Hello all! I'm popping in for a quick update about appearances. With SNIPPET now released into the wild and ZOE'S ROOM coming soon, I will be out and about for the following events:
1. Sausalito Public Library, (Sausalito, CA) May 3rd at 7:30 pm. Amy Novesky and I will speak about picture books and our careers as authors (adult event).
2. Books, Inc. (Marina store, San Francisco, CA) on May 18th at 11:00 am: Story time reading for kids
3. The Reading Bug (San Carlos, CA) on May 25th at 11:00 am: Reading and activity for kids
4. Book Passage (Corte Madera, CA) on June 29th at 4:00 pm: Children's event! Amy Novesky, Deborah Underwood and I will be presenting our latest picture books.
Today is the official publication date for SNIPPET THE EARLY RISER, my new picture book. The reviews so far have been very positive, including a fun review from Michael Ian Black in this week's
New York Times. The NYT review is a first for me, and as a previous NYC dweller who religiously pored over the NYT Book Review every Sunday, it is an especially lovely gift.
In the past, I've blogged about the inspiration for my books (or more accurately, the "special" kind of crazy that is my thought process), and once again, I am back to ramble. The idea for this book was born 3 years ago when my early risers were having quite an impact on my life. (And my coffee consumption.) It's rough on both sides of that fence, though. Yes, there was adult sleep deprivation, but think of the poor kids -- what a monumental job it is to rouse a large, immovable lump from bed.
I started to think about characters. I wanted to use animals—lazy animals. Sloths? Pigs? My sketchbook has many pages of options, but as soon as I began sketching snails, I knew I had my characters. Just think of the difficult job a poor young snail has in trying to coax sleeping parents from their impenetrable shells!
After the character decision was made came the fun of thinking about snails and their daily lives. They do present some unique challenges, given their lack of hands, arms, and legs. What
does a young snail do for fun? That was the question. One day as I was hiking, I found my answer. (I actually went home, grabbed my camera, and went back to take this photo...so excited was I about the idea...and so certain that someday, I would want it as evidence.)
It was abundantly clear to me that the snail who left this trail had either eaten too many fermented leaves or was simply having fun, expressing himself—doing snail donuts, shall we say? Making drawings? Clearly, he was not in a hurry to get anywhere. Perhaps he was daydreaming as he wandered about. As soon as I began to think of snails as creative creatures, the story took shape.
Many thanks to the people who shepherded this story on its road to publication: Mary Kole, Joanne Taylor, Michele Burke, and Sarah Hokanson.
Please visit my
website to view the trailer and learn more about the book.
Continuing on with my lists of new happenings and "firsts" from the previous month:
1. First time on the "other side" of an SCBWI conference. I participated in the debut picture book author panel along with Sue Fliess and Sandra V. Feder at the Northern California SCBWI Fall conference. I had a blast.
2. Our first Halloween in Pacific Palisades where the home decorating began in early October and has become more over the top by the day. Even my husband, who has never decorated before, could not resist a full-scale effort in the front yard. Needless to say, the anticipation level in the house has been HIGH.
3. I'm working on the images for my first book that will NOT be done with watercolor and pen/ink. While I've always maintained that I like the built in constraints of watercolor, I have to admit that I'm revelling in the possibilities. And to that end:
4. First time I've used acrylic paint for a book.
5. First time I've used collage for a book.
6. First time I've used (gasp) my computer for a book.
7. First time one of my books will be at Barneys New York! Beginning in November! Go Zoe!
8. First time my six year old's piano skills have exceeded my own. I am in awe of how quickly kids learn at that age.
9. First time I've gone to the beach in late October and wished I had worn a swimsuit. (Ah, Southern California...will I ever get used to you?)
10. The final first is a secret, and shall remain so for at least a little while longer. Stay tuned. :)
September was filled with plenty of firsts:
1. We have our first terrarium in the house, and in a strange case of life imitating art (since my next picture book is about a family of snails), the girls wanted to have snails. We now have three of them. We also had one temporary tenant: a caterpillar that became a moth and fluttered off into the September sky.
2. First look at ZOE'S ROOM! The unbound galley arrived last week. It's always a treat to page through the book and see all of the art together after many, many months of work. The colors are striking and rich.
3. First visit to the Lake Shrine here in Pacific Palisades. We explored the meditation gardens that surround an exquisite lake. Turtles, dragonflies, and koi abound. The girls don't even mind that they have to be quiet.
4. First approval of sketches from Candlewick. This is my first book with Candlewick, and the process has been so enjoyable. I'm very eager to start painting.
5. First listen to the music for the SNIPPET trailer from my brother! May I just say—awesomeness.
6. First visit to Safari West on a full moon night. Is there anything better than being serenaded by wild critters while roughing it in a tent (okay, luxury cabin) under the harvest moon?
7. First set of sketches submitted for the new project I mentioned last month. Lots of nail biting here. It is both terrifying and exhilarating since the finished pieces will be done in a style unlike any of my picture books to date.
8. First offer for a book that I have not yet written. (Again, lots of nail biting.)
9. First time at the Casa Madrona in Sausalito. It was fun to be tourists in our home town.
10. First time my purchases of vintage books can be written off for a project. I think eBay is calling me now...
Happy October!
As some of you have noticed, my blogging has been sporadic in recent months. This is partly due to summer and partly due to the fact we’re still adjusting to the move we made eight months ago. But mostly, I’ve been busy with work.
I’ve really missed blogging though, so I’ve come up with a simple way to keep at it. As I make my way down this author/illustrator path, my career continues to surprise me with new and wonderful things at every turn. Life, too. Let’s just call these “firsts”. So, on the first of each month, I thought I’d post a list of the past month’s “firsts”. In no particular order, here we go:
- First storyboard drafts for two (TWO!) book trailers
- First set of thumbnails for a new (phenomenal, wonderful, fantastic) book that I will be illustrating
- On a related note: first contract to illustrate someone else’s picture book (cue the thumping of my heart, both out of love for the manuscript and terror about doing it justice)
- First draft of a new Zoe book
- First day of first grade for my daughter
- First time our thermostat exceeded 90 degrees. Indoors, people.
- First ever meeting with a TV producer (I'm in LA so it was only a matter of time)
- First time running the Santa Monica stairs (FYI, Santa Monica sissies, your stairs are NOTHING compared to my Sausalito stairs)
- First draft of an accordion book for a personal project
- First time I’ve completed a homemade Halloween costume in August. Let’s hope she doesn’t outgrow it before October.
And...a first look for you. This is one of my favorite images from the upcoming SNIPPET (Knopf, March 2013). Happy September and wishing you all many great firsts!
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| In many ways, Snippet was an ordinary snail. He drew on the sidewalk. |
A few weeks ago, I visited a bunch of schools during a trip to New York. I don't have much extra time in my schedule for school visits, but when I do, I sure LOVE them. They are fun and inspiring and humbling. Plus, I often receive the most amazing gifts, like these works of art:
I've introduced an imaginary character into my school presentations. I'm always amazed and heartened to witness the eagerness of young children to engage in silliness and shenanigans. The character makes appearances in my talk, but overall, he is somewhat mysterious. He plays two roles. One, he is the crazy guy. I have a hard time being the clown, but I'm always happy to have one next to me. Two, he stirs the students' imaginations. At the end of my presentations, many of the questions are about the character; this makes me very happy. I encourage the children to come up with their own answers to these questions and to write their own stories. The importance of including magic, mystery, and wonder in children's lives can't be overrated.
One school asked me to speak about reading and literacy for an annual event. I found it very difficult to find the right words. My beliefs about reading and its value are so deep and go so far back in my life, that they are almost beyond verbal. They just ARE. In much the same way that I know I need to eat, breathe, move and sleep to stay alive, I know that I need to read. Finding words -- especially the right words for elementary children -- was a good challenge. Here's an excerpt:
"Every time I open a book, it’s like opening a gift. I like to think of it this way: for each of us, there is a perfect book out there, just waiting to be discovered. A perfect book that’s so
perfectly perfect, it will change your life. It will make you see the world in a new way. And once you’ve read one perfect book, you understand just how much fun and joy is waiting for you inside other books. You’ll read and read. Your world will get bigger and bigger until you know everything. And once that happens, you will solve all of the world’s problems and figure out how to live on the moon or maybe mars and most importantly, you’ll get to choose your own bedtime. Which will probably be early, so you can snuggle in and read more books."
Simultaneous to all of this focus on books and reading in my professional life, my eldest daughter has begun to read.
Voraciously. And I am witnessing the birth of a reader from a whole new perspective -- that of a parent. We've hit a couple of new milestones in the past month:
1. I'm starting to witness reading related injuries, i.e. walking into doors because her nose is buried in a book.
2. She's pronouncing words incorrectly because she's never heard them, she's only read them. My favorite instance of this happened recently when she announced at the dinner table, "I'm surrounded by a bunch of dwebs."
Needless to say, both of these things make me ooze with pride.
I'll be at Children's Book World and Mrs. Nelson's in LA soon. See
this post for details!
More words about the past few weeks to come soon, but for now, here is a brief summary:
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| At one of my many school visits, feeling very tall amongst the tiny chairs and tiny people. |
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| At ALA, feeling very small amongst the towers of books and giants of the book world. |
I'm gearing up for some Zoe Gets Ready events; here is a comprehensive list for the next couple of months.
I'll be in San Francisco for this:
May 19th, Book Passage, Corte Madera, CA
4:00 pm: Launch Party! Cupcakes! Stickers! Come! More info here.
I will be back in my old Western New York stomping grounds in June. I'm doing a whole bunch of school visits, plus:
June 13th: Liftbridge Books, Brockport, NY
(morning activity, time TBD, please check their calendar)
June 15th: Arts Council of Wyoming County, Perry, NY
6:00 pm: Speaking and signing books. More info here.
Then back to LA again:
June 23rd: ALA Convention, Anaheim, CA
Signing books from 11:00-12:00.
July 21st: Children's Book World, Los Angeles, CA
10:30 am: Reading and activities
July 22nd: Mrs. Nelson's Toy and Book Shop, La Verne, CA
Time TBD. Please check their website
And although this is not a Zoe event, I am including it here because I will be there. I'm hoping to see lots of familiar author and illustrator faces!
August 3-5: SCBWI National Conference, Los Angeles, CA
I plan to do more posts about my projects, process, etc. soon. Thanks for visiting!
As soon as I heard Zoe Gets Ready would be in the window of the Scholastic Store on Broadway, I HAD to go. Due to a couple of ridiculous schedules (mine, my husband's), the trip was very quick. But oh, was it worth it! My agent has already written about it on her blog; please check it out for better coverage than you'll get from me in my current, sleep-deprived state.
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| The window! That's my wonderful editor, Cheryl Klein on the left. |
Here are the stickers that Mary mentions in her post. Even the Scholastic grownups were not immune to their charms.
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| Zoe stickers: repositionable and good for hours of fun. |
On a personal note, it was the first time I've been back to Manhattan in over 12 years. I lived there for six years in the 90s. In addition to the book stuff, I was able to spend a leisurely morning with my brother, a leisurely afternoon with one of my dearest friends in the world, stroll along the High Line (such a phenomenally brilliant idea), take in the SVA MFA Illustration Thesis Show (My Alma Mater! Fantastic work!), and snap photos of the restaurant where my husband and I went on many of our early dates almost 17 years ago. All in all, a good day.
Today is Zoe's birthday!
Zoe Gets Ready is officially on shelves now. I realize I've done very little rambling about this book on my blog. So...
Zoe Gets Ready is a story about how one little girl chooses her outfit for the day. It is Saturday and no one tells young Zoe which uniform or pants or skirt are required. Zoe surveys her closet and gleefully imagines how each item might allow her to more fully experience the day.
While this book is covered with glittery little girlie goodness, it contains some very universal messages.
Zoe Gets Ready is a story about the power of daydreaming. It is an ode to unstructured time. And in a world where we are often encouraged to fit into predefined, predetermined costumes and characters, this story is a reminder that the right outfit can make you feel more like
yourself—not someone else. It acknowledges the complexity of identity—that on any given day, for example, there are moments when we choose to be bold and moments when we choose to be meek. Most of all, it celebrates the ability to believe in unlimited possibilities.
I'm very proud of this book. Many thanks to my editor, Cheryl Klein, for her vision.
There are all kinds of great ZOE GETS READY events on the horizon, beginning with
my book launch at Book Passage on May 19th at 4:00 pm.
Praise for
Zoe Gets Ready:
This seemingly simple idea subtly encompasses much larger themes about creativity and independence. With layers of meaning, a spunky, fun-loving heroine, and clever use of the butterfly motif throughout, this one is a keeper.
—Booklist
Finishing the illustrations is not the end! I have to remember to leave time to prepare the illustrations for shipping. I've experimented with a number of preparation methods. These days, I am covering the images with vellum and shipping them inside a folder. I learned how to do traditional bookbinding in art school; various aspects of that process have come in handy for the folder construction.
It's somewhere around this stage that I begin kick myself for working traditionally. It's so much work to get a package together—not to mention the fear of it getting lost or destroyed en route. But I love to think about the recipient opening the package and spreading out the images. People can gather around and look at them all at once. Is there an equivalent moment when digital files are sent? It seems very different to me.
Congrats to both Janel and Seekingzeal! I've decided to send BOTH of you a t-shirt. Please email me at bethanie (at) aquapup (dot) com with your mailing address as well as which size shirt you would prefer: extra small (2-4) or small (6-8).
For those of you in the Bay Area, I'll be at Books, Inc. in the Marina this Saturday (June 11th) at 11:00 AM. Please join me for a reading and activities for kids. Spread the word!
Hi everyone! I had fun working on this week's IF with my daughter. (Mine above, hers below.) I explained to her what remedy meant and she immediately drew a chocolate ice cream cone. Is there any more perfect remedy than ice cream?! I am humbled. :)
I haven't been blogging as much as usual for the last month or so. We are attempting to sell our house. The process of living in it, staging it and keeping two kids and a dog at bay has taken up its fair share of time. Fingers-crossed for a quick and smooth transition so I can get back to more painting and drawing.
In the meantime, I have a guest post over at the
Guide to Literary Agents blog. We're also giving away a copy of my book -- just comment on that blog post for a chance to win. Happy weekend!
Groundswell: okay, maybe it's not exactly the true meaning of the word...
I had some fun playing with pencil and photoshop rather than my usual pen and watercolor. I'm including both of my experiments. Happy Friday!
My custom bookplates have finally arrived! If you'd like a signed and/or personalized bookplate, please send me a SASE along with the name(s) for personalization. Please
email me for my address.
Checking in with a quick Illustration Friday. Whenever the new chicks in the neighborhood hatch, they spend some time in a little coop. It is like a feature presentation for the dogs -- they sit in rapt attention with noses through the chicken wire for hours on end. Happy Saturday!
Fairytale Town was a blast: great weather, great audience AND I got to sit on a throne. Really, what more could a person ask for? Here are a few shots from today's ScholarShare author event: me doing a bug dance with the kids, reading, answering questions and being mobbed for fun giveaways. After my presentation, the lovely Kristi Yamaguchi took the stage.
If you are in the Sacramento area and have children, you must stop by this amazing place. We had to drag my girls away.
Happy weekend everyone. I have a few book related updates: first of all, if any of you pick up the 2012
Children's Writer's and Illustrator's Market, you'll find an interview with yours truly on page 167. This year's format is really great -- it's become so much more than just a listing of publishers. Also, Scholastic books just released their
Spring 2012 preview. Check out the picture book interviews for a quick sneak peek of
Zoe Gets Ready, due out in May. Thanks for stopping by!
I've been drawing lots of birds this week. Meet Burly Bird (on the left). I haven't named the little guy yet.
But here is now Los Angeles, and I have been buried (in a good way, of course) with work. I'm realizing that I haven't even done a brief update on the blog. So, in no particular order:
1. We've moved 400 miles away from Sausalito to Los Angeles, aka The Land of the Leafblower. I have plenty of thoughts and observations about my new home, and I hope to do a series of LA impressions at some point, but that will have to wait a while, because:
2. I am in the middle of final art for not one, but two picture books. I'm hard at work on SNIPPET (Knopf), an energetic little snail who drives his family crazy by waking up too early AND another ZOE book. Zoe is back and now, she must share her room--her precious room--with her little sister. But wait, who's Zoe, you ask? That's right, I keep forgetting...
3. ZOE GETS READY (Arthur A. Levine/Scholastic) is not on shelves yet. But it will be soon (May)! And the trailer is finished. You can view it here. I'll be sharing more info as we get closer to the release date. In the meantime...
4. Back to work. *Cracks whip* I apologize for being out of touch. I miss my blogging friends and promise to post more frequently once the painting frenzy is over!
I've been thinking a lot about process lately. The next few posts will be focused on the nuts and bolts of my illustration process. I'm always curious about the details—how people do what they do. Please feel free to share in the comments if you have any good tips or tricks.
First, though, a bit of housekeeping: I've got a number of events planned for Zoe Gets Ready, which will be in stores on May 1st.
1. Book Passage Book Launch, Corte Madera, CA: May 19th at 4:00pm. Please join me for a reading and treats. 2. Children's Book World, Los Angeles, CA, June 23rd. This will be my first reading at Children's Book World, one of the most fantastic bookstores for children that I have visited. My daughters agree. 3. Wyoming County, NY: I'll be back in my old stomping grounds for a week in June. I'm thrilled to be doing an event with the Arts Council as well some school visits.
And now that the housekeeping has been attended to...
Beginning:
I work traditionally in watercolor and ink. I begin by stretching paper. This doesn't actually involve any pushing or pulling (as is the case when stretching canvas) -- the simple process of wetting and stapling the paper down accomplishes that task. First, I cut the paper to size. Next, I soak it in the tub for a few minutes. I give it a few quick shakes to get rid of excess water, and then I staple it to a board. I let it dry for at least a day. I use a staple gun with the semicircular staples that are intended to go over wires. I find that these are easiest to remove when the painting is finished.
Following the previous post about the beginning of my process (stretching paper), this one is about the middle—making marks on paper.
From left to right:
Wash brush (Aqualine Raphael, XL): I thoroughly lucked out and bought this at a huge discount—squirrel hair and so thirsty! The XXL version is on my wish list. :)
Flat brush(?): I forget the technical name for this brush, but it is great for laying down water when working wet-in-wet.
Painting brushes (Winsor Newton Series 7): I finally broke down and bought these guys after being reprimanded at a workshop for using cheap brushes. They are great for many things, but I must admit that I still like my cheap brushes for certain kinds of detail work. Even though the expensive brushes can have very fine tips, I sometimes find that the softness of the hair makes detail work tougher for me. In general though, expensive brushes are worth the cost for their ability to do beautiful washes.
Waterproof ink and Speedball nib: I use this pen for most all of my line work.
Palette
My watercolor painting process has been cobbled together from various books and occasional workshops over the years. For a long time, I favored a very limited palette of transparent colors: cobalt blue, permanent rose and aureolin. Over the years, I've added others: thalo blue, manganese blue, raw sienna, burnt sienna, quinacridone gold and sap green. For my most recent project that included a number of nighttime scenes, I used indigo and also experimented with acrylic washes. There are a few other colors on the palette that I'm testing, but haven't really integrated into my work yet.
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This is so exciting....I am thrilled for you Bethanie. Have fun, Jane x