Above is revision #8 of "Snakes Wear Socks", by new author Kyle Chandler-Isacksen.
And this is the latest revision, #9.
The cover is most important to get right. Besides the obvious, title, color and subject, it needs to bleed curiosity for the potential reader. Here, an excerpt taken from a book called "How to write a children's book". It reads; Your small reader will not wait for you to set up your background and describe your characters. If the story does not get off the ground right away, the child will simply pick up another book. Start your story off immediately with action. Grab the child's interest.
It goes on to read; A picture book text must be well-crafted so that few words will create a small drama for the reader.
Snakes Wear Socks. Oh, they do? Why? Hopefully, these are the questions you will ask when you see this cover.
CD Hullinger, Illustrator
I remember. Don't I?
It's really not so long ago that my days turned into night and then back again to dawn. The memory of dragging my tired but wired body to the coffee pot for one more shot of inspiration floods in. Yes, this I cannot forget. Bleed the red into yellow and then back again. Wait, one more dab of azure blue. The finishing touches, it's like icing on the cake. Stand back, yes, I think it is done. Here, let me smell the paint one more time. Ah, my shirt, my hands, my face are blotched with paint. Have I showered today? Yesterday? Is this the same bandanna from two days ago? Who cares, I'm going for a walk on the beach.
Those were the days.
Things are different now. The sound of my paint brush gliding across Bristol board has been replaced my the tapping of my keyboard. Undo, next, edit, file, image, filter, new layer and then flatten. It's done. Save, export, upload and then send. Just what the art buyer ordered, print ready art.
An email from a new illustrator friend reminded me of the days when the smell of paint was a part of my regiment. A day when canvas, brushes, rapidiographs and erasers filled my backpack. A 17" x 11" laptop complete with an external hard drive fills the spaces in my bag now.
I have mixed emotions about digital technology. I guess I like the fact that I can sit in any coffee shop anywhere and paint without the mess. Or traveling through the great friendly skies and opening my pavillion dv5 after the "buckle your seat belt" light goes off. I can deal with giving up the ink clogged rapidiographs, and the expense of all the different shades and tints. Yet somehow what I miss the most is the smell of paint. Here, let me log onto the HP website. Do they have scented laptops? Just a thought.
The process of inking Snakes Wear Socks.
Beginning stages of inking this drawing.
Currently, I am illustrating a book by new Author Kyle Chandler-Isacksen called “Snakes Wear Socks”. A quote from Kyle: "This is an endearing story of a boy who keeps “losing” his socks as autumn approaches. When he sees all the kids on his soccer team with the same problem, he knows there’s more a foot. The mystery is solved in a hilarious full-spread scene in a room full of surprised and slithering sock-wearing snakes."
...you know, the picture you are supposed to put on your website or post to your business Facebook.
You take the picture, upload it to your computer, do your magic in Photoshop and then POOF! You have a top rate photo ready for display.
I argue with myself all the time in business with the idea of "what you're supposed to be" as opposed to who you really are.
If a picture is worth a thousand words, what would you want it to say? What does this picture say?
The fact of the matter is, I am an illustrator. So, if we buy into the left brain/right brain theories, then artists (right-brained people) tend to be not very good at things like business, accounting, math, etc.
If that is the case, then I must give in to the fact that the right brained side of me is not depicted in the picture above. With that being said, let me post the real me:
Yes. Now this is more like it.
This is me after pulling an all-nighter on the latest project, or me after changing my mind 10 times, or me trying to withold mom wisdom from my two grown daughters, or me after arm wrestling with my wonderful companion on how it is I lost my keys, again.
It's true. Sometimes it is a struggle to be true to yourself. But what is more true sometimes is being OK with who you are. Thus the reason for this blog, behind the scenes at Rocket.
I resign to a title of a children's book by one of my favorite people, Jamie Lee Curtis. It is called "I'm Gonna Like Me".
I am CD Hullinger, Rocket Design Studios is my business and this blog is who I am, behind the scenes.
