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Apparently Mary is a pretty popular Inuit name.... A character for my Doppo stories which appear to be writing themselves. I won't complain.
Also, my friend Drazen was just interviewed in a Chinese arts magazine. Check out
this beautiful spread.
Above is Doppo the Arctic fox, one of my favorite characters to draw. I probably sketched it in under a minute.
Just got home from the city. I live right on the outskirts and need to travel downtown to get art supplies. I took the GoTrain which is part of Toronto's mass transit system. It goes from here (Etobicoke) to downtown Toronto in about 15 minutes. On the way it winds through all these industrial backlots and crumbling Victorian brick factories. I love that trip. After the train drops me off it keeps going west to Aldershot, which is known for it's military base. I am always tempted to stay on the train and keep going. I almost get overwhelmed with curiosity every time. I've never been that far west and I wonder what's out there.
I went in town to buy pencils. I bought a huge pile of 3Bs which is currently my hardness of choice. Just soft enough to give a rich dark line but not so soft that it disappears in one drawing session, eaten up by the electric pencil sharpener. I also bought jogging pants. This has been one unhealthy winter.
Also, today draws to a close what has become n annual search for an agent. I've had problems with this. It's funny but I have an easier time getting published than I do getting an agent. Whenever I've had a really good idea it never seems to take long to find a home for it. Agencies are different. I don't know why but I have some guesses. I think your relationship with a publisher is short term. You do a book and that's it, no real obligation after that. With agencies it's different, the relationship is meant to be a reciprocal one that ought to last for a long time, years. Another thing is marketing. An agent is as concerned with how well they can market you, maybe more so than how talented you are. And how well an agency can market you can depend on how well you fit into the overall style of artists they already represent. If you're too different than their other artists it can be hard to market you and if you're too close to their current artists it might create redundancy in their agency or even competitiveness.
In any case, this round of agent hunting is over. Now it's phase two. Which is a funny way of saying I'm putting together proposals to send to publishers. So far this has been the most effective thing I've done. I think my ideas are good and publishers like the idea of one person doing both the story and the art for picture books and comic books. I think the industry seems to be moving that way.
Anyway, that's enough rambling for today.
I spent much of the train trip meeting denizens of the frozen tundra in preparation for a book I'll do some day, doppo, and had a lot of fun exploring. There are a number of other creatures but I'm in Nova Scotia and don't have a scanner so I'm stuck posting whatever photographs best....
This is a wandering spirit of the Canadian north. I drew it in bed last night.
I've been so bogged down with projects right now I've neglected any other drawings. I've missed several life drawing classes and my sketchbook is sitting unused on a pile of books. So I took some time last night to do some sketching, inspired by the Moomintrolls. Even though this looks nothing like the Moomintrolls. Doppo is a character who was initially meant for the Maddy Kettle books but I'm considering doing a book just for him some time in the future. I've always wanted to do a silly, quiet children's story where not much happens but what does happen is interesting.. If that makes sense. I'm thinking Doppo is an Arctic Fox, or Snow Fox, who lives in a little brick house in the Canadian tundra. Te stories would be about him and his neighbors, snow giants, ghosts and other things with out names. I'll keep sketching and writing while I wok on other stuff.
A character that won't be in the first Maddy Kettle book....
A new face in the Cloudscape. Doppo is a cloud cartographer from 100 years before Harry and Silvio's time and he will have a major role in book 2 of Maddy Kettle ( if they let me do a book 2). Yesterday I found myself mapping out a huge overall story arc to the Maddy Kettle books. I'm sure this'll change as I go along. I'm so excited about these stories.
I like the character Doppo you drew. I like 3B pencils too but they are not a readily available as 2B, at least at the local art supply store.
Thanks for sharing that bit on getting an agent. I have been debating seeking out an agent for myself. A writer I am illustrating for has been seeking out an agent for our book collaboration (I have heard it is necessary for book publishing). I have attempted to send examples of work to publishers but have had nothing come of it.