from there. She ordered my books, read them with her students and they started gathering questions. About three weeks before our date I sent a package containing giveaways, postcards, bookmarks and activity pages for the kids to use. The day before our visit, Meredith and I did a trial run using Skype's video option (free). Because it was something new, there were a few hiccups. For instance, there was some resistance to setting up a Skype account from the school, but we got past that and I shared my account name so we could connect. (At first it's intimidating to use, but once you're in there it's amazingly easy.) We also realized the need for external speakers and a webcam on her end so that I could see and react to the students. We got the speakers, but not the webcam. They could hear and see me, however, so we felt confident the visit would work. On the day of our visit, we connected online that morning to make sure we were ready to go. When we signed back on at 8:45, the kids had been gathered and we were off and running! Here’s what the kids saw: Meredith set up two projection screens and two lap tops. On one computer we connected using Skype so I could talk to the kids. On the other computer, she connected to my online presentation via the internet. I had created a home page to work from for our visit and she clicked to my online slide show (created through my .mac account), my picture book The Prince’s Diary on Lookybook.com, Paco and the Giant Chile Plant online, and a work in progress - my first picture book as author/illustrator, "Soap, soap, soap ~ Jabón, jabón, jabón." I'm looking into having an online white board in the future so we can do a demonstration drawing as well. Here’s Meredith's control center: Here’s what it looked like on my end: This looks like computer overload, but it’s really not that complicated. I am due an upgrade on my main computer - so the only webcam I have is on our laptop. But while I talked to the kids on my laptop, I scrolled through my slideshow, etc. on my main screens behind it. I just asked Meredith to forward a slide when we were ready to move on. The great thing about this visit is it offered a new angle. It wasn’t just about me and what I do as an illustrator, it was also an exercise in technology, so held special appeal to these gifted middle-school students. It also meant I didn’t lose an entire day to traveling which means I can physically do more of these while dealing with my tight illustration deadlines. What did I miss? Well, I hope to be able to see the kids via webcam during future visits. I really do react to and feed off a crowd, although they shouted and cheered for me which was fantastic! And I couldn’t sign books, although I hope to work out a signing arrangement if books are pre-ordered through my local independent book store. Most of all, I wish I could have hugged these guys for creating such wonderful greetings: But all said, our visit was a huge success. Meredith said, “The kids talked about your "visit" all day and were really amazed! The teachers wouldn't stop bragging either! Even our principal joined us! Thank you so much for your well organized slides and your excitement!” Best of all, a Virtual Visit is an affordable option for schools who otherwise wouldn’t be able to invite an author or illustrator to visit their students. I’m offering them at $300 per session and look forward to doing more!
Update: I'm not the only one doing these now! Check out author, Arthur Slade's recent virtual visit here!
I adore endpapers. It has nothing to do with the fact that I worked at a children's clothing company for many years and had to create fabric prints...nooooo. Endpapers are a way to segue into a story from a different angle than just telling the story. They are an opportunity to introduce elements or themes the reader should pay special attention to. And they can be flat out beautiful. Unprinted endpapers to me are a missed opportunity and oh so sad. So I was thrilled to read Shelftalker today and find out that there is an online collection of endpapers at Drawger. Got an hour to kill? Ahhhhh. So here are some of the endpapers I've created for my books...
They're doing it again - trying to sneak it through congress during the lame duck session. Please, contact your congressperson (click below) and don't let this go through unopposed. This bill would be devastating to our creative careers. There are some big companies set to make a lot of money off this bill. We have a tough fight. Please help.
Swing back to my graphic design days today. This is a great display of how some very familiar logos/brands have changed and evolved over the years (thanks to chrisbrogan.com for the heads up). This may seem off topic, but it's really not. When I talk to illustrators about self-promotion I often tell them to think of themselves as a brand. I encourage them to buy "theirnamedotcom" as their website rather than something unrelated, cutesy, or hard to remember. I tell them, "You just became the next Xerox, the next Coca-Cola." It's important that your artwork feed into your brand as well. In other words, have a recognizable style that only you can create. That way when a publisher or art director has a particular look in mind for a new project, they think of you and only you. Coming from a graphic design background (as I did), I used to think the opposite. "Isn't it good to show you're flexible, that you are capable of many different looks and can help a publisher with different needs?" The answer is no. There are plenty of illustrators out there who can mimic other looks - it's part of the job description for many in-house illustrators (they called us "wrists" or "hands"). Picture books are not the same thing as graphic design/in-house illustration - far from it. Publishers want something that stands out, something that will jump off the shelves as different and new (and wonderful of course). But after that kind of background it can be hard to find your own look or style (it took me years of experimenting). Sure, you can successfuly pull off lots of different styles, lots of different looks, but how do you find your look? How do you find what makes your work unforgettable? I have some ideas:
1) Illustrate like crazy. No way around this one. The more art you create, the more your media preferences and style will slowly percolate to the surface.
2) Become aware of the decisions you make unconsciously - certain colors you tend to use more than others (your personal color palette), angles of light you use by default, ways you tend to draw the human form. These will all tip you off to your own style. And once you recognize your patterns, you can play off those decisions by using them on purpose or consciously manipulating them.
3) Master your way of working. If it's not done well, it will not impress.
I had to struggle through all this as well and it flat out takes time. So, if this is your path as well - it's time to get to work! :)
I received an invite the other day to give an interview in WhoHub. It's a new site with a pretty groovy idea - interviews with creatives. I'm not sure how they found me, or what their criteria of who they invite is - but I enjoyed answering the questions. They were thoughtful and made me think. You can read my interview here. I hope they add more children's book creators!
In my recent talk about "Self-Promotion for Illustrators (on the Cheap)" I mentioned the need to be able to create one's own promotional materials. That means, even artists who work in traditional media need to be able to scan their images, size them, place them on a website, or use them for postcards or tear sheets. The best program to use to do all this? Photoshop, which is most definitely not cheap. But there are work-arounds out there. Art can be scanned or made into digital files at your local Kinkos. Images can be kept in flickr.com accounts to be sized and used for blogs, online portfolios, and other applications. Or you can use one of the many Photoshop-like programs now available online. The latest is called Aviary, created by the founders of Worth 1000. It's a monthly or annual subscription service you use online and can run as cheap as $7.99/month. Or you can use the free trial to see if you like it. I have Photoshop, so probably won't try Aviary - but I'd love to hear from anybody who does. Also, if you know of other options online - please add it in my comments section. Let's make this a resource for illustrators who need to promote themselves - on the cheap!
I mentioned earlier that my hubbie is a long distance motorcyclist and one of his favorite websites is Adventure Rider where people post amazing photos of their motorcycle adventures around the world. Recently they've become wise as well in this thread on m-m-m-motovation. I think this is just as helpful for writers and illustrators:
Just wondering what you were using to sketch Maya with? Marker~ Can't tell in the picture. Also wondering if you have advice for drawing on the spot? I did a visit and a kid asked me to draw an animal, and it was like I went blank......ever have anything like that happen? I had feelings of terror, does a camel have one hump or two, are their ears pointy or rounded, what is the shape of their neck, the whole thing freaked me out...I'm not a huge animal person anyway...but eeks!!! It was a sad camel if I do say.
Hi Donna, During my recent visit at B&N I used a dark pencil to create the base drawing and then colored with pastels. It's a good way to lay in large swaths of bright color in a short amount of time. Of course, it looks pretty crude until I apply my "magic finger" and blend the colors together. (I get a lot of "Ahhhhs" at that point.) I tried several different media to get that visual punch I wanted - quickly - and pastels seemed to work the best. I do try to keep the kids away from the finished art though as pastels are not the healthiest things in the world. I also recommend people hit the art with a light dusting of an aerosol hairspray to hold the pastels in place after I leave. (I usually sign the art to the venue I'm visiting.) As far as quick drawing on the spot? Oh yeah, I feel your pain. A friend asked me to draw a quick sketch of my dog Bernie (who hides in all my books) for her daughter. It was so bad, but supposedly her daughter loves it! You just have to cut yourself some slack on that front. Most people claim not to be able to draw a straight line and they truly appreciate even our roughest efforts.
Note: I'm going to try to be more proactive about answering the questions you leave in my comments - so ask away!
As of tomorrow, the Book Club section of Oprah Winfrey's Web site will offer a list of recommended children's titles, courtesy of the American Library Association's Quick Lists Consulting Committee. According to Diane Foote, executive director at the ALA's Association for Library Service to Children, the organization was contacted by Winfrey's staff in the spring about putting together such a list. "We were gratified they came to librarians to do so," Foote says.
The ALA compiled a list of 100 titles (including both recent and "classic" titles) in five age categories: infant to two, three to five, six to nine, 10 to 12 and 12 and up. The ALA's Quick Lists Consulting Committee has prepared recommended reading lists for numerous organizations in the past, including the PBS Kids Web site, Toon Disney and the National Endowment for the Humanities Bookshelf Grant Program.
Voice is such a difficult idea to grasp, and such a hard thing to define. How do we as writers find our voice? I was turned on to this great article by Kurt Vonnegut on "How to Write With Style," but I found it also described how to find one's voice. Definitely worth the read.
I don't usually talk about politics on my blog, but this particular issue directly affects me as a freelance illustrator. Have you heard of the Orphan Works Legislation that's been sneaking through the House of Representatives? Well, if this Bill goes through, it could directly affect my business - not in a good way. Right now, when I create, I own my creation. It's an automatic copyright. Seems logical. I created it so I own it. I make my living by people paying me to use my art. But sometimes when a person wants to use a piece of art, nobody knows who the artist is, or they can't find them. That's an Orphan work - a creation (music, art, a photograph, etc.) who's creator can no longer be located and therefore permission cannot be saught or compensation offered for usage of their work. Orphan works do exist, and libraries and schools do have legitimate reasons for wanting access to be able to use these works. But that's not what this Bill is about. It started out that way but quickly morphed into a way for commercial businesses to use artwork without much research and without much recourse for the artist. Here's the gist: Let's say there's a big t-shirt company (I mean really big) - that wants to use a piece of art for their company logo which they found on Google Images - a great sketch of a happy sun - they want to use it on everything they produce. They can do what they call "due diligence" (this term has not been defined in the Bill) to find the artist, and if they can't find the artist, they can declare it an orphan work and use it anyway. Say the artist finds out, because the image is now in every store in America. The artist can sue the company for damages, but there's a cap on how much the artist can sue for (not a very high cap). And here's where the Bill protects the abuser and not the artist: the Bill is so loosely defined, loop-holes abound, and if the big corporate lawyer is better, and more powerful than the lawyer a poor little freelancer can afford - the company doesn't have to pay the artist a dime and the artist is out the legal fees they spent and time wasted (which translates to income in a freelancer's world). Most of the time it will literally makes no sense for an artist to go after an abuser (this is true even in today's system). One argument to protect artists against abuses is to create a database for all works to be registered. Sounds logical? Well, this database does not exist yet. The software to search the work in a database does not exist yet. (I'd like to see it search for abstract art.) Whether or not this would be a non-profit or profit driven database has not been determined. In other words it could cost me money to register every single thing I draw or I don't have any rights to my own creations. Let's say that unlucky artist drew that happy sun on a cocktail napkin - there's nothing in this Bill saying how much that artist would have to pay to register that cocktail napkin. Reality check - people illegally download my work for their personal use all the time. Yes, I make my coloring pages available and free for non-profit uses, but I have other images on my website that have been downloaded literally hundreds of times (I can follow this in my stats) - work that I never gave permission for and was never compensated for. So why do I have my artwork online? Because I'm a freelance illustrator and to get new work, I have to advertise myself with an online portfolio. So while it's really rotten, theft happens. Beginning to get the picture? This Bill protects the abuser, not the creator. It could severely cut into my ability to charge for what I do and how I make my living. So what can you do to help stop this Bill from going through? SIGN HERE. Our biggest enemy on this legislation is that nobody has heard of it. One Congressman supposedly thought it was about orphan children. Another was quoted as saying "we must protect the consumer" (implied: not the creator). What!? So, please SIGN HERE. It's time to get as many people aware of this bad legislation as possible and start shouting about it to our representatives. The ability for me to continue creating art could hang on this - so please go SIGN.
Before: After: So I had another one of those pesky birthdays recently, but instead of jewelry or some such, I asked hubbie for bookshelves and some hard labor. I wanted to redo my office. It was starting to close in on me - with piles of books everywhere. I just knew storage could be handled more efficiently. But really the whole thing started with a shoebox. This fabulous lime green interior: I propped it up on my old bookcase and stared at it for months wanting to pull that incredible lime into my office. And then I came across these awesome orange bookshelves from West Elm (the 3x4 set in Saffron!). Had to have 'em! Aren't they purty? So hubbie and I pulled everything out of my office and started over. We painted the walls a pale yellow, called "Cornbread." With the orange shelves, I wanted the shoebox lime and some teal as an accent - it happens to be my personal color palette. What? Don't you know what your personal color palette is? I've found most people have one - especially illustrators. And it really helps to identify what that palette is and play up on the strengths of that knowledge. If you look at my website, you can see it in my main design. And here it is in swatches: The pale yellow is my neutral, the main colors are Orange, Lime and Teal. To find your own palette - lay a bunch of your art on the floor and stare at it. Are there certain colors you seem to use again and again? See if you can narrow it down to three. The hardest things to paint turned out to be my filing cabinet and stereo cabinet, four coats of paint later they were a lovely shoebox lime - a perfect match. The cool thing was the stereo cabinet ended up fitting perfectly underneath a parsons table I dug out of my parents basement. It was my grandfather's, and I couldn't get it out of my head when I first saw it. I loved its clean sqare lines and modern sensibility. Stylistically, it's a perfect match to my new orange shelves, and the color is a dead on match for the walls - sometimes I scare myself. By sliding the stereo cabinet underneath I ended up with an awesome credenza. And kismet - the orange magazine boxes slid into the album slots so perfectly, I couldn't have planned it any better. This kind of thing downright excites me: To top it all off, I painted my old wooden chair aqua. It ended up lighter than I planned (teal), but it's growing on me. Now with my lovely orange shelves and the black bookshelf by the door, I finally have enough storage for all my books - yippee!! (Ooo, I wonder if hubbie noticed his shirt matched the shoebox?) The only thing missing now is my ego wall like in my old office. I think I'm going to reign it in just a tad (that was a lot of holes to spackle) and put two pin boards over my credenza. Maybe this weekend. Honestly, the biggest experiment in my new space was the removal of my drawing table. I've never been without one and I hemmed and hawed. But since I went digital, I was really only using it as a cutting surface and not often enough to warrant the enormous space it was taking up. We'll see if I miss it too much, but so far, so good. So, can I tell you what a good giftie this was? We purged, we scrubbed, we reorganized (and we're both still sore). But my soul just feels calm and content now when I sit down to work in my new space. Of course, that's when my men let me use it...
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Have you heard of 
It freaks me out when my art does this. One of my first ever book dummies was named "Teacup." You may have seen some of the pen and ink drawings from it hanging around my website.
Lovely article
And then we headed for the mountain. About 20 minutes in on a National Forest road and we were there! Well, sort of. We parked the car and then hiked a mile uphill. THEN we were there! 
Can you imagine the dedication it would take to try to learn in this environment? A friend of mine who works with 
My article "Illuminating Color" has finally been published in the latest SCBWI Bulletin (Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators - 
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The pale yellow is my neutral, the main colors are Orange, Lime and Teal.
