borrow

A happy accident in pencils, cardboard backing 

and color palette experiments

is my latest submission to the May SCBWI Insight's prompt word "borrow."

Don't you love getting to borrow from all the delicious books waiting in the library?

Here's a question for my creative friends -  do you ever work with prompts?

I am stretched when I work on art for Birdy's sight word cards.
I try to think of all the ways a simple word speaks to me,
looking for the story behind it.

Online resources such as SCBWI Insight drawing challenges
or Colour Collective's weekly color prompts are a fantastic springboard
for experimentation. And online challenges are abundant, once one starts looking.
 

  How do you stretch yourself? 

Do you write from prompts?

Do you ever coax words out left-handed, if you're a righty?

Sketch with eyes closed, if you're an artist?

How do you dig deeper for inspiration?

My brother, illustrator Jesse Joshua Watson continually inspires me,
He paints jaw-dropping wonder on reclaimed wood, old surfboards, drums, plywood.

Beauteous.

Some of our borrowed library treasures this week:

The Night Gardener - Terry and Eric Fan
Roar Like a Lion - by Tae-Eun Yoo
A Rock is Lively - Diane Hutts Aston, ill. by Sylvia Long
The Bear and the Piano - by David Lichtenfeld
Pax by Sara Pennypacker, ill. by Jon Klassen
Tiny Creatures : the world of microbes by Nicola Davies, ill. by Emily Sutton 
The Adventurers by Rachel Elliot, ill. by Valeria Docampo

Dream Animals - by Emily Winfield Martin

What does BORROW bring to mind?

SAM and JUMP

Today the wildebeests and I traveled to Eagle Harbor Book Company for a book party.

Jennifer K. Mann's book SAM and JUMP is freshly out in bookstores, 

so we hopped over for the book birthday celebration.

So many delicious new books. Drool!

Jennifer Mann read from her book SAM and JUMP, 

which is a poignant story about loss, discovery, and friendship.

And then Jen shared stories of loveys lost and found. 

 The wildebeests brought up a book to be signed and loveys to show. 

 Jennifer is so engaging and gentle with all of her fans, even the small ones.

 Here's a picture of Jennifer with local authors Margaret Nevinski and Dawn Simon.

I'm so thankful I have Dawn as my critique partner. 

Her exuberance and wit are such a delight, 

and her writing critiques brilliant.

 What a treat to live near talented and gracious authors and illustrators.

What a treat to celebrate SAM and JUMP!

3000 chairs

Because... of this poem by Children's Author Nicola Davies, and the #3000chairs project.
It's worth every second it takes to read.

My husband and I had the opportunity to spend time in Kosovo with war survivors - refugees who returned to their homes carrying life-wrenching scars of war, with stories that ached in the hearing, and burned in the telling.

I wish a chair for every child running from war.
I wish refuge.
and hope.
and light.