It's PiBoIdMo time

It's November and PiBoIdMo Time once again. Or 30 Picture Book Ideas in 30 Days -November 2013. I swear to come up with at least 30 Picture book ideas during November 2013.

Yes you too can Officially Register for PiBoIdMo 2013.  Or Just read some inspiring and motivating posts about creating picture books at Tara Lazar'a blog .

FYI -PB generating Idea tip: Do NOT lay in bed and try and will yourself to have a PB idea before you fall asleep. You may have a dream that may be a good PB but if you're me you will have a bizarre operatic dream or two but they will not make good PBs. Do keep Pens and paper handy in case you do get a great PB idea in your sleep. I confess to date I only have 1 Picture book idea but after a couple of years of doing this excerise I know by the end of this month I WILL have 30 ideas.

Year of the Horse - Illustration Process

I'm working on a Year of the Horse card design for the upcoming, Chinese New Year. Before you know it, it will be January 30, 2014 and of course I need to have a Year of the Horse design. Thought I'd share my process.

My original thought was to do my version of The Running Horse -however that is an iconic asian horse image - and I thought I needed to come up with something more me. Then I thought of doing the Horse version of my Year of the Ox design. Somehow it seemed too simple and safe a solution.

OX! Happy Birthday card © Diana Ting Delosh
click on the above image to see more details -including what years are OX years. Click HERE to see more of my  Chinese Zodiac Animal Birthday Cards. To date I only have 6 out of the 12 animals: Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake.   

Decided to do a horse in a Mandarin style outfit but on all fours as opposed to being upright like the Ox and very anthropomorphic. Here's my final sketch.

Horse in a Mandarin suit - pencil sketch © Diana Ting Delosh

Here's the ink. I"ve inked in a geometric camelia pattern to the jacket with a Ying & Yang pattern on the cuffs. Originally I was going to do the pants too but it made me think of the pattern on a giraffe. FYI - I'm using double and triple zero radiograph pens on watercolor paper.

Horse in a Mandarin Suit -Ink © Diana Ting Delosh

Incidentally I always scan my inks -just in case I mess things up when I paint.  I'll be painting my horse in a bit and I'll share the finished version shortly.

Illustrator Intensive/Workshop/Day - Worth it?

Illustrator Intensives, Illustrator workshops or just plain Illustrator Day; by whatever name they go by,  are they worth it?

They all have basically the same format with a few variations:

• You get an illustration assignment from an Art Director (sometimes you can pick your AD sometimes you can't)

• You pick your assignment and do the sketch of the spread or whatever and e-mail it by the deadline. (time given varies)

Velveteen Rabbit story By Margery Williams.
Sketch for Scene where VR  first meets the wild rabbits.
Pencil Sketch © Diana Ting Delosh

• You get feedback from your AD (anywhere from a few words to paragraphs.)

• Using your feedback, you finish your art which you bring with you the day of the event.

The Velveteen Rabbit Meets the Wild Rabbits
Ink, Watercolor and Photoshop © Diana Ting Delosh 

• Depending on the specific format of your event, your work may be:

1.  Reviewed in front of a group, along with everyone else's project. There is NO personal review or crit. You learn a lot from your fellow illustrators. You also get and inkling of your AD's tastes and their company preferences. I personally found this the least satisfying of the 3 formats.
2. Reviewed in front of the group and the AD also gives a quick individual review and also views your portfolio. The best of both worlds. You learn from your colleagues and you get some valuable face time with the AD.
3. Reviewed on an individual basis along with your portfolio. You really get a feel for whether the AD really likes your work or if you have a rapport with that person.
4. Sometimes there is an Observer option. IE: you do not do the assignment but get to be the fly on the wall. While you may be perfectly happy that you didn't stress over an assignment - there maybe better ways to spend your time/money than being an invisible non-participant at an event. 

Needless to say, I would prefer to have Group AND Individual review. BUT if I could only pick Group OR Individual, I would always pick Individual.

So, Back to my original question are they worth it?

PRO: These events give you a  a chance to show your stuff, from sketch to final, to an AD and possibly make a good connection. Gone are the days of drop-offs and portfolio reviews and it's hard to stand out as 1 postcard amongst gazillion.

CON:

1. They  can be costly. 
2. Time consuming. Some of these events are 1 day of a weekend conference.
3. Stressful. As a freelancer, no matter how well you planned, you may find it hard to give the assignment your all while in the midst of a killer deadline or 2.  I mean, Would you really turn down a gig because you signed-up to pay to do an assignment? Heck no, you need to take the gig so you can pay to do that assignment.

I have a few illustrator friends who swear by them. Personally, I can see their merits BUT I still wonder are they really really worth it.  Would I be better off working on my PB dummy and  signing up for an individual review with an AD?  I partook in 3 of these illustrator Days this year would I sign-up for another? Perhaps, if it was with an AD/publisher I was really interested in.

Fox Promo Postcard

Just sent out a batch of my latest postcard design. I actually had these printed up for me to hand out at the 2013 NJ SCBWI June Conference and at the 2013 July NY SCBWI Illustrator workshop* - so a few of you out there may be familiar with my Fox promo postcard already. This card features my current favorite ink and watercolor illustration. On the back I have a sample of my illustrated type something new that I've been exploring.

I chose the LARGE postcard size because the proportions of my illustration fit on the large card with very little cropping. As I was already splurging on the oversized postcard I decided to go cheap on the back and picked a line art image. I had ordered 250 Fox Promo cards, enough for handouts for both  events with enough leftover for my second mailing of 2013. I'm really happy with how the printing came out and the usual fast service at VistaPrint.com .

Front of postcard - Ink & watercolor © Diana Ting Delosh

Back of Postcard - hand inked decorative type © Diana Ting Delosh

Now that the Fox promo cards  have finally been sent out, I should start thinking of what will be on my next card. Better get cracking on new illos. Need a new darling - fast. Geez this promo thing never ends - just goes round and round.

*I've been meaning to write a blog post about my experiences at these two SCBWI events. I promise I'll get to it soon. Really.