Inspiration from SCBWI 2012 conference

I am just beginning to recover from the crazy (as in an exceptional kind of crazy) 4 days of the SCBWI 2012 summer conference.  There is just so much to report, which will be done, but not all at once.  I'm still processing it all.  This was my second year attending this spectacular conference.  Last year, I was completely new to this world and didn't know anyone.  I had to jump in and make friends.  This year was different.  This year,  there were many faces I recognized and knew from my region's writer's and illustrator schmoozes.  But more on this feeling later.

I began looking through my many notes and decided to look for the inspirational quotes I wrote down.  They stay with me all year long.  Here is my recap from authors, illustrators, author/illlustrators, agents, editors, and art directors:

Tony DiTerlizzi  "looking backwards to go forwards"

E.B. Lewis  "If you don't have the love of what you are doing, then you don't belong here."

Patricia MacLachlan "Children learn to speak to tell us the stories that are already in their head."

Bryan Collier "Artists, the whole world has been waiting for you to dream."  (This was my absolute favorite quote!  He spoke with such passion about artists and the "seed" of creativity inside all of us.)

Karen Cushman "To attain your hearts desire you have to help someone else."

Clare Vanderpool quoted an Siberian Elder "If you don't know the trees, you'll be lost in the forest, but if you don't know the stories, you may be lost in life."

Jon Klassen "You can't worry about the stuff you can't control.  You have to keep working and creating."

Ruta Sepetys: "You can't break the broken, but it's when you glue the pieces together you become stronger."

Antoinette Portis "Tell kids the truth."

Gary Schmidt "Write stories to give the reader more to be a human being with."

I noticed a commonality amongst all of the speakers.  It seemed as though the following phrases were heard in every keynote speech and breakout rooms.

1. Be open to surprise
2. Tell the truth
3. Create what the child version of yourself has always wanted

These things might seem like common sense, but in a conversation with a few of my fellow illustrators, we discussed how you hear the same things at every conference, but depending on where you are on your journey some words resonate with you.  We hear what we need to hear.  Sometimes we need reaffirmation of our path.  Sometimes we need guidance on a new direction.  Sometimes we need encouragement.  We all leave with something different.

What did I leave with?

-A stronger sense of community and a new friend, Laura Hoffman.  We had met at a variety of illustrator schmoozes, but we never really knew each other.  We were roommates for the conference and became good friends.  She introduced me to people, and I connected all of her social media.  She is extremely talented!  Check out her blog at http://www.laurahoffmanart.blogspot.com/.


-More confidence in my illustrations.  People had such wonderful reactions to my postcards and business cards.  I'm exactly sure how I thought they would react, but it was always fun to see them smile.

-A better understanding of how to write.  I have been struggling with my original Mizzle story.  I have been over thinking and over writing.  It was helpful listening to all of the author/illustrators, but Antoinette Portis seemed to help me the most.  At one talk, she said: "If it can go into the picture, then it has to go." At the illustrator intensive she told us: "Take out all of the words that are already in the picture and say the words that need to be said."

But before I end my post for today, I thought I'd end with my doodles and drawings from the conference.  There were more as the day came to an end. Here they are! :)

I was exhausted the last day of the conference and could not stop thinking about being home in bed :)

more sleeping

I'm not sure where she came from, but I find her adorable.

Rain and Writing

I thought I could handle participating in the 12x12x12 and the pb dummy book challenges, but it has been challenging.  I have been able to keep up with writing one story a month, but I have fallen completely behind on the pb dummy challenge. I have realized that the story I want to create a dummy for doesn't feel quite right, yet.  Plus, I have just begun to figure out my writing routine.  So, I decided today I would sit in Starbucks and finish rewriting it.  This seemed to be a great idea until I sat down and realized how easily distracted I was by all of the people.  I sometimes forget my passion for people watching. It is just interesting to watch the movements, facial expressions, and reactions of strangers.  To notice the way they wear their clothes and hair and wonder who they are in this world... what is their story? I decided I should probably plug myself into my iPod and watch the rain for a few minutes before starting.  I listened to the inspirational rhythms of Bonobo as I watched the rain fall. Then I began writing.  It would flow easily for a few minutes and then I would stop, stare at the rain and watch the story play in my head.  Then I would write a little more.  I'm much happier with this version, although I feel like it needs polishing.  Before I left, I decided to take advantage of my creative mood and create my drawing for the day.  It is a scene from my story.

National Poetry Month- Shel Silverstein

I thought in honor of National Poetry Month some of the Mizzles will become hipster poets reading their favorite poetry.  Molly is first up with her favorite poet, Shel Silverstein.  She has picked out a few as inspiration for us writers from his book Falling Up.

Writer Waiting
Oh this shiny new computer--
There just isn't nothing' cuter.
It knows everything the world ever knew.
And with this great computer
I don't need no writin' tutor,
'Cause there ain't a single thing that it can't do.
It can sort and it can spell,
It can punctuate as well.
It can find and file and underline and type.
It can edit and select,
It can copy and correct,
So I'll have a whole book written by tonight
(Just as soon as it can think of what to write).

Hmmm... I wonder if my computer will write my book?  That would be nice!

The Voice
There is a voice inside of you
That whispers all day long,
"I feel that this is right for me,
I know that this is wrong."
No teacher, preacher, parent, friend
Or wise man can decide
What's right for you--just listen to
The voice that speaks inside.

I'm looking forward to spring break coming up so I can carve out time to focus on writing, or perhaps get caught up in the PB dummy book challenge.  I'm so far behind.  As for the 12x12x12 writing challenge, I've been doing well with writing a rough draft each month.  I am still trying to figure out a technique or routine that works for my writing.  I read that writers should go to a different location to write.   I have been taking a notebook with me when I go early to my yoga classes.  It has been those 15 minutes on Mondays that seem to have a magical writing moment for me.  It probably has to do with how calm and peaceful I feel.

Where are your favorite writing spots?  What techniques do you use to inspire your writing?

Discovering new mediums and techniques

 This past weekend, I had friends over for creative fun.  I really enjoy getting together with creative minds, or people who are open to playing with art materials.  I am finding a new love for paper collage, or mixed media.  I am also discovering a fondness for gouache paint.  It is really expanding my boundaries as an artist.  I love pen and ink and colored pencil.  I have, also, developed a love for watercolor pencils over the past few months.  I have never been a fan of watercolor.  It is one of the few mediums that I don't have the patience for.  But the watercolor pencils allow me to have a little more control and I feel like I don't have to wait as long for it to dry.  I could be using them completely wrong, but then again, as an artist we use materials in ways that work best for us.

a textured piece created with white glue and acrylic

Yesterday and today, I have been thinking about my story for February and my PB dummy challenge.  I have the story in my head and I can see it like a movie, but that seems to change once I begin writing.  I have yet discovered a writing technique or ritual that is successful for my writing, other than procrastination.  I have always written my best papers when under pressure.  The problem is that I don't have any real deadlines for my personal writing and if I give myself a deadline, I know there are no real consequences for not finishing on time.  But I did come up with a few drawings to illustrate parts of my story that I have been thinking about.  Maybe this is my writing technique?

I might try taking index cards and roughly illustrating my story onto them.  This might help me with the writing a bit.  I know storyboarding helps a lot of writers, but I find that I begin jumping scenes or I can clearly visualize a part of the story I haven't come to yet.  It becomes quite confusing. 

But, as always, I continue to push forward; learning from the process of what works and what doesn't; and finding joy in the world I have created for myself.