| |
  
The
first thing I do is to read the manuscript of the story.
I
read it over and over again.
I
spend a lot of time thinking about the story,
usually
when I'm folding laundry
or
walking the dog
or
driving carpool.

Sometimes
I draw character studies.
These
help me remember what all the kids look like and what they're
wearing.
My
daughter Alice gets to name them (unless they already have
names, of course.)

These
are the kids in "Frosty the Snowman"

Here'
s a picture of me working on the final paintings for Frosty.
Alice
is holding the character study page
and
telling me what colors to paint the kids' clothes.
Guess
where we are?
On
vacation in the Virgin Islands.
People
there thought it was very funny that I was painting snow
scenes in a tropical
paradise.

I
did these drawings to figure out what
the little witch Pandora and her teacher, Ms. Broomstick,
would
look like.

Next
I might do a bunch of scribbly sketches of scenes or
situations
that I think might work for the story.
Some
end up in the book, some don't.

Here's
a page from my sketchbook showing
some ideas of the things Frosty the snowman might do with
his friends.

Next
I draw tiny pictures, called thumbnails, which
show roughly what happens on each page of the book.
Each
of these little rectangles shows two pages, called a spread.

These
thumbnails are for "Ms. Broomstick's School for Witches."
Not
all of the spreads for the book are here, for some reason,
but you get the idea.

Next
I do a better sketch for each spread.
This
one is "tighter" -- as opposed to the rough, scribbly,
loose thumbnail sketches -- and
drawn to the exact size of the book's pages.
I
have to leave room on each page for the words!
I
usually paste in a photocopy of the type to make sure I've
gotten it right.
These
sketches are what I send to the publisher.
The
editor and the art director look at the sketches.
They
know that the picture I paint for the book will follow this
sketch.
Sometimes
they ask me to make changes in the sketch, sometimes not.

This
is a sketch for one of the spreads in "Ms. Broomstick."
Look
at the printed page below and see if you think the finished
picture looks like the sketch.
One
thing I know I added after the sketch -- little faces on the
brooms!


Sometimes
I do a practice painting, or study,
to
work out the colors and painting style I'll use for the finished
pictures.

Here's
my study for the cover of "Ms. Broomstick."
You
can see that I didn't put in all the details, or even paint
very carefully.
(Check
out Pandora's goofy-looking face, for example.)
Since
this is just practice, I don't need to make it perfect!
See
how the study compares to the finished painting below,
and
then to the actual printed book cover.

For
the final paintings, I
use watercolor paints and paint on fine paper made especially
for watercolor.
You
can see a picture of my palette of paints in the My
Studio section.
I
use wonderful brushes with lovely fine points.
Nobody
else in the house is allowed to use any of this stuff.
It's
expensive! And it's mine, mine, mine.
(I
make sure there are plenty of other art supplies available
for the other artists who live with me.)

And
here's the real cover of the book, with all the type in place!


|
|