IF-Imagination

Just got back from the Advanced Illustrator Workshop at Highlights this past weekend and one of the things I learned is that in order to really speak to the children you have to open your imagination and play more!

Melissa Sweet has a great explanation in the back of her book Balloons Over Broadway and we got to learn how to play 1st hand with stuffed animals during an exercise with Ruth Sanderson. Lots of people can draw, but in Children's Book Illustration we need to push our imagination a little further... and have fun!

I created this Illustration in 2010 when I designed the Logo for the Eastern PA SCBWI Pocono Retreat. They went with the owl logo, but this picture represented children's imagination in the world of books.

IF- Suspense

One thing to keep in mind when developing pages in a story, it's important to keep your reader interested.

Suspense is a great thing that you can create to make the reader eager to find out what happens on the next page...


Here are the other two pages that take place Before & After the main page...

IF-Forward

"Forward" seemed fitting for this image. I had to redraw it twice. This has been my biggest obstacle in drawing, but have found the ability to let go of the original design for the sake of making the overall illustration better... One more foot "forward" on this adventurous path of Children's Book Illustration, learning & growing.

SCBWI Eastern PA Chapter :: 2010 Pocono Mountain Retreat Winning Logo!

I am very honored and excited to find out that my logo was chosen for the 2010 Pocono Mountain Retreat that will be taking place in April 2010!!! I submitted two designs (with a variation of the 2nd option), and my second logo was chosen. The first design was symbolic of all of the wonderful things that can happen when you get wrapped up in a wonderful Children's book. I drew the Inn where the retreat is being held into both options because it is such a beautiful building. The owl option popped in my head before coffee a couple of days later, and I had to draw it immediatly, because it was so fun!


Here are what the others options looked like. I am still in shock, but very excited to attend the event and meet more wonderful people along this adventure!

Inspired all over again...

I just attended the Fall Philly Conference at Whitford Country club this past weekend, and met many wonderful people, and learned a lot about myself, and the Children's Book Industry. I was like a very small fish in a VERY big ocean, but maybe in a couple of years, at least I'll start to see other fish from time to time. Here is my latest creation. Not my best yet, but in the brief portfolio that I brought along, the two agents that I met in a portfolio review said this was the strongest piece, and I should continue to build on this digital style instead of the water colors that I brought as well. My goal is to complete at least one Illustration a week for the next year... stay tuned!

New Beginnings

I woke up one morning, took our daughter to daycare, drove an hour in the car to my part time advertising job, opened up my calendar and saw a scholastic books order form that her teacher handed me, and THEN it hit me like a ton of bricks!!! I found myself daydreaming and doodling on yet another to-do list...

Why have I not pursued Children's Book Illustration until NOW?! Sure, I always had it in the back of my mind but never thought I could actually do it. But after 12 years in the advertising field designing logos, and illustrating portraits, and illustrating all of my own art for client projects, I realized it was my favorite part of the day... so why not take the leap, and in my free time pursue my life long dream!

I have been an Illustrator for my entire life, but I am quickly learning that I need to re-teach myself how to draw. So I did some research, and joined the wonderful world of SCBWI. I have also been re-learning perspective, figure drawing, and even watercolor. I even checked out a book from the library on how to draw comics & fashion illusrtations just to get other perspectives. All of this self education is in preparation to become a full time Children's Book Illustrator... some day.

Being in advertising for over 12 years, I have always drawn single images, and maybe a rough composition or entire scene for a storyboard or two. But to Illustrate Children's books, or more particularly Picture Books, my images need to tell the story. So here we go back to the beginning fundamentals. I am looking forward to this long journey, and not the destination, but for the long fun path that lies ahead.

I am attending a conference this October for my area, and there will be a room full of inspiration, teachers, critics, and so much useful information that my head might possibly explode before I walk out of there at the end of the day! I have been doing a drawing about every other day since I joined the SCBWI and I test them out on my 2 1/2 year old daughter. I show her the pictures and she tells me what she thinks is going on in the picture. Hopefully I can create 10-15 Illustrations for the portfolio review at the conference.



So far the best way I have found to come up with scenes to draw is to think of a story, and draw one scene. Illustrationfriday.com is another useful tool, where they give a word to interpret and draw before the following Friday. I will be posting many of these topics, as a way to test my discipline, and creativity week after week, all while building up my portfolio along the way... stay tuned!