THIS SITE HAS MOVED. Inkygirl posts are now part of DebbieOhi.com.
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Debbie Ridpath Ohi reads, writes and illustrates for young people. Every once in a while she shares new art, writing and reading resources; subscribe below. Browse the archives here.
I tweet about the craft and business of writing and illustrating at @inkyelbows. If you're interested in my art or other projects, please do visit DebbieOhi.com. Thanks for visiting! -- Debbie Ridpath Ohi
YAY! My contributor's copies of TOMO arrived today!! TOMO (which means "friend" in Japanese) features 36 stories for teens by authors and artists around the world. One of these stories is by me: it's my very first graphic short story, which is sort of a fantasy/romance/horror. Here's the first page:
Looking forward to reading other stories!
A portion of the proceeds from the sale of this book will benefit teens affected by the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake. Please do consider buying a copy, and tell your friends! You can point them to this online postcard about TOMO.
I enjoyed meeting Susan Hawk at the SCBWI annual conference in NYC, and I just found out she has a new blog!
Susan worked in children's book marketing for over 15 years, most recently as the Marketing Director at Henry Holt Books For Young Readers. Before that: Library Marketing Director at Penguin Young Readers Group. While at Penguin, she also helped acquired projects for Dutton Editorial.
From her About page:
I handle books for children exclusively: picture books, chapter books, middle grade and YA, fiction and non-fiction. In middle-grade and YA, I’m looking for something that makes me laugh out loud, I’m a sucker for bittersweet, and I can’t resist a character that comes to understand how perfectly imperfect the world is. I want a book to stay with me long after I finish reading, and I’m looking for powerful, original writing. I’m open to mystery, scifi, humor, boy books, historical, contemporary (really any genre). My favorite projects live at the intersection of literary and commercial. In non-fiction I’m looking for books that relate to kid’s daily lives and their concerns with the world. In picture books, I’m looking particularly for author-illustrators, succinct but expressive texts, and characters as indelible as my childhood favorites Ferdinand, Madeline, George and Martha.
Just discovered this blog while doing a Google search for publishing news: a great mix of publishing industry news and info of interest to writers. Schiel and Denver is an on-demand publisher with offices in the U.S. and UK.
I've updated the I'M BORED Scrapbook with a post about author Michael Ian Black. As I've mentioned before, I've been interviewing the author, editor and art director for this book and posting about the process on the Scrapbook.
Most recently, I asked MIB about his writing process - what inspired him to write I'M BORED and how the process went.
Today I'm highlighting Valerie Haight, who was the 16,000th person to follow my @inkyelbows account on Twitter. :-) Valerie was also mentioned in Joani Plenty's blog recently and although I've never met Valerie in person, she sounds like someone I would like to meet someday.
Valerie's first e-book, HAPPENSTANCE, will be released through Turquoise Morning Press in December. She also has a suspense represented by Blue Ridge Literary Agency that is currently in edits. and is working on a suspense she says she hopes to pitch in May.
I asked Valerie how she found me on Twitter. Her answer:
I found you by searching the amwriting hashtag on Twitter. I've been on Twitter almost three years and I joined to meet other writers, broaden my resource opportunity and to market my books.
****Update February 14, 2013: Please note that the Scrapbook and other bonus material have been moved to the I'M BORED Bonus Page.
I recently launched the I'M BORED Scrapbook, a place where I'll be pulling in everything I've been posting related to I'M BORED. Until the picture book launches this September, I'm mainly going to be focusing on a series of blog posts about how this picture book was creating, from start to finish.
Editor Justin Chanda, art director Laurent Linn and author Michael Ian Black have all been kind enough to answer some questions about the process for me.
The most recent post gave me a chance to ask Justin questions I've been wondering about, like whether he attended that 2010 SCBWI-LA conference with the goal of finding an illustrator for Michael's book, what exactly appealed to him about my portfolio, and what Michael's reaction was to my art.
Next up on the Scrapbook: Michael shares what inspired him to write I'M BORED.
Just discovered that Agent Kristin, who writes the excellent Pubrants blog, has a video series. The most recent explains why asking about the number of pages in YA or MG novel is the wrong question.
Today, I'm delighted to interview my Pixel Shavings friend, children's book illustrator and writer Hazel Mitchell, about her newest project.
Published by Charlesbridge/Mackinac Island Press, HIDDEN NEW JERSEY is a new book written by Linda Barth and illustrated by Hazel. The book is packed with historical, cultural and fun facts about New Jersey shared in rhyming narrative and Hazel's wonderful art. Young children can search for the hidden pictures throughout as they learn more about the state.
For a chance to win a copy of this book, just post in the comments section below! Be sure to enter your e-mail address so we can contact you if you win (random draw).
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How did you become the illustrator of Hidden New Jersey?
The developer for the book, from Mackinac Island Press (imprint of Charlesbridge) has produced two other books in this series (about Michigan and Ohio) and was looking for an illustrator for New Jersey. She saw some of my work on my Facebook fan page and contacted me. We took it from there. Hurrah for social networking!
Hurray, indeed! How useful have you found social networking in your career? And how did you find the right balance between online marketing/networking and your creative work?
Yes I have, in many ways: making contacts and meeting new people in the industry, learning from other's blog posts and links and for getting my work out in to the world. I spend a lot less time on line than I used to .. especially when I am working on projects. Marketing is a big part of the book industry these days so I will probably spend at least an hour a day doing something online.
Have you ever been to New Jersey?
Yes! My hubby was raised there, so we went to visit occasionally. I had no idea it was such a diverse state, though! The author, Linda J Barth lives in New Jersey and is a local historian.
Did you have any direct interaction with the author during the project?
No, put now the book is ready to publish we have liaised on marketing ideas. it's really great she loved what I did with her words! Phew!
How many illustrations did you have to do for the book? How long did it take?
I did 15 double spreads, plus the artwork for the covers, title/verso page and the 'hidden objects'. In total about 4 months. About 5 days on each full spread.
What media do you work with?
The line work is done in graphite and then I scan in and colour completely in photoshop.
Does illustrating a nonfiction book differ from illustrating a fiction book?
In some cases yes. In this case there was no running narrative throughout the book, as each page is specifically about a different region of New Jersey. So I had to include all the 'facts' in a montage style, abit like a jigsaw puzzle, and yet keep the feel of the illustrations cohesive. I did include the characters from the front of the book (in their canoe) throughout the illustrations as well as their little bumble bee friend, who is the state's adopted insect. There was a lot of research to be done as the illustrations had to accurately reflect many historical places. It was definitely a challenge, but an enjoyable one.
What are you working on now?
I am just about to start illustrating the fourth book in the 'All Star Cheerleaders' chapter book series by Anatasia Suen, (pub Kane Miller). And I am working on writing and illustrating my own picture books, and somewhere in the mix is an illustrated YA. So there is no chance that I will get BORED :-)
Ha! :-D And wow, you have a lot on your plate. How do you juggle your work schedule between so many different type of projects? Any tips to offer other illustrators with multiple projects on the go?
I like a lot going on. It's stimulating. When I have only one thing to do I feel like I am not working at my best. This probably stems from my Naval career and running a print business for many years. However when I am working on a book project I do find it hard to drop it and work on something else. I prefer to see the whole thing through in one go.
Sounds like a contradiction after saying I like working on lots of stuff. But mostly I am thinking about other projects, or making notes. If I have multiple deadlines, then I try and break the day up, or at least swap alternate days to work on them. It's hard. And then sometimes you hit a lull, and it's like you don't know what to do with yourself :-)
My advice is make lists. I cannot do without them and ticking things off gives me a sense of moving forward. I am learning that you have to go with the flow in the world of publishing, that's for sure!
Publisher Allen & Unwin recently opened up their Friday Pitch to children's/YA writers. Before making your pitch, make sure you read through all the guidelines carefully. They're not accepting pitches for picture book texts, for example, or poetry or short stories.
Still catching up from my week-long trip in NYC. I've decided I'm more likely to actually post about the event if I write up some shorter pieces rather than attempt one mega-long report. So here's my first!
I love making new friends at these events, which is one reason I try very hard NOT to make too many plans in advance, or hang out with the same group of people throughout the weekend.
During the meal, I nagged (yes, I'm embarrassed to admit I did NAG) Mike to start a blog. I pointed out that with his award win, lots of people would be checking out his website after the conference. And look, he started one!!! And he gave me credit. :-)
Afterward, we had some fun taking photos out in Grand Central Terminal. From left to right: Russ, Mike, Roberta, Fred and Wouter.
Anyway, I -love- Mike's work, and can't wait to see where his career takes him next.
Wednesday, February 29, 2012 at 6:25 PM
