Studio Tours

BEA did something cool this year. 23 book illustrators in the nearby New York area opened their studios to booksellers. This image is of a shared space: Sophie Blackall, Brian Floca, Ed Hemingway, John Bemelmans Marciano, and Sergio Ruzzier. Can you imagine working around such talented people every day!? Wowsa. CLICK HERE to find lots more great photos at Publishers Weekly.

Coloring Page Tuesday - Feasting on Cake!

     I'm sharing one more birthday images because, well, somebody has a birthday this week! And I can promise you that somebody will be eating cake... chocolate gluten-free cupcakes to be exact from Sally's Bakery. (Thank goodness its on the far side of town, otherwise this birthday babe would have quite the tire throughout the year!) But there's no guilt on a birthday - the calories don't stick! Right? RIGHT? I'll be diving in like this little kiddie.
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     Learn more about my fun picture book Glitter Girl and the Crazy Cheese - click the cover.

Publicists!

Friday I had a talk with my publicist at Little Pickle Press. (How fun is it to say THAT!?)
     Being a small publishing house run by a super-savvy business woman, they run things a little differently than most of the publishers I've worked with in the past. They approach things in a very smart and innovative way. AND everybody there has read my book and is trying to get to know it backwards and forwards so that they can do a good job selling it. (How many folks can say that about their large publishing house PR departments?)
      I feel like I am being taken very good care of - me and my book. And its got me positively giddy over the possibilities when my book finally comes out.
      Truly, after 12 years in the biz, I thought I had a pretty good idea of what it would be like to sell my first novel.
     Well, I had NO IDEA! It is such a thrill to have an entire team of people - strangers really - so invested in something that came out of my head!!!
     And the process that I've heard so many writers complain about... I have no complaints at all - just the opposite. Receiving my first editorial letter was like Christmas. Gosh, her suggestions have made my book better - GREAT advice and ideas! Talking to my publicist was like Christmas again. She is so sincerely invested! And knowing they all love and stand behind my book - it's like Christmas at 8-years-old when you got every. single. present. you asked for!!!!
     SO AWESOME!!!

The Prince's Diary in Singapore!!

Tarie Sabido recently tweeted me - my first picture book, THE PRINCE'S DIARY, was spotted at the Asian Festival of Children's Content in Singapore!!! Woosie!!

STRUCK by Jennifer Bosworth

How's THIS for a book trailer? WOWSA!

Thanks to SCBWI Blog on "The Power of Video as a Promotion Tool" for the heads up.

Subscribe to Dulemba.com via email

A friend alerted me to the fact that I no longer had a "subscribe via email" form on my blog. That has been remedied! If you look in the right sidebar, you'll see where you can input your email address. That way my posts will go straight to your inbox, rather than you checking my site each day.
     You can also subscribe to my RSS feed (a little further down under the ad). That's handy for blog reader programs and is another way to have my posts come straight to your in-box.
     And, of course, you can sign up to either my "e's news" newsletter, which only comes out when I have big news, AND/or "Coloring Page Tuesdays," which comes out each week!
     SO! I have lots of ways for us to stay in touch and I hope you'll use them!

MAYA WAS GRUMPY by Courtney Pippin-Mathur - GIVEAWAY!

It takes a lot of hard work to break into children's publishing. But sometimes you run across a person for whom you know it will only be a matter of time. Courtney Pippin-Mathur is one of those people. I've long been a fan of the gorgeous color palettes and exuberant line quality in her work. Sure enough, Flashlight Press recently published her first picture book, MAYA WAS GRUMPY, and it's worth your time! I spoke with Courtney...

Q. Courtney - CONGRATULATIONS on your debut picture book, MAYA WAS GRUMPY! I've been following your career for a while now - rooting for you. What was your path to publication?
A. I had been in contact with Shari (the editor for Flashlight Press) for over 7 years! And, she had turned down “Maya was Grumpy” twice. It wasn’t until 2011 that the stars aligned and she had the time to help this first time author/illustrator and her imprint was looking for slightly younger books.


Q. I've always loved your energetic illustration style. What is your method?
A. I sketch and sketch till the composition seems right, then I create the drawing on a piece of copy paper. I then enlarge the drawing if needed and trace it onto vellum so I have a master copy. Then I trace it onto the watercolor paper. I ink over the lines, erase my pencil marks and (after the ink is dry) I paint.

I call it “going with the flow” and use my inherent messiness to instill a bit of spontaneity in my work. This often involves many, many revisions until the color combinations are right and the watercolor works. Then, I scan the painting into photoshop for cleaning.

Q. You wrote and illustrated MAYA WAS GRUMPY. How was it to write too?
A. This story was pretty easy to write. Shari suggested some great edits and tweaks. Some [[stories]] have been much harder. The most difficult point for me is getting started. Once I have the story on paper, no matter how horrible it is, at least I have something to work with and will fiddle and tweak and think for days, weeks, months or even sometimes years.


Q. I love Maya's hair - it seems to reflect her mood as it gets wildly out of control, and then back under control again. How did you come up with that?
A. It has been a part of the story since I first wrote it years ago. I love visual jokes in picture books and thought this was a golden opportunity to have some fun. It also might have had something to do with my daughter’s naturally curly locks.

Q. All the fun ideas Maya's Gramma comes up with are so wonderful! I especially love the idea of bathing baby elephants! Did these just tickle you silly as you came up with them?


A. They did! The baby bathtub one was original, but I had them sliding down a frumpy dragon at first and chasing baby chickens instead of tickling tarantulas. This is why editors are awesome!

Q. Do you have any special events going on to celebrate the release of MAYA WAS GRUMPY?
A. Yep. I had my release reading at my favorite local bookstore, Hooray for Books in Alexandria VA and my husband organized a great cocktail party a few weeks ago to thank all of our family members and friends who helped along the way. I also hope to visit more bookstores this summer!

Congratulations again!

A. Thank You! It is a thrill to be on your blog. I am a huge fan and have loved your work for years!

GIVEAWAY!!
Courtney has kindly agreed to give a signed and dedicated copy of MAYA WAS GRUMPY! along with stickers to one of my lucky commenters! (Must live in the continental US to win.) Sign up below...
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What do frogs have to do with public health?

Frogs feature prominently in my new novel, because they are a warning flag for environmental damage. They breathe through their skin making them especially susceptible to toxins. And in our world where we keep using more and more chemicals, frogs are paying the price: "Study finds for the first time frogs and other amphibians declining around US at alarming rate."
     But so are people. Watch Tyrone Hayes, amphibian expert, and Penelope Jagessar Chaffer on "The Toxic Baby?"

     This is why I stand against Monsanto. They are rampant users of atrazine (click here for proof) and are one of the main reasons our world and our food is poisoning us. And yet, they have such sway with our congress, there is no legislation trying to stop or regulate them: Senate GOP Quashes attempt to overturn 'Monsanto Protection Act.'
     As I revise my novel, I'm trying to stay on top of environmental issues that I may get questions about when my book is released. It's disturbing to learn that such obvious harm is being committed without check, even when the results of these damaging products are staring us in the face.

Coloring Page Tuesday - Speed Reading Turtle!

     Will you be participating in a reading program this summer? Wonder how you'll get through it all? You could take up speed reading like this guy!

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Learn about proper parenting language and the power of choice in, Ready for Bed! , Ready for the Day!, and Ready to Play! - click the covers!

Happy Memorial Day!!

For those who are curious - this was at a state park less than an hour outside of Atlanta. Ahhhhh!

2013 SCBWI Southern Breeze Gallery Show

Friday night was opening night for our 2013 Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators Southern Breeze (Alabama, Georgia, Mississippi) Gallery Show hosted at the Decatur Library by the Georgia Center for the Book during the Decatur Arts Festival opening ArtWalk. We had ten artists showing their work in this year's show: Prescott Hill; Jill Dubin; Yours truly, Elizabeth Dulemba; Laura Freeman; Mark Braught; Laura Knorr (Braught); Bill Mayer; Susan Nees; and Sarah Frances Hardy.
     Many of the artists and their spouses were in attendance for opening night. (Click to see larger.) From the left is: Scott Nees; Susan Nees; Lisa Michaels - wife to Prescott Hill; Laura Freeman; me; Joe Davich of the Georgia Center for the Book; Bill Mayer; Amy Schimler; Lee Mayer, Mark Braught; and my hubbie Stan.

Each art piece was accompanied by its corresponding book title and it came together beautifully...




     Our opening night was a blast, catered by Badda Bing. We did a sketch challenge - each illustrator draws a few lines adding to an illustration that ends up being... well, that's anybody's guess!

When we finished with the challenge, two young attendees decided to do their own challenge... so cute.


I tried to do a better job with photos this year—so here are the illustrators with their work...
Amy Schimler...

Bill Mayer (who apparently always takes photos like this...)
Laura Freeman...

Mark Braught... (Unfortunately, his wife Laura couldn't make it to pose with her pieces...)

Prescott with his wife, Lisa...

Susan, celebrating her first time in the show...

And me, who apparently can't stay still long enough for her picture to be taken...

Not that I was the only goof that night...

     Afterwards we went to Colbeh Persian restaurant for a fun-filled fall apart. What a great time! Peeps, good art, good food, and general mayhem - what could be better?
     The intent of the show is to impart the idea that book art is art and that the children's books you enjoy are indeed works of art—performance art, which is not fully realized until being enjoyed by a reader.
     And while opening night is a blast - the real treasure is after we leave and the show is enjoyed by thousands of library patrons as they wander through. Stan and I went back the next day and were privy to some of the wonderful comments and interest in just the short time we were there.
     We're so grateful to the Decatur Library and the Georgia Center for the Book—the library is the perfect place to host our show!

Decatur Arts Festival

Hubbie and I just got home from enjoying the Decatur Arts Festival put on by the Decatur Arts Alliance. The weather was PERFECT, the crowds just right, and there were tons of new artists' works to enjoy. We purchased an interesting textural piece of a crow in a tree called "Sky High" by Lynn Reeder. It was hard to choose which piece to buy this year—there were so many we liked! But the one pictured above went home with us and joins our growing art collection.
     We had lunch at Out of the Pan, which was delicious southern fare - BBQ chicken and southern veggies - yum! We walked all the booths twice - trying to decide. We stopped by the new Hola! Cantina to chill out with a frozen margarita. And then we hung out around the gazebo listening to Shawn Mullins. What a wonderful day!!!
     To top it off, we're about to grill brats and a "pillow o' joy" - that'd be onions and peppers steamed in tin-foil on the grill - yum! What a nice way to celebrate this holiday weekend!

Ingram Publisher Services Adds Four Publishers

Ingram Publisher Services Adds Four Publishers and one of them is MY publisher - Little Pickle Press! This is GREAt news as it will help get my novel out to more readers when its released! YAY!

Children's Book Art Online Auction

Children's Book Art Online Auction It runs through May 24th, so get on it! (And by the way, my birthday is in June!)

Coloring Page Tuesday - Fairy Poetry

     It's been a while since my last reading-themed coloring page, which I remedy with this absorbed fairy and her lovely book of poems.

     Sign up to receive alerts when a new coloring page is posted each week and... Please check out my books! Especially...


Learn about proper parenting language and the power of choice in, Ready for Bed! , Ready for the Day!, and Ready to Play! - click the covers!