He's Here!

The Ice Dragon has arrived and visitors are reading the tale. He may be the biggest bully in my stories so far but he is no match for a clever Garden Pixie.

I have more stories in mind than there is time to write and illustrate. Unfortunately, I need to create other types of content to keep the site varied and interesting.

I recently published 40 pages of Opposites for young children and and I hope to have an iPhone/iPod Touch App to announce in a few days.

Stay tuned. It's going to be a busy year.

Coming soon: The Ice Dragon

Opportunities for taking "snow pictures" in southwestern Indiana are rare and can't be ignored. The winters are generally mild, producing only a few days of snow. When snow does blanket our garden, I am eager to see how the familiar has become fascinating. I grab my camera and go exploring.

This year, I was captivated by dried Oak Leaf Hydrangea flowers, pictured above. Last year, an ice storm devastated the Ohio Valley and left our trees and shrubs looking like broken and distorted crystal chandeliers. It was awful and it was beautiful. Amazingly photogenic.

I was inspired by these images to write a Garden Pixie story that takes place in winter. It will be ready another week or so. You will like the images. Your children will like the story.

Just For Fun

In the new Pigmoose story, children visiting the Zoo learn about Protective Coloration. Pigmoose overhears and puts his new knowledge to use for our amusement. Learning something new is fun for children, adults, and Pigmooses.

When I finished writing and illustrating this story, I made up a short “game” to explain three different ways Protective Coloration helps animals survive. It’s a simple activity, but interactive and intriguing.

It gives children and their parents or teachers a quick opportunity to figure out answers together. No pressure. Not too much information. A learning moment to be enjoyed just for fun.

Pigmoose Returns!

Now that Red Wrinkler and His Rowdy Cousins has been added to our Beantime Stories collection, I'm working on a new Pigmoose tale.

"It's long overdue," Susan reminded me. The last Pigmoose story was written in 2003!

This time,the Striped and Spotted Purple Pigmoose will learn about Protective Coloration and will try to use it to his own advantage. You might be able to spot him hiding behind the Jacaranda tree in the illustration above. I can't say much more today, but this interactive story will have a little science and a lot of humor. Watch for it in August.

Gotta Dance!

Clipper and Shredder are hard workers, but they do have a lighter side. Sometimes they have to do silly dances. Red Wrinkler and His Rowdy Cousins is coming along nicely.

My process for this story may be a little unconventional. I'm making up the story, creating illustrations, editing and rewriting, all at the same time. I usually write a rough draft and draw simple sketches to work out a story. These Garden Pixie stories depend so heavily on photos from our garden, that I often have to look for a photographic "setting" and then draw the characters in appropriate poses to lay on top.

I am building the html pages at the same time. So, when I complete the last illustration and its accompanying text, I will also finish the last Web page. Then I'll go through and edit text and art as needed to make everything look and sound just right.

What, More Garden Pixies?

I'm working on a second Garden Pixies story and I thought you might enjoy a little behind-the-scenes reporting. This time you will meet Red Wrinkler and his Rowdy Cousins. I won't give away the plot yet (it's still evolving, anyway), but these are the guys who dispose of withering and dead flowers in the Spring and Summer and all the colorful leaves in the Fall. They're rough and tumble pixies who sometimes get into trouble. The photo/illustration above shows them hard at work taking an old Tulip apart. More to come in a few days.

Planting the Trees of Kenya

Evansville, Indiana, librarians and a few invited guests got together recently for a “Mock Caldecott” event. I filled in for Susan who could not attend. The purpose of the event was to meet days before the Caldecott Medal winner was announced, review likely candidates for the 2009 Medal, pick our favorites, and see if we picked the books that eventually won the Medal and runner up Caldecott Citations.

The Caldecott Medal is awarded annually by the Association for Library Service to Children, a division of the American Library Association. The award goes to the artist of the most distinguished picture book published that year.

We examined dozens of books and agreed on a handful of favorites. No, we didn’t pick the eventual Medal winner, a striking book illustrated by Beth Krommes called The House in the Night.

One of my favorites was a book written and illustrated by Claire A. Nivola, called Planting the Trees of Kenya: The Story of Wangari Maathai.

I loved the illustrations right away because I enjoy highly detailed images and excellent design, but the story really got to me. It’s the true story of an intelligent, dedicated, and courageous woman who accomplished so much for her people and the environment that she was awarded a Nobel Prize for Peace in 2004.

A radio interview with Wangari Maathai was broadcast this morning on public radio. A podcast of the interview is available on iTunes. Search for Speaking of Faith from American Public Media. The release date was April 30. Speaking of Faith also prepared an interesting Web site about Wangari Maathai.

Susan and I were so taken by this inspiring story that we read the book to two of our grandchildren’s grade school classes. They seemed to enjoy it. You will like it, too.