our text

click through to two hidden image pages

"Orchids" 6" x 8" computer colored graphite sketch

"Orchids" click to show - graphite drawing
colored & isolated
in Photoshop

Mo Willems

weekly format

This was originally designed to be a single Children's Book Writing & Illustrating Class. They were divided into two classes for those people who might want one and not the other.

Both classes share the same class structure a combination seminar/workshop to maximize your return in our limited time. This is a career building class, not just an informational or project class. Therefore: Homework is crucial. What we each get out of the class is directly proportional to how well we complete out-of-class work. A major part of the benefit of these classes is shared research: the books we choose to share and review, the original ideas we bring to explore, and the process we develop along the way, as well as benefits derived from direct publisher research and contact. For each publisher there are specific guidelines for submitting work. What I hope you all will take with you from this class is a process to apply to your project of: writing illustrating, editing, perfecting and finally acquiring acceptance by a publisher, and getting your book produced. These two classes have shared goals and develop along parallel lines arriving finally at the same point with a published book. Good luck to all of us.

Children's Magazines are voracious consumers of children's Book Illustrations. A common image/article is find the hidden image. Highlights is a good example.

Images are a big part of children's books, whether written or drawn, they paint the pictures we see when we read the books and influence how the story is accepted or remembered. Whether we choose picture book or story book, the job of the illustrator is integral. Remember that we are telling two stories, one with words and word pictures and one with actual pictures, designed to stand alone apart from the writing to convey almost the same story as the words, but designed to augment and enhance the experience of the word pictures. Neither should be dominant, as far as we are able to control such things.

SUZIE KABLOOZIE
Suzie and her cat Feff (both voiced by the irrepressible Ruth Buzzi) have been regular inserts for Sesame Street since 1994 (Written & animated by Mo)

Every week we will follow the same format. We will look at the homework, discuss class samples, draw in class, discuss next week's homework and end the class with a critique tag game.