Happy New Year!

Wishing everyone a creative, healthy, and happy New Year!

Happy Holidays!

Illustration Friday - Whiskers

This drawing of Mr. Garrulity was originally done for "Lost in Lexicon", a middle-grade novel I illustrated. It was only after the book was published that I realized he resembled my grandfather (without the stocking cap, of course.)

Illustration Friday - Haunt

As a child I was always spooked by the concept of The Sandman. I imagined him as a shadowy, sinister creature who would creep into my room in the dead of night. Definitely the stuff of nightmares!

For Quality Giclee Prints, I Rely on Graphic Factor Studio

When I decided to offer high quality, reasonably priced prints of my work on my illustration website, I turned to my friends Mary Peterson and Jonathan Kawaye at Graphic Factor studio in Silver Lake, California.

Mary is an illustrator and graphic designer, while Jonathan has over thirty years experience as a master printer. They're seasoned professionals who take the time to work closely with the artist to create a final product that is as faithful as possible to the original art.

They begin by making a high quality digital scan of the original art. Once the scan has been proofed and color corrected, it is printed on an Epson Stylus Pro 4800 Printer using Epson UltraChrome K3 ink. Mary and Jonathan's paper of choice is Epson's Ultra Smooth Fine Art Paper (18mil, 100% cotton, acid free, mould made). The result is a beautiful reproduction that recreates all the tonalities and hues of the original painting.

Taking Care of Your Print
It's important to remember that all color fades. I recommend that you treat your Giclee print the way you would treat an original watercolor. The print should be protected from water and should not be placed in direct sunlight. Giclees printed on paper should be frame mounted with an acid-free mat behind glass. With proper care, you'll be able to enjoy your art for many years to come.

Two Blogs for Writers and Illustrators

Today's post is brief and to the point: If you're serious about writing and/or illustrating for children, you need to subscribe to these two blogs. Both are packed with useful and practical information about agents, writing, illustrating, contests, submission policies, publishing house personnel changes, queries, critiques, interviews with authors & illustrators and much, much more.

Writing and Illustrating. Kathy Temean is an illustrator, writer, web designer and past SCBWI Regional Advisor for New Jersey. In addition to her weekly illustrator showcase, she generously shares writing tips, contest information, critiques, illustration tutorials, and author and agent interviews.

Casey McCormick and Natalie Aguirre are the driving forces behind Literary Rambles, a blog that spotlights children's book authors, agents, and publishing. Literary Rambles is especially helpful if you're searching for an agent. LR profiles a different agent each Thursday, spotlighting that agent's likes and dislikes, submission policies, and what they're looking for. The agent interviews are archived and catalogued alphabetically for your convenience.

I always look forward to opening my email box and reading the latest publishing news from these helpful bloggers. I've learned so much from them, and I know you will, too.

The "Ice Castle" Debuts

The Ice Castle, the second installment in the "Lexicon" series by Pendred Noyce, finally hit bookstores this week. Yay!

In this latest adventure, Daphne and Ivan discover their spoiled cousin, Lila has disappeared through a magical portal into the harsh and frigid Land of Winter.

They set out to bring her back, only to encounter bears and a gang of nomadic kidnappers. The three cousins soon find themselves thrust into a tumultuous society where social standing is determined by one's muscial abilities. This particular world is sharply divided between haves and have-nots, and reverberates with hidden plots and rebellious rumblings.

The Ice Castle was great fun to illustrate. It's a tale full of adventure and drama, memorable characters, emotion, humor, and wonderful imaginary places.

Illustration Friday - "Carry"

My inspiration for this piece is the beautiful and mysterious last line of John Cheever's short story "The Country Husband": “Then it is dark; it is a night where kings in golden suits ride elephants over the mountains.”

Illustration Friday - Suspend

Remember "The Animal Fair? Hopefully, this time the elephant won't sneeze and fall on his knees - and it won't be the end of the monk, the monk, the monk!

The Ice Castle at ALA in Anaheim

If you're planning on going to ALA in Anaheim this year, I'll be at the Publishers Group West booth (#2566) on Saturday, June 23 from 1-3pm. In addition to signing fresh-off-the-press copies of The Ice Castle, I'll be giving away "Ice Castle" inspired bookplates. Hope to see you there!

The Amazing Aqua Family: Now Appearing Under the Big Top in "Circus, Circus" at the Hive

My piece in this month's exhibit at the Hive was inspired by the little rag-tag circus that came each year to the small Pennsylvania town where I grew up. It was old fashioned and had seen better days, but it possessed a kind of creaky magic and naive charm that I tried to capture in "The Amazing Aqua Family".

"Circus, Circus" runs throughout the month of June at The Hive Gallery in Los Angeles.

LA Times Kids' Reading Room - "Out of the Pan"

I illustrated the delightful story, "Out of the Pan", by Joshua Dyer for the LA Times Kids' Reading Room. Click here to read the story.

Lullabies and Nightmares at the Hive

Sugar and spice and some things not so nice. Snips and snails and monster tales. Sixteen illustrators expose the light and dark sides of childhood, evoking memory and imagination to explore the lullabies and nightmares that still reside within us all. The artists: Robin Angelides, Anthea Brown, Barbara Browning, Diane Browning, Joan Charles, Steven Corvelo, Lisa Deutsch, Terry Diefenbach, Suzy Engleman Block, Marci Hersel, Tanya Maiboroda, Kat McDonough, Irina Mirskaya, Mary Peterson, and Karyn Raz Jane Smith.

Lullabies and Nightmares opens at the Hive Gallery on Saturday, February 4th.

Third Annual Tarot Show - Hive Gallery

I was pleased to be invited to participate in the annual Tarot exhibit at the Hive Gallery. Twenty-two artists were randomly assigned cards in the major arcana - mine is The World. The show runs now through the end of January. The gallery publishes a limited edition Tarot deck featuring the cards created for the exhibit. The Tarot deck can by purchased at the Hive Gallery.