Illustration Bloggerel

As promised...

2011-12-16T08:29:00.000-08:00

Here is my SCBWI Tomie dePaola Illustration contest entry...

(I think you can see a bigger version if you click the image)

Fingers crossed!

And then 2.5 years later...

2011-11-25T02:33:00.001-08:00

... I decide that maybe this little old blog needs some love.

Since my last little illo (that adorable mangy dog at Karnak in Luxor below), this is the illo bloggerel that has happened to me:

- I did illos for an iphone app: Beware Madame la Guillotine

- I did illos for a local tea house's online yarn shop: L'OisiveThé

- I attended a SCBWI workshop on portfolios given by the lovely John Shelley (because the above two fell into my lap and so I went to this workshop because damn! what if I actually hunted work down? THERE COULD BE MAGIC) I have as yet done nothing about that portfolio thing. Not because I'm lazy... ahem... it's just that peripheral bill paying thing gets in the darn way and by the time I get home, all I want to do is be alone with my book.

Non illo related since Karnak the snoozy (besides the F/T job, commute blah blah blah):

- I had a baby (she's now 18 months - Highs and Lows like crazy from her conception to today)

- I started reading for a French publishing house (between 2 and 3 books... a week).

- I started paperwork for my family to move to Canada. Immigration paperwork is a real soul sucker and I have no idea if we'll ever jump to the other side of the pond. Which is sort of depressing in that that paperwork will likely be filed into a dark cubby with feral spiders if we don't.

* * *

I used to have an "everyday" blog. I liked it. It was fun. I used to tell stories about my life and parenthood and bizarre things that I'd note down as an expat in Paris. I loved spinning a yarn and fooling around with language.

My husband, however, hated it with a passion because my stories were too personal. It caused arguments because according to my husband, the internet is a dark, evil place. I resisted for ages and ages because damn it, no way is anyone going to tell me what to do...

But I lost the joy.... Slowly. So I stopped. I don't blame my husband for this unraveling... rather... I shuffled my attention to Facebook and Twitter because my interest in blogging on the whole had waned: I stopped reading blogs too. I think a lot of people did at around the same time. I think I got tired of the pressure of trying to keep up with the internet joneses who actually have people that read them and have stuff meaningful to say.

It's hard to come up with "meaningful" things to say (if you get my blogging drift) every day. It's tiring and when I get right down to it, it isn't something I like to actually read, let alone write. I dig the silly.

However, it was a little "embarrassing" when I was invited by SCBWI's local chapter to give a talk on "the professional importance of blogging" and all I had as examples were rusty blogs that hadn't seen the light of day in over 2 years. I gave the talk and hoped that nobody noticed.

Yes, my other blog led to a book cover but since then? Crickets.

* * *

I've decided that I don't want to revive that blog: it was a disorganised mish-mash of everything that struck my fancy along with rants and phooeys... It made me feel hopelessly unprofessional despite its "authenticity".

I've decided that it's finally time to take my illustration career seriously, so this is the blog I want to revive, though it's dusty and dark and nobody associates it with me. I gave that talk as a professional speaking to professionals so maybe I should follow my own example if I want to be credible.

And I love the title I gave it.

* * *

If you've gotten this far, these are my short-term objectives:

- A board book that I've storyboarded needs to be carried through to fruition. I based my storyboard on Goodnight Gorilla (which Léna ADORES) which has 7 spreads (is this standard?). I've worked out most of the character studies and I've already decided on my medium: pen & ink... in color (mental note: buy the ink).

- More immediately though, I've decided to brave a SCBWI contest. It's the drawing of a scene where Chicken Licken and his posse of birds meets up with Turkey Lurkey. My idea is a bit... unorthodox. And it's pen & ink and potentially hand crippling. The deadline is December 15th. I'll post it December 16th (huzzah! Accountability!).

- I have been participating in Picture Book Idea Month and I have some neat ideas that I never would have had otherwise. I won't necessarily complete the challenge by having 30, but I will have some to ponder that I think could lead somewhere fun.

- Get more involved generally. I'm not sure how I'll push myself but this blog needs to be for illos (obvs)... I'll try for one a week... On Mondays. If anyone that's gotten this far has other ideas, shoot. Maybe skype critiques? I have some friends that do it... Anybody need a partner?

Long term:

- Get my portfolio together. Show it. Finally embrace what I love without the fear of failure.

* * *

But why am I telling you all that? What was all that stuff here above? What.Is.The.Point?

I don't know.

Actually, if I'm going to be honest, I don't think I'm telling it to "you".

I'm telling it to "me".

I'm telling myself to get my act in gear and that I can do this. I can.

I can.

Snoozing at Karnak

2009-04-27T06:30:00.001-07:00

The Mermaid's Dilemma

2009-03-16T06:13:00.000-07:00

The Grouch

2009-02-17T02:43:00.000-08:00

Shy

2008-09-29T05:09:00.000-07:00

Man on the Moon

2008-06-20T05:51:00.000-07:00

Hide and No Seek

2008-05-27T12:21:00.000-07:00

Toboggan Unicorn

2008-02-04T02:23:00.000-08:00

New Unicorn up on Etsy!

Nice Beaver: 01-05

2007-12-31T14:32:00.000-08:00

Nice Beaver: 06-10

2007-12-31T14:15:00.000-08:00

Nice Beaver: 11-15

2007-12-31T14:14:00.000-08:00

Nice Beaver: 16-20

2007-12-31T14:12:00.000-08:00

Nice Beaver: 21-25

2007-12-31T14:11:00.000-08:00

Nice Beaver: 25-30

2007-12-31T14:10:00.001-08:00

Lazy Venus

2007-04-18T07:32:00.000-07:00

This lazy venus is part of a wall sculpture that gives out on the Seine River from the Palais de Tokyo.

The skateboarders who use the Palais de Tokyo "boardwalks" were very kind and didn't run me over.

As I was drawing, from time to time I would look over at the graffitti artists who were tagging the metal fences protecting the restoration works.

Yawning Roof

2007-04-12T07:59:00.000-07:00

Parisians don't generally look up when they are in the street and it's a shame because there's some strange stuff up there on the rooftops.

This roof can be found on the corner of Marbeuf and Clément Marot in the 8th.

Général de Gaulle

2007-04-10T08:07:00.000-07:00

A statue of Charles de Gaulle found in front of the Grand Palais near the "bottom" of the Champs-Elysées.

The following is inscribed in the base of the statue:

Paris
Paris outragé
Paris brisé
Paris martyrisé
mais Paris libéré

Paris
Paris: Outraged
Paris: Shattered
Paris: Martyred
But Paris: Freed

It's much nicer in French.

Place François 1er

2007-04-03T07:01:00.000-07:00

This is a cool rooftop I noticed that looks onto Place François 1er.

It sort of reminded me of something Edward Hopper might paint...

La Seine

2007-04-02T08:59:00.000-07:00

La Seine statue not far from... La Seine (alma marceau - pont d'iéna junction) in the 8th.

Flame of Liberty

2007-03-28T06:58:00.000-07:00

The Flame of Liberty that's stationed right near Metro Alma Marceau and over the Pont d'Alma.

There are still some pictures hanging on...

Queen Astrid Square

2007-03-21T07:08:00.000-07:00

Looking towards the Eiffel Tower from the Square de la Reine Astrid (Astrid of the Belgians).

Notre Dame de Consolation

2007-03-20T07:03:00.000-07:00

From the chapel Notre Dame de Consolation (the chapel was built in loving memory for the duchess that died in a market that burned to the ground on this site)

About

2007-03-03T07:13:00.000-08:00

Who: All images on this site by Jennifer Chevais.

What: Whatever illustration strikes my fancy.

When: Whenever I've finished.

Where: In my home. Usually... Though the metro has been known to inspire me. Shocking. I know.

and

Why: For some reason, I have this burning need to do this. Ooooh how it burns.