UPCOMING EVENT

My friend, Regina Sadowski, has composed a score to accompany my picture book "Roger, the Jolly Pirate". We will be performing it on May 6th in Manhattan at the Bloomingdale School of Music in Manhattan. After the music, I'll be doing some drawing with the kids, or anyone else. I hope that you can make it. Here's a link for the details. bsmny.org

The STORM MAKERS

Thank you for all the nice comments on "the Storm Makers". Several of you noticed the lettering on the cover. I thought you might like to see a piece of the process that I go through to work out the lettering on a cover. Every image starts with a very quick rough sketch, just to get an idea down. In the sketches above you can see the initial idea for this cover, and a hint of the idea I had for the title.

This is my first attempt at refining the lettering. I later decided a more calligraphic approach would be more interesting. Below is an early sketch of the final idea

The creative process is very important. For every painting you see there are many, many drawings that lead up to the final image. If you are interested in making pictures, learn this process. Start with a rough idea the redraw and refine until you have an image that you are happy with.

THE STORM MAKERS

This is the cover art for a new book, "The Storm Makers"

by Jennifer Smith, and a spread from the interior.

This is another painting made from a quick drawing in my sketchbook

Check out last week's post.

CHARACTER STUDY

When I work in my sketchbook I spend most of my time drawing faces.

I have books fill almost completely with quick character studies. I am not usually thinking of a specific character I just draw. This is also how I develop a character for a book, I just draw and draw until I start to see something that I like. Occasionally when I have time I take a drawing from a sketchbook and paint it. That is what the study above is. You never know, maybe he'll show up in a book someday.

Hopefully you are all out enjoying your last minute holiday shopping.

I'm trying to finish a new picture book, "Grumpy Goat". This is one of many not quite finished pictures. I'll have a few more to show soon. Happy Holidays.

Upcoming Event

Please join us at Pink Olive in Park Slope for the first ever Milk + Bookies store event in Brooklyn! Milk + Bookies is a non-profit organization that exposes children to how great it feels to give back while celebrating the love of a good book. By inviting children to donate a new book to children who have none of their own, Milk + Bookies inspires a new generation of philanthropists while supporting literacy efforts. There will be story time readings by three very special children’s book authors listed below, and of course, milk and cookies!

Pink Olive, in launching its new foundation, feedforlife.org, will match all book donations that day! From Pink Olive, the books will go to Madison Square Boys & Girls Club of NYC who will distribute the books to needy children around the city.

Story Time Readings in order of appearance:

11am - Sally Lloyd-Jones: Author of How to Be a Baby by Me Big Sister

12pm - Brett Helquist: Author/illustrator of Bedtime for Bear; Brett will conduct a drawing activity as well, teaching children how to draw a bear.

1pm - Caitlin Friedman: Author of How Do You Feed a Hungry Giant?