Sister's Lab - WIP page

Here is a work-in-progress image from the book. I have just started playing with some digital color on the butterfly shadowbox and space poster but I am sharing my drawing pre-coloring to show my process.
The girl on the stool is composited on top of the room. They were separate drawings aligned using a light box. All the perspective and straight lines were a little time consuming but I had fun putting this one together.

This is the protagonist's older sister who is a budding (or perhaps a full-fledged) scientist and inventor. Let's just say that her alibi has something to do with her regimented lifestyle.

Drawings Complete; Meeting Summary

I've collected my thoughts about the meeting we had Wednesday night and I'll summarize them the best I can.  We almost didn't have the meeting. Keith wasn't able to make it but we went ahead as we mostly have details to work on and Keith doesn't have much to manage or direct at this step in our process.
The three of us (Chad, Steven and I) had a relaxed and playful chat as we caught up while kicking back in Chad's backyard work studio. I haven't seen these fellows since last year and it was excellent to have some laughs with them over some brews.
After settling in, I shared a few bullet points from the notes I brought. I related that I had signed up for a membership with the Seattle branch of the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators or SCBWI, a great organization that supports and builds community in it's eighty-some chapters around the world. Also, I shared that I put a large part of my tax return aside for getting this book out there. That means everything from getting a website up, to getting an agent for our team, to doing a short run printing. Lastly, I let them know that there is a SCBWI event at the UW Bookstore on May 9th called Inside Story where previously published members get to share new works in 2-3 minute presentations. I'm definitely interested and the other guys seemed interested after learning of it.

And the rest of the meeting...well, I shared the new pages that I have drawn. Now we have begun to see what the book will look like. I put all my pages in a pdf document with the lines of story text on the appropriate pages. After we all three ran through it together we saw some changes that should be made in those pairings, how it's broken up, so we have a better flow. Also, there are 4 more drawings I need to do; two for the sister character, a transition image for Dash and Scout, and a close-up image of Dash thinking about the case. With those completed, and everyone happy with the text to image pairings, I will commence to coloring. That should be fun! Coloring just feels like messing around and learning at the same time.

It was a good meeting, I felt more sober and grounded about my work that I was presenting and the work that lay ahead. Sober and grounded may not sound very exciting but it is much more sustainable if you keep enough determination to keep going.  Yay for balance!

Thanks for reading this far! [END OF POST]

Here is a sketch of one of the new pages I'm working on:

Drawings Complete; Looking at the Book

I'm writing the first part of this 2 part entry the night before a meeting with the rest of the "Toddler Guys". This meeting has been arranged to show them my work thus far which is all the drawings for all the pages. This is a bit relative as we are still editing and drawings can change; might need different, more, or possibly less drawings. This feels quite momentous though. We began this book so many years ago and it has gone though rough drawings and different styles. For gods-sake, I have my own toddler now!

As slowly as this project has gone, it was always close to my heart and something I was very excited about when I thought about. I wish that I could have gone quicker but I have to believe it will gain something that it may have lacked if I had. Certainly, I have gained skill in the interim. Also, I have increased and deepened my influences. Most importantly, I have gained more confidence and clarity in my style.

Well... It's not done yet. And I feel fairly certain that some important changes are forthcoming in the illustrations. I want this book to be magical and amazing. I want it to be a work of art with cinematic qualities. A Hitchcock film in a storybook. To achieve this, I must follow my artistic instincts even if it means some pages need to be redrawn and finishing postponed.

After the drawing are nailed down, I begin the coloring process. I have made a decision to work in Photoshop with watercolor brushes I bought from kylebrushes.com . With a little practice (basically diving in) I think they will do the trick in giving me the look I want and allowing quick iterations so I can figure out the best color scheme and palette for my drawings.

I'm very excited for the meeting and imagine it will be a bit of a celebration!

Rough sketch of image on last page

Thumbnail sketch and confessional

I'm back from a vacation in NE Tennessee seeing my lady's family. Feeling reinvigorated and focused to finish the book!

My new self-determined deadline (I'm a few months late of my last one) is mid-Spring of this year. In case it isn't clear, I have big barriers to break through to finish this. I have a new family and free undisturbed time is sparse. Also, not to be understated, I have never finished a project this big before that has as much potential as this one and it will be very damaging to my low self-esteem. Ha ha! Therefore, resistance! That takes the form of anxiety and procrastination and other self-defeating habits.

I'm being honest and somewhat transparent on this blog because I think other artists need to see this. It's real and it is what so many of us struggle with. Growth is not always easy. I am growing tremendously as an artist in this process, and developing my own character. I think I have been averse to hard things all my life. (Not entirely true, of course!)

While on vacation, I did some sketching for the book, including this thumbnail showing our hero self-satisfied with his conclusion and about to learn the actual truth. Separately, there was a little messing around with watercolor which I will need to improve skill with for the coloring of the final drawings - the final art!

Thanks for reading! Comments are appreciated. I'd love to have a dialogue!

Hurray for Gustaf Tenggren!

Gustaf Tenggren is a major inspiration and influence of mine, although I'm not sure how much it shows in my work. He hugely influenced illustrators and animators of the mid-century and continues to be much loved today. The Animation Resources article below is a nice overview of his work and legacy.

More of my favorite drawings by Tenggren and other illustrators here: http://pin.it/qecjMbC

http://animationresources.tumblr.com/post/153610851480/click-to-see-a-gallery-of-images-from-gustaf

Scheming at the table

Here's the latest pencil drawing! - with some preliminary color to hint at what the final treatment will be.

Mummy Cat by Marcus Ewert, illustrated by Lisa Brown

I believe Mummy Cat came to my attention through a video review on a youtube channel. However I found out about it, I am exceedingly glad to know it. I seem to be collecting books old and new that are inspiring and motivating in their excellence and bring me hope as far as interesting, original work getting picked up by large publishers. This was put out last year by Clarion Books under Houghton Miflin.

The wonderfully gothic cross-species love story strays from the safe territory kids books are expected to stay within. From the start, death is a central theme, as the two main characters, a queen and her pet cat, are mummies.

The gothic motif and the educational content make this an uncommon book. The fact that it is paired with excellent art makes it an outstanding book. Brown's work is beautiful. She is the real deal. Her use of papyrus texture works very well as do her strong lines and rich colors. The only thing I would have changed is the lack of strong shadow. Shouldn't a tomb be gloomy? A little darkness would have hit home the melancholy story. The character design is cute and friendly enough to have supported darkness without getting too scary.

The story is followed with an appendix - two illustrated pages giving background on the historical bits woven into the story. I love this kind of geekery. There is a postscript as well mentioning the Egyptologists that proofed the book for any inaccuracies. Picture books that impart knowledge are rare and marvelous. The idea of including real world details and esoterica into kids books is exciting and I will definitely be doing same.

Super lovely Egyptian themed endpaper

As you can tell, despite my blurry phone pic, the illustration work by Lisa Brown is amazing!

Excellent use of watercolor and ink, maybe gouache too. Ms. Brown has a timeless style, elegant lines and unassuming simple shapes.