Friday Linky List - 19 February 2016

From SLJ: Fairy Tale Programming Is Alive and Well

From PWs Shelf Talker (by Elizabeth Bluemle): Favorite Picture Book Revision Tips - WOWSA!!!

From The Guardian: Why We Love Enchantment in Children's Books

From Shelf Awareness: Adult Coloring Books: The Boom Continues

From PW: HarperCollins Rolls Out New Margaret Wise Brown Line (Margaret graduated from Hollins University where I teach in the MFA in Children's Book Writing and Illustrating program each summer.)

From Southern Living (via PW): The South's Best Bookstores. Several of my faves are listed! (And a few are missing.) Still, it's a good start...

At Bookshelf: Blooks: The Art of Books That Aren't

The 2015 Cybils Award Winners have been announced! CLICK HERE

From SLJ: Mind-Opening, Heart-Tugging TED Talks by Kid Lit Authors | Video Spotlight

Susan Gal's ABRACADABRA, IT'S SPRING! - Guest Post

Creating the artwork for Abracadabra, It’s Spring!
by Susan Gal
      Abracadabra, It’s Spring! came to me as a manuscript. I immediately fell in love with the jaunty text and the playful, magic-themed words. Sometimes the text tells an illustrator what to draw, but more often than not its my job to bring the text to life. That’s the fun part for me--how do I bring a fresh, interesting perspective to words on a page? In art school I was trained to push past my initial solution to a problem and come up with my own unique interpretation. So…. spring is about nature; snowmelt and sunny days filled with flower buds bursting and the air humming with butterflies, birds, and bees. Animals awakening from their winter rests and gardens waiting to be planted. My job is to interpret these impressions and visually weave them with the text.       Along with interpreting the text, designing the spreads for Abracadabra, It’s Spring! posed a particular challenge for me. Its a gate-fold book, meaning one half of the spread stays in place while the reader unfolds the page revealing another spread. The left side of the spread has to match with the unfolded, newly ‘revealed’ spread. Knowing that the reader will have to interact with the book in this way challenged me to make each spread, when opened, come alive with color--like the world re-awakening on a glorious spring day!        After completing work on Abracadabra, It’s Spring! I began work illustrating its companion book, Hocus Pocus, Its Fall! I loved working with the same format and use of magic words, transitioning the imagery from spring to fall. Hocus Pocus It’s Fall! will be published Fall 2016.
      I began my career illustrating for magazines, newspapers, posters, and calendars. I also worked briefly in animation as an ‘in-betweener’ for Disney Animation Florida. But my first love has always been both writing and illustrating children’s picture books. In 2010 I took the plunge with my first book, Night Lights. When I write and illustrate a book the pictures and characters come to me before the words arrive. I formulate a story in my head before putting pencil to paper. Then I jot down the story and begin to rewrite and refine it. From there I staple together a small paper dummy and start to lay out the pace and timing of the story. I don’t let myself start to sketch until I feel okay with the sentence structure. For me, the easier part of the process is creating the artwork, so I don’t allow myself the joy of drawing until the story is developed. Once the sentence structure is in place the real fun begins!
     Character development and design is the most exciting part of storytelling for me. While working in animation I learned how important it is to know your characters. If they aren’t real to me, then there’s no point in spending time with them and bringing them to life in my story. Sometimes a character’s personality and body language is pretty complete from the start. Other times the character evolves as the dummy evolves. I spend a lot of time sketching the characters to get a feel for them. I like to stay very loose at this stage to keep the drawings fresh and allow for spontaneous things to happen.       When I feel as though I have a grasp of the character, I scan my charcoal sketches on the computer and begin to digitally place them in a spread. Working digitally allows me the freedom to move the characters around in a composition. Eventually the drawing talks to me and tells me where it wants to go and I start to refine it. At this stage I’m still working in black and white so I can focus on the composition and design. Once the composition is established its time for me to start experimenting in Photoshop to render the final art. I’m intrigued by light, color, and texture and try to capture it in my work. Each new book gives me an opportunity to try my hand at a new technique.       My studio is in my home located east of the Golden Gate Bridge. It has high ceilings and large windows with natural northern light. My drawing table faces east so when I start my day the studio is filling with sunlight as the day begins. Because I’m fascinated with light and color I enjoy experiencing how the light changes as my work day progresses. I paper my studio walls with photos, drawings, poems, etc….anything that inspires me. There are so many beautiful things that catch my eye—eventually I will need more wall space! Learn more about Susan at www.galgirlstudio.com.
Abracadabra, It's Spring! by Anne Sibley O'Brien and illustrated by Susan Gal, published by Abrams Appleseed (£8.99) - CLICK HERE to purchase the book from Abrams.

Installation Art in St. Andrews Square

I have to admit we live near the best square in Edinburgh - St. Andrews Square. I walk through it almost every day on the way to pretty much everywhere, and there is always something going on in our wee square at the top of the hill. Maybe because the main bus station faces it, or maybe because it just has a kick butt planning committee - I'm not sure. At any rate, the latest 'something' is a fabulous art installation piece called Keyframes.      The grass in the square was pretty much decimated from the Christmas village over the holidays. (I told you about that here.) So they brought in artwork that works best at night. About 50 light bulb figures are posed around the Melville Monument (which commemorates Henry Dundas, the first Viscount of Melville). The artist put black roofing paper on the ground surrounding the figures (hiding the dead grass and mud). It's interesting to study the construction of the piece in the daylight, they are engineering marvels of wire and glass, but the artwork really comes alive after dark.
     And this is what I love about this town... so I'm walking home from class one night, and I've just entered the square. It's usually not lit up. Suddenly, this big booming music startles me and the figures start to light up, dancing and jumping and grunting, around and around. Some are doing cartwheels, some are doing summersaults, some are playing tennis, one is running up the side of the monument and flipping. The whole thing comes to a brief interlude with a couple on a bench, snoring as they rest in each other's arms. It's impossible to relay the work through still photos, but I tried.

     So, instead of trying to capture the art, I tried to capture the crowd. Casual passers-by who stop in their tracks and gather to watch this magnificent thing.     The artwork is bringing so much JOY to people during a usually dull time of year - because, why not? We all deserve to be happy. And that is a core belief that underlies everything here in Edinburgh!
Share on twitter: #EdinLights.

Coloring Page Tuesday - Meercats

     I love winter - it's the perfect time to hide in a good book. And if you're a Meercat, you're already inclined to the hiding part!
     CLICK HERE for more coloring pages!
     CLICK HERE to 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.

My TEDx Talk is this Thursday!

This is the week! My TEDx Talk is this Thursday!!! My topic is:

Is Your Stuff Stopping You?
     Award-winning author, illustrator, teacher and student Elizabeth Dulemba recently sold or gave away nearly everything she owned. And yet, she’s no minimalist. She’ll walk you through how she did it, and share how you too can open yourself to opportunities by evaluating your stuff – debunking the illusion of value we place on material possessions. Why do this? To answer the question "Is your stuff stopping you?"

     Am I nervous? A little, must admit. The auditorium holds 700 guests on two levels. That will be the largest audience I've ever addressed, but I've been practicing and I think I'm ready! Click the above image to learn more about the event. And please... Wish me luck!!!      They record these talks, so if it goes well, I'll be sharing the link soon!

Happy Valentine's Day!!!

As you share this day with your favorite Valentine, don't forget to color! I have lots of Valentine's Day themed coloring pages - just CLICK HERE to see them all!

Speed painting Children's Books Illustration

This is a fascinating peek at one artist's watercolor (LIAN) and ink illustration process. With my recent interest in the media, I learned a lot watching this! Click the image to watch on YouTube and learn more about the artist:

Illustration Challenge #36

I told you about my homework assignment, which I did at the National Museum of Scotland. How about try it yourself? Go find a public place where you can sit quietly to one side (preferably with a cup of tea) and draw what you see. It can be terrible, nobody has to see what you create but you. Try to capture the motion and energy of the people around you. Personally, I hope to do this a lot more often, so perhaps I'll be joining you!

Friday Linky List - 12 February 2016

From PW: 'A Long Walk to Water' Sells 1M Copies!

From The Bookseller: Google launches e-book 'experiment'

From SLJs Fuse #8 by Betsy Bird: Walking and Talking with . . . M.T. Anderson - have you seen these? They're very cool!

From PW: Is Amazon Opening More Bookstores? It's Hiring Booksellers. WOW. This is potentially huge news, and ripe for debate...

From PW: Angouleme Comics Festival Overshadowed by Gaffes, Protests Over Sexism - what a stink!

From The Guardian: Libraries saved me, now they need rescuing - Karin Slaughter - Go Karin!

From the Paisley Piranha Blog: F**k, fudge, frick, fug, flip, fiddlesticks... Dealing with swearing in children's book writing

At Sequential Art (via SCBWI British Isles): Comix Creatrix: 100 Women Making Comics - Exhibition at House of Illustration, London

From PW: Agate Unveils African American Children's Imprint - with books by my friend Denene Millner!

POET: THE REMARKABLE STORY OF GEORGE MOSES HORTON by Don Tate

It's black history month and my friend Don Tate has a truly special book out that I have to share with you. It's called POET: THE REMARKABLE STORY OF GEORGE MOSES HORTON and it's published by Peachtree. (Gads, they do some good-looking books!) I emailed Don for a full on guest post, but he is riding high right now, super busy. As he said, "...things are so crazy right now. I'm on deadline to finish sketches for this next book before next Wednesday (when my travel schedule kicks in), and I have to start over on the sketches." So, I asked him some quick questions... Me: How did you learn about George Moses Horton
Don: I wish I had a more interesting or profound answer to this question, but I learned about Horton through a writing partner, Chris Barton. I started researching Horton on that same day. I knew from day one that Horton's story would be loved by readers, but because of my heavy illustration schedule, I didn't know when I'd find time to write it. And then I had this fear that someone else might publish the story before I had a chance to start writing, so I found the time. Several years and many, many revisions later, the book was acquired by Peachtree Publishers. Me: What was your medium for this book?
Don: Initially I wanted to illustrate "Poet" digitally. I'd just purchased a Cintiq, and I was anxious to put it to use. I did all of the line work on my Cintiq, but I think it freaked out my art director, who had another look in mind. She loved my hand drawn artwork, as done in the book "Hope's Gift," so I decided to use the same medium, acrylic watercolor washes and ink (Micron) lines on watercolor paper. Acrylic dries hard and allows for layering without disturbing under painting. And I used colored pencil in places. I also wanted to find a way to include Horton's poetry, since I'd not included any in the text (intentionally). So I hand lettered portions of his poetry and worked them into the illustrations using Photoshop. I did eventually get to put that Cintiq to work on my following book, "Whoosh!"
Me: With your busy schedule, how do you fit in creative time?
Don: Balancing creative time with travel can be a challenge. To help, I recently purchased a Surface Pro 4. It's a tablet that allow me to sketch on it using Photoshop or Manga Studio. I completely sketched and laid out my last two books on it. It's not great for creating final art, but totally saved me with my last two books. I also have a great booking agent who helps with the details of travel, so that I can spend that time in creative mode. I take it one day at a time. Me: what are you working on next?
I have five more books under contract, and one to be announced soon. Most of them are nonfiction and involve little-known historical figures. I'm especially excited about an opportunity to work with Eloise Greenfield. That will be so cool!

Learn more about Don at http://dontate.com.

Lose something?

I've been collecting gloves. Well, pictures of gloves, at any rate. You know how I go on and on about how nice people are here in Edinburgh? Here's proof.
     It gets windy here and folks are constantly dealing with layers of hats and scarves and gloves. You're bound to drop something at some point and have it blow away. But rather than getting trampled, oftentimes, somebody will pop your lost item on a fence tine in the hopes that you'll be back by that way to reclaim it.      Every time I see one of these, it makes me smile. It's like a polite little, "Did you lose this? Here you go." (Said in the sweetest Scottish accent.) It's a lovely act of kindness and I see it all the time.
     (That's the castle behind this pink glove, hidden by the tree branches.)
     Heck, once I even saw an entire outfit. It started with the tie.And was followed by the shirt and the pants. Not sure what that was about, it was on Rose Street after all, which is a bit of a party central after hours. At any rate, even the pants were nicely folded and placed over a rail (you can see them behind the tie).
     Just the other day I became part of the process... I found a sweet little pink mitten that some little girl was bound to be missing. So I put it on a windowsill where she might find it.     These found items make me happy, so I'm going to keep collecting photos of them.

Coloring Page Tuesday - Sleeping Cardinal

     I wonder if birds ever wish they could just hibernate rather than flying south?
     CLICK HERE for more coloring pages!
     CLICK HERE to 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.

Learning Watercolors at the University of Edinburgh - Part II

For the second day of our watercolor workshop with Darren Woodhead, we went outside. And not just any outside - we headed for Arthur's Seat.That's the former volcano that sits in the middle of town east of the castle. I've been so caught up with school and winter, we haven't actually hiked up it yet, so this was my first experience with this amazing mountain.
     We met at St. Margaret's Loch.      The loch was full of swans and ducks and gulls. It was cold and windy, but we pulled out our paints and paper and gave it a go. Eventually, it just got too cold to keep our fingers moving, so a few of us hiked up to the St. Anthony's Chapel ruins.
It really was a beautiful day, albeit COLD! Here I am with Lily, Boris and Chiho. The hike got us warmed up a little bit. And the view of the city from the mountaintop was amazing. All said, more beautiful works were created (not by me!), and everybody got to try a hand at true plein air painting. I don't know if anybody caught the bug as strongly as Darren has it. Here he is in his painting garb - knee pads and all. But it sure was nice to try!

Pixar's Movie Tributes

This is a fun video putting Pixar movies side-by-side with scenes from famous movies they were mimicking or were inspired by. Click the image to watch on YouTube.

TEDx TALK - getting closer!

Yesterday I attended a TEDx Master Class led once again by the amazing speech coach, Mel Sherwood. A team of volunteers gathered to give feedback to five of the speakers (me included). It was the first time to share my speech with an audience and their feedback was fantastic - a roomful of brilliant minds! (Photo shared with permission by Nel Raymond.)But first, Mel walked us through a bunch of exercises getting our minds, bodies, and mouths ready to be fully engaged. She's brilliant with her insights and I once again learned so much from her.
     There have been several stages with this preparation for a TEDx Talk. A few weeks ago, I saw the venue for the first time - Edinburgh's Central Hall. It is truly lovely and will hold 700 audience members. 500 tickets have already been sold, and you can buy yours HERE.
     They took my official photo while I was there, although I might need a redo as I recently got new glasses:(Click here to see the photo with its write-up on the TEDx FB page.)
     What's been especially nice is how supportive my Uni classmates have been. They've been cheering me on, helping with design tips and Michal even gave my talk a listen in preparation for the master class. I am so grateful for all of them!
     So, how'd I do for my practice run? Well, I still need more practice, but overall, I felt good about my talk, "Is Your Stuff Stopping You?" It will be recorded, so if you can't make the journey to Edinburgh, it will be online soon after the date - where it can be viewed by millions of people if it goes viral. No pressure. But really, yeah, I hope it goes viral!!!