Interview with Vijaya Bodach, who sold her TEN EASTER EGGS picture book mss to Scholastic through an Inkygirl post

Back in 2013, I posted an interview with Scholastic editor Celia Lee, who invited Inkygirl readers to submit picture book manuscripts for a limited time. Two book contracts came out of that, including Josh Funk's PIRASAURS! story (see my interview with Josh Funk and the illustrator, Michael Slack).

I'm delighted to interview the author of the other book that sold. Vijaya Bodach's story, Ten Easter Eggs, illustrated by Laura Logan, published by Scholastic in 2015. For those in the Mt. Pleasant, SC area, Vijaya Bodach will be doing a Ten Easter Eggs Reading at the local Barnes & Noble.

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A Compilation Of Advice For Young Writers & Illustrators From Children's Book Creators

Thanks to all the children's book writers and illustrators who have contributed advice for young writers and illustrators in their Inkygirl.com interviews over the years! I'm gradually going through my archives as well as my interviews with authors of books I've illustrated and compiling a list of advice takeaways.

If you click on the author's name beside each piece of advice, you can read the full interview.

Here is the list of advice for young writers and artists from published children's book creators.

Tips for busy bibliophiles who have trouble finding time to read

When I was a child, I remember looking around my school library and vowing to read every single book on the shelves. As a grown-up, I've discovered it can be a challenge sometimes to find time to read. I rarely get the luxury of reading an entire book at one sitting.

What I've learned: that it's not so much about finding time to read as making time to read. And as Stephen King pointed out in his On Writing book (which I'm rereading right now), writers need to make time to read. "If you don't have the time to read, then you don't have the time (or the tools) to write."

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Be kind to your apostrophes today

Speedy Doodle: Bugs and Baked Goods

Starting my week off with a BUGS AND BAKED GOODS speedydoodle.  I find keeping a sketch journal fun, inspiring (getting some ideas for stories) and therapeutic (especially when crazystuff is going on in the news on or social media). See more of my art videos, found object doodles and sketch journal pages on Instagram and Twitter. 

Materials and process: I used a Lamy Safari (Fine nib) inked with Platinum Carbon Black ink in my Rhodia paper sketchbook, waterbrush, and Winsor & Newton Cotman pan watercolours. Recorded the video with the Hyperlapse app on my iPhone, imported into Premiere Pro (which I'm just learning) to speed up and crop, added static images to the beginning and end.

Some of my other recently posted Speedy Doodles:

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Comic: Grammarian Party Angst.