Work in Process ... Making Changes.

I went back and made a few color changes to the illustration roughs I have been working on for my latest book in the works.

I felt the original color roughs didn't really depict the feeling of night time that I was envisioning... I felt the moon appeared almost to sun like! Not really what I was trying to show.

Original illustration rough

Revised illustration rough

The change is maybe subtle but I think I'm getting closer to giving the illustration the night time feel I want to get. I did the same with the illustration below. The moon didn't actually look very moon like...I knew I needed to do something! I may even eliminate the face images directly below the moon as they appear to be to busy for the illustration.

Original illustration rough

Revised illustration rough

These roughs will all be rendered in acrylic for the final illustrations. I will be able to get deeper colors and better detail with the acrylic...but I also want to retain some of the earthy charm the color pencils gave the illustrations.

I will admit that I am definitely taking my time with these illustrations. I feel no rush to submit this to publishers at the moment...I really want to get this one perfect!!

Stay tuned for more updates soon!

A Work in Progress

It has been a slow start...but I have been gaining some momentum.

Today I would like to share with you some of the work I have done on "The Scarecrow's Halloween".

I started with a simple mock up of the book with only the text placed where I wanted it to be. From there I sketched illustration ideas into notebooks...several notebooks... trying to create the best image for each set of words on the page. Sometimes these images came easy, sometimes not so much, a lot of scribbling goes into making a book!

After choosing what I felt were the best images for each page and then drawing each one into the mock up in pencil... I then set about to use color pencils to bring each image to life. This part of the process has been most enjoyable to me.

I will admit that these illustrations are still quite rough, but they are good guides for me in capturing the color and mood for the book.

Once I am satisfied with each rough illustration, I will start to do the final illustrations in acrylic on watercolor paper like I have done with all my book illustrations.

I still have a lot of work and changes to do with this book, but for me... that is where the fun is!

 

So I would like to thank you for checking in on my progress so far. I have other completed roughs I would like to share later...once I convince my daughter to take some more pictures with her phone!! But rest assure I will try to keep you posted.

Will all this work ever get published? I sure hope so! But for now I am just enjoying the creative process and doing my best to bring this story to life!!

Take care!!

Greg

Starting over...again.

On July 1st  2013 I wrote a rather dismal yet heartfelt post on this blog...I had lost my passion and my drive.

Trying to figure out what went wrong is one thing, trying to get my creative passion back is another.

I am slowly working on getting some form of ambition back, trying to rework some old projects and ultimately getting published again. This is no small undertaking!!

 

My last book entitled "At the End of the Day" really didn't go anywhere. That could have been the fault of the publisher, but most likely it was my own fault for not promoting this wonderful book more strongly.  I had let my newest creation down!!

I started a somewhat ambitious....maybe somewhat lame challenge on my Greg Budig Author & Illustrator Facebook page  to have my friends and followers request a copy of this book at their local library. I received a lot of wonderful responses and hope to see it's circulation grow in the library world. But people won't check it out if they don't know it exists. Is it too late to promote a book that's four years old? Hhhmmmm.....that is the question.

So my next plan of action is to finish some of the book projects that I had started years ago, some of which are actually quite good. I am currently revisiting and working on a Halloween themed book based on some decorations I made for our front yard, the book is entitled "The Scarecrow's Halloween"

The joy of creating seems to be returning...I'm actually feeling excited about this idea!! It needs to be revamped, reworked and redesigned in places, but over all it has good structure. I just need to get busy with it!!!

So this is where I am at right now. Hopefully a little more positive and hopefully a lot more ambitious than the last time I posted on here. Will this feeling remain? Like I said last time...I kind of hope so!!

"Whatever Happened to....Oh Yeah... That Guy!!"

Seems not that long ago I was full of ideas and optimism about writing and illustrating, somewhere along the line that passion seems to have died.


How do these things happen? How do we allow ourselves to suddenly seem to give up? I guess that after my last book more or less tanked before it left the publisher...I suddenly realized that maybe my whole "career " was pretty much a fluke.

When I got the call from Stemmer House Publishers back in  2004 about publishing my first book, I felt that the sky was the limit!! Feelings of excitement and endless possibilities raced through my mind...I had Caldecott dreams and visions of starred reviews in my head! Then the realities of the book business floated to the surface of my tranquil, little,  children's book pond.

Due to circumstances beyond my control, the book was released nearly a year and a half late and in paperback...not the hardcover version with dust jacket as I was promised. Apparently big name book reviewers, libraries and the Caldecott award committee aren't that interested in soft cover books...in fact soft cover books aren't even eligible for the Caldecott. Suddenly all my dreams of overnight success and glory started to get a little hazy.  I was still proud of my accomplishment, but I also felt a little disappointed. Where were all the reviews and promotional help I expected from my publisher? Nowhere to be found it seemed...

Granted I had moments of praise for my books over the years. I deeply appreciated the kind words I received from people around the world about them, but it was during the production of my last book that I suddenly stopped enjoying what I was doing.

The editor selected to work with me on this book seemed disinterested, like she really didn't understand my lyrical style of writing. She seemed to be spending more time dissecting each word instead of grasping the message I was trying to convey. The whole process seemed to destroy what little passion I had left for writing... I really didn't feel it anymore.

I suppose I could list for you the many personal reasons for why I just seemed to suddenly stop writing and painting, but that would be nothing but mindless chatter and complaining, nobody wants to hear that! I guess it all boils down to one simple thing...I just didn't feel inspired anymore.

So consider this as a sort of feeble attempt at sorting it all out, trying to figure out the reasons for giving up on something that was truly important to me... trying to make sense of what went wrong. 

Maybe someday I'll be back... I kind of hope so! 

take care...



  

"Oh The Places I Go!"

Working with the young artists.

 I recently had the good fortune of being invited to Pinewood Elementary School in Monticello, MN.  In life, sometimes one thing leads to another, and that's pretty much how this whole visit started. During school conferences last fall, my niece Tammy gave her daughters teacher Mrs. Stoick, a "glowing" review about me and my books. Her teacher was intrigued and decided to contact me about doing something at the school.

 I painted these canvasback ducks back in 1986!!

 Her class would be involved in submitting designs for the Federal Jr. Duck Stamp program. This program is based off the prestigious Federal Duck Stamp competition that is held every year here in the United States.  Artists from across the country are invited to send in their designs. From these designs, a panel of judges will select a winner which will be turned into a stamp. These stamps are then sold to hunters, conservationists and anyone else interested in helping environmental programs in the U.S.

The Jr. Duck Stamp program was started to let school age children get involved in the arts as well as a conservation based program. Mrs. Stoick thought I would be the perfect person to help inspire and teach her students a little bit about waterfowl and design.

Drawing some examples of duck bills.

I must admit my wildlife art skills felt a little rusty at first. All the paintings I brought were from the 1980's! Seems I've spent the last few years working mainly on artwork for book projects. But once I started doing a few simple drawings for them, it all seemed to fall back in place for me artistically.

Me and my great niece Savannah.

The kids were great! They seemed genuinely interested in my work and what I had to say. I explained a little bit about design and the differences between different species of waterfowl. They then worked on their own designs while I went around the room and gave them some help. I even got to sign some books for my great niece Savannah. All in all...it was a wonderful day!!

"Lentil" by Robert McCloskey

 This is the third in my series of children's books that inspired me...
 
Robert McCloskey was born on September 15, 1914 in Hamiltion, Ohio. He is best known for creating such children's masterpieces as "Make Way for Ducklings" and "Blueberries For Sal". But it was this book "Lentil", his first book as author and illustrator, that first caught my attention as a youngster.

 McCloskey had such command of his artistry, his pen and ink work was remarkable! There was no need for color with pen skills like this.  As a child, I was drawn to the exaggerated expressions shown on the faces and in the body language of his characters, they nearly jumped from the pages of his books. There was such fluidity to his drawings, they had a rhythm and motion all there own...I found them to be utterly fascinating. There is a certain sense of timelessness that black and white illustrations can evoke, a feeling I tried to capture in my first book "I Hear the Wind". I wasn't sure if I had the patience to do all the illustrations in pen and ink like I first envisioned, so I rendered them in black and white acrylic paints. I was happy with the results!

"LENTIL" is set in the fictional small town of Alto, Ohio. (Which was loosely based on McCloskey's own hometown) The story involves a boy named Lentil who, because he could not sing or whistle, learns to play the harmonica. One day the town started to buzz with word that Colonel Carter, the town’s most famous former citizen, would be returning. Everyone was happy about this except Old Sneep, who was a very bitter and despicable sort of character.

All kinds of festivities were planned to welcome Colonel Carter home, including a brass band which would greet him at the train. When the train finally arrived, the only sound heard in the town was the sound of Old Sneep sucking on a lemon!  The old man knew this would make the musicians pucker up and be unable to play their instruments. A very confused and disappointed Colonel Carter stepped off the train, where was the great fanfare he expected? Not effected by the sound of the slurping Sneep, Lentil puckered up, blew on his harmonica, and filled the air with lively music! The story ends with Colonel Carter and the rest of the town continuing the celebration... even to the delight of Old Sneep!

Robert McCloskey died on June 30, 2003. He was a master of illustration. I will forever be inspired by his work and his contribution to the world of children's literature.

"Where the Wild Things Are" by Maurice Sendak

Ah yes...books that inspired me, part 2. This one is pretty obvious, in fact, I'm sure 99.9% of all the folks of my age group will list this one somewhere on their all time list of favorites. Hey, what's not to like?!  

Released in 1963, this book revolutionized children's picture books. But the literary establishment of the day was not quite ready for this revolution it seems...the book was banned by many school libraries and at first dismissed by the critics. But somewhere along the line, someone in the establishment realized, "Wow! The kids really seem to like this funny little book about monsters."  Apparently opinions changed in the literary world..."Where the Wild Things Are" was awarded the Caldecott Award for the best illustrated children's book for 1964 and has gone on to be one of the most popular and iconic children's books of all time.

 As a child, I was mesmerized by this book. Maurice Sendak's illustrative style was so original and amazing. His use of line is so lyrical as it flows effortlessly across the page. I remember being impressed by his use of pen and ink, of how he as able to achieve such depth and fullness in his characters using a simple art pen and watercolors. His intricate use of detail is what inspired me to draw, his vivid imagination inspired me to see things in a different way.

Most children can see a little of themselves in Max, the main character in this book. Sometimes our playfulness could get a little out of hand, sometimes we needed a time out to settle us down...but what happens during that time out is left up to our imaginations. But in the end, after all our bad behavior, we would still be welcomed back home with our supper waiting for us...and it will still be hot.

"So What the Hell am I REALLY Doing?"

So here we are...starting a whole new year! Full of new energy and positive ideals, ready to make a change for the better!!!!!!!!!!  Yeah really.....

So what the hell am I really trying to do? What am I trying to accomplish with my small time book career? Why do I keep doing what I do? Obviously it's not the money. God KNOWS it's not the money. One of the first things I ever learned about children's book publishing is that if you're doing it for the money...DON'T DO IT!!

My third book was released last fall to not a whole lot of pomp and circumstance. No release parties, no book signings, not a whole lot of anything. Truth is, I really am tired of trying to be my own publicist. My publishing company really doesn't do much in terms of advertising or promotion, they never really have, most of the time I'm just happy that they want to publish my stuff.  But after years of trying to chase down reviews for my books and trying to get some book signings going, I've realized it's just a bunch of hard work...and I'm just feeling tired. What ever happened to the joy of creating? What ever happened to having time to do it? Why did I get into this in the first place?

...and so I've started working on a new book. 

I have no idea of whether or not my current publisher is even going to continue releasing new material or is even interested in this book. I'm not all that sure of what their business plan is since one of the owners passed away last summer. His wife is continuing with the business, but I'm not really sure if her heart is into it anymore. I'm really not at liberty to be making a lot of assumptions on this situation I suppose, I just have this gut feeling that a change is in the works...and I may not be included in this change.

I guess I'm just doing it because I want to.

The story itself has been written and revised a couple times, fact is, I wrote this little ditty  several years ago. I've always liked this story and decided to bring it back to life, it seemed like the right time to do it. I have no deadline this time, I have no expectations of what it should or shouldn't be...I'm just trying to make the most of what I have to work with. 

Now I'm into the illustration mode. I'm dusting off an old, incomplete dummy I made of this book and am reinventing my vision of this story. The dummy I made was pretty limited, but it did have some good illustration ideas that I am now expanding on.  I've decided to try to be more inventive with this story, and I've decided to be more patient. I must admit that my artistic skills are quite good, but must also admit that as an artist I'm rather lazy. Sometimes getting from the inspiration stage to the completion stage can be a struggle...who am I kidding...it's always a struggle!! The urge to get it over with is overwhelming when you have limited time to begin with. Sometimes I feel that if I don't get it done within a certain amount of time, it will never get done. So I slap dash everything together at the last minute or go the easy route illustration wise.  Being an artist doesn't give you the magical power to simply create perfection at the snap of your fingers, it's mostly a lot of time consuming work. Not that I don't enjoy it mind you, it just takes time, time that you sometimes don't have. 

So that is why I'm closing, because I've spent way too much time on this here blog thing today. Too much time venting about things most people could really give a damn about...too much time wasted on being noticed.

Sorry if this wasn't the optimistic message you expected.  I guess I could whip up some satisfying and uplifting ending to this post...but I don't think I have time for that.

"A New Years Wish"

 

Wishing you and yours a healthy and prosperous New Year!!!

HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYBODY!!!!!

"The Snowy Day" by Ezra Jack Keats

 I've been thinking a lot lately about inspiration, things that left an indelible mark on my memories, things that inspired me to create. I really hadn't realized it until after my second book, "Still (A Winter's Journey)", was in print as to how much it parallels this book..."The Snowy Day" by Ezra Jack Keats.


I really don't remember how old I was when I first got this book. I do remember being in grade school at St. Mary's in Morris, MN when I got it, and I remember getting it through Scholastic Books.  Getting the flimsy, tissue paper thin Scholastic Books order form in school was a monumental moment for me as a child. 

Being able to pick out a new book was something magical and rare...there weren't exactly a ton of book stores out there on the windswept prairie back in the late 1960's!  But I remember what caught my attention from all the other tiny little book pictures in that circular was the cover. There was something about that little boy in the red snowsuit that peaked my interest.

The story centers around a little boy named Peter who wakes up one morning to find that it has snowed overnight! His normally dirty inner city world has turned into a winter wonderland and he sets out to explore and have an adventure. First he builds a snowman, then makes snow angels, climbs a snow mountain, makes patterns in the snow with a stick...he generally makes the most of this snowy day. Later that night, he dreams that the sun has come out and melted all the wonderful snow! But much to his relief it was only a dream and a fresh layer of snow greets him the next morning!

 Ezra Jack Keats used a technique of mixing opaque watercolor with paper collage to create incredibly expressive yet simple illustrations. His use of color was remarkable! The vibrant red of Peter's snowsuit against the wintry landscape and the crystal clear blue sky is so striking. And the snow was not white... it was a kaleidoscope of muted blues, purples and pinks. 

This deceptively simple story has a lot to say. It does what every good picture book should do, it transports the reader and listener into a special world created by the author and once there, he lets you follow Peter through his snowy adventure. 

This book reminds me that I have much to learn about story telling and illustrating, sometimes I need to learn when to stop telling and start showing. 

So that is the story of Ezra Jack Keats "The Snowy Day". If you haven't already enjoyed this book,  I urge you to go out and purchase a copy for yourself to share with a special child in your life. And while you're at it...purchase a copy of one of my books as well!!!  Just kidding!...but seriously if you feel compelled to do so, it would be greatly appreciated!! No pressure...really.

Take care
Greg

"Reflections on a Brown Christmas"

An  illustration from "Still (A Winter's Journey)"

This is as close to a wintry scene as we have had here in the upper Midwest...not exactly the stuff of  Bing Crosby legend!

A part of me, the sentimental, romantic side of me, missed the atmospheric wonder and soft holiday glow that the snow provided as a backdrop to the season. The other part of me, the jaded, realistic side, thoroughly enjoyed not having to shovel it or drive through it every morning on the way to work. I was in heaven!!

It seems the artist and writer in me, the part of me most connected to the carefree days of childhood, yearned for the snow. Visions of frosted window panes and snowflakes like goose down ran endlessly through my mind. That part of me wanted to be immersed in the solitude of the new fallen snow...but it seems that part of me doesn't reside within me like it used to.

Blame it on age, life, lack of free time...well, free time away from dozing in the recliner. Sometimes what ambition and energy I do muster, I need to focus on trying to accomplish all the other endless chores I've let pile up around here. I seem to no longer have time to be childlike anymore, and that's rather sad to admit.

 And so we embrace our brown Christmas, we take it for all it's worth and enjoy the fact that our outdoor decorations won't be frozen into the ground until sometime in March. And besides...we can always dream for next year!

"At Christmas Time"

As a child, before the world became complicated, I remember Christmas as a season of lights in the darkness.

I woke up early that morning tucked deeply beneath the warm familiar blankets on my bed, I was lost in a world of half dreams. I could see the warm glow of Christmas lights reflecting through the lacy patterns of frost on my bedroom window, I thought of everything and nothing all at the same time. I was six years old and it was the morning of Christmas Eve Day!

If I close my eyes now as a worn and somewhat jaded adult, I can still see and feel those images of Christmas. The warm and magical glow of colored lights against the cold, empty darkness of December. As I lay there, I remember hearing the soft sounds of holiday music as it crackled through the speakers of the old AM radio down in the kitchen. The tune was so sweet and familiar...but now has been lost to my memory. I stepped from my bedroom and into the hallway, up the stairwell the soft radiance of red and green shimmered from the lighted tree down in the living room, my mom always made sure that the Christmas tree was lit first thing in the morning. Framed against the grey blue morning outside, the tree was a beacon of Christmas! It was a symphony of red, green, blue and gold as the strands of long silvery tinsel reflected and danced with the colors of the lights. Time worn glass blown ornaments gleamed like priceless trophies against the needles of the majestic evergreen. I could scarcely speak as I was mezmerized by the all encompassing, Christmas celebrating beauty of it all.

As the years passed and the magic of Santa sadly faded away, I remember going for walks in the muted blue grey shadows of dusk to see the neighborhood lights. I saw rows and rows of lighted roof lines and scattered illuminated trees, plastic Santa's and snowmen seemed to march through the yards, each one calling out "Merry Christmas!" I could see the trees inside the houses glowing warmly and brightly, wreaths and bells and candles and holly...the air itself seemed to glow with the colors of Christmas. And then I would pass a lighted nativity, the solemn silent figures stood in reverence through the dark and lonely night...waiting for the star to shine again.

Now as I am older, I still look for the lights of Christmas. We take our children out for rides to see the magic and listen to the music, each of us remembering these things in our own different ways. Sometimes we run so fast at this time of year we forget to look, we forget to dream, we forget to remember. We forget the magic we once all had inside us...and we forget to look for the lights of Christmas.

See the lights? There are always lights at Christmas. Shining through the windows, there above the stable. Silent Night. The dreams we have at Christmas will always shine within us like lights against the darkness...at Christmas time.

"Now is the Time!"

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I should really make this quick, as now is the time to get ready for Christmas. I know I have a number of things I should do today, always something left to buy, or bake, or see, or make...


Thing is... Christmas will come no matter what we do... or don't do.

Such is the season I'm afraid, we have been warned since damn near Halloween, so why do we now seem to run out of time. I can't really say what we expect though, all these time restrictions are more or less self imposed, it is by choice that we stress ourselves out over this. So what's the point you might ask?

I suppose this is just a personal note to myself, and to whoever else might be reading this, to just stop for a moment and breath.

Okay...feel better now? Great, now just relax and have a Happy Holiday Season and a wondrous New Year!!!

I knew we could do it!!!!

"The Music of Christmas"

This album, "The Perry Como Christmas Album", is forever etched into my memory. I consider it a recording masterpiece.

Now I know there are those naysayers who don't necessarily think of this as a good thing. In fact they would probably presume that this would be a sign of a deeper more troubling mental condition...the condition known as chronic lameness.

But who am I trying to kid...I just love Christmas music! From the day after Thanksgiving to midnight on December 25th, I'm going to be listening to the stuff and enjoying every sappy frickin' minute of it!

I think it all goes back to a ritual my family used to do during the Christmas season, I don't really remember how it started, but I remember these moments as being some of my fondest memories of childhood. I remember how we would turn off all the lights in the house, well, all the lights except for those that pertained to Christmas, and we would then bask in the glow of the multi-colored, tinsel laden, ornament covered, star topped Christmas tree! And our soundtrack? Why our beloved collection of Christmas albums!

Perry Como, Gene Autry, Bing Crosby...nothing but the classics! We would heap these treasures onto the old turntable, sit back and let the music take over. Typically there would be some conversation of course, usually between my older sisters and my mom, but usually it was nothing too overly pressing. Of course various snacks would appear, my mom would bring out cookies or candies, there was no lack of feasting for us at this time of year!

But mostly, it was about the lights and the music. Our tree, typically a live tree, was wired with the largest, most heat emitting bulbs on the market. The fresh smell of pine in our house was also a by-product of the sap in the tree being super heated to nearly the boiling point...I'm surprised the whole thing didn't spontaneously erupt into flames! Our music was recorded on vinyl, non of this digitally remastered, compact disc, high definition crap...we reveled in the warmth of their imperfections!

It was at this time that I would truly be immersed in the sights and sounds around me. Watching the snow falling gently outside the window, it danced passed the colored lights above the front door, and then slowly dissolving into the darkness of the night. Listening to Perry Como singing "Ave Maria" and realising that this was the most beautiful thing that you had ever, or maybe would ever, hear in your life.

It was a magical time to be sure, a time to gather as a family and listen to the sounds of the season, a time to simply enjoy the simple beauty of Christmas.

It was then at that moment, when we were all lulled into the sweet transcendence of Christmas bliss, that my dad would flip on the kitchen lights as he came into the house after work saying, "Hey, who turned all the lights off!" The cold slap of fluorescent light shook us all out of our trance, but only for a moment..."Turn that light off and come into the living room!" we would all yell.

Soon we would all be gathered together again in the colored darkness, my dad would hungrily cut up cheddar cheese and summer sausage to eat with crackers... and the happy sounds of Gene Autry would once again fill the air!
Merry Christmas!

"And so this is Christmas..."

And so it begins...another holiday season. Creeping upon us like a sack carrying, soot covered figure in the middle of the night, it seems to catch us while we are sleeping. There is so much about the Christmas season that is artificial, cliche and overtly commercialized, but there is also so much that is personally original and genuinely real.

Christmas is about memories, either real or imagined, memories that often times define us as human beings. As a child, Christmas was a time of light in the darkness to me, it was the quiet times I remember the most.

Christmas is also about traditions, a link to where we come from. From the foods we eat to when we opened our presents. Oddly enough, my mother always made that fine German staple of lasagna every Christmas Eve. She wasn't a woman stuck on ethnic tradition I suppose, rather she made something we all liked instead of the traditional German potato salad and carp. So lasagna became our traditional Christmas Eve meal! "Buon Natale!!!!"

Every year we strive to make this "The Best Christmas Ever!!"...a Christmas to end all Christmases. But why? Maybe it's the desire to recreate an ideal that we've been grooming in our minds for years, trying to bring back a bit of our childhood, the reasons are many.

"And so this is Christmas...as John Lennon once wrote, ...and what have we done?" "Another year over, and a new one just begun." The message is simple and so should be the holiday, I myself hope to follow this example...for once. "And so this is Christmas, I hope you have fun. The near and the dear one, the old and the young."

Merry Christmas!!!!

"A Celebration of Food!"

The turkey sits in the fridge, slowly thawing, getting ready for the food frenzy that is in two days...the feast of Thanksgiving! Everyone seems to love this holiday, a day to overeat, watch television and sleep...sounds like heaven to me!!

 

I personally enjoy the planning and preparation of the meal. There's something so basic and traditional about simmering the nasty bits, (the heart, liver, gizzard and turkey neck), in water, onion, celery and garlic the evening before to make stock for the stuffing. Oh sure...you can buy chicken stock, but why let those perfectly good organ meats go to waste?  Stew those bad boys up! Let them simmer for hours until the entire house is filled with the savory aroma of Thanksgiving!!

 

I love getting up early Thanksgiving morning to start cooking, seasoning the bird and getting the sausage and mushrooms ready for the stuffing. Having a couple cups of freshly brewed coffee with my lovely wife is also part of the morning celebration...which eventually turns into a couple glasses of wine as the feast begins to take shape. Having a glass of crisp white zinfandel at 10:00 a.m. makes the holidays even more special!  You can't cook gourmet without wine.

Turkey, sausage and mushroom dressing, Yukon gold mashed potatoes with homemade turkey gravy, acorn squash, brussel sprouts, buttered corn and soft dinner buns...oh heavens yes!!  Cranberry sauce? Of that I am unsure. I have never really been a fan, though I do enjoy a cold glass of cranberry juice cocktail...maybe this year he will give cranberry sauce a try.  

 

Afterwords we will all gather for pumpkin pie with whipped cream...as is the American thing to do!

So enjoy your Thanksgiving anyway you want to. Watch the parades, have a little wine, sleep all afternoon...oh yeah, I guess there's football on somewhere. Enjoy!

"And the Winner is....."

I recently submitted my newest book entitled "At the End of the Day" for nomination to The Minnesota Book Awards. I haven't received my official e-mail  confirmation yet, but I'm fairly confident that my package of five books with nomination form and entry fee have made it safely to St. Paul, MN.  

I go into this with the full realization that I haven't got the slightest chance in hell of ever winning this thing, but I figure that at least it will get some good exposure for my new book. I'm not trying to be overly modest or anything here, I'm just being realistic. Who knows, maybe I'll be surprised...but don't count on it.

We all like to be recognized for our talents. Most artist, whether they admit to it or not, can trace their passion for what they do back to a need to be noticed. I can trace my own  identity as an artist back to kindergarten when my teacher gathered the entire class around me during art period and proclaimed  "Looks like we have quite the little artist here!"  I had found my purpose.

Randolph Caldecott

In the world of children's book illustration, the Randolph Caldecott Medal is as good as it gets. Winning the Caldecott gives an illustrator instant recognition, countless new admirers and a whole lot of reasons to be noticed!  When my first book "I Hear the Wind" was in production, I dreamed about it somehow beating the odds and winning the Caldecott! My rise to the top of the literary world would be the stuff of legend! My name would suddenly be mentioned in the same context as Maurice Sendak, Chris Van Allsburg or David Wiesner. I would be immortal! I then read the submission guidelines... 

Only hardcover books were eligible for consideration. My book had been hastily released in softcover after being delayed for almost two years, I was in fact, ineligible. I was crushed. It was eligible for The Minnesota Book Awards, much to my relief, and so I sent it in hoping for the best.  And guess what? It didn't win a thing! Not even honorable mention!!


And so again I will try for literary immortality and hope the judges decide in my favor. This book was released in hardcover, so I may even submit it for the Caldecott Medal this year. Keep your fingers crossed...but don't hold your breath!