This is the size of my pencil before I decided I had to open the new package and throw this one out. I had a half dozen others about the same size, but this one won the “to the nub” crown. I can’t hold on to it when I put it in the sharpener. Definitely time to let it go.

I guess you could call me frugal. I hold on to things until they are used up to the point of uselessness. Sometimes this is a good thing. Sometimes, it is not. I have drawers full of fabric scraps I plan to do “something” with someday. I should probably just throw them away. But I hate to throw anything away. Honest, I’d rather give it to someone who can use it before I put it in the garbage.

As you probably surmised from the nub above, I have been drawing my fingers off. The thumbnails for a book always take far longer than one would think because this is the experimental stage of the book. This is the time to decide the flow or full bleed/vignettes and whether to do a close up or distance view. I must admit, this thumbnail workout is moving much faster than the previous books. Either I am getting better or I have finally come to a place where I understand what needs to be done to make the book pages work. I’m thinking it must be a bit of both.

Sadly, for NaNoWriMO anyway, I have discovered I can either write all day long or draw all day long. I cannot switch between the two disciplines and have anything I am satisfied with by the end of the day. I wonder if other author/illustrators have found the same sort of thing happening with them. Might be an interesting question to add to my interview roster.

Many writers post a play list when working on their next novel. So, if inquiring minds want to know I am listening to jazz. Right now Helen Humes is singing her heart out.

And just to make sure I am totally insane by the end of the year, this afternoon I am signing the agreement to renovate the kitchen. I am a bit nervous about making the down payment.

Back to the drawing board – literally!

Lesson One: The Character Sheet

In order to have everyone starting out in the same place I decided we will work on the illustrations for a popular fairy tale. I am pretty certain everyone is familiar with the story of Snow White and the Seven Dwarves. Here is the Brothers Grimm version: http://www.pitt.edu/~dash/grimm053.html Please, use text from this web site for your illustrations so we have a common beginning. Thanks!

For today’s lesson choose two characters and develop a character sheet for each. Have at least one smiling face, one frowning face and one other expression for each character.

To view an assortment of character sheets by artist Aaron Zenz, visit the character design section of his web site here: http://aaronzenz.com/characterdesign.html

Bonus points awarded to anyone who adds completed bodies to each character or has the characters interacting in some way.

Post a link to your character sheets in the comments if you would like a critique.

Lesson Two: The Storyboard

Instead of recreating the wheel, there is a very detailed web page from the book ‘Writing with Pictures: How to Write and Illustrate Children’s Books’ by Uri Shulevitz. Here is the link: http://mightyartdemos.com/mightyartdemos-shulevitz.html Please, visit the web site and read the demo. I also highly recommend Uri’s book when you have a chance.

In today’s lesson draw thumbnail roughs for three consecutive spreads on your storyboard.

My friend, Elizabeth Dulemba, is kind enough to share her storyboard for ‘Paco and the Giant Chile Plant’ on her web site here: http://dulemba.com/FreeTools/Paco-Thumbnails.jpg

My thumbnails for ‘Rabbit’s Song’ are here: http://wendymartinillustration.com/launchpad/thumbnails_rabsong.html

Post a link to your thumbnails in the comments when you are done if you would like a critique.

Lesson Three: The Book Dummy

Amy Meissner has a web page on her site that shows the process she went through for a single spread in her book ‘Ollie Jolly, Rodeo Clown.’ Please read it here: http://litsite.alaska.edu/akwrites/desert/illustrate.html

Today’s lesson is to take one of your spreads from yesterday’s lesson and sketch it at full size. Keep in mind your character sheets and the book’s physical limitations. Bonus points for anyone who gets ambitious enough to add color.

Post a link to your spread in the comments if you would like a critique.

What makes a great picture book? It’s a combination of stellar text and outstanding pictures, of course.

Unless you are also a writer, most likely you will receive someone else’s words to illustrate. The text will have been edited and been through the process of making it the tightest it can be during the time it has spent at the publishing house. Chances are you will never speak or meet the author. The editor for the book may give you some direction on what they envision for the book. When a large publisher hires you, you may be working with an art director.

What do these people expect from you?

The key to a great picture book is both careful planning and creative spontaneity. In this course, I will attempt to teach you the tools necessary for a great plan. I say attempt because what I plan to teach you in the next three lessons has taken me years to learn.

The artist’s tools for planning a picture book are:

1. A character sheet

2. A storyboard

3. A book dummy

Before the book can be illustrated, the artist has to have a plan. The plan has to be easy to understand by the art director, the editor and whomever else the publisher decides needs to look at it.

What is a character sheet?

A major difference between a single illustration (such as a magazine spot or a book cover) and the illustrations in a picture book is character consistency. It is the artist’s job to draw a character over and over again in many different poses and with many different facial expressions and in many different perspectives. The character MUST look like the same person (or animal or whatever you are illustrating) from the beginning of the book to the end of the book. This is a lot harder than it sounds. Picture book artists will spend a great deal of time on character development. They will draw the character from the front, the back, the side, the top, the bottom, and upside down. They will draw the character showing emotions such as happy, sad, mad, scared and other expressions that may be within the story’s text.

When creating a character for a storybook, things to keep in mind for consistency are:

• Gestures – what are the character’s distinctive idiosyncrasies, habits and personality quirks? How does the character stand, is it shy or bold?

• Expressions – How does the character portray what s/he is feeling? A good example of a strong personality is Calvin from the cartoon strip Calvin and Hobbes. Think of how Calvin reacts to the unidentified green goo on his dinner plate. Granted the drawing for this cartoon strip is very exaggerated, but it is an excellent example of what a character can do with its face!

Other things to keep in mind are:

• Facial proportions

• Body proportions

• Gender

• Age

A young boy will have different body proportions than an older boy, and a girl will have different ones from both. A young girl is very different in body shape than a preteen girl.

The best way to develop a character is to think in terms of 3-D.

What is a storyboard?

The storyboard is the book’s foundation. It is the base of everything to follow. In order to have a strong picture book, the storyboard must explore the many aspects of the story. But not in minute detail – that comes later. The storyboard allows the artist to view the whole book at a glance and see how each page relates to the others, and how they relate to the book as a whole. This is the time where flow and rhythm are established. The artist will start with the largest elements here. An overall pattern and story flow are decided at this stage. Are the pages going to be spreads or single? How is the image placed on the page(s), what is the viewpoint, has an environment been established? Does the flow of the individual images enhance the movement of the story? Is there continuity without boredom or repetition?

In the storyboard development of a picture book, many options for a single page or spread are explored. If the focus is in the distance on one page and in your face in another, is there a logical progression in how the reader gets there?

When I create my storyboards, I like to block out the areas where text might go. In individual paintings this is not an issue, but in a picture book, if there is no place for the text to be (and to be legible!) it could mean an entire new layout!

Some artists like to take the black and white storyboard one step further and block in rough color. I don’t work that way since I find that I like to mix huge batches of color and experiment at full size. The edges of my paintings are full of squiggles and splashes of color from my testing swashes. I also find that the soft pencil I scribble down my thumbnails which tends to muddy the color to such a degree that I have to remember what my original color choice might have been.

What is a book dummy?

Once the storyboard has been noodled over until all parties are satisfied that the rhythm, flow, and movement match the book’s focus it is time to move onto the book dummy.

This is the time to consider all the nitty-gritty details. Gutters, bleed, frame, text placement and visual continuity all must be taken into account. If the artist is working on spreads and the images cross the gutter (the dip in the middle where the book is bound) will something important be lost? Will there be frames around the art or will it be full bleed? Are the compositions from the storyboard strong enough in a larger format? It may turn out that something that looked good at postage stamp size just isn’t working at the full-page size.

Now is also the time to decide if you will work larger than 100%.  If the artist is a digital artist this isn’t so much of an issue. If, on the other hand the artist is using a more traditional media, the ease of shipping and scanning images need to be considered. I used to work at 150% but found that my art lost a lot of its freshness when it was reduced. Plus, scanning was a hassle, especially with spread-sized images. The scanners were often smaller than the artwork and the images had to be scanned and pieced together. To me, they always look “off.”

An art director was kind enough to share his pet peeves of working with artists. Here are a few of the items.

1. Artist is missing editorial details. The AD suggests reading the manuscript thoroughly before starting any sketches.
2. Wait for sketch approval before moving to finished art. This is a biggy, especially for the traditional artist. Do you really want to have to start from scratch to make a change that could have been done easily in the pencil stage?
3. Leave enough room for the type. Leave PLENTY of room for type. Who knows, the book might be translated into a foreign edition. If the text area you plan is too close to the copy, that might mean new art (by someone else) or no foreign printing.
4. Not painting in proper proportion. Find out the page size. Stick to the page size throughout the book. That could mean a dozen or more paintings, depending on whether you are working in spreads or not. Measure twice – paint once.
5. Allow enough painting around the edges for the bleed. I like to leave an inch to an inch and half of loose color around my raw paintings.
6. When you put in trim line, make sure they are OUTSIDE of the live area of the art. Be on the safe side and mark them outside of the extra bleed area!
7. If you scan your own art, make sure it is high quality and resolution.
8. Not creating art that the AD saw in your portfolio. If there is a style in your portfolio that you don’t want to do or haven’t done in a while, take it out.
9. Not allowing enough time for the review process. The artwork for a picture book can take anywhere from 6-9 months before it is ready. Don’t push up to your deadlines. Allow plenty of time for the review process and for you to make changes to the art. Even if the AD and editor both LOVE what you have done, 9 time out of 10, they will have suggestions to improve the sketches.
10. Not keeping in touch. Keep the AD or editor informed of where you are in the process when working on a piece.

When working on the book’s images, keep in mind that ‘safe’ is also boring. Stretch the envelope and take risks with your art. Try unusual viewpoints or perspectives. The most important thing to remember is that it is a team effort to create a book. That first draft is your own, but everything that follows belongs to the team.

A thoughtful day calls for a thoughtful doodle.

I have been doing a lot of research for my upcoming picture book illustrations. Today, I think I have reached the saturation point. There is only so much time one can spend in soaking up input.

The saga of the drain is (I hope) over. The plumber was here until nearly 7 last night. I have a load of towels in the washer, so we’ll see how that goes. So far, so good.

A few months back I mentioned the online workshop I was giving. The workshop was in mid October and is now old news. However, I promised to post my lesson notes and plans here, so I think the time has come to do that.

The day has been clogged with repair men and waiting. I don’t know what it is about me, but I don’t like to start a project when I know I will be interrupted by people coming to the house and wanting me to answer questions. Seriously, what can be more disturbing to the creative process than having a stranger man in the basement playing with a washing machine.

At least I only had to pay for the service call. The machine is fine. It seems that when the Roto Rooter guy was out last week to fix the stopped up drain, something clogged the drain tube for the washer. So right after I wrote the check for the repair man to tell me my washer was fine, (Ouch!) I got on the phone with Roto Rooter again. That was lunch time. The time for the repair guy to arrive was between 2 and 4. It’s 4 now. He’s not here. I got a call from him at 2:30 saying  he’d be here in 45 minutes.

I feel as if I have wasted an entire day. I am not amused. I had better not have to pay for a service call for them to fix what was working before they came out here in the first place.

Did I mention I am not amused?