Flag Day -June14
Father's Day - June 18
Tah Dah - I finally re-vamped my website, dianadelosh.com. Now I've done mini revamps and updates but this one's a biggie!
Recently, I had a ZOOM group portfolio review where the Creative Director loved my friend's portfolio. Unfortunately, she didn't love mine. She liked my illustration and my hand lettering but she found my website navigation cumbersome and the thumbnails were way to small and didn't show off my actual art. A big wake- up call that it's time to really re-do my website. PLUS, I could analyze what made my friend, Patricia Keeler's website a hit with her.
Previously my website opened to my ABOUT page. Then you clicked on Illustrations and you saw thumbnails fo ALL my illustrations, then my books etc.
So what's New:
YAY! My improved website is up, just in time for #KidLitArtPostcard day, tomorrow June 1!
It's good to keep a sketch book. I have several. It's even better to sketch everyday. I don't but I'm trying to do more of that. By sketch book and sketching, I'm referring to the messy kind of sketches not those gorgeous finished looking art pieces being shared online where artists humble brag calling them mere sketches. My sketches are the messy, imperfect barely readable kind. They help me record thoughts and ideas for possible future use. Sometimes it's random scenes in real life - like people waiting for the train. Sometimes it's photographs that make my heart skip a beat. In this case, I'm going for the heart and not the actual photo details. Other times it's for research as in how many fingers and toes does a possum have.
My May #KidLitArtPostcard © Diana Ting Delosh
I keep several sketch books: several for home in various shapes and sizes, a tiny one that fits in my pocket book, one in my tote bag. I like the sketch books with meh paper. I find I'm not afraid to ruin them. Some people like the fancy sketch books with wonderful paper. I love the feel of those BUT I find them inhibiting. I do have a few that have good watercolor paper and have used them but not as much as my "cheap" paper ones.
Recently I was saved by my sketch booking. I wanted a fresh grey scale illustration to add to my Promo Page and also for the May #KidLitArtPostcard. I happened to flip through one of my sketch books and came across a suitable sketch to work up.
And voila I had a piece I could add to my B&W Promo Page as well as something I could tweak for my portfolio and my digital postcard. I'll be sharing my B&W Promo page at a later date.
Military Spouse Appreciation Day - May 12
The first trimester of 2023 is behind us and so far I've kept my promise to myself to have a "New" #KidLitArtPostcard for each month. Although I must say the first Thursday of each month keeps coming by faster and faster and I have almost been caught short. Here they are in order:
January: A Panda Panda illustration from my picture book dummy that I had not used for a previous KidLitArtPostcard. Whew!
Concept is like that rare elusive bird you've finally glimpsed but of course it's gone into the dark forest. Do you dare go after it? Turning that concept into a tangible thing is like stepping into a forest, full of shadows and possibilities. There are no clear paths BUT if you thrash about you may find your way through.
Where middles are where you've got your bearings. You may even see your path out of the forest to where that rare elusive bird is posing waiting for you to take it's picture. It's just a matter of putting one foot in front of the other until finally, Snap!
If you're like me, you prefer the phase after most of the messy explorations been done. Which is why I did not dive back into my BIG Project or start this other idea, both of which I'd been itching to do while I was trying to finish the important MUST DO NOW life thingy.
NEW PB Concept - EEEK! All those blank boxes. (See ThumbNailer in side bar)
Instead I worked on something that I put aside a few years ago. This piece just needed some hand lettering and then I could add it to my budding Surface Design Portfolio. But why now? Because it had a clear next step and the end was in sight. Plus I was lured by the idea that it will only take a second and then we'll begin one of the other projects, maybe even do a bit of both. A warm up project. HA! Needless to say it took more than half a day as I needed to change the size, tweak the art and do a bunch of loose hand lettering, to get just the right balance of carefree and legible. Well, at least it was productive procrastination.
Beware the rabbit hole: It'll be quick - just takes a few seconds.
Sip Breathe Repeat, 2 Chawans, Japanese Tea Cups - © Diana Ting Delosh, Ink,watercolor, pencil, digital - this piece is available for licensing.
Tah Dah! A Tree, verse by me, Diana Ting Delosh with art by Marta Alvarez is published in the April 2023 issue of Highlights High Five magazine on Page 4.
The submission to publication journey for these 4 short lines began last spring, when I saw a call for submissions by Highlights for their Magazines in the May 2022 issue of Children's Book Insider. I actually almost didn't submit, A Tree, because it is sooo short and simple. But I did submit it along with 2 others in mid-May. About a month later, the editors passed on the 2 that I thought had a better shot. But no word about A Tree. I waited, wondering if it had been overlooked. Waited a bit more. Then on August 31, while I was on vacation, I got an email from Highlights saying that they are delighted to accept, "A Tree" for publication.
WOO HOO!
Then more waiting. Finally on December 12, I receive a PDF to check for typos on my verse and to let me know that it's scheduled for the April 2023 issue. All in all it took about 10 months from submission to publication.
YAY!
Note: Highlights use Submittable.com for all their submissions. You can do multiple submissions BUT each submission must be sent individually. What's nice for us, doing the submitting is that: Submittable sends a confirmation letter for each of your submissions and you can check on your submission status yourself. Submittable also sends you an email to let you know when the editor has reviewed and passed on your submission, title. You don't have any direct contact with Highlights until they accept your work.
Ah-choo - It's Spring! But seriously, I love all the green shoots and unfurling leaves even the tree flowers and blossoms and pollen. If only I didn't have allergies.
April Fools Day - April 1
Passover - April 5
Easter - April 9
Eid Ul Fitr, Ramadan ends - April 21
Administrative Professional Day - April 26
Sometimes you're busy, busy, busy. Humming along, being inspired, productive, creative and then BAM, you hit a brick wall. OKAY not really, but it feels like it. You're in a mood and all you want to do is scroll on social media or binge junk, TV, food, you name it. Of course while you're doing all that you're feeling guilty because YOU SHOULD BE DOING SOMETHING! And now you're feeling like you've gone in REVERSE, not only have you not been moving forward, but all this meandering has made you loose whatever progress you've made!
Sigh.
Personally, the above has been happening at an alarmingly regular rate. Part of my problem, is that I don't allow myself regular day offs. If I'm in the studio, I expect to create and produce something. This is all due to my awareness of my own mortality as well as the fragility of what we consider our usual. I suppose this is partly due to the pandemic. In the last few years, I've had a few unexpected losses of family and friends. That certainly shook up all my assumptions of my world. Which goes back to my feeling like I could be running out of time and I don't even know it. Mind you I'm healthy and up to date on all my shots. Still, there's that old saying if you're standing still you're actually going backwards.
What to do?
I've come to the conclusion that I need to plan a day off on a regular basis. In hopes that I won't be waylaid by my brain/body deciding to have a rebellion. Allow myself to goof off. And enjoy it. Dammit.
HA! Right after I typed the above, I'm tempted to take it back and make it only a half day off but only if we really need it.
But I won't. In the pursuit of finding balance we will give Goof Off Day a shot. I also need to remind myself that pre-pandemic and other current responsibilities I had a weekly errand day. But Errand Day back then actually involved, aside from errands, meandering off to the library or mall or wherever to play a game of look.
Do you gift yourself a day or time off on a regular basis? Or are you stingy about it like me?
