Reading Gives You Super Powers by Dav Pilkey

It speaks for itself. Click on the image to go watch the video.

Illustration Challenge #17

Remember the image you colored last week? Take the copy you made and choose one point in the illustration where you want the viewers eye to go. Use your most saturated colors and highest contrast in that spot before you color the rest of the image. You have the power!

Welcome Week at the Uni

Welcome week is also known as Freshers Week at the University of Edinburgh, and it has been packed with activities to make any lonely new student feel at home with everything from horse-back rides, to hikes up Arthur's Seat, to Ceilidhs, to a Harry Potter sorting hat ceremony. Most of it was geared to Undergrads, but there were plenty of events targeted to Postgrads as well.
     Along with a Ceilidh (pronounced Kay-lee), and a folk music party, I attended no less than three induction meetings. One was in the College of Art with all my new Post Grad compadres. They were all too insane to take photos, so you'll have to go with me in my mind's eye...
     The school of Landscape Design and Architecture has the largest student body of all the arts this year. And while the majority of students seem to be Asian, students have come from all over the world to attend one of the best schools in the world. This school is incredibly competitive which makes for a very enlightened and inspiring student body!
     The most impressive induction meeting was held for all the Postgrads (in all the various colleges) at Assembly Hall on the Mound.      I've learned not to trust google when it comes to mapping how to get around in this city because it doesn't take altitude into account. One of the most difficult treks in this city takes you DOWN into the Prince's Street gardens and then UP again to the mound where the castle resides. But there was no avoiding it for this meeting, because that's where Assembly Hall looms over the city. To give you an idea, here was the view of the city from the front door. Inside was just as impressive. We entered an amazing courtyard. Not at all intimidating. I got there early, which is why I was able to get this shot. But it soon filled up with Post Grad students and we gathered in line to go in.      Inside the building at last, we heard from the Vice President and heads of various departments about all the resources available to us. All this while we sat in a building that dates back to 1858 for a school that began in 1582. Yes, you read that right - 1582.      After the meeting, we were served coffee and tea in a gathering room. I've been loving these opportunities to meet my fellow Post Grads. I actually met a Creative Writing MFA from Washington, DC (hi, Calder!), an Interior Design student from Shanghai (hi, Gloria!), and a Linguistics student from Greece (hi, Katriana!). On the way in, I met an Art MA from Ireland (hi, Naeve!). It's been like that all week. And everybody speaks English (a requirement to attend here), granted at various levels of proficiency. So there's been lots of opportunities for me to practice my Spanish and French. In fact, the girl sitting across from me in our new studio space is from Spain (hi, Catherine!). More on that soon. Meanwhile, more eye candy:

Friday Linky List - September 18, 2015

From Tales from the Slush Pile (via SCBWI British Isles) Keeping the Darkness on the Page - a Writer's Guide to Building Resilience

From Jane Friedman (via SCBWI British Isles) - 2 Stammer Verbs to Avoid in Your Fiction

From CandyGourlay.com What is the Future of Children's Books? Interesting post!

From SLJ and Travis Jonker's 100 Scope Notes: Come With Me Down the Picture Book Parody Rabbit Hole

Drom Digital Book World: Spotlight on Understanding Audiences: Why Facebook Cannot Help You Sell Books by Michael Alvear!

From Noblemania: Proust Questionnaire: Kidlit Edition, round 1 (Fun!)

From Seven Scribes: Writing Begins With Forgiveness: Why One of the Most Common Pieces of Writing Advice Is Wrong

Anne Marie Perks on the Illustration Masterclass photo montage (at Amherst)

Via StumbleUpon: There's a Word for That: 25 Expressions You Should Have in Your Vocabulary - I am feeling very numinous! :)

From The New Yorker: The National Book Awards Longlist: Young People's Literature

From Babbel: How Learning 11 Languages Taught Me 11 Crucial Lessons - and watch the video!

Rana DiOrio's WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE KIND - guest post

WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE KIND
Written by Rana DiOrio
Illustrated by Stephane Jorisch
      Strangely, or serendipitously, I have not previously been asked to reveal the story-behind-the-story of What Does It Mean To Be Kind? So, what you are about to hear is known only to me and my Cowboy, Reg.
      I met Reg 21 years ago when he was selling financial printing services and I was a young corporate securities lawyer (aka “deal jock”) during the Tech Boom in Silicon Valley. I was working 80–100 hour weeks and many of those were attributable to all-nighters at the financial printers, babysitting revisions to pages in registration statements bound for the Securities and Exchange Commission. Fun times.
      During one of those long nights when I was proofing pages alone in a big conference room at 2 am, I started to sob softly. I was lonely, burned-out, and, well, feeling sorry for myself. Much to my surprise, Reg walked in and sat down next to me placing a box of tissues in front of me, “Here you go, RaneDear.” That's all he said. And I proceeded to unload my misery on him. I told him that this wasn’t the life I had imagined for myself. He listened patiently for quite some time. Then he encouraged me to maintain perspective and to persevere. He left me to get my work done as he got some work done himself, then he walked me to my car as dawn broke. He was kind to me.       I was also friends with Reg’s wife, Elise, and they invited me to work out with them at their gym on Saturdays. Reg and Elise worked out five days a week, and I had never seen the inside of a gym before that point. You can only imagine the patience required to incorporate a newbie into their training regimen. But Reg wanted to make sure I had a good time, so he really took care of me. He was kind to me.
      We maintained our friendship through his two and my three marriages. During that time he had two children and I had three. In March 2013 he reached out to me from Denmark where he was living and working. He was raising capital for his company and wondered if I could help him. I said, of course. While on Spring Break with my family we Skyped to brainstorm potential investors. It was then we realized that for the first time in twenty years neither of us was married or in a relationship. We hatched a plan to meet in London in September 2013—what’s another 6 months when you’ve already waited twenty years, right?
      In September, I flew to London to visit friends. Reg and I made plans to have dinner on Friday night. I had not seen Reg in person for 10 years. Reg is not on any social media, so I had not even seen a picture of him during that time. As the cab drove me through the rain to the restaurant, I had butterflies in my stomach like a teenager heading to a first date.       When I arrived at the restaurant, I got out of the cab with my big umbrella and approached the windows slowly. There he was, sitting at the front corner table looking down at his phone. He was wearing a suit and tie. He had a full beard that I could tell had just been trimmed and a new haircut. He looked magnificent. I stared at him for at least five minutes, smiling, before I lightly tapped on the window to get his attention. He met me at the entrance of the restaurant. As the hostess waited, he said, “RaneDear, you look as lovely as the last time I saw you.” Then, he put his hands on my face and said, “So there’s no question about whether this will happen tonight . . .” and he kissed me slowly and tenderly. He was kind to me.
      We enjoyed a memorable dinner. We shared stories and laughed. We caught up on a decade of life. We talked a lot about our children. We shared pictures on our phones. We discussed what it is like to be a parent today and how it was different for our parents. Then Reg asked me, “What is the single most important thing you want to teach your children?” I answered, “To be kind.” He responded, “That’s your next book.”
      I started to write the manuscript on my long haul flight back to San Francisco. Reg and I began seeing one another every five or six weeks. I shared my drafts with him and continued to refine the manuscript whenever I was at 35,000 feet. Truth is, I have written all of my titles on long haul flights. As a former investment banker, I’ve always associated long flights with uninterrupted time to get work done. Almost two years from our first date when the inspiration hit, we published What Does It Mean To Be Kind?

+ + + + + + + + + + + +

Press release announcing title and #BeKind campaign
Early reviews of the title Here and Here

Rana’s bio:
      Rana has written her way through life—as a student, a lawyer, an investment banker, a private equity investor, and now as an author and publisher of award-winning children’s media. Her interests include practicing yoga, reading non-fiction and children’s books, dreaming, helping entrepreneurs to realize their dreams, effecting positive change in the world, and, of course, being global, green, present, safe, and kind. She lives in San Francisco, California with her Cowboy and three Little Pickles. Follow Rana DiOrio on Twitter @ranadiorio.

A Sunday Walk continued

So, two miles from our flat, on foot, we reach the Firth of Forth in Newhaven. Water!The beach here is wild and rocky with black grasses, rocks, clams, and seagulls. A marina is off to the west full of boats sitting on their bottoms since the tide is out. The air is thick with brine and waves lap against the rocks. The clouds are breaking up, illuminating the far shore which is quilted with various crops of brown, green, and chartreuse. An island sits in the middle of the Firth with enormous ships passing by it, sailing to who knows where.
      It takes us so little time to find ourselves in a completely different world here - I love it. We wandered west into Granton for a bit, but that will require more research as it seems to be a true working harbor. Anybody know of some good places to eat in Granton? Not finding one, we headed back east towards Newhaven in search of breakfast. We passed some interesting sites on the way. I loved this shell gargoyle. Anybody know what this thing on the right was?         We passed an adorable pub (not yet open, although I'm not sure the owner had been to bed yet), and were directed towards The Haven for breakfast. Stan is a fan of the breakfast rolls here and I did scrambled eggs, GF toast and roasted tomatoes. YUM.
     Refortified, and so much farther east than we'd expected, we went ahead to Leith to continue our path home. You remember Leith?The trail picks up along the Water of Leith (a river), so we followed. The river is full of swans and their babies.Turning inland, we pass gardens. Folks rent plots of land where they grow flowers, vegetables, etc. And every single one has a shed. No two are alike so it ends up looking like a wildly eclectic and creative patchwork.      We also pass birch trees. They remind me of Ruth Sanderson's illustrations.As so happens, the trail leads back around to where we started and we go back through the long tunnel.Up the hill and back to our quiet little street and our lovely little flat. Can you see our little pot of oregano? It's doing very well. I hope to have spilling flowers there next spring.Stan says we walked about seven miles total, although it didn't feel like it. We meandered, I took pictures, we had a nice breakfast and we stopped to enjoy beautiful views, swans, and doggies. I can't think of a better way to spend a Sunday morning.

Coloring Page Tuesday - Puffin Treasure

     It's back! Talk Like a Pirate Day is Saturday, September 19th. This year I give you a Puffin with a very interesting map. What do you think the X is for?
     CLICK HERE for more coloring pages!
     Sign up to receive alerts when a new coloring page is posted each week and... Please check out my books! Especially...
my debut novel, A BIRD ON WATER STREET - winner of six literary awards. Click the cover to learn more!
     When the birds return to Water Street, will anyone be left to hear them sing? A miner's strike allows green and growing things to return to the Red Hills, but that same strike may force residents to seek new homes and livelihoods elsewhere. Follow the story of Jack Hicks as he struggles to hold onto everything he loves most.
     I create my coloring pages for teachers, librarians, booksellers, and parents to enjoy for free with their children, but you can also purchase rights to an image for commercial use, please contact me. If you have questions about usage, please visit my Angel Policy page.

A Sunday Walk

Edinburgh is full of layers. The castle was built on a dormant volcano, so you can imagine the labyrinth that lies underneath the city and the hills that lie on top. I can't tell you how many times I've thought I was at ground level only to cross a bridge and look down at a whole other city going on below. It makes for hidden treasures everywhere. It fun!
     Stan has gotten especially good at finding these hidden treasures. For instance, our new exercise path. You go north from our apartment to the bottom of the hill.
There, you find a winding path.Which goes past an elaborate and sprawling playground.And then enters a long tunnel which is impeccably kept up and well lit. At the other end, our path has begun. We choose to go to the right.
It reminds me of...
The Road Not Taken
By Robert Frost

TWO roads diverged in a yellow wood,
And sorry I could not travel both
And be one traveler, long I stood
And looked down one as far as I could
To where it bent in the undergrowth;

Then took the other, as just as fair,
And having perhaps the better claim,
Because it was grassy and wanted wear;
Though as for that the passing there
Had worn them really about the same,

And both that morning equally lay
In leaves no step had trodden black.
Oh, I kept the first for another day!
Yet knowing how way leads on to way,
I doubted if I should ever come back.

I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—
I took the one less traveled by
, And that has made all the difference.
The path is only for walkers and bicyclists (stay on the left here lest a bike bell will tell you to move over). And it is LOVELY. The path leads through quiet winding woods, under several tunnels, and let out in Newhaven. Yes, that is the Firth of Forth in front of us.We haven't even walked two miles yet, and the walk just gets better.
To be continued...

How Brian Selznick's Drawings Become a Book

Brian talks about his process behind his latest book, "The Marvels." Click the image to watch on WSJ Video.

Illustration Challenge #16

Choose a drawing - doesn't matter if it's yours - and choose three colors to color it with primarily. (Make a copy of the image because you'll be working with it again next week.) You can use other colors, but not until after you've used those three colors extensively. They can be your favorite colors, or thematic colors (think, 1950s diner or some such). Your goal is to achieve a cohesive look overall.

The shipment

Our shipment finally arrived. 900 pounds of sweaters, boots, books, and art, which we sent off by boat way back in June. It sounds like a lot. It wasn't. We truly did sell almost everything we owned. But there were some things we couldn't part with and some things we truly did need. They've been sitting in storage in Leith waiting for our arrival and our new address, which we now have. So we were able to ask them to deliver it.
     But here's the thing, all that stuff got decided upon and shipped before we became nomads. From late June we were living out of suitcases, moving from one domicile to another. Our needs became extremely streamlined. So, we were actually somewhat nervous for our shipment to be delivered. We'd been without all that stuff for so long, we weren't sure what we'd packed anymore. What was so important?
     It didn't look like much when we packed it up - the shipping container was about the size of a large dining room table. And it didn't look like much in the back of the truck when it arrived: Two movers carried the boxes up three flights of stairs into our tiny new apartment. And suddenly, it looked like an awful lot of stuff.      We spent the day unpacking everything and trying to find homes for it all. Keep in mind, we basically have one closet here - ONE. And a nice set of drawers. Remarkably, they absorbed our clothes quite well. It's tight, but it works. The coats are another topic altogether. We'll be making a trip to IKEA soon for some sort of coat station in the hallway.
     And there are the keepsake boxes. Believe it or not, we do have an attic here. We just have to find a ladder to access it. Soon, soon. And my art supplies/drawings/books - gads. I don't regret sending them over - truly. But I have no idea where to put them. Maybe I'll have a designated area for my studies where they can go. I'll find out soon.
     Otherwise, I'm quite proud of us. We got pictures hung, clothes put away, the apartment vacuumed, and it's looking sane. Okay, not the guest room. It looks like a bomb went off in there. But we'll get that part figured out soon too.

Friday Linky List - September 11, 2015

From PW: What Children's Publishers Read at Home with Kids

From The Scottish Book Trust: Creative Writing Masterclass with Phil Earle - videos

From Picture Book Builders: "Visual Inspiration," or "My Life as a Potential Hoarder"

When African Americans Came To Paris - six videos by Joanne Burke - dang, these look good!

From PW: Children's Books for Fall 2015: All Our Coverage

From the Scottish Book Trust: Scottish Children's Book Awards And CLICK HERE to watch the short list creators read their books!

From the Scottish Book Trust: Books Featuring Book Lovers - there are some classics in there including Michelle Knudsen's Library Lion

At Library Journal: Dover, Others, Cash in on Adult Coloring

From Helping Writers Become Authors: How to Write a Sequel That's BETTER Than the First Book

Via Stumbleupon: Artist attempts to create most frustrating products imaginable

Pat Zietlow Miller's THE QUICKEST KID IN CLARKSVILLE - Guest Post

Cover reveal – THE QUICKEST KID IN CLARKSVILLE
by Pat Zietlow Miller
      Maybe you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover, but there’s no question that people do. My 13-year-old, for example, browses the shelves at our local bookstore and only picks up books with covers that pique her interest.
      If I suggest one I’ve heard good things about, she gives the cover a cursory look and moves on if it doesn’t meet her standards – which currently seem to involve girls wearing long, flowing dresses.
      The cover of my upcoming picture book does not feature a girl in a long flowing dress, but I’m hoping it’s compelling enough to make people take it off the shelves.
      The book is THE QUICKEST KID IN CLARKSVILLE. It’s coming from Chronicle Books in January 2016, and it tells the story of Alta and Charmaine -- two girls living in 1960 Clarksville, Tennessee, who are huge fans of sprinter Wilma Rudolph, who won three gold medals in the Rome Olympics.
      They want to be just like her, and compete to see who’s faster. Alta and Charmaine share having Wilma as a hero. But they don’t initially seem to have much else in common. Charmaine has brand-new shoes, which she’s quick to talk about, while Alta’s sneakers have seen better days.
      The story is fiction, but Wilma Rudolph really did grow up in in Clarksville, Tennessee before achieving Olympic fame. And, Clarksville really did throw a welcome home parade for Wilma after the Olympics. And, Wilma really did say that she would only participate if the parade was racially integrated. The organizers agreed, and the event was the first non-segregated major event in the city’s history.
      Frank Morrison drew the art for this book, and his cover shows Alta with her worn-out shoes. Despite that, she looks downright confident that she can beat any comers in a race.
      I’ve admired Frank’s art in books like LITTLE MELBA AND HER BIG TROMBONE and I GOT THE RHYTHM. Frank illustrates children’s books and also creates gallery art. His bio describes him like this: “Frank Morrison was born in Boston in 1971 and moved with his family to New Jersey in 1980. A self-taught artist, he began his career as a pre-adolescent graffiti artist. As a member of a break-dancing crew, while touring Europe, he visited the Louvre museum in Paris and was inspired to choose painting as a career. His work is steeped in old world values of family, community and religion though typically rendered with mirth and high-spiritedness.”
      You can see all Frank’s amazing art at his website.
      THE QUICKEST KID IN CLARKSVILLE will be out in time to celebrate the ‎2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. And in time for the opening of the Smithsonian Museum’s National Museum of African-American History and Culture, which will debut in 2016 in Washington, DC. Wilma will be featured in exhibits. If you want to make sure you have the book the first day it’s available – Jan. 26 – you can pre-order a copy from Barnes & Noble or Amazon.

Read more about the author, Pat Zietlow Miller at her website, and read an interview with Pat when her smash hit SOPHIE'S SQUASH came out on my blog - CLICK HERE.

Porty is full of surprises

We returned to Portobello Beach (called "Porty") this past weekend because there was an arts festival going on. And gee - twist our arms to go back to the beach again. Even so, the day turned out differently from what we expected.
     We're getting better at the buses, so that part was easy. 30 minutes and we're at the beach and on the most beautiful day! We went back to the Espy for lunch - our first repeat meal in Scotland.     However, a woman at the table next to us had a medical emergency, which made for a scary and stressful situation for all involved. After a while, I'm happy to say, she walked out of the restaurant on the arm of an EMT. We were so impressed by how well the wait staff handled the emergency. We also learned an important lesson - in the US you dial 911, in the UK, you dial 999.
     Afterwards, we got back to our original plan and followed the Art Festival's map to a few artist's studios. Like this one where the artist works with found objects from the beach:      We also walked on the beach for a while. There, we came across some of the happiest dogs on the planet. Flo was digging a hole. Her friend Mazie was also digging a hole - all I could see of her was her rump and her wagging tail sticking out of the hole. But I missed the shot. Oh well. I tell you, the dogs on Portobello Beach are the happiest dogs EVAH! Afterwards, we stopped for a bit in a lovely pub called Foresters. The doors were wide open to the gorgeous day. They also had a secret in the back - the most adorable outdoor seating.      We're discovering that a lot of businesses have secrets you'd never guess are there. We're getting good at finding the secret gardens and paths in Edinburgh. They're so lovely!
      But back to Porty. Our friend Louise Kelly told us about a festival going on in Porty and frankly, we never would have found it if she hadn't told us. We walked down a sweet little street, where we stumbled across a bowling club. Further down the road we stumbled into The Portobello Village Show. Oh my!      There was a brass band playing. (Can you see them in the center?) They played Willy Wonka - awesome. There was a juggler. A guy in tights riding a fake horse. Louise was working at a book sale raising money for their upcoming book festival, so we bought several. There was a baking contest, and a dog show. We got to pet so many happy doggies, including a Scottish Deer Hound. Ever seen one of those? They are HUGE!
     It was such a gorgeous day, do you see these blue skies? Stan and I laid in the grass and soaked it all in, the warmth (about 64°), the sounds, the music. I've rarely been so content.