Uri Shulevitz’s Writing With Pictures: How to Write and Illustrate Children’s Books has long been respected as the bible of how-to’s for picturebooks – and now thanks to the Mighty Art Demos you can read some of that tome online… namely How to Make a Storyboard.
This makes for essential reading – even if you can’t draw to save your life!
(found via the folks at FPI)
Moviefone has some suggested titles for Hollywood book adaptations – including In The Night Kitchen, Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret and Anastasia Krupnik.
Blume’s book has a solid status in the annals of popular culture: ‘Margaret’ has inspired everything from a ‘South Park’ episode to rock song titles to, most recently, Chelsea Handler’s 2008 best-seller ‘Are You There Vodka? It’s Me, Chelsea.’ With that kind of following, a movie version of ‘Margaret’ is nearly guaranteed to go gangbusters at the box office.
I’d love to see a film of Under The Hawthorn Tree. Or even a screen adaptation of Mr Gum – now that would be fun!
Any suggestions for books that should make it to the silver screen?
This is one not to be missed – The Summer Edition – Artists’ Book, Comic and Zine Fair – are taking over Filmbase (Temple Bar, Dublin) on Saturday 24 July (tomorrow) .
Covering all sorts (UK and Ireland) with artists, book folk, illustrators, comic artists and zine-makers showcasing and parading their wares.
It’s Shirley Hughes. Talking about her new book and more:
The Wally Wood 22 Panels That Always Work has been bouncing around for a while – but I’ve never seen it in in live action before:
Ever fancied yourself as the next Quentin Blake? Or Lauren Child? Oliver Jeffers maybe? How about Dave McKean, Raymond Briggs, Emily Gravett or Sarah McIntyre? Well… who ever has inspired the urge to scribble this may be just the kick you need:
The course, according to those that know, is aimed at aspiring, beginners or emerging children’s writers and illustrators. An ability with at least one colour medium is important. (That rules me out) By the end of the course you should have created a picturebook dummy & manuscript ready for submission to prospective publishers.
The Observer/Cape Graphic Short Story Prize is back – and has fast wangled its way in as one of the more interesting prizes every year. (The prize is celebrating its fourth birthday)
Fancy putting yourself in the running for £1000, a story in print and as much media coverage as you can shake a stick at? This is probably a good place to start then!
The judges will be some hard nuts to break this year with Audrey Niffenegger, David Hughes, Rachel Cooke, Dan Franklin, Paul Gravett and Suzanne Dean all casting their critical eyes over each entry.
You can check out the winners from previous years – here and here.
Deadline for entries is 6th October 2010. Not to be missed!
The Gallery Zozimus on Francis St in Dublin is opening its doors tonight to welcome the dreamboat laureate – chaperoned by illustrator Annie West – and Irish Times Artoon illustrator and poet Tom Mathews.
The exhibition of illustration will open today at 6pm (SHARP) and will be presided over by author, broadcaster and impresario Charlie Connelly.
Unlike many art exhibition openings , this will be a bit different as there will be no mention whatever of the “parallel abstraction of shape and form whilst manoeuvring between the conflict and tension of light and shadow in the emotional chaos of the unconscious symbolism”. Delight the eye and treat yourself to a piece of really fine art that will make you laugh today and tomorrow.
Those genius folks over at the small print blog have uploaded Chris Haughton’s talk from Offset last November.
Chris is a great illustrator who has his first book out in Ireland/UK and beyond later this year – of course Chris has got all sorts of other credentials but really a career is only as good as the latest cute owl that you’ve drawn.
Chris Haughton – OFFSET 2009 from OFFSET on Vimeo.
A bit late to this – but Quentin Blake needs your help. The legendary illustrator is hoping to open the House of Illustration by the end of 2012 – but needs to raise a whopping £6.5m to get the show on the road.
The House will be primarily for education – and not a home for collections of illustration – though there is a proposed dedicated exhibition area. The plans include space for talks and classes as well as a permanent display free to the public.
£65 million does sound like a lot but the majority of the dosh is ear marked for buying and renovating a building next to the new Central St Martins College of Art – as well as being bang in the middle of King’s Cross development with plenty of galleries, theatres and concert halls in works.
Curious to know more? Click to have a look see.
The Guardian has a look inside the heads of Margret and HA Rey – and their cheeky monkey, Curious George:
This weeks Book with a View features Belgian illustrator and author Kitty Crowther – winner of the Astrid Lindgren memorial award.
More at scamp.ie
The Guardian have a great audio slideshow with Eric Hill to celebrate Spot the Dog’s 30th birthday. Have a look at how he draws Spot – and talks about how he ended up writing/drawing books.
/as seen on scamp.ie
Raymond Briggs gets a look in on scamp.ie today – I got lost somewhere in the middle of reading Gentleman Jim and nearly forgot to write about him!
More on scamp.ie
Oliver Jeffers – the inimitable creator of some very brilliant picturebooks (and one book-eating pop-up) is set to take over the world in 2012.
Following the release of his current title The Heart and the Bottle, and another picturebook later this year (featuring boy and penguin from Lost and Found) – Oliver has just signed a whopping deal with HarperCollins to release a 4 book series based on the Hueys (a group of quirky creatures with a left of-centre humour).
The Hueys will launch in 2012 and be supported by a high impact, multiplatform marketing campaign targeting parents and their children alongside a high profile PR campaign that will include two visits per year by Oliver to his creative home in the UK from his current base in New York.
Shirley Hughes has chosen her top 10 picture book character – with a short, but very concise, introduction to picturebooks and why they are important:
With picture books small children can see themselves as readers long before they have learned to decipher the text. They turn the pages with relish, exploring the plot through the illustrations with tremendous concentration. They are learning how to look, rather than being passively overwhelmed by fast moving electronic imagery. Little wonder then, that the great heroes and heroines of picture books are among the world’s best remembered fictional characters
Fungus is up there on top of Hughes’ list (he’s a bogeyman). Ginger cat, Olivia pig and that VERY hungry caterpillar are named too. With Babar, the Moomins and Captain Haddock all pulling up the rear.
But where is Spot? Pigeon? Curious George? Madeline? Horton? Lyle Crocodile? Maisy? Max and the Wild Things? Or Peter Rabbit?
Can I hear some votes? Who is the interwebs’ favourite character?
The shortlist for this years British Press Awards 2009 have been announced -and in amognst the ‘Scoop of the Year’ and ‘Political Journalist of the Year’ is the all-important – Cartoonist of the Year.
And at the top of the list? Chris Riddell! Yup, the man behind The Edge Chronicles, Ottoline, Wendel’s Workshop, Barnaby Grimes and Pirate Diary is the political cartoonist for The Observer too.
Cartoonist of the Year
Chris Riddell, Observer
David Brown, The Independent
Matt Pritchett, Daily Telegraph
Michael Heath, The Mail on Sunday
Peter Schrank, The Independent on Sunday
Stanley McMurtry, Daily Mail
Steve Bell, The Guardian
These fingers are firmly crossed. (It doesn’t make typing too difficult…)
This weeks Book with a View is Chris Wormell:
Visit scamp.ie to read more from me and the other scamp-ites. Or is it scampies? Or simply scamps?
I cheated a little for this weeks Book with a View… The Guardian featured the work of Michael Foreman yesterday and I pilfered the pics and links.
I’m really enjoying the series – looking at books/authors I haven’t read for a long time (in some cases at all!)
Check out scamp.ie for more.
It has been a long time since I’ve read a book by Judith Kerr. At least it was until last week.
***
Plenty more on scamp.ie
This weeks book with a view is another of illustrator working in Ireland – Marie-Louise Fitzpatrick.
Check out scamp.ie for more.
Plenty to catch up on: starting in the opinion desk at the Irish Times: The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more you learn, the more places you’ll go. — Dr Seuss, from I Can Read With My Eyes Shut!
Ryan Tubridy says the same thing – only different – while calling for an end to tampering with classic children’s books (Enid Blyton) to make them politically correct.
And speaking of tampering and things not sounding quite right. Evan Maloney demands protagonists stop being phony – asking do narrators get lost in translation?
Waterstones lost their way after recommending Sawbones for readers 8+ – the bookseller has been getiting a lashing for the misguided age recommendation.
Elsewhere – Eric Carle’s Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See sees the wrong side of a book ban from the Texas state board of education (who removed it from a list of approved books for schools after confusing the author Bill Martin Jnr with a different Bill Martin).
On the topic of learned folk – do you fancy studying comics? Maybe blogs? The University of Cambridge opened their Centre for Children’s Literature last week.
From the world of reviews – Joanna Carey meets Inga Moore – and talks illustration, life and the Wind in the Willows.
Patrick Ness reads some of Paul Murray’s Skippy Dies and Amanda Craig digs around in the Percy Jackson sand pit – but doesn’t sound too convinced:
By narrating his story in the first person, the engaging 12-year-old Percy limits his potential audience to present-day children and teenagers. Rowling was always careful to show us only what Harry saw and felt, but the flatness of her prose allowed adults, and children, to put themselves in his place.
Percy’s increasingly dangerous quests and puzzles, though satisfying to children, lacked the plotting genius that Rowling brought — and the intellectual rigour of Philip Pullman. – Amanda Craig
Publishers Weekly review listing – including a review of Stephen Emond Little’s Happyface.
And in movies – The Irish Independent reviews Where the Wild Things Are | Wendy Ide reviews Astro Boy | Paul McKenzie reviews The Princess and the Frog
UPDATE:
A few I forgot to include – including Eoin Purcell’s Sunday Times column on books, going digital and how many books Eoin actually read in 2009.
The New York Times Children’s Books List – check out Mary Pope Osborne and Sal Murdocca’s Magic Tree House – on the list for 216 weeks!
David Drummond defends Google – We at Google could make that wealth of knowledge available at a click. And authors would earn too
Bob Dylan inspires a children’s book – Man Gave Names to All the Animals – illustrated by Jim Arnosky.
The Texaco Children’s Art Competition is 56 this year. 56! Who knew?
The competition is now seeking their 56th champion in 7 different categories – including young adult and children from every possible age group. You would need to be getting your easel out soon – the deadline is February 26!
As if the competition wasn’t enough – the folks at Texaco have come up with the Texaco Children’s Art Collection. (A cross section of award-winning pieces of art from the last seven years with new pieces being added each year with new winners – and the Collection is sent around the country for public consumption in galleries and museums throughout the the year)
Just read about The Picture Book Report (thanks to BrenB)
Fifteen illustrators creating a new scene from their favorite books – one per day for three weeks! Go have a look – excited to see what books are chosen, and the different takes on each one.
This weeks book with a view is one of my favourite illustrators working Ireland – Mr Alan Clarke.
Check out scamp.ie for more.
Scottish illustrator Nick Dewar died yesterday.
Probably most recognised for cover art – The Devil Wears Prada. I came a cross him after his name was mentioned at Offset – and reading the Design*Sponge piece.
Check out his work – and pay a visit to the shameless commerce division of the site.
Sticking with the Irish Times – Pamela Duncan has an interesting analysis of Irish animation – after the gongs. Some interesting interviewees – including Cathal Gaffney from Brown Bag Film (those folks behind Granny O’Grimm and Niamh Sharkey’s Happy Hugglewug adaptation) and Paul Young from Cartoon Saloon (brilliant book illustrators and Secret of Kells collaborators)
aside from earning plaudits, the Irish animation sector is also earning its keep. Dubbed the “star performer” of the film and TV industry in this year’s report of the Audiovisual Federation, the sector’s total output reached €38.9 million in 2008, with €43 million estimated for 2009.
Oliver Jeffers.
He can tell you better in his own words:
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