As 2015 comes to a close and finally the snow has fallen here in Maine, here's a chance to win a bundle of fairy goodies to celebrate the publication of my newest book Where Do Fairies Go When It Snows? written by Maine author, Liza Gardner Walsh and published by Maine's Down East Books.
Read moreTo breath, or not to breath ....
Not literally you understand. I have come to a pause in between finishing books and starting the next. So what I really mean is a breathing space. So decisions, decisions? Shall I plunge straight into the next dummy I want to work on? Or not? If I was an actor I would, I suppose, call it resting. Thing is, I am not very good at resting.
Case in point (or is it point in case?) today, after completing the cover for lovely author in Canada (see pics from the book below) I figured I could sit down and read a book and put my feet up. OR. I could take advantage of this peculiar weather (54F and snow melted) and clear up the garden, which I never did get around to previous. So of course I cleaned up the garden. Then made some bread and a fish pie. Never did read the book.
Anyway, enough prattle, here are a couple of the illustrations from 'A Crazy Day' by Margy Robertson Reid ... I do like the dog in the cart :-)
The search for a lovely agent continues ... I will come to rest somewhere or other I expect, eventually. So back to submitting ...
I DID manage to leave the house this weekend. Me and 'im indoors attended the local Christmas Concert and it was v. nice. I always like a good carol concert. (Mainly because I can have a sing, which no doubt I enjoy too much and my neighbours do not). And the best thing was - home made cakes afterwards. Huzzah! (Note to self: get on the so-called exercise bike.)
I took my sketchbook too ....
Always fun to draw people when they aren't looking ;-) so watch out.
Oh and if you happen to be in Bangor, Maine (or are passing through ... yeah, right!) I have a display of illustrations in the Children's Discovery Museum, downtown. So that's fun! They will be there until January.
Tomorrow I am going to be stuck into working on a piece for the Tomi de Paolo award, for the SCBWI winter conference in NY. The 1st prize is all expenses paid trip there ... lummy, that would be nice! It is based on Heidi. Trouble is I have to have it finished for midnight on Wednesday. Gulp. So I had better get cracking. I had every good intention of getting this done in November, but life got in the way. I know, I know, always with the excuses.
I hope you are all ready for Chrimbo. I confess, I am not. It is just me and 'im indoors on Christmas Day (by choice and with all dogs/cat in attendance). I will watch the Queen, (courtesy of my VPN link), even though I will have her with brekky and not after lunch when everyone is a bit pissed up and you fall asleep before Lizzy II has had time to finish telling which of her myriad offspring are getting married/divorced/other. Still, it's the thought that counts.
With that I WILL take that deep breath ....
Toodles!
Hazel
aka The Wacky Brit.
On the bedside table ... NOTHING NEW!!!!!!! I am slipping ... but forgive me have been working like the proverbial dog.
Case in point (or is it point in case?) today, after completing the cover for lovely author in Canada (see pics from the book below) I figured I could sit down and read a book and put my feet up. OR. I could take advantage of this peculiar weather (54F and snow melted) and clear up the garden, which I never did get around to previous. So of course I cleaned up the garden. Then made some bread and a fish pie. Never did read the book.
Anyway, enough prattle, here are a couple of the illustrations from 'A Crazy Day' by Margy Robertson Reid ... I do like the dog in the cart :-)
The search for a lovely agent continues ... I will come to rest somewhere or other I expect, eventually. So back to submitting ...
I DID manage to leave the house this weekend. Me and 'im indoors attended the local Christmas Concert and it was v. nice. I always like a good carol concert. (Mainly because I can have a sing, which no doubt I enjoy too much and my neighbours do not). And the best thing was - home made cakes afterwards. Huzzah! (Note to self: get on the so-called exercise bike.)
I took my sketchbook too ....
Always fun to draw people when they aren't looking ;-) so watch out.
Oh and if you happen to be in Bangor, Maine (or are passing through ... yeah, right!) I have a display of illustrations in the Children's Discovery Museum, downtown. So that's fun! They will be there until January.
Tomorrow I am going to be stuck into working on a piece for the Tomi de Paolo award, for the SCBWI winter conference in NY. The 1st prize is all expenses paid trip there ... lummy, that would be nice! It is based on Heidi. Trouble is I have to have it finished for midnight on Wednesday. Gulp. So I had better get cracking. I had every good intention of getting this done in November, but life got in the way. I know, I know, always with the excuses.
I hope you are all ready for Chrimbo. I confess, I am not. It is just me and 'im indoors on Christmas Day (by choice and with all dogs/cat in attendance). I will watch the Queen, (courtesy of my VPN link), even though I will have her with brekky and not after lunch when everyone is a bit pissed up and you fall asleep before Lizzy II has had time to finish telling which of her myriad offspring are getting married/divorced/other. Still, it's the thought that counts.
With that I WILL take that deep breath ....
Toodles!
Hazel
aka The Wacky Brit.
On the bedside table ... NOTHING NEW!!!!!!! I am slipping ... but forgive me have been working like the proverbial dog.
Book Out, Book In
Nice feeling this week - finals finished for the book I have been working on for Free Spirit Publishing. And signed a contract with Charlesbridge Publishing of Boston. Neither of which I can talk about yet .. soon I hope! If this continues as a pattern it would be very nice (please Santa!)
Snow has come in earnest to our neck of the woods and it is falling soft and thick this morning. Wood fire is crackling, kettle boiling and 'im indoors has a snow day, so is snoozing in the recliner in my studio with the cock-a-poo, Sprout, snoring in his lap. Hopefully he will rouse himself and make brekky soon.
Been working mostly this week on two different projects ... 'Crazy Days' for Margy Robertson Reid in Canada (about a little boy whose world goes topsy-turvy.) And also the 3rd revision of my current wannabe PB about a girl and her horse. It seems to have been taking me forever. The truth is, this book is very personal to me, and I have found it's bringing back a lot of memories, some of them very emotional. It's my first story that is not humour based. Here's another of the roughs. Setting myself the goal to have this dummy ready in the next couple of days.
Hazel
Snow has come in earnest to our neck of the woods and it is falling soft and thick this morning. Wood fire is crackling, kettle boiling and 'im indoors has a snow day, so is snoozing in the recliner in my studio with the cock-a-poo, Sprout, snoring in his lap. Hopefully he will rouse himself and make brekky soon.
Been working mostly this week on two different projects ... 'Crazy Days' for Margy Robertson Reid in Canada (about a little boy whose world goes topsy-turvy.) And also the 3rd revision of my current wannabe PB about a girl and her horse. It seems to have been taking me forever. The truth is, this book is very personal to me, and I have found it's bringing back a lot of memories, some of them very emotional. It's my first story that is not humour based. Here's another of the roughs. Setting myself the goal to have this dummy ready in the next couple of days.
Doing something different helps to get the creative juices flowing. I haven't had time (or energy) for sketching much this week, but on the way home from getting art supplies on Saturday (hot press pad of paper, Derwent sketching pencils - reminder to self: do not trust that the right pencils are in the right slots - sigh - and waterproof ink), we called in at a museum we have been meaning to visit for a long time, the LC Bates Museum, near Waterville. It was fab! But it was COLD!! No heating and an old building. But packed with great stuff. It is a natural history museum, with very old collections. Birds and animals that would never be collected now. Row upon row of ancient display cases, dim lighting, old, spooky rooms. I could have spent all day there. As it was we managed an hour and then flew back to the car teeth chattering. I will def. go back in summer though, with camera and sketch pad.
And now I must get back to doing some work ....
My thought for winter, when we are cut off, or so it feels with snow and such, is : stay connected. So leave me a comment and let's keep in touch!
Thinking of hot chilli for lunch ....
Toodles!
Hazel
aka The Wacky Brit
On the bedside table:
JIMI - Gary Golio and Javaka Steptoe