my blog 2007
February 11, 2007
For the past three years I have been saying I was going to update this website. I think I have said it to someone at least once a month for that entire time. Often more than once a month. Often to art directors or editors who have checked out my work online. Most of them were new to my illustrations so it didn’t really matter. And for the most part they seemed to like what they saw so I didn’t need to make apologies for the lack of updates.
However, times change and my career has done a slow, but dramatic, about face and headed off in new and exciting directions. In fact this “about face” has been in the works for almost three years and none but close friends and family has known anything about it. So the website was getting more and more out of date, not because the illustrations were getting stale, but because I’ve been working on a lot more than just drawing in that time.
The idea in this new website is to reflect my career as it is now. While I’m still working as an illustrator, I’m now devoting most of my time to writing and illustrating books for children — something that I’ve aspired to since I was a small child. With this new site I can keep a much more current portfolio online as well as keep you up to date with the latest news and information. So check back regularly for updates and new sketches!
And, since this is my first posting on the new site, I’ll take a second to thank my good friend Clem for all her hard work designing what you are looking at; and Jos for his programming skills and blogging expertise. Thanks guys! You rule.
February 12, 2007
An experiment in collage techniques. My drawings are usually a mix of line drawings and photos. I tend to do all the non-people things in my drawings as clear-line renderings. But I’ve always loved brush drawing so this was an attempt to use an ink wash drawing instead of the usual clear line approach. It seemed to work pretty well I think, but I’m not ready to try it in any professional context just yet.
February 12, 2007
The Picture Book: Contemporary Illustration is out now and I’ve just received my copy. The book presents “a broad spectrum of styles, techniques and subject matter representative of current trends and innovations to create a stunning compendium of contemporary illustration.” (that’s from the inside front cover of the book) I’m honoured, and flattered, to be a part of the book as well. Three of my illustrations are featured in the book along with a little self-portrait and a quote. The book looks amazing and features some really incredible work by a stellar list of todays illustrators. And, as if that weren’t enough, it’s designed by Angus Hyland of Pentagram so it looks awesome too. Check it out!
February 12, 2007
I was at the Ontario Library Association Super Conference the other day. Scholastic invited me to come and take a tour of the floor, meet people, shake hands and see what it’s all about. It was a fun, laidback event and everyone I met was very kind. The highlight of the day was attending the Dewey Divas and Dudes presentation at the end of the conference. It’s an event where publishers reps talk to librarians about the books they are most excited about. I went because Scholastic’s rep was presenting Grumpy Bird among her picks! Response was enthusiastic and the book got a good laugh out of the audience — a very good sign! It was very exciting to see my work being presented alongside icons like Brian Selznick, Garth Nix and Mo Willems. Brian’s book, The Invention of Hugo Cabret, is creating a lot of excitement. And deservedly so, it’s amazing! Go get yourself a copy.
February 12, 2007
This image draws some inspiration from Retrovirus, one of my favourite Japanese artists. I wanted to create an image where the focus was only on the hands and face of the character and everything else just became part of the background.
February 14, 2007
I actually drew this picture a while ago, but I thought now would be a good time to post it as winter has hit us with a vengence. There’s a mountain of snow outside and it’s really, really cold. Dress warmly. Happy winter!
February 24, 2007
I received my first copy of Grumpy Bird this week. Hot off the presses as it were. And … it looks really good! I’ve spent so much time over the last couple of years with these characters; looking at them, thinking about them and drawing them. I’ve seen the book in so many different versions and at so many stages. I’ve looked at proofs, printouts, and digital files. So when Scholastic called and said they were sending me a copy of the book I didn’t get too excited. I thought, “I’ve seen the book, it won’t be a big deal.”
But when I opened the envelope I probably grinned from ear to ear for a good few minutes. Nothing could have prepared me for the experience of seeing my own book and holding it in my hands. It’s a real book now. I’m prodigiously proud of it.
Seeing it as a “real live” book makes me think of all those who shared in its creation in the early stages: Heather and Hermione, Tracy Mack, Marjika Kostiw, Holly and Emily. Thanks ladies!
February 25, 2007
The background painting here was cropped from the edge of a painting done by my daughter. I guess I just liked the composition of the discarded bit of painting. I carried it around in my sketchbook for a long time before I drew the boy holding the umbrella. I think it creates a nice mood.
March 2, 2007
I’ve been spending a lot of time lately with a book about traditional Chinese painting. It’s called The Techniques of Chinese Painting by Wu Yangmu. It’s an interesting book and is basically a simple (but thorough) overview of brush painting techniques.
I find the most interesting part of it is not the actual techniques, but the composition of the pieces, especially the landscapes. If I’ve learned anything about art through looking at the examples in the book (and other brush paintings) it’s the sheer power of a well composed image. Placement is everything. And attention to negative space too. You can convey a lot of emotion and atmosphere through a well put-together image. It’s less about accurate representation than it is about representing something almost intangible — the feeling you might get looking at a landscape rather than the actual rocks and trees in front of you. It’s difficult to put into words. I’ve spent some time over the years trying to learn brush techniques (from many different traditions, European, Japanese, Chinese, American, comic book artists, you name it), so it’s enlightening to find that it’s not actually the painting techniques of the brush paintings that I love, but rather the overall effect that they create. An interesting discovery for me.
I should add that my own work is not an attempt to imitate Chinese brush painting techniques, much though I love looking at the traditional paintings. I’ve drawn a lot of inspiration from this work, but it’s not mine — it belongs to a very different tradition of art making, a tradition that I’m not a part of. I’d never be more than an imitator if I followed this path, and an imitator, no matter how good, will always be an imitator. But I have to say, I love the simplicity and emotional depth to this work. And that is something that I definitely want to explore more in my own work.
March 3, 2007
I’m not actually certain whether Grumpy Bird is in stores yet or not, but the reviews are just starting to come in. The first starred review was in Canada’s Quill and Quire magazine — but I can’t find a link to it yet. The Globe and Mail just reviewed it this weekend. So if you’re in Canada and reading this blog this weekend go take a look for it. It’s also online here. There’s also a very positive review on the Amazon
page, here. And then this morning this online review from David Elzey. Go Bird Go!!!
March 6, 2007
A pixie-y elf-y thing that I drew on Heather’s birthday card. Cute and silly. Ink and markers on paper.
March 6, 2007
I found a link to Carlyn Zwarenstein’s fantastic review of Grumpy Bird in Canada’s Quill and Quire magazine. It’s nice, go read it if you’ve got a minute.
March 11, 2007
This is kind of exciting: Grumpy Bird and I have just made the Borders Original Voices list for March 2007. It’s a list that highlights innovative new authors and books being published each month. I’m thrilled to be singled out as an “innovative new author”. Who would have thunk? Check it out.
March 14, 2007
This isn’t a new image, but I like it. And it’s got a slightly older appeal. See? I don’t always draw cute round-headed kids and fuzzy animals.
March 14, 2007
Grumpy Bird is getting more and more positive reviews! Hooray!!! Marsha Skrypuch alerted me to this one on the CM magazine website. Grumpy Bird also showed up yesterday afternoon on CBC Radio 1’s afternoon program Freestyle. They gave the book a fantastic review — very flattering! And great to have a ringing endorsement for the book on national radio! Nice!!! Thanks for the great reviews folks!
March 20, 2007
Grumpy Bird is in some stores now. Adrienne Vrettos sent me this nice photo of the book featured prominently at Books Of Wonder in New York City. It’s part of their Spring display. And I went into Indigo this weekend in Toronto and found it featured prominently on the shelves. When I was asked whether I needed any help I told the book-seller that I’d come to see my book in a real, live book store. She promptly asked me to sign all their copies. It was fun! She stuck big “autographed by author” stickers on the cover. My local independent bookstore has already sold out! Go Bird Go!!!
I’d actually gone into Indigo to purchase a couple of Jim Benton’s Franny K Stein books for my daughter. We’ve read the first book about a million times and we all still love it. So I bought book three, The Invisible Fran, and book five, Frantastic Voyage. Those were the only ones they had. If you haven’t already read Jim Benton, you definitely should. His books are hilarious.
March 22, 2007
I drew this image a couple of weeks ago on a particularly cold day. I think I was mainly concerned with the number of drawings I do of people from a straight-on sort of angle. I decided, just to prove to myself that I could still do it, to draw a person sitting on the ground. Something with a little more foreshortening. It was also a great opportunity to do some painting and not worry about the usual background details that I do — to let the painting and colour create the mood. It was fun! I really like the finished piece. And it looks like something magical is happening to him! Not sure what.
March 22, 2007
Hi! If you’re in the Vancouver/Victoria section of Canada you might be interested to know that I’ll be throwing a little launch party for Grumpy Bird on Sunday, April 1st. The event will be held at 5:00pm at Cadboro Bay Book Company in Cadboro Bay (840b Cadboro Bay Road, Victoria, BC). They can be reached by phone at 250-477-1421 for more information. I’ll be signing copies of the book and chatting with whoever comes by. It should be a great time so come on out and say “hi”.
There will also be a Toronto launch and signing on April 17th in the evening. More on that soon!
March 28, 2007
I gave a lecture at Centennial College this afternoon. It was fun and enlightening. I haven’t done very much public speaking in my life so was a little nervous but it went really well. Since the students I was speaking to were mostly in their twenties, and all art students, I chose to show the development of my “style” from it’s earliest incarnations in my final year of art college to the present.
For me it was interesting to look back over a decade of illustration and see just how far I’ve come. And… I’ve actually learned something in those years!!!! Who would have thunk? From early digital collage and fine-art printmaking (some of which had a decidely Marilyn Manson album cover art appeal) to the present fuzzy animals and round-headed kids. From trying really hard to imitate Dave McKean, to applying similar techniques to my own way of drawing. And to see how my palette has grown brighter and more saturated in that time. And it all culminated in Grumpy Bird — the logical end product of a decade of learning and experimenting with technique. I ended the lecture by showing a couple of pages from my next book, Me Hungry, which perhaps begins a new chapter in the ongoing development of a “style”. But you, dear reader of this blog, will have to wait a while before more of the book gets unveiled! I’m very mysterious.
All in all it went really well and the students asked some great questions at the end of it. And, surprisingly, no one got up and left in the middle! So, if you are reading this and were in attendance at the lecture, thanks so much for having me. It was a lot of fun.
March 30, 2007
Grumpy Bird is supposedly to be reviewed in the Wall Street Journal on Saturday March 31st. If you’re somewhere where the WSJ is available go check it out (hopefully it’s a favourable review). I think it’ll be in the Pursuits section. If it goes onto their website I’ll be sure to post a link.
I’m off to Victoria BC with the family for a week and half of vacation tomorrow. If I get any great photos at the book launch on Sunday the 1st, I’ll be sure to post them here. And if you’re in the area and casting about for something to do, please drop by and say “hello” (see previous posts for details).
April 2, 2007
This isn’t a new image, but it’s probably new to YOU which is why I’m posting it now. I love drawing people on windy days. I’m not sure why, perhaps because wind can create a sense of action where there isn’t any.
April 11, 2007
I haven’t posted on this blog in almost two weeks! I was on vacation in Victoria though so I’ve got a good excuse. On the first day there I managed a book launch at the Cadboro Bay Book Company. It’s a lovely little store right near the ocean and in front of a fantastic park. They also have an amazing selection of books and a really great children’s section. The event went very well and the store managed to sell out of my book. Nice!!! Not only that but they made a nice window display of Grumpy Bird too. So thanks to everyone at the book store for putting on such an amazing event and to everyone who showed up to talk and get signed books. I had a great time.
April 17, 2007
I did a few watercolour paintings recently after looking at a bunch of Chris Raschka’s art. The guy is one of the most amazing illustrators working in children’s books. Period. I’m not sure how successful this one is. I guess the pose is similar to that drawing of the girl in the snow (also in the sketches section of this blog). It’s a very static pose. However, there’s something about it that I like. And I very seldom use red. I find red extremely difficult to use, it’s a little overwhelming. So perhaps this was as much an exercise in RED as it was an exercise in watercolours. The finished drawing looks less like I had imagined it would than I’d hoped, but there you go. Still, it’s not bad.
April 17, 2007
I couldn’t link to the Wall Street Journal review as it looks like a subscriber only thing. Luckily Scholastic was kind enough to forward a copy to me. I hope the WSJ doesn’t mind me posting it here, it’s a great review! Thanks Meghan! Here it is:
By Meghan Cox Gurdon,
31 March 2007,
The Wall Street Journal,
P10,
(Copyright 2007, Dow Jones & Company, Inc.)
Grumpy Bird
By Jeremy Tankard
Scholastic, 28 pages, $12.99
One morning, Bird wakes up in a filthy temper. He’s too grumpy to eat, to play or even to fly. “Looks like I’m walking today,” says Bird. So off this irritable, blue, kidney-bean-shaped individual stalks, through a psychedelic landscape carpeted with flowers. “What are you doing?” asks Sheep. “Walking,” Bird says shortly. “Nice,” says Sheep. “I’ll keep you company.” A few minutes later, when Raccoon asks the same thing, Bird snaps: “I’m walking. What does it look like?” Raccoon replies, “It looks like fun.” Eventually Bird accumulates a string of animals trailing along behind him, untroubled by his irate, narrow-eyed demeanor. And haven’t we all had those moments? So cross and preoccupied that we don’t notice the friendly faces around us (let alone the psychedelic landscape)? Suddenly Bird stops. Everyone else stops. Bird lifts one leg. Everyone else lifts one leg. Bird jumps. Everyone else jumps. And, just like that, Bird’s mood soars. He invites all the creatures to fly back to his nest for a snack, which, this being a picture book for small children, they do. Jeremy Tankard’s deceptively simple tale is a useful tonic for moody kids — and their parents — but the best thing about it is the comic perfection of Bird’s face as he marches along in a fury.
April 22, 2007
So, on Tuesday April 17th I had a big launch for Grumpy Bird here in Toronto. The event was, by all accounts, an outrageous success. The turnout surprised me no end and everyone had a good time as far as I can tell. There were so many people at it that I didn’t even get a chance to talk with all of them.
I’d spent some time before the event drawing Bird and his friends on a nine foot long sheet of brown paper for children to colour (see the photo below). This might have been the highlight of the evening — having all the children, and there were a few of them, all sitting and colouring my characters. Scholastic was kind enough to provide Bookcity with piles of stickers too. So by the end of the night there were stickers everywhere, luckily mostly on other people and not too many on the furniture.
These photos were all taken by Heather Fitzgerald — my smart half. (And the launch was held at ten feet tall, a local watering hole that we enjoy.)
April 22, 2007
I promise I’ll do a proper write up of my Toronto book launch soon. I’ve been swamped and haven’t had a chance yet. Suffice to say it was a smashing success and everyone had a great time. In the meantime, I’ll tell you that I’ll be in Moncton, New Brunswick most of the week for their big Frye Festival where I’ll be hanging out with these other fantastic authors. I’ll also be giving a number of presentations in schools as well as teaching a workshop on writing comics. I think it’ll be a lot of fun and am really looking forward to it. So if you’re in Moncton come on out and say “hello”. I’d love to meet you.
April 30, 2007
I just got back from four days in Moncton, New Brunswick where I was a guest author at the Frye Festival (named for celebrated Canadian writer Northrup Frye). I’ve never been to a literary festival before so this was my first time. And what a time it was!!!! My goodness.
It’s a unique festival in that a huge component of it consists of the authors going into classrooms to talk with kids about their work. I’d never done such formal school presentations before, which was actually one of the reasons why I wanted to attend the festival — a great opportunity to get some classroom experience and iron out all the kinks in my presentation all at once. As it turned out I had nothing to worry about and all the presentations went remarkably well. Which is a good thing as I ended up giving 16 of them over three days! Yikes. Needless to say I arrived home completely exhausted. This blog has a write up of the festival that mentions me.
I spent my time talking with children in grades K through 5 about being an author and illustrator; showing samples of my work; reading Grumpy Bird; showing pictures and drawing pictures for them on an easel. The best part was usually the Q and A that followed each presentation. The younger children often didn’t ask questions but would enthusiastically raise their hands to tell me things about their home life. One particularly entertaining child told me at length about how he used to have three goldfish, but they died one at a time and his mom flushed them down the toilet. It was difficult not to laugh, but it was clearly a tragedy. One grade three boy, who had obviously thought long and hard about this, suggested, “So, if you’re an author and an illustrator, perhaps you should call yourself an authorstrator.” So from now on I will be known as Jeremy Tankard — authorstrator of children’s books.
April 30, 2007
On my recent visit to the Frye Festival in Moncton, New Brunswick I had the opportunity to spend some time in classrooms talking with children about books — especially Grumpy Bird. As part of my presentation I talked about collage techniques and, time permitting, made a collage for the students. This is one of those collages. I just glued some torn paper to the easel, took a huge marker and drew a Grumpy Bird character on top of it — much as I did it on the computer for the book, only “low fi”. It was a lot of fun. I photographed a couple of the more successful pieces and will post them here in the next few weeks. Here’s the first one:
May 6, 2007
My good friend Joel Sutherland interviewed me recently for his library newsletter. He’s a librarian and a very talented writer of fiction. It’s the silliest interview I’ve ever given, but it’s a lot of fun and you should definitely check it out. Click here to read it. You might have to scroll down a bit to read it. The other interviews on the page are worth reading as well.
May 6, 2007
The actual festival day was on Saturday the 28th and I’d been scheduled for four events — more than many of the other authors at the festival (not that I mind of course, it was a great chance to promote myself and my book — not to mention a lot of fun!).
I started with a reading at the public library where they’d set up an event called KidsFest that featured a number of children’s authors and activities. Since they had an easel there I decided at the last minute to draw the entire book for the assembled audience rather than simply read the story. It was a fun challenge! Largely because the paper was vertical and the spreads in the book are not. Still, it worked pretty well. I even got heckled by an observant child who kept pointing out things that I’d forgotten to draw. A short Q and A then a book signing. The signing lasted a while as the festival’s bookseller managed to sell out of my book. Luckily Scholastic had given me a huge stack of posters to give away. So I drew characters and signed them for kids as well.
From there I grabbed a quick sub for lunch. Curiously I ran into a second grade boy from one of the schools at the restaurant. He’d brought his brothers and parents to the KidsFest to meet me. He clammed up and didn’t say much, but I had a good chat with his parents. That was very flattering!
Then off to my next event, a reading sponsored by the Bay (a Canadian department store). They obviously promoted the event well as I’m sure there were two hundred people there to hear me read Grumpy Bird. Very strange. But a lot of fun. The reading didn’t take very long and I followed it with a short signing. The fun part about this reading is they sent me with a translator (Christine) who read the French Canadian translation of the book (called Gros Grognon). The Bay had been handing out free copies of a non-fiction book about the history of the Bay. So I signed lots of copies of that. Hilarious!
My driver then whisked me off to teach a workshop for kids (12 and up) on writing comics. This was a TON of fun. I ended up combining my workshop with Jimmy Beaulieu (of Mécanique Génerale) and we taught a bilingual event. This was fun (here’s a nice write up of the it by Scott Tingley).
I went for a really nice dinner with my friend Emily Pohl-Weary before heading out off to the festival’s finale. This was great fun! The final event was a huge comics jam with all the cartoonists who were at the festival (including the afore mentioned Jimmy as well as the very talented Michel Rabagliati). We managed to produce about ten or twelve pages of art over three hours and all had a blast. I think the festival might be posting these online soon, I’ll definitely post a link if they do!
Finally off to bed well past my bedtime. I arrived home very, very tired and eager to do it again.
May 11, 2007
Another collage demonstration from my school presentations in Moncton. This time Bird (from Grumpy Bird of course). I only did images from Grumpy Bird since that’s the book I was there to talk about.
May 12, 2007
Grumpy Bird continues to get great reviews! Here’s a really nice one from the LA Times by Sonja Bolle. Sonja, if you’re reading this, thanks for the lovely review:
It’s never too early to become aware of storytelling styles. Of course, kids all know fairy tales and nursery rhymes, but it’s fun to think about what choices contemporary authors make in books for young readers. One of the most satisfying story elements for little kids is repetition — that’s why they’ll ask you to read the same book over and over and over again. “Grumpy Bird” (Scholastic: 32 pp., $12.99, ages 3-5), by children’s publishing newcomer Jeremy Tankard, uses repetition in a charming way for the youngest readers.
When Bird wakes up one day, he’s grumpy. “Too grumpy to eat … too grumpy to play … too grumpy to fly.” “Looks like I’m walking today,” says Bird. He sets off at a walk (and, oh, does he look sulky!) and passes other animals, who all want to know what he’s doing. As each animal asks him the same question and receives the same reply, they fall in line behind him until there’s quite a parade. When Grumpy Bird stops, they stop. When he picks up one leg, they pick up one leg. He jumps, they jump. On it goes, and pretty soon, guess what? He’s no longer grumpy. Now, there is a story worth telling.
May 15, 2007
One the weekend Grumpy Bird got this fabulous review from the Seven Impossible Things blog. Check it out. Thanks for the enthusiasm for my book, Jules.
May 18, 2007
The International Reading Association held their annual conference in Toronto this year. And I got to attend! I was ostensibly only there for a signing but spent the better part of Monday the 14 there although my signing wasn’t until the end of the day. I arrived in the early afternoon just in time to catch Brian Selznick arriving as well! I’d met him before, in New York, but it was great to see him again. He’s not only very talented, but really nice too! We chatted for a few minutes before he went to his events and I went about my day.
I spent the afternoon wandering around the (HUGE) exhibition floor chatting with exhibitors and looking at books. Highlights of the day included meeting Andrea, one of the sales and marketing people from Candlewick; talking with Tamra Tuller, an editor at Philomel books; seeing Kevin Sherry’s delighful book I’m the Biggest Thing in the Ocean.
Then of course the signing was the real highlight of the day. I was paired with Jane Yolen of all people! How amazing was that? Very! I didn’t get very much opportunity to chat with her, but she was kind and friendly and graciously signed a couple of books for me as well. And she drew a nice big crowd, many of whom bought Grumpy Bird while they were there.
Brian Selznick showed up again at the end of the day so we got to talk some more while the Scholastic staff tidied up their area at the end of a busy day. Then off for drinks and dinner with Scholastic. A great way to end a busy day and visit with some people I very seldom get to visit.
Then on Tuesday night Scholastic’s New York folks invited me to join them for a baseball game (to watch, not to play). So I joined Abby Ranger, one of my editors, and we met up with the rest of the Scholastic NY folks to watch the Blue Jays play the Orioles. The game itself was funny as most of us don’t really follow baseball and had to ask Sharon Robinson (author) to explain it to us. Lisa Yee has a photo of the authors who were in attendance here on her blog. I look like a demon with my glowing red eyes! A short demon no less. I don’t often get to be short.
May 20, 2007
This is the last collage from the Frye Festival that I’ll upload here. They get a little repetitive after a while. This time out it’s Beaver, again from Grumpy Bird. Enjoy!
May 28, 2007
I found this on Paul Pope’s blog and thought it interesting. It’s by Paul Johnson, from his essay “Mark Twain: How To Tell A Joke” (Published in The Creators, Harper Collins, 2006):
Mark Twain learned how to tell a story by listening to verbal masters of the art, around campfires, in wooden huts, and in stores and bars. Then he transformed this knowledge into print. Twain was not, strictly speaking, a novelist, philosopher, seer, or travel writer, though he was a bit of all of these. Essentially he was a teller of stories— a teller of genius— because he was ruthless.
Twain grasped, even as a child, the essential immortality of storytelling. A man telling a tale is not under oath. He must insist, indeed he must insist, that his story is true. But this does not mean that it is true, or that it needs to be. The storyteller’s audience may expect him to proclaim his veracity because that is one of the conventions of the art. But what the readers or listeners actually want from him is not verisimilitude or authenticity but entertainment and laughter. They know it, he knows it.
When he says, “What I am going to tell you is strictly true,” he is merely pronouncing a formula of the genre like, “Once upon a time.” A storyteller is a licensed liar, though he must never say so.
When confronted with Thomas Carlyle’s assertion, “The truth will always out at last,” Twain replied: “That’s because he did not know how to lie properly.”
May 29, 2007
A portrait of sorts. I love mixing traditional drawings with digital drawing and photographs.
June 5, 2007
There’s a really nice review of Grumpy Bird on Patricia Storms blog. Check it out here. Not only a favourable and enthusiastic review of my book, but also some reviews of some of my other recent favourite books, including Taeeun Yoo’s fabulous The Little Red Fish. Also Oliver Jeffers delightful Lost and Found.
June 14, 2007
A new sketch! The little swirly bits were inspired by Thomas Campbell whose work I’ve been enjoying lately.
June 14, 2007
I did a signing at Book Expo Canada (BEC) on Monday the 11th. I’ve never been to BEC before so arrived early enough to spend some time seeing the show. I met some friends, who I hadn’t expected to see there, including Chris Butcher of Comics 212, Naseem Hrab from the Canadian Children’s Book Centre and Mark Askwith from the SPACE network. I spent my time introducing myself to various publishing folks and marvelling at some of the new books coming out. I also wondered if anyone would show up to get their Grumpy Bird signed. I worried for naught though as I managed to get a HUGE line-up and we ran out of books. Some people waited for almost an hour and half to get their books signed! Crazy. A couple of Scholastic people took photos and I’m waiting to see how they turned out. I’ll be sure to post one or two if they do. In the meantime you can check out this photo from the Quill and Quire flickr set.
June 25, 2007
It seems like ages ago that I was at Book Expo Canada. So here’s a photo. I’m still not used to this whole blogging thing, it feels so narcissistic to post images of me. Oh well. I believe this one was taken by Sue Plant, of Scholastic Canada. Thanks Sue! Sitting beside me is Jessica Glover, my publicist at Scholastic Canada.
June 26, 2007
I was in New York City for a few days last week. I won’t bore you with too many details about the trip, except to say that it was a good time. The reason for going was to meet with Tracy Mack (my editor extraordinaire at Scholastic) and Marijka Kostiw (my amazing art director). We’ve spent the last three months working hard on a sequel to Grumpy Bird. I’ve actually been working on it for over a year, but Tracy stepped in a few months ago to help me get it polished up and ready for the big pitch. The meeting went very well and lots of people at Scholastic seem genuinely excited about the book. Having said that, however, I don’t have official word about the book yet. Stay tuned to this blog for news! Tracy and Marijka have helped immeasurably to whip the book into shape. Who would have thought that writing a sequel could be so difficult?
I also spent some time talking with my editor from Candlewick (in New York for a trade show). Me Hungry is finally finished! In fact I just saw the final jacket art this morning. It looks great and I can’t wait to share it with the world. How far away is Spring 2008 again?
My agent is also in New York so we spent some time together discussing future projects. There are lots of possibilities but no news. I’ve got to get writing again! Luckily I’ve got lots of ideas to explore.
I’ve also signed a deal with Winding Oak which will see me spend more time in the USA talking with schools and colleges. I’ll post info about appearances when they come up. Probably nothing before fall though.
Next up? I’ll be in San Francisco for the first 10 days of July for a vacation with my girls, so there may not be any updates here next week.
July 13, 2007
This is the most exciting piece of news I’ve had in a little while: Boo Hoo Bird, the sequel to Grumpy Bird, officially got the “green light” yesterday morning. I’ve been working on the book for over a year, revising and editing and re-writing (but you already know that if you’ve been following this blog). It’s going to be a co-publication between Scholastic New York (who published Grumpy Bird) and Scholastic Canada (because they’ve been so supportive and enthusiastic with Grumpy Bird). I’m very excited about it, a lot of work has already gone into the book and I think it’s a strong follow-up and I’m really proud of it. I believe it’ll be published in Spring 2009. I know, I know, it’s a long wait. But it’ll be well worth it. I promise. Stick around.
July 13, 2007
This was an experiment with digital painting techniques. I “painted” the entire piece in Photoshop. I think it turned out pretty well.
July 15, 2007
This afternoon I gave a “reading” at Franklin’s Garden on Centre Island (part of the Toronto Islands). Franklin’s Garden is a large, beautifully landscaped garden in the middle of the island that is themed around Franklin the Turtle (the creation of Paulette Bourgeois and Brenda Clark).
Mine was less a reading than a “live illustrated book”. I drew each spread of Grumpy Bird on a big sketch pad while I told the story. I think it went pretty well and most of my audience stayed for the whole event. Afterwards I signed some books and gave away the drawings that I’d just done. Heather, my ever faithful event photographer, took some photos to prove that I’d actually done the event.
Goose loves Grumpy Bird. Thanks Goose!
Me drawing Grumpy Bird. The kid next to me is Ryan, my helper for the event. He held down the paper because the wind kept turning the pages while I was trying to draw. Thanks Ryan!
Me showing some artwork that I did when I was seven years old. Always entertaining. See? I really have learned something over all these years:
Afterwards, Goose and I discuss how the reading went. She agrees that it was a good time. Whew!
July 16, 2007
The 7 Impossible Things blog has done me a huge honour with this piece. The idea for the event can be found here, on Emily Beeson’s website. Basically the idea is to choose a favourite author and give them a good profile on your blog and give them a little “boost”. A lovely idea. I feel like the internet just hugged me. Jules, at 7 Impossible Things, chose me as a favourite author (and illustrator) and did a really lovely write-up about Grumpy Bird. Anyway, it made my day. Thanks Jules!
July 23, 2007
This article showed up recently in a couple of newspapers. You can read it here or here. The article is about books that get kids talking about issues that are important to them (in the case of Grumpy Bird, bad moods).
The Newark Star Ledger also recommended Grumpy Bird among their list of recommended summer reading! The little jpeg below is hard to read, but you can at least see the first page of the article. They even used a little Grumpy Bird cover. Nice!
July 30, 2007
My friend Naseem Hrab, at the Canadian Children’s Book Centre, asked me for a list of picture books that I enjoy. This is my list — I thought I’d share it. Who doesn’t love sharing their favourite books? I realize that there are a couple of non-picture books on here as well:
Jon Scieszka — pretty much all of his books. I especially love The Stinky Cheese Man though.
Doreen Cronin —Click Clack Moo, Cows That Type, but I love all her other books as well.
Peter Reynolds — The Dot (but I love Ish and The North Star and So Few Of Me as well)
Baby Brains by Simon James
Polar Bear Night by Lauren Thompson, illustrated by Stephen Savage (gorgeous illustrations)
I Am A Bunny by Ole Rison and Richard Scarry (one of his earlier books, it’s really lovely)
How I Became a Pirate — Melinda Long, illustrated by David Shannon
William Steig — most of his books, but especially Sylvester and the Magic Pebble and The Amazing Bone
The Very Persistent Gappers of Frip by George Saunders and Lane Smith (this is a REALLY weird book, but I love the strange story and I think it’s the best art Lane Smith has ever produced)
Franny K. Stein books by Jim Benton — they aren’t picture books, but I love them and so does Hermione. Benton is hilarious. I also love his Dear Dumb Diary books.
Kate DiCamillo — mostly for her novels (I’m particularly fond of The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane, but all her books are lovely — and yes, I realize these aren’t picture books, but they’re still fantastic)
No, David! by David Shannon
Lilly’s Purple Plastic Purse by Kevin Henkes
Don’t Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus by Mo Willems
Monster Mama by Liz Rosenberg, illustrated by Stephen Gammell
Chris Raschka — I love so many of his books. Yo! Yes? is incredible. My current favourite though is The Hello Goodbye Window, which he illustrated, it’s exquisite, beautiful story and art
Frog and Toad — duh! Who doesn’t love Frog and Toad? Arnold Lobel
Owl at Home — also by Arnold Lobel, because it’s hilarious.
July 31, 2007
This little pirate looks a little startled for some reason. I love pirates. I fact, I am a pirate.
August 9, 2007
Another lovely review of Grumpy Bird for you to read. Thanks for the kind words Fairrosa! And if you have some spare time, check out the rest of her blog.
August 9, 2007
I drew this the other day on a larger sheet of paper than usual. I didn’t think it was a very good drawing at the time. Mostly because it’s bigger than I’m used to and the brush I draw with didn’t suit the larger size. Then I coloured it very quickly and loosely using only four markers, figuring I’d throw it away when I was finished. But the more I’ve looked at it since, the more I like it. It’s spontaneous in a way that I really love. Since it’s a pose with lots of action I superimposed it over a photo I took last weekend of my friend Doug playing with a sparkler in the dark. Now it looks like she’s leaping away from an explosion? Perhaps.
August 15, 2007
Now, here’s some exciting news: Grumpy Bird has been selected to appear in the upcoming Society of Illustrators Original Art Exhibition. I’m very excited about this. I went to the opening of the 2005 show with one of my lovely agents and was floored by the amazing talent showing on the walls. It was a veritable who’s who of well-known children’s book illustrators (who were all lovely to meet face-to-face). Not to mention seeing so much fantastic original art up close. I felt like a small town kid being dazzled by the bright-lights and big city glare. It was very cool. I’m honoured to be taking part in the upcoming show. I think I’ll have to wear my lucky blue shoes to the event!
August 27, 2007
A real, live analog drawing! I recently had a hankerin’ to do an old fashioned drawing using “real” media. When I was in high school I discovered the work of Frank Bellamy (who I just learned I share a birthday with — how cool is that?). He was an incredible English illustrator who did extraordinary ink drawings and comics. I actually found his work through a book at the public library that collected all of his Doctor Who drawings. I instantly fell in love with his sense of adventure, realism, humour and his remarkable use of colour. I asked my parents to take me straight to the art supply store to procure some coloured ink (Windsor and Newton — the pigments in these are the most intense). I got them home and found out just how incredibly difficult they were to use. They’re not like watercolour paint at all, and yet there are similarities. I found that I could carefully mix colours ahead of time, but that they handled best when applied seperately and not mixed on the paper (something watercolour does better). However, the rich colour pigments made up for the other shortcomings. In the end I used them quite extensively for a time there. Then I abandoned them in favour of pencil and ink as I got more and more involved with drawing comics.
So the other day I dug them out and coloured this picture. I drew it with pencil, another medium I seldom use these days. The background was coloured with watercolours. However I found it getting muddy fast (which worked in the background), so decided to switch to the coloured ink for the character. The brighter pigments of the ink would allow it to really “pop” against the darker background. As a whole the image didn’t work, so you’re only seeing a small section of it (which involved a tree with a mysterious creature sitting in it). However, this little piece worked beautifully, so we’ll just look at that shall we? I might try and do more of this type of picture in the future. It’s refreshing to work with real tools — they’re much less forgiving than digital media! Good practice. And they give nice, accidental effects that you just can’t get in quite the same way with digital art.
August 27, 2007
I’m not usually one to post images by (or of) my family here. Don’t worry, I won’t make a habit of it. But this drawing cracks me up. Hermione, my daughter, drew this recently while we were waiting for food to arrive at a restaurant. According to her, “It’s a self portrait of daddy.” So, just in case any of you were wondering what I looked like up close… wonder no more. Behold me in all my glory! She gave me a huge mouth with piles of teeth, not sure what that says about me. Hmmm.
August 27, 2007
Here’s a nice piece of news, I can’t think why I haven’t mentioned it sooner. My brain has been absent a lot recently, perhaps that’s why. Yeah. But I digress, the news is this: Grumpy Bird has been short-listed for the Debbie Zimmerman Early Years Niagara Literary Award. The winner won’t be announced until early January. That’s very exciting! Go Bird Go!!!!
September 6, 2007
Not too much to report on right now. I’m very busy. I’m getting started on final art for Boo Hoo Bird. This is a lot of fun and I can’t wait to sink my teeth into the project. I’ve had a nice break and can now come back to it with fresh eyes. I’ve got until January to produce the art so I’ve got to mentally prepare myself for a long haul — a few months of being “on”. Other than that I’m trying to figure out what project to tackle after Boo Hoo Bird. There are so many stories and characters and ideas it’s hard to know where to start! I’ve also been spending a lot of time teaching myself some new painting and colouring techniques. I’ve learned a lot in the last couple of years through producing Grumpy Bird and Me Hungry. Working with some extraordinary editors and art directors has helped a lot too. I think Boo Hoo Bird will be produced a little differently than Grumpy Bird. You, dear reader, will hopefully not notice the difference (except that my drawings of the characters are a little more solid — nothing like redrawing them hundreds of times to help develop one’s style). It’s gonna look great. Just you wait and see!
September 6, 2007
Another pencil sketch. And more of a sketch this time than last — I never intended to do anything with this when I drew it. But sometimes it’s those ones that turn out best. I guess there’s a spontaneity that comes with that mindset that often makes for better drawings. It’s a fairy. My daughter loves fairies so I’ve been drawing a few for her.
I’ve been experimenting a lot with Photoshop brushes recently as I want to make all my art through only one application if possible. I still refuse to do my actual drawing in a digital environment, but will happily do the rest of the work on the computer. I’ve been enjoying Photoshop a lot recently as I’ve suddenly got the hang of the brushes palette. It’s really quite extraordinary what you can do with it now. I’m less interested in mimicking traditional media these days, largely because the focus of the image is so strong — the digital colouring doesn’t interfere with it. So I’ve just started experimenting with building my own brushes. I feel like the world is my oyster once again. The possibilities are almost limitless!
September 10, 2007
I’ve been reading a book called Alexander and the Magic Mouse to Hermione a lot lately. It’s a book I’ve had since I was a small child. I suspect my parents bought it sometime after we moved to the USA — it’s a fairly American book in many respects. I LOVED this book when I was younger. The funny thing is I didn’t remember the story as well as the art. The illustrations, by Philippe Fix, are stunning and magical. I could spend hours looking at them. The book was written in 1969 by Martha Sanders and the copy I own was published by American Heritage Press (it was part of something called the Weekly Reader Children’s Book Club).
It’s interesting to go back and read a much loved children’s book as an adult — and as an author/illustrator myself. The story is long and wordy and the illustrations luxurious and splendid in their attention to detail. There’s a lot of love in the drawings, a fond nostalgia for a time long gone. The story itself revolves around an old lady who lives in an old Victorian mansion atop a hill on the prairies. She lives with an alligator (Alexander), a yak, a Brindle London Squatting Cat, and a magical mouse. When the Magical Mouse tells the friends that “It is going to rain for thirty days and thirty nights!” the old lady and the animals get ready for a long, wet month ahead. When the old lady realizes that the nearby town, beside a river, doesn’t know about the quantity of rain she decides that she needs to inform the mayor. Eventually it falls to Alexander to get the message to the town as he’s the only one who can cross the river (the bridge has fallen down). After a long struggle Alexander arrives home tired and very sick and his “family” must care for him. It’s a story about love and friendship and unselfishly doing the right thing.
It reminds me of Miss Rumphius in many ways. The protagonist in both books is an old lady. Miss Rumphius deals with bigger themes (like the meaning of life, it doesn’t get much bigger than that). But Alexander is lovely in its own right. The characters of very real, my favourite being the Brindle London Squatting Cat who is forever trying to catch and eat the magic mouse. He’s lazy and unhelpful when it comes to preparing for the impending disaster, never letting the old lady forget about “tea time”. Moreover the story is full of its own magic, especially in the extraordinary illustrations.
We don’t see too many books like this published these days. It runs thousands of words and is 44 pages long. Current picture books tend to come in around 32 pages and under a thousand words. I’m not complaining, there are tons of amazing books being produced these days. Perhaps some of the nostalgia in Alexander is also for a publishing format not often seen anymore. It’s almost like a novella condensed into a picture book format. It’s almost like a Pre-Raphaelite painting compared with the Impressionism that followed. But it’s lovely. And it’s nice to be pleasantly surprised by an old favourite and to not be disappointed seeing it through my jaded adult eyes.
September 18, 2007
Another almost completely digital illustration. I pulled the drawing of the girl from my sketchbook and painted the rest in Photoshop. I’m most pleased with the sky — I think it looks fairly natural (but perhaps that’s just me). I built my own brushes for this one and am starting to get the hang of it. I have a thing for drawings of people standing in the wind. Wind is fun to draw and I love the sense of movement that can be given to an otherwise (almost) stationary figure.
September 21, 2007
I’ll be doing a reading and signing at Toronto’s Word on the Street on September 30th. My reading will be at 11:00 am in the Children’s Reading Tent. I’ll follow the reading with a short Q and A for those in attendance. Then I’ll head over to another tent to do a signing. If you’ve never been to Word on the Street you should definitely come and check it out. There’s lot to see and do and thousands of great books to buy and lots of authors in attendance to sign your books. So please come out and say “hi”.
September 26, 2007
For some reason I completely missed this review of Grumpy Bird. Luckily we found it and it’s really nice. Thanks Publishers Weekly! You can also read it here:
Anyone can sympathize with a blue bird who wakes up on the wrong side of the nest. Bird, whose rounded head is outlined in a thick swath of ink, squeezes one eye shut while scowling with the other. He hunches his shoulders like a budgie. The branches of his tree are rendered in diluted swipes of ink, and the sky, a weighty underwater blue despite the optimistic rising sun, mirrors his mood. Bird “was too grumpy to play. In fact, he was too grumpy to fly. ‘Looks like I’m walking today,’ said Bird.” Squinting, Bird stomps through the meadow on pinlike legs, encountering animals one at a time. Each greets him and casually asks, “What are you doing?” Bird does not welcome their friendly overtures (“Let me give you a hint… You do it by placing one foot in front of the other”), yet they join him on his hike, and soon he leads a parade of a Sheep, Rabbit, Raccoon, Beaver and Fox. In their playful company, Bird finds it hard to stay grumpy. Graphic illustrator Tankard, a contributor to Wild Outdoor World making his children’s book debut, draws his cartoonish animals in brushlike strokes of carbon-black ink, and digitally tints the forest scenery. His appealing title and cover close-up of the hero say it all: this uncomplicated paper-over-board book describes a common condition and a way out of a bad mood for surly birds, whatever their species. Ages 3-5. (Apr.)
October 3, 2007
I actually drew this picture for a friends birthday card. Since the drawing looks absolutely nothing like her I ended up drawing her something else. It’s a marker drawing on a nice off-white paper. I finished this particular one in Photoshop. I’ve included both versions just so you can see how it changed when it entered the digital environment. I’m really pleased with how it turned out (despite the “non-likeness”). All the background painted bits turned out nicely and I like the overall colour changes that happened. For those who use Photoshop: I applied a subtle Gradient Map over the finished piece to give it that nice blue/green hue.
October 3, 2007
Thanks to everyone who showed up for Toronto’s Word on the Street on Sunday morning. I was worried that no one would be there for my reading as I was the first person of the day to present in the children’s tent. As it turned out I drew a good little crowd and we had a great time. With only fifteen minutes to talk I chose to read Grumpy Bird and answer questions. Since there weren’t any questions I showed some old drawings of mine (from when I was about seven years old). They got a good laugh from everyone and ended the reading on a high note.
This was followed by a long signing at an author’s signing tent. No big line ups or anything but there was a steady stream of people coming by and buying books and asking for signatures. Curiously I was mistaken for a member of Our Lady Peace by one curious on-looker. How weird is that? Do I look like a rock star? I don’t think so. I dunno, you be the judge.
The signing ended on a high note as well when Marie Louise-Gay, of all people, flagged me down to say hello! A very pleasant surprise. She’s one of my favourite children’s book illustrators. Period. She loves Grumpy Bird! How nice is that? Very. Nice to be admired by someone whose work is so respected and admired.
October 4, 2007
Two new reviews today (but only one I can link to). The first is another blog review courtesy of Book In My Hands. The other is in the latest Canadian Children’s Book News (published by the Canadian Children’s Book Centre). The Children’s Book News also has a nice profile of Scaredy Squirrel and Melanie Watt that is worth reading. I had the good fortune to meet Melanie last night. She’s as nice as she is talented. If you haven’t already read her delightful Scaredy Squirrel or Chester (her latest book) you should really take a look for them.
October 15, 2007
Goodness, it’s been more than a week since my last post! Sorry about that. I’ve been swamped and will use that as my excuse. I’m up to my eyeballs in art for Boo Hoo Bird. It’s taken a while to make noticeable progress on it as I’ve learned a lot about making pictures in the last couple of years. So I have a much more organized approach to making this art than I’ve ever had before. I’ve spent a lot of time arranging the “back-end” of the book — the behind the scenes stuff. Now that I’m starting on the finished art it should actually take very little time to produce.
Otherwise here are a couple of announcements: I’ll be in New York at the end of the week for the upcoming Society of Illustrators Original Art Exhibit. It opens on Thursday night. I’ll be in Montreal on the 14th and 15th of November signing books at the Salon du Livre de Montreal. I’ll post my signing times when I’ve got them — you know, just in case you happen to be in Montreal on those dates. Then I’ll be in Calgary for a couple of events. There will be a big book signing and party at Monkeyshines bookstore at 11 am on Saturday November 17th. On Monday the 19th I’m giving a talk at the Children’s Round Table at United Library Services. Then possibly a couple of classroom visits too. Whew! I can hardly wait.
October 16, 2007
Whoa! Another update so close to the last one. I don’t know what’s come over me. Actually two AMAZING reviews of Grumpy Bird came over me, that’s what. The first is from Elizabeth Bird at School Library Journal’s blog. Thank you very much Elizabeth. And the other is from Laurel at Kid*Lit(erary). Thank you Laurel for the great review. Go Bird Go!!!
October 23, 2007
The Society of Illustrators Original Art Exhibit in New York City is now open. I attended the opening last Thursday night and really enjoyed it. There are some really incredible illustrations on display. My personal favourites are the pieces from Valeri Gorbachev (Red, Red, Red), David Gordon (Hansel and Diesel — very funny), G. Brian Karas (Today and Today), William Low (Old Penn Station), Greg Manchess (Megellan’s World) and Taeeun Yoo (The Little Red Fish). Taeeun also won the Founders Award. Congratulations Taeeun! It’s a beautiful book. The art will be on display until November 21st along with the books that the art appears in. And it’s FREE. So if you’re in New York go and see it. Now. Go!
I also had the good fortune of meeting Betsy Bird (whose very nice review I linked to last week). She gave me a tour of the Donnell Children’s Room at the New York Public Library — an amazing resource of children’s books for all ages. And it’s FREE. Go!
October 24, 2007
I have some news! Grumpy Bird has been nominated for the 2008 Blue Spruce Award. Among the other nominations are Fox Walked Alone by Barbara Reid and Scaredy Squirrel Makes a Friend by Melanie Watt. Stiff competition! You can see the other nominees here.
October 30, 2007
I recently contributed a piece to the Robert’s Snow campaign. The idea was to create a snowflake that would be auctioned off to raise money for cancer research. Find out more about the campaign here. It’s a very cool idea and over the last couple of years they’ve managed to get some of the best children’s book illustrators around to contribute snowflakes. You can view the 2007 snowflakes here. I believe I’m in auction 3. And on November 2nd, I think, my contribution and I will be written up on the Excelsior File (part of the blogging for a cure). It’s a very cool and creative idea to raise money for a worthy cause. So, if you’ve ever wanted to have a personalized Jeremy Tankard Christmas decoration, here’s your chance!
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