Yes, there's still time to enter for the art work giveaway ... join the blog and leave a comment (or just a new comment if you are already one of the rogues gallery) and the pencil original below called 'Running Home' will be yours :-)
The storm is raging right now. The house is creaking, wind gusting down the chimney. It's 'reeght' wild.I'm cloistered in the studio, fire burning, dogs snuggled up on the sofa and bread baking in the stove ... ah the idyllic life of the home worker. Yeah, it's days like this your glad you don't have to battle with the weather.
I've been working on my piece for the SCBWI Winter Conference Art Showcase. It's taken me a huge amount of time, so it's a good job nothing urgent has plunked into my inbox. I've had a lot of fun with it ... here's a teaser .. I'll be posting the whole painting, but not until after the conference come end of January.
I am looking forward to going down to the 'smoke' and being in the city again. This year I'm going visit the Metropolitan Museum of Art the day before the conference and can't wait. The conference is going to be a riot, I feel I know so many people who are going this year, there will be chat, stories, laughs and BEER. (and martinis) Last year I was a newbie ... what a lot has happened in a year!
This week I received the crit I won in a prize draw with Senior Editor at Arthur A. Levine, Cheryl Klein (aka Harry Potter!!). I sent her the PB about a girl and her horse. It was a pretty awesome crit, some lovely comments on my artwork - but some strong advice too. The crit was three pages long. Thanks Cheryl! I feel honoured to have you spend so much time looking at this dummy. So I am digesting it and then will see what I will do.
Also on HORSE, some news ... I submitted to several agents before Christmas and one of them got back to me. It wasn't quite what I was expecting, as the agent wants just to submit this one book at present to a new imprint that deals with horses. At first I was a little unsure ... but what have I got to lose? So I figure we will wait and see how it goes in it's present form and then move forward. If they don't bite I can incorporate some of the changes Cheryl suggested.
Seems this time of year many illustrators and authors are considering which project they want to concentrate on (if they are not on a deadline/s already) and it can burn a lot of people out. I for one have post it notes around my window frame and I shift the priorities around. Which one will it be next? They wait with baited breath.
That's it for now. I smell the delicious crusty smell floating up the stairs, so I am off to have some scrummy melting, buttery, naughtiness ..... ;-)
DON'T FORGET TO LEAVE A COMMENT FOR THE COMPETITION!
AND congrats to Caldecott and Newbury medal winners, announced at ALA this week. I will be off to the library to seek them out.
ta ta
Hazel
aka
The Wacky Brit.
On the bedside table this week:
'April and Esme - Tooth Fairies' - Bob Graham
'I Know Here'- Laurel Croza/Matt James
'Me and You' - Anthony Browne
'The Village Garage' - G. Brian Karas
'Nini Lost and Found' - Anita Lobel
The storm is raging right now. The house is creaking, wind gusting down the chimney. It's 'reeght' wild.I'm cloistered in the studio, fire burning, dogs snuggled up on the sofa and bread baking in the stove ... ah the idyllic life of the home worker. Yeah, it's days like this your glad you don't have to battle with the weather.
I've been working on my piece for the SCBWI Winter Conference Art Showcase. It's taken me a huge amount of time, so it's a good job nothing urgent has plunked into my inbox. I've had a lot of fun with it ... here's a teaser .. I'll be posting the whole painting, but not until after the conference come end of January.
I am looking forward to going down to the 'smoke' and being in the city again. This year I'm going visit the Metropolitan Museum of Art the day before the conference and can't wait. The conference is going to be a riot, I feel I know so many people who are going this year, there will be chat, stories, laughs and BEER. (and martinis) Last year I was a newbie ... what a lot has happened in a year!
This week I received the crit I won in a prize draw with Senior Editor at Arthur A. Levine, Cheryl Klein (aka Harry Potter!!). I sent her the PB about a girl and her horse. It was a pretty awesome crit, some lovely comments on my artwork - but some strong advice too. The crit was three pages long. Thanks Cheryl! I feel honoured to have you spend so much time looking at this dummy. So I am digesting it and then will see what I will do.
Also on HORSE, some news ... I submitted to several agents before Christmas and one of them got back to me. It wasn't quite what I was expecting, as the agent wants just to submit this one book at present to a new imprint that deals with horses. At first I was a little unsure ... but what have I got to lose? So I figure we will wait and see how it goes in it's present form and then move forward. If they don't bite I can incorporate some of the changes Cheryl suggested.
Seems this time of year many illustrators and authors are considering which project they want to concentrate on (if they are not on a deadline/s already) and it can burn a lot of people out. I for one have post it notes around my window frame and I shift the priorities around. Which one will it be next? They wait with baited breath.
That's it for now. I smell the delicious crusty smell floating up the stairs, so I am off to have some scrummy melting, buttery, naughtiness ..... ;-)
DON'T FORGET TO LEAVE A COMMENT FOR THE COMPETITION!
AND congrats to Caldecott and Newbury medal winners, announced at ALA this week. I will be off to the library to seek them out.
ta ta
Hazel
aka
The Wacky Brit.
On the bedside table this week:
'April and Esme - Tooth Fairies' - Bob Graham
'I Know Here'- Laurel Croza/Matt James
'Me and You' - Anthony Browne
'The Village Garage' - G. Brian Karas
'Nini Lost and Found' - Anita Lobel