2017 and... we're OFF!

Aye Carumba! It's already 2017 and I am already behind on my blogging. (Good thing I didn't make it a new year's resolution to blog more!)

I'm so happy to start off the new year with some fun news!


On January 28th form 9-10am, I'll be participating in a webinar series for SCBWI (YAY!). I'm joining such children's books greats as Tara Lazar, Josh Funk, and Linda Ashman!

I'll be chatting away about polishing person style (for your books that is). Finding your voice both visually and with words is no easy task, but we all have it in us! Here's a link for more information and how to register for the webinars:

https://inlandnw.scbwi.org/events/from-bright-idea-to-the-final-page-turn/

I'm always excited at ANY opportunity to geek out and talk about picture books and the craft of making them. So join me and the other amazing writers for some serious geek out time!



There's more to chat about, but I'll just make another post, so I feel more encouraged that I'm blogging more. ;)


Happy 2017!
jx

Good News!

Hey everyone!
I've been meaning to share some recent good news with everyone. Boats for Papa was given the Golden Kite Award for Best Picture Book Text for 2016! I'm so thrilled by such a great honor. This book means so much to me and to have it acknowledged by SCBWI is sooooo huge!

 

Thank you so much! I even get to put a big shiny gold sticker on my book!!! woo hoo

I will be accepting the award at this year's SCBWI Conference in L.A. alongside other amazing and talented peers in the picture book world. Ahhhhh!!!

And if that's not enough, just this past weekend my second picture book Before I Leave was reviewed in the New York Times Book Review! I'm having another one of those "am I dreaming?" sort of moments. To have received a review once was a lifetime achievement, but twice??? Uh-mazing.

Okay, glowing moment over. But I had to share it online so one day when I'm old and forgetful I can go onto my blog and get a reminder for this cool moment.

jx

Spring Cleaning

Hey all
I'm not really spring cleaning, but it's a glorious idea, isn't it? I've been on a minor hiatus recently since I'm in between books so I've been trying to just relax- for once. I'm so anxious to get working on my next book though its hard to relax. I can't talk about the project yet but all I will say is "anteater." Once I can reveal more I'll let you know!

This past month though wasn't completely uneventful. I attended this year's Western Washington SCBWI Conference a few weeks ago and it was great! Lots of great speakers presented, like the awesomely talented Renata Lewiska. I got to talk with her a bit and she is so sweet and honest. She is just such a fantastic illustrator and I was extra inspired by how much she draws her animals from her own life experiences. I try to do that with my work, but I was even more inspired to dig deeper! And after her great sketchbook workshop, I realized that I think I've been using the wrong drawing tools in my sketchbook- which has personally hampered some sketchbook momentum. So crazy what sort of "ah-ha moments" you get at the conference. I always walk away with something inspiring and interesting from going to the conferences- they are never a let down in that respect!

Also, big news at the conference, I was runner up in the portfolio showcase! Woo Hoo! It was cool to be so highly honored by my peers and professionals!

Other than that I'm working on oodles of ideas for new stories which is always fun, exciting, and sometimes frustrating. But I love it so I'm up for the challenge!

So I better get back to it! 

Saturday sketches!

Hey everyone!

It's a rainy and overcast Saturday here in Seattle so Aaron and I are drawing and painting! I'm working up some new portfolio pieces for the upcoming Western Washington SCBWI conference.  So my woodland creatures are keeping me dry and busy today! 

I've also been working on a new design for my website. It's going to be more visually focused to my children's book illustrations so stay tuned!

Okay, back to it!

Illustrator Exhibit

Hey Everyone
I'm busy at work on my picture book Boats For Papa, but I wanted to take a minute to mention that the Western Washington SCBWI chapter is having an illustrators exhibit at the Washington State Convention Center. There will be work for viewing by many of the talented local SCBWI illustrators, including a piece from me. The show goes up October 10th and runs through January 8th, 2014. There is going to be an opening reception on October 27th from 2-5pm. Check out the poster below for the extra details (and it's my image from the show they used on the poster-a neat surprise to me).
I hope some of you can make it!

Drawing goats

Hey everyone!

Just a brief check in. I've been pretty busy the past few weeks with moving and some of my awesome SCBWI friends visiting, but I managed to squeak out some sketches for a new book idea that I have. So I've been studying goats a little. Other than that I'm working on my book as well as finishing up some  freelance projects AND preparing for a collaborative show with my husband Aaron! More updates to come!

Exciting updates!

Hey folks!
So it's been about a month and a half since the NY SCBWI conference, and a lot has been happening. I had the flu right after so was knocked out of commission for a while, then I've been in the throws of some really fun freelance work which has been keeping me quite busy. The most exciting news just happened within the past week. Some of you might know, but I just signed with Upstart Crow Literary with the super awesome Alexandra Penfold! I'm so honored and thrilled that she will we representing me! I got the privilege to attend Alexandra's workshop at the NY conference and was very connected and impressed by her experience and her dedication to children's books. Alexandra has a great energy and a LOVE of picture books. I'm still pinching myself! I'm so excited about getting to take this next great step with her! Thanks again, Alexandra if you are reading this!!!

So this is a little plug for all of you who haven't:
A) joined SCBWI-do it. It will change your life if you are serious about children's books.
B) gone to the conferences before- they are right- magic can happen there

So after all that awesomeness, today is the first day where I've got a moment to breathe and do a could of short quick illustrations for fun. Here is one below that is a little painting of Tic and Tac hanging out in an abandoned boxcar.

I think they had a plan of going on an adventure on a train and got so caught up in the preparing for the adventure that by the time they got to the train, they just wanted to have lunch. And not really paying attention to the fact it was a non-moving train car, they called it a successful adventure, then went home! I told my husband this is something I've always wanted to do- well, jump on a train while it was moving with a bindle like a hobo- but I think the same thing would happen to me where I get so distracted with lunch I don't even mind that we didn't really go anywhere. All in all, it would be a good day.

Anyway, I'll post some work, if I can, about my freelance project I am doing. It's sort of a dream, so maybe I won't post until I'm finished- then I can wake up from the dream. Other than that, look for more little paintings of Tic and Tac and other picture book ideas!

Hope you are are doing well, and drawling lots!
jx

Art spot!

Hey Folks!

It's been a busy past few weeks! I've been gearing up for the NY Conference- I was able to get into the illustrator intensive and the portfolio showcase- woo hoo! Also I am finally finishing up my first part of my graphic novel! I'll post some pages in the next few days but it's based off of my sketchbook journal Diary Of A Wiener. I'm pretty excited about it and have been working on it for several years. So stay tuned for that!

Also, I wanted to share my illustrations used in this month's SCBWI newsletter. They are of my little mole! Also, they gave a specific spotlight to me and my work in the new "Art Spot" section of the newsletter! Thanks to Sarah Baker and SCBWI!

Okay- that's all for now. I have to finish up my book dummy, edit my portfolio, finish my last graphic novel pages, layout the book, ready my postcards for the show, oh and breath!

More to come!

Jessixa

Happy New Year!

Hey all!

Just a quick note to wish you all a Happy New Year!

I hope everyone had a great holiday season. Mine was out of sight and a blur of action. But I really miss it even though it was exhausting.  

I just have a couple of updates. My website has some new work up. Mostly work I've mentioned here on my blog, but hadn't made it's way to the site yet. But my wonderful husband has made it all shiny and current, so that is a good thing and I sooooo appreciate him for helping me with my website.

In some fun news, I'm featured in the January February issue of the SCBWI newsletter in the Art Spot as well as having a couple of illustrations dotting the issue. I'm very excited to get that shout our from SCBWI. Thanks again!

Also, I am officially signed up and attending the annual winter conference for the SCBWI in February. I'm VERY excited to get to attend that conference. Cross your fingers for me that I can get off the waitlist for the portfolio showcase as well as the intensives and workshops I want to take part in. Here's hoping!

Here's a quick shot of my holiday card I sent out this year featuring my badgers Tic and Tac!

Here's to a great 2013

Little Women=finished!

Hey all,
Just wanted to share my finished piece for the Tomi dePaola Award competition. I really like how it turned out! It's always so interesting to paint things mono-chromatically, but really fun! The passage it's describing is below. Let me know if you have any thoughts!

Sunday drawing and crafting!

Hey all!
This has been a great weekend of fun with friends, hitting the Urban Craft Uprising, and now drawing! Yay!

So I'm taking another whack at the Tomie dePaola competition piece inspired by a different quote from Little Women. So here's the latest sketch! Painting to commence soon!

Illustration Friday: Tree

Hey all
I've been bad about my IF posts the last month or so. I am currently working on new picture book project though staring my precocious badgers, Tic and Tac so I decided to do some practice sketches of them based on recent IF topics. I've done a couple for this week's "tree" theme as well as the catch up entries. Enjoy!

Little Women, big boo boo

Hey thar!
Here is the piece that I was planning on submitting for the Tomie dePaola award through SCBWI.

It's based off of a passage from Little Women. It's from one of my favorite scenes in the book. I really love how it turned out! Unnnnnnnnnfortunalty, I was SO excited about the painting, I forgot that it's supposed to be in black and white! Oops! Back to the drawing board! Oh well. At least I have another really lovely painting I'm pleased with. Any thoughts before I start over in black and white?

Inspring week= productive weekend!

  

Hey Everyone!

Just a quick check in! I have had quite and inspired week and hopefully that will lead into an even more productive weekend! My lovely husband picked up my much needed giant watercolor paper. This stuff is so big I think I can fit at least four more cats on it. What do you think?

First a shout out to my friend Brooke Boyton Hughes for the announcement of illustrating her first picture book for famed author Angela Diterlizzi!!! Shut the front door! I'm so thrilled for Brooke. She has an amazing style and she's a pretty rad person too boot. Check out her work! And just congrats Brooke!

Last night was the monthly SCBWI meeting with great speakers! Lisa L. Owens gave a very helpful talk about finding your voice and that basically our voice of who we are was formed at a very early age. My voice age is seven and a half. I was big into Pee Wee Herman, Richard Scary, and drawing. So It was helpful to hear her advice on how to connect with that voice.

Another great speaker was the infamous Ben Clanton! How lucky was I to get to go to that, right?! He gave an AMAZING (and very funny) presentation on how to write great read aloud picture books. I was really into this topic. I have a tendency to draw more quiet illustrations but I LOVE humor and interactivity in picture books and he talked about how fusing these things into your work will make your book a for sure re-reader! Thanks for all the tips, Ben!

Okay, onto the weekend: Coffee, painting, drawing, doodling, banana bread. Repeat. 

I'll post my progress on my Tomie dePaola Award piece I'm working on, as well as my latest picture book thumbnails and some paintings from my latest complete submission!

Phew!

jx

Weekend sketching

Howdy folks!

This weekend has been jam packed with inspiration and drawing! Two of my favorite things. First it started off with attending Short Run. The Seattle small press show featuring mostly comics and some zines. I was there for over four hours and it wasn't enough time to see it all. I love making comics and have had a long break from making minis due to trying to devote all my comics time to my graphic novel. But I was sooooo inspired to get back into making smaller one off comics that I've got some big ideas hat I know I won't be able to shelf for long. My goal for 2013 is to have a table at Short Run with a some new comics and perhaps even segments from my graphic novel. I'm thrilled. I just need to find about 20 more hours a week to get all my stuff done! No problem though, right?

I've also been making some preliminary sketches for an illustration I'm submitting for the Tomie dePaola competition through SCBWI. This award includes a full paid trip and entrance to the winter conference in New York. I REALLLLLLLY want to go to this and would be so honored to win the award. So I'm going to try very hard to submit the best illustration possible. 

Lastly, I've been working on another picture book concept. I'm in the early stages of re-writes and thumbnails, but it feels good to be writing stories that really connect to my visual language, which I've had trouble doing in the past. I'll post more on that as it comes but I will just say this, it involves my two favorite badger brothers Tic and Tac!

I know all of this sounds like a lot, but I just can't pass up inspired ideas when they present themselves to me. I also think adding more fun and unrestricted comics work is just what I need to help with my storytelling and illustration with my picture books as well as my graphic novel. 

So much to do! But so excited to do it all!

Illustration Friday: Lonely

This little guy got trapped in a bell jar when he was running through the field. I'd say he feels pretty lonely right about now.

Illustration Friday: Carry

For this week's theme, I thought I would post a mini book that I created to send out as promotion for my illustration work. It all starts off with Tic and Tac (my precocious badgers) carrying some items, so I thought it fit perfectly. Enjoy!

Illustration Friday: Hurry

This week's IF theme made me think of the one thing I think I do fast- eat. So these little bears are racing each other in a pie eating contest! I think I'd like to savor the pie a bit more though.

Wombats!

I just finished this piece this weekend as well. A couple of mischievous wombats unraveling their scarves. There were many iterations of the fella with the blue scarf. I have to say I am very appreciative of forgiving watercolor paper and good watercolors! Originally he was going to look just like his friend, but I wanted to composition to be more dynamic. So I changed the scarf to yellow, like ketchup and mustard (also good name ideas for the characters I thought). But the yellow scarf was too hard to see. Then the yellow scarf became green- like ketchup and relish (also good names). Not dynamic enough, and slightly too holiday colored. Then he found his blue scarf, no food/name relation here, but he had and orange sweater. Clashed too much into the other colors. THEN he had a yellow sweater- still not right and too primary color looking. Finally, I decided he got up that morning to put on his blue scarf and green sweater. Phew! What a wishy washy wombat. But that right there is a good name for a children's book! Hmm...

Illustration Friday: Faded

Hey everyone!
I'm getting back into the swing of things post vacation and I wanted to catch up with my IF entries. This week's topic is "faded" but in a way my illustration works for last week's topic "sight" as well. I sort of feel like this illustration says that Mr. Mole here has found something in his hole, but for numerous reasons, he can't see what it is.  I drew and water colored the piece by hand, but in Photoshop I enhance the lighting a little differently on the second one around the lamp. What do you think? Also, I've also added my illustration for a few week's back with "jump" was the theme. Enjoy! Let me know what you think!

Mole version 1:

Mole version 2:

 

Illustration from IF theme "Jump." 

 

Hold on little guy!!!