My little family recently visited my sister and lots of old friends in Brooklyn, New York. It had been 2 years since I had walked that much (and that fast) in one day, rode the subway, strolled streets lined with row houses, got used to being warmer than usual indoors, washed dishes by hand, and went on the roof to water plants! If you don’t already know, my husband and I lived in Brooklyn (Park Slope) for a year before we had H.J. I remember leaving to move back home with renewed energy to make more time for friends. Family is awesome- especially mine- but friends are really important too. Friends in community are even more so.

Our recent Brooklyn visit reminded me of that again… spending time in Crown Heights (my sister’s hood) felt like I was in a historic jazz town from a children’s book! Folks who had lived there all their lives were sitting on stoops and laughing with others, enjoying the Spring weather. When India (my sister) passed by, they waved to her and chatted as if she’d lived there all along too. And we had a warm welcome gathering in Park Slope in a lovely and quaint backyard of friends’. Afterward, my sister and her husband quickly offered to do the dishes! By hand! There aren’t many apartments with dishwashers there, so it’s a great way to serve your friends. And that’s when you get to the really good stuff in conversation- when you’re doing the dirty dishes! Don’t know why, but its true.

I don’t know what it is about Brooklyn, but it breeds close communities. Communities of people with big dreams and big talents! That’s what I miss most about Brooklyn. Living among talented artists, designers, cooks, dancers, actors, musicians, and speakers and counting myself as one of them. When I visit, my old friends, my old community make me feel like I am still a part of it :) I’m so very thankful for that.

Ben and I have chosen to live in the South near our families for now. I’m thankful H.J. gets to spend lots of time with her grandparents! And I have free babysitters often which blesses me with precious time for my illustration endeavors. I don’t get as much community with friends here in Georgia as did in Brooklyn, but the ones I do have are precious to me.

I meet with 6 insanely awesome writers once a month! We (unofficially) call ourselves Trail Mix being as we are SO very different from each other, but we all all have the common thread of pursuing careers in children’s books. There’s laughing, tears, tough love, encouragement, and so much fun every time we meet! I would’ve never thought I would find such community with a group of writers! (Since I am more of an illustrator and all :) At the end of this month I’ll be hosting the group at my house, and I’m going to cook them dinner which is a little out of the ordinary. I guess I’m inspired to serve my little writer community!

I also happen to be a part of a very artsy family which I probably take for granted. It would stink if my whole family thought I was aloof and wanted me to be a doctor. That is definitely not the case! My family sets the artsy bar high- I am constantly being amazed!

And my neighbor is pretty cool. Brandi has shown me that it can be a whole lot of fun to be friends and neighbors! We visit over coffee at each other’s houses or yards at least once a week. And if we need a cup of sugar, we walk over and get some :)

I also live in a sweet little railroad town called Ball Ground. I hope to be a pillar here and see it grow into something really neat. A small town girl with big dreams might be important to this small town- who knows?

Conclusion: Artists need each other. Artists and non-artists need each other. Family needs each other. Maybe there’s a reason you exist in a place or in the same place as someone else. Maybe you are meant to inspire them or they to inspire you. Probably both.

So, love your community and do the dishes wherever you are.

*Note- this blog title is fitting for my blog as well as my self… This is the first post in a series of lessons I’ll learn on my career path.  And since you can never stop learning and growing in this ever-changing field, I’m sure I’ll have plenty to talk about! Man, I wish I’d thought of this sooner, but I’ll be humbly starting now, at this point in my story, which is still very much at the beginning.

We all have expectations for ourselves. I know I do, did, and will. When I graduated high school I thought I’d be at the top of my game by the time I turned 30. Now that I’m 30, I missed my mark. I’m definitely not where I thought I’d be. But it’s okay. I think I’m being taught about faith, patience, hard work, perseverance, priorities and joy. I believe with all my heart that my successes in the future will taste much sweeter after a courageous adventure!

It’s been months since the last SCBWI Southern Breeze conference I went to, but some things I heard there are still playing over and over in my head. Chad Beckerman is the creative director for Abrams Books. He’s a silly dude. I wasn’t sure if I learned much from him at the moment, but it’s his words that have stood out to me the most after leaving that weekend. He told me during my formal critique that I’ve almost got it, but not quite. In a nutshell, he preferred the work that took me the least amount of time to create. He told me to explore what was fun and immediate for me. Then, on the last day, he finished with a wonderful presentation about finding joy in creating. He disqualified the notion that artists must go through this crazy struggle to make great work. And he said (my paraphrase) that less is more when it comes to backgrounds; so don’t get too caught up in them if you don’t love making them. That’s great news! My writer friends were bored stiff, but all this seized me!

JOY in creating? Make what is immediate? Make what is EASY? To be honest, the pressure and expectations I have put on myself in recent years had taken a lot of joy from me. The instructions Chad left us with are just plain liberating! So, that’s what I’ve been focused on in my latest work, my character studies. I am finally having some fun focusing on characters. It might take me a month to struggle over one painting, but I did all my recent character drawings in 3 days! It felt so much more…. natural, immediate, easy, and fun—BINGO! I’m not saying these are perfect, but my metal detector is beeping if you get my corny drift :)

Sketches by Shanda McCloskey

I am a beautiful work in progress, and the Bible tells me so!

“But now, O Lord, you are our Father; we are the clay, and you are our potter; we are all the work of your hand.” Isaiah 64:8

HJ drew a pear :)

HJ traced my faded chicken drawing. She told me she will help me draw silly chickens when she grows up!

She drew this while I wrote this blog post :)

These two recent posts from a mentor of mine that say what I’m trying to say much better! Check out:

Ira Glass On the Secret of Sucsess: http://dulemba.blogspot.com/2013/04/ira-glass-on-secret-of-success.html
LATE BLOOMERS by Malcom Gladwell: nyr.kr/5NXYa

I’m continuing to get to know a new friend- we shared dark chocolate today. You can get right down to the nitty gritty when chocolate is involved! I told her about how I was actually timid to meet up with her again today… what if it didn’t go as well as last time? My spirit can be fragile! But I had nothing to worry about. She shared some of the road blocks she has come in contact with lately that get in the way of her goals too. She really put me at ease and encouraged me. She’s so cool.

-Shanda

I’m not sure if we could be great friends, but I want to get to know her better! She seems interesting, artsy, kind, considerate, and curious. I think she wonders about her future, her purpose, how to use her talents. We have so much in common!

Today, we met for coffee.
Tomorrow, who knows?!

I like her.
I hope she likes me too.

-Shanda

Time flies! It has almost been a month since Illustrator’s Day and Springmingle and I’m just now getting around to writing up this post. I took notes for myself and wanted to document the highlights… and the gist of the weekend.

First of all, it was extra fun because I attended with 4 other members of my super critique group! There was definitely something special about our being there together. As each one of us went into the hall for our formal critiques, the others waited in the lobby as if the one being critiqued was in surgery or something. We all came out with good feedback, yet much to work on. I had 2 critiques in a row, because I did a portfolio critique as well as my first manuscript critique! My manuscript was reviewed by Jill Corcoran, an agent with the Herman Agency. She is very straightforward, but kind. She saw a few of my illustrations too so she saw me as a whole package as someone trying to write and illustrate, and do you know what she told me…?

She said (twice by the way), “You have a future in this. Keep working at it.”

Holy cow! That was nice to hear :) It was like she said: You’re not crazy for spending countless hours following this dream. You are getting closer. She didn’t say those words, but I think that’s what she meant :) Of course that MADE my weekend! And yes, I cried when I got back to my critique group. That’s just who I am :)

It was also cool to spend some time with my illustrator buddies too! These girls (Shannon and Christina) are really down to earth and talented. We represent 3 states! We don’t see each other often, but it sure is nice to talk art when we do.

These are just two of the many amazing illustrators I have come to be friends with. I could never list them all, but each one has taught me something different! Lori Nichols, for example, has given me incredible, forehead slapping Photoshop tips and an beautiful example of a mother-of-three living this dream! The openness and honesty of Kristen Applebee, Prescott Hill, Alison Hertz, and Elizabeth Dulemba‘s journeys are dear to my heart as well. Thanks for all you do and for sharing what you know with me.

Since I was one of the first 12 to sign up for Illustrator’s Day, I was able to participate in the assignment art directed by Mark Braught! Here are some sketches and the final, although I feel it got too busy. And I prefer the cropped vignette image at the top of this post best :)

The weekend started with Illustrator’s Day (just for artists) with the silly Chad Beckerman (Abrams Creative Director), the hilariously honest Will Terry (Professional Illustrator), and the genuine, Dianne Hess (Scholastic Press Executive Editor).

Chad said that postcards are a pretty good, efficient way to send art samples to him. He also has been finding illustrators on Instagram! His big message was to get away from the idea that your work is “precious.” Because that way of thinking stifles you from changing and exploring as deeply as we need to as illustrators. Stay loose, free, full of life! Not, museum precious.

Will hit us with tons of graphs and charts about the market, reality, and moving forward. His big message was to be an illustrator entrepreneur. Do all the things we need to do to get traditionally published, there’s nothing like it, but ALSO do your own thing. That may mean apps, quality self-publishing, editorial art, other art forms, etc. To make it as an illustrator for a career, we must DO BOTH (traditional and our own thing). That was nice to hear, because I would love to try a few apps with my husband :) What if I could bring in some income from an app… what if? My dad would love this guy! He’s always telling me… “why don’t you just make your own books?”

Will’s recipe to be successful on your own:

1. Perfect your craft. Know who you are. (Working on that.)
2. Build a microphone. Blog! (Doing that right now!)
3. Develop a good idea.
4. Make a product that is amazingly _________. If you have a computer, you have a factory.
5. Tell the world. Blog, submit to review sites, etc.
6. Never quit, commit for life.

Then Springmingle heated up…
Carmen Deedy started off the weekend with a speech that made the entire audience cry! Not just me- everybody! Her words made me realize that the reason I am so passionate to do this is because I am absolutely IN LOVE with the idea of being a part of the children’s book world. Having a hand in  kids reading and imagining stories (in my time, from my head) is pretty cool. I AM in love with that idea. It’s actually very romantic :)

Then Nikki Grimes told about enjoying the process. God loves puzzles and He gives you the different pieces you’re going need at the right time. Trust.Be patient.

I loved Dianne Hess’s genuine passion for books. And Katherine Jacobs’ sweet, yet stern way about her. She knows what she wants. Katherine was very easy to talk to as well. She read “My Friend Rabbit” to us…. beautiful!

Chad ended the weekend with a presentation on Finding Your Voice… which seems to be the same as finding your joy! Whatever is immediate, easy for you, and joyful is what you should be doing. For some reason, artists think that they should struggle with their work or it isn’t good, but that isn’t true! But we must expect failure some of the time. FIND JOY IN MAKING :)

So, that is what I’m off to do!

-Shanda

Let’s face it, I’m a Georgia Peach. I like seeing trees, baby cows, and stars. I LOVE seeing the stars! But anyone who knows me well knows that a part of my heart belongs to Brooklyn, New York. I lived there with my husband and dog for a short year. What I miss the most is being in close proximity to other artists at every moment of every day. You breath it in. You eat it. You live it. Art seeps in.

I grew an admiration for graffiti there (especially in SoHo). It was more beautiful, skilled, and humorous than anything I’d seen in Atlanta. I thought about who those artists were. When did they create these masterpieces so no one would see them doing it? How did they get up there? Did they live these intense underground artist lives? Or were they just normal like me, and secret about it?

With that being said, its easy to see why I had the urge to illustrate a chicken writing graffiti, right? A clashing of my worlds :) I even wrote a story with this idea. It’s a work-in-progress still. But I wanted to share this illustration with you, because I think I’m headed in a decent direction with it. I would do several things differently on the next one, but I learned a lot from this. Here are my thoughts through it’s development…

Every illustration starts off with a little research and play!

Then I sketch out my ideas. I did several before I finally decided on this sort of composition. I liked the trapped/caught moment and how it lets the graffiti play a large part of the picture.

I had a work day and just wanted to work on the chicken character by itself. Here is my first draft. This chicken looks like a boy, and I didn’t like that. I wanted her to have a little artsy personality, so I added the bandana. All my chickens rock them.

Then I did a lot of web research on writing graffiti. I learned about throw-up (quick bubble lettering), block buster (blocky lettering), and wild style (almost illegible/abstract lettering), and the best paint to use. I found Montana Gold spray paint easily at Dick Blick. It was pricey! But SO good. I tried my own (totally legal) below…

So then I took a photo and tried to combine this and my chicken character. The result was un-unified. They just didn’t mesh together (probably because I lack many Photoshop skills), and it also didn’t feel kid friendly to me…

I researched and found some lettering that inspired me more on a kid level.

I looked at Loren Long’s “Otis” for how he used muted colors for the backgrounds and black outlines throughout. He is also painterly, which I tend to admire.

I painted a whole new background with brushes (instead of spray cans) for control.

Too bright! So I took away the color and liked it better.

Then I worked on my chicken character again… Better, but still too bright. I like the primary color palette.

Then I worked on piecing everything together digitally. I don’t care for that so much. I still feel that there is some disconnect in the picture (again, probably because I need to brush up on Photoshop skills). And lots of staring, thinking, tweaking, playing, changing, trying, undoing, muting colors…

And finally… Voila!

Hope you enjoyed this post- the good, the bad, and the ugly :) -Shanda

I happened upon The Princess and the Pig by Jonathan Emmett and Poly Bernatene (published by Walker and Company, a division of Bloomsbury. Originally published in Great Britain by Macmillan 2011) at my local bookstore. I was browsing for some inspiration and I found some with this book! I was so impressed by this very strong story paired with these very strong illustrations… Together they made MAGIC for me! (That’s the sweet spot all of us illustrators and writers strive for).

This is a story of switched fates blamed on good AND bad fairies (although there are no fairies in this book at all). As events unfold, the characters come to conclusions based on books like Sleeping Beauty, Thumbelina, The Prince and the Pauper, The Frog Prince, and Puss in Boots. This book is funny and serious with a large theme of fate and things working out for the better even if by accident or not.

This book (which is now on my favorites list) is unusually long for a modern picture book. I only noticed because I counted about 800-900 words. But I wouldn’t have noticed otherwise. It flows so seamlessly with perfect exciting pace, and didn’t once feel long. With that being said, my 2-year-old got antsy, but I was glued! The length and the humor is probably best for 4-5 year-olds.

I like to compare stories I like to the “picture book structure guidelines” I learned from a webinar instructed by literary agent, Mary Kole. These guidelines seem strict to me, but more often than not, I see that she is usually correct. This story doesn’t follow her formula perfectly until spreads 9-11 where the stakes rise, then climax at spread 12, and spreads 13 and 14 are the resolution pages. This book also is dead on with Mary’s statement that a picture book is usually 14.5 spreads.

So, as you can see, I just had to add this book to my collection! This is a great find and a great book!

My baby is my muse. Here’s some practice I did of her profile. Kids are so hard! Their faces are teeny and this ended up looking nothing like my particular kid… Maybe the overall shape might be close, but the face looks too old. Kids are tough to draw. But I really enjoyed charcoal pencils after a long time of not having any. My daughter added the abstract shapes and color around figure- she’s brilliant!

Well this is a good time to update you on what I’m currently working on. I’m proud that I have a manuscript written. It’s still too long and lacking something, so I’ve signed up for a formal manuscript critique at SCBWI Southern Breeze Spring Mingle (February 20-something). This should be interesting. It’s my first time doing this, so I’m just hoping I don’t get too discouraged by the feedback. I’m an artist who is wondering if she has a CHANCE of being able to write too. We’ll just have to see!

For Illustrator’s Day (which is now attached to Spring Mingle), I’ll be working on an illustration with guidance from Mark Braught. It’s sort-of a how you see yourself kind of assignment. Still thinking about this one, but I’ll try to show my progress as I go, like I did last year. Let’s hope it’s awesome enough to put on a postcard to send out to editors and art directors:) I’m really trying to figure out who I am as an illustrator. I feel like this year is going to be a very important year of my figuring some of that out… maybe :)

Well, that’s it for now! Have a great week.
-Shanda

Hello! It’s a new year, and I was glad to have a project to do right away to get me warmed up to illustrating and writing in 2013! I’m excited for this new year, wondering what surprises (and hopefully lovely surprises) this year may have in store for me and my family. As I reflected on the past year, I am so very proud to be a part of the SCBWI community, my local SCBWI chapter: Southern Breeze, and my amazing, wonderful, how did I ever live without, local critique group of 7 incredibly creative folks!

So when I was asked by Southern Breeze to create a postcard for the published (PAL) members of our chapter I of course said yes! A chance to give back to one of the coolest things I’ve ever been a part of!

This postcard is for sending and handing out to schools and libraries in Alabama, Georgia, and Mississippi. Basically, it’s a quick list of the published authors and illustrators living locally that are available to come speak to kids about reading, writing, and illustrating books. This list includes picture book authors/illustrators, middle grade authors/illustrators, and young adult novelists. And not ALL of them out there are on this postcard. More can be found at SCBWI.org then click on Find A Speaker. If you are a teacher, media specialist, or parent, please consider organizing a visit from a local published author or illustrator. I would have really benefited from a visit like this when I was in school. For most of my life, I assumed successful illustrators only lived in New York City or something – but that is NOT the case!

Until asked to design this postcard I didn’t realize Southern Breeze produced a promotion like this to reach out to schools and libraries. I think it’s amazing, and it just impressed me that much more!

Happy New Year, y’all! May it be filled with creativity and joy!

-Shanda

P.S.) After I created this postcard and sent it in, I realized that the young illustration may not be the best type of image to encompass all the different children’s genres. It’s okay for picture book folks and decent for some young middle grade/early chapter bookers, but I might have missed the boat on representing books for older children. And for that, I apologize. No one said anything to me to make me think this. It’s an observation of my own. Hey, I’m still learning :) If asked to do this project another year, I will definitely approach it with a more all-encompassing image. I DO hope I get to asked to do more stuff like this. I really enjoyed it!