Links, links, and more links!

Author and illustrator Megan Bair has put together a wonderful blog, full of monthly interviews, reviews, illustration "Greats", reading lists, tutorials, but best of all, she features an Illustrator of the Day. Every day! How's that for inspiration! Follow her passion at Children’s Illustrator’s on Fire. Megan Bair, your blog is on fire! Follow here Facebook page here.

Four very talented gals got together to host Mini-Interviews 2013 on their blogs each week for the month of November: Juana Martinez-Neal on Tuesdays, Molly Idle on Wednesdays, Mikela Prevost on Thursdays and Laura Jacobsen on Fridays. And it didn't just start this year. Head back in time and check out the interviews from 2012 and 2011.

Over at Design Mom, writer, librarian, and designer Carter Higgins takes on the Author Interview Series. Yup! Click on that link. There are tons of great interviews. You'll find plenty of illustration there too! Plus, her blog Design of the Picture Book is loaded with just that. Wonderfully designed picture books. 

Heck, follow all the links listed in this post. You're in for a real treat!

PiBoIdMo- Paticipant

Halfway Point Progress

I figure most of you have heard of this project, and many of you I'm sure are participating too. But just in case you don't know, PiBoIdMo stands for Picture Book Idea Month. It's the brain child of children's book author Tara Lazar. It's a simple idea. A challenge to create 30 picture book ideas in 30 days. Here is where I'm at on day 15.

• Five picture book titles

• Five settings

• Five characters or plot ideas 

   

  Be sure to read her blog. Tara has daily inspirational posts by picture book authors, illustrators, editors, and more. (Really great stuff!) Here's the run down for the month.
  
  
  
  
  

Ramblings About the Project and the Process

I'm not sure yet, if thinking of so many ideas at once is a distraction or a catalyst in creating picture books. It's one of those things where we'll have to wait and see. Many times if an idea isn't written down it is forgotten. From that standpoint, PiBoIdMo is a great tool. Plus, it's a lot like a brainstorming session. No idea is a bad idea. And one idea leads to another. I'm sure many of the ideas are throw-a-ways, but if just one is a light-bulb moment, then great! You've got a new project to work on. But staying focused enough to develop that "cocktail napkin idea" into a complete project is something else. It needs time to develop. That's hard when you're moving on to a new idea first. So I plan on checking back in, in 6 months time to see what's developed. Stayed tuned...

 

Friday Studio Links - Featuring...

The Studio of Holli Conger!

Wait until you step through this door! 

You are about to enter a space all about style.

 

 

I'm not talking about "this space could be featured in a decorating magazine" kind of style. (Although it could!) I'm talking about personal, functional, "this is my art" and "this is where I make it" kind of style. This space is all about personality!

Welcome to the studio of Holli Conger. A girl who creates. And create she does! Her eclectic, whimsical style can be found in magazines, on greeting cards, CD covers, and packaging. Holli not only illustrates children's books- 11 of them so far this year, she is also a successful licensing artist, does killer typography, and has become a huge inspiration to others by documenting her creative journey on Becoming An Illustrator.

 

Holli has a style that shines though no matter what is is working on. This goes for he studio too. Check out the process of how her studio was built here. And be sure to follow Holli's Blog and visit her Website.

Check back on the first Friday of each month for a new Studio Tour. 

Follow this link to see previous Studio Tours.

New Website!

It was time for an overhaul. When I designed my last site I had no idea Flash would become a thing of the past in...well...a flash! My site needed to work across all devices. So I'm launching a new and improved site.

Click on the above image to visit my new website!

The Business of the Business

It seems like the last month has been filled with the business end of what writers and illustrators have to spend a good chunk of their time doing. Running a business. Yes, I'd rather be in the studio drawing or sitting at my desk researching and writing. But a gal's got to do what a gal's got to do.

Design a new look and logo- check!
Design new business cards and stationary- check!

Postcard design and printing- check!
Mailing list of publishers and who is where- check!
Print mailing labels, stamp, and mail postcards- check!
 
Create a new portfolio- check!
Decide on portfolio images- check!
Print images- check!
Assemble portfolio- check!

Register for the local SCBWI-AZ Conference- check!
Prepare and mail portfolio- check! (Yes, a second one!)
Mail PB manuscript and dummy book for conference critique- check!
Proofread, print, and mail first 10 pages of MG novel- check!

Redesign website- check!
Photo shoot  for website- check!
Select and size images for website- check!
Launch new website- check!

Phew! Now back to some writing and illustrating. Right after I write a synopsis and cover letter for that MG novel...

Be sure to visit my new website.

Friday Studio Links- Blogging

It seems like Facebook has taken over blogs. It's quick and easy. You spend some of time scrolling, tap a quick like, maybe even add a comment, then move on. But writing a blog post, that takes time. We all have a few favorites we read regularly, but how often do you leave a comment these days? Have your posts dwindled down to occasional? I'm guilty of it. There's no thumbs up. You've spent enough time "researching". It's time to get back to work. You're inspired, you're energized. You leave with something, without leaving something.

This week I've read some amazingly great blog posts. The kind you can enjoy with your morning cup of coffee, think about during the day, and come back to again later and savor. So for today's studio links, I'm skipping the visuals (this is a hard one for me) and sending you right to these blogs. Check them out. And while you're there leave a comment! I will. Right after I finish this post.

Peter Brown blogs about Style
Tony DiTerlizzi blogs about We Art Boston
Aaron Becker blogs about his sketchbook  (Via a blog post on Design Sponge)
Dan Santat blogs about Finding Time

In an attempt to not neglect my Friday Studio Link posts, I'm going to make this a First Friday regular. Once a month is much more realistic than the once weekly I started the year off with. So check back each month. And enjoy these links!

Full Moon

In honor of tonight's full moon, I am pleased to present some of the best in picture book moon stories. Two new ones start off the list!

Moonday

 by Adam Rex

 

Max and the Tag-Along Moon

by Floyd Cooper

 

   Moon Bear 

written by Brenda Z. Guiberson 

illustrated by Ed Young

 

 One Giant Leap

written by Robert Burleigh
illustrated by Mike Wimmer

Kitten's First Full Moon

by Kevin Henkes

 

 I Took the Moon for a Walk

written by Carolyn Curtis

illustrated by Alison Jay

 Clear Moon, Snow Soon

written by Tony Johnston
illustrated by Guy Porfirio

Owl Moon

written by Jane Yolen

illustrated by John Schoenherr


And of course...

 Goodnight Moon

written by Margaret Wise Brown
illustrated by Clement Hurd

If you'd like to find out what time to watch the moon rise in your area, just follow this link and put in your location. I know where I'll be tonight! To learn more about the books shown click on the image. To see more about the author or illustrator click on their name.