February is getting closer and it’s going to be a busy month. February 5th will be our local SCBWI (Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators) Illustrator’s Conference. It will be a great time to get with some other illustrators and hone our skills. You can read more about the conference at http://drawingsunshine.wordpress.com .
Also I will be doing the picture book marathon . It starts on February 1st. I have been getting ready. I have been cleaning off my desk and art table. That has been a marathon in and of itself. I’m down to about the bottom layer. I’m finding old coupons and old picture book ideas tucked into corners. I have been warming up my brain listening to great first lines in literature such as (At Christmastime, everyone always said …No David!) from “It’s Christmas, David by David Shannon; (What do you have there?) from “It’s a Book” by Lane Smith and finally (Who Who Whoooo) from the wordless picture book “The Lion & The Mouse” by Jerry Pinkney. I have been grabbing small two legged critters, lifting them on my lap and reading them picture books. That is a nice experience to hold a child in your lap and open the pages of a book. We both can get lost in the pictures. Deep breath in. Deep breath out.
Sherry Meidell